MASG chapter 91

 

In the unfathomable depths of the seabed, Nixida closed his eyes and waited for Aituoda to apply color to him.

“All right, this should do. Wait a bit more,” Aituoda said without lifting his ear fins. His eyesight had mostly recovered, but he had become even more sensitive to light. He needed to use his ear fins to protect his eyes at all times to feel at ease. Right now, he was holding two pieces of iron ore in his hands.

After carefully rubbing them together, he placed the stones at the tips of Nixida’s hair.

The rusty-red metal dyed the silver tips of Nixida’s hair a barely noticeable color. Aituoda was disappointed. “Too bad. You can’t keep much color because you don’t have horns.”

“Then forget it.” Nixida touched the top of his head, then glanced at Aituoda’s.

“I’ll try harder and dress you up properly. It won’t do for a male fish to not know how to adorn himself. Loving beauty is our talent.”
Aituoda refused to give up. Not only did he smear the color of the iron ore onto Nixida’s hair, but he also applied it to his scars.

It took three months for Nixida’s nearly fatal wounds to heal, and they left behind frightening scars. He had two penetrating injuries. The newly grown skin was about the size of a fist, and a cross-shaped scar remained on his chest. Fortunately, the wound hadn’t been too deep.

Aside from the Abyssal Ones, mermaids generally had strong constitutions. As long as they were still breathing, they could be saved. However, if their heart or gills were severely damaged, then it was truly over. Aituoda applied some color to the scar and sighed regretfully. “Why don’t you have horns?”

As he spoke, he rubbed the iron ore against his own black horns, looking very much like he was enjoying it.

“Probably because my mother was a siren,” Nixida replied.

“That must be it.” To Aituoda and the other mermaids, Nixida was a very special Black Siren. This was a sense of group belonging. To sirens, he was a siren. To Black Sirens, he was one of them. He was a Siren and a Black Siren.

He was exceptionally capable yet taciturn. Most of the time, he was alone, wandering near the abyss. No mermaid could fully understand him. He seemed to have a very bad past. One could tell from his wounds that he had nearly died. Yet, he also seemed to be deeply attached to his past.

If he stayed, his elder sister and the group would accept him. But he couldn’t stay. Nixida was destined to find himself again.

“That makes sense. Your father is a Black Siren, so your mother must be a Siren. Actually…this isn’t rare.” Aituoda glanced around to make sure his sister wasn’t nearby, then whispered, “Sirens really do get together with male fish from other branches. It’s just that very few of them give birth to offspring.”

“Because they’re all female?” Nixida had noticed long ago that this seemed to be an inexplicable dead end. Same-branch partners formed couples and produced fish eggs. But what about sea demons? The only possibility was that sea demons were the only branch where females could produce hybrids.

“Yes, they’re all female, so they fall in love with other branches. Probably…except for Black Sirens. Black Sirens only live in trenches below ten thousand meters. But anything is possible, right? What if a siren fell in love with an Black Siren? Love could make her go through all that trouble traveling back and forth between the sea surface and the trench.” Aituoda was full of longing. “I want to have a love of my own, too. What about you?”

Love… Nixida listened intently and stayed immersed until this topic came up.

Love? He wasn’t sure if he had ever experienced it. But if someone were to give him an aquamarine gemstone, he hoped it would be from a lover, signifying their vow to never part.

If that were true, what would his lover be like? Would they be truly human, a mermaid, or a hybrid born of mermaids and humans? Male or female? How would the two of them meet, and how would they fall in love? Would this person be older or younger than him? Would they quarrel? Had he ever made them cry out of anger?

“And also…” Aituoda continued, sharing more secrets: “I sometimes overheard my sister chatting. Among sirens, there are also many lifelong female partners. They are brave warriors and companions who protect each other. They don’t need male fish at all. From the moment they differentiate, they guard one another. After a hundred years, they turn into the sea’s abundant foam together.”

“Female partners?” Nixida slowly raised his face.

His godlike, handsome face was smeared with red powder by Aituoda, who added a few strands of metallic texture, making Nixida look even colder and more ruthless. Aituoda repeatedly shook his head, unable to imagine Nixida laughing heartily or shedding tears. “Sigh, sigh, sigh. If only you were a pure Black Siren. There’d be lots of girls feeding you.”

