The smell of scorched flesh still lingered over the sea.
The enormous corpse of the Magic Whale floated like a dark solitary island, rising and falling with the waves. Blood continued to gush from its wounds, staining several kilometers of seawater a dark crimson.
"So massive..." Li Ruobing shook her wet hair, slung the A-grade Pulse Gun over her shoulder, and stared at the corpse with gleaming eyes. "How much meat is this? Enough to feed us until next year, right?"
Standing at the ship's bow, Qin Yu watched the scene, feeling a rare surge of emotion. SS-grade. This was the highest-level creature encountered by survivors across Blue Star so far. Though the earlier cannon blast had been satisfying, the energy consumption was enormous—the President's energy reserves had been halved.
"Don't just think about eating." Qin Yu leaped into the air, his Nano Combat Boots emitting faint jets of air as he landed steadily on the whale's steel-hard back. The texture underfoot felt less like flesh and more like rough stone. The residual heat was still intense, transmitting a scorching sensation through his soles.
"Wife, keep watch around us. Li Ruobing, monitor the radar. Xiaoqian, control the drones to collect the scattered flesh—don't waste any." Qin Yu issued commands methodically. Though the sea was temporarily calm, the heavy scent of blood was undeniable. It was only a matter of time before some reckless deep-sea predators caught the scent and approached.
He walked to the center of the corpse, where a dark metal chest hovered, emitting a faint purple glow. The light was subdued yet captivating. An SS-grade treasure chest! Qin Yu took a deep breath but didn't rush to open it. Instead, he pressed his hand against the whale's scalding Bone Armor.
"Decompose."
[Ding! Detected SS-grade biological entity "Abyssal Demon Whale (Mutated Entity)" corpse. Massive volume detected. Decomposition will require 30 seconds. Confirm?]
"Confirm."
As soon as he spoke, a soft white light spread from Qin Yu's palm, instantly enveloping the 300-meter-long mountain of flesh. A low hum filled the air, but there was no gruesome splatter of blood and gore. The massive corpse rapidly disintegrated and digitized within the white light.
Immediately, system notifications flooded Qin Yu's mind.
[Ding! Decomposition successful!]
[Acquired: SS-grade Magic Whale Prime Meat x 500 tons]
[Acquired: SS-grade Magic Whale Skeleton (High-Strength Material) x 2000 units]
[Acquired: SS-grade Magic Whale Oil x 500 barrels]
[Acquired: Mutated Shark Fin (Premium Ingredient) x 2]
[Acquired: Magic Whale Skin (Top-tier Armor Material) x 800 sheets]
[Acquired: Deep Sea Magic Whale Blood (Refinable into Potions) x 1000 liters]
...
The rapid succession of notifications buzzed in Qin Yu's head. A massive haul! An absolute windfall! The 500 tons of prime meat alone could sustain a ten-thousand-person base for years, not to mention the skeleton and oil—in this post-apocalyptic world, these were Strategic Resources more precious than gold.
As the corpse vanished, the seawater, previously depressed by its weight, surged back, churning up waves. Clutching the purple-black treasure chest, Qin Yu activated his boot jets and leaped back onto the deck of the President.
"I'll be damned..."
Li Ruobing stared at the suddenly empty sea surface and swallowed hard.
"Yu, your 'utter annihilation' technique is getting more and more polished."
Qin Yu shot her a glare.
"Enough with the sarcasm."
"This is called resource recycling."
He placed the heavy chest on the table at the center of the deck.
The three women immediately gathered around.
Even the usually aloof Yao Xue now had a glimmer of anticipation in her eyes.
Yao Qian nervously grabbed her sister's sleeve.
"Yu, this is an SS-class first kill."
"What will we get?"
"A divine artifact?"
Qin Yu examined the chest.
Its surface was carved with intricate wave patterns, cold to the touch.
The clasp featured a ferocious whale skull relief.
"We'll know when we open it."
Qin Yu didn't bother with any prayer rituals.
In this world, luck was part of one's strength.
And he happened to be the luckiest one.
Click.
A crisp metallic sound echoed.
The lid slowly sprang open.
No golden radiance.
No spectacular phenomena.
