Chapter 4: Your Scent
“Please, send me back to the shore. I can’t take it anymore, I’m begging you…” Gu Yunsheng didn’t want to discuss ABO topics with Ling Xi any longer. Afraid that if the merman kept questioning him, he wouldn’t know how to answer, he urged Ling Xi to leave this place as soon as possible.
As he spoke, he reached out to push against Ling Xiâs chest. However, the merman’s solid chest didn’t budge an inch; instead, the icy body temperature made Gu Yunsheng shiver.
“Behave.” Ling Xi pressed down on Gu Yunshengâs restless hand, frowning slightly. His tone carried a hint of displeasure. “I’m taking you somewhere.”
“Where? I’m not going! I want to go back to the shore!” Hearing this, Gu Yunsheng instantly panicked. He struggled, trying to throw off Ling Xi’s hand, while the fear in his heart grew wildly like seaweed.
Is he kidding? Itâs pitch black down here in the deep sea. Who knows where this guy is taking me?
He was a landlubber; how could his strength compare to Ling Xi’s, especially when the other party was a deep-sea merman who had lived in the ocean for hundreds of years?
To Ling Xi, Gu Yunshengâs meager strength was nothing more than a kitten scratching an itch.
“Don’t squirm.” Ling Xi frowned impatiently and clasped Gu Yunshengâs wrist, his tone carrying a note of warning, as if admonishing a disobedient pet.
Gu Yunsheng winced; his wrist was being squeezed until it hurt. But he wasn’t someone to submit easily. Enduring the discomfort, he stiffened his neck and retorted, “What is wrong with you! I said I want to go back! Let me go!”
Ling Xi looked down at the bristling little thing in his arms. Those watery eyes were full of stubbornness, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. It was inexplicably… a little cute?
He hooked the corner of his mouth, his tone carrying a hint of teasing. “Are you ordering me?”
Gu Yunsheng froze. Meeting Ling Xi’s bottomless blue eyes, his heart gave an inexplicable tremble, and his momentum instantly weakened. Still, he stubbornly mouthed off, “I… I’m not ordering you. I’m just… I’m just…”
Just what? He didn’t know either; he just didn’t want to look so cowardly.
Seeing his feigned toughness masking inner weakness, Ling Xi found it amusing but didn’t make things harder for him. He simply said indifferently, “I’m taking you somewhere. I won’t hurt you.”
“Where? Am I supposed to just believe whatever you say?” Gu Yunsheng obviously didn’t buy it. He stared at Ling Xi vigilantly, his eyes darting around. Suddenly, as if imagining some terrifying scene, his face turned pale. He asked tentatively, “You… you aren’t planning to eat me, are you? And then… then call your shark brothers over to… sh-share me?”
Ling Xi was amused by his rich imagination. He laughed, but then felt a twinge of pity for him. He sighed lightly and said, “What kind of mess is going through that little head of yours all day?”
Gu Yunsheng felt creeped out by his stare and retorted weakly, “I… I am not thinking random thoughts!”
Ling Xi reached out and pinched Gu Yunsheng’s cheek, his tone carrying a trace of helplessness. “You are the human I marked, which makes you my other half. How could I possibly treat my mate as food?”
“You… you don’t want to eat me?” Gu Yunsheng blinked. His wet eyelashes swept uneasily past Ling Xi’s deep gaze.
“Do I look like a man-eating monster?” Ling Xi was amused by his reaction. The pad of his finger gently rubbed the soft skin of Gu Yunsheng’s cheek, savoring the warmth transmitted through his fingertips.
“Are… aren’t you?” Gu Yunsheng muttered in a small voice. His gaze fell on the shimmering blue fish tail, and the terrifying scenes of mermen eating people he had read in novels resurfaced in his mind. He couldn’t help but shiver.
Ling Xi naturally caught the fear in his eyes. He sighed lightly and explained with patience, “You are different from other humans. As long as you don’t attack my merman race, we won’t easily harm humans.”
Looking at Gu Yunsheng’s terrified expression, a flash of hurt passed through Ling Xi’s eyes, but it was quickly replaced by a deeper possessiveness.
He liked watching Gu Yunsheng reveal this defenseless appearance in front of him. Like a startled bunnyâit made him want to bully him ruthlessly, yet he also couldn’t help but want to cherish him.
“Scared of me?” Ling Xi’s voice was low and magnetic, like the crooning of a siren, carrying a trace of imperceptible grievance. His azure eyes locked tightly onto Gu Yunsheng, as if to suck him in. “I thought my little darling would like living at the bottom of the sea.”
Gu Yunsheng shrank back, wanting to avoid Ling Xi’s aggressive touch, but he was firmly imprisoned in the merman’s arms.
He was indeed afraid, but not of being eaten. He was afraid of being completely bewitched by this overlord of the deep and those deep eyesâof becoming one of his collectibles, trapped in this deep sea forever.
“Who… who is your darling!” Gu Yunsheng flushed red, craning his neck to retort, trying to maintain his last shred of stubbornness and dignity.
He pushed hard against Ling Xi’s chest, but it was like pushing against a solid reefâimmovable.
“Oh? You’re unwilling?” Ling Xi raised an eyebrow, his tone taking on a dangerous interest. He suddenly pulled Gu Yunsheng in by the waist. His icy tail fin swept across Gu Yunsheng’s legs, seemingly intentionally, provoking a shiver. “Then what do you want? Hmm?”
