Steel, Guns, and the Industrial Party in Another World - Chapter 280:

The most unexpected weird destiny,
The most intense brain collision,
The cruelest battle of life and death,
The craziest bizarre fantasy,
The most bizarre truth …
It’s the first time, and another ten years!

- Description from Qidian

Frank, a mercenary known for his cold ruthlessness, decides it’s time to leave the bloody world of the underworld behind. But the underworld has no plans of letting him go. Relentless enemies from his violent past keep hunting him, and eventually, they succeed—Frank is killed.But fate has other plans. Instead of staying dead, he is mysteriously reincarnated into the body of a cop in a world filled with crime, corruption, and dark secrets. With the help of a strange, all-knowing system, Frank is given the chance to live again—this time, to prevent crime before it happens.

Deep below the earth's surface, a mystifying subterranean seascape lurks, an archipelago bathed in inky blackness where suspense and horror hold court. Here lie strange islands and even stranger monsters, far beyond the realms of human imagination. In this domain, mankind is far from dominant; instead, madness and death rule supreme.

Pleading for mercy from the unknown creatures of the deep only leads to a slow, tortured existence. The trapped survivors gradually distort, losing what made them human, both physically and mentally, to the gloom as they remain trapped in this eternal obscurity. Their only hope? A perilous expedition into uncharted sea territories.

Fueled by determination, Charles embark on this daunting voyage aboard his steamship, aiming to reclaim humanity's past glory. Together with his crew, they sought a way out of this hidden sea world, a path back to the sunlit world above, where humans once stood tall.

=========================================

I read a few comments from Chinese readers that compared this novel with Lord of Mysteries because of similar elements: Lovecraftian, western fantasy, first industrial revolution, and steampunk. However, I have yet to finish reading Lord of Mysteries to do any actual comparison, but I do think those who have enjoyed that novel would enjoy this as well. Also, the author of LotM, Cuttlefish That Loves Diving, also did a shout-out for this novel, so I guess he approves of it too?

……………………………………………………………

Dear readers! Without any ads, maybe you will prefer .

The male student, Fukai Nagamasa, ignores his studies for college entrance exams in favor of following the path to chuunibyou. As he fainted during night cramming session before the exams, he realized that he was transported to a parallel world as a feudal lord in the Sengoku Era. Not to mention that suddenly, he was marrying the sixth Demon King, Oda Nobunaga’s little sister, the one who was purported to be an unrivaled beauty?