Chapter 48: The True Situation of the Ocean
The section of the old street had been cordoned off. A lot of traffic police and regular police officers had arrived, with specialists talking to witnesses and having them sign confidentiality agreements. No one was allowed to spread any information about what they had seen tonight. All photos and videos had to be deleted, and nothing was permitted to be posted on social media.
One video, however, was retained by the staff. It was footage of Lin Jiu fighting with the harpoon.
The staff called over all the enhanced individuals present to watch the video. After viewing it, they were full of questions—What was up with Lin Jiu’s harpoon? How could he summon it so freely?
Lu Yu looked over at Bai Zhixing.
Bai Zhixing said, “I’m sure his ability is sound-based. Old Zang is the best example of that.”
Bai Zhixing and Zang Ye were on the same team, but Zang Ye still hadn’t recovered from Lin Jiu’s power, so he couldn’t participate in the mission. Bai Zhixing had come along by himself.
Lu Yu glanced over at Lin Jiu and Si Xu, who were sitting by the roadside talking. Si Xu was holding a flask of wine.
Lu Yu walked over. “You guys aren’t hurt, right?”
Si Xu still looked pale. “Did you walk here?”
Lu Yu: “…”
Lu Yu coughed. “It was rush hour, and traffic was terrible.”
Even with police escorting them, it was still slow going. The timing was really frustrating.
Si Xu said, “I thought you were afraid of the fight and purposely showed up late.”
Lu Yu: “…”
Si Xu’s jab landed, and he moved on. “So what exactly happened? What was that thing?”
“The information we have so far is that a local boss bought a large sea fish from some fishermen. It was huge and looked strange. No one knew if it was edible, but the boss bought it to try. The fishermen delivered it in a small truck, packed in a tank with seawater and oxygen. They were worried the fish would die during the seven-hour trip, which would make it worthless. But when they arrived and opened the truck, out came that thing.”
Si Xu frowned. “It didn’t look like that originally?”
“The fisherman was so scared he could barely speak. He kept repeating that what he delivered was a fish, not this creature.” Lu Yu pulled out a cigarette, offering one to Si Xu before remembering. “Never mind, you shouldn’t smoke. You’re still recovering from illness. Focus on getting better.”
Si Xu: “…”
He glanced at Lin Jiu, who didn’t seem to react, but suddenly, Si Xu wanted a cigarette too.
Lu Yu then offered one to Lin Jiu. “Mr. Lin, would you like one?”
Lin Jiu shook his head. “I don’t smoke.”
Lu Yu lit one for himself and smoked slowly. “You’re quite skilled with that harpoon, Mr. Lin.”
Lin Jiu shot him a look but said nothing.
“It’s really a shame you won’t join our department. Would you reconsider?”
“Nope.” Lin Jiu rejected him outright.
Lu Yu sighed in frustration, pausing for a moment before saying, “You’ll probably see more incidents like this in the future.”
Lin Jiu and Si Xu both looked at Lu Yu, waiting for him to continue.
“Recently, coastal cities have been quite unsettled. Things are relatively calm on our end for now, but the situation abroad is much worse. There have been a series of missing person cases, some disappearing at sea, others along the coast. Investigators stationed at the shore managed to capture some photos…”
“What photos?” Lin Jiu, with a keen interest in the sea and the anomalies within it, asked.
Lu Yu pointed to the dead creature. “Something similar. Strange fish from the ocean washed up on the beach. If they failed to catch prey, they returned to the sea. Those missing people… well, it’s almost certain they’re dead.”
Lin Jiu fell silent for a while before asking, “Have you guys still been eating sea fish lately?”
Lu Yu replied, “I haven’t eaten fish in almost half a month now—no sea fish, no freshwater fish.”
Who knows which fish might have eaten a human? Knowing too much truth makes it impossible to eat.
Si Xu asked, “What’s happening in the ocean? Can you tell us?”
Lu Yu glanced at Lin Jiu. “I can tell internal personnel.”
External Lin Jiu: “…”
Lin Jiu said, “Business hasn’t been good lately. There’s no fresh ingredients, and no fruit wine either.”
Lu Yu: “…”
Lu Yu added, “You’ve signed the non-disclosure agreement, and you’re an enhanced individual, so you should understand the gravity of the situation. You can hear the details.”
Satisfied, Lin Jiu listened as Lu Yu explained, choosing his words carefully. “Recently, a marine surveying company discovered a mysterious underwater palace. After thorough surveying, they found that the palace was sealed. The company got excited and tried various methods to open the door, but nothing worked.
“The surveying crew stayed at sea for a while, and then the company suddenly announced that they were selling the palace and the discovery. Various powers sent representatives to check it out. When they arrived, they learned why the company wanted to sell: the surveyors had fallen ill or died one after another. By the time they were ready to sell, several had already died, with others in critical condition.”
Lu Yu took a deep drag on his cigarette, then slowly exhaled. “Seeing this, those powers became both excited and wary. They immediately had regular people leave the area, keeping only enhanced individuals on site…”
“Was it radiation?” Si Xu speculated, remembering something about ‘unknown energy radiation.’
Lin Jiu furrowed his brow, thinking of the same.
Lu Yu smoked silently for a moment before answering, “Yes, it was radiation. The survey company realized how serious it was—unknown energy was leaking, and it was deadly. They detected large amounts of radiation, which is catastrophic in the ocean. They couldn’t even imagine the consequences of mass marine extinction, or worse, widespread mutation. It was beyond what they could handle, so they brought in various nations to try and resolve it.”
Lin Jiu suddenly understood why the system said, ‘Intelligent life forms are most prone to self-destruction.’
His brow deeply furrowed. From the system’s attitude, he sensed that the situation was even worse than humanity realized. The fact that this incident was still so well-hidden, with no leaks to the outside world, meant most people still thought the world was scientifically peaceful, oblivious to the lurking dangers.
