Chapter 6: Obsessive Protection
The shadow of the fishing boat loomed larger, bringing with it the ear-piercing sound of a motor and the nauseating smell of fish, completely enveloping Ling Xi and Gu Yunsheng on the reef.
Blinding searchlights swept across the sea surface like the greedy eyes of a demon, finally locking onto them.
“Look! There’s a merman and a human on the reef! In broad daylight! They’re actually…”
“Actually what?! Spit it out, don’t f*cking stutter!” A rough voice urged impatiently.
“Actually… actually hugging! I’ve never seen something so interesting in my life!”
The voice lowered a few decibels, yet was filled with excitement and greed. “If we take that merman and that human back and throw them in an aquarium, we’ll be rich! Quick! Drop the net!” Shouts of excitement erupted from the boat, mixed with crude whistles and chillingly greedy laughter.
A man with a face full of hardened flesh, a gold chain around his neck, and a fat belly like a beer keg was pointing at them, practically drooling.
A giant fishing net charged with electricity descended from the sky. Carrying a strong stench and disgusting slime, it enveloped them.
Ling Xi’s gaze sharpened. Enduring the intense pain from the electric current, his long tail swept out violently, attempting to tear the net apart.
However, the net was made of some unknown material and was surprisingly tough. It only deformed slightly, while the wires cut deeply into his flesh.
“Don’t waste your energy, little merman!” On the deck, the fat man grinned savagely, spitting out a cigarette butt to reveal yellowed teeth. He held a strange device in his hand and fired randomly into the water. “I bought this electric net from Country K at a high price! It’s most effective against you marine monsters! Hahaha!”
The piercing sound of electricity exploded in the seawater. Blue electric arcs twisted wildly in the water like poisonous snakes, making sizzling noises.
Gu Yunsheng felt a wave of numbness wash over him, as if being pricked by countless needles. It was unbearable.
He saw the surrounding seawater begin to boil, countless tiny bubbles rushing to the surface. The air was filled with a nauseating smell of burnt flesh.
Ling Xi pulled him into his arms, using his own body to block the deadly current.
In the freezing seawater, Gu Yunsheng actually felt warmth radiating from the other’s body, bringing a trace of real temperature to his cold, numb heart.
“Ling Xi!” Gu Yunsheng couldn’t help but cry out. The heavy smell of burning and blood mixed together, rushing into his nose. The originally clear seawater became murky, and his ears were filled with Ling Xi’s suppressed groans.
He saw Ling Xi’s arms tightly entangled in the net, struggling to break free. The originally smooth, jade-like skin was now scorched black by the electricity, a bloody mess that was shocking to behold.
“Don’t be afraid…” Ling Xi grunted. Beads of sweat seeped from his forehead, but his handsome face remained calm. Only those azure eyes were filled with pain and cold killing intent.
“Damn it, pretty resistant to electricity!” The man on the deck spat, cursing nonchalantly. “Brothers, electrocute him to death! This is a male merman; looking this pretty, he must be worth a fortune! Catch him, and we’ll live like kings for the rest of our lives!”
More dense currents struck, and the seawater seemed to boil.
Ling Xi groaned, a trace of blood spilling from the corner of his mouth, but he still shielded Gu Yunsheng tightly, not letting him suffer a single scratch.
“Damn humans!” Ling Xi gritted his teeth. Fighting the severe pain, he manipulated the seawater to form a huge vortex, attempting to drag the fishing boat into it.
However, the boat seemed prepared. A layer of transparent protective shielding appeared around the hull, emitting a faint blue light, blocking out all the seawater and currents.
“Hahaha, it’s useless! Little merman!” The man on the deck laughed wildly. “I spent a fortune modifying this boat. You think scum like you can turn the sky upside down? Just surrender obediently! Save me the trouble of doing it myself. If I ruin that pretty little face of yours, you won’t be worth much!”
Seeing Ling Xi getting weaker and weaker, Gu Yunsheng was anxious.
He could have taken advantage of the chaos to escape; after all, the life or death of these mermen had nothing to do with him, a “transmigrator.” But seeing Ling Xi protecting him regardless of the cost, that bit of selfishness and indifference in his heart instantly crumbled.
“Ling Xi, let go of me! You’ll die if this goes on!” Gu Yunsheng struggled to get out of Ling Xi’s arms, but was held even tighter.
“Shut up!” Ling Xi roared, though his voice held an imperceptible tremor. “I said, I will protect you…”
Gu Yunsheng’s heart contracted violently. He suddenly realized that this paranoid merman truly wanted to protect him, even at the cost of his own life.
He had never been cherished like this before. This feeling was strange yet addicting.
“Are you stupid? I can’t be your burden!” Gu Yunsheng’s eyes turned red. He shouted at Ling Xi with a sobbing tone, “Let me go! I order you to let me go!” He bit down hard on the hand Ling Xi had wrapped around his shoulder, tasting the salty metallic tang of blood. Tears finally flowed uncontrollably. “You… you’re going to die like this!”
