Nan Yue understood. No wonder Amy's face was so mangled when she appeared; it had been shredded by the propeller.
Wen Xiang Yuan was silent for a long time before speaking, “I… I rarely see a family so deeply in love. Whether it was the father or the daughter, all they wanted was to see each other again.”
Nan Yue didn’t know why Wen Xiang Yuan had suddenly become so sentimental, but she could understand to some extent.
In missions, one usually saw more of humanity's dark side, with people scheming against each other. Although Amy also killed, her story was still heartbreaking.
“This is a mission.”
Nan Yue pressed lightly on Wen Xiang Yuan’s shoulder, worried that her psychological value might waver and cause confusion.
Wen Xiang Yuan lowered her head, then looked up after a moment, “I know.”
“Don’t worry about me, Boss, I’m fine.”
After Wen Xiang Yuan found Amy’s body, the scavengers who hadn’t yet completed the hide and seek adventure also received their clearance cards.
This adventure was officially over.
John came to the dining room in person this time. Everyone could feel that he was much gentler, and his eyes were red-rimmed.
“Congratulations, explorers.”
John paused for a moment, his blue eyes turning to Wen Xiang Yuan, “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”
Some others still didn’t know what had happened and looked at Wen Xiang Yuan.
John cleared his throat, “Tomorrow’s adventure is: The journey is nearing its end. Please attend the captain’s banquet at 8 PM.”
After John left, everyone started discussing. The scavengers who had extracted information from some crew members shared what Wen Xiang Yuan had done.
Some couldn’t understand, while others offered Wen Xiang Yuan a kind smile.
Zhu Xi Ning and Gu Xiang Kai, however, looked at Wen Xiang Yuan with concern. Although her physical condition was currently normal, even if Wen Xiang Yuan wouldn’t truly die from such a great risk, they still didn’t want anything to happen to their teammate.
Jiang Siyan sat nearby, listening to the other scavengers discuss. His gaze turned to Wen Xiang Yuan.
She was a strange woman indeed.
Didn’t she know going into the sea could mean death? What was the point of doing this?
The mission world was already polluted and twisted; they couldn’t save the people within it, only their own world.
Jiang Siyan’s gaze shifted to Nan Yue. He knew very well that Nan Yue was like him.
No, Nan Yue was even more ruthless than him.
He recalled that horror and despair from before…
Someone who could remain clear-headed amidst such despair, and even harness that ability for their own use, must be extremely rational and calm.
Why would she agree to her teammate doing something like that…?
Jiang Siyan grew even more curious.
After dinner, Nan Yue and the other three went to the deck for some fresh air. It seemed the full scope of the mission hadn't yet revealed itself.
The only thing they knew was that the water was problematic, possibly related to barnacles.
“The captain’s banquet is usually for wealthy guests on luxury cruise ships, a way for the captain to thank everyone as the journey nears its end.”
“Many people will be there. Actually, from what I know about the Devil’s Bay, everyone should attend, except for some lower-ranking crew members.”
Nan Yue listened to Wen Xiang Yuan and said, “So, the higher-ranking crew members will attend, but mostly other passengers.”
Wen Xiang Yuan nodded.
Nan Yue frowned. Strange… if it’s passengers… what could be the problem?
There were quite a few passengers on board, but over the past few days, they had all interacted with the scavengers to some extent, and no one had noticed anything amiss.
If anything, Nan Yue did feel there were some incongruities, such as…
Her thoughts were interrupted by footsteps. The four of them looked up and saw Joseph approaching.
“Ah… ah…”
He gestured, then handed a small copper necklace to Wen Xiang Yuan.
Wen Xiang Yuan took it with some surprise. She recognized it as Amy’s; the necklace had been tightly entangled around Amy’s skeleton, indicating that Amy had feared losing it to the sea even in her dying moments.
She hadn’t expected Joseph to give her this item.
“This… it’s too precious.”
Wen Xiang Yuan wanted Joseph to keep it, but he insisted, so she could only accept.
Zhu Xi Ning looked at the necklace, pressing her hands together in prayer, “Please, let it be a tool that keeps our Wenwen from dying. If it’s an ability to avoid danger, that would be even better!”
Although immortality in the real world was an ability all scavengers desired, they wished even more not to experience death at all.
Wen Xiang Yuan watched Joseph walk away, his figure suddenly appearing hunched, as if he had aged considerably in an instant.
Wen Xiang Yuan put on the necklace, her fingers slowly caressing it.
Nan Yue also leaned towards it being a tool, but she didn’t know if it was single-use or long-term.
But the worry she had held for Wen Xiang Yuan finally eased, making her previous thoughts much clearer.
“Actually… there are indeed some incongruities on this ship.”
Nan Yue’s gaze shifted to the brightly lit dining room and bar.
Here, they could see the ship’s tourists indulging in revelry.
“Their timeline doesn’t quite match up.”
“Penny came to see the waters where her father lost his life, Johnny for adventure, and that couple even got into financial trouble at home just to see Devil’s Bay…”
Zhu Xi Ning understood, “You mean their actions are delayed.”
Nan Yue nodded gravely, “Exactly. Regardless of their starting point, their obsession with Devil’s Bay doesn’t seem like something that could wait ten years; it’s more like…”
“They’re more like the first group of explorers who followed Steve to explore Devil’s Bay.”
Nan Yue exhaled and nodded.
If, as Steve said, the Devil’s Bay had been operating for ten years, then this route should essentially be free of any danger, let alone an adventure.
If these passengers were truly so obsessed with Devil’s Bay, how could they have waited ten years? And why would they delay their trading house just to participate in a safe, established route that posed no danger?
Everyone Nan Yue had interacted with possessed a sense of detached composure regarding danger and a spirit of adventure.
While it was true that going to sea always carried some risk, still…
Nan Yue recalled Penny’s expression when she mentioned her father; that determination was as if… she would complete it even if it meant death.
The more Nan Yue recalled, the more certain she became of her idea.
There was a problem with the ship’s timeline, or the memories of the people on board were flawed.
They were clearly people who were stepping into this sea area for the first time and had survived until now.
Why would they think they were traveling ten years later?
Gu Xiang Kai had been silent, seemingly deep in thought.
“Could it be… that we are actually seeing people and events that have already happened?”
Nan Yue’s eyes lit up as she looked at Gu Xiang Kai, “That’s a good one, Old Gu!”
Wen Xiang Yuan also looked at Gu Xiang Kai with some surprise, her eyes filled with delight.
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