CHAPTER 375: CHAPTER 208: GLIMMER OF GOLD_2

The group resumed their earlier formation, slowly advancing toward the interior of the shipwreck.

They planned to enter through a large gap at the stern of the ship.

The section of the ship that once filled this gap was likely the wreckage that had previously fallen into the pit on the cliff.

Judging by the marks on the edges, something must have hit it, blasting out a large opening.

As they proceeded, a lantern floated out, emitting a gentle white light. Under Alka’s control, it drifted above and ahead of the group.

The first area they entered appeared to be a side corridor of the ship’s lower hold.

Upon entering, they were immediately greeted by a strong, fishy stench mixed with an intensely foul rotting odor.

The combination of smells made Pororo, who was at the front, pause briefly, shake his head, and then continue moving.

Confronted with such a stench, there was nothing the group could do.

They could only endure it.

As they entered, two zombies leaning against the wall slowly began to stand.

Before they could fully rise, they collapsed to the ground again, holes appearing in their spines.

Jason lowered his gun slightly.

Maintaining their formation, the group continued forward.

Jason raised his gun and fired twice more. The two corpses slumped against the wall twitched a couple of times, then stilled completely.

The zombies in this initial section were completely cleared.

Then, facing the lower hold, the group began to clear it out slowly. Besides the zombie they had just eliminated, which possessed Five Spirals of power, the remaining zombies inside only had between two and three Spirals.

Judging from the wounds on their bodies, they were likely people who had died instantly when the ship crashed.

They had various degrees of fractures, making their movements awkward.

Half of the entire lower hold was completely collapsed, and the remaining half offered limited space for movement.

The group briefly cleared the surrounding zombies and finished exploring the entire lower hold.

There were essentially no significant findings, just some broken, shabby everyday items.

Looking at the huge gap above their heads, Alka pointed to it.

Lucilia and Ling, hidden in the shadows, lightly leaped up to scout ahead of the group.

Their small, agile bodies made them perfect for such a task.

In less than a minute, Lucilia poked her head out and waved to them.

Chadite jumped up first, while Pororo could only helplessly shake his head at the others.

His frame was too large, and the upper deck had become twisted following the ship’s destruction, making it almost impossible for him to move around.

He had been able to move in the lower hold because it was relatively spacious and, being twisted and cracked, offered enough openings for him to maneuver, albeit barely.

For Pororo, navigating the interiors of most ships was difficult.

Even the Sound of Dawn, which was custom-made for him, still required him to slightly bow his head most of the time when moving within its cabins.

Alka nodded at him and said, "Then you stand guard outside. If a loud commotion occurs inside, break through the ship’s hull and come in. Or we can lure the enemy out."

Pororo nodded, then ducked through a nearby hole to the outside.

From the open space outside, he waved to them.

Only then did Alka turn back to the group and say, "Let’s try to clear out some zombies first. If we encounter strong enemies, hold them off and retreat, luring them to the open space outside. Fighting in such a confined space isn’t to our advantage."

"No problem."

The group nodded, then followed, jumping up through the hole above.

With the help of the floating lantern that had drifted up earlier, they saw the state of the deck above.

Apart from broken wooden planks, there were numerous signs of battle, including smooth cuts from blades, burn marks, and traces of lightning strikes.

Several ordinary zombies lay on both sides, likely dispatched by Lucilia and Ling during their earlier reconnaissance.

The overall structure of this ship was similar to their own, featuring two internal decks and one lower hold.

The lower hold was almost completely destroyed, and the lower deck of the second level wasn’t much better.

It was even more ruined than the lower hold. Apart from the passageway they were in, only a few small rooms remained barely accessible.

There were many large holes and breaches connecting from above.

However, Alka had already discerned that the ship’s Treasure Vault lay within the crushed and collapsed sections, and he estimated its approximate location.

But now was clearly not the time to open the Treasure Vault.

The Treasure Vault would have to wait until the very end.

Excluding the two zombies Lucilia and Ling had killed during their scouting, only one other zombie, with a power level of Four Spirals, was found on the entire second deck.

This zombie had only one arm that was still flesh; its legs and other arm had completely transformed into constructs.

This zombie had likely only possessed Four Spirals of power when alive. Even with three limbs transformed into constructs, its strength had merely returned to its former level.

It seems the completeness of the body’s constructs doesn’t significantly correlate with its former power level.

According to his speculation, the completeness of the constructs likely depended on proximity to this particular ship.

Out on the perimeter, whether in the open ground or the forest, if large parts of a body were missing, the constructs generally wouldn’t be complete.