After some thought, the Great Orca made Zhong Xiwang see the rainbow again.
Zhong Xiwang’s eyes only brightened for a moment before quickly returning to that sad, anxious expression.
Seeing this, the Great Orca suddenly shouted, “Mom! What should I do if the little human is unhappy?”
A slightly shorter but fuller-bodied orca, which had been quietly following behind the Great Orca, called out, “The Finless Beast probably wants to return to her companions. Why don’t you take her back?”
Hearing this, Zhong Xiwang abruptly turned to look.
When had this orca been following them? She hadn’t noticed at all!
She glanced at the curved dorsal fin of that orca, then looked down at the one beneath her.
Wow, she’d only heard that orcas were mama’s boys, and now she could see it was true—even at this size, his mother was still following him.
The Great Orca didn’t notice Zhong Xiwang’s surprise on his back, lost instead in the reluctance of having to send her back.
“Mom, I don’t want to send her back. I want to keep this pretty little human.”
The Great Orca turned around, gently rubbing against his mother, trying to coax her.
Their pod was large, and with their experienced grandmother skilled in hunting, they never had to worry about food.
The Great Orca felt it should be enough to keep a little human he liked.
But to his surprise, the Great Orca’s mother refused without hesitation, “No! It’s inconvenient to bring a Finless Beast along during hunts. Your grandmother won’t agree, and besides, Finless Beasts are different from us—they can’t adapt to this kind of life!”
Her tone was stern, immediately dampening the Great Orca’s mood.
“Mom…”
The Great Orca tried to coax her again, hoping she would agree. With his mother speaking up for him, his grandmother would be more likely to accept.
“No discussion! Hurry up and take the Finless Beast back!”
But the Great Orca’s mother cut him off directly, urging him on.
Seeing the Great Orca not moving, his mother began bumping him with her body.
Zhong Xiwang, on his back, didn’t understand what they were saying, but she sensed that the female orca behind her seemed angry and fearfully clung tighter to the Great Orca’s dorsal fin.
“Hurry up!”
Under the Great Orca’s mother’s repeated stern urgings, the Great Orca silently carried Zhong Xiwang toward the direction of humans.
He was unhappy, so he swam slowly.
The mother orca behind him grew angrier the longer she watched, chasing after her sulking child and scolding him.
The Great Orca, who had been happily chattering with his companions earlier, now remained silent.
Zhong Xiwang was still wondering why the once-cheerful Great Orca had suddenly gone quiet when she spotted the familiar fishing boat ahead.
Immediately shifting her attention, she sat on the Great Orca’s back and began calling out toward it.
“Captain Pike! Paul! Jess!”
Zhong Xiwang shouted while waving her arms.
But the three remaining people on the boat were in an unusually somber mood, and with the roaring engine noise in their ears, they didn’t hear her calls at all.
Including Zhong Xiwang, the intern, their team of eight was now down to just the three of them, which weighed heavily on their hearts.
Remembering the two strange and terrifying deformed creatures they had seen, they couldn’t help but shudder with lingering fear, their bodies trembling.
Hearing Zhong Xiwang’s voice on his back, the Great Orca’s mood sank even lower.
The little human doesn’t want to stay with me either…
Seeing the Great Orca dawdling like this, his mother, who had been scolding him the whole way, rammed into him, causing Zhong Xiwang to slip into the water.
The Great Orca snapped back to reality and immediately cried out anxiously, “Mom! Little human…”
Before Zhong Xiwang’s exclamation could fully leave her lips, she choked on seawater again, then felt a smooth body supporting her from below. After surfacing, it swiftly chased after the fishing boat.
So she also wanted to send her back.
Realizing this, Zhong Xiwang immediately stroked the orca mother’s back to thank her.
Sensing the Finless Beast’s movement, the orca mother let out a call.
The sharp, prolonged sound easily reached the ears of the two men near the boat.
They followed the sound and stared in disbelief.
Xi, who had been taken by the monster, wasn’t dead after all—and was being brought back by two orcas!
This…
Paul rubbed his eyes, finally convinced that what he was seeing wasn’t an illusion.
“Xi!!”
He shouted joyfully. Zhong Xiwang on the orca’s back also waved in response. She opened her mouth wide, seemingly saying something, but the distance was too great, and her words were soon drowned out by other noises.
Seeing this, Paul immediately rushed into the cabin.
“Parker! Stop! Xi is back!”
Hearing this, Parker was stunned, thinking Paul had gotten too upset and was hallucinating from drugs again.
“Don’t bother me, Paul. Go crazy somewhere else.”
Captain Pike said sternly.
Paul came to his side, “I’m not on drugs, Parker. See for yourself if you don’t believe me!”
Parker glanced impatiently in the direction Paul pointed.
“Get away! Pa… Huh? Xi!”
Just as Parker withdrew his gaze, he suddenly remembered catching a glimpse of a distinct wine-red color amidst the vast blue.
He turned back and looked closely, confirming it was indeed Xi, whom everyone had thought was dead.
Parker immediately shut off the engine and went to the stern.
By then, the orca mother had already carried Zhong Xiwang close to their fishing boat.
Once the boat stopped, the orca mother paused beside the stern. The three men quickly grabbed Zhong Xiwang’s hands and helped her aboard.
“Xi! You’re alive?”
“Oh my god! I can’t believe it!”
“Oh, Xi, I was so worried about you!”
Listening to their exclamations, Zhong Xiwang also felt immense relief.
But she hadn’t forgotten her “saviors.”
Zhong Xiwang turned around to thank the Great Orca and his mother.
“Thank you! Great Orcas!”
The orca mother swam over to the sulking Great Orca. “See? She’s happy only when she’s with her own kind.”
The Great Orca watched the little human surrounded by three not-so-pretty Finless Beasts.
She did seem truly happy—happier than when he had tried to amuse her.
Though he felt a bit disappointed, seeing Zhong Xiwang smile brightly and wave at him still brought a faint sense of satisfaction to the Great Orca’s heart.
The little human had returned to her own kind…
“Let’s go.” With their goal accomplished, the orca mother called out and swam away.
Only the Great Orca lingered, slowly circling the fishing boat a few times before finally leaving.
Watching their departing figures, Zhong Xiwang felt an indescribable gratitude.
Cupping her hands around her mouth, she shouted, “Thank you!!”
Hearing her voice, the Great Orca responded with a call, leaping high out of the water.
Only when they were completely out of sight did Zhong Xiwang turn her attention back to answer the three men’s concerned questions.
On their way back, they encountered the maritime rescue ship that had been called.
The local officers on board immediately expressed concern and conducted inquiries.
Upon learning about the incredible events they had experienced, local media soon arrived for interviews.
After all, so many lives were lost, and the local government took the matter very seriously.
Zhong Xiwang was worried that news of this might be passed back to his home country by fellow students studying here and seen by his parents, causing them to worry. So, he disguised himself in a contrasting manner to ensure he wouldn’t be recognized.