Inside lay a palm-sized metal sphere resembling a gyroscope.
Deep blue throughout.
Liquid seemed to flow within it, occasionally flashing with blue electric arcs.
Beside it was a silver-glowing blueprint.
[Congratulations, Host, for opening an SS-class treasure chest!]
[Obtained: SS-class Ship Core Module - "Shadow of Deep Blue" Submersible System]
The air fell silent for several seconds.
"This... what is it?"
Li Ruobing scratched her head, staring at the small blue sphere.
"It doesn't look like a weapon."
Qin Yu reached out and picked up the metal sphere.
It felt heavy in his hand.
A stream of cold data instantly flooded his mind.
His eyes lit up.
Brighter than when he had slain the Magic Whale.
"This time..."
Qin Yu's voice was hoarse, brimming with suppressed ecstasy.
"We've truly struck gold."
Yao Xue rarely saw Qin Yu with such an expression and adjusted her glasses. "What is it?"
Qin Yu toyed with the metal sphere in his hand, a smirk curling his lips.
"Remember how that big guy dodged our attacks earlier?"
"It submerged."
Li Ruobing answered first: "It dove into the water, and half our artillery became useless."
"Exactly."
Qin Yu raised the "Shadow of Deep Blue."
"But this will let us do the same."
"What do you mean?"
Yao Qian widened her eyes, as if guessing something but not daring to believe it.
"You're saying..."
"This thing can transform the 'President' into a submarine."
Dead silence.
Absolute dead silence.
Only the howling of the sea wind across the deck remained.
The three women stared at Qin Yu as if he were a monster, then glanced at the 180-meter-long steel warship.
Make this behemoth... submerge?
In this world where everyone survived on rafts.
Most vessels were little more than floating coffins on the water's surface.
A slight wave could capsize them.
Even a giant ship like the "President" could only endure against super tsunamis or ambushes from deep-sea monsters.
But if it could submerge...
The implications would be completely different!
It would be a leap in dimensions!
A direct upgrade from two-dimensional surface combat to three-dimensional underwater warfare!
"That's insane..."
Li Ruobing finally blurted out after a long pause.
"This is practically cheating!"
Qin Yu smiled.
"Smart."
"But it's not an ordinary submarine."
"It has dual-mode transformation capability."
Qin Yu looked at the detailed introduction on the system panel.
[Item: SS-class Ship Core Module - "Shadow of Deep Blue"]
[Function: After integration, enables the ship to obtain "Submersible Mode". When activated, the hull undergoes structural reorganization, becomes completely sealed, and gains deep-sea pressure resistance (maximum diving depth: 3000 meters).]
[Trait 1: Deep Sea Concealment (In Submersible Mode, radar cross-section reduced by 90%, sonar detection range shortened by 80%).]
[Trait 2: Fluid Shield (Automatically generates fluid drag-reduction shield during high-speed underwater movement, increasing speed by 50%).]
[Trait 3: All-Terrain Adaptation (Capable of seabed hovering and ground-skimming navigation).]
"3000 meters..."
Yao Xue gasped as she looked at the data Qin Yu shared.
As a former doctor, she knew exactly what 3000 meters of deep sea meant.
The water pressure there could crush a tank into a tin can.
And this module could actually allow the President to go down for a stroll?
"What are we waiting for?"
Li Ruobing couldn't wait any longer, grabbing Qin Yu's arm.
"Hurry up and install it!"
"I can't wait to see what the seabed looks like!"
"No need to rush."
Qin Yu tossed the "Shadow of Deep Blue" upward and caught it steadily.
"Installing this thing is a major project."
"It requires consuming massive amounts of materials for hull modification."
"The Magic Whale we just decomposed will come in handy."
He walked to the core control pillar on the deck.
There was a slot specifically designed for installing core modules.
"System."
"Load the 'Shadow of Deep Blue' module."
"Initiate full ship modification program."
[Ding! SS-class module detected. Modification requires:]
[Steel x 500,000 units]
[Copper Blocks x 100,000 units]
[Glass x 50,000 units]
[High-Strength Bones (Magic Whale Bones) x All]
[Magic Whale Oil x 200 barrels]
[Confirm?]
