A pain that sliced to the bone.

Ye Shu opened her eyes again—she was back on the cruise ship.

She sat in her cabin, half-finished beef ramen before her. Its rich aroma should have tempted her appetite, but all she felt was nausea.

She remembered, just before the ship was about to capsize, hearing the sound of an airplane taking off... Which meant that the real key to escaping this deadly game wasn't on the ship, but above, in the sky. The deceptively calm sea below was rife with hidden menace.

From the sound and visibility, that airplane couldn’t be large—most likely a private jet.

She left her room, composed, and climbed the stairs upward.

She simply warned Chen Meng and the others: the cruise ship might harbor dangers yet unrevealed. They should prepare inflatable rafts, and if possible, firearms—the ocean beneath bristled with monsters.

Ye Shu slung her bag over her shoulder and headed for the top deck.

Her abnormal behavior did not escape Lin Baozhu's constant scrutiny; the girl had, perhaps unconsciously, come to see Ye Shu as her savior.

The route to the 90th floor had long been blocked by Ye Shu.

As a sanctuary for the infected, this area was swarming with them. Coupled with the thousands of NPCs present—each at least of intermediate level—Ye Shu had delayed leading anyone here for good reason.

Now... she no longer had the luxury of caution.

The sea monster’s focus was solely on her. Ye Shu had to carve a path for her own survival.

Though she seemed calm, her almond-shaped eyes gleamed with madness and her trembling brows twisted in a ghastly mask—like a demon emerging from the pit.

Left hand gripping a peachwood sword, right hand wielding a rocket launcher, she attacked the infected with raucous abandon. Whenever she ran out of ammunition, she swiftly restocked, though this relentless fighting drained her stamina fast.

Above the 90th floor were other coalition players. Seeing her example, they barricaded the lower floors as well.

Ye Shu emerged from the refuge, drenched in blood, the helmet on her head smeared with viscous fluids. Several rocket blasts tore through the upper passages. The players she encountered stared at her in abject terror, convinced she was there to plunder their supplies; some wept, some begged. She spared them not a glance as she pressed on.

In just over twenty minutes, she blasted her way to the top deck.

When Ye Shu arrived, the helicopter on the helipad had just started its rotors. She fired a rocket at a nearby building and shouted, “Don’t even think of leaving—otherwise, the next shot’s aimed at you!”

Those in the chopper’s control room didn’t budge. Instead, a sniper took aim at Ye Shu.

She took a bullet in her hand, but her momentum never faltered—she didn't even flinch—pushing herself to her absolute limit as she sprinted and vaulted onto the aircraft.

“I said, hands on your head. Move, and I’ll kill you.”

She pressed her gun to the sniper’s temple. Her tone was quiet, but laced with chilling menace.

The man hadn’t expected someone he just shot to be able to leap onto the copter at all, disbelief written across his face. Powerless, he raised both hands over his head.

“The Masked Hero!”

“The Masked Hero!”

Lin Baozhu had followed all the way. She hadn’t understood Ye Shu’s intent until she saw the small plane waiting.

Seeing Ye Shu take a bullet, she rushed forward despite her wounds, not caring for her own safety.

Ye Shu recognized Lin Baozhu instantly. Pointing her gun at the man, she ordered, “Drop a rope—let her up!”

Clutching her injured arm, Lin Baozhu hung her head, eyes brimming with tears, like a puppy abandoned at sea.

The next second, a rope tumbled from the sky. The girl burst into tears of joy.

———

Inside the helicopter, Ye Shu pressed her gun to the man’s forehead. “Higher. Fly higher.”

She remembered—the monster would emerge right about now, a beast stretching hundreds of meters, sinuous and preternaturally agile.

Fu Jingchuan gave the pilot a nod, his face betraying not the slightest fear of being a hostage. “Do as she says.”

As the chopper lifted, an enormous and grotesque form surged from the sea. Its tentacles, massive and fluid, shattered the Royal cruise liner as if it were no more than a child’s toy.

“Oh god…” Lin Baozhu whimpered, peering down at the chaos. In that instant, she understood: the Masked Hero had known something monstrous lurked beneath them all along. No wonder…

The black sea monster destroyed the luxury liner, but harmed no one. It thrashed and searched through the debris, as if seeking something.

