Ch 86: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

Chu Xu and the others only saw a glowing barrier enclosing the group. They could see the merfolk speaking, but even though it was right before their eyes, they couldn’t hear a single sound.

The mystery of the merfolk deepened in their minds.

Then something even stranger happened—the merfolk simply turned into a streak of light and vanished before their eyes.

Only Ying Luo remained, standing where he was.

The barrier dissolved.

Suppressing his shock, Chu Xu quickly stepped up to Ying Luo.
“Ying Luo, just now—?”

Ying Lou’s heart was no less shaken than his.

Even he had never seen the divine arts Mu Xing and the others had revealed.

“They left,” he said.

Chu Xu asked: “And you? You won’t leave with them, will you?”

Ying Luo lifted his head, eyes full of joy as he looked at Chu Xu.
“No, I’ll always be with you.”

Chu Xu smiled.

Before the two could speak more of love, Wei, the aide who always followed Chu Xu, stepped forward.

His gaze burned as he looked at Ying Luo.
“Lord Ying Luo, your clansmen—have they returned to the sea?”

Clearly, after witnessing all that, this once proud strategist now treated Ying Luo with much more respect.

Ying Luo sensed it too.

Since the old man was Chu Xu’s aide, he didn’t want to create friction, so he gently said:
“Yes, they’ve returned to the sea.”

Wei asked urgently:
“You and your clansmen—you all possess such heaven-reaching powers?”

Ying Luo thought a moment, then shook his head.
“No, I don’t have such powers.”

Wei looked a little disappointed. He seemed to have more questions, but mindful of the occasion, said no more.

Chu Xu personally escorted Ying Luo back to his residence.

---

Mu Xing and the others did not return directly to the sea.

He led Bi Fei and Mo Yu into the capital.

Three beautiful merfolk with strikingly colored hair naturally drew countless stares.

What’s more, rumors of immortals riding whales ashore had already spread like wildfire through the capital. Translated on Hololo novels. These three not only looked and dressed exactly like the rumors described, but their curious gazes at everything fit perfectly with the image of immortals unaccustomed to the mortal world.

Countless people secretly followed and observed them.

“Little Xingxing, some human food is really tasty.” Mo Yu held a candied haw in one hand and a flatbread roll in the other.

He took one bite of the candied haw and lost interest—the fruit inside didn’t taste good. On their island, countless sweet fruits imbued with spiritual energy grew, and ordinary hawthorn couldn’t satisfy the spoiled palates of merfolk.

But the flatbread roll he loved—especially the savory, spicy sauce with the crispy fried bread. One bite and it was delicious.

And cheap!

Humans traded with coins.

They had no money, but they had plenty of pearls and gems.

Pearls were no problem—the merfolk had an endless supply.

And beneath the sea lay countless treasures.

Though useless to fish, the merfolk loved beauty and sparkling stones. The sands of their island beaches were full of gems, used as toys for little mers.

But what merfolk saw as ordinary stones were priceless treasures in the human world.

Mu Xing still remembered—when they first went to a pawnshop, Bi Fei poured out a whole pouch of gems with a clatter onto the counter.

Every gaze in the shop had instantly turned toward them—
and he hadn’t managed to stop her in time.

---

“These past few days, what have they been doing?”

In the study, Chu Xu listened to a subordinate’s report.

The man relayed all he knew. Ever since the news that Mu Xing and the others had appeared in the capital, Chu Xu naturally couldn’t miss any chance to get close.

But the three merfolk had no fixed pattern—morning in one place, afternoon somewhere else.

Even when Chu Xu’s men finally caught up with them, they realized the merfolk had no need of what they could offer—money or guides.

As for money, merfolk lacked none.

And with money, would they ever lack guides?

What’s more—

“My lord, it’s not just us. Other factions have also been trying to approach Young Master Ying Lou’s clansmen.”

Chu Xu’s brows furrowed. In the capital, it could only be the usual factions.
“Have they grown close to anyone in particular?”

The man shook his head.
“No. They ignore any strangers who try to speak to them, just spend money buying things everywhere.”

“What do they buy?” Chu Xu asked curiously.

“Everything—snacks, food, ink and brushes, classics and storybooks. Even women’s rouge and powder—they bought quite a lot.”

In short, anything that caught their interest, they bought.

Money was no concern.

The man went on to describe their strange methods—no matter how many things they bought, once the merfolk held them, the items vanished in an instant.

Chu Xu realized—he had been studying Daoist texts recently, seeking contact with cultivators. This technique resembled the Daoist art of storing worlds within mustard seeds.

The merfolk truly seemed to be a clan of overseas immortals.

He had once thought Ying Luo just an ordinary foreigner, but never expected such origins.

“Keep following them. If they have any needs, fulfill them if possible.”

“Yes, sir.”

Of course, Mu Xing and the others knew very well they were being tailed.