The sudden movement made Gu Yunsheng cry out. In his panic, he subconsciously hugged Ling Xi’s neck, only to flush red with shame at his own unconscious action.
Damn it, this guy is doing it on purpose!
Ling Xi looked at Gu Yunsheng, who was close at hand. The human’s fair face was dyed with a tempting crimson from shame and indignation. His wet eyes looked like a frightened deer, making one want to bully him even more excessively.
He lowered his head and whispered into Gu Yunsheng’s ear:
“It seems my little darling is even naughtier than I imagined…”
The warm breath sprayed on his ear, causing a wave of numbness. Gu Yunsheng felt his heart race, his body going soft and weak as if scalded by this heatwave.
“You… let me go!” Gu Yunsheng struggled, wanting to escape Ling Xi’s control, but was held even tighter.
“Let you go? And let you return to that bunch of people who covet you?” Ling Xi chuckled lightly, his tone carrying a hint of mockery. “What, you still want to go back to them?”
Covet? Gu Yunsheng looked blank. He asked in confusion, “Covet? Who covets me?”
Ling Xi raised an eyebrow and asked back, “What? You don’t know? The humans on the shore are eyeing you like tigers watching prey.”
Gu Yunsheng was even more confused. He tried hard to recall the original owner’s memories, but the original owner didn’t seem to have made enemies with anyone.
He asked cautiously, “Who… who are you talking about? How come I don’t know?”
Ling Xi didn’t answer directly. Instead, he said meaningfully, “You don’t need to know. You just need to know that they harbor ill intentions toward you.”
Gu Yunsheng grew more uneasy. He felt that Ling Xi seemed to be very familiar with the original owner, including that group of humans on the shore.
At this moment, Gu Yunsheng’s heart beat faster, as if a slippery fish were darting around in his chest. Ling Xi’s words were like a fog, shrouding him in anxiety.
He tried hard to search the original owner’s memories for a clue, but those memory fragments were like a shattered mirrorâreflecting messy light but unable to piece together a complete image.
“What exactly do you know?” Gu Yunsheng’s voice trembled slightly. He tried to find an answer in Ling Xi’s bottomless blue eyes, but only saw his own reflection, tiny and helpless.
Ling Xi didn’t answer. He just gently stroked Gu Yunsheng’s cheek, the cold touch of his fingertips making Gu Yunsheng shiver involuntarily.
“Don’t be afraid,” Ling Xi’s voice was as gentle as if he were coaxing a child. “I will protect you and won’t let anyone hurt you.”
His tone was certain, as if declaring some kind of sovereignty, which made Gu Yunsheng even more uneasy.
He wanted to escape this feeling of being controlled, but found he had nowhere to run.
“I… I don’t need your protection…” Gu Yunsheng turned his face away, dodging Ling Xi’s touch. “Let me go back. I can take care of myself.”
“Take care of yourself?” Ling Xi suddenly sneered. He pinched Gu Yunsheng’s chin, forcing the human to look at him. “Relying on what? You? You don’t even know how you got here, and you talk about taking care of yourself?”
Gu Yunsheng froze. Vague images flashed through his mindâmemories from before the transmigrationâbut they were like looking through frosted glass, unclear and indistinct.
“I… I am…” Gu Yunsheng was tongue-tied. He didn’t know how to explain his identity. Should he tell Ling Xi that he came from another world, a soul occupying someone else’s body?
Watching Gu Yunsheng’s panicked expression, a trace of amusement flashed in Ling Xi’s eyes. He liked seeing Gu Yunsheng reveal this defenseless look in front of him; it gave him a thrill of total control.
“You are mine,” Ling Xi’s voice was deep and full of possessiveness. “From the moment you stepped into these waters, you were destined to be mine.”
Gu Yunsheng felt a chill shoot from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head. He wanted to refute it, but found he didn’t even have the strength to open his mouth.
Ling Xi’s gaze was like an invisible net, binding him tightly, making it impossible to breathe.
“I…” Gu Yunsheng opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
“Shh,” Ling Xi pressed his finger gently against Gu Yunsheng’s lips. “Don’t speak. Just feel.”
As he spoke, he lowered his head and kissed Gu Yunsheng’s lips.
The kiss was domineering and forceful, carrying a strong aggression as if to swallow Gu Yunsheng whole. Gu Yunsheng wanted to struggle, but found his body soft and limp, unable to exert any strength.
Ling Xi’s tongue pried open his teeth, wantonly seizing territory within his mouth. Gu Yunsheng felt a wave of numbness spread from the tip of his tongue to his whole body, making him whimper softly.
“Good boy,” Ling Xi’s voice carried a trace of huskiness. He released Gu Yunsheng’s lips but still held his waist tightly, not letting him leave his embrace.
Gu Yunsheng’s mind was blank. He didn’t know how to react, so he could only let Ling Xi manipulate him.
“I will make you fall in love with me,” Ling Xi’s voice rang in Gu Yunsheng’s ear, carrying a hint of mad obsession.
A strong sense of unease suddenly surged in Gu Yunsheng’s heart. He realized that he seemed to have provoked a very terrifying existence…
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