Chapter 25
“How could this be rain?” Keda brushed the droplets off his clothes in disgust, staring at the strange, azure water.
The streets were now covered in the blue liquid.
Slaves like Xiao Ya, who had never been to the Silver Sea Empire, had no idea what real rain was.
They only knew that on ancient Earth, rain meant countless water droplets falling from the sky. They didn’t know those droplets were supposed to be clear and clean.
Keda had been to the Silver Sea Empire and had been lucky enough to see it rain once or twice.
It was stunningly beautiful.
“This is a Blue Bug invasion. The blue rain is full of their eggs. If it touches your skin, the bugs will hatch and burrow into you,” Keda explained to the little merman, though a few drops had already landed on the back of his own neck, making him deeply uncomfortable.
There was only one way to deal with the eggs: burn them with fire to kill them, then take a dagger and carve out the infected flesh.
A few drops had also splashed onto Xiao Ya’s face. His expression turned deathly pale; he clearly knew what the Blue Bugs were.
The people of the Underground City just reflexively called it “rain” when the Blue Bugs attacked. To them, there was no real difference.
“It’s… it’s over.”
Xiao Ya’s hand trembled as he touched his face.
Once, a few drops of the blue rain had landed on his arm, and the supervisor had carved out two chunks of his flesh. The pain had been excruciating. Now… now he would have to do it himself, something he had never done before. On top of that, he had escaped from the slave camp in the North Zone. The supervisor was definitely looking for him, and if he was found, he would be flayed alive. The thought made Xiao Ya tremble even more violently.
Keda continued, “In about fifteen minutes, blue spots will appear wherever the rain touched. You can’t wash them off. Then, little blue caterpillars will emerge from inside and start feeding on your blood. Slowly, your body will become a breeding ground, and the Blue Bugs will multiply.”
Xia Yi’s eyes widened.
So that’s why the rain here was blue. He had been so stunned he’d forgotten to run.
He’d thought it was just seawater.
The blue rain continued to fall, a steady drizzle. Other than its color, it was just like real rain, right down to the smell.
“Let me help you,” Xia Yi said, stepping forward as he saw Keda scratching at his neck.
Keda knew about the little merman’s healing powers. He hesitated for a moment but didn’t stop him. He figured he probably wouldn’t have the guts to cut himself. In the past, whenever he got hit by the blue rain, he’d had the boss do it. The boss was always quick, precise, and ruthless, never batting an eye.
He sighed, wondering how the boss and the others were doing. The thought almost made him cry.
He hadn’t been touched by the blue rain in years because the boss could always sense the signs of its arrival and get them to shelter in time.
But the boss wasn’t here this time.
He’d been as oblivious as a pig.
As it turned out, the little merman’s healing was very effective against the blue rain. The blue spots on both Keda and Xiao Ya vanished.
Xia Yi let out a sigh of relief.
Overcome with joy, Xiao Ya threw his arms around the little merman. “That’s amazing!” he cried, tears of happiness streaming down his face.
The force of the hug sent Xia Yi stumbling, nearly toppling him into the blue puddles. Just then, Keda slapped Xiao Ya hard on the back of the head.
“Are you trying to kill him?”
“Ow!” Xiao Ya clutched his head, looking wronged. “…Why are you always picking on me? I didn’t do anything to you.”
Keda snapped, “Because you’re an idiot. And you’re a slave. If I’m not mistaken, you escaped from the slave camp. The slavers are probably still looking for you. Don’t you realize you’re putting Xia Yi in danger just by being near him?”
Xiao Ya stared blankly, rubbing his head.
He didn’t know that, from a hidden corner, someone was watching him: Shui Yao. Shui Yao had noticed Xiao Ya’s disappearance and thought it was suspicious, so he came to the East Zone to see if he could find him.
And just like that, he had.
He recognized Keda, but not the boy standing next to him. The boy looked familiar, but he couldn’t quite place him.
Shui Yao ducked back into the shadows.
The blue rain stopped, and the streets began to empty. Keda and the little merman headed home.
Xiao Ya started back toward his own shabby little place in the East Zone. As he turned into an alley, someone blocked his path. He looked up and froze.
Shui Yao smiled. “Long time no see.”
Xiao Ya’s lips pressed into a thin line. He took a couple of quiet steps back. “What are you doing in the East Zone?”
“What, you’re allowed in the East Zone, but I’m not?” Shui Yao scoffed. Then, as if remembering something, he asked, “Who was that you were hugging earlier? Never seen him before. I heard Boss Ouyang has a little lover. That couldn’t be him, could it?”
“None of your damn business!” Xiao Ya snapped.
Shui Yao feigned innocence. “Was that the same person we saw Boss Ouyang kissing at the Starstone Market? He’s a lucky guy.”
Ouyang Xiaoli, the boss of the East Zone, was tall, handsome, and roguishly charming—and young. Compared to the greasy, sleazy boss of the North Zone, most of the mermen and other young people in the Underground City preferred a leader like him.
But Ouyang Xiaoli kept to himself, so the social butterflies could never get close.
Shui Yao snorted.
Xiao Ya glared at him furiously.
Shui Yao just laughed. “Look at you, can’t hide a thing. The moment I mention him, you get all defensive, like you’re ready to fight me.”
“I was a fool last time, believing your nonsense about Ouyang Xiaoli being the golden merman. But the more I thought about it, the weirder it seemed…”
Shui Yao glanced at Xiao Ya. “You know, I’m starting to think that boy looks more like the golden merman.”
