Wasteland Development Diary

Zhou Yi followed the iron handrail into the submarine.

Upon landing, he stepped on the anti-slip raised iron plates.

The interior of the Sea God was narrower than it appeared from outside, it could only accommodate one person walking through, but there were ceiling lamps illuminating the space, so it wasn't gloomy.

Inside there was a musty smell of dust.

The most abundant features here were the large number of circular metal valves, some red, some white, with numerous pipes and instruments fixed on both sides of the cabin.

However, the maintenance inside the vessel was clearly neglected, the doorways and passages showed wear and tear, and paint peeled off the handrails in patches exposing the black rusted iron underneath, along with some old wooden dashboard devices on the walls.

Zhou Yi guessed that this must be an old submarine, quite different from the modern ones he had seen in news photos.

The clanking sounds of his shoes on the iron plate echoed unusually clearly in the cabin.

He walked deeper inside.

He went through an instrument room, then entered a cabin which required ducking to get inside.

Leading the way, Bone Man said through synchronized consciousness, "Chairman, this is where we used to stay."

Zhou Yi looked around.

On both sides of the cabin were bunk beds fixed with iron railings, and beside the dark red beds were iron shelves fixed with simple wooden cabinets and a loudspeaker, probably used for issuing orders to the resting crew.

Jacob lay on the ground, with his skull turned towards the bottom of the iron shelf and pointed inside, "It's right here."

Zhou Yi removed the panel under the iron shelf and took a look. Indeed, there were patterns on the wooden board below, drawn with scratches, giving the whole image a somewhat sharp appearance, and the content was generally in line with what Jacob had said.

The drawing depicted the submarine as a long rectangular block, marked escape routes and how to twist several valves.

The crew's cabin area was divided into two levels, totaling 24 beds, and there were some padded seats.

Zhou Yi continued walking inside to what seemed like a communications room. It had dumbbell-shaped microphones, box-type devices with various dials and numerous knobs.

Some large instrument panels and complicated devices had text on them.

It was neither Chinese nor English.

But in the Wasteland Era, its nationality no longer mattered.

Zhou Yi just wanted to find the Red Kestrel quickly.

However, his partner was still out of contact, and the remote control still showed no signal.

Once he activated [Alert], he could see the white light emanating from Jacob, but there was no response elsewhere, as if the Sea God had completely ceased operation.

Jacob then said, "Chairman, this is not normal."

"We didn't move those debris; they were scattered everywhere, some under the panels, some beside the instruments, some outside the cabin doors... But now, not even fragments can be seen. Yet, I found a skull on the entrance's iron plate, but everything else is gone."

Suddenly, Bone Man shivered: "It's bad! This really is a trap designed to lure outsiders in and turn them into pet-like skeletons. The Sea God isn't asleep; it has been observing us in some way... It's best if you leave quickly."

Zhou Yi replied, "Since we're in, we obviously need to find the Red Kestrel and get out together."

If the Sea God really was a trap, it might be difficult to escape.

He needed to carefully investigate the situation inside.

Unheeded by his advice, Jacob looked around and muttered, "I remember there's something here that might have something on it."

Bone Man rummaged through the area.

Meanwhile, Zhou Yi continued to observe the surroundings, hoping to find some clues.

Before long, Bone Man said, "Found it, it's this."

He pulled out a large tin canister and skillfully peeled back its rubber lid.

Inside was a paste-like substance resembling glue.

After examining it, Jacob said, "This stuff is what we used to glue our bodies together because our bones were brittle. There's a lack of Death Light here, so there's very little energy."

"This shape and dosage are exactly the same as before. It means no one has used this since that escape... Everyone must have died."

Zhou Yi's [Alert] picked up a bit of white light. As there was no reaction from the entire Sea God, that dim white light was particularly noticeable.

He pointed in the direction of the light, "What's over there?"

"That's the end."

Jacob led the way past the communication room into a narrow corridor ahead; this place too was filled with numerous large and small circular valves but was slightly more spacious at the end.

There was a tightly sealed circular door in front.

The white light was on the door.

Could the Red Kestrel be trapped behind it?

The Bone Man tapped the door, producing a loud clang, "This can't be opened. From my earliest memory, this has always been the end on this side of the Sea God. Back then, we lacked the strength and didn't dare to damage this place in case there was something behind it."

