blueteamnovel Chapter 2 Golden Mark
Chapter 2 Golden Mark
That night was destined to be a nightmare for the "thing" that climbed aboard the Victoria.
In the narrow first-class aisle, the foul-smelling blood was almost up to their ankles.
"Pfft—"
The last sea corpse that tried to climb in through the broken porthole had its head pierced by an ancient longsword.
With a twist of the sword, the hideous head exploded like a rotten watermelon.
Without any unnecessary movements, the girl flicked her wrist, shaking off the dark green bloodstains from the sword.
She remained standing in front of Su Changming, without taking a single step back.
However, at this moment, the girl was already at her last gasp.
Her once spotless black outfit was now splattered with mottled bloodstains, and her slender body swayed slightly.
This spirit body had just awakened and was already lacking in power. In addition, the person who awakened her had fallen into a deep sleep, so she was only holding on by her willpower.
"The evil spirits of foreign barbarians are even more troublesome than the barbarians of the northern frontier..."
Ling glanced down at Su Changming, who was still unconscious behind her. A rare hint of relief flashed across her expressionless face.
"Fortunately, we held on."
Just then—
"Thump—!!!"
A dull, loud thud echoed throughout the ship, followed by a piercing blast of the ship's horn.
The ship rocked violently, as if it had broken free from some viscous liquid and crashed heavily into a solid object.
Su Changming, who had been unconscious, was thrown against the foot of the bed by the huge inertia, cried out in pain, and suddenly opened his eyes.
"Ouch...ouch...ouch...my head..."
Su Changming clutched his head, which felt like it was about to split open, and struggled to sit up.
The feeling was like being put into a washing machine and churned up after staying up for three consecutive nights, leaving you feeling extremely exhausted.
He raised his head in confusion, his gaze gradually focusing.
The first thing that catches the eye is the mess on the ground and the monster's corpse, chopped into pieces, with a stench that fills the air.
Then he saw the figure with its back turned.
The girl stood leaning on her sword, her figure slender yet as unshakeable as a mountain.
Hearing the noise behind her, she slowly turned around, her dark eyes scanning Su Changming up and down.
"woke up?"
Her voice was cold and indifferent, as if nothing had happened.
"Ling, you..." Su Changming was about to ask about her situation when he saw the girl in front of him suddenly sway and become transparent, as if she were composed of countless points of light.
"My spiritual energy is depleted. I... need to hibernate."
Ling didn't offer any further explanation.
The longsword in her hand turned into light fragments and dissipated. Then, she transformed into a golden streak of light and rushed straight towards Su Changming.
Holy crap!
Su Changming instinctively tried to dodge, but the light was too fast and instantly entered his chest.
A warm sensation spread from his chest to his whole body, and his head, which had been throbbing with pain due to mental exhaustion, seemed to be relieved somewhat.
He hurriedly unbuttoned his collar and looked down.
A golden mark the size of a fingernail appeared on his chest.
The shape of the mark was extremely complex, resembling a coiled golden dragon or a long sword drawn from its sheath.
Su Changming tried to focus his consciousness on that mark.
A strange telepathic connection arose spontaneously.
He could sense that in a hazy, gray space, the girl named Ling was curled up asleep, her breathing weak but very steady.
"This is... a binding?"
Su Changming touched the warmth on his chest and let out a long sigh of relief.
Thankfully, the thickest part of my thigh wasn't lost.
At this moment, the fog outside the window had dissipated at some point.
The long-awaited sunlight streamed in through the broken porthole, shining brightly on the blood-stained floor.
Those evil spirits that were about to burrow deeper seemed to be extremely afraid of sunlight, and they disappeared without a trace like the tide the moment they reached the shore.
A cacophony of voices and footsteps could be heard outside.
Su Changming knew that he had survived.
He picked up his suitcase, stepped over the pieces of the body on the ground, picked up the empty revolver, straightened his disheveled suit, and then pushed open the rickety hatch.
On the deck, the survivors were in complete chaos.
Many ladies collapsed to the ground and wept, while gentlemen's top hats were scattered everywhere.
The crew members are rinsing the slime off the deck.
"My God, that's the devil! I swear I saw scaly hands!"
"I saw it too! It was over in third class; they dragged several people off!"
"Shh! Don't talk nonsense. The police will say it's a runaway ship, a collective hallucination caused by the fog!"
The survivors gathered together, their faces pale, and discussed the horrific experience of the previous night.
Everyone's eyes were filled with terror; this supernatural phenomenon completely shattered their understanding of this scientific age.
Su Changming mingled in the crowd and followed the flow of people down the suspended stairs.
The Gonghexiang Wharf was already bustling with noise.
Laborers carried large and small bags, calling out their wares; rickshaw pullers solicited business; and breakfast vendors steamed with food.
The bustling, lively atmosphere contrasted sharply with the hellish scene on the ship last night, giving Su Changming a sense of unreality, as if he were in another world.
"Changming! Su Changming! Over here!"
Suddenly, a familiar shout came from outside the crowd.
Su Changming looked in the direction of the sound and saw several young men dressed in Zhongshan suits and long gowns waving vigorously at the exit of the dock.
Those were some friends he had made while studying abroad, and they were also his companions returning to China this time. They were just on the earlier ship and arrived two days earlier.
The loudest shouter was a chubby boy with round glasses named Zhao Zimin, whose family was in the textile business.
The tall, scholarly-looking man next to him was Chen Boran, who was also looking at him with concern.
"My goodness, Brother Changming, you've finally come out!"
Zhao Zimin squeezed through the crowd, grabbed Su Changming's shoulder, looked him up and down, and exclaimed in amazement, "I heard that your Victoria encountered an extremely rare ghost fog at sea. When the ship docked just now, the stench of blood on board could be smelled from two miles away! I thought you were going to be feeding the fish in the sea this time!"
"Don't talk nonsense." Chen Boran pushed up his glasses. Although his tone was reproachful, he couldn't hide the smile in his eyes. "Those who survive a great calamity are bound to have good fortune. Brother Changming is blessed with good luck. Isn't this just in time for the first ray of spring in our new dynasty's eighteenth year?"
Su Changming looked at his two energetic friends.
They were still discussing science and democracy, and saving the country through industry, and still joking about the storms at sea.
"Yes, we survived a great calamity."
Su Changming smiled, the golden mark on his chest slightly warm.
He didn't say much, but patted Zhao Zimin on the shoulder: "I also think I'm pretty lucky."
"Of course, we absolutely have to go to the Tianhou Temple to burn incense later!" Zhao Zimin took the pitifully light suitcase from Su Changming's hands. "Come on, come on, we've arranged a hotel for you. It's right on the edge of the concession, very safe, and it even has hot water for showers!"
"You've been through a lot these past few days, so let's not think about that for now. We'll save the welcome banquet for tonight. Your job right now is to get some sleep," Chen Boran said from the side.
Su Changming nodded; he was truly exhausted.
I got into a rickshaw that my friend had called, and watched the street scenes on both sides of the Huangpu River recede into the distance.
Ancient city walls intersect with Western-style buildings, and old men in long gowns brush past students in Western suits.
This era is chaotic and fragmented, yet full of vitality.
Upon arriving at the hotel, Su Changming declined his friends' chatter and simply washed up to get rid of the smell of blood.
He lay on the soft white bed, the sunlight outside the window was a bit dazzling, but he didn't even have the strength to draw the curtains.
I placed my palm on my chest, feeling the faint yet real rhythm.
"Good night."
Su Changming silently recited a sentence in his heart.
The next second, his heavy eyelids closed, and he fell into a deep sleep without even having a dream.