The deck was brightly lit.
A massive bonfire blazed at the center of the deck. On a spit, several unidentified sea Beast legs were roasting. Fat dripped onto the coals, sizzling and filling the air with the aroma of meat.
"Drink! All of you, drink!"
The one-eyed brute seated at the head of the table raised a huge tankard, spilling half its rum down his thick, bushy beard.
He was the Captain of the 'Mad Shark', the 'Bone-Crusher' Buck, with a bounty of twelve million Berries.
"Captain, we've struck it rich this time!"
A pirate who looked like a skinny monkey sidled up, his face full of fawning. "Those brats are all good quality, especially the black-haired one. Handsome as hell! Sent to the auction house on Sabaody Archipelago, he'd fetch at least this much!"
The skinny monkey waved five fingers.
"Five million?" Buck let out a drunken belch and kicked the skinny monkey to the deck. "You worthless piece of shit! At least eight million! I don't like that kid's eyes. We'll have his tendons cut before we sell him for a good price!"
"Yes, yes! The Captain is wise!"
The surrounding pirates roared with laughter, raising their tankards in a raucous celebration.
On these seas, weakness is the original sin.
They never saw anything wrong with human trafficking. To them, it was as natural as wolves eating sheep.
"The meat! Where's the damn cook! Why isn't the stew ready yet!"
Buck slammed his empty tankard on the table, his roar shaking the deck.
"Coming, coming! Don't be angry, Captain!"
From the direction of the galley, a cook as round as a ball came running out carrying a massive iron pot, sweat pouring down his face.
"Special thick stew, with extra kick!"
The cook plunked the iron pot down in the middle of the table, steam rising from it.
No one noticed that in the dim corner of the galley just moments before, a shadowy figure had silently passed over the stew pot.
A few drops of crimson liquid slid from the shadow's finger and melted into the bubbling broth.
The red color dissolved instantly upon hitting the liquid, vanishing without a trace, only making the originally murky meat stew appear even more enticing.
"Smells good! Damn good!"
Buck sniffed the air, grabbed a ladle directly with his hand, and scooped himself a full bowl.
Gulp, gulp.
The scalding stew poured down his throat. Buck wiped his mouth contentedly.
"What are you all standing around for? Eat! There's plenty for everyone tonight!"
At the Captain's command, dozens of pirates surged forward, scrambling to share the stew and roasted meat from the pot.
Even the lookouts couldn't resist coming over to beg for a bowl.
In less than ten minutes, the huge pot of stew was completely emptied.
"Ahhh!"
The skinny monkey pirate let out a satisfied belch, leaning against the mast to pick his teeth. "Why does this stew feel stronger than usual? Makes my whole body hot."
"That's the cook improving his craft!"
"Hahaha! I feel full of power! Could punch a cow dead right now!"
The pirates chattered excitedly, the atmosphere reaching its peak.
However, this fervor did not last long.
Just as Buck was about to pour another drink, he felt an itch on the back of his hand.
He looked down and scratched it.
That scratch tore off a piece of his skin and flesh!
No blood flowed. The blood vessels beneath the flesh showed a sinister purplish-black hue, writhing like black earthworms under his skin.
"What... what is this?"
Buck froze, his drunken eyes staring blankly at his hand.
Immediately after, a violent urge to cough surged from his lungs.
"Cough! Cough, cough, cough!"
He covered his mouth, coughing violently. Each convulsion felt like his lungs were about to explode.
"Captain, what's wrong?"
The skinny monkey nearby noticed something was wrong and moved to support him.
"Urgh—!"
Buck suddenly opened his mouth and spewed a large mouthful of black, viscous liquid right into the skinny monkey's face.
The liquid was highly corrosive. Where it landed on the deck, it sizzled, emitting wisps of white smoke.
"Ah! My eyes! My face!"
The skinny monkey let out a shrill scream, clutching his face and rolling frantically on the deck.
But this was only the beginning.
"Ugh... ah..."
"So hot... so hungry..."
On the deck that had been filled with laughter and cheers just moments before, pained groans erupted one after another.
The pirates who had drunk the stew all turned pale, their eyes bloodshot. The veins on their necks bulged like gnarled tree roots, spreading up to their faces.
Their bodies began undergoing horrific mutations.
Their fingernails rapidly grew longer, turned black, and became as sharp as blades.
Their teeth fell out, replaced by sharp fangs that pierced their lips.
Their muscles swelled from extreme engorgement, tearing their clothes.
"Help... help me..."
Due to his obese size, the cook's symptoms manifested slightly slower.
He watched in horror as his companions fell one by one, then stood back up in grotesquely twisted postures.
The skinny monkey who had been sprayed with black blood stopped screaming.
