AMBTMS Chapter 148

The sea floor was rolling up without anyone noticing. A huge crisis was lurking in the invisible sea floor, and the sea surface maintained its final calm. The captain glanced at the screen and saw a figure flash by. He rubbed his eyes, suspecting that he had seen it incorrectly.

When he lowered his hand, the screen had already returned to its tranquil state, with no trace of anything that shouldn’t have been there. The captain quietly sighed in relief. Yes, they were still on the normal route, how could something strange happen?

However, that prickling sensation at the back of his neck didn’t lessen at all; instead, it grew more intense as time passed.

He shook his head, trying to shake off the fear that was rising in his mind. He was an experienced sailor, and before becoming a captain, he had traveled to many places. He knew the dangers of the ocean very well. He had heard many legends about the sea from previous captains, and while those stories might have been exaggerated, they weren’t entirely baseless.

Thinking about the mysterious expressions of his predecessors when they spoke of these legends, and then considering the destination of this voyage, the captain wiped his face, a sense of foreboding welling up within him.

This feeling might not be a big deal to others, but to an experienced sailor, it was equivalent to a warning. The mentor who had trained him once said that if you lose your way at sea, you must learn to rely on your instincts—they will guide you away from danger and back to the right course.

The captain firmly believed this, not for any other reason than the fact that his instincts had indeed helped him survive the perilous ocean more than once.

He sensed that something was wrong. Even though everything seemed normal now, he still felt that a trap had been set, waiting for them. There was no particular reason, just a feeling.

He hesitated for a moment, unsure whether he should seek out the true owner of this ship. Yes, he was not the one in charge of this ship; that role belonged to the youngest son of the Li family, who had recently made great contributions regarding the merfolk. Before setting sail, someone had hinted to him about the purpose of this voyage. If not for that, he could have handled the situation according to his judgment.

Before he set out, he had made a point to learn about Li Shu, the young master of the Li family. How should one describe him? He was not an easy person to deal with—not in terms of personality, but in the sense that his actions followed a set of principles that would not easily be swayed by external circumstances.

Only a wealthy and powerful family like the Li family could raise a junior with such a temperament. His background determined that he would never need to bow to anyone or anything in his life. Similarly, it was also difficult to change his plans based on the advice of others.

Staring at the unchanged screen, which was monitoring the sea floor, everything seemed calm, showing no signs of anything amiss. Even if he were to tell Li Shu, not to mention anyone else, they probably wouldn’t believe him.

Li Shu’s voyage wasn’t just for leisure; he had been secretly approached by those above. This trip to where Lu Xi was discovered carried a specific purpose.

“What’s the matter? Did you notice something unusual?”

Just as the captain was pondering whether to talk to Li Shu, a male voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts. He turned around and saw a pair of eyes that had not yet experienced the vicissitudes of life.

This person got on board through connections. The captain remembered that someone had advised him before departure to take special care of this young man. He initially thought it was just a rich second generation looking for novelty and didn’t have a good impression of him. But after spending some time together, he realized he had been too quick to judge. This person didn’t have any of the behaviors he had expected from a pampered young master. Quite the opposite, he performed unexpectedly well.

The young man stared at the screen in front of him, his brows furrowed. “Captain, did you notice something?”

“I’m not sure if it was just my imagination,” the captain pointed to the lower right corner of the screen, “but I think I saw something swim past here just now.”

“Are you debating whether to inform Mr. Li or not?” After a brief moment of thought, the young man quickly grasped the key point, asking a question that struck right at the heart of the matter.

“Nothing escapes you, does it? Yes, I have a very bad feeling, and the closer we get to our destination, the stronger it becomes.”

“Then go ahead and tell Mr. Li. This is a serious matter, and I believe Mr. Li will take it seriously.”

The captain had also figured it out by this point. Regardless of how Li Shu might handle it, since he felt there was an issue, he should report it. At the very least, he should try, rather than doing nothing just because he thought there would be no good outcome.

He took a deep look at the man beside him. “You’re right. I’ll leave this place to you for now, and I’ll head up.”

He pushed back his chair and turned to leave, not noticing the sudden darkening of the man’s eyes behind him.

Li Shu was still in a standoff with Lu Xi. He wanted to bring him into the cabin first before carefully investigating where the problem was. Strangely, the Lu Xi who had been repeatedly insisting on entering earlier now seemed possessed, trapping him in his arms and refusing to let go no matter what.

The strength of a merfolk was not something a human could shake. Li Shu used all his strength to push, but Lu Xi remained motionless. Leaning against Lu Xi’s chest, he felt the body temperature behind him dropping, hovering on the edge of a critical point.

A sea breeze blew by, sending a strand of Lu Xi’s hair in front of Li Shu. He lowered his head, watching as the hair gradually turned back to blue under his gaze.