Zhou Yi slowly raised his fist.

It was finally time to use his Stretching Fist.

But just as he was warming up, Zhou Yi suddenly realized something was off.

The white light reaction was not behind the door but on a specific area of the door itself.

He took a closer look.

There was a silver-colored "×" sign on the outer metal shell of the sealed cabin, it appeared to be a plated mark, and it was the source of the [Alert] reaction.

It reminded him of the silver patterns on the samurai crab, which are part of Guangna Species, used to absorb nature's Death Light for their use, also the prototype of Light Imprint Skill.

However, this silver cross was too small, what was it used for?

Zhou Yi pondered internally.

Could this be an access point, similar to the copper strip connected to a battery?

He placed his hand on the silver mark and channeled energy into it.

-10

-10

Energy seemed to flow smoothly.

Zhou Yi asked, "Hello? Is this the Sea God?"

A burst of random, meaningless information came in return as if it were being disrupted.

Then he heard a voice in his mind, "Zhou, this place is very dangerous. You need to leave at once!"

It was Red Kestrel.

Zhou Yi immediately responded, "Are you behind this door?"

"I am this symbol, sealed here by the Sea God."

Ah?

The abilities of the Sea God seemed somewhat supernatural.

Zhou Yi glanced around with the corner of his eye.

Every move he made was likely being observed by the Sea God.

Could it hear his conversation with the Red Kestrel?

"I don't think it can, as this is through the flow of energy carrying information," the drone replied. "Without energy exchange, that cannot be done."

"You are in a very dangerous situation now."

Red Kestrel sent a large, dense amount of information.

"Listen carefully, Zhou."

"I discovered something abnormal when I entered here to investigate this door for its signal-blocking capabilities. But I checked other compartments inside the Sea God and found a significant issue with this entity—there was no trace of energy flow between its structures."

"Even in hibernation, there would be periodic energy flows necessary for consciousness to function and expend energy. But it shows no such responses, yet it maintains a stable physiological structure."

"The Sea God is not an unsophisticated entity; its consciousness has been completely erased and is being controlled by something else."

"That thing is very dangerous."

Zhou Yi then realized that it was this thing occupying the Sea God's body that was reorganizing and controlling the Bone Man inside.

"Chairman, what's wrong with you..."

Suddenly, the Bone Man beside him spoke.

But Zhou Yi could no longer hear the rest of its words.

Everything around him turned pitch dark.

Only Zhou Yi remained, his body outlined by a faint white light.

A figure stood before him.

The figure stood opposite him.

Zhou Yi, however, was exceptionally calm, "You're not the Sea God."

"Clever."

The figure's voice was ambiguous, neither clearly male nor female, "Your body is very good; it will become one of my collected Sparks."

Zhou Yi's gaze sharpened.

So it coveted his body.

"I know you have many questions, and you'll understand soon because we will become one."

The figure laughed with delight, "It's astonishing how such a lower life form possesses such an excellent body. You've underdeveloped it though; I will unleash its true power."

Suddenly, the figure appeared in front of Zhou Yi, rapidly swirling around his body and transforming into countless beams of light.

After about two minutes,

The figure returned to human form, "No, wait... why... why can't I use this body?!"

"What on earth are you?!"

Zhou Yi threw a right hook that interrupted the figure's voice, tilting its head, "Watch your language when you speak."

"No, no, what's going on here?"

"It can't be, this procedure is definitely correct. Higher life forms should replace lower ones directly; the privilege level should be in my favor... Where did the problem occur? The process? Or is it external environmental influences? But this is supposed to be a stable, sealed environment... Could you also be a higher life form?"

At this moment, the figure fell into a state of existential doubt, muttering to itself.

Zhou Yi's mind also received a strange piece of information.

[Body 2]

Life Value: 178441

Defense: 0

Energy: 5773

Body 2?

Could it be referring to this guy right here?

No.

Zhou Yi was stunned.

Was it possible that he and this entity had merged?

He couldn't become someone with dissociative identity disorder like Jacob!

Anger surged in Zhou Yi's heart as he grabbed entity number 2 and began pummeling it furiously.

Since there was a health bar, it meant it could be killed.

After enduring a series of punches, the figure seemed to regain its senses and turned to run away.