He slowly climbed to his feet. Half of his originally wretched face was now rotted away, revealing stark white bone.
The single remaining eye held no trace of fawning or greed, only the most primal, Beast-like hunger.
"Grooowl—"
A low growl rumbled from the skinny monkey's throat. He lunged at the nearest pirate who hadn't fully mutated yet.
*Crunch!*
His teeth sank into the other's neck.
Blood sprayed.
"Aahhh! Let go of me! I'm your second uncle!"
The pirate screamed, desperately pounding the skinny monkey's head. But soon, his struggles weakened, replaced by the same convulsions and growls.
Chaos.
Complete chaos.
The deck of the Mad Shark instantly became a Shura field.
The pirates still in the process of transformation were pounced on and torn apart by the already-transformed zombies.
Blood stained the deck red. Screams and chewing sounds intertwined, composing a symphony of death.
[Ding! Detected extreme fear in the surroundings. astonishment value +10!]
[Ding! Detected despair in the surroundings. astonishment value +20!]
[Ding! Detected extreme shock in the surroundings. astonishment value +50!]
In the lower hold, Bai Yu listened to the constant chime of notifications in his mind, a cold curve forming at the corner of his mouth.
"It seems the banquet has begun."
He stood up, brushing the dust off his clothes.
The children in the cage were terrified by the screams from above, huddling together, not daring to even cry.
Bai Yu walked to the cage, grabbing the iron bars as thick as a finger with both hands.
The power of the blacklight virus surged within him.
*Screech—*
The grating sound of twisting metal rang out.
The hard iron bars bent like noodles in his hands, easily pulled apart to form a large opening.
"If you want to live, stay right here and don't move."
Bai Yu tossed out the words, then turned and walked towards the stairs leading to the deck.
His footsteps were light, yet in this chaotic environment, they sounded unnervingly clear.
One step, two steps.
As he ascended the stairs, the scent of blood from outside grew stronger.
By now, there were few living souls left standing on the deck.
Captain Buck, after all, was formidable, his physique far surpassing an ordinary man's.
Though he had also drunk the stew, relying on his powerful Haki and physical constitution, he had forcefully suppressed the virus's corruption. Only his eyes were blood-red, his breathing ragged.
"Bastard! What the hell is going on!"
Buck swung the large sword in his hand, cleaving a charging zombie pirate in two.
But to his horror, even bisected, the zombie's upper half continued crawling on the deck, trying to bite his ankle.
"Monsters! They're all monsters!"
An unprecedented chill surged in Buck's heart.
He had sailed the seas for twenty years and considered himself experienced, but he had never witnessed such a hellish scene.
At that moment, the hatch leading to the lower hold was pushed open.
A slender figure walked out against the firelight.
The youth's white shirt was somewhat tattered, his black hair fluttering in the sea breeze.
Facing the ground littered with severed limbs and the roaring monsters, his face showed not a trace of fear.
He even wore a hint of appreciation.
"Good evening, My Lord."
Bai Yu, hands in his pockets, strolled into the battlefield as if taking a leisurely walk.
A zombie caught the scent of a living person and roared, lunging at Bai Yu.
Buck sneered, wanting to watch the zombie tear this kid apart. But the next second, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.
*Squelch!*
Without even a glance, Bai Yu's right hand instantly transformed into a black-red bladed whip, fast as lightning.
The zombie, still mid-air, was directly lashed apart by the whip, exploding into a shower of blood.
The blood rain fell on Bai Yu, but as if absorbed by something, it instantly seeped into his skin.
Bai Yu took a deep breath, a look of intoxication flickering across his face.
It was the pleasure of feeding.
"Tastes good."
Bai Yu shook his right hand. The black-red whip rapidly retracted, transforming back into a pale palm.
He raised his head, looked at the terrified Buck, and smiled slightly.
"How do you find this appetizer?"
[Ding! Detected extreme terror from Buck. astonishment value +100!]
Buck's hand holding the sword trembled.
In that moment, he finally understood. The most terrifying monster on this ship wasn't the biting madmen.
It was this kid before him, the one he had treated as mere cargo.
"You... what are you?" Buck's voice was hoarse as he stepped back.
Bai Yu tilted his head, as if seriously considering the question.
The surrounding zombies seemed to sense the arrival of their king. One by one, they stopped roaring, swaying as they gathered behind Bai Yu like the most loyal guard.
Under the firelight, the youth's Shadow stretched long, projected onto the blood-stained sailcloth like the wings of a demon.
"Me?"
Bai Yu let out a light laugh, his figure vanishing from the spot in an instant.
The next moment, an icy voice exploded beside Buck's ear.
"I am your... nightmare."