"Yaga... save me... Please save me..."

Koshchey's hoarse screams fluctuated in pitch. "I am in so much... pain..."

Yaga's face turned deathly pale. In the end, she stiffly shook her head. "I can't save you, brother. You're beyond any... medicine..."

"Liar!!!"

Koshchey roared, his deformed face livid with rage, clutching at Yaga's neck, his grotesque fingers tightening like a vise, "You even want to harm me! You want to kill your only brother! You wretch! You..."

Yaga's face was ashen; she was already struggling for breath. She could only watch in despair as her brother lashed out in delirium. Quickly losing strength in her hands, she ceased to struggle. But then, she was impaled furiously onto the deck, vomiting blood profusely and gasping for air.

In the final moment, Koshchey released his grip.

"Look, my dear, see what you have done..."

He staggered backwards, his shell continuously melting into layers of mud, piling on the deck and spreading everywhere.

"I intended... to protect you... We could have escaped together to America."

The twisted face was etched with agony and frenzy, leaving behind a trail of murky tears, "After I'm gone... after I'm gone... what will you do then?"

Yaga stared blankly at him, speechless.

Yet Koshchey staggered a step back, turning around to face the stunned passengers with a ferocity in his eyes that Huai Shi found eerily familiar, "At least... I must make you..."

That instant, a tide-like surge of murderous intent erupted.

"Run!"

Huai Shi could no longer concern himself with anything else and grabbed Lily, sprinting out of the dining hall.

What followed was a black tide erupting from Koshchey's mouth. Huai Shi could only hear the thunderous shattering of countless glasses behind him, and then an inky storm of wind, rain, and floodwaters howled into the dining hall, covering everything. In the blink of an eye, the false peace and joy were so effortlessly torn asunder.

In the sweep of the storm, everyone felt their souls quaver with a tremor.

Immediately, rain and the thick black flood hit them in the face.

The black mud, mixed within, shot like bullets, harvesting a swath of Souls amidst screams. Then, as those clinging mounds of mud hit the ground, faint humanoid shapes struggled and climbed out of them. Like Evil Ghosts from Hell, they reached for anything alive around them, pulling them inch by inch into the seemingly endless black mire.

In a flash, numerous bizarre silhouettes emerged: Hunters with bows and arrows, armored soldiers, Priests with hideous faces wielding scepters, and even sorceress-like women...

The gates of Hell burst open with a BOOM.

The sins and Souls imprisoned within wailed as they flew out from Koshchey's open mouth, circling in the air as if to devour everything.

Is this old demon trying to self-destruct? Huai Shi was stunned. Has he gone mad?!

What on Earth was he thinking? There were specific perpetrators for specific crimes; even if someone wronged you, go after them! Why drag an entire ship of people with you in death? But now there was no time for such inquiries.

Koshchey's release comprised all the Sublimators he had once devoured but had not digested, essentially his hoard over nearly a thousand years. Beyond the notorious rumors, Koshchey was most infamous for his ability to manipulate Souls, hiding his own in other places and digesting his defeated enemies to transfer his aging and injuries. Near death now, he no longer needed these to prolong life, so he released them as a field-type AOE, the effect terrifying.

Those who had survived his digestion up to now were either prominent dark scions or once-renowned heroes; none were easy to provoke. Now, under Koshchey's influence, the remnants of their Source Substance had been steeped in darkness, turning utterly insane. Like rabid dogs released from their cages, they attacked anything they saw, instantly causing mayhem and bloodshed.

Thankfully, by now Koshchey was truly, truly too old, so aged he could barely wield a knife. Were it his prime, comparable to a Fifth Stage Sublimator, he might have swallowed the whole ship in an instant.

Considering that a starving camel is still larger than a horse, no one could be sure just how much Power this dying old demon still had. To be on the safe side, it's better to prepare first!

In his frantic escape, Huai Shi fumbled with Lily's pouch, not bothering to distinguish what was what any longer, snatching out the pre-made syringes she had prepared, not even looking at the labels as he jabbed them into his neck. One after another, his neck was quickly poked until it resembled a sieve.

A mix of haphazard Potions spread wildly through his blood, and in an instant, the horrific medicine intermingled with searing pain, turning his eyes blood red. It finally dispelled the lethargy that lingered in his limbs.

Lily watched him, dumbfounded, "What are you doing?"

"Popping pills!" Huai Shi's hands didn't stop moving. "Trust me, this is the right time for drugs! Can't worry about side effects now..."

Lily was astonished. "But that blue one is a sleeping pill!"

