Si Jisheng opened the communication interface with his adjutant, typed out a line of words, and hit send: “Investigate whether the Council of Elders has ever researched my identity.”
Sent successfully.
Si Jisheng did not close his optical computer. He sat at the entrance of the dim nest, staring at that single line of communication for a long time. It wasn’t until dawn broke that he swam back into the nest. He paused at the cave entrance, glancing at the sea snake carcasses bundled in seagrass before stopping.
The silver-tailed Naga extended his sharp claws. In silence, he methodically sliced off every venomous fang from the heads of the sea snakes. After meticulously processing them, he tossed the fangs into a remote corner outside the nest where others wouldn’t easily swim. Only then did he lie down on the seagrass in the corner, closing his eyes to rest.
The interior of the nest remained silent until nearly noon when a sign of movement appeared. The shell was pushed open just a crack. The fluorescent jellyfish, which truly adored Deng Xi, immediately squeezed inside, flickering with light within the dark shell.
A dazed Deng Xi squeezed his eyes shut against the stinging brightness. He rubbed his eyes and couldn’t help but let out a small laugh as he was poked by the jellyfish’s tickling tentacles.
In the tranquil nest, Deng Xi’s soft laughter was remarkably clear. Startled, he immediately clamped his mouth shut and cautiously peeked out from the shell to look at the seagrass in the corner.
The silver-tail was fast asleep.
Deng Xi let out a sigh of relief. He pressed his index finger to his lips, giving the fluorescent jellyfish a tiny, whispered “shh.” He mouthed silently, “Don’t wake up the Little Mute.”
The fluorescent jellyfish seemed to understand; it bobbed up and down in the seawater and stopped using its tentacles to tickle him.
Deng Xi was a bit hungry.
He swam out of the shell and picked up the sea snake carcasses bundled in seagrass, recalling how the Little Mute had prepared the snakes before eating. Just as Deng Xi was about to use a sharp shell to slice open the snake skin, he saw a snake head with its mouth wide open.
The venomous fangs inside were gone.
Deng Xi froze. They were definitely there yesterday. They had brought back five sea snakes in total; Deng Xi checked them one by one. Every single sea snake had been stripped completely of its fangs.
Deng Xi swore he had been sleeping in his shell since they returned yesterday; it wasn’t his doing. That left only—he glanced at the silver-tail on the seagrass.
The Little Mute had done it.
Deng Xi remembered that other sea snake from before—the one that was alive but had its fangs pulled out. He blinked dazed eyes, a sudden realization hitting him.
So… all that food from before was actually found by the Little Mute?! And every day, he had been swimming back with those catches to show off, claiming he had caught them himself!
Deng Xi’s face instantly flushed hot, the pink hue spreading all the way to the corners of his eyes. He buried his face in his palms, wishing he could find a crevice to crawl into.
The Little Mute hadn’t inherited the mermaid’s song, yet he could still survive in the ocean. Even if he couldn’t handle massive fish, he was certainly much stronger than Deng Xi. Catching small fish and shrimp would have been no problem at all for him.
I’m so useless, Deng Xi thought dejectedly.
The Little Mute could catch fish without him. Moreover, his wounds were healed, he could speak now, and he had even learned the mermaid’s song. The Little Mute no longer needed his protection.
Instead, it was the other way around. The Little Mute found the food and the new nest. When the sea snakes snatched Deng Xi away, it was the Little Mute who rescued him.
It was Deng Xi who truly needed the protection of a clansman.
Will our agreement be voided? Will the Little Mute leave me? He can’t!
Deng Xi pressed his lips tight. The Little Mute had already promised to stay; he couldn’t go back on his word.
After a long while, Deng Xi lifted his head to comfort himself. These were just his guesses. What if… what if the Little Mute hadn’t caught them? Deng Xi took a deep breath, no longer in the mood to eat. He nibbled on some edible seagrass and waited quietly for the silver-tail to wake up.
Deng Xi didn’t have to wait long. Si Jisheng restricted his sleep to within six hours every day. Having gone to sleep in the morning, he woke up right on time at noon. Once awake, it was naturally time for lunch.
Si Jisheng looked at the Blue Naga sitting at the nest entrance, head bowed as he picked at his fingers, his tail fin swaying unconsciously. The little one was exceptionally quiet today.
