Chapter 20: Silent Vow
Gu Yunsheng froze. There was one last bite of the sandwich left, but he couldn’t eat anymore.
The four words “So it was you” felt like a basin of ice water poured over his head; the chill shot from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his skull.
Xue Chenxi… how could he know him?
He looked up. Xue Chenxi was close at hand, the scrutiny in his eyes leaving Gu Yunsheng nowhere to hide.
“Mr. Xue…” Gu Yunsheng’s throat was tight. “You know me?”
The next second, Xue Chenxi’s hand touched his cheek. The rough fingertip with thin calluses brought a numbing tremor as it rubbed against his skin.
Gu Yunsheng’s body instinctively tensed. The Omega’s physiological reaction made him frown in disgust, but he forced himself to meet Xue Chenxi’s gaze, pulling the corners of his mouth into a cold smile.
“Even Mr. Xue is interested in the rumors of the ‘Sea King’?” His tone was calm, as if discussing the weather today, but only he knew what turbulent emotions were hidden under this mask of indifference.
Xue Chenxi observed Gu Yunsheng’s reaction with interest. This Omega was more interesting than he imagined. Facing his pheromone suppression, he didn’t show the slightest fear; instead, he was terribly calm.
Hearing Gu Yunsheng’s rhetorical question, Xue Chenxi laughed low, as if he had heard an amusing joke.
“The ‘Sea King’ is a legend. Who wouldn’t be curious?”
He withdrew his hand and turned to walk toward the bar counter. His slender fingers tapped gently on a goblet, making a crisp sound. Every word was like a thorn, stabbing fiercely into Gu Yunsheng’s heart.
“What’s more…” He dragged out the last syllable, his tone carrying a cruel playfulness. “The once arrogant Prince of the Beijing Circle has now become a rat crossing the street, shouted at and beaten by everyone…”
He turned around deliberately, his gaze wrapping around Gu Yunsheng like a poisonous snake. Every word felt like a slow slicing. “I really want to know what you experienced to fall into such a state.”
Gu Yunsheng leaned back slightly, wanting to open up the suffocating distance between him and Xue Chenxi. A trace of cold hatred flashed in his amber eyes, but his tone was terribly calm. “Mr. Xue is well-informed. Since you know I am the ‘Sea King’, and you still dare to approach, aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you to silence you?”
A dangerous aura spread between the two. Xue Chenxi looked at the Omega before him who refused to submit even in desperate straits. A trace of appreciation flashed in his eyes, but more of it was inevitable plunder.
“Kill me?” Xue Chenxi laughed out loud, but there was no warmth in his laughter, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. He elegantly put down the wine glass. The crimson liquid swayed, just like his mood at this moment—pleased, yet hiding murderous intent.
“Mr. ‘Sea King’, you seem to haven’t recognized your situation yet.” Xue Chenxi pressed step by step, walking to the sofa opposite Gu Yunsheng and sitting down. His posture was relaxed, but invisibly opened the prelude to this hunt.
Gu Yunsheng didn’t speak, just looked at him coldly. Transmigrating into a book was absurd enough, but what was even more absurd was that the original owner and he were so similar. To protect those marine creatures, he could break with his family, become an enemy of the world, and finally become the “Sea King” beaten by everyone.
“Rejecting family, giving up status, even becoming an enemy of the whole world…” Xue Chenxi’s tone was flat, but every word condemned the heart. “Who do you think you can still protect?”
Gu Yunsheng’s heart contracted violently, as if tightly gripped by an invisible hand.
Yes, he was now like a lone hero abandoned by the world, struggling with every step.
But could he watch helplessly as those marine creatures suffered brutal hands?
Could he watch helplessly as the original owner’s dream was trampled?
“What are you thinking about?” Xue Chenxi keenly caught the struggle in Gu Yunsheng’s eyes. He narrowed his eyes slightly, a trace of danger added to his tone. “Do you regret it? Regret giving up everything you originally had for those fish and shrimp?”
Regret? Gu Yunsheng sneered in his heart.
He didn’t know if the original owner would regret it, but he wouldn’t.
“Why should I regret?” Gu Yunsheng raised his head, meeting Xue Chenxi’s gaze, his eyes firm. “Those marine creatures are lives too! They also have the right to live!”
The atmosphere in the room instantly dropped to freezing point.
“Lives? In this world, the weak are prey to the strong; the fittest survive. Do you think you can change anything with your own strength alone?”
Xue Chenxi stood up and approached Gu Yunsheng step by step, looking down at him from above, like a god looking down at a tiny ant.
“Why not become my Omega,” Xue Chenxi’s voice was low and magnetic, like the whisper of a demon bewildering the ear. “I can give you everything you want: power, wealth, status… even help you fight against your family.” He reached out, his fingertips gently stroking Gu Yunsheng’s cheek, carrying a dangerous temptation. “Tell me, Mr. ‘Sea King’, what is your answer?”
“Become your Omega?” Gu Yunsheng slapped Xue Chenxi’s hand away violently, his tone full of disgust. “Mr. Xue, I am an Omega, that’s right, but not a commodity that must depend on an Alpha to survive.”
