NOVEL NEXT chapter 42
The Nightmare Star had a huge hole blown open. Repairs were expensive—costing 332 wood, 125 fabric, 108 stone, and 20 steel, and taking half a day to finish.
The system clearly understood resource recycling!
The materials you get from dismantling a ship are ridiculously reduced, but repairing one takes double the resources...
Still, Yang Yi didn’t regret pulling the trigger. Even if he could do it again, he’d make the same choice without hesitation.
Who knew what might’ve happened once all those spiders came crawling out? Maybe they’d attack, or worse—merge into some monstrous creature.
Better to be cautious. You never go wrong being too careful.
With such a massive gain, a bit of resource loss was nothing!
---
Three days later, the Nightmare Star was still patrolling near the island.
Yang Yi had a nautical chart—his natural °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° advantage—allowing him to monitor movements around the island.
For three straight days, not a single ship appeared nearby.
Maybe Hu Wei’s death spooked the others.
When the players he scammed tried to message him privately and found his account unreachable, they must’ve grown wary and stayed away from the coordinates.
Or maybe Hu Wei hadn’t even fooled that many people, and Yang Yi just happened to be the last one.
---
During those three days, Suna locked herself inside the laboratory.
Aside from drawing a few more vials of Yang Yi’s blood, she rarely showed herself—completely absorbed in some research.
As evening fell and darkness crept in, Yang Yi stepped into the cabin and called out loudly:
“Suna, time to rest!”
He’d set a strict rule—a maximum of eight hours in the lab per day.
It was a strict rule he’d set to prevent Suna’s sanity value from dropping too low and pushing her into madness.
“Suna!” he called again, irritation on his face.
“Just five more minutes!”
“Oh, so now you’re bargaining? Forget five minutes—get out here right now, or I’ll kick you out myself!” Yang Yi snapped.
As captain, he literally had the authority to “kick” her from the lab—meaning the system would forcibly eject her from the room.
“No, don’t! I’ll come out!”
After a short commotion, Suna rushed out.
“Any progress?”
“Still a bit to go…” she mumbled absentmindedly, clearly lost in her own thoughts.
Yang Yi was used to this. He knew she was often lost in her own world.
“Alright, then go get some rest. You can continue tomorrow”
Suna barely reacted, drifting toward her room like a zombie.
---
Yang Yi returned to the deck, stopped the ship, and kept it about a hundred nautical miles from the island.
Lately, the fish he’d been catching were the same old species—except for one peculiar one, hooked from the deep sea using an eyeball as bait.
It was about half a meter long, covered in coral, resembling a woven basket.
But in truth, the actual fish inside was only palm-sized, nestled in the middle. Everything else was coral.
[Name: Coral Cage Fish]
[Description: A deep-sea species covered in toxic coral, which forms a cage-like shell around its body for protection. The meat is also highly poisonous—consumption not recommended.]
Seeing the words “highly poisonous,” Yang Yi didn’t even want to touch it.
He speared it with a wooden harpoon—like skewering a ball—and sent it straight to the lab.
His luck had been terrible these days—no treasure chests in sight. The only catches aside from fish were 12 units of wood and 15 units of fabric.
Fishing had proven unreliable—completely dependent on luck and skill.
Even the best fisherman sometimes goes home empty-handed.
And when that happens too often, they start believing in superstition:
* “Cast exactly on the hour—you’ll have a higher chance of catching a treasure chest!”
* “Don’t worry whether something bites, just keep reeling!”
* “Mark the spot where you caught a chest or big fish and come back later.” (A.k.a. carving marks on the boat—futile.)
* “Bow to your fishing rod nine times to bless it—then it’ll bring you luck!”
Yang Yi scoffed. All nonsense!
He’d tried all of it—and none of it worked!
Now lying on his bed like a salted fish, he scrolled through the world chat.
“Buying lighters!”
He dropped his usual message, hoping someone would reach out.
After scrolling up a few pages, one post caught his eye—the “Great Press Association” special fleet organization.
They’d appeared a few days ago, initially recruiting members.
Apparently, their leader owned a special type of ship capable of printing newspapers.
So, he decided to start a press company, collecting maritime intel and selling it as a weekly newspaper.
After some days of preparation, their first issue was finally ready for release.