Si Jisheng also remained silent as he cleaned the sea snakes from yesterday. Sitting at the cave entrance, he sliced the snake meat and paired it with deodorizing seagrass before handing it to Deng Xi. Deng Xi accepted it quietly.
This was the quietest and most oppressive lunch they had shared since they met. Both were thinking the same thing: Whatever needs to be said can wait until after we eat.
Once lunch was over, Si Jisheng tossed the remains—bones and skin—outside the nest. When he returned, he didn’t swim to sit beside Deng Xi. Instead, he swam in front of him, his silver tail trailing in the water as he faced the sitting Deng Xi head-on.
He clearly had something to say.
Is he coming to discuss leaving?!
Deng Xi curled his palms. He looked up at the silver-tail and suddenly squeezed his eyes shut, refusing out of sheer stubbornness: “You can’t!”
“I don’t agree!”
A long silence followed.
Deng Xi pricked up his ears. Cautiously, he tested the waters by opening his blue eyes. Directly in front of him was a large, open palm. Resting in the center was a familiar black iron ring.
Deng Xi’s pupils widened slightly. He froze, staring dazed at the silver-tail, who tilted his head in an expression of confusion.
“I… I thought you wanted to…” Deng Xi’s voice trailed off, his head drooping dejectedly. “I’m sorry.”
Si Jisheng pressed his lips together, expressionless. He stubbornly lifted his palm higher, presenting the ring to Deng Xi’s face.
Explain.
Deng Xi didn’t understand. He tilted his head. “What’s wrong?” He took the black iron ring from the silver-tail’s hand and poked it aimlessly with his fingertip. “I remember I threw this in… I think I threw it in the sharks’ territory. How did you get it, Little Mute?”
Si Jisheng’s silver eyes narrowed slightly, and the fingertips of his retracted hand tensed.
Deng Xi poked it for a long time before hitting the right spot. The familiar blue screen reappeared before his eyes. He acted as if he had no idea what it was—which, as a Blue Naga born and raised on a primitive, technologically backward planet, was perfectly normal behavior.
The tension in Si Jisheng’s fingers relaxed.
Deng Xi poked the blue screen curiously. “How did you find it? I thought it was broken because it wouldn’t light up anymore, so I threw it away.” After the screen was poked, Deng Xi accidentally clicked something, and the interface abruptly shifted. “It even changes! How magical.”
Recalling the hideously ugly human from that day, Deng Xi looked up at Si Jisheng again and said seriously, “But inside this thing, there’s a bad person!”
“That big villain is especially, especially ugly. He said a lot of nonsensical things. He’s a dummy.”
Si Jisheng’s silver eyes curved slightly, a faint trace of a smile appearing in the depths of his gaze. He nodded to show he understood, then reached out to take the black ring back and shut down the blue screen.
Deng Xi watched the Little Mute’s practiced movements in a daze. He realized belatedly that he had found the ring in the same stretch of sea where the Little Mute had fallen.
So…
“Is this the Little Mute’s thing?”
Si Jisheng gave a slight nod. He adjusted the ring into a band and slid it seamlessly onto his thumb joint. Under Deng Xi’s astonished gaze, he touched a certain spot, and the blackness of the ring vanished instantly, turning transparent. It was invisible to the naked eye.
Deng Xi poked the silver-tail’s thumb with his fingertip just to confirm the ring was still there. “So cool! What is this exactly? Why don’t I have one?”
They were both merfolk, both hatched and raised on this planet. Why did the Little Mute have one while he didn’t? Deng Xi was perplexed.
Si Jisheng’s speech centers hadn’t fully recovered yet, so he couldn’t explain aloud. He simply shook his head in silence.
Deng Xi’s curiosity faded quickly. He nodded and suddenly swam into the nest, bringing out the remaining sea snakes. He blinked his blue eyes and asked, “Was it the Little Mute who pulled out their fangs?”
Si Jisheng nodded in admission.
Deng Xi’s heart skipped a beat. He held his breath and asked nervously, “Then… before we moved, all that food was caught by you, wasn’t it?”
“Actually, in the deal we made, you already gave me those hundred fish long ago, didn’t you?”
So, the deal is over, isn’t it? Deng Xi asked silently in his heart.