It was only because they had already stepped onto the path of cultivation that every movement around them was within their perception. Since there was no clear malice, they simply couldn’t be bothered to care.

Their stay in the capital had no particular purpose—just a whim to buy some human things and bring them back for the clan to see something new.

Just like in Mu Xing’s previous life, when people traveled, they always brought back some local specialties.

After lingering in the capital for ten days or so, their beginner storage rings—crafted by Mu Xing himself—were filled to the brim. Only then were the three merfolk satisfied enough to leave.

They didn’t want to waste time dealing with the people tailing them either. A simple spell, and they vanished into the bustling crowd without a trace.

The stalkers: ???

There was nothing they could do. Their targets weren’t ordinary mortals, and they had already done their best.

From then on, the merfolk left behind endless legends in that royal city.

---

The three returned laden with treasures and were warmly welcomed by the clan.

Some clansmen asked after Ying Luo.

The High Priestess , knowing the full truth, spoke gravely:
“Ying Luo chose to remain on land. From this day on, he has nothing to do with our clan.”

The High Priestess ’s authority was considerable, and Ying Lou’s earlier actions had already chilled the merfolk’s hearts. Not a single voice of dissent arose.

Only Mu Xing—after being away for ten days, the moment he returned he was besieged by a horde of little ones clamoring to be flown around, and endlessly dazzled by the sacred relic that adored clinging to him.

Finally soothing those sticky little imps, Mu Xing found a sunny spot, let his legs shift back into their true form, and soaked in the gentle seawater, happily drifting into sleep.

He dreamed again, something he hadn’t done in a long while.

The dream was chaotic. At one moment he was in a place rich with spiritual energy, a man in white whose face he couldn’t see speaking to him, calling his name intimately, but Mu Xing couldn’t hear clearly.

Then the scene shifted—he was grown, no longer a child, sitting on a reef at sunrise with two merfolk whose tails gleamed silver-blue.

In the next instant, more scenes flickered by, strange whispers filled his ears, a cold aura coiled around him, and instinctively he frowned.

“At last, I’ve gotten in.” A voice sounded.

The strange visions and murmurs all vanished. Darkness filled his awareness, and the only light was a round, glowing white orb.

This was a familiar presence.

Though since he had entered his second cycle of reincarnation, it had appeared less and less often in his dreams.

The glowing orb gazed at Mu Xing in puzzlement.
“Why is it that you never follow the path I’ve set for you?”

Mu Xing, half-dazed, gave a confused murmur in reply.

The orb’s voice was soft, with a strange cadence beneath it:
“Why is it that you care about nothing? Look at these beautiful merfolk, at yourself—you all nearly died. Ying Luo, that selfish fool, why does he deserve to live well?”

“If he stays alive and remains with Chu Xu, he’ll surely drag the merfolk down again in the future.”

“Don’t forget, Chu Xu still has a destined calamity of death, and Ying Luo is meant to steal the sacred relic.”

“He’s caused the deaths of your clansmen. As clan leader, you have the right to punish him, to make him pay with his life. If you don’t want anyone to know, with your strength, quietly executing him would be effortless.”

Mu Xing asked, puzzled:
“Execute him?”

“Of course,” the orb said gently, almost soothingly. “What use is such a scourge alive, except to harm the merfolk further?”

In its eyes, Mu Xing’s dazed expression seemed to flicker with hesitation, with struggle.

The orb’s heart leapt—yet before it could press further, clarity returned to Mu Xing’s gaze.

He demanded:
“What exactly are you? Why are you deliberately pushing me to kill Ying Luo?”

The orb: “…”

After a pause, it murmured:
“Failed again.”

Mu Xing: ?

Before he could ask more, the ground beneath him gave way, and he plummeted out of the darkness.

He awoke to the afternoon sunlight, and a small fruit that had just bounced off his cheek.

Sheng had appeared at some point, sitting obediently by his side, giggling, his chubby little tail swishing back and forth.

The fruit had been his doing.

Mu Xing picked it up and popped it into his mouth.

Sweet.

---

In the blink of an eye, five years passed.

Since the merfolk had entered the Qi-Training stage and could flexibly wield spiritual power, their movements in the sea grew ever freer.

And in the eyes of the ocean’s other creatures, they grew ever more terrifying.

Before, fish merely avoided the waters near Shark Island. Now, even the fearless tiger shark clans instinctively kept a hundred miles away.

Not that they were cowards—but when even the overlords of the deep could be caught by mer-children and ridden around like playthings, it was simply too humiliating.

Ever since Mu Xing had returned from land with Bi Fei and Mo Yu, bringing back so many wonders, the clan now organized expeditions every year to purchase goods from the human world.

At first Mu Xing worried and tagged along, but later he realized: while the merfolk lacked guile, their honesty was a strength. No matter what honeyed words humans spoke, they only traded goods, never wasted words.

And with the merfolk’s power today, there was no way anyone could take advantage of them.

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