Chapter 834: Unrest in the Lower Deck

Su Nuanxi suffered from a terrible stomachache that very night, writhing in agony.

Fortunately, this issue was easily resolved—with Zhou Ke’er around, such minor ailments wouldn’t be life-threatening.

At most, it would make Su Nuanxi endure some misery.

Zhang Yi detested her self-righteous, do-gooder attitude, so he had instructed Zhou Ke’er to treat her—but not too thoroughly.

She needed to suffer a little.

Zhou Ke’er smiled sweetly. "That’s easy. If a doctor wants a patient to suffer, there are a hundred ways to make it happen."

With that, she set aside the ordinary painless syringe and pulled out a large glass one instead—the kind typically used for injecting pigs.

In short, Su Nuanxi soon experienced true torment, learning firsthand what it meant to "wish for death rather than live."

Barely able to stay alive, she no longer had the energy to trouble Zhang Yi.

Yet, as the old saying goes: where there are people, there will be conflict.

This brief peace didn’t last. Soon, the lower deck erupted into chaos again.

One evening a few days later, Zhang Yi strolled along the deck as usual, scanning the sea for potential dangers.

Suddenly, a cacophony of noise reached his ears—like a terrible village band playing violently inside the ship, accompanied by loud shouts.

"What’s going on?"

Zhang Yi frowned, pinpointing the source: the lower living quarters.

That was where the survivors from Rockflow Island—both overseas Chinese and locals—were housed.

Their living conditions on the Golden Edge were the poorest aboard—though only by comparison. Zhang Yi ensured they had food and clothing, a far cry from their plight on Rockflow Island.

If not for Zhu Yunque’s pleading and Zhang Yi’s consideration of repopulating Tianhai City, he might not have brought them along at all.

Just then, Old Tian and several crew members marched past, weapons in hand, cursing as they headed from the control room toward the commotion.

Spotting Zhang Yi on the deck, Old Tian hurried over.

"Captain! The folks below are causing trouble. I’m going to check it out."

Zhang Yi glanced at the icy sea under the night sky, where something ominous seemed to lurk in the depths.

Marine life habits dictated that giant creatures usually dwelled in the deep, rarely surfacing.

Encountering a massive sea monster wasn’t likely.

With nothing else to do, Zhang Yi decided to see what the fuss was about.

"Let’s go together," he said.

They headed to the lower deck.

The living quarters were divided into three levels. To reach the lowest, they had to pass through the middle deck—where the Rockflow Group resided.

By now, the unrest had spread there.

Dozens of lower-deck residents had climbed up, banging pots, pans, and anything else that could make noise, shouting demands:

"We’re starving! Give us food!"

"Why do you upper-deck folks get meat and fish while we can’t even fill our stomachs with rice?"

"Feed us! Feed us!"

The middle deck’s doors were usually locked, restricting movement between levels.

But the lower-deck residents had broken through.

Zhang Yi ordered armed crew to stand ready.

"If they riot, shoot on sight," he said coldly.

"Yes, sir!" The crew grinned darkly in unison.

These men were no strangers to killing; a minor uproar meant nothing to them.

A crewman opened the cabin door, revealing a cramped hallway packed with lower-deck residents.

The Rockflow Group members hid in their rooms, too afraid to come out.

The crowd’s noise dimmed slightly at the sight of Zhang Yi and Old Tian.

Their authority still carried weight—especially since Zhang Yi’s group had guns.

That spoke louder than any words.

Still, a few at the front mustered their courage.

"Mr. Zhang!" one man shouted. "You promised us enough food! We’re starving now—you can’t go back on your word!"

Others joined in: "Yeah! Why do the upper decks feast while we scrape by on porridge? It’s unfair!"

"We want to live too! We need food!"

Zhang Yi slowly raised a finger to his lips.

He didn’t yell. His voice was calm, icy.

"Shut your mouths."

The killing intent in his eyes made even the boldest protesters fall silent.

"Old Tian," Zhang Yi said, "I ordered fixed rations for everyone. What happened?"

Old Tian barked at a subordinate, "Go get Old Xie! Find out what’s going on!"

Seeing Zhang Yi addressing the issue, the crowd quieted, waiting.

"Don’t just stand here," Zhang Yi said. "The cold wind’s pouring in. Let’s move somewhere else to discuss this properly."

Zhang Yi never skimped on food—but he didn’t overindulge them either.

His Dimensional Space held ample supplies.

If these refugees claimed starvation, something was fishy.

He intended to find out.

If someone had withheld their rations, Zhang Yi would punish the culprit.

But if they’d wasted food out of greed or dissatisfaction, or were demanding upper-deck meals—he wouldn’t tolerate it.

This marked the first major unrest since leaving Rockflow Island ten days prior.

Zhang Yi summoned everyone aboard to a storage room on the upper deck for an impromptu investigation.

Within twenty minutes, aside from a few crewmen guarding the control room, all had assembled.

Groups clustered by deck, standing or sitting on the floor where chairs were scarce.

Zhu Yunque frowned. "What’s happening?"

Zhang Yi glanced at her. "You’ll see soon enough."

He called forward the protest’s ringleader—a fisherman named Lu Dahai, who’d fled to Rockflow Island by boat after the apocalypse.

He had two brothers: Rong Lei and Yu Gang.

The three had been business partners on the same vessel.

Author's Note