Chapter 58: Team Expedition Out to Sea

Chapter 58: Team Expedition Out to Sea

The speedboat chugged forward, stirring up waves of snow-white foam.

On the boundless sea, seabirds flew low over the blue water in search of food. In the vast sky, large clouds piled up like sprawling snow-capped mountains. The sea and the blue sky blended into the distant mist.

Zhou Yun, wearing a baseball cap, stood at the bow of the boat with Qin Mu, facing the sea breeze as they exchanged casual remarks. Comet followed at his feet, its fur ruffled by the wind, yet it remained curious and excited, looking around.

Qin Mu, full of energy, said, "No wind, no waves, no chance of catching anything. Today’s wind and waves are just right, but now we're out of the shallow waters. We can’t just fish anywhere in the deep sea. We'll start fishing when we reach the island."

"That island is very remote and far away. It probably takes eight hours to get there. But that island has some great catches! I've caught giant groupers there before—big catches are found in places like that."

"We'll have several days of good weather during this period. We can stay on the deserted island for a few days. After the apocalypse, I led a team there a few times and then discovered mutated animals on the island. Since everyone was an ordinary person, we immediately retreated and never went back."

He seemed regretful. "They looked a bit like sea crabs. When we got back, Xiao Sheng grumbled that if he had come along, maybe we could have caught them."

Zhou Yun smiled. "Where's Xiao Sheng?"

Qin Mu replied, "He's learning to drive the boat with Brother Wang. As soon as he got on the boat, he wanted to fish. He couldn't stay idle." Brother Wang was the old captain Qin Mu brought along, with dark skin and years of experience at sea. He could read the weather and was familiar with the nearby sea routes and islands.

Zhou Yun chuckled. "I guess you didn't take him out much before."

Qin Mu laughed. "I haven’t had this boat for long. I saved up over the years from running boats and carefully chose this second-hand fishing boat. It was originally priced at eight million yuan! It’s domestically made but has an imported engine! And it hadn’t been sailed much, so I got it for two million. I was planning to make a living taking guests on sea fishing trips for the rest of my life, but then the apocalypse came."

Zhou Yun, speechless, sincerely said, "Your luck really isn't that great..." These two brothers are really unlucky.

Qin Mu laughed heartily. "It's okay. Money in hand is just waste paper now. Among the kids from Laojie Gang, I'm the only one who bought a boat!" He quietly lowered his voice to Zhou Yun. "There’s a loan, but we don’t have to pay it back anymore."

Zhou Yun: "..."

Laughter came from the stern's aqua platform. A few young men pulled up two fishing nets, unraveling them in the cabin. One net after another brought up live fish. The young men laughed. "This blue crab is huge, it's good, it's good."

"Golden Fish, Yellow Sister (Yellowtail), and Red Tail (Red Snapper) are great for soup. Let's make a seafood hotpot and throw these small squids in for a stew."

"This stingray is delicious. Stew it with some dried radish. The liver is the best part."

"These yellow-finned fish would taste great pan-fried."

Comet, curious, went over to look at the fish jumping out of the net. It sniffed a blue crab crawling sideways and stretched out its paw to step on a small scaleless fish.

Zhou Yun patted its head. "Watch out or you might get pinched on the nose."

The young men from Laojie Gang greeted him politely when they saw Zhou Yun. "Doctor Zhou."

"Doctor Zhou, which fish do you like? We'll fry it for you. There's a kitchen here."

Although they didn't know Zhou Yun, they were all members of Qin Sheng's team and had seen Comet's amazing ability to turn zombies into charcoal with its fire. Thus, they respected Zhou Yun, the owner of Comet, and were very friendly towards him.

Zhou Yun said, "I have no preferences. Feel free to do as you like. Thank you for your trouble."

Qin Mu said, "There's a game room inside. Want to play cards? If you're tired, you can rest in the cabin. The bedding is clean and disinfected. They'll cook the next batch of noodles for you."

Zhou Yun knew that these young men would feel uncomfortable if he stood there, so he nodded and went inside the cabin.

Sure enough, as he and Qin Mu walked in, they heard the young men discussing behind them. "Brother Mu's boat has everything. It's really awesome. This is my first time here."