“You and I are not related. You saved me, and I appreciate your kindness, but don’t think you can use this to humiliate me!” Gu Yunsheng simply put the last bite of the sandwich on the plate, staring coldly at Xue Chenxi, saying word by word, “I reject your conditions.”
“Even if I, Gu Yunsheng, die, I will not bow my head to anyone!” He stood up abruptly, his tone firm. “Nor will I sell myself just to scrape by!”
“You…” Xue Chenxi obviously didn’t expect Gu Yunsheng to react this way, and his face instantly turned ugly.
“Did I say something wrong?” Gu Yunsheng sneered. Looking at Xue Chenxi’s increasingly ugly face, there was not a trace of fear in his heart; instead, his thoughts became firmer. “I appreciate Mr. Xue’s good intentions, but please don’t say such things in the future!”
He raised his chin slightly, his eyes cold, his tone carrying a trace of mockery: “What? Is Mr. Xue planning to use force?”
Xue Chenxi’s face stiffened, then he returned to that indifferent appearance. He chuckled lightly, as if his earlier anger was just an illusion, his tone carrying a trace of appreciation: “As expected of the Prince of the Beijing Circle. This righteousness in your bones, I like it.”
He paused, a trace of playfulness added to his tone: “However, Gu Yunsheng, have you thought about it?”
He took a step forward, closing in on Gu Yunsheng until the distance between them was close enough to feel each other’s breath: “You are now helpless, unable to return home, drifting outside like this…”
Xue Chenxi reached out and gently stroked Gu Yunsheng’s cheek, his tone gentle but carrying a hint of danger: “Do you really think you can protect yourself, protect those fish and shrimp?”
Gu Yunsheng swatted Xue Chenxi’s hand away violently, stepping back like he had been electrocuted to open the distance between them, his eyes guarded: “Mr. Xue, please have some self-respect! Whether I can protect myself or the ecological balance of the sea area is not for Mr. Xue to worry about.”
He raised his head slightly, looking straight into Xue Chenxi’s eyes, and said word by word: “Although I, Gu Yunsheng, am down and out now, I haven’t reached the point where I rely on selling myself to seek shelter. I will walk my own path.”
“Hehe, you misunderstood.” Xue Chenxi retracted the ridicule on his face, and his tone softened.
“I mean, I am a marine biologist, and studying this sea area is my job. And you,” a glint of cunning flashed in his eyes, “you protect this ocean. We have a common goal. You can come help me maintain this sea area together. Why not?” He threw out an olive branch, trying to persuade Gu Yunsheng.
“I can’t stay here. Thanks for Mr. Xue’s kindness,” Gu Yunsheng shook his head, his tone firm. “After all, I still have many things to do.” He paused, his gaze drifting into the distance as if remembering something. “Since you already know my true identity, if you want to catch me and take me back to claim a reward, that’s also a good idea.” He turned to look at Xue Chenxi, the corner of his mouth curving into a mocking arc. “If you want to keep me, you might as well release me to do the things I haven’t finished.” Gu Yunsheng didn’t hesitate. The scene in the hospital and Mr. K’s life-threatening warnings floated in his mind; he had to speed up his actions.
Moreover, he didn’t know if the person in front of him really wanted to help him. He didn’t dare to gamble, and couldn’t gamble.
Seeing that Gu Yunsheng wouldn’t budge, Xue Chenxi put away the frivolous smile on his face.
He knew that dealing with this kind of prey, brute force would only be counterproductive.
Therefore, more refined, more hidden means were needed—like a high-end hunter who never rushed to kill the prey, but slowly weakened its will, finally making it submit obediently.
“Heh, little friend, I should have let that wave sweep you away to feed the sharks yesterday. It would have saved you from suffering now, don’t you think?” Xue Chenxi’s tone was teasing, as if toying with a helpless prey, a dangerous light flashing in his eyes.
“Go out? With what will you go out?”
“Even if I let you go, will those people outside let you go?” He stopped abruptly, his eyes scraping over Gu Yunsheng like a knife. “Don’t be naive, Gu Yunsheng. You can’t escape.”
Yes, even if Xue Chenxi was willing to let him go, where could he escape to?
This world was completely strange to him, not to mention the mess left by the original owner. He was just a vet with only high-school level knowledge of marine biology; how could he survive in this world?
There was no way out right now. If following the original plot development, he only needed to perform the drama of “Domineering CEO Falls in Love with Me,” have a vigorous romance with that merman named Ling Xi, and then live happily ever after.
However, in that hospital, in that dark operating room, seeing the imprisoned and tortured merman Sailuo, seeing the despair and pleading in his eyes—at that moment, he changed his mind.
He knew he must do something, for Sailuo, and to ensure the next experimental subject wouldn’t be Ling Xi, or any other merman or creature.
Even if this road was full of thorns, even if he would eventually pay the price of his life, he would never regret it.
This merely lifted the curtain on a corner of the darkness in this deep sea.
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