Card Room (Rebirth)
chapter-131

The Caribbean cruise ship, the captain’s control cabin.

Yu Hanjiang wore an invisibility cloak and flashed inside the moment the hatch was blown open by the wind.

The captain and vice-captain were anxiously checking the equipment on the ship. The harsh ringing of the alarm kept filling their ears. The young vice-captain’s voice trembled as he said, “Captain, there is no signal and no contact with the shore!”

The captain calmly ordered, “Continue to call the rescue centre. We need urgent support!”

A red warning icon appeared on the LCD monitor screen in front. The hull was heavily tilted and a mechanical voice gave crazy prompts. “The navigation system has failed! The communication system has failed! Warning the centre of gravity for the cruise ship is too low! The inclination angle is more than 40 degrees. There is a risk of capsizing. Please correct it as soon as possible!”

The old captain’s face was bloody.

Outside the window, a nearly 50 metres high wave was getting closer to the cruise ship. If the ship couldn’t be stabilized quickly, this huge wave would make things even worse. The originally faltering cruise ship would be completely overturned by the wave.

The vice-captain cried out, “It is hopeless for this ship! Captain, let’s run!”

The captain gritted his teeth and stared at the waves in the distance, fists clenched tightly.

The vice-captain grabbed him by the collar and roared, “Think of your wife and children. They don’t want to see your corpse. The ship’s equipment has failed and we happened to encounter a typhoon. The ship can no longer be saved. Abandon the ship and run for your life! Do you hear me?”

The captain’s mind returned and he ordered, “Organize the evacuation of the tourists immediately!”

The grey-haired captain had the cruise ship start to whistle. The short and continuous whistling sound represented that the cruise ship had encountered danger. He picked up the microphone beside him and spoke at a very fast speed. “Dear visitors, our cruise ship equipment had failed and we have encountered extremely bad typhoon weather. Please put on your lifejacket as soon as possible and head in the direction indicated by the arrows on the ship to find the escape boat and evacuate…”

The captain’s broadcast made the confused crowd burst out screaming.

The crowd ran like crazy towards the stern. Many people lost their shoes, hats and sunglasses in the rush. Yu Hanjiang wore the invisibility cloak and simply went to the third floor where there were fewer people. He grabbed the railing and used it to climb toward the stern.

Just then, a hurricane struck, accompanied by a huge wave.

The 50 metres high wave that looked like a building collapsing hit the ship!

All the visitors on the deck fell down at this wave. Some people were washed past the railing and into the sea. Some one held onto the railing tightly with one hand, his body blown by the wind as they cried out, “Help me….”

However, the tourists were so overwhelmed that no one had any extra hands to help him. The man hanging onto the railing was soon struck by another wave and fell into the sea, flipping tice before he disappeared from view.

The cruise ship continued to tilt. The flagpole on the deck was blown down by the wind and the flag of the Royal Caribbean, which represented the identity of the ship, was blown out to sea. The angle between the ship and the sea was less than 30 degrees and people couldn’t stand on the ship at all. Screams and heartbreaking cries were heard.

Yu Hanjiang’s pupils’ shrank. This wasn’t good! The complete capsize of the cruise ship was a predestined result. His body moved faster than his brain and he didn’t hesitate to jump into the sea.

At almost the same time that he jumped, the seven storey cruise ship fell into the sea with a loud boom! Many passengers who couldn’t escape on time were crushed into the sea by the cruise ship and their cries of despair came to an end.

The fallen cruise ship was gradually submerged into the sea. Some passengers were injured and the originally clear water was stained with blood. The challenger teams that grabbed the escape boats were rushing to escape the huge waves. It was just that some people obviously didn’t know how to sail. Some escape boats were out of control on the sea, like headless flies. They were raised and overturned by the huge waves.

The challenger teams were thrown into the sea like dumplings. They hurriedly swam to save their teammates and there were constant curses scolding A of Spades. A middle-aged man even roared directly at the sky. “Fuck Spades! I’ll dig up the graves of your ancestors up to 18 generations!”

The challengers around him, “……”

This brother had obviously lost his mind. Did A of Spades have an ancestral grave?

Xiao Lou wasn’t in the mood to pay attention to them. Old Mo was concentrating on steering the boat, controlling it with first-class technique. Under his control, the escape boat shot out to the sea like a sharp arrow, making several ingenious turns to avoid huge waves!

He parked the escape boat in the distance and Xiao Lou spoke nervously. “Old Mo, Group Leader Yu is still on the ship!”

“I know but the wind and waves over there are too big. It will be dangerous to go back. We should wait for him in a safe place.”

The always calm Xiao Lou looked at the distant tragedy and couldn’t help trembling slightly. He rationally knew that Old Mo’s actions were right but Xiao Lou couldn’t control his worry.

