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墨書 Inktalez
We three cautiously left the Dark Sea Area, and fortunately, nothing particularly unusual happened along the way. We surfaced relatively safely.
At night, the sea and sky appeared the same, shrouded in utter darkness with nothing else in sight, creating a feeling as if heaven and ocean were connected.
Shunzi saw us return and quickly dropped the Lifeline. We climbed up the fishing boat's ladder, where many people were gathered on the deck—Jenny, Li Xin, and the returning sailors were all there, along with the body of the sailor who had been killed by the Black Fish.
"Mai Lao, Brother Yi, Lao Ba, are you all okay?" Shunzi asked me with a hint of concern.
"I'm fine; I'm still alive, aren't I?" I replied helplessly as I removed my Oxygen Tank.
At that moment, Jenny hurried over and asked, "Mai Lao, what happened? You were fine just a moment ago, and now..." As she spoke, her eyes reddened, tears welling up. It was clear she was genuinely upset this time.
Mai Lao sighed with a furrowed brow. "This came too suddenly; we had no choice. Let's give him a proper burial."
Li Xin, arms crossed, inquired from the side, "What exactly did you encounter underwater? How did this happen to him?"
I ignored her question entirely. Jiao Ba glanced at her and said, "Didn't anyone tell you?"
"They said they encountered a Sea Monster. Is that true? Could there really be a Sea Monster?" Li Xin asked with a frown.
"We're not sure if it was a Sea Monster or not, but it looked more like a big fish," Mai Lao replied softly.
Jenny wiped her tears and asked, "Mai Lao, what should we do next?" Every time there was an issue, she turned to this Old Man for answers. It was understandable; she was just a girl who couldn't grasp everything. Even though she was a graduate student, she remained a woman who often relied on men for guidance.
Mai Lao looked at everyone and said, "First, let's bury him."
At that moment, four sailors approached together. The big guy from Shandong had a sorrowful expression as he said, "Boss, we... we don't want to continue. Please let us go home. This isn't sailing; it's risking our lives. I'm not married yet; I don't want to die like this."
"Yeah, Boss! Just let us go back. Four people have died since we set sail; it's terrifying down there. We can't take it anymore. If this continues, even if we survive, we'll end up mentally unstable," another sailor chimed in beside him, his face pale with evident fear.
Jenny looked stunned; if these sailors quit, how would they salvage the Wreck? But she couldn't blame them. Including Gangzi who was killed by the Bearded Man, four people had already died. Who knew if more would follow? No one wanted to meet the same fate as them. After experiencing such terrifying events earlier, it was hard for an ordinary person to cope—even I was barely holding on through sheer willpower.
"Masters, I beg you, if you don't continue, how are we supposed to keep working? Don't worry, I will pay you more. Whatever we salvage, I will share it with everyone. I promise to ensure that you will never have to worry about food and clothing again. Please trust me." Jenny's face was earnest as she spoke, and I believed her. After all, she had shared the treasures from the Qing Dynasty Shipwreck with us sailors.
"Boss, I'm begging you. I don't want anything; just let me go home. I don't need any money. Just let me go back now. I'll consider these days as working for free. I really can't take it anymore. If this goes on, someone will die, and I don't want to die." The Shandong Giant spoke with a quivering voice. He looked intimidating, but his courage was not as great as I had imagined.
"Yes, yes, Boss! Just let us go home now; we would rather not get paid. This work is simply unbearable! If we had known salvaging the wreck would be this dangerous, no amount of money could convince us to come here... Boss, we're begging you..." The other three sailors chimed in, clearly determined not to continue. They say people die for wealth, but when faced with life and death, life is the most valuable thing.
Jenny was completely taken aback. She looked at the sailors, unable to utter a word. After stammering for a long time, she still couldn't make her point clear. The sailors were adamant about not working anymore; no amount of money could change their minds—they simply refused to go back into the sea.
At that moment, Mai Lao spoke up, "Everyone, listen to me..."
"Please stop talking! It doesn't matter what you say; we truly can't continue this work. It's not about the money; even if you offered us more money, our lives are at stake!" The Shandong Giant interrupted before Mai Lao could finish his sentence. He was stubborn and typical of someone who wouldn't budge from their beliefs. But at this moment, it wasn't as simple as just going back.
Li Xin had been silent all along, watching from the side while Mai Lao and Jenny tried to persuade the sailors again. This time, the old man's silver tongue was ineffective; no matter how he argued or how much saliva he produced in his speech, it wouldn't change the sailors' minds. It seemed they had developed immunity to his words.
