Survival at Sea: My Warship is a Rubber Duck?

Chapter 56 The Skinny Siren

The two ate their dinner in silence, and the fish and steamed buns were quickly devoured. They even wiped the sauce at the bottom of the pot clean with the steamed buns.

After eating and drinking my fill, and being warmed by the sacred fire, my fatigue seemed to lessen somewhat.

Yu Wang leaned against the gunwale, looking at the flickering campfire in front of him, the orange light shining on his face.

Across the campfire was Zhang Xinlan, who was still a little reserved, with her hands neatly placed on her knees, but her eyes had relaxed considerably, showing a hint of post-meal satisfaction.

Of course, the questions that need to be asked should still be asked.

"The night watch can be left to Duck A and Duck B. Tonight, you..." Yu Wang looked at Zhang Xinlan, his meaning clear: "Where are you sleeping tonight?"

Zhang Xinlan opened her mouth, seemingly a little embarrassed to ask for anything, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes.

Yu Wang noticed her embarrassment and offered her a way out: "Why don't you sleep here for now? Your raft is always getting wet and there might still be jellyfish tentacles left. You can use it as a temporary storage room."

Moving the materials that couldn't fit in the cabin of the Little Yellow Duck and were piled up outside would free up a lot of space.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xinlan's eyes lit up, and she nodded repeatedly with a sigh of relief! A grateful smile appeared on her face!

She was indeed tired.

Logically, her biological clock should have been adjusted to sleep during the day and be awake at night.

But in order to get the fish meat, she worked overtime day and night, and then she encountered a swarm of jellyfish...

Zhang Xinlan had been without sleep for almost 48 hours, and her mental state was nearing its limit.

Now all I can think about are sales pitches for things like "How about swimming and fitness?", "Eternal youth", and "Miracle drug for uninterrupted erection".

Although Zhang Xinlan was so sleepy that her eyelids were drooping, she felt bad making an injured person do any work. Summoning her last bit of energy, she volunteered to take on the task of moving the injured.

In her opinion, Yu Wang's injuries were serious enough to warrant a stay in the ICU.

It's not scientifically sensible that they're still alive and kicking!

Two ducks with comical eyes quacked and went over to help.

So, just as the blood-red moonlight appeared, a rather peculiar scene unfolded on the deck of the Little Yellow Duck:

A girl with heavy dark circles under her eyes, along with two wagging ducks, were huffing and puffing as they carried materials piled up inside and outside the cockpit onto the raft, trip after trip.

Yu Wang leaned against a window in the cabin that didn't get in the way, making a potion with the fruit that the 'Sour Chrysanthemum Fruit Tree' had grown that day, while keeping an eye on the movements on the surrounding sea.

During this time, I looked up and saw Zhang Xinlan's condition, and my evaluation of her was further enhanced by "down-to-earth and hardworking".

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The moving work was just completed when the blood moon had fully risen and was hanging high in the sky.

The cockpit, which was originally piled high with clutter, was mostly cleared out, making the space much more spacious, with enough room to lay out a new bedding.

The small raft next to it had its waterline significantly lowered by the pressure.

It was piled high with all sorts of materials, making it a veritable "floating warehouse".

Zhang Xinlan collapsed onto her makeshift bed, almost completely exhausted: "Okay... all done... I, I'll go first..."

Before she could finish speaking, her eyes closed little by little, and she fell into a deep sleep in less than a minute.

Being young is great; you can just fall asleep the moment your head hits the pillow.

Yu Wang looked at the girl who had fallen asleep almost instantly, shook his head, walked to the cabin door, and looked out the window.

Ten meters away, a coffin with the character "奠" (meaning "offering") on its surface bobbed up and down on the sea.

Yu Wang was certain that when he was preparing the potion, there was nothing around the "Little Yellow Duck".

The coffin appeared out of nowhere.

"Is this another pawn sent by that spherical monster to test us?" Yu Wang wondered to himself.

[You witnessed an ominous symbol, sanity -2 (saving)]

'Bang!'

