Volume One Chapter One: Betrayed by My Girlfriend

"Let's do it again!"

"No, Qiang, I've been gone too long. Ye Feng will start to suspect something."

"I've already asked Wang Liang to stall that kid for me. If he really comes over, Wang Liang will call me. No call means he hasn't come."

"But we'll have plenty of time together later, won't we? There'll be lots of chances in the future. I just have this feeling… there's someone at the door!"

"You little minx! When you're with me, your mind is still on another man. Tell me, when you're with that kid, are you thinking about me? Damn, you're such a tease!"

"Oh, Qiang, you've got it all wrong! Ye Feng is just a blockhead, he hasn't even found the courage to kiss me yet, let alone anything else!"

"Hah, so I'm getting a real bargain here? No, I need another round!"

A wave of passionate sounds spilled from the room.

At the door, Ye Feng stood frozen, ice cream in hand. He felt as though struck by lightning, his face pale, his heart convulsing and trembling. The melting ice cream dripped onto his hand, but its chill was nothing compared to the icy cold in his heart.

"Ye Feng, weren't you getting ice cream? How come you're here? I forgot to ask you to bring me one too."

At that moment, Class Monitor Wang Liang came running over, his face looking grim.

Ye Feng snapped out of his daze at Wang Liang’s words. In a fit of fury, he kicked open the door.

The instant he entered, he saw his most trusted childhood friend Wang Qiang and his girlfriend Zhang Xiaoman lying together on the bed, their bare shoulders exposed, four legs intertwined.

His already trembling heart was shaken even more violently.

He had hoped for a fluke, just a misunderstanding, but now, witnessing it firsthand, it felt as if the heavens had collapsed.

The air in the room was thick with the mingled scent of male and female hormones.

Six pairs of eyes met, betraying surprise, guilt, and anger.

Wang Liang, the class monitor, shuffled in behind, unable to meet Wang Qiang's gaze.

Seeing Zhang Xiaoman’s evasive look, Ye Feng’s heart shattered.

He and Zhang Xiaoman had been together since their freshman year, four years now, yet their relationship had never been very intimate—not even a kiss.

But now, she was in bed with his best friend!

Wang Qiang wasn’t just the class monitor; he had been Ye Feng’s class monitor from elementary through high school, a lifelong companion. Even when Wang Qiang’s family got rich after his father won five million in the lottery, their friendship hadn’t changed.

But in the end, Ye Feng was the fool.

The story of the neighbor’s betrayal had played out in his own life, the green glow above his head fueling his rage.

Was it all because of money?

He knew his girlfriend loved shopping, so he worked part-time to earn money, giving it all to Zhang Xiaoman. He thought his effort would win her approval, but in the end, he was just naïve.

In that moment, Ye Feng’s heart died.

"Ye Feng, calm down..."

Wang Qiang tried to break the frozen, awkward atmosphere.

"Calm down? After this?!"

After heartbreak came anger—an unreasoning rage. He shoved Wang Liang aside and strode to the bed.

He dragged Wang Qiang out without hesitation.

Ye Feng, a recruited athlete, had the strength for it. Wang Qiang, thin and frail, was easily pulled out.

Without a second thought, Ye Feng punched the stunned Wang Qiang in the face.

Then a second punch, then a third!

"Ye Feng, stop! You'll kill him! Calm down and let's talk this over!"

Seeing Wang Qiang’s face reduced to a bloody mess, Wang Liang rushed to pull Ye Feng away.

But Ye Feng, lost in rage, his athletic strength overwhelming, was unmoved. He pushed Wang Liang away, sending him sprawling to the floor.

"Bravo! Wonderful! My best friend and my girlfriend, ha… You did a great job. Wang Qiang, I treated you as a brother for life, is this how you repay me?"

Ye Feng paused, blood spattering, gazing at Wang Qiang’s vacant eyes with a bitter, cold laugh.

But Wang Qiang couldn’t speak now—blood gushed from his nose and mouth, and only incoherent sounds escaped him.

"Ye Feng, if you kill him, you won’t fare well either. For me, it’s not worth it. There are millions of girls in the world—you have so many choices."

Zhang Xiaoman spoke.

"Hahaha… You’re right, there are millions of options. Wasn’t my effort over these years enough to stir any feeling in you?"

Ye Feng laughed bitterly, looking up. At this moment, Zhang Xiaoman seemed like a stranger.

"You’ve worked hard, but that’s not what I want. Ye Feng, don’t you understand? We’re over."

Her beautiful eyes were cold and resolute.

Hearing this, seeing the lack of emotion in her gaze, Ye Feng felt a deep pain.

Was the love he had guarded for years over just like that?

Truthfully, maybe it was always just one-sided.

He felt a bitter chill, as if the air’s temperature had dropped ten degrees, making it hard to breathe.

Thunder rumbled overhead.

A sudden crash of thunder shook the sky, its volume reaching the limits of human hearing, ears ringing and head buzzing.

Ye Feng’s mind, blank a moment ago, was suddenly clear.

At the same time, the cruise ship itself shuddered with a deafening roar, followed by violent shaking. Everyone lost their balance.

Their faces changed instantly.

Before they could react, cries sounded from outside.

"This is bad, there’s a giant hole in the ship!"

Hearing this, Ye Feng and the others’ faces turned even paler.

The room was already tilting, and panic swept away the earlier tension.

"Is the ship sinking? Are we going to die?"

Wang Liang stammered, his face white.

No one answered.

Ye Feng dropped the bloodied Wang Qiang to the floor, and rushed outside.

He turned to give Zhang Xiaoman a long look.

"If we stay in the room, we’ll die faster. Outside, there might be a chance."

With those words, Ye Feng staggered out.

He had no time to think about Zhang Xiaoman’s betrayal now.

Survival was all that mattered.

If the cruise ship sank in the vast ocean, everyone aboard was doomed.

...

The sky grew darker, the rain poured heavier, the wind and waves raged.

Just hours ago, the sun was shining, and he had been enjoying a drink on deck, admiring the sea.

Now, in the blink of an eye, the terrifying change was hard to accept.

Especially now, facing the relentless waves under such gloom, everyone teetered on the edge of despair.

Despair was only the beginning—many souls had already passed beyond.

Ye Feng had barely stepped out of the cabin when a body landed before him, a shattered piece of iron piercing its neck.

The lifeless eyes, the blood still flowing, made Ye Feng’s face pale and his heart race with terror.

Under such circumstances, could he really survive?

But whether he could or not, if he didn’t fight, death was certain.

Suppressing his discomfort, he glanced quickly toward the bow’s deck, then hurried toward the center.

He fought through the crowd, finally reaching the railing, gripping it tightly.

Now, less than five meters separated him from the sea, below was the ruptured hull.

At the current rate of sinking, they would be swallowed by the ocean in less than ten minutes.

"Help me! I don’t want to die!"

A petite figure slid from the bow deck, her cries echoing.

But no one reached out to help; sharp, twisted metal lay not far ahead.

No doubt, in seconds, there’d be another corpse.

But as she passed Ye Feng, he couldn’t help but thrust out his left leg to halt her.

With that, her desperate grip latched onto his leg.

The added weight strained him suddenly.

He regretted it, realizing he’d overestimated his strength.

But faced with the situation, he didn’t know what the outcome would be.

Perhaps, in the end, there would be no escape.

For now, driven by human instinct, he would save another second if he could.

"Hold onto my waist!"

Ye Feng summoned all his strength, gripping the railing tighter.

But just then, his expression changed dramatically, nearly losing his grip.

Because the woman had grabbed his buttocks.

Worse, in her panic, her hand landed somewhere it shouldn’t...