"It's worth several million yuan. My dad always said the Qin brothers aim too high. Getting a big speedboat, working hard for a few years, would be enough to make a profit. Spending over a million on this fishing boat isn't cost-effective for ordinary folks. It'd be better to buy a school district house."

Zhou Yun couldn't help but chuckle and looked at Qin Mu. "What's a big speedboat?"

Qin Mu smiled helplessly, "It's just a type of speedboat with many motors, going extremely fast, reaching ninety kilometers per hour. A second-hand one can be bought for about a hundred thousand. Buying these is actually for smuggling. It does earn a lot, but the risk is high, and if caught by anti-smuggling forces, the penalties are severe."

"At that time, I was thinking of getting a second-hand fishing boat, cleaning it up nicely. There are many tourists in Beiming who like to charter boats for sea fishing and island tours. It would be better to run a legitimate long-term business with my brother."

Zhou Yun said, "That's a good plan."

Unfortunately, the apocalypse shattered ordinary people's hopes for a peaceful life, and he felt a bit regretful.

Outside, there were calls, "Brother Sheng."

"Brother Xiao Qin."

"Captain."

It turned out that Qin Sheng had arrived. He walked in, saw the two sitting, and casually sat down, stretching his long legs. "So boring, when will we arrive?" He held out his hand, idly playing with a dagger, its length and shape shifting unpredictably.

Zhou Yun smiled, "I have a gaming console, want to play?"

Qin Sheng's eyes lit up. "What games?"

Zhou Yun stood up, took out a gaming tablet from his backpack, and handed it to him. "You can connect it to the TV or just play directly. There are already many games downloaded on it."

Qin Sheng asked eagerly, "What game cards?"

Zhou Yun smiled. "Minecraft."

Qin Sheng: "..."

Zhou Yun dug out a pack of game cards. "Feel free to choose. There's also Great Voyages, Civilization, Legends, flight games, shooting games, World of Tanks, and more."

Qin Sheng finally picked a shooting game and started playing.

Qin Mu was very curious and watched Zhou Yun for a while. "Doctor Zhou plays games too?"

Zhou Yun smiled, "Why, doesn't it seem like it?" He took out a book from his bag and casually read it.

Qin Mu shook his head with a smile. "It doesn't seem like the style of a good student."

Qin Sheng said, "Bro, you're so outdated. Did you know that Doctor Zhou also rides motorcycles and flies drones?"

Qin Mu: "..."

Qin Mu asked, "A few days ago, I was practicing Ba Duan Jin and I think I felt some qi energy."

Zhou Yun said, "Keep practicing. After all, talents like Guan Yuanfeng, who could create a little whirlwind on the same day after receiving a crystal core transplant, are very rare. If you were to awaken your talent after being bitten by a zombie, you'd be considered quite talented too."

Qin Sheng interjected, "Bro, you're so outdated. Did you know that Doctor Zhou also rides motorcycles and flies drones?"

Qin Mu: "..."

Qin Mu fell silent for a moment and looked at Zhou Yun. "We've been by the sea since we were young, following our parents. We learned to walk on the beach, played by the shore, and grew up mastering the waters. But even so, every time we set sail, it feels like we're risking our lives. Especially after the end of the world, fishermen feel like they're gambling with their lives every time they go out to sea. How come Doctor Zhou doesn't seem worried at all?"

Zhou Yun smiled at him. "Because I have better luck than you do."

Qin Mu: "..."

He seemed helpless. "Doctor Zhou's ability is very strong, and you have Comet too," Qin Mu said. "Strong people have no fears, but the sea holds the power of nature."

Zhou Yun looked at him and smiled. "That's right, and I also have Comet."

Qin Mu: "..." He always felt that Doctor Zhou was too calm and collected, which only deepened his suspicion that he had been imagining things. Could it be that he had been too desperate to become stronger? Over the past few days, he had practiced Ba Duan Jin repeatedly but couldn't recapture that same feeling. He had even almost finished the mulberry paste...

Zhou Yun, on the other hand, was willing to say a few words to him: "Many psychics struggle to realize they have awakened abilities in the early stages, but there are also many who discover their abilities in life-or-death situations."

Qin Mu: "Life-or-death situations..."

