Luo Xingzhou patiently sensed the disturbance at the bottom of the lake. It felt as if something that had been dormant for a long time was finally awakening. The aura was gradually rising, and the more he sensed it, the more alarmed he became. Jiutang, coiled around his arm, grew restless, eager to devour whatever lay at the bottom of the lake, yet appeared somewhat hesitant, as if afraid.
“I’ll go wake them up. We need to leave this lake and head back right away.”
“Okay, we’ll follow your lead,” Lina and Huo Zhijun said without hesitation. After teaming up for so long, Luo Xingzhou’s keen perception had proven itself many times. Better to err on the side of caution than to ignore a potential threat.
Luo Xingzhou quickly woke up Chen Kangning, Milo, and Fang Yang. Chen Kangning and Fang Yang quickly stood up, wiped their faces, and asked anxiously, “Is something wrong?”
Luo Xingzhou explained the abnormality he sensed at the lake’s bottom. The three immediately got out of their sleeping bags and rushed to the water’s edge. Though Milo was the slowest to react, his beastman instincts kicked in. Standing by the lake, a chill ran down his spine, making him want to bristle. “No, we need to leave now! I can feel something dangerous in the lake. Let’s go!”
“We’re leaving!” Fang Yang, though lacking Milo’s instincts, also sensed that his B-level abilities were warning him of the lurking danger. It was not safe to stay.
Everyone quickly packed their belongings. Their movements woke Ding Changhuan, who was dozing off. Surprised by their sudden departure, he asked, “What’s going on with you guys?”
Fang Yang glanced at Luo Xingzhou and Chen Kangning, who nodded in response. Fang Yang then shouted towards the others, “Neil, there’s something happening at the bottom of the lake. You should stay away from it.”
His voice, enhanced by his ability, rang in Neil’s ears, instantly waking him up despite his deep sleep. Groggily, Neil crawled out of his sleeping bag, grumbling, “What’s with the yelling? Didn’t we check the lake earlier? You guys are such cowards.”
Milo was furious, enraged that his good intentions were met with such an attitude.
Luo Xingzhou gave Neil a cold glance and said, “Wise words are wasted on the doomed. We’ve given our warning. Whether they listen or not is up to them. Let’s go!”
“Let’s move!”
Luo Xingzhou led the charge into the darkness, followed closely by Fang Yang, who didn’t spare Ding Changhuan a second glance. Even though years of friendship weren’t easily forgotten, they couldn’t outweigh Ding Changhuan’s betrayal when he had pushed Fang Yang toward the beast to save himself.
Lina and Huo Zhijun felt the same. If Neil and the others wanted to seek their own deaths, they didn’t intend to be dragged down with them.
In the blink of an eye, the six of them disappeared into the darkness. Their decisiveness left Neil with a more serious expression—is there really something dangerous in the lake?
He, like Milo, rushed to the water’s edge to sense for himself. Although not as sharp as a feline beastman, his B-level instincts still caused goosebumps to rise in the night breeze.
Something is definitely at the bottom of the lake, slowly approaching the shore.
Neil immediately turned around and shouted, “Go! Get away from the lake!”
Only now did Ding Changhuan feel fear. Without even packing up his sleeping bag, he dashed off in the direction Luo Xingzhou’s group had gone. Seeing even the usually confident B-level beastman Neil showing signs of panic, he knew the thing in the lake must be terrifying. His mind instantly recalled the B-level star beast they had encountered on that rainy night. He didn’t want to go through something that frightening again.
Neil was stunned as he watched Ding Changhuan’s retreating figure. Isn’t Ding his follower now? And yet, here his follower is, only thinking of saving his own skin?
For once, Neil—who wasn’t exactly the sharpest—started to think. What is really going on between Fang Yang and Ding Changhuan? Is it as simple as Ding Changhuan claimed—that they merely got separated? Then why is Fang Yang treating him so coldly?
But there wasn’t much time to dwell on these thoughts. Grabbing his sleeping bag, Neil rushed after them.
Behind them, the lake surface began rippling from the center outward. From above, a shadow appeared at the lake’s bottom, growing larger as it neared the surface.
At this point, it was nearing midnight on the Hong-ai Star. The livestream still had viewers, as the time difference between planets meant that while it was deep night on Hong-ai Star, other places were still in daylight. Some viewers, drawn in by the show or by Luo Xingzhou and his team, kept the stream on while working or studying. They were startled by the sudden actions of the two teams, and the chat was quickly filled with discussions.
[Do you think their senses are accurate? Is there really something terrifying in that lake?]
[It’s probably real. Didn’t you notice Milo’s reaction? If he were in his beast form, his fur would definitely be standing on end right now. And even if they were faking it, there’s no way Neil, who clearly doesn’t get along with Fang Yang, would play along. So, there’s only one truth.]
[What kind of monster could scare both Luo Xingzhou and Neil into retreating so quickly?]
[Too bad they all left the lakeside and didn’t leave any cameras behind. We have no way of seeing what’s happening at the lake.]
[I think we should all send a request to the livestream platform, asking them to set up more cameras by the lake to see what’s really going on.]