“Feeding…feeding?” Nixida frowned. This matter seemed familiar to him.

“Let’s go. It’s time for today’s training. Though, there aren’t any girls feeding me either, so I need training too.” Aituoda swayed his fishtail.

Nixida quickly followed him. Although his wounds had healed, he still couldn’t swim much. He estimated that it would take a few more months to regain his full stamina. The thought of waiting that long was too much for Nixida; he couldn’t dwell on it. Every day, he was confused. The ocean was his homeland, yet it also seemed not to be, maintaining a distance that was neither too far nor too close.

And every day, Aituoda took on the task of caring for him and helping him familiarize himself with this stretch of the seabed.

“Black Sirens like trenches the most, and after that, Abyssal Ones. They live even deeper. I’ve never seen one myself,” Aituoda said as he led him toward the edge of the abyss. “I once thought that if I became capable enough, I’d swim into the abyss to take a look. It’s over ten thousand meters deep. But my sister wouldn’t allow it. She said that if I dared to do that, she’d beat me to death.”

“Then you’d better not go. I think you…” Nixida sized him up carefully. “Your stamina probably can’t handle diving below ten thousand meters.”

“I know. I have self-awareness. But I can help you find Haisiruola. The journey is dangerous, but I’ve been there before with my sister.” Aituoda took some mucus from his scales and continued to apply it to Nixida’s back. “In three months, we’ll set off.”

“Can it be earlier?” Nixida stroked his necklace. “I always dream of blurry scenes that are very bright and emit blue light.”

“Could it be the blue light you saw in human society?” Aituoda guessed.

“I can’t remember. Wait, don’t all Black Sirens have prophetic abilities? Could you try to foresee my future?” Nixida asked tentatively. Logically, he was also a Black Siren, but since coming here, he had seen other mermaids exhibit precognitive behavior while he was powerless.

Had he foreseen things before? This was another unsolved mystery.

It was originally a trivial matter, but Aituoda waved his hand. “Right now, I definitely can’t because I’m not happy.”

“What do you mean?” Nixida was already troubled, and after hearing this, he understood even less.

“Superpowers sometimes come with additional conditions. For instance, the White Sirens can read minds, but they can’t read detailed feelings; they can only read the strongest desire at that moment. As for us Black Sirens, our precognition only appears when we sense happiness. Magical, right? It doesn’t appear in moments of danger but in moments of happiness. Our hearts must be pure, free of resentment and regret, and yearning to be with the most important person—only then will our prophetic abilities manifest.” Aituoda pointed at his eyes. “I still can’t see clearly right now. My eyes haven’t fully recovered yet, and that makes me unhappy. When I get better, I’ll definitely help you.”

“Is there actually such a condition? Then, on whose side did I ever have precognition?” Nixida looked toward the abyss. He became even more curious about his past.

Was the ocean his homeland? Nixida often felt dazed. He seemed to… not love the sea that intensely. The one he loved was someone else.

“Don’t worry. You’ll definitely remember everything. When that time comes, I’ll count on you to take me ashore. Human society is beautiful. There are flying cars and buildings over a hundred stories tall. Just don’t let it be too bright.” Aituoda comforted him softly, afraid that Nixida would push himself too hard. Just as they were talking, a magical blue light appeared on the lower left side of the two fish. When the blue light illuminated Aituoda’s pitch-black skin, an unseen purple color actually appeared on it.

Blue light hitting black looks like this. Nixida thought, and the next second, he turned his head toward the light source. This wasn’t right. How could such a scene appear on the seabed?

“It’s a silver device!” Having learned from last time, Nixida reacted quickly. “Notify everyone to prepare for battle! Pay attention to the brightness of the light, and also—”

“What battle? Run! This isn’t something we can fight. This is… a jellyfish!” Aituoda immediately faced a formidable enemy. He quickly hugged the male siren’s tail and tried to drag him into the trench. “Go, go, hey!”

But how could he possibly drag him? Not to mention the difference in strength and weight, Nixida seemed to already be entranced by the blue light.

“Hey, hey, hey! Stop looking! Stop looking!” Aituoda slapped his face. “Listen to me. You don’t understand seabed matters. That’s a blue jellyfish, our natural enemy! Its light is beautiful. The toxins it releases into the seawater attract us and lure us in! When you swim in front of it, its poisonous tentacles will puchi!”