Lu Yu continued, “You understand the importance of unknown energy to any nation. Without it, there would be no enhanced individuals, no superhumans, no super soldiers. So, even though the palace held unknown energy, no power could ignore it.”
Si Xu thought things would only get worse.
Sure enough, Lu Yu continued, “After discussions, the powers sent their enhanced individuals to explore the palace. How much they could find depended on their abilities. Together, they managed to blast open the stone door of the palace. A group entered and discovered what all nations dreamed of—unknown energy crystals. There were many of them, and in the frenzy to seize them for their own, a fight broke out…
“Over the years, we’ve learned that these unknown energy crystals are generally stable, but something was wrong with the ones in the palace. They exploded. Countless crystals detonated! Not a single enhanced individual inside survived. Those outside were also caught in the blast; some went missing, others were gravely injured, and some couldn’t withstand the radiation and exploded on the spot…”
Lin Jiu didn’t fully grasp the nature of unknown energy radiation, but Si Xu did. He had been exposed to it before and witnessed the devastation at Weng City. This unknown energy was extremely dangerous!
Si Xu asked, “How much radiation is in the training room?”
Lu Yu snuffed out his cigarette. “Just one crystal. We only have one.”
Si Xu now understood the severity of the ocean’s radiation pollution—it was unimaginable!
Lu Yu added, “Don’t think that’s a small amount. There are only a few crystals in the entire world. We’re lucky to have one—our neighbors are already jealous.”
Si Xu nodded. “Were there casualties on our side?”
Lu Yu laughed. “We sent Zang Ye and Bai Zhixing to protect the delegates. One’s a bear, and the other’s a human. Who do you think is better suited to fight underwater?”
Si Xu raised an eyebrow. “So?”
“So our department head decided to sit back and watch. We didn’t participate. Zang Ye and Bai Zhixing were there to protect the attendees, but no one expected a fight. We thought money would settle it, but it turned out we needed force. Our enhanced individuals are few and precious. We can’t afford to lose them like those other big powers that throw a dozen superhumans into every conflict. We can compete financially, but not in terms of enhanced personnel.”
In hindsight, it was lucky they couldn’t afford the losses. Those who could were now dead in the ocean. Lu Yu often marveled at the department head’s wisdom.
As they talked, the dead creature was loaded onto a truck, and a water truck cleaned the streets. Once they left, no trace would remain, and the witnesses wouldn’t speak of tonight—they would take the secret to their graves, maintaining the fragile peace of a seemingly scientific world.”
Lin Jiu couldn’t wait to go home to take a shower and change clothes. As Lu Yu and the others were leaving, Lin Jiu couldn’t help but say a few more things.
“Captain Lu, is there any resettlement plan for the coastal cities?”
Lu Yu replied, “We’re still far from the dangerous sea zones, so it hasn’t come to that yet. For now, there’s only a ban on entering the sea.”
Lin Jiu said, “If it ever comes to that point, resettling people might be too late. Better to plan ahead.”
Lu Yu thought Lin Jiu was oversimplifying things. Moving coastal cities wasn’t something that could be done casually unless it was a matter of life and death.
“Alright, thanks for your hard work tonight. Si Xu can apply to get reimbursed for the fruit wine.”
Si Xu said, “No need.”
Lin Jiu realized Lu Yu wasn’t really listening. “The marine life has already mutated. It’s only a matter of time before they come ashore.”
The departing Lu Yu and his team stopped in their tracks. They were all in the know—the cleanup of incidents like this was usually their job.
The idea that marine life might come ashore was still just a theory. No one could say for sure if it would happen. Even though foreign reports showed marine creatures washing up on beaches, they always circled back to the sea. They still couldn’t leave the ocean.
Of course, if this creature from tonight was really from the sea, it might confirm that theory.
Lin Jiu continued, “The seawater is already polluted. Right now, it’s affecting marine life. What if it starts to affect humans later?”
Lu Yu responded seriously, “So far, there’s been no evidence of it affecting humans.”
Lin Jiu spread his hands. “Just like you didn’t know the crystals would explode, but they still did.”
Lu Yu: “…”
Lu Yu stared at Lin Jiu, his expression growing more serious. “Do you have any evidence?”
Lin Jiu replied, “No.”
Lu Yu asked, “Then how am I supposed to report this? Based on your guess?”
Lin Jiu thought for a moment. “Would the fact that I’ve caught the fiercest seafood help?”
Lu Yu said, “Right now, there’s a ban on entering the sea. Soon, there might be a ban on seafood. Better sell what you have as soon as possible.”
Lin Jiu: “…”
Damn! If they ban seafood, wouldn’t his shop have to close down?
Lin Jiu had said all he needed to say. Whether they listened or acted was up to them, and he couldn’t control that.
Lin Jiu had been holding it in as long as he could. He wanted to close up and go home to take a shower and change clothes. He couldn’t even step into his small shop right now—he was afraid of stinking it up. How would he even eat there afterward?
Seeing how troubled he was, Si Xu asked, “Do you trust me?”
“Of course,” Lin Jiu replied without hesitation.
“If you trust me, then you should go home first. I’ll close up after all the customers are gone and lock the door for you.”
Lin Jiu thought this was a great idea. He handed the shop over to Si Xu and rode his bike home. Before leaving, he reminded Si Xu to finish the dinner so it wouldn’t go to waste, and to put his share in the fridge for tomorrow.
He couldn’t afford to waste ingredients anymore. His demon points were already dangerously low.
That night, the customers who had witnessed a live sci-fi event but couldn’t talk about it felt an unbearable itch. They all posted vague messages online:
“Reconstructing my shattered worldview…”
But when asked what happened, there were no further replies.
