The wooden boat was stifling hot inside, the cabin offering no ventilation.
The heat was enough to make anyone irritable.
Kefulu followed closely behind Wu Yi as they entered.
Neither of them spoke a word.
Click—
The sound of the door locking was like a starting gun.
At the exact same moment, the two women launched their attacks!
Kefulu’s tentacles shot out from all directions, surrounding her prey.
Dodging backward would only mean plunging straight into the poisonous web woven by those limbs, and resistance would be futile.
So Wu Yi didn’t dodge.
Her vast combat experience told her exactly what to do.
In one swift step, she surged forward and pinned Kefulu down on the bed.
Her left arm looped around Kefulu’s neck, while her right circled her waist.
The spine was the center of the nervous system — Wu Yi sent a faint electric current through her fingertips, channeling it through Kefulu’s cervical and lumbar vertebrae.
Instantly, Kefulu’s body went limp, even the tail-like tentacles losing all strength.
She collapsed onto the bed, cheeks flushed pink with rage and shame as she glared at Wu Yi.
“Don’t you dare… give me another chance!”
“Looks like you’re still too green if you think you can dig out my secrets.”
Wu Yi let herself relax, using Kefulu as a mattress, pressing her body down on the other girl, eyelids already drooping.
“Little octopus, be a good pillow for big sis~”
With her central nervous system restricted, Kefulu’s muscles had gone completely slack. Hugging her was oddly soothing.
Wu Yi shifted slightly, turning them both onto their sides, then folded up Kefulu’s tentacles and tucked them under her own head like a pillow.
Their eyes met. Wu Yi smiled at Kefulu’s murderous glare.
Then Wu Yi pulled her face into her chest, just like she did when sleeping with Xiao Qi.
“There, there~”
Wu Yi didn’t have any ulterior motives. In her eyes, Kefulu was no different from Xiao Qi.
Even though Kefulu always acted fierce and prideful, and despite their lack of blood relation — they only called each other “sisters” out of habit — Wu Yi still saw her as a little one she’d raised.
I know you’re naughty, but I don’t mind.
“Phew…”
A soft, non-painful current lingered in Kefulu’s spine, keeping her completely immobilized through the night.
The decisiveness of Wu Yi’s moves, her precise control of the current — all of it made Kefulu keenly aware of the gap between their levels of experience.
She was right. I lost because I was too inexperienced.
Maybe after more training, with the edge of my poison and tentacles, I could win. I’d only need to land one good hit.
But tonight… I can only be held like this, against my will.
What a humiliation!
Utterly disgraceful!
Just wait until the day I turn the tables and conquer this woman — I’ll make her pay for tonight!
……
The best sleep environment for humans is safety in the midst of danger.
Like turning the air conditioner to its coldest setting while snuggling under a thick blanket.
Or knowing you’re holding a dangerous little god in your arms — one that wants to stir trouble, but can’t do a thing about it.
Wu Yi closed her eyes contentedly.
“Good night~”
And just like that, she let her guard down completely and fell asleep in front of Kefulu.
This “sheep delivered to the wolf” situation — so close, yet untouchable — left Kefulu shaking with frustration.
But the gentle current continued to calm her nerves, leaving her unable to move… and gradually relaxed her, drawing her into drowsiness.
“Just you wait… just wait!”
Seething with resentment, Kefulu drifted off into sleep without realizing.
That wretched woman! Just wait until Xiao Wu is — no, Xiao Wu’s a pureblood, too softhearted. Just wait until Xiao Si is born…
……
“I’m soooo bored, soooo bored, soooo bored—!”
Xiao Qi rolled around on the bed in boredom. “Mama’s not here, Sis isn’t here…”
Clutching a body-sized plush tail, she kept gnawing at the fur out of sheer boredom, getting it all over her mouth.
The room was swelteringly hot too — no way she could fall asleep like this.
So she turned herself into a ball, rolled off the bed, and kept rolling all the way to Wu Ma’s room.
The door was open, and unexpectedly, Wu Ma wasn’t there either. Only the crisp, tender gourd vines remained inside.
Perfect.
Xiao Qi pouted her cheeks and started blasting her suona toward the vines.
