Chapter 1277: Scary

A clansman sitting across the table from him said, "When I passed that cabin door, I often heard strange noises inside. Sometimes it sounded like children screaming, sometimes like ghosts crying, sometimes like a bull roaring, and once—"

He lowered his voice. Wan Si-liang clenched his fists and said, "If you dare to scare people again, I'll beat you until you're looking for your teeth on the ground."

"Ahem, the day before yesterday, I got up to pee in the middle of the night and heard the sound of sawing bones from inside the door. It went on for a very long time."

"Tsk, maybe Mr. Dong's cabin was undergoing wood renovations."

"In the middle of the night? It wasn't wood." The clansman patted his chest. "I've treated all of your injuries; trust me, that was definitely the sound of a saw cutting bone. I couldn't possibly be mistaken!"

He rolled his eyes, turning to Wan Si-liang. "A-liang, do you dare to pull back the black cloth in Mr. Dong's experimental cabin?"

Wan Si-liang's face was stern. "Why wouldn't I dare?"

"Let me tell you, the experiment subjects don't necessarily stay still. I heard something running around inside through the cabin door, but it definitely wasn't Mr. Dong!"

Wan Si-liang found it ridiculous. "That's Mr. Dong's ghoulish monkey!"

"That monkey is also one of Mr. Dong's experimental subjects, but it's a successful one, and it eats people! There are also many semi-successful and unsuccessful ones kept in the experimental cabin, all very dangerous." The clansman took out a large silver ingot. "Ten liang, I bet you'll scream when you pull back that black cloth!"

Wan Si-liang scoffed, pulled out his own silver from his pocket, and slammed it on the table. "You're on!"

Where else could he find such a good deal? Just lift the black cloth, take a look, and come back to collect ten liang of silver.

He immediately went to the quartermaster's to get a set of black armor, and then headed towards the second cabin from the stern.

The further he walked towards the stern, the fewer people there were, and the quieter it became.

The creaking of the ropes suddenly became exceptionally loud. Only the scent of fresh paint offered some reassurance.

The second cabin from the stern was already below the waterline, so Wan Si-liang had to descend another wooden ladder.

He had only descended a few steps when his companion knocked on the hard, heavy trapdoor by the ladder. "The clan elder instructed that if things get out of control down there, we're to close this trapdoor immediately!"

Wan Si-liang glanced back at him, then at the trapdoor. "That's for waterproofing!"

On large ships built by Yang Shan, there were usually two or three levels of cabins below deck. Each level had such trapdoors in the middle, designed to be closed if water leaked from below.

"That's not necessarily true. The island lord and Mr. Dong also took this ship back from Julu Port. Just ask any sailor; this trapdoor was closed once on a previous voyage. But the sea was calm that day."

Another person interjected, "That's right, I heard someone was lost on the last trip; a sailor went down there and never came back."

"Shh." Wan Si-liang waved a hand behind him. "Quiet!"

Mr. Dong's experimental cabin! He had arrived.

The others didn't follow, huddling by the trapdoor. "Good luck, we'll wait right here."

Wan Si-liang raised his hand and knocked on the door, saying, "Mr. Dong!"

After just one knock, a clanging sound came from inside the door, as if something was striking metal.

He knocked twice more before someone answered from within, their voice clearly impatient. "Who is it?"

"Delivering armor for you."

"Come in."

Wan Si-liang gave a gentle push, and the cabin door opened.

The space beyond the door was easily six or seven times larger than his sleeping cabin, but it was also six or seven times more cluttered with haphazardly arranged items.

Everywhere were experimental instruments, materials, and potions, along with colorful bottles and jars.

However, it was merely messy. The dismembered limbs Wan Si-liang had imagined were nowhere to be seen in the cabin.

But it was very dark in there. Two glowing spores on the floor had withered, clearly having expended all their energy. In a corner, several transparent jars sat, containing something that emitted a faint red glow.

He leaned closer to look. Submerged in the liquid within one jar was something that resembled both a sponge and a chunk of flesh.

Before he could get a clear look, the thing suddenly contracted!

Wan Si-liang was startled and stepped back, but remained silent.

The object in the jar, whether it was pulsating or contracting, gave a twitch every ten-odd breaths.

What in the world? Mr. Dong's laboratory certainly lived up to its reputation.

A foul, bloody stench also hung in the air.

Wan Si-liang, who had fought on battlefields and emerged from piles of corpses, immediately recognized it as the smell of blood.

It was a mix of fresh and old blood, but because the cabin was enclosed and the air stagnant, it smelled particularly awful.

However, Mr. Dong was not in this main cabin.

His voice came from an inner room. "Put the armor down and leave."

Only then did Wan Si-liang realize there was an inner compartment, its door ajar.

Mr. Dong was tinkering with something inside the compartment, not bothering to come out.

Wan Si-liang casually placed the black armor down. Just as he turned, he spotted a pile of miscellaneous items about three meters away, covered by a black cloth.

Something was beneath the black cloth.

That was the subject of his wager with the clansman. He walked over cautiously.

Once he lifted the black cloth and exited the cabin, he could go collect his silver.

There was no difficulty.

He had checked; there were no demon-suppressing talismans on the black cloth. If whatever was beneath it was uncontrolled, then covering it or not would make no difference.

In other words, it should be safe whether he lifted the cloth or not.

Wan Si-liang extended his hand halfway, then suddenly pulled it back, gently drawing the saber from his waist.

It should be safer to use the tip of his saber to lift it, right?

He held his saber steadily, slowly approaching the black cloth, and then—

He gently touched it with the back of the blade.

It wasn't hard; in fact, it was somewhat soft.

And it didn't move at all.

Wan Si-liang took a deep breath, and with a flick of his saber tip, he lifted the black cloth!

If there was a monster that would lunge at him, he was ready to strike it down with a single blow.

With a rustle, the black cloth drifted aside, revealing what was beneath—

A humanoid object, but its surface was wrapped in thick layers of gauze.

Wan Si-liang paused, surprised.

That's it?

Beneath the black cloth was just a wrapped dummy?

He even gently pressed it with the back of his saber. The gauze felt soft, and there were at least three or four layers.

As soon as the black cloth was lifted, he caught a strong medicinal scent.

Where was the scorpion man? Or the small monster that shrieked like a ghost?

How could such a motionless dummy scare anyone? Though, faint traces of blood were faintly visible beneath the gauze.

Wan Si-liang let out a long sigh of relief. This much was enough; he had no intention of cutting open the gauze to investigate further. He should just go back and get his money.

But just as he relaxed, someone behind him suddenly spoke in displeasure. "What are you doing?"

It was Mr. Dong's voice, and it was so close it seemed to whisper right into his ear.

He was caught! Wan Si-liang spun around abruptly, not bothering to wonder why he hadn't heard any footsteps, remembering only to apologize. "I'm sorry, I'll just..."

The person was almost face-to-face with him.

Before Wan Si-liang could even see clearly, his scalp tingled with alarm.

Then, the Bai-long people waiting outside the cabin door heard a loud, exceptionally high-pitched scream, full of genuine emotion.

"Aaaah—"

Everyone instinctively recoiled; the scream was truly contagious.