> “Issue No. 1 completed. Includes: Trade Section, Ocean Chronicles, Monster Reports, and more in progress…”
> “Price: 100 coins per issue. Subscription: 300 coins/month (4 issues minimum).”
> “We welcome news tips—verified information will earn coins rewards. False news = permanent blacklist! Ad space also available!”
Yang Yi couldn’t help but admire the business sense.
The price was low, but with enough readers, they could make a fortune off volume.
As long as the paper earned a good reputation, money would flow nonstop.
Curious, Yang Yi sent a private message asking to buy one.
The reply came quickly:
> “Please pay first, then leave a note specifying language.
> The newspaper will be delivered via free trade.
> You can also add the editor as a friend to subscribe—300 coins per month for at least four issues. Promo: buy 3 months, get 1 free!”
> “No need for membership—just one issue first,” Yang Yi replied, sending over 100 coins.
He didn’t bother friending them or subscribing. He wasn’t short on money anyway.
He bought it anonymously, planning to check if it was worth it first.
The paper arrived in minutes—a simple ink-printed sheet, looking exactly like an old-fashioned newspaper.
The ink even smudged if rubbed too hard.
But nobody cared about that—content was all that mattered.
---
The Nightmare Star was dark, with only the witch’s lab and Suna’s room illuminated.
Yang Yi didn’t want to bother Suna with a “reading visit,” so he snuck into the lab instead.
It was eerily quiet—like stepping into another world.
The air was thick with a strange smell, part rot, part chemical, and part… the unique stench of mutated organs.
Glass jars filled with organs lined the walls. Yang Yi didn’t look too closely—he might lose sanity points.
He unfolded the paper and started reading.
It had two sides.
The front page was the Trade Section, listing buying and selling ads—complete with names, ship IDs, and contact info for private negotiation.
Most listings were for self-made goods.
Yang Yi immediately spotted a familiar name—Zhou Dai, captain of the Goddess of Dawn.
She was still selling holy water, now priced at 2000 coins per bottle, or exchangeable for enchanted equipment.
That meant she’d actually given him a discount before—an “insider” rate.
Of course, that was during the early chaos when materials were scarce.
Continuing down, Yang Yi spotted something disturbing:
[Name: Cult of the Corpse-Eater – Starter Manual]
[Type: Relic]
[Quality: Rare]
[Description: Records eighteen methods of corpse consumption. Promises literal benefits—‘you are what you eat.’
Cannot, however, increase your intelligence.]
Yang Yi nearly blacked out.
This newspaper had to be destroyed immediately—Suna must never see this.
If that crazy woman found out, she’d definitely buy it and start experimenting with the recipes!
Just imagining that made his skin crawl—visions of Suna devouring corpses flashed in his mind.
He quickly disabled her trading permissions, erasing the risk altogether.
The rest of the listings weren’t nearly as deranged—mostly overpriced junk or underwhelming items.
If something was truly good, it would’ve already sold through chat.
Still, one thing caught his attention:
[Name: Barbarian Catapult]
[Type: Ship Equipment]
[Quality: Fine]
[Description: Can launch objects for long-range attacks.
Effective range: 0–500 meters (heavy projectiles may fail to fire). Requires 1m² of deck space.]
The Nightmare Star lacked any ranged attack methods, so this could be useful in emergencies—if the price was right.
But when Yang Yi saw it—2000 coins—he nearly swore.
He could build a cannon for that price! Cannons were stronger, faster, and easier to aim than catapults.
The only advantage of a catapult was slightly longer range, but its slower projectile speed made dodging easy.
In short—it wasn’t worth 2000 coins. Maybe 500 at most.
So he sent a message:
> “500 shells for one catapult—message me if interested.”
No reply yet; maybe the seller was asleep. He’d check again tomorrow.
---
He glanced over the Wanted Section next—big organizations like New World, Neo-Humanity, and the Steel Brotherhood were all bulk-buying supplies, equipment, and ignition tools.
Their prices were slightly below market rate, but they offered quick trades for fast cash.
“No wonder I can’t get my hands on a lighter,” Yang Yi muttered.
He couldn’t compete with these fleets’ funds or warehouse size.
After finishing the front page, he flipped to the back.
Two more sections awaited: Ocean Chronicles and Monster Reports.