The viewers were right — the Reefback Leviathan had a hidden Easter egg designed by Zach Chen.
When a player stands on the back of a Reefback, it becomes an unofficial taxi, automatically heading to the coordinates set by the player on their map.
It's a clever feature to ensure players don't have to waste too much time traveling when no suitable vehicle is available.
"Well, guys, I think you're spot on!" Zoe laughed while riding the Reefback. "Haha, turns out the old thief isn't always trying to torture us players. Sometimes, he's actually pretty thoughtful!"
"Tsk tsk... Zoe defending the old thief now? Hmm..."
"Smells like love to me!"
"Zoe, you're making it hard for me not to believe you and the old thief have something going on."
"Yeah, but to be fair, this is one of the rare moments when the old thief actually shows mercy!"
Zoe ignored the teasing comments and enjoyed the breathtaking ocean scenery as the Reefback steadily swam forward.
Though the Reefback's speed wasn't as fast as the Seamoth, it was still better than walking in her Prawn Suit. After about ten minutes, she finally arrived above Vault 2.
"Alright, guys, I'm about to jump!" Zoe announced, staring nervously at the dark waters 800 meters below.
"JUMP! JUMP! JUMP!"
"First time in the deep sea! Hehe, Zoe's totally gonna freak out!"
"Haha! After watching Pure White's stream, I know this is about to get wild!"
With the chat hyping her up, Zoe took a deep breath, jumped off the Reefback, and began plummeting into the abyss.
Although it was daytime, sunlight barely reached the depths. The deeper Zoe went, the darker it became. Soon, she was surrounded by pitch-black waters.
"Okay... nope, nope, nope... This is way too creepy," Zoe muttered, hurriedly switching on her Prawn Suit's headlights and sonar device.
The beams cut through the darkness, and the rhythmic sonar pings gave her some sense of security.
"Jeez... it's so dark and depressing down here," Zoe murmured. The faint hum of ocean currents, combined with distant echoes of Reefbacks calling out, only amplified the eerie atmosphere.
Her Prawn Suit continued its slow descent, and even though she knew she was safe inside, the feeling of falling endlessly made her stomach churn.
Suddenly, a swarm of piranhas appeared in her sonar scan.
"Oh great... piranhas?!" Zoe groaned. "Of course there are piranhas down here... It's like Earth — smell blood, and they go wild!"
"But I'm in the Prawn Suit. They can't touch me, so... whatever!"
"Hehe... remember that confidence, Zoe..."
"Ahem, Zoe... I strongly suggest you change course now."
"Shh! Don't spoil it! I wanna see Zoe panic!"
"Yeah, yeah! Just be quiet and let the chaos unfold!"
Hearing the mysterious tone in the chat, Zoe narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"Wait... what are you guys hiding from me?"
Before anyone could answer, her sonar pinged again — this time revealing a larger shadow below.
It was humanoid in shape but had a long, tentacle-like tail.
Ding!
Three seconds later, her sonar refreshed, and that shadow had suddenly moved much closer.
"Uhh... what the heck is that?" Zoe muttered. "It's fast... really fast."
"Ahem... probably just a regular octopus, Zoe!"
"Yeah, yeah! It's cute! Go say hi!"
"It's just a friendly sea creature! Honest!"
Ignoring her instincts, Zoe pressed forward — until a sudden alien broadcast echoed through her comms.
First came distorted buzzing sounds, then Chang'e's voice translated the message:
"Alert: Detected new bacteria-infected organism. Mode: Hunting. Sharing location data with other Skybreakers."
Zoe's face drained of color.
"Wait... I'm the infected one!?"
Memories of her earlier scan in the Aurora flashed through her mind — Chang'e had already confirmed she was carrying the mysterious bacteria.
"Oh no... Oh no no no..." Zoe stammered.
"Wow... Zoe actually figured it out!"
"Haha, Zoe's learning!"
"Yup, 'Deep Sea Trek' raises IQ confirmed!"
Ignoring the jokes, Zoe's focus snapped back to the approaching shadow — now close enough to see with her headlights.
It had a fish-like head, octopus tentacles, and mantis-like scythe claws.
"What... in the world is that?!" Zoe gasped.
Before she could react, the creature suddenly vanished — only to reappear ten meters closer.
"WAIT... IT CAN TELEPORT?!" Zoe screamed.
"And it's moving right for me!"
"It's fine, Zoe! You're in the Prawn Suit — that thing's weak!"
"Yeah! Be brave! Go fight it!"
"It's just a cute lil' sea critter!"
Encouraged by chat, Zoe calmed herself.
"Yeah... yeah... I've got this! My Prawn Suit can tank this thing. What's it gonna do? Scratch my armor?"
Switching her Prawn Suit's arm to Drill Mode, Zoe grinned confidently.
"Alright... let's see what this baby can do!"
The creature swam closer — and Zoe charged.
"DIE, YOU UGLY OCTOPUS!" she yelled, thrusting her drill forward.
Her attack... hit nothing.
"Wha...?"
Suddenly, Zoe felt a sharp chill as her screen flickered.
"What's happening... wait... AM I OUTSIDE THE SUIT?!"
Before she could panic further, her health bar suddenly dropped by one-third.
"OH CRAP! I'M BEING ATTACKED!"
Whirling around, Zoe came face-to-face with the creature's twisted face, its scythe-like claw still dripping with her blood.
"NOPE! NOPE! NOPE!"
In a blur of panic, Zoe sprinted away while fumbling to draw her gun. But before she could fire, the creature vanished again.
Moments later, her sonar picked up the terrifying sight of piranhas swarming toward her.
"F**K! NOPE, I'M OUT!!!"
Without hesitation, Zoe ripped off her VR headset, yanked out the cables, and practically jumped off the VR platform in one fluid motion.
"...She's... gone."
"Wow... Zoe's escape technique is MASTERED!"
"Haha! That looked like a speedrun strat!"
"Bro, she's practiced that move before — 100%!"
In truth... they weren't wrong. Zoe had secretly practiced her "emergency eject" move in case things got too intense — and tonight, that training paid off.
After regaining her breath, Zoe finally spoke:
"Escape is shameful... but it's useful!"
The chat erupted in laughter.
When Zoe eventually returned to the game, her character had already died — no surprise there.
"Damn... Zach really doesn't pull punches," Zoe muttered.
But at least this time, she knew what to expect.
"Alright... second attempt. No more funny business!
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