Si Jisheng was silent for a very long time. He lowered his silver eyes, gazing quietly at the Blue Naga who looked so fragile he might cry. He remembered his adjutant asking him, after receiving the audio file, when they could fetch him back to the Empire’s capital—so that the Empire’s Marshal could appear publicly before the citizens and give everyone an explanation for this war.
This deal would end eventually, sooner or later. This was a perfect opportunity.
Deng Xi looked up. The silver-tail’s silence made his heart panic even more. He couldn’t help but drop the sea snakes and grab the silver-tail’s forearm—which felt exceptionally cold due to his low body temperature. Deng Xi took a deep breath, and his eyes curved into a smile again. “It’s okay, Little Mute. You can tell me.”
Though he was smiling, the corners of his eyes were flushed with a red tint as if he were about to cry. What does it feel like for a fish to cry in the water? Their tears vanish into the sea, seen by no one. It means only the fish knows his own sorrow, his own pain, and his own reluctance.
The vibration of the silver-transparent gills on Si Jisheng’s neck slowed down. He parted his lips slightly, and for the first time without the aid of a listening conch, he slowly produced a sound: “…”
A meaningless, muffled syllable. A sentence that no one could understand.
Deng Xi blinked his dazed blue eyes.
Si Jisheng raised his fingertips and leaned down, very, very gently wiping Deng Xi’s eyelid. His throat moved, and with the vibration of his vocal cords, the words he forced out were incredibly raspy and difficult: “N… no.”
It wasn’t me who caught them.
So, the deal is not over.
Deng Xi was momentarily stunned before breaking into a laugh through his tears. His blue eyes curved softly. “The Little Mute wouldn’t lie to me, right?”
Si Jisheng’s chest heaved heavily as he gave a very slight nod. Deng Xi’s smile grew wider, dimples appearing softly at the corners of his mouth. “Little Mute, then let’s go find a shell that you can sleep in too, okay?”
Si Jisheng closed his eyes and nodded.
Si Jisheng’s fish tail alone was nearly two meters long. Finding a shell large enough for three or four meters was almost an impossible task. Even the shell Deng Xi usually slept in was only nearly two meters; he had searched for a very long time to find it, and even then, he barely managed to curl his tail inside.
The largest shells in the deep sea generally reached a limit of two meters in length. These bivalve mollusks were called Giant Clams, and they were usually distributed in shallower coral reef areas.
Deng Xi was clearly experienced. He didn’t lead the silver-tail to search the coral reefs on the deep-sea cliffs. Instead, he swam to the surface and circled the area under the waves to get a general idea of where the reefs were distributed before preparing to search them one by one.
They were lucky. In the first area of withered coral reef, they found a Giant Clam, but it was only a little over a meter long—far too small. Si Jisheng didn’t mind; his silver tail could just hang outside the shell. It didn’t matter if the lid could close or not.
But Deng Xi didn’t agree. “The Little Mute still has to sleep for a long, long time. You can’t sleep uncomfortably like that.”
In the second coral reef area, there was another Giant Clam. Its size was perfect—over two meters long. When Si Jisheng lay inside, only his tail fin would hang outside. Deng Xi was very satisfied.
But Si Jisheng stopped him, looking with a complex gaze at the Giant Clam whose mantle was exceptionally vibrant and colorful. The shell was pinkish, and the parts near the opening were a deep peacock blue. As the clam opened and closed to breathe, the colors within were even more varied.
For a bright, silver-tail Naga, it was practically a nightmare.
Deng Xi loved shiny, colorful things. He blinked in wonder. “So pretty! Little Mute, let’s move it home, okay?”
Si Jisheng shook his head. Deng Xi felt it was a pity and stroked the large shell but didn’t ask further questions. “Okay, then let’s go to the next reef area.”
After that, the Giant Clams were either too small or the colors were too loud. Deng Xi and the silver-tail searched for an entire day without finding a suitable large shell. Instead, Deng Xi exhausted himself. He was determined to put a perfect period on today’s conversation.
But he couldn’t seem to do it.
Deng Xi lowered his eyelids dejectedly. He accepted the dinner the silver-tail handed him—thinly sliced fish meat. He didn’t eat it yet; instead, he scrunched up his face in thought. His eyes lit up. “Little Mute, why don’t you sleep in my shell?”