Zhou Yun encouraged him seriously: "For example, in this battle with the mutated sea fish, you can try to fight. Even if you lose a limb, I can still help you recover."

Qin Mu: "...Thanks." I'll pass, though. I'm afraid of dying.

Zhou Yun held up a book to cover his mouth, which was trying to hide a smile. However, Qin Mu saw the teasing look in his eyes. Meanwhile, Qin Sheng was still engrossed in his game, leaving Qin Mu helpless. He stood up: "I'll go check if they've finished preparing the noodles."

The seafood noodles were fresh and sweet, and Zhou Yun, adapting to local customs, ate them as well. He mashed up fish, shrimp, and other small fish to make a seafood noodle dish for Comet. After finishing it, he added a bag of homemade dog food before Comet was finally satisfied, lazily basking in the sun at the bow of the ship, dozing off.

A few of the young men whispered among themselves: "This Fire Dragon dog eats a lot. A mutated dog like this would be too costly for most people to maintain."

For this sea voyage, Zhou Yun had prepared a large bag of dog food, chopping up beef, lamb, chicken, and mutated fish, mixing them with pumpkins, carrots, and other vegetables. He added eggs and corn flour, formed the mixture into dough, and after steaming them, he vacuum-packed the dough and froze it with a large block of ice, placing everything in an insulated box to bring along. As an extra precaution, he also brought several bags of 10-kilogram freeze-dried dog food.

Strictly speaking, it was indeed a better diet than what ordinary people had.

With the mild weather and their familiarity with the route, they arrived at the uninhabited island by 5 PM, when the sky was ablaze with dazzling clouds.

The sea was calm, and the setting sun bathed the azure waters in a translucent green hue. In the clear shallow waters, you could distinctly see sea crabs and small fish darting about, while barnacles and oysters covered the rocks.

They docked on a vast stretch of soft, gentle sandy beach. Small waves lapped slowly and gently onto the shore, quietly caressing the sand.

The enchanting island scenery naturally put everyone at ease.

However, Qin Mu seriously ordered the crew: "Everyone, change into protective suits, wear helmets, bring walkie-talkies, and grab your weapons. Stay alert and don't let your guard down. Old Wang will stay on the ship until we confirm it's safe and set up camp."

Everyone changed into protective suits. Zhou Yun also changed, accepted a walkie-talkie from Qin Sheng, secured it on his shoulder, put on his helmet, and even changed Comet into a sharkskin protective suit.

Qin Sheng approached Zhou Yun: "I'll take some people to check first and find a safe spot to set up camp. You and Big Brother stay on the beach and oversee the overall situation." He looked at Comet, who was eager to join, and hesitated: "Should Comet come with us?"

Qin Mu said: "I'm familiar with the terrain. I'll lead the team."

Zhou Yun looked towards the island and slowly said: "I don't think we need to search. This creature has a very strong territorial instinct."

Qin Mu was startled, and Comet had already taken a defensive stance, leaping onto the beach and barking fiercely in one direction.

Qin Sheng looked up at the forest on the island and muttered: "Oh my God."

A giant monster was crossing the island from the other side, its orange-red shell glistening. It had a spindle-shaped body with two pointed ends and terrifyingly long, spider-like legs. The monster's leg span was estimated to be over ten meters, standing as tall as a three-story building.

Such an enormous creature exuded immense pressure.

Everyone's hearts raced, adrenaline surged, and fear filled their minds as they gripped their weapons tightly.

Someone couldn't help but exclaim in terror: "Let's retreat! This thing, zombie repellent won't work on it!"

Qin Mu looked at it and said: "It's the same one from last fall. We only saw a few huge red claws back then and ran away, not knowing if it was a mutated crab or a mutated spider."

He turned his head and saw Zhou Yun observing carefully with a telescope, his expression calm. Qin Mu's heart unconsciously settled down. After observing for a while through the telescope, Zhou Yun determined: "It's a crab. You can tell by the way it walks sideways."

Qin Mu narrowed his eyes. "So it's the killer spider crab. They have long lifespans, up to a hundred years. Considering its size, it could be quite old. These creatures are fierce by nature and usually found in the colder East Sea area, capable of hunting sharks. What brought it to our South Sea?"