Chen Meng and the surviving players stared, paralyzed by the sight of the colossal abomination. She understood: should that creature so much as open its mouth, they would all be lost—devoured in an instant.

The monster lifted pieces of wreckage, scanning the water with coal-black eyes, letting out a hoarse roar of frustration before smashing the fleet of life rafts into the water with a swing of its tentacles.

Thankfully, everyone survived—just some coughing and spluttering as water filled their lungs.

“Boss... this monster is odd. It’s intelligent, almost like it’s searching for something specific.”

The pilot shot a glance at the sea and couldn’t help but mutter in awe.

“Hmm.”

Fu Jingchuan was surprised too. It was his first time playing the game, but based on what his intelligence network reported, creatures like this shouldn’t display such wit in the game.

This monster... was truly special.

Ye Shu spared the pilot a cold look. The truth was transparent: the monster was searching for her. If she hadn’t fled in time, she would’ve been torn apart by that abyssal leviathan just like last time.

Hatred burned in Ye Shu’s eyes beneath her helmet.

“You—come here and bandage me.”

“Try anything, and we die together.”

Only now did Ye Shu notice the dull pain in her arm—the bullet wound before boarding the copter.

There was still one day left in the game. Without timely treatment, she’d die regardless.

Ye Shu kept her sniper aimed squarely at Fu Jingchuan, never letting her guard drop. She pulled a few grenades from her pouch and handed them to Lin Baozhu, her voice gentle for once. “Baozhu, put on a life jacket. If I die, use these—blow up the plane.”

Fu Jingchuan, with a gun to his head: “……”

Fu Shiyi, the pilot: “……”

Seeing the Masked Hero had always felt like coming home. Lin Baozhu, gazing at the black helmet, felt a strange sense of comfort.

The woman bared a sliver of her pale arm. Clenching her teeth, she dug the bullet from the flesh with Fu Jingchuan’s help, smothered the wound in medicine. The taste of blood flooded her mouth, but she didn’t utter a sound.

Fu Jingchuan had met many delicate heiresses, but never a woman of such iron will. He wondered—what kind of face was hidden beneath that helmet?

Fu Shiyi quickly picked up the change in his notoriously cold third brother. With an awkwardly friendly smile he piped up, “Miss, we mean you no harm. We're all players, after all. It's the last day—let’s ride out this game in peace.”

Ye Shu met his eyes, icy and unmoved.

She would never trust unfamiliar faces so easily—and she was the hijacker. The moment she lowered her weapon, these men would toss her overboard without hesitation.

“My name is Fu Ruyi... Miss, you can just call me Shiyi. And this is my third brother—”

“Fu Jingchuan.”

“Miss... where do you live? What’s your age…?”

Fu Jingchuan shot his brother a withering look. Fu Shiyi went quiet and fixed his eyes on the controls.

Ye Shu said nothing more, but regarded Fu Jingchuan with a look of recognition.

She had seen him before, right when she first appeared in the game—the captain of the Royal. No wonder his voice sounded so familiar.

The helicopter flew far across the endless blue, the sweeping sea stretching forever. Suddenly, Ye Shu spotted land in the distance. As they drew near, she could make out several massive pipes disgorging filthy water onto the shore.

This must be the very source of the ocean’s pollution.

She glanced at the radar’s display—it confirmed the location: the island nation of Higashiying.

In secret, Higashiying was dumping pollution into the ocean... unleashing untold mutations. The infected, the monstrous fish—these, too, were but victims.

The massive, frenzied sea monster was just another beast warped by pollution.

———

Before the game ended, Ye Shu fired a rocket at the pipes. The force sent waste surging inland. She made sure Linden Baozhu, as an NPC, reached dry land.

With a rocket launcher still aimed at Fu Shiyi, she forced them to land on a small islet off the eastern continent.

Lin Baozhu clutched her silver handgun, trembling.

The Masked Hero was none other than Sister Ye.

She should’ve seen it sooner—no one is kind without a reason.

[Congratulations, player Ye Shu, on surviving twenty days!]

[Congratulations, player Ye Shu, for unlocking the truth of the pollution source. Progress 100%. Reward: +10 Constitution, +10 Strength, +10 Agility.]

[Rank: S.]

[Successfully exited the world.]

[Dungeon ‘Dirge of the Sea: Revelry in the Tempest’ cleared by 1,346 players.]