Chapter 110: The Truth

After returning to the escape pod, Qin Fei powered on his tablet and inserted the two PAD data modules he had retrieved from the Healer into the device’s slot.

The first PAD contained an audio log of a conversation between two individuals.

“This is the Cyclops. We’re positioned 900 meters below, and there’s a dark purple river here.”

“A river? Are you sure you’re not mistaken?”

“Yes, it really is a river... According to scanner analysis, the liquid in this river seems to have a close connection with the ‘Kara Virus’...”

“Well done! Transmit the data on this liquid back to us...”

“Received... Wait, look—what’s that creature?”

About a minute later...

*Boom!* (A fierce explosion)

The recording in this PAD abruptly ends there.

Indeed, beneath the surface of planet 4546B lies a mysterious river—the ‘Lost River’ deep in the ocean.

From the dialogue, Qin Fei inferred the situation: the people speaking were aboard the Cyclops, which had probably reached the vicinity of the Lost River.

Judging by the final explosion, Qin Fei concluded the Cyclops had been destroyed within the Lost River, likely by some kind of monster.

Considering the time between spotting the creature and the explosion was only about a minute, the Cyclops crew had very little chance to react.

The Cyclops was equipped with a defensive module capable of generating a protective barrier. With such defenses, even an attack by a Ghost Leviathan couldn't cause a ship to explode so quickly.

Therefore, Qin Fei surmised that the Cyclops must have been attacked by a creature far more powerful than the Ghost Leviathan.

He speculated that this monster was probably the ‘Leviathan, Father of the School Sharks’ mentioned in the main mission.

The second PAD contained a written log.

September 1, 2011.

“We have successfully landed on planet 4546B. As planned, the captain and I will remain aboard the Healer, while the first officer leads a team aboard the Cyclops to explore the ocean depths for clues about the Kara Virus.

Wish them luck!”

September 4, 2011.

The second page of the log read:

“Based on samples sent back from the Lost River by the Cyclops, this dark purple liquid appears to contain an immensely powerful energy.

If harnessed properly, using this liquid as a primary energy source could usher in countless new technologies for human society.

Unfortunately, this liquid seems to corrode the minds of those infected.

This corrosive effect has already contaminated the planet’s oceans.

Moreover, infected life forms exhibit symptoms identical to those of Kara Virus patients, with severe cases showing varying degrees of mutation.

There must be an intrinsic link between this liquid and the Kara Virus.

I believe we are getting closer to uncovering the true secret of the Kara Virus...”

Qin Fei frowned as he read this.

Dark purple liquid?

Mental corrosion and mutation?

Upon seeing these details about the Lost River’s liquid, Qin Fei immediately thought of the ‘Edmonium Metal’ from the Ark’s Altered World—the purple river flowing at the bottom of the Altered Shadow Zone (the Red Zone) known as the Tech Essence.

Injecting Tech Essence into a human body similarly causes mutation and mental degradation.

This effect closely mirrored the properties of the Lost River’s purple liquid.

Most importantly, Tech Essence was also dark purple.

Connecting the dots, Qin Fei quickly drew a conclusion:

The dark purple liquid flowing through the Lost River deep underwater might very well be the Tech Essence from the Ark!

Because Tech Essence’s weight and density far exceed water, it sinks to the ocean floor, forming the unique underwater phenomenon known as the ‘river beneath the sea.’

However, liquids inevitably seep into one another.

Thus, the Tech Essence from the Lost River gradually spread with the seawater throughout every corner of planet 4546B.

As a result, life across the entire planet has been more or less corroded by the Tech Essence.

This must be the origin of the Kara Virus.

After arriving on this planet, the protagonist himself was infected by Tech Essence.

Though he had since eradicated the infection within himself, the influence of this essence had already pervaded the planet and was practically omnipresent.

Consequently, the protagonist inadvertently brought some of this Tech Essence back to Earth.

Due to the scarcity of the essence on Earth, humans only exhibited symptoms of Kara Virus infection without actual mutation.

Moreover, Earth in the Deep Sea Expedition universe did not see the emergence of collective entities formed by corrupted wills known as ‘Titans,’ unlike in the Ark world.

Yet, this was still enough to nearly wipe out humanity.

As for planet 4546B, the abundant Tech Essence caused widespread, unknown mutations among its creatures.

Similarly, the crew members who arrived there suffered severe corrosion, which explains why some mutated into grotesque monsters covered in tentacles.

With this perspective, all the mysteries could be explained.

Of course, these were still just hypotheses.

Qin Fei would need to reach the Lost River himself to confirm these suspicions.

Additionally, he remained unclear about the true nature of the ‘Leviathan, Father of the School Sharks’ mentioned in his main mission.

This creature had never appeared in the Deep Sea Expedition game.

There were also the ‘Sea Dragon Leviathan’ and the ‘Sea Emperor’ dwelling in even deeper ocean layers—whether they had mutated was unknown.

In the game, the Sea Emperor exhibited some resistance to the Kara Virus, i.e., the Tech Essence.

The protagonist of the game had relied on the reproductive enzymes secreted by the Sea Emperor to cleanse his own infection.

The Sea Emperor was a highly intelligent life form.

Perhaps if Qin Fei could find the Sea Emperor, he would uncover much of the truth.

After analyzing the data from the PAD, Qin Fei took out the signal receiver he had found on the Healer.

[Cyclops Signal Receiver: Navigation aid for the Cyclops, capable of locating and displaying its position.]

Having acquired the stasis gun and the Sea Shrimp vessel, Qin Fei’s confidence had grown immensely.

Even a formidable Ghost Leviathan was no longer a match for him.

To unravel the true origin of the Kara Virus and to locate the ‘Leviathan, Father of the School Sharks,’ Qin Fei piloted the Sea Shrimp toward the Lost River in the oceanic desert’s lower layers.