Zhou Yun said: "Crabs are scavengers. This one has mutated, feasting on plenty of zombies. It's not surprising that it swam along the way for reproduction and food."

Qin Mu looked at its strong claws and the creepy, constantly wriggling mouthparts and antennae. Its powerful jaws snapped open and shut. Inside its mouth, there was a half-chewed giant eel. He couldn't help swallowing nervously. "It's eating. If we disturb it, it'll become very vicious. This crab can even crush clam shells. Will shooting work?"

Zhou Yun said, "After mutating, shelled animals have very hard shells. Ordinary guns won't work. Rocket launchers or missiles might."

Qin Mu: "..."

He glanced at Qin Sheng. "Xiao Sheng, your throwing needles—can they penetrate it?"

Qin Sheng looked a bit hesitant. "Maybe only in close combat, but this thing is kind of disgusting. It feels really creepy. Could we just hack off its claws one by one? Crab claws usually fall off easily, right?"

He looked at Huixing, who was still barking fiercely on the beach, and felt a bit ashamed. "Man, Huixing's got more guts than us."

Qin Mu looked at Zhou Yun, who was frowning and staring at the killer spider crab, as if deep in thought.

With the situation becoming urgent, Qin Mu had no choice but to interrupt his thoughts. "Doctor Zhou, what do we do? If we retreat with the ship now, it might chase us for a bit, but this crab only crawls on the seafloor; it can't swim on the surface. Its vision isn't well-developed, but its hearing is sharp. If we run far, it'll give up on its own."

Zhou Yun said, "It's a great chance to get some practice in. You all wait on the ship for now."

Qin Mu: "Ah?"

Zhou Yun had already grabbed a long blade and jumped off the ship.

He walked over to Huixing, who was still barking threateningly at the giant killer spider crab. He patted its head. "Lead it onto the beach." The flat terrain would be easier to fight on.

Huixing darted like a lightning bolt, suddenly pouncing in front of the killer spider crab's claws and spewing a fire dragon at its two black, bulging eyes.

The killer spider crab was surprisingly agile, lifting its body with its eight sharp claws and managing to dodge the fire dragon, but its front claws were still scorched by the fire. It raised its giant pincers and swung at Huixing, but Huixing was incredibly fast and had already turned back, racing to the beach.

The killer spider crab chased Huixing onto the beach as planned.

Without the cover of the forest, the killer spider crab's ferocious-looking shell and jagged limbs were fully visible. It moved sideways, waving its sharp claws very quickly, but it couldn't catch Huixing at all.

The team members on the ship watched Huixing taking on the killer spider crab and started discussing among themselves. "It's too strong."

"But it doesn't look like it's burning through?"

"Where did Doctor Zhou go?"

Qin Mu, however, was keeping an eye on Zhou Yun. "He's flanking. He's behind the killer spider crab now."

"Doctor Zhou is a psychic too, right? What's his psychic power?"

"I don't think any psychic abilities could handle this easily. I think Huixing's fire abilities are already the strongest. Even regular zombies can't handle it."

"Why does it feel so cold all of a sudden?"

"It's getting dark, isn't it? If we can't land on the island today, we'll have to spend the night at sea. That's very dangerous."

Zhou Yun stood behind the killer spider crab. Actually, he hadn't fought in a long time. Ever since he went to Dark Valley, he had been focusing on research and hadn't been on the battlefield. But killing a mutated crab shouldn't be a big problem. "Let's test what skills it has first."

Zhou Yun raised a hand and took a deep breath. The air suddenly cooled down.

The team on the ship continued to watch the killer spider crab swing its claws at Huixing, who kept dodging. Initially, they thought the crab's huge, sharp claws and agile movements would be a problem, but now they saw that its claws couldn't even touch Huixing, who occasionally scorched its antennae with bursts of fire.

Compared to the swift Huixing, the killer spider crab seemed somewhat clumsy.

When the killer spider crab's eyes were once again hit by Huixing's fire, it finally lost its temper. It bared its teeth and claws, and a black fog suddenly spewed out from its mouthpart. Suddenly, countless swarms of killer spider crabs crawled out of the sand, their spider-like sharp claws densely packed and overlapping on the beach, giving everyone a serious case of the creeps.