Blue!

Li Shu suddenly understood. No wonder Lu Xi’s temperature was dropping—he was gradually reverting to his merman form. As this realization dawned, he heard the sound of fabric tearing, and something cool wrapped around his calf.

Li Shu looked down and, sure enough, saw a deep blue fishtail swaying arrogantly.

Under the sunlight, the smooth scales reflected brilliant light, complementing the shimmering calm of the sea. The mysterious allure of the sea was vividly embodied in Lu Xi.

Indeed, he was worthy of being called the king who ruled the seas.

The transformation happened in an instant. Li Shu couldn’t turn around to see Lu Xi’s state, but he could clearly see the changes in front of him. The arm wrapped around his waist grew paler, the nails lengthened, and a thin, transparent webbing appeared between the fingers. Fins of the same texture emerged at the elbows—these fins were translucent, as thin as cicada wings, with what seemed like blue veins flowing within.

Without turning back, Li Shu already knew that Lu Xi had reverted to that king of the ocean. His scalp tingled, and the sense of impending danger from behind kept stimulating his nerves. His subconscious screamed at him to run, to get as far away from the person behind him as possible.

But Li Shu ignored it. He suppressed the unease rising in his heart—he couldn’t run away now, nor could he afford to. His thoughts raced; he had to figure out what had caused Lu Xi to become like this.

The submissiveness of the person in his arms greatly soothed the powerful predator. Lu Xi rested his head on Li Shu’s shoulder, inhaling the fresh scent from the man. This scent was different from any he had encountered before, magically washing away the violence in his heart.

He was all too familiar with this violence. It had worsened since he became an adult, erupting periodically. During those times, no living creature dared approach the Siren King, who had lost all reason and was radiating an aura of total destruction. Any creature that came near him during those times would inevitably be killed.

Killing was the only way to quell the violence in his heart. But each time after it subsided, he would be left with an overwhelming desolation. He would walk alone through a barren wasteland, with nothing but cold wind howling around him.

Now, it seemed as though his heart was being filled. All he wanted was to hold the person in his arms and never let go. He no longer had the desire to kill everything around him. He just wanted to keep holding this person, forever.

Who was this person? Was he his prey? Where had he caught such a perfectly suited prey?

The man rubbed his nose against Li Shu’s neck, inhaling a fragrant scent—so enticing, flowing just beneath that soft skin, carrying endless warmth. It was the warmth he longed for, the warmth he missed, the warmth he couldn’t abandon…

Everything about the merman was cold, even the breath he exhaled was cool, brushing against Li Shu’s neck in waves and raising goosebumps all over him. He tilted his head, trying to distance himself from this mild torment, but before he could, the man pressed his head back to its original position.

A wet and slippery sensation touched his neck. Li Shu froze for a moment before realizing it was Lu Xi’s tongue. The tongue swept across his skin, sending waves of shivers through him, but Li Shu couldn’t even pull away.

To the siren, the human’s body temperature was warm—just the right kind of warmth, like being back in the egg, when there was no need to worry about anything. That enticing warmth was now held tightly in his arms. Under the tip of his tongue, he could feel the strong pulse. The man grinned, revealing sharp fangs.

He withdrew his tongue from the man’s neck, his lips lingering as if searching for the perfect spot to bite.

Sharp teeth didn’t need much force to easily pierce the skin and draw the scalding blood within. It must be delicious, far better than any food he had ever tasted.

—Bite it.

The mysterious voice echoed from deep within his heart.

—Bite it, and he will belong to you completely, merging with you, with no fear of others coveting him. You will be together forever, never to be separated.

How enticing that thought was.

The crimson eyes grew dazed, as if bewitched. The merman opened his mouth, teeth gently brushing against the warm skin.

—Yes, just like that, a little more force, and he will be yours forever.

The teeth slowly sank into the skin, and bright red blood began to seep out. The merman slowly closed his eyes. As soon as he touched Li Shu, images flashed through his mind, but before he could make sense of them, they faded away.

The sharp pain in his neck caused Li Shu to frown. He felt as if he had been paralyzed by some spell, his body stiff and difficult to move. He opened his mouth but found that he had lost his voice.

“Lu… Xi…”

The two words he struggled to call out were barely audible, easily dissipating into the wind.

“Mr. Li!”

The sudden voice interrupted the merman’s feeding. He lifted his head from Li Shu’s neck and turned to look at the uninvited man.

Blood stained his lips, making them appear even redder. It was a breathtakingly beautiful face. The captain stood there with his mouth agape, as if death had gripped his throat.

Danger!

His body screamed of danger. He clung to the wall, his legs weakening, unable even to flee.

A bitter smile tugged at his lips. