Evil Flesh Codex (Fourth Update, Please Follow QWQ)

Hearing the priest's question, Xia Lun frowned slightly. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I don't know why it attacked me either. Maybe it was because of where I was standing?"

"There's another possibility. Could this monster have been transformed from one of your enemies?" Geliide raised an eyebrow. "Did you have any enemies aboard the ship in the past?"

Xia Lun blinked. He had no memories from before entering the instance at all!

Though he knew nothing about his predecessor's experiences, he still closed his eyes and pretended to think hard. After a moment, he shook his head.

"I'm not sure. I may have offended some people, but I don't think anyone hated me enough to want me dead."

The old man cast Xia Lun a sidelong glance with his one remaining eye, then suddenly said coldly, "Don't make this so complicated. If you ask me, just to be safe, eliminate the unstable factors and kill all the remaining crew members on the three whaling ships."

Xia Lun glanced at the old man. He knew the old man was deliberately playing the villain and taking the blame for him—there were some things Xia Lun was not suited to say, but the old man could say them without any pressure.

Still, Xia Lun shook his head. "That won't be necessary. It's enough for you to be mentally prepared."

He had never shied away from violence or even killing, but executing people who had no grievances with him just because of a possible risk went too far against his values.

Of course, if the situation became critically dangerous, he certainly would not hesitate. But for now, things were still under control. Besides, abusing violence could also make people lose faith in them.

Even pirates made up of desperate outlaws hoped their personal safety would receive at least basic protection.

Hearing Xia Lun's refusal, the old man nodded slightly.

"Then where will we get the monster's corpse tomorrow?" the priest suddenly asked.

"Throw down two bodies that died in yesterday's storm," Xia Lun said. "There's no need to keep feeding it fresh corpses."

"But that monster..." The priest hesitated.

"The salami tactic," Xia Lun said. "We need to push past the monster's bottom line bit by bit. If we stop feeding it outright, it'll ignite the whale oil and perish with us. But if we only start by giving it less-than-fresh bodies, it definitely won't light the fire. After all, it only threatens us to stay alive."

The priest stared at him in shock, scrutinizing Xia Lun from head to toe. "Then the day after tomorrow, you'll only feed it one corpse? And after that, feed it every other day?"

"If all goes well, of course we can." Xia Lun smiled. "We'll raise the stakes little by little. By the time it realizes what's happening, the weights on the scale will already be heavy enough."

"The salami tactic... that really is a fitting description." Geliide took a draw from her pipe, her voice carrying a hint of surprise. "Every slice of salami looks thin, but if you keep slicing, eventually the whole sausage will be gone."

"Of course, if we mess it up, this strategy could also be called pushing one's luck." Xia Lun tried to tell a second deadpan joke, but unfortunately, no one laughed right away.

He waited for a while, but the room remained silent. Rather unwillingly, he asked, "Uh... was that joke not funny?"

"You told a joke just now? When?" Captain Geliide looked surprised.

"I get it. That sentence itself was the joke. Now that's a truly cold joke." The old man froze for a moment. Though he did not understand it, he still cooperatively forced out three awkward laughs. "Ha, ha, ha..."

Only the priest remained utterly baffled, muttering, "What's funny? It isn't funny at all."

"..." Xia Lun was completely speechless.

It seemed his sense of humor really was rather unique.

"That joke really was boring." The captain took a puff of smoke and smiled as she shook her head. "Anything else to announce?"

"No. Let's get moving." Xia Lun fell silent for a moment. "Four days from now, it'll be time to reveal the cards."

With the plan and opinions unified, the survivors aboard the whaling ship immediately began acting under the leadership of several pirate core members. Amid whispered words and small actions, a plot against the monster quietly and methodically unfolded.

However, at dusk, while Xia Lun was studying the main stairs by the observation hatch and considering his options, he encountered an unexpected visitor.

The doctor, wearing broken glasses and a fawning smile, suddenly came to Xia Lun under the priest's guidance.

"He said he wanted to see you, but he refused to tell me why." The priest pointed at the doctor, his tone somewhat hesitant. "Be careful, Xia Lun. He's already gone mad, so don't take his words too seriously."

The doctor's gaze beneath his broken glasses remained murky and vacant, his eyeballs like those of a dead fish. Hearing the priest's words, he merely chuckled. "Hehehe... thank you for bringing me here."

"Want an orange?" Xia Lun asked gently, pulling out a wrinkled orange.

"Oh, an orange." The doctor reacted slowly. After about three seconds, he slowly reached out and took it.

Like a gear lacking oil, every movement made the doctor's bones creak with a teeth-grating sound. "Xia Lun, I came to find you for no other reason than to thank you."

"Thank me?" Xia Lun raised an eyebrow.

"Yesterday, in the storm zone, the overseer whipped me. If you hadn't blocked it for me, I would have been thrown into the sea." The doctor's muddled pupils slowly contracted, and his eyes gained a little life. Like a lever snapping back into place, his gaunt face slowly pulled into a stiff, shriveled smile.

That smile is way too bizarre. This guy looks like he's imitating a human... Xia Lun thought.

Though he mocked him inwardly, Xia Lun smiled as well. "We're on the same ship. Helping each other is only right."

"No." The doctor opened his mouth and swallowed the orange, peel and all, in one bite. Then he slowly chewed. "Nothing is simply owed. Kindness must be repaid. I will help you."

"Getting better will already be a great help to me." Xia Lun's mouth twitched slightly at the sight. He shook his head. "If there's nothing else, I need to continue determining our course."

The doctor licked his lips, sticky orange juice slowly dripping from between his gums.

He gave two soft, strange chuckles. The next moment, the doctor lowered his head, and a cold gleam suddenly flashed across his shattered lenses. "Oh, Xia Lun, don't be in such a hurry to leave. You have half of the Evil Flesh Codex on you, and I can tell you how to read it."

Xia Lun's expression did not change, but his heart jolted.

The Evil Flesh Codex... This doctor could read the Prayerbook of the Drowned?!