Chapter 429

"You're saying that the Weird Body Nest is a massive floating island?!"

Upon hearing this news, everyone on the Infinite was visibly shaken; just the fact that Ryan said it carried immense pressure, and according to Erica's description, this thing seemed to appear during daylight.

"That's right."

"Do you know when it appeared?" Ryan's face was serious, his tone grave: "Ten days ago—more precisely, right after the Dawn City defense battle—it suddenly surfaced on the sea, accompanied by a storm zone over a hundred kilometers in diameter."

Lin Xian frowned: "You're saying this thing is connected to what happened in Dawn City?"

Ryan shook his head and let out a bitter laugh: "Who knows? But since then, a lot of strange things have happened." He looked at Lin Xian and his group and said: "Sea clusters within several hundred nautical miles of Haiyan Island have all been affected to some degree. A few small organizations have been wiped out entirely. That direction is extremely unstable now—I strongly advise you to prepare thoroughly. Once you leave Haiyan Island, unless you fly, you won't see land for days. Several oceanic relay stations have gone dark; no one knows the exact situation."

"So dangerous, and you still want to hunt it?" Kiki stared, bewildered: "Isn't that suicide?"

Ryan spread his hands: "Including us, there are currently four sea clusters—over two thousand people total."

Lin Xian sensed this wasn't simple and smiled: "Two thousand people? Have you even confirmed what that floating island actually is? How confident are you?"

"So your hunt is just for Level 4 Blood Essences?" Mo Nika asked.

Ryan made a "follow me" gesture, signaling Lin Xian's group to enter the aircraft carrier's interior.

"If you're willing, we can share all the information we've gathered. I'm sure once you understand, you'll see why we're doing this—and why it's deeply connected to you. We'll also give you a tour of our home at sea."

"Alright." Lin Xian nodded, accepting Ryan's invitation without refusal.

Passing through the green crop zone on the deck, the group arrived at a hatch on the side of the island superstructure. The heavy blast door slid open slowly, releasing a wave of damp, warm air.

The first level inside had been converted into a multi-tiered vertical farming area. LED grow lights hung from metal frames, illuminating rows of hydroponic troughs where lettuce, tomatoes, and strawberries thrived in nutrient solution. Several staff members in protective suits were checking plant growth.

"This is our artificial-light hydroponic zone," Ryan explained. "The ship has a small onboard nuclear power unit that provides enough electricity for year-round cultivation, but to conserve energy, most crops still rely on natural sunlight from the deck. We've shut down the main nuclear reactor for two months now—mostly for safety."

Inside the farming area, a middle-aged man wearing a straw hat looked up, saw Lin Xian's group, glanced at Ryan, and pointed at the strawberries: "Guests? Want to try some?"

Before Lin Xian could answer, Sha Sha's eyes lit up: "Wow, really?"

"Of course!" The man smiled and handed them several bright red fruits: "Since the apocalypse, fresh fruit is rare—especially out here at sea. These strawberry seeds alone are worth several Blood Essences."

Sha Sha took one, bit into it, and the sweet-tart juice burst in her mouth: "Mmm… so sweet!"

Mo Nika scanned the surroundings: "How do you handle pollination?"

"Early on, we did it by hand. Later, we introduced… some bees," Ryan said with a strange smile, pointing to several transparent beehives in the corner: "Found them on Haiyan Island. But be careful—they might sting you. Post-apocalypse bees… are a bit aggressive."

"Bees are still alive?" Lin Xian was surprised.

"Actually, quite a few," Ryan replied with a smile. "Cockroaches, geckos, ants, reptiles—they're everywhere. You can find some if you're careful in the wild. There are also fish in the sea, but we rarely fish. You know why."

Next, Lin Xian and Ryan passed through several supply warehouses. Behind blast doors, mountains of canned goods were neatly stacked on metal shelves: food, medicine, tools, weapons—even an entire wall of entertainment items, from playing cards to vintage game consoles.

"You've collected quite a bit."

"Some came from our old fleet," Ryan said, walking ahead. "Besides going ashore, most of what our cluster does is salvage at sea."

"Salvage?"

"Plenty of it," said Azir, the mechanical giant, striding along with a teasing grin. "Sometimes, following ocean currents, we find hundreds or even thousands of shipping containers—things that sank during the Apocalypse and floated back up. You never know what you'll get—like opening blind boxes. Honestly, it's kind of fun."

"We also buy from black markets or trade with other sea clusters," Vanessa added, turning to Lin Xian with a meaningful look. "There aren't many people out here at sea."

Hearing this, Lin Xian immediately remembered something and asked: "We came from Taku Deepwater Port yesterday. Do you know what happened there?"

"Ambush."

Erica walked ahead without turning back, her voice cold: "That's the first port for Asia-Pacific departures. Countless people who wanted to be the fisherman or the yellow bird died there. At night, it's a major hotspot for Weird Body attacks—it's been a ghost port for years. Many train clusters have met their end there. You were lucky."

Lin Xian's expression turned grim. The situation matched his suspicions.

A small, thin girl was counting canned goods. Seeing Ryan enter, she rushed over to report: "Captain, we only have twenty boxes of compressed biscuits left in Warehouse Three. We need to restock soon."

Ryan ruffled her hair: "Understood. Send a team to the east coast tomorrow."

Lin Xian noticed several damaged drones and power armor parts piled in the corner: "You do mechanical repairs too?"

Azir grinned, revealing a mouth of iron teeth: "There are no 4S shops out here. If it breaks, you fix it yourself."

Further ahead, the noise grew louder.

Inside a spacious compartment, sparks flew as several mechanics modified weapons and vehicles. In the corner lay piles of welding gear, hydraulic tools, and disassembled engine parts.

"This is our small arms factory," Azir said, patting a half-assembled power armor unit. "It's not as advanced as Phoenix Society tech, but it's good enough for repairs."

A young man, hands covered in grease, looked up excitedly: "Captain! The sonar's fixed! We can use it tonight!"

Ryan nodded: "Good work, Tom."

Then, Lin Xian's group followed Ryan to the carrier's flight bridge—the Eagle Sea Cluster's information and command center.

It was a circular compartment, surrounded by screens and control stations. In the center stood a massive nautical chart table, marked with detailed data on nearby waters. Several operators monitored radar and sonar feeds.

"Welcome aboard the Neptune," Ryan smiled slightly.

As soon as Lin Xian and the others entered, they noticed walls covered in hand-drawn sketches of strange sea creatures: "What's this…?"

"Our 'Enemy Catalog,'" Gadi walked over and pointed to one drawing. "This is the Deep Sea Giant Squid—its tentacles have barbs that can easily tear through hulls. This is the Face Jellyfish—it emits electricity and can launch psychic attacks to pull living beings straight into the deep sea…"

"Face Jellyfish…" Lin Xian thought of what Viola had filmed underwater at Taku Deepwater Port—it looked exactly like this.

Looking at the wall covered in sketches, Sha Sha shrank back: "How can there be so many monsters in the sea…"

"I don't know," Ryan turned back, his voice grave. "But we've noticed many Weird Bodies share convergent traits with Earth's original deep-sea creatures. Everyone says there's only one Star Abyss—but isn't the entire ocean of Earth just one abyss?"

His words made Lin Xian's expression change sharply: "What did you say?"

Ryan shrugged, looking at Lin Xian's serious face, and said casually: "Those monsters hide in the deep-sea abysses. Whether day or night, they look like mutated carriers combining Earth's biological forms. If you think about it, isn't the whole ocean just the Star Abyss?"