Tomb raider: You're going to extract my alien bloodline?

Chapter 23 Human-Faced Legs

After Qin Yuan safely brought Wu Xie and A Ning back to the fishing boat, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. A Ning, still unconscious from the head injury and shock, was laid flat on a relatively dry corner of the deck. The captain directed the crew to continue battling the waves while also checking on his employer.

He crouched down, intending to check Ah Ning's breathing and pulse, but his gaze froze beneath her loose black hair. The boat captain's expression changed slightly. He carefully parted the hair at the back of Ah Ning's head and saw two withered hands, the size of dried-out babies, clinging tightly to the roots of her fair neck!

The two hands had distinct knuckles and wrinkled skin like old tree bark, firmly gripping Aning's skin. Their ends weren't wrists, but rather connected to a bizarre, tumor-like mass of tissue. Even more chilling was that on the surface of that tumor, the faint outlines of two distorted, blurry faces, seemingly wailing in silent agony, could be seen!

"What...what the hell is this?!" Wu Xie leaned closer to take a look and gasped in shock, almost collapsing to the ground again.

The captain had clearly seen this thing before. His face was grave as he whispered, "It's a human-faced creature, a dirty thing from the sea. Luckily, we found it early!" As he spoke, he pulled out an oil paper package from his pocket, which contained fine, yellowish hairs.

The boat captain didn't explain, but instead picked up a small tuft of cow hair and sprinkled it very carefully on the two ghostly hands and the fleshy tumor below.

When the cow hair touched the ghost hand and the tumor, it was like a red-hot iron touching ice, making an extremely slight sizzling sound. The two tightly attached withered hands twitched a few times, then quickly shrank, eventually turning into a small puddle of foul-smelling black mucus that detached from Aning's skin and merged into the water on the deck.

Almost the instant the withered hand fell off, Ah Ning let out a soft moan, her long eyelashes fluttering as she slowly opened her eyes. Her gaze was initially somewhat dazed, but then it cleared. Sensing the lingering discomfort at the back of her head and the gazes of those around her, she immediately understood what was going on. She thanked the boatman profusely, her voice still a little weak, but already regaining its usual crispness.

The storm gradually subsided, and the sea returned to relative calm, though the sky remained overcast. The fishing boat adjusted its course and continued towards its destination.

A few days later, the fishing boat made a temporary stop at Yongxing Island for supplies. Wang Pangzi, who had been waiting there, boarded the boat with a large bag on his back, cursing and swearing.

"Damn it! The mosquitoes in this godforsaken place are fatter than me! If they don't come to pick me up soon, I'll be sucked dry!" Fatty complained as soon as he boarded the ship. But when he saw Wu Xie and Qin Yuan, he immediately beamed with joy. Especially after learning about their terrifying experience on the ghost ship, he regretted not having joined the fun.

After settling in, Wu Xie sneakily pulled Qin Yuan and Fatty into his cabin like a thief, and even made sure to close the door properly.

"What's wrong, Tianzhen? Why are you being so mysterious?" the fat man asked curiously.

Wu Xie pulled a leather-bound notebook with slightly worn edges from his waterproof pouch. Lowering his voice, he said with barely suppressed excitement and worry, "Look! This was found in the cabin of the ghost ship where I fell in! It's my third uncle's notebook!"

Qin Yuan and the fat man leaned closer to take a look. The notebook's pages were yellowed, covered in dense handwriting in pen, interspersed with some hasty sketches. The contents were a record of how, twenty years ago, the archaeological team led by Wu Sansheng discovered and conducted preliminary explorations of the underwater tomb in the Xisha Islands!

"Third Uncle... he really was here before!" Wu Xie's tone was full of confusion and urgency. "What was he looking for? And why did he disappear?"

Qin Yuan patted Wu Xie on the shoulder and comforted him, "Since the notebook appeared here, it means your third uncle must have been on that ghost ship as well. He may have left more clues. There's no use in rushing now. We'll find out when we get there and go down to take a look."

The fat man chimed in, "Exactly! With Little Blackie and me, and that... uh, that bald guy who's unreliable but seems to have some skills, we'll definitely be able to bring Third Master back!"

Just then, Zhang the Bald's overly enthusiastic voice rang out from outside the cabin door: "Comrade Wuxie! Comrade Qin Yuan! Come out for dinner! The captain got a fresh big fish today and made a fish head hot pot, it smells amazing!"

"Hey, why does this bald guy only call you two and not me!" The three exchanged a glance and walked out of the cabin amidst the fat man's cursing.

Sure enough, there was a steaming charcoal stove in the small restaurant, with a large pot simmering on it. The milky white fish soup was boiling, and it contained huge fish heads and tofu, with a fragrant aroma.

Without any hesitation, Zhang the Bald took the bowl and chopsticks, squeezed himself into the seat between Qin Yuan and Wu Xie, and picked up a spoon to scoop soup.

The fat man disdainfully blocked the spoon with his chopsticks, saying irritably, "Hey! Baldy, watch your saliva! Don't splash it into the pot!"

Baldy Zhang pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and solemnly corrected, "Comrade Fatty, please call me Professor Zhang or Mr. Zhang. It's impolite to give people nicknames casually."

The fat man chuckled and teased him, "Oh? You really are a professor? My apologies! Which university are you from? What do you teach? Do you teach people how to style a Mediterranean hairstyle?"

Baldy Zhang remained unfazed, replying in his usual serious tone, "Academic research, a wide range of topics, not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning." He then turned to Fatty and asked, "May I ask which organization Comrade Fatty works for?"

The fat man was caught off guard by the question. His identity was too sensitive to reveal directly, so he stammered for a moment before vaguely replying, "I... I'm involved in underground work..."

Baldy Zhang immediately feigned realization, patted Fatty's shoulder forcefully, and said with utmost respect, "So you're a comrade from the public security front, in charge of cracking down on cultural relic crimes, right? My apologies! You've really worked hard!"

"Pfft—" Wu Xie and Qin Yuan, who were standing next to each other, finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.

The fat man's face turned green, and he awkwardly dug his toes into the ground. He quickly changed the subject, shouting outside, "Boat captain! Any wine? Bring some! Eating alone is so boring!"

The boat captain brought over a bottle of locally produced, high-proof liquor. The group enjoyed a delicious fish head hotpot and the spicy liquor, which finally livened up the atmosphere in the cabin.

After a hearty meal and drinks, the fat man, burping and flushed, tapped the table: "Alright, we've eaten and drunk our fill, let's get down to business! What's the plan for that underwater tomb? When are we going down? How are we going to go down? Professor Zhang... could you explain it to us?"

All eyes were on Baldy Zhang.

Zhang the Bald slowly wiped his mouth, then pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses. His gaze swept over everyone behind the lenses, and his seemingly greasy and flamboyant smile seemed to have gained a subtle, almost imperceptible depth.

"Now that everyone is mentally prepared, let's discuss in detail the specific plan for this underwater operation."