Shao Qingge saw that he wasn’t in the right mood and reached for Xiao Lou’s shoulder. “Professor Xiao, don’t worry. It is impossible to drown in the sea with Group Leader Yu’s skill. I believe he will come back safely.”

Xiao Lou took a deep breath and nodded stiffly.

In the distance, the cruise ship had been completely turned over. The blood on the sea continued to spread. The screams and cries were endless. Xiao Lou didn’t dare blink as he stared in the direction of the cruise ship, searching for familiar figures everywhere.

There was the roar of thunder overhead and several thunderbolts split the dark clouds. Xiao Lou’s entire body was drenched and his heart seemed to be filled with a cold wind. His eyes were blurred by the mist but he still stared into the distance, afraid of missing Yu Hanjiang.

It was probably that ‘care caused chaos.’ He knew that Yu Hanjiang wouldn’t be so stupid to drown in the sea but he couldn’t find any traces of Yu Hanjiang. Xiao Lou was too nervous as he clenched his fists, his breathing difficult.

These short minutes seemed to have become as long as a century.

Liu Qiao sent out a flying lantern similar to the one she released in Liuxi Village. It could be used to determine their location and she wanted to let Group Leader Yu quickly find their boat in the chaos.

It was unknown how long after when Xiao Lou suddenly heard a familiar voice in his ear. “I’m back.”

Xiao Lou turned back sharply.

He saw Yu Hanjiang quickly climbing onto the escape boat. The man’s black hair was wet over his shoulder and his clothes were soaked by seawater. The looked a bit embarrassing but his expression was calm, his dark eyes full of confidence.

Xiao Lou’s heart was ecstatic and he didn’t know what to say for a moment.

Shao Qingge joked. “Group Leader Yu, state that you’re safe. Then Professor Xiao can stop worrying.”

Yu Hanjiang looked at Xiao Lou’s bright eyes.

Xiao Lou’s ears were hot but he was very serious as he gazed at Yu Hanjiang, eyes filled with obvious joy. “You come back! Why were you gone for so long? Are you okay?”

Yu Hanjiang’s heart was warm. “I’m fine. I went to the control cabin to take a look. The reason for the sudden tilting of the ship is that the equipment was malfunctioning. Originally, this type of giant cruise ship should be able to withstand the typhoon. As a result, there was a problem with the equipment. The captain couldn’t hold on and made a radio broadcast to let everyone escape. I saw many warning lights on the console and capsizing was a certain result.”

He went back to confirm that the cruise ship couldn’t continue to be used. If it could endure the typhoon then there was no need to rush to the escape boat. After all, the cruise ship was more stable and safer. However, the ship’s capsize was an inevitable result so they could only choose the second option.

Ye Qi couldn’t help spitting out, “Then it is to let us sit on the escape boat and drift at sea?”

Old Mo smiled bitterly. “You should get used to this. Spades often does things that aren’t good for people.”

Xiao Lou asked with concern, “Group Leader Yu, how did you find us across such a distance?”

Yu Hanjiang stated, “My swimming technique is good and my lung capacity is large. I can hold on underwater for up to two minutes. Before the ship’s sinking, I jumped into the sea an swam along until I saw the lantern released by Little Liu. You didn’t see me because I was wearing the invisibility cloak.”

Xiao Lou finally let go of his worries after seeing that the other person was comfortable and had no injuries.

After yesterday’s diarrhea incident, 20% of people took the Full Star to leave. Thus, the escape boats on the Caribbean were sufficient. As long as people didn’t panic in the typhoon and grabbed an escape boat, they could avoid the centre of the huge wind and waves. Don’t blindly drive the escape boat into the whirlpools and the probability of surviving this storm wasn’t low.

Xiao Lou looked around. The challengers were prepared and most of the escape boats had survived.

It was a pity that the tourists didn’t know this. They just came to the cruise ship to play but suffered such misfortune.

Nearly 60% of the tourists died in the shipwreck. Many of them were playing in the entertainment centre or watching a drama in the theatre. Once the disaster happened, they had no time to escape and were washed out to sea. Only a few quick-witted tourists got on the escape boat.

Heavy rain poured down and Yu Hanjiang looked out the back of the escape boat. The sudden whirlpools had taken away many lives. They were on the right side of the capsized ship and could only continue to move forward.

The surrounding sea was full of broken railing, wooden planks, girl’s silk scarves, life jackets, plastic bags of food and shoes and bags lost during the escape. There were only the bodies of drowned people floating on the sea.

The typhoon passed through and left a mess everywhere.

Many people saw such a terrible disaster for the first time and couldn’t bear to look away.

Yu Hanjiang whispered, “You aren’t hurt?”

They shook their heads.

Yu Hanjiang stated, “The typhoon turned the cruise ship over and forced us to drift at sea on the escape boat. There are five days left to go until we clear the instance. Does the escape boat have enough fuel?”

The group heard this and their hearts suddenly sunk.

Old Mo hastily looked at the pointer on the dashboard. “The tank is full.”