I exchanged glances with Jiao Ba, who whispered in my ear, "Brother Yi, what do we do now? If these sailors refuse to work, we won't be able to salvage this wreck. We need to find a way to keep them."
I quietly replied, "I know; I'm trying to think of a solution. Do you have any ideas? If so, go ahead and try."
Jiao Ba suddenly showed a fierce expression and said, "Let's be tough about it! Why not threaten them? If they refuse to dive again, we can just kill them."
I shot him a glare and quietly scolded him, "Get lost! You're making things worse! We're comrades who have been through life and death together—not some ruthless tyrants." At such a critical moment, he suggested such an extreme measure; it would only incite rebellion among the sailors.
Jiao Ba chuckled mischievously and said, "Hey hey! I'm just joking around, Brother Yi! No need to take it seriously! Besides, I'm not that kind of person... But if they really refuse to work, our purpose for coming out here will be in jeopardy."
His words made sense; if these sailors refused to work, we would definitely not be able to salvage the wreck. A wreck this large would take us a day or two even if everyone participated—let alone without four people.
Moreover, if we couldn't salvage the wreck, many mysteries would remain unsolved: Who were those men in black? Perhaps they would reveal themselves later on; however, uncovering the identity of that female corpse would be much harder. And why did Bearded Man's subordinates disappear en masse? I felt these events were not mere coincidences; someone must be orchestrating everything behind the scenes. This person likely understood our purpose for going out to sea.
Our purpose for this voyage was certainly not just salvaging the wreck; there must be some enormous secret hidden behind it all. But what exactly was concealed? For days now, I had been unable to figure it out. It seemed that in order to unravel everything, we needed to keep moving forward. Since someone was pushing events along, why shouldn't we follow their lead?
At that moment, Shunzi nudged me and interrupted my thoughts by asking, "Brother Yi, which side should we stand on? Who should we help?"
I looked at him; his face was filled with awkwardness. It was understandable since we were working for Jenny as sailors and should logically side with them. However, Jiao Ba and I were more eager to uncover everything—to understand our purpose for this voyage and the secrets hidden behind it—so I needed to speak from Jenny's perspective instead.
I smiled slightly and said, "Let's help everyone." After saying that, I walked over to Jenny. The sailors were still chattering away, some of them on the verge of tears. They were pleading, praying; I could imagine the fear driving them mad. But in order to keep them with us, I had to step up and speak.
"Can everyone quiet down for a moment?" I shouted, finally managing to get them all to settle down.
Jenny and Mai Lao looked at me, and I showed no expression. Instead, I turned to the sailors in front of me and said, "Listen to me for a moment. Like you, I'm just a sailor working for Boss. It's not just me; Lao Ba and Shunzi are in the same boat as well. We are all brothers in this trench. I don't want to say anything grand or noble; I just want you to think about it. We've been at sea for so many days now, and four people have already died. In the end, if we go back with nothing, isn't that a bit unfair to ourselves? All the hard work and effort we've put in—was it all for nothing?"
It seemed my words had a slight effect. The four of them exchanged glances and whispered a few words to each other; they appeared to be wavering. I could understand this because we were all in the same position as workers. If Jenny had said this, it would have been pointless.
The Big Guy looked at me and said, "Of course we know that. We want to earn more money to go back and live better lives too. But it's so dangerous right now; several people have died. How can I not be afraid?"
I anticipated their response and had already prepared my counterargument. "Think about it: since we set sail, we've long left the mainland behind. There's no way the fishing boat can return now. Even if we give you a lifeboat, can you row back? If we encounter storms or sharks along the way, won't you all end up lost?"
The expressions on their faces softened a bit. I pressed on, "Honestly, like you, I want to go back soon and end this miserable existence. Danger won't always be present; as long as we stay vigilant, we'll be safe. If we endure just a little longer and salvage the wreck, we'll find treasure and make money. Then we can return home in glory."
As I spoke these words, I cursed myself inwardly; I even wanted to slap myself a few times for speaking against my conscience. The dangers of the deep sea were immense—no amount of caution could change that. However, what I said was true: even if they got a lifeboat, they wouldn't make it back to land; they'd ultimately perish at sea.
The four of them exchanged glances again; they seemed swayed now. I walked over and patted the Big Guy on the shoulder, looking into his eyes as I said, "We'll fight side by side; nothing will happen to us. When we make big money together, we'll return home together."
Finally, the Big Guy was convinced by my words. His eyes reddened as he nodded and said, "Yes, we... we won't leave now. We'll wait until we make big money and then go back together..."
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