On his first night in the Nightwatchers safehouse, Lu Yuan did not sleep soundly.
Even though he had already stepped over the threshold of 【Forbidden Lore】, that sense of exhaustion originating from the depths of his soul remained like a persistent shadow.
The moment he closed his eyes, a damp sea breeze carrying a fishy stench rushed toward him.
Splash—
Cold waves slapped against his ankles.
Lu Yuan opened his eyes.
It was still that familiar, despair-inducing black sea, and that pale moon still hung high in the sky.
However, Lu Yuan suddenly noticed that something seemed different this time, because the feeling of his feet being nailed to the beach had vanished.
Replacing it was a weak but real sense of control.
"I can actually move?"
Lu Yuan tried to lift his foot and took a step back.
The sensation of sand rubbing against the soles of his feet was incredibly real.
The waves missed their mark, leaving only a patch of white foam where he had originally stood.
Lu Yuan did not dwell on why he could suddenly move; instead, he immediately turned and hurried toward the interior of the island.
Lu Yuan did not want to miss this opportunity; he only wanted to figure out where exactly this place was.
As he went deeper, Lu Yuan discovered that this was a dead, lonely island.
By the moonlight, he could see a raised plateau in the distance.
There were obvious signs of artificial excavation there—several broken stone pillars stood among the wild grass, and in the center, some kind of complex formation seemed to be inscribed.
The flow of those lines...
Lu Yuan's heart skipped a beat.
Those twisted patterns, like tangled blood vessels, instantly reminded him of the roll of parchment locked deep in his drawer.
"Something very similar?"
He did not dare get too close.
Intuition told him that with his current level of Sanity, attempting to read that formation would likely lead to unpredictable consequences.
Shifting his gaze away, Lu Yuan finally noticed that countless silhouettes stood faintly along the long coastline.
They were like forgotten sculptures, facing the sea, standing upright, allowing the cold waves to slap against them or even submerge their heads without moving an inch.
"Are these... other 'Strange Dreams' victims?"
Lu Yuan counted them; there were at least several dozen within his field of vision.
This number made Lu Yuan frown, because it was far too small!
Although he didn't know the exact status of the Iron Whale now, it was certain that at least all the crew members on the ship were infected, which was a significant number.
Not to mention ordinary people like Lawson who were infected unintentionally.
So, what exactly were the conditions for 'Strange Dreams' infection?
Another thing Lu Yuan didn't understand was why he could move now.
Was it because his Sanity wasn't high enough? Or because he hadn't stepped onto a transcendent pathway?
Lu Yuan did not intend to touch those silhouettes.
In this eerie dream, any extra movement might draw unnecessary attention.
Following what appeared to be a small path worn down by footsteps, Lu Yuan explored toward the interior of the island.
Here, a few small wooden huts built against the mountainside were scattered along the roadside.
The doors were tightly shut, and the windows were dark voids; Lu Yuan tried to push one, but it remained motionless.
It seemed a force was constantly restricting Lu Yuan's actions.
With no other choice, Lu Yuan decisively gave up the idea of exploring the rooms; what he needed to do now was collect as much information as possible.
After all, whether he would be able to move the next time he came to this dream was still uncertain.
Reaching the end of the huts, a bottomless mine shaft suddenly appeared on the mountain wall.
The deep entrance constantly seeped cold air.
Vaguely, Lu Yuan seemed to hear some kind of low growl coming from the depths of the cave, as well as...
"Thump, thump, thump."
It sounded like the beating of a giant heart.
As this sound echoed, the entire island began to vibrate violently.
The sea surface instantly boiled, and that sense of being targeted by a crisis descended once again.
"Damn it, run!"
Lu Yuan turned and ran without hesitation.
...
"Haa—!"
Lu Yuan bolted upright in bed, gasping for air.
The small bedroom was dead silent, save for the "tick-tock" of the wall clock.
【You have observed something strange.】
【Sanity II: +5, 26/47】
One point less again.
Lu Yuan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. The sound of that heartbeat seemed to linger in his eardrums, making his brain throb with pain.
"47..."
He glanced at the time: five o'clock in the morning.
Since he was awake, it was impossible to fall back asleep.
Lu Yuan rolled out of bed, feeling his throat dry and parched. He grabbed the water cup on the table, walked to the bathroom, and twisted the faucet.
"Pshhh—"
A stream of dark red liquid gushed out.
Immediately after, an indescribable fishy stench exploded within the small space.
It wasn't the smell of a sewer, but rather... the smell of tens of thousands of dead fish fermenting in a sealed space.
"What on earth is this?"
Lu Yuan quickly shut the faucet and took a step back.
He looked at the turbid liquid in the sink; in that dark red water, even a few broken, translucent scales were floating.
【Heavily Polluted Water Source】
【Analysis: Contains high concentrations of deep sea creature fluids and putrid tissue. Drinking will lead to acute mutation.】
【Shed Keratinous Scales】
【Analysis: Valueless metabolite.】
Gray-white script jumped across his retina, coldly announcing the reality of the situation.
Lu Yuan's expression darkened.
Yesterday it was just a bit turbid, and today it had directly turned into corpse water?
This indicated that the source of pollution had erupted overnight, and on a staggering scale.
Had the entire Gelimu Port water supply system been paralyzed overnight?
"This is very bad."
Lu Yuan stared at the faucet, his eyes gloomy.
As a doctor, he knew better than anyone what water pollution signified.
Plague, mutation, panic... this port would become incredibly fragile in an instant.
Just as he was considering whether to use some holy water to purify a bit of water for the emergency, hurried footsteps came from the hallway outside.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
"Doctor Lu! Are you awake?"
It was Mary's voice.
Lu Yuan frowned, walked over, and opened the door.
Mary stood at the entrance, her heavy trench coat unable to hide the chill surrounding her.
Her expression was grim, and she clutched an official document sealed with wax.
"Something has happened."
Mary didn't waste time with pleasantries, speaking as she entered. "City Hall was in an uproar last night. The water throughout the city is polluted, and the lords in the noble district are putting insane pressure on the Viscount."
"So?" Lu Yuan leaned against the doorframe. "This should be City Hall's business, right?"
"The people from City Hall are all dead."
Mary gave a cold laugh. "The team they sent to investigate the water source never came back. That place has lost all contact now."
"After evaluation, this is highly likely to be an eerie or large-scale mutation event. Conventional forces cannot handle it; the Nightwatchers must take over."
She slapped the document in her hand onto the table.
"This is an Emergency Conscription Order signed by the Viscount. Lu Yuan, your name is on it too."
Rate on N.U.