People sighed with relief. They were too afraid of being pitted by A of Spades. It wasn’t easy to grab an escape boat. What if they ran out of fuel out of a few kilometers? Wouldn’t this make people desperate? Fortunately, A of Spades wasn’t too much. The fuel tank of the escape boat was full.

Yu Hanjiang looked at the distant sky that was gradually become brighter and said, “There is a whirlpool behind us and we temporarily can’t pass. We can only go forward. Let’s straighten up and get ready to go.”

Xiao Lou also calmed down at this time and sat back. “First, take inventory of our supplies.

Ye Qi, Long Sen and Qu Wanyue were responsible for the materials. The three people checked their backpacks and said, “Everything to eat is here!”

“The medicine is also complete!”

”I have the mineral water.”

Xiao Lou opened his mouth. “Old Mo, it is hard on you but you have to set sail.”

Mo Xuemin smiled. “Rest assured, I specifically learned how to drive an escape boat. Give it to me!”

Old Mo drove the escape boat quickly toward the east.

Many challengers also made the decision to continue east after observing the environment. Dozens of escape boats gradually moved across the sea.

Behind them, the Caribbean cruise ship had completely disappeared, leaving only a few pieces of wood debris floating on the sea. Xiao Lou didn’t what happened to the crew on board and didn’t know how many lives this sudden disaster had taken. There was no time to think about saving others. His teammates were safe, which was the only thing he should be grateful for.

Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou sat side by side in the second row.

The escape boat had been travelling for a while. Seeing Professor Xiao’s pale face, Yu Hanjiang reached out and held Xiao Lou’s hand, whispering, “Just now, I left alone. Were you worried?”

Yu Hanjiang still couldn’t forget the moment Xiao Lou saw him and his eyes brightened.

Professor Xiao actually cared so much about his safety. Yu Hanjiang was a bit surprised and felt warm due to Xiao Lou’s bright eyes. For a while, Yu Hanjiang thought that Xiao Lou only looked at him like an ordinary teammate, similar to Chief Shao and Ye Qi. However, at that moment, Yu Hanjiang’s eyes couldn’t deceive people.

He suddenly found that Xiao Lou wasn’t the same toward him. The feelings of the two people were different than other teammates. The trust and tacit understanding between them was also higher.

Thinking of Xiao Lou’s concern, Yu Hanjiang couldn’t help promising, “Rest assured, I won’t let myself fall into danger. We promised to go back together.”

He had just been soaked by the heavy rain and Yu Hanjiang’s hand was wet.

The wet hand was holding his hand lightly and Xiao Lou’s heart beat faster like a drum. He didn’t dare gaze into Yu Hanjiang’s eyes as he spoke quietly. “It’s okay, I wasn’t particularly worried. I believed that Group Leader Yu can come back safely.”

Yu Hanjiang’s lips gently raised as he clenched the other person’s hand. “We will try to act together in the future. I won’t leave alone again and worry you.”

Xiao Lou knew that Group Leader Yu holding his hand was simply to express trust in each other but he was unable to control his heartbeat. Yu Hanjiang’s fingers were slender and strong. It felt very secure. Xiao Lou didn’t dare to struggle or hold back. He could only freeze in place.

Instead, Yu Hanjiang seemed to realize that his actions were too close and he took the initiative to release his hand.

Xiao Lou’s ears were slightly hot. He kept his head down and didn’t speak.

Sitting behind them, Shao Qingge looked at the scene with a smile and touched his chin thoughtfully.

In the front row, Old Mo suddenly pointed to the distant sky and said, “The rain is about to stop. You see, the dark clouds are scattering.”

The group looked up. There was a gap in the middle of the dark clouds covering the sky.

The sun split the sky like a sword, spilling onto the sea. The clear blue sky slowly spread like a ribbon in everyone’s field of view. The clouds completely dispersed and brilliant sunlight shone down, casting a layer of warmth on everyone.

The group was relieved.

Long Sen exclaimed, “There is no danger! Fortunately, Old Mo can sail a boat.”

Mo Xuemin spoke helplessly. “I have been in the secret room world for half a year and have become an expert. Not only can I steer a boat, but I can also fly an airplane. I paid money to learn and can parachute.”

Long Sen laughed. “Then you are really a jack of all trades!”

Mo Xuemin sighed. “There is no way. In case of an air crash in the future, won’t we need to parachute? There is no harm in preparing ahead. Never underestimate the degree of A of Spades’ perversion.”

Qu Wanyue also smiled. “It was dangerous but haven’t we safely passed the typhoon? Everyone has worked hard.”

Ye Qi took bottles of mineral water from his backpack. “Come, drink some water to steady your nerves!”

The eyes of the group were much easier.

Still, they knew that this was only the second day.

After the typhoon passed, there might be other disasters waiting for everyone.

The endless sea still had no end in sight and their journey on the sea had just begun.