—The fox gourds on the vine silently drooped their ears to block out the sound.
They couldn’t take it. That sound was truly inhuman.
[I can’t take this anymore! Someone transformed and snapped that suona in half already!] The plants’ pheromones raced through the vine’s veins like a private group chat.
[According to plan, Xiao Wu’s next to be born, but she might be too soft to do it…]
[gkdgkd! I can’t stand this! Let Xiao Si be born first!]
[Not enough essence gathered yet, gotta wait another two months.]
[Aaaaahhh I’m gonna lose it!!! Speed it up! Induce labor! Get Xiao Si born within half a month!]
[…]
Since they were communicating via pheromones, Xiao Qi couldn’t hear any of it.
Still lost in her own haunting melody, she thought it sounded absolutely wonderful.
……
Wu Ma wasn’t in his room — he’d gotten a bit thirsty and headed to the center of the ship to find some water.
Just as he stepped out and looked toward the deck, he saw a black cat leap onto the ship’s railing, strolling along its edge under the moonlight.
“A cat?”
Cats on board weren’t unusual — long sea voyages required storing large quantities of food, which inevitably attracted rats.
To deal with the rats, sailors often brought cats with them when setting out to sea.
These cats had traveled the world with ocean-going vessels, breeding in distant lands.
Nowadays, even many uninhabited islands bore their traces.
But while bringing cats to sea was normal, bringing a black cat… was not.
A black cat on a ship was an omen of death.
This one’s fur was pitch black, like ink.
If not for tonight’s full moon casting brighter light, Wu Ma wouldn’t have seen it at all.
The cat paused, its oval pupils calmly watching him.
Wherever it had walked, the railing was dotted with small crimson pawprints.
The black cat leisurely licked the blood off its paws and lay down along the rail.
Wu Ma followed the trail of bloody prints with his eyes.
They led deep into the ship, straight toward the cargo hold — exactly where he had planned to go.
Without hesitation, Wu Ma activated a breath-concealing technique, resting his hand on the two-sectioned firearm at his waist, quietly assembling it into a full-length spear.
Most of the passengers hadn’t gone to sleep yet. Noise echoed from nearby rooms — people deliberately raising their voices.
After what they’d experienced the night before, they needed noise and chatter to steel their nerves.
Still, none of them dared step out. The dim hallway remained completely empty.
Wu Ma edged his spearhead forward and carefully lifted the curtain leading to the cargo hold.
“General Wu Ma?”
A man suddenly appeared behind the curtain, and Wu Ma nearly thrust his spear forward.
Thankfully, the man spoke like a normal human.
“What’s going on?”
The first mate held seven or eight dead rats in each hand, eyeing Wu Ma in surprise.
All the rats were dripping with blood.
“Why so many dead rats?” Wu Ma finally exhaled and asked.
“This ship hasn’t gone out to sea for a while,” the first mate shrugged. “Last voyage had some issues — hull damage. Went in for repairs, just got patched up recently.”
“Didn’t the repair crew take care of the rats?”
These rats were incredibly plump and strong — who knew what they’d been feeding on. Some were almost bigger than the black cat.
“They were supposed to clean up, so the rats wouldn’t chew through the hull. But they didn’t… which works out!” The first mate licked his lips. “Step aside, I’m gonna skin and roast these for a little feast.”
In many regions, rat meat was considered a delicacy.
And these particular rats were fat and meaty — for sailors, that meant a feast.
“Don’t eat them. Throw them out. The Great Plague of the Plains State was only ten years ago. Better safe than sorry,” Wu Ma said, frowning. “Toss them.”
“Sure! Whatever you say!” The first mate responded cheerfully and brushed past Wu Ma.
Wu Ma shook his head, headed into the midship water storage area, and drew some fresh water.
The water was clean — newly stocked before departure.
He gulped down mouthfuls until he was full, then returned to his room.
Only to find that Xiao Qi had fallen asleep on his bed.
Helpless, Wu Ma ended up sleeping on the floor for the night.
……
The next morning, everyone was jolted awake by a shrill, blood-curdling scream.
“The captain! The captain is dead!”