Huai Shi was momentarily startled before hastily shoving the blue Potions back and stubbornly retorting, "As long as it's a Potion, that'll do. Let's not fuss over the details."

Strong Stimulant, Willpower Awakening drugs, Cytokine Recombinant Fusion Protein, Silver Blood Potion, potent Artificial Plasma… He injected a series of Potions into his neck without even blinking. His facial veins turned more visibly purple, and the veins on his forehead throbbed wildly, nearly bursting.

In his frantic state, Huai Shi trembled, accidentally injecting half a vial of Holy Water, his eyes bulging out immediately, letting out a SHRIEK, as a mist of burning blood sprayed from his mouth, almost purifying himself.

Through this frenzy of Potion consumption, Huai Shi could feel the toxins in his veins rising rapidly. Fortunately, with the help of these Potions, he regained about eighty percent of his combat strength, freeing him from the debuff of the Penalty for Oath Breaking. His speed increased.

Just as they tried to dodge the dark rainfall on the upper deck and sought refuge in the cabin, they saw the firmly shut door burst open, and dark floodwaters pouring out from within, trapping them in the corridor.

A fearsome face appeared from the dripping mud, vaguely discernible as Koshchey's visage.

"Wait!" Huai Shi didn't let him speak, raising his hand in explanation. "Old man, we've had no cause for complaint recently, why must you..."

"Lies!" Koshchey roared, his voice sweeping over like a storm. A terrifying wind of darkness instantly eroded a layer of Huai Shi's face, flesh growing back at an alarming rate and creating a ghastly sight.

"I recognize you, you were with that white-named face… that white-named face… where exactly is he!"

"I'm not, I wasn't, don't speak nonsense!" Huai Shi hastily waved his hands. "Look at me, dignified and imposing, how do I resemble that Cowherd at all!"

"Ha, a Vampire..." From within the black mud, countless voices either shrieked or howled. "A Stigma Genealogy Assassin... claiming to be innocent!"

In an instant, Huai Shi leapt forward, plucked a Hand Axe from his back, and with a jumping chop, aimed for that disfigured face. In midair, he smashed a vial of Holy Water onto the Axe Blade. Within the dark wind, the Hand Axe, soaked in Holy Water, shone brilliantly. The Axe Blade howled as it passed and, in a moment, shattered the twisted face amidst the black mud.

If a fight was inevitable, then to hell with talk! Looking at the dark mud surging behind the cabin door and the numerous struggling figures emerging, Huai Shi's eyes reddened with anger. He really miscalculated by not killing Yin Yan, that calamity, sooner!

Immediately after, a sound like tearing paper rustled by his ear. Ai Qing said, "Yin Yan exits."

"Damn, that fast?" Huai Shi, dragging Hela, fled in another direction. "Who did it?"

"Don't know. In theory, you're the only Player left in this game. But I feel... this might just be a smokescreen released by KP."

Staring at the empty table before her and the smiling KP, Ai Qing calmly asked, "There's at least one more Player apart from me, right?"

KP countered, "What makes you say that?"

"Otherwise, wouldn't your game be too boring?" Ai Qing looked around at the vacant chairs dispassionately, saying calmly, "From the beginning, you've isolated us, haven't you? If you've hidden our communication from me more than once, what's to stop you from concealing others' situations? Especially with a sound like paper tearing?

"It seems, not only in the game but sometimes the facade presented on the gaming table might all be illusory."

KP seemed to raise an eyebrow delightedly. "I must say, your speculation is very accurate. As a reward... let me think."

After pondering for a moment, KP snapped his fingers, and instantly, a black silhouette appeared opposite Ai Qing, its contours and face indistinct, unclear whether male or female. But without a doubt, the figure was smiling at Ai Qing.

"Unexpectedly, the final Players are two Investigators who first transcended the game and noticed the cognitive disorder. This is truly beyond my expectations.

"I'm starting to look forward to the ultimate outcome."

KP chuckled softly. "But before that... better think about how to survive this calamity first."

At that moment, Huai Shi saw it: on the ceiling overhead, countless fire-prevention sprinklers suddenly burst, spewing forth black sludge. As the mud hit the ground, numerous figures struggled to crawl out of it, blocking Huai Shi's path, roaring and bellowing.

Aboard the cruise ship, not an inch was safe anymore.

"Is this really an old man too aged to walk?" Huai Shi stared wide-eyed at this terrifying scale. "Even close to death, how can he be so tenacious!"

"No." Lily looked at the struggling black mud with pity, whispering softly, "Koshchey... is probably already dead."

The pervasive terror of darkness over the entire ship was merely the lingering ashes left by the Demon King.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.