Xiao Ya’s heart leaped into his throat. He forced himself to stay calm. “What are you talking about?”
“Don’t worry, I didn’t tell Hu Lao’er…” Shui Yao stepped closer, a sly smile on his face. “You know, don’t you? That night, I saw you. You were hiding, watching us.”
“Enjoy the show?”
Shui Yao squeezed Xiao Ya’s waist hard.
Xiao Ya yelped in pain and jumped back, which only made Shui Yao roar with laughter.
—
Ouyang Xiaoli returned three days later. The three of them stumbled out of the starship, bruised and battered.
They looked like they’d been through hell.
Catching a faint, lingering scent in the air, Ouyang Xiaoli frowned.
“The Blue Bugs have been here.”
Tang Si clutched his side with a hiss as he stepped down the last ramp. “It happens. A lot of people are probably going to end up as incubators this time. Hope it wasn’t too bad.”
For the past few years, with the boss around, things hadn’t been so dire. The other zones had also developed some methods for dealing with the Blue Bugs.
This time, their luck had run out. The bugs attacked right after the boss left.
But it probably wasn’t a huge deal.
The residents of the Underground City weren’t helpless. Boss Ouyang had taught them how to recognize the signs of an impending attack. He had even designed a special type of raincoat that could effectively prevent the Blue Bugs from laying their eggs on skin.
Xiao Mo chuckled. “I’m not too worried about everyone else. But Keda? I wouldn’t be surprised if he got hit by a drop or two.”
The guy was a bit of a klutz.
When Ouyang Xiaoli got back to their place, he didn’t find Keda crying for help. Instead, Keda was lounging on the sofa, his feet propped up, munching on potato chips.
He looked completely carefree.
It was like when the parents leave and the kids take over the house, reveling in their freedom.
Hearing the door open, Keda turned his head, a potato chip still in his mouth. He froze for a second, then his face lit up with joy.
“Boss, you’re back!”
But before he could launch himself at his boss for a hug, a white blur shot past him, leaving only an afterimage.
Keda blinked. When his vision cleared, he saw the little merman clinging to the boss, who was now resignedly holding him up by the bottom.
“…”
“Sob, Ouyang, what took you so long? Keda ate all my potatoes, and when I told him to stop, he yelled at me and pinched my cheek!” The little merman had missed him so much. He clung to the man, refusing to let go, rubbing his face against his.
All the while, he whined his complaints.
Ouyang Xiaoli chuckled softly but said nothing. He walked over to the coffee table, poured himself a glass of water, and downed it in one go.
Only then did he seem to feel alive again.
Xia Yi noticed some water trickling from the corner of the man’s mouth down his neck. He quickly reached up to wipe it with his sleeve, and that’s when he saw the cuts on the man’s neck and face, as if he’d been slashed by a blade.
A pang of sympathy went through him. A dense, white light formed in his palm as he reached out to heal Ouyang.
Ouyang Xiaoli felt it and gently covered the little merman’s hand with his own. “It’s nothing. These scratches don’t need healing. They’ll be gone in a day or two.” They were just scrapes from the solar winds in space, not serious at all—nothing compared to the injuries he’d sustained breaking into the Silver Sea Empire’s research labs. It would be a waste of energy to heal them.
But the little merman was stubborn. He insisted on healing every last one of Ouyang Xiaoli’s wounds.
With a sigh of resignation, Ouyang Xiaoli let him. He carried the merman over to the sofa, intending to set him down…
But Xia Yi clung to him, refusing to let go. “No, Xia Yi wants to stay with Ouyang.” His eyes were brimming with tears, as if he would burst into sobs if Ouyang Xiaoli refused.
Ouyang Xiaoli was speechless.
How had a single trip made the little merman so clingy? And so bold? Before, he wouldn’t have dared to act like this.
“The Blue Bug invasion. Is everyone in the city okay?” Ouyang Xiaoli asked Keda, who was standing nearby.
Keda quickly replied, “They’re fine. One or two people got infested, but they used the method you taught them. They’re resting at home now.”
“As long as no one’s in mortal danger.”
Ouyang Xiaoli leaned back against the sofa.
The little merman was still sitting on his lap, staring at him without blinking. Ouyang Xiaoli raised an eyebrow. “Is there a flower on my face?”
Xia Yi ducked his head, embarrassed.
“Hungry?”
The man asked the little merman.
The merman was about to nod, but then he stopped. He remembered that every time he said he was hungry, the man would cook him potatoes. Ouyang had just gotten back and hadn’t even rested. He couldn’t ask him to cook.
So he shook his head and proactively slid off the man’s lap. “Ouyang, are you hungry? I’ll go make you some potato soup.”
He turned to run to the kitchen.
But he didn’t get one step before an arm wrapped around his waist. “I’m not hungry. I just had a nutrient solution,” Ouyang Xiaoli said, his voice lazy.
Xia Yi glanced down at the hand on his waist, his face flushing. He stopped trying to run. “Oh.”
At that moment, Ouyang Xiaoli wasn’t thinking about things like keeping his distance from the little merman. He had just returned from the vast emptiness of space, and the whole world still felt unreal. Holding the little merman was the only thing that grounded him.
“Massage my shoulders.”
The man let his body go completely limp.
The little merman obediently knelt on the sofa behind him and began to knead his shoulders, as good as could be.
Keda covered his eyes, then peeked through his fingers. “…”
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