Qin Yu checked the warehouse.
The materials he had stockpiled over these days, combined with what the Magic Whale had dropped, were just enough.
One could even say this Magic Whale was like a delivery service specifically for this upgrade.
"Confirm!"
Click.
Qin Yu pressed the deep blue metal sphere firmly into the control pillar's slot.
"Vooooom————!!!"
A low rumble emanated from the deepest part of the President.
The entire ship began to shake violently.
Qin Yu stood at the epicenter of the vibrations, feet planted like nails.
He looked around.
The originally dark deck began to writhe like liquid.
Countless metal plates flipped and interlocked.
The guardrails on both sides of the ship automatically retracted, replaced by thicker, more streamlined armor plates.
At the wheelhouse windows.
A layer of semi-transparent black crystal covers slowly rose over the original bulletproof glass.
These were high-pressure resistant windows formed by fusing Magic Whale bones with Special Glass.
"Zzzzt..."
The sound of gears meshing came from the ship's bottom.
All gaps were being filled and sealed by some special gelatinous substance at this moment.
The Thrusters at the stern were also changing.
The original propellers retracted, transforming into four massive jet nozzles.
The entire process lasted a full ten minutes.
When everything finally settled down.
The President had changed.
If before it resembled a steel fortress on the sea, now it was more like a black orca lying on the ocean's surface. Its form was entirely smooth, without a single sharp edge, radiating a cold, technological aesthetic. All weapon systems—the main guns, secondary guns, and close-in defense systems—had been redesigned as hidden modules, concealed beneath armored panels and only deploying when needed.
"So... so cool..." Yao Qian gazed at the revitalized hull, her eyes sparkling like stars. The design was even more exaggerated than those in sci-fi movies.
"Shall we test it out?" Qin Yu raised an eyebrow as he glanced at the three women.
"Let's go!" Li Ruobing was the first to rush into the control room.
The interior had transformed as well. The traditional steering wheel was gone, replaced by a futuristic holographic control console. Massive high-definition screens lined the walls, displaying real-time parameters from across the vessel.
"Pressure integrity check complete."
"Oxygen recycling system normal."
"Ballast tanks ready."
Yao Xue, seated in the co-pilot's position, rapidly relayed the data stream. Though it was her first time operating a submarine, the system's user-friendly guidance—combined with her innate intelligence—made the learning curve effortless.
"Brother Yu, all indicators are normal. We're clear to dive."
Qin Yu settled into the captain's chair—also upgraded with enhanced ergonomic support and massage functions. He tapped the virtual screen floating before him, selecting the red [Dive] button.
"Then let's take a look below. Flood the tanks!"
A gurgling rush of water echoed through the hull as the vessel shuddered slightly. The familiar rocking of ocean waves vanished abruptly, replaced by a peculiar sensation of weightlessness. Outside the viewports, the blinding sunlight and blue sky were swallowed whole as seawater engulfed the windows. Azure currents swirled beyond the glass, trails of bubbles racing upward.
"We're going down! We're really going down!" Yao Qian pressed against the window, cheering with exhilaration.
Light began to fade steadily—from azure to navy, then into ink-blue darkness. The depth gauge's numbers spiraled rapidly:
[Depth: 50m]
[Depth: 100m]
[Depth: 200m]
Surroundings plunged into utter blackness, broken only by the President's forward spotlights—twin blades of light piercing the abyssal gloom.
"So this is the seabed..." Even Li Ruobing grew quiet, staring out at the void. Though they were still in shallow waters devoid of vibrant coral reefs, the claustrophobic mystery of the deep sea set hearts racing. Occasionally, luminescent mutated fish drifted curiously around the leviathan, scattering in panic when caught in the spotlight beams.
"This is our new home," Qin Yu leaned back in his chair, observing the profound underwater world with a satisfied smile. "With this, we can go anywhere across the oceans—even into those so-called forbidden zones."
Game of Thrones: The Path to One Piece
Serialized
Starting from the Martial Arts World, Piercing Through the Abyss
Serialized
1990: Striving from Item Upgrades
Serialized
Peninsula: Prosecutor, Starting by Saving Sherry
Serialized