“What are you doing?!” Sharp pain came from the back of his hand. Ling Xi, in pain, looked down and glared at Gu Yunsheng, his tone full of anger.
“I… I just want to help you…” Gu Yunsheng’s tears flowed harder, his voice choked so much he could barely speak a complete sentence. He tried hard to pry open Ling Xi’s fingers, but found the other’s strength was terrifyingly great; he couldn’t move them an inch.
“You can’t help me!” Ling Xi roared. His azure eyes were bloodshot, flashing with shocking paranoia and madness. “You just need to stay obediently by my side! You don’t need to worry about anything else!”
Before his voice faded, Ling Xi violently swung his huge fish tail, whipping up a monstrous wave that smashed viciously toward the fishing boat.
Although the boat had a protective shield, in the face of such a violent wave, it was like a fallen leaf in a gale, teetering on the verge of collapse.
“Shit! This monster is crazy!”
“Quick! Activate the emergency defense system!”
The men on the deck screamed in panic, frantically operating various instruments.
“Useless. You greedy humans all have to die!” Ling Xi’s voice was bone-chillingly cold, like a demon from the depths of hell, carrying monstrous hatred and killing intent.
Gu Yunsheng was pale with fright at this scene. He tightly gripped Ling Xi’s arm, feeling the tremors in the other’s body and that despair and madness that threatened to swallow people whole.
Ling Xi’s current frenzy scared him, yet he couldn’t help wondering: what kind of past would make this handsome, powerful merman harbor such deep hatred for humanity?
The fishing boat pitched violently in the huge waves, liable to capsize at any moment.
The men on the deck finally realized the situation was dire. Their faces turned ashen as they screamed in despair.
Just then, a man crawled up from the ground, staring at Ling Xi and Gu Yunsheng with eyes full of spite. He roared hoarsely, “Even if I die, I’m taking you down with me!”
He rushed to the gunwale, raised a strange weapon, and aimed it in Gu Yunsheng’s direction.
“Watch out!” Gu Yunsheng’s pupils constricted. He instinctively wanted to dodge but found himself firmly imprisoned in Ling Xi’s arms, unable to move.
Whoosh—
A fish arrow glistening with cold light broke through the air, shooting straight for Gu Yunsheng’s heart.
In the nick of time, Ling Xi spun around violently, shielding Gu Yunsheng tightly in his embrace and blocking the fatal arrow with his own body.
Splurt—
The sound of a sharp arrow piercing flesh rang in Gu Yunsheng’s ears, accompanied by Ling Xi’s muffled groan of pain.
Warm liquid splattered onto Gu Yunsheng’s face. It carried a heavy scent of blood, but the temperature wasn’t cold like the seawater; instead, it froze him to the spot.
Gu Yunsheng stared blankly at everything before him, his mind blank.
He saw Ling Xi’s shoulder pierced by the harpoon arrow, blood dyeing the clear seawater red.
Why? Why did he save me?
Ling Xi clearly hated humans so much—those greedy, cruel humans who fished recklessly, slaughtered, and traded, nearly causing the deep-sea merman race to go extinct. He clearly wished he could kill them all… But why? Why, when he saw the arrow shooting toward him, did Ling Xi hesitate not for a second to block it? Why fight to the death to protect him?
“Ling… Ling Xi…” Gu Yunsheng turned his head, trembling as he reached out to touch the other’s face, but pulled back as if electrocuted.
He was afraid to see those azure eyes that had once looked at him gently now devoid of all light. He was even more afraid that in those eyes, he would see a deep affection that left him at a loss.
“Don’t… don’t be afraid…” Ling Xi struggled to spit out a few words. Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, staining his pale lips red. “I… I said… I would… protect you…”
His voice grew weaker and weaker. The huge fish tail drooped powerlessly, kicking up a cloud of murky sand.
“No… don’t sleep… I’ll take you back to the shore… I’ll save you…” Gu Yunsheng’s tears burst like a dam. He hugged Ling Xi tightly, as if trying to merge him into his own body, feeling his weak breathing, feeling that he was still alive.
Gu Yunsheng had never been so scared before—scared of loss, scared of loneliness, scared of being the only person left in the world.
He knew his feelings for Ling Xi were complicated. There was fear, disgust, gratitude, and also a trace of… heartbeat that he wasn’t willing to admit.
He originally thought that accidentally transmigrating into a book was just a game, and once the game was over, he could return to his original world.
But now, he suddenly realized that he… didn’t seem to want to leave just like that.
Boom—
A loud noise interrupted Gu Yunsheng’s thoughts. He looked up sharply and saw the fishing boat shake violently a few times on the surface before finally giving way, breaking into two halves and sinking to the bottom of the sea.
And he and Ling Xi, caught in the massive vortex, were swept into the endless darkness…
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