Chapter 47: Cheating Is Cheating?

'Damn! How could I not have thought of something so simple before?!'

Lin Ye wanted to slap himself for overlooking such an obvious solution that had cost him so many unnecessary deaths.

'Is this what they call being unable to see the forest for the trees?'

After explaining the dangers of entering the ship's corridors to his two companions and ensuring they wouldn't interfere, Lin Ye entered Corridor 3 alone.

The moment he stepped into the hallway, before he could even check all the room numbers, a system notification appeared:

Lin Ye remained silent but had a million thoughts running through his mind.

'Damn, so without those two variables, I didn't even need math or puzzle-solving - just follow the system prompts to clear the level!'

'Does that mean there were no hints before because all rooms were dead ends?'

'So the cruise requiring a family of three was just to increase difficulty!'

'What a sneaky bastard!'

Lin Ye pushed open the door to find a familiar standard cabin. Exiting the room, he found himself back in the dimly lit ordinary hallway.

Another system prompt appeared:

'Though my brilliant intellect could deduce the pattern, cheating definitely feels more satisfying. Minor cheats don't count as real cheating.'

Following the system prompts, Lin Ye continued entering and exiting rooms. Though he occasionally encountered red corridors, none of the rooms he opened contained dangers.

Until he opened a door to reveal a water-blue corridor.

Immaculately clean without a speck of dust, the corridor looked pristine.

The layout matched other corridors - 32 rooms in total. Lin Ye walked its length, gently knocking on the door at one end.

Receiving no response, he moved to the opposite end and knocked. This time, the door opened immediately, revealing a luxurious suite far more spacious than standard cabins.

The room's occupant was a pale, almost translucent humanoid resembling a young woman, but covered in water-blue tendrils with matching eyes and hair.

"Hello, I'm a lost passenger. May I borrow your door?"

Lin Ye's politeness wasn't just due to the system prompt - he was fundamentally a civilized person.

"Come in first. It's rare to meet someone here. The ship won't depart for a while - have some tea."

The maiden used her tendrils to pull out the opposite chair. Lin Ye remained cautiously relaxed as he sat down.

She poured him a cup of water-blue liquid. The sweet-tasting tea provided an immediate energizing effect.

"Do you need anything from me?" Lin Ye got straight to the point, unwilling to waste another simulation attempt.

"Not now, but perhaps later. Your spirit and body don't match, yet you control it so fluidly. I can guess your origins. We're somewhat connected. If you survive, we may meet again."

She plucked a tendril and handed it to Lin Ye. "Take this as a gift."

The tendril wrapped around his arm like a living creature, soft to the touch.

"Thank you. Goodbye." Without further words, Lin Ye left with his new accessory.

Returning to ordinary corridors, he continued following prompts until finally locating Room 1904 just before time expired.

"Finally."

The standard cabin contained only a black briefcase on the bed.

"First step complete."

Lin Ye carefully exchanged the briefcase. Having never opened it in previous simulations, he avoided excessive contact with organization-related items.

Information exchange was dangerous - the moment you learned something, the exchange began. Less contact meant more safety.

Exiting with the briefcase, he didn't find another door but a dim corridor leading to the deck. Room 1904 was the exit all along.

Lin Ye disembarked with two surprised companions in tow.

The Captain stared in shock as he carefully accepted the briefcase. "That cruise ship appears periodically. The organization always wanted to recover this case. Several captains boarded before... none returned. Afterwards, we only sent D-Class personnel to try their luck."

"You can't be that scumbag - he only forced others to scout, lacking courage to enter alone. So solo entry was key?"

Lin Ye simply nodded in response.

"As organization members, we shouldn't develop feelings about anomalies... but thank you for what you've done for humanity, even if you may not care about us." The Captain saluted, which Lin Ye returned.

He was always polite.

Lin Ye awoke in bed, finding the red owl sharing his pillow. It woke shortly after him.

"Thanks for your help this time."

Though possessing extraordinary intellect, Lin Ye genuinely appreciated the system prompts that helped him find the correct path before exhausting all simulations.

"Coo coo." The owl hopped down to continue processing materials.

Lin Ye examined the loot displayed in the shelter's center:

Five familiar items - a loaded pistol, simple rations, first aid kit, full combat suit, and dagger. Essentially an organization starter kit.

The two new items were:

Sealed in a pencil-case-sized black metal container, the crystal couldn't be seen before opening.

"When did I encounter this? Unless..." Lin Ye checked the next item.