1: Chapter 1 Black Watch

[Fictional world; any resemblance to real countries or people is purely coincidental.]

(Leave a mark here...)

"Son, don't pack anything. Just come with me to hide abroad for a while."

On a bench by the lake,

The urgent voice from the phone jolted Lin Fang awake. His breath hitched as he took in his surroundings.

From the looks of it, were the events in the deduction real?

Because of this phone call, he would board a smuggling ship in three hours, only to be killed on board.

Lin Fang unclenched his fist. In his palm lay a pitch-black, somewhat worn-out wristwatch, its style slightly resembling the newly released Big Rice Watch S5.

Just moments ago, while sitting by the artificial lake as usual, this watch had abruptly appeared in his hand.

No warning, no perception.

Lin Fang gently rubbed the watch face with his finger. It was cold and smooth. There were no hands or scales like a normal watch. Beneath the abyssal black mirror surface, faint glimmers of light seemed to flicker and drift, like an endless universe.

A second later, the watch face lit up:

[black star Trading]

[Plane Exploration]

[Death Deduction]

[Remaining plunder points: 17,000]

This Death Deduction used 3,000 plunder points. Does it consume 1,000 per hour?

"Son, what are you dawdling for? Hurry out, I'm waiting for you at the gate."

The voice on the phone was so anxious that a local dialect started slipping out.

"Dad, don't worry. I'm coming."

His voice dissipated into the autumn night. Lin Fang strapped the watch—tentatively named Black Star—onto his left wrist and stood up to head out of the campus.

Binhai University,

Even in the early hours of the morning, the vast campus was brightly lit, with sparse figures scattered about.

Dressed in a gray trench coat and black-rimmed glasses, Lin Fang looked utterly unremarkable walking down the road.

—Congratulations to freshman Lin Fang for winning the first prize in the Central Continent University Student Software and Information Technology Professional Talent Competition.

Passing the bulletin board at the school gate, Lin Fang stepped outside. The engine of a black Range Rover was roaring.

"Son, your old man's company was forced into bankruptcy, and I'm being framed for prison. We need to flee abroad and hide for a bit."

The weather was chilly. A middle-aged man wearing only a white shirt hurriedly got out of the car. He had thick eyebrows and large eyes, and his once-burly frame had grown a bit stout from years of wining and dining.

"Quick, quick, quick!"

Lin Tianxiong ushered him into the car.

"Dad, I'm not the one going to jail. Why are you dragging me along on your escape?" Lin Fang said quietly from the passenger seat.

"I can't leave you behind."

Lin Tianxiong, who started as a coal boss, cursed loudly. "I'm bad enough, but those bastards are even worse than me. If I'm not around, they'll definitely come for you..."

But it wasn't just that. As Lin Fang listened to his father's grumbling, his eyes grew cold. Everything he had experienced in the Death Deduction was vivid in his mind:

On the smuggling ship, after killing one person in retaliation, Lin Tianxiong was eventually hacked to death by the other three because he had to protect his son. Then, a butcher's knife dripping with hot blood slapped Lin Fang's cheek before delivering the final blow.

Both their bodies sank into the Pu River.

"Son, don't worry. I've saved a sum of money abroad. It's enough for us to live comfortably for the rest of our lives," Lin Tianxiong comforted him, noticing something was off.

"...I'm fine."

Lin Fang carefully recalled the structure of that smuggling ship, ensuring he hadn't misremembered anything.

Arriving at the outskirts of the city, Lin Tianxiong abandoned the car by the roadside and stealthily led Lin Fang to a deserted pier. He said confidently, "The boat picking us up is almost here. I promise I'll let you return in glory one day."

At 00:30, a steel vessel over 20 meters long with dim gray lights appeared on the dark river around the bend. It was indeed the smuggling ship from Lin Fang's memory.

[Transaction confirmed. 1,000 plunder points consumed.]

[Remaining plunder points: 16,000]

—

"Boss, are those the two meat pigs?"

In the ship's wheelhouse, a thin man pointed at the pier with delight. "It must be them. We're going to strike it rich this time. One million per head—that big shot is really willing to spend."

"Pah! You actually believe that?"

The leading bald man spat and sneered. "I heard this meat pig is worth over a billion. He hasn't even been in Coastal Sea for a year, and he's already been picked clean, leaving only scraps."

"Huh? A billion?!" The thin man's eyes widened at the number. How much pork would he have to sell to earn that kind of money?

"Stop shouting. Go wake those two lazy bastards up. We have to rush to Singapore in the second half of the night. Ever since we switched to this ship equipped with that 'AMS' thing, those two have been getting lazier." The bald man glanced at the button glowing with a green light: AMS, the ship's autopilot system.

"But this damn high-tech is really freaking useful!"

The green indicator light flickered slightly.

Splash—

The cargo ship, filled with fresh pork, began to slowly approach the shore. Two people could be seen waving eagerly. "Get ready to board."

"Son, let's go earn some Yankee money," Lin Tianxiong said, full of drive. He was about to pull Lin Fang onto the ship, but Lin Fang grabbed him back, his eyes suppressing excitement. "Dad, the ship is moving!"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Of course the ship is moving..."

Before he could finish, Lin Tianxiong was startled by the movement before him and stopped in his tracks. "Holy crap, why is it spinning in circles?"

Meanwhile, inside the ship's wheelhouse,

various instrument lights were flashing wildly, and the alarm was blaring piercingly.

"Boss, the ship seems to be out of control!" The thin man frantically operated the main rudder, but the ship continued to spin in place, its speed increasing.

"I'm not blind!"

The bald man was wearing a life jacket. The massive centrifugal force made him lose his footing, yet he kept pressing the master switch. "Damn it, why won't it stop!?"

Screech—

The ship's engine continued to run wildly out of control, even exceeding its limits. Thick white smoke billowed from the stern. The two men in the wheelhouse were knocked unconscious. The two who had been waving by the side of the ship were flung off and fell into the turbulent river.

On the radar screen, two small bright spots appeared!

The ship stopped abruptly, then, as if controlled by a demon, it ran over the two figures swimming desperately one after the other.

Then it started spinning in place again... until the fuel tank ruptured and an explosion erupted. The entire ship turned into a brilliant burst of sparks, dyeing the river surface red.

Just then, the wail of sirens sounded in the distance.

The air was thick with the stench of burning gasoline. Lin Tianxiong, who had long since pulled Lin Fang down into a hollow, stared at the river in a daze. After a moment, he said sorrowfully:

"Son, we can't leave. Our boat exploded!"