Aituoda punched Nixida in the chest.

“Pierce your chest cavity! Pierce your gills! Pierce your heart!” Then, they’ll release enough toxin to kill hundreds of mermaids. You’ll slowly die in the stomach of a giant jellyfish!” Aituoda was extremely anxious. “We have to hurry back and tell my sister. Everyone shouldn’t come out for now.”

“Blue Jellyfish? Blue Jellyfish…” But no matter how it was explained, Nixida refused to leave. The blue light was like a mirror, drawing him in. He hadn’t touched the toxin yet, but he was already unable to pull himself away.

“I’ve dreamed of them. I’ve dreamed of them.” Suddenly, everything matched up, and Nixida understood the dream. In the dream, the light was wrapped in a mass of transparent, gelatinous substance and floated back and forth in all directions. That wasn’t the light of human society—it was jellyfish! He had once stayed among a group of jellyfish!

“Nixida!” This really got Aituoda into trouble—Nixida rushed out regardless of everything.

A blue jellyfish that appeared to be alone was hovering at the entrance of the abyss. It was even bigger than Nixida had imagined; it seemed to grow larger the closer he got. At first, he thought it was only a few meters long. But when he almost swam in front of it, he realized it was nearly twenty meters long!

The blue light grew brighter, causing Nixida to involuntarily stretch out his hand as if to grab the jellyfish’s tentacles.

It was late at night on the surface of the sea.

Talos was drinking at the bow of the ship while Meng Qingqing restlessly swam back and forth in the seawater.

“Stop swimming already; you’re making me dizzy,” Talos finally said.

“Still can’t find him—how long do I have to keep looking?” Meng Qingqing finally stopped. “At first, I thought finding a male siren would be easy.”

“The ocean is so big. Who knows where he went?” Talos took another sip. This was also the secret they all avoided talking about. Everyone tacitly assumed that they were all alive, especially Meng Qingqing. That was why she searched day and night, unwilling to face the heartbreaking possibility.

“In that situation back then, there was Leviathan; there were jellyfish. Mo’an must have been injured.” Meng Qingqing jumped onto the deck and snatched the bottle from Talos’s hand.

“Wait—” Talos had just started to speak.

But Meng Qingqing had already gulped it down. The next second, because it tasted awful, she sprayed it all over Talos’s face. “Pff—what the hell is this?”

“This is absinthe[mfn]Absinthe is a strong, anise-flavored alcoholic drink that originated in Switzerland and became especially famous in 19th-century France.[/mfn]. I told you to wait.” Talos wiped his face gloomily. When he turned around, Midou and Lao Gui were still talking.

“The toxin and blood of the Blue Jellyfish are easy to obtain,” Midou said.

Talos smiled when he heard this. That thing was not easy to find, and no one could have predicted it.

Lao Gui followed Midou and said, “That’s not the key. As you said, most of what Mo’an remembers is related to Xia Yu’s blood. Even if we add the jellyfish’s scent, it might still not attract him if we change it to someone else’s blood.”

“Then this path won’t work…” Midou had been thinking about it all day and was speaking incoherently. “It won’t work. It won’t work again. Where am I supposed to find Xia Yu’s blood? Where did Xia Yu go? Did he sink into the sea or drift to a small island?”

“Alright, alright.” Talos walked over and put an arm around Midou to stop their discussion. “You’re too tired, kid. You need to rest properly.”

Midou said dully, “I’m not tired. I can’t be tired.”

“Everyone has the right to be tired.” Talos understood his urgency and his guilt. Those who stayed behind actually had it harder. “Listen to me. I have a method.”

Lao Gui’s eyes lit up. “You should’ve said so earlier.”

“But I’m not sure I can accomplish it.” Talos coughed twice. “I’ve known Xia Yu for a long time. He told me about his past. He escaped from a research institute. Could there be a backup of his blood in that institute? If they often used him for experiments, I don’t believe they wouldn’t keep samples.”

“I know that, but Xia Yu said the institute self-destructed. When he escaped, the institute activated the self-destruct program.” Midou’s mood was still very low.

“That’s what he said, but who actually saw the institute get destroyed? There were countless precious samples and data inside. Do you really believe Nuwa would destroy them?” Talos smiled mysteriously. “You really are… far too easy to fool.”