The fingertips Si Jisheng was using to process the fish meat paused. He shook his head.
Deng Xi ate the fish meat. Because it was so delicious, his eyes curved. “It’s okay! If we can’t find a suitable one, I’ll just give mine to you. I’ll just find a new one for myself.”
Si Jisheng didn’t need Deng Xi to make such a sacrifice, but in the end, he nodded in agreement.
They moved that colorful Giant Clam from the second reef area onto a rock at the sea surface, letting it slowly die under the natural sea breeze. Before the new shell was ready, Deng Xi continued to sleep in his old one. Tonight would pass slowly, and tomorrow would be a new day.
During the night, Si Jisheng handled the military affairs that had been out of his hands for nearly a month and required his personal decision. At that moment, his adjutant sent another communication request.
Once connected, the adjutant’s grim face immediately appeared on the blue screen. “Marshal, we’ve found something.”
Si Jisheng’s movements paused. He stole a glance toward the nest entrance and made a gesture for the man to wait. Si Jisheng temporarily cut the connection, swam into the nest to check that Deng Xi’s shell was closed tight, and then swam away from the nest to the surface before restoring the communication.
The audio statement released today had achieved great results; the public’s emotions had stabilized slightly, but an even louder cry had emerged—they wanted to see their Empire’s Marshal with their own eyes.
After a brief report, the adjutant asked, “Marshal, when will you return to the capital star? The military has confirmed that the Council of Elders interfered in our war with the Federation.”
Si Jisheng’s breathing hitched. Without warning, the names of those hundred and sixty thousand martyrs flashed through his mind. A long-dormant rage surged in his heart instantly. His silver vertical pupils narrowed without warning. He suppressed his emotions and made a gesture for the report to continue.
“The Elder seems to have discovered that you are not human. The military is urgently investigating who leaked the information, though it is also highly possible that secret experimental data from the Research Institute was stolen.” The adjutant’s own eyes were filled with suppressed fury. Recalling the data found today, he couldn’t maintain his composure even before the Marshal. He cursed, “We suspect those old fogies in the Council of Elders have colluded with those dogs at the Research Institute.”
Aside from a few of his confidants in the military, the only people who knew Si Jisheng was not human were several high-level experimental personnel at the Research Institute who had been studying the Marshal’s genes.
“Marshal, this war was not your fault. It was a setup targeted at you! I know you took all the responsibility upon yourself for the Naga-transformation on the battlefield, but that transformation was likely engineered by the Council.” The adjutant pleaded, “You cannot let the brothers who followed you die in vain. The reconnaissance team hasn’t rested for months just to recover the black box data from your battleship.”
“But the Council and the Royal Family are watching. If you don’t return, and the black box is snatched away, you and those hundred and sixty thousand people will be wrongly accused forever!”
Si Jisheng remained expressionless and silent. Even the adjutant didn’t know what the Marshal was considering. In a state of collapse, he ran his hands through his hair, his eyes bloodshot. “Marshal, make a decision.”
This was a fact known only to the adjutant and Si Jisheng. The power of the Naga-transformation had brought the Marshal to his high position today, but at the same time, this identity was like a Sword of Damocles hanging over his head at all times. Not to mention, the side effects of the transformation were incredibly dangerous.
Over the years, the Marshal had restrained those side effects well, even secretly collaborating with several researchers at the Institute to attempt to eliminate them. The adjutant was one of the personnel who knew about this experiment.
When exactly did the Council of Elders learn of the Marshal’s identity? And did they actually induce the Naga-transformation on the battlefield? The damaged black box was the Pandora’s Box containing the answers to these questions; once opened, they would know if there was concrete evidence. If it were snatched away, the data inside—even if recovered—could be arbitrarily doctored by the Council.
Si Jisheng rubbed the sea snail he had just brought out of the nest. The slightly rough texture helped him stay calm and keep his thoughts clear. After a long while, he finally shared his interstellar coordinates with the adjutant.
The adjutant’s expression brightened instantly. “The military will secretly send a starship immediately.”
Si Jisheng typed out a line: “No. Do not alert the enemy. First, spread rumors that I am severely injured. Before you send the starship, I want you to investigate one thing.”
“Has the Research Institute ever stolen my genes to perform human experiments?”