Serial Player
Chapter 530 - 206: Outside the Circle

Chapter 530: Chapter 206: Outside the Circle

"Click"

The moment Li Changhe asked the question, a door on the fifth floor was opened.

At the same time, an unsettling rotten smell howled out from it.

The sound in the hall also came to a stop.

Subsequently, a sharp and rapid alarm sound accompanied by a dazzling red light appeared.

It was an urgent alarm, as well as the harbinger of disaster.

A huge black spherical figure appeared on the corridor of the fifth floor.

With a large mouth and bloody teeth exposed, it supported its body on two thick arms.

Its body was covered with numerous pale faces, whose expressions were twisted as if in pain.

That was the fifth floor’s Abnormality, Corpse Face!

The continuous death of the Abnormalities and aliens had finally drawn out one of the most dangerous monsters here.

As expected from the highest level of Abnormality, it brought an astonishing sense of oppression as soon as it appeared.

Even the aliens had quieted down at this moment.

The next second, almost all the aliens burst open.

Their bones and remains turned back into blood and merged into the Blood Pool.

At the same time, a giant skeleton close to ten meters in size gradually took shape in the hall’s Blood Pool.

The hunting instinct of the Insect God Shell sensed the imminent danger obstructing its prey, so it abandoned all the small aliens to create a larger alien to confront the danger and hunt it.

Corpse Face had the same idea. The reason it left the room was to satisfy its endless hunger.

Its two thick arms clung to the railing, leaping down from the fifth floor. In midair, the huge mouth opened wide, biting at the giant skeleton that was still forming in the Blood Pool.

Corpse Face didn’t care about fighting fairly. Naturally, it wouldn’t let the alien appear in its perfect state before it. The only thing it wanted to do was to eat it.

The large aliens remaining on the third floor also leaped out, crashing into the airborne Corpse Face, attempting to buy time.

The two huge monsters entwined and fell into the center of the hall, marking the start of an even more intense battle.

On the other side, the fourth-floor staircase area was completely quiet.

They didn’t even pay attention to the appearance of Corpse Face.

Upon hearing Li Changhe’s question, Jack’s eyes flickered with light and shadow.

The players were on guard as they sensed Jack’s hostility in that instant. Was he going to make a move?

"Magic Eye?"

Li Changhe, who had seen many things, was not surprised. After all, he had encountered quite a few Magic Eyes.

He also had the Hawk Eye Magic Eye, which provided an aerial perspective.

Jack glanced at everyone, and Li Changhe noticed his gaze lingered in a certain direction for a very brief moment. He smiled slightly, "You actually noticed that. Yes, humans are crucial on this Dream Cruise. The captain has always been trying to protect humans; there’s no need for me to hide that. Once you’ve earned the right to board the cruise, the captain will naturally protect you."

"Right... You mean the whistle sound?" Earth Knight asked.

"That’s right. Not everyone has the qualifications to enter here. Not everyone is worthy of salvation." Jack responded, "You should feel honored that here, you can live peacefully without fearing the dangers of the outside world. I can see that you all are seasoned fighters and must have faced danger frequently. This could be a paradise for you."

Indeed, as a [Player], one might die during any given task.

It’s true that they’re no strangers to danger.

If they were still struggling with the decision to become [Players], staying here might be a good choice, just like the Mad Kangaroo and Black Goat.

Being a [Player] grants them strength, but also brings danger. They chose to escape it.

"Using force to imprison people in this isolated place and calling it protection, yet we’re supposed to feel honored?" Li Changhe shook his head, "For those who died at your hands trying to save humanity, that’s desecration and betrayal."

"Besides, the captain’s intention to protect humanity is actually just to enjoy the amplification effect this ship provides, isn’t it?"

Jack’s smile gradually faded.

Li Changhe then looked at the battlefield in the hall. During their conversation, Corpse Face had already devoured the alien entangled with it.

Even as the alien’s corpse turned into a puddle of blood, it could not escape from Corpse Face’s mouth and was swallowed whole.

After devouring the alien, its size changed.

An additional body looking similar to its main body grew from somewhere on it, like sticky rice balls stuck together.

Corpse Face’s ability was simple and brutal.

The more corpses it consumed, the more additional bodies it would have, and the stronger it would become.

The giant alien also slowly crawled out of the Blood Pool, its immense figure bathed in red light, making it even more terrifying.

"Alright. A giant alien against a fifth-tier Abnormality; the commotion should be big enough. Hopefully, people outside can seize the opportunity." Li Changhe sighed softly.

He continued to Jack, "I already know your purpose. The captain’s invincibility is due to the presence of humans, or rather, as long as a certain number of humans exist on the Dream Cruise, the captain can gain the nearly invincible amplification. What you call protection is simply trying to bring humans in."

"This place used to be Noah’s Ark, which, in myth, was meant to protect the seeds that would repopulate the new world. To protect those seeds and maintain order, the captain here naturally has the invincible amplification effect while aboard the ship. This was only turned into a containment site for researching Abnormalities by the so-called ’Company’ after they discovered this effect, in order to suppress escaping Abnormalities."

"And your gaze lingered on Wolf Smoke at my five o’clock position just now," Li Changhe continued, "even though I’m the one talking to you, you were paying attention to something about Wolf Smoke. This means that there’s something about Wolf Smoke that you find noteworthy."

After some thought, Wolf Smoke said, "The difference between me and the rest of you is... "

We entered here after hearing the steam whistle," Li Changhe whispered, "While you boarded the ship after killing passengers and obtaining their room cards. In their words, you boarded the ship without having the qualifications."

"In other words, you guys are the genuine passengers," Wolf Smoke realized, "and I am... a stowaway?"

"You could say that. From what I’ve learned from the official Players, the captain is resisting high-end forces approaching the north shore. As soon as an LV10 or higher player approaches, he would release even more dangerous Abnormalities as a destructive response. Despite his invincibility inside the ship, he has no fear of anyone entering the ship. This shows that he... is afraid."

Li Changhe looked at Jack’s darkening expression and couldn’t help but laugh, "I’ve been wondering why an invincible captain would be scared, until I understood the hint given by the passenger in room 504."

The Abnormality in room 504 had sought help using some method, and Wolf Smoke tried to make contact with it.

It didn’t open the door or show itself, but drew a circle on the window.

Combined with Jack’s shifting gaze, Li Changhe finally understood.

"The reason the captain is invincible is that the power of us passengers cannot harm him because we are within the circle."

"But stowaways are outside the circle. The captain’s invincibility doesn’t affect stowaways. So, when faced with unqualified aliens wreaking havoc within the ship, the captain didn’t make a move."

"Because against the aliens, he is no longer invincible."