Chapter 45: The Cruise Ship Showdown

Time flew by in the blink of an eye, and the day of the heirs’ contest had finally arrived. After enduring the hellish training imposed by the Hunters' Clan, Du Bin and Hu Guozheng had finally made some progress, while under the watchful eye of the clan leader, Ye Tang too had undergone a series of life-or-death drills. If, in the past, the two had always felt timid when facing vampires, now they each possessed a measure of strength to resist them.

At eight o’clock in the evening, crowds thronged a port in Zhuhai City. Many guests, invitation in hand, boarded the ship. Just before the deadline, Du Bin and his party of four arrived. The contestants were Du Bin, Hu Guozheng, Ye Tang, and her aunt, Ye Lan.

Du Bin presented their invitations. After verifying them, the staff handed each participant an identity card and a waiver of liability for life and death. “This is your contest identification card. Please review this waiver. If you die, your family will receive generous compensation. If there are no issues, please affix your fingerprint here.”

Hu Guozheng eyed the waiver and almost tore it up. “Damn it, do you really expect me to die?”

“Fatty, don’t make a scene,” Du Bin said, pressing his finger to the document. He understood that their participation in this game was on Wu Qiwei’s recommendation; once the waiver was signed, even if they were killed, the compensation would be purely symbolic. It seemed the law had no jurisdiction here.

Once all four had signed, the staff handed Du Bin a sheet of paper. “Who is your team leader? Please fill in your team’s name.”

Du Bin turned to Ye Lan. “Aunt Lan, you’re the strongest among us. Why don’t you be the team leader?”

“I’m just here to make up the numbers. The younger generation should take the lead,” she replied.

“In that case, let’s have Tang lead us.” Seeing no objection, Du Bin signed, but when it came to the team’s name, he hesitated. “What should we call ourselves? Surely not ‘Victory Team’?”

“No, no, that’s far too old-fashioned. If we’re going to pick a name, it should have some presence!” Hu Guozheng objected. “There are four of us—let’s call ourselves the Four Heavenly Kings! That’s much more impressive.”

Du Bin shook his head in disdain. “The Four Heavenly Kings? What are you, pop stars? You might as well call us Team Oracle.”

“That’s a bit much!” Ye Tang protested, at a loss for words.

Hu Guozheng racked his brains. “If none of these names work, what should we call ourselves?”

“This competition is a perilous death game, and as a hunter myself, why not use ‘Hunter’ as our codename?” Ye Tang suggested after the debate dragged on.

Her words were met with silence. Embarrassed, she asked, “What’s wrong? Is it not a good name?”

“No, it’s fine. We’ll go with ‘Hunter’ as our codename,” Du Bin said with a sigh. Once the paperwork was complete, the group hurried aboard the ship.

“Tang, keep an eye on the crowd. Many of the participants are vampires, and some are no ordinary opponents. Even though we’re here to hunt vampires, now that we’ve joined the game, we must abide by its rules. Stay vigilant,” Ye Lan said gravely, scanning their surroundings.

“I know you’re worried about me, Aunt Lan. That’s why you’re here as our fourth member. Don’t worry, I won’t be careless.”

“That’s good. After a long day of travel, let’s get some rest,” Ye Lan said, patting Ye Tang on the shoulder. With that, the two returned to their rooms, followed by the others.

In search of more information about the death game, Du Bin and Hu Guozheng left their luggage and began gathering intel. The main hall was already crowded with people exchanging rumors.

“Looks like their goal is the same as ours.”

By then, the ship had already left the harbor. Watching the port recede into the distance, the two fished for more details. What they learned shocked them.

Finding a quiet spot, the two conferred. Hu Guozheng was beside himself. “My god! I’ve just learned that the organizers have set up a deathmatch arena. It’s a fight to the death—unbelievable!”

“That’s what I heard too. And on top of that, there are many vampires and people with supernatural powers among the contestants. It looks like we’re the only ordinary humans. This competition is anything but fair.”

“No wonder they made us sign that waiver. These bored rich people just want to see us killed in the arena,” Hu Guozheng fumed, punching the railing. If he could, he’d have gladly taken out the whole lot of them.

“Don’t think too much about it. In the arena, it’s kill or be killed—nothing unusual about that. I heard the winner receives a grand prize, but no one knows what it is.”

After discussing for a while, they headed back to their rooms. Suddenly, the captain’s voice called everyone to assemble. Soon, people began gathering on deck.

Once Du Bin and the others regrouped, they saw the sheer number of contestants. The captain, microphone in hand, addressed the crowd. “I’m sure you’re all familiar with the rules of the Death Journey. I’ll keep it brief. Tonight, there are more participants than ever, but according to the organizers’ rules, only one slot from each cruise heading to the destination will advance to the next stage of the competition. Out of the more than a hundred of you here, only one team will make it. Of course, if only four individuals remain, even from different teams, you may form a new group.”

The deck erupted in murmurs at this announcement. Hu Guozheng’s face flushed with anger. “Damn! There must be over twenty teams here, and only four people will survive—doesn’t matter if they’re on the same team or not.”

“The organizers are clearly making things difficult for us, otherwise how would they keep their sponsors entertained?” Du Bin gripped the railing tightly. Now that their group was among the weakest, they were almost certain to become targets.

“If everyone gangs up on us, we’re finished,” Hu Guozheng said with a shiver, gripping his Azure Dragon Blade in readiness.

“Vigilance is useless. If they really want to target us, there’s nothing we can do,” Ye Lan said indifferently, leafing through a book as if she couldn’t care less.

“Fight solo or as a team, the choice is yours. That’s all I have to say. Whether you live or die will depend entirely on your own strength,” the captain concluded, returning to the bridge to observe the carnage for a single qualifying spot, sipping his wine with relish.

Within five minutes, several teams had already begun to fight, though most remained on standby, watching and waiting.