Lost in thought, I heard a soft sound.

The floating coffin, carried by a small wave, struck the port side of the "Little Yellow Duck" ship squarely!

The impact seemed to have startled the "occupant" inside the coffin.

From the gap at the edge of the heavy coffin lid, a skeletal arm wrapped in old bandages slowly emerged!

The withered hand was outstretched, as if asking for something.

Yu Wang was already waiting by the ship. Upon seeing this, he took out two pearl coins and placed them in the monster's palm: "There's plenty of tip."

The skeletal arm, wrapped in bandages, clenched two pearl coins in its palm.

The pearl coins dimmed and turned gray at a visible speed, as if their energy had been instantly drained! In just a few breaths, the two pearl coins turned into a small clump of dull gray powder, which fell from the gap between the finger bones.

Correspondingly, a satisfied sigh came from the coffin.

The arm, which had originally been nothing but bones, seemed to have filled out slightly, with more rotten flesh clinging to it, and the bones peeking out from the gaps in the bandages were no longer so grayish-white.

Yu Wang witnessed this scene and was secretly astonished.

He never expected that these siren merchants, who would later be both loved and hated by many survivors, would be in such a miserable, half-dead state in their initial form!

They never imagined that pearl coins would be so important to them.

No wonder they all have the faces of unscrupulous businessmen, and they're obsessed with money!

Having absorbed two pearl coins, the siren merchant seemed to have regained some of his strength.

From inside the coffin, a hoarse, eerily seductive female voice drifted out:

"Hehehe—you're a handsome young man, quite the player! And very generous too. Interested in joining us? I can help you through the first three singles!"

To the other survivors, the siren's words were just a casual, polite remark.

But Yu Wang knew that it was an olive branch from "The Extraordinary Path - Monster Merchant".

Yu Wang almost laughed.

The extraordinary paths that were sought but not attained in the previous life are now lined up one after another in this life.

Becoming a monster merchant is indeed a relatively safe path to becoming stronger, as one can steadily grow stronger simply by doing business.

Moreover, with the protection of the Lord of Greed, the safety of transactions is fully guaranteed, and customers will not kill and steal your treasures.

But Yu Wang was only slightly tempted, and then decisively nipped the idea in the bud.

The "Monster Merchant" path involves serving the evil god who symbolizes endless desires and the rules of trade—the Lord of Greed.

For every successful transaction, the merchant must offer a portion of the profits as "offerings" to the "Lord of Greed" as the price for his protection.

Only the remaining portion can be used to enhance oneself.

If it were as simple as offering tribute according to a set ratio, then an evil god wouldn't be called an evil god.

In addition to paying tribute according to the prescribed ratio, one must also complete various targets issued periodically by the Lord of Greed.

There are different KPIs for transaction volume or special item collection every week, month, quarter, and year.

If it cannot be completed... just look at the miserable state of this siren in front of you: its power is waning, its body is decaying, and it can only lie in a coffin drifting with the current, waiting for the occasional opening to prolong its life, but it just can't die.

Even if we take a step back and say that someone doesn't have a business mind, they can't even accomplish the basic task of "closing three deals and making a hundredfold profit".

This approach is not suitable for him.

It would be suitable for a duck to swoon over. I wonder if the great Lord of Greed would mind having a duck among his followers.

[You mocked a great being; your sanity has been reduced by 10.]

"..."

Yu Wang suppressed his thoughts and declined the siren's invitation:

"Sorry, I'm not really interested in doing business. Just tell me what you sell."

"Hehe, young man, you're really in a hurry. Are you afraid that your sweet little wife, who's sleeping soundly in the cabin, will find me?" The voice from the coffin carried a hint of mockery, as if it wanted to pull some strings to buy time or test the waters further.

Too lazy to waste any more words with her, Yu Wang reached into the storage compartment of the cabin and took out a handful of pearl coins.

There were about a dozen of them, piled up in his palm.

Upon seeing this small pile of pearl coins, the coffin fell silent instantly.