Everyone was startled, "This thing can summon small crabs?" They nervously watched Comet, seeing it move swiftly, casually spitting fire and instantly burning to death a group of small crabs that were surrounding it.

The team members breathed a sigh of relief, "Comet is really something else."

However, Qin Sheng suddenly looked up, "Strange... how...?" He brushed a snowflake off his shoulder, "How is it snowing? It's almost June."

Qin Mu pointed at the giant killer crab, "Look there."

They saw a sudden snowstorm descend upon the killer crab.

The snowflakes fell silently, layering endlessly, and the temperature around them dropped rapidly, causing the massive body of the killer crab to become sluggish.

In an instant, a thick layer of snow covered the beach, and the small crabs were frozen in the snow.

Even the killer crab's razor-sharp claws sank into the thick snow, making its movements slow and awkward.

It lifted its claws and walked slowly, only to sink into the icy snow again.

It awkwardly swung its massive claws at Comet, but somehow two icy, razor-sharp blades sliced through the air, rotating and cutting through the claws at the joints with ease.

The two giant claws fell into the snow, and the killer crab angrily waved its remaining eight legs, looking somewhat ridiculous.

Everyone widened their eyes, "What is this?"

Qin Mu murmured, "Water psychic powers... and high-level ones that can cast a blizzard..."

At least in his knowledge, level three water psychic powers couldn't control such a vast area of blizzard.

At some point, Zhou Yun had already reached below the ship and waved to Qin Sheng, "Where's your Xiao Qin's flying daggers? Go down and aim for its claws. Others, try to cut off its sharp claws; it's easier from the joints. If you're not up for it, just practice on the small crabs."

"Be careful to avoid its mouth area; it spits out a zombie toxic cloud, which carries the zombie virus. Everyone, wear your masks and just stay out of its mouth."

Qin Sheng shook off his daze, jumped off the ship, and started approaching the giant killer crab, pulling out his dagger to try and stab it.

Qin Mu also came down with a powerful harpoon gun, attempting to attack the most vulnerable part of the crab's abdomen, aiming for the gap in the crab's gills.

Thud! The harpoon hit the target with immense force, sinking deep into the gap!

"It works!" Qin Mu was thrilled, but unexpectedly, the killer crab, with immense strength, pulled back, dragging Qin Mu into the air! The harpoon had a chain attached, and he was yanked off his feet by the powerful drag, flying into the air before falling to the ground. Just then, Comet leaped over, grabbed Qin Mu by the belt, and gently set him down on the ground.

Qin Sheng was startled, watching the chain swing in the air, still deeply embedded in the killer crab's abdomen. His palms were rubbed raw from gripping the chain, but filled with rage, his metallic arm reached out and grasped the chain in the air. The silver wrist firmly held the chain as countless thin chains flew through the air, wrapping around the killer crab's sharp claws with precision.

Qin Sheng's arm muscles bulged, his entire shoulder and arm turning metallic. He pulled hard, and with a series of metallic clangs, four of the killer crab's claws were tightly bound, unable to move freely.

Qin Sheng didn't give the killer crab any breathing room. He snatched a giant cleaver from a teammate and charged forward. The giant blade sliced through the air in a brilliant arc before heavily landing on the crab's bound claw joint. With a snap, the incredibly hard claw was severed.

As time went on, the killer crab's struggles weakened, and it feebly sprayed another cloud of black mist, which quickly dissipated into the air.

Everyone rushed forward, following Qin Sheng's example, chopping off the crab's claws at the joints.

Eventually, all eight of its legs were severed, and its massive body collapsed to the ground, twitching weakly before becoming still.

Qin Sheng stomped hard on the crab's abdomen and, turning his palm into a knife, sliced open the crab's belly along the seam. Beneath the yellowish, sticky crab paste, he extracted a black crystal core.

"It's a shadow-type crystal core."

Zhou Yun was actually a bit disgusted, "Scavenger mutated animals have a chance to produce these, and some zombies do too, but it's not very useful. The market doesn't want them; only research facilities buy them for study. Sigh, could it be that your two brothers' bad luck is rubbing off on me?" He had hoped for a good start, tsk.

Qin Mu: "..."

Qin Sheng: "..."