[I think there might be an A-level aquatic star beast at the bottom of the lake. If it were just B-level, they wouldn’t have fled into the night like that. It has to be something more powerful than B-level.]
[Could it be an S-level?]
[What are you talking about? If an S-level star beast had awakened, there wouldn’t be a single person left alive on Hong-ai Star. Do we really need to remind everyone how terrifying an S-level star beast is? Just one of those is enough to ravage and destroy an entire planet.]
On the starship hovering outside Hong-ai Star, Second Young Master Huo was awakened by his subordinates. “Second Young Master, something’s happening down there, something serious.”
Huo Junting quickly wiped his face and got up, opening the livestream while asking, “What happened? Tell me quickly!”
His subordinate promptly explained that Luo Xingzhou’s team had rapidly evacuated the lakeside after sensing danger in the water. Huo Junting’s expression changed immediately. Even an A-level star beast would pose a great threat to Huo Zhijun and Hong-ai Star. He quickly issued orders: “Contact the production crew outside. We need immediate access to Hong-ai Star and send monitoring drones to that lake. We need to find out what’s causing this disturbance.”
“Yes, Second Young Master!”
Meanwhile, the production crew stationed in a ship outside Hong-ai Star was also awakened from their sleep. Annoyed and groggy, one of the supervisors perked up immediately upon hearing the name “Second Young Master Huo.” Wiping his face, he grumbled, “What’s he stirring up in the middle of the night this time? Damn it, next time, make sure to thoroughly investigate who we’re inviting on the show.”
They hadn’t known Huo Zhijun’s identity before Second Young Master Huo got involved. Who would have thought it was such a big deal, and now they were stuck dealing with Second Young Master Huo’s demands. After venting his frustrations, the supervisor still had to ask what Huo Junting wanted this time.
The staff quickly explained the situation on the planet. The supervisor frowned and said, “Before the show started, didn’t we send people up to scout? The strongest star beasts we found were B-level. We expected more survivors this time arou
They had been keeping close tabs on the show’s progress, and it was no surprise to them that B-level powerhouses like Fang Yang and Neil had made it this far. For the others, it came down to luck. But no one expected Luo Xingzhou to emerge as the dark horse on the very first day.
Since the show started, they had been receiving inquiries about Luo Xingzhou, as various parties wanted to recruit him before others could. However, the production crew had backing, and they wouldn’t disclose anyone’s information without consent, so they brushed off those inquiries.
They hadn’t known much about Luo Xingzhou’s background before the livestream took off, but it was through online discussions that they discovered his true identity—he was the grandson of the renowned Grandmaster Pharmacist Luo. The supervisor breathed a sigh of relief at the time. If Luo Xingzhou had really died during the show, and the news spread, the boss wouldn’t have been happy.
Luckily, Luo Xingzhou awakened his abilities at a critical moment, becoming the biggest dark horse of the livestream. Even the boss had taken a keen interest in the kid.
The supervisor saw that a group of five or six people had gathered around Luo Xingzhou, indicating that this time, there would definitely be more survivors than expected. Luo Xingzhou’s actions were truly unexpected.
Then, he reconsidered his earlier thoughts, saying, “Forget that for now. Do as Second Young Master Huo said. Redirect the unused camera orbs to the lake you mentioned, and bring up the footage. I want to see it for myself.”
“Yes, sir.”
Once the order was given, the staff aboard the spaceship sprang into action, quickly fulfilling the supervisor’s request. A holographic display appeared on the ship, and the moment the supervisor saw it, his expression drastically changed. He shot up from his seat, shouting, “This isn’t good! Look at the shadow in the lake and the ripples on the surface. Send a team down immediately! Keep an eye on whatever’s happening in the lake. Find out what that shadow is.”
Is it an aquatic star beast or some other kind of monster?
“Something’s coming out of the water!”
“Quick! Zoom in and enhance the image!”
The footage zoomed in sharply, just as they caught a glimpse of what was emerging from the water. With a sudden “smack,” one of the camera orbs was struck and destroyed by that thing. Everyone on the ship gasped in shock, and the supervisor shouted, “Quick, get down there! Deploy all the mechas!”
“Get me a line to Second Young Master Huo immediately.”
“Yes, sir.”
The communication with Second Young Master Huo was instantly connected. Huo Junting, who was still in the process of deploying the camera orbs, hadn’t yet seen what was happening on the planet’s surface. The supervisor immediately said, “Do you have anyone useful over there, Second Young Master? Send them down quickly. There’s definitely something in the lake, and we’ll stay in contact. If things get too dangerous, please be prepared to evacuate from Hong-ai Star immediately.”
“Damn it! What kind of scouting did you guys do? Alright, I get it.”
Second Young Master Huo was so anxious that he was practically jumping up and down. Although the supervisor hadn’t explained the exact situation, the fact that they were already preparing for evacuation meant it could be extremely dangerous. There was no way he could remain calm. He quickly ordered his people to stand guard around Huo Zhijun, awaiting further instructions. Not long after, a mecha operator was dispatched from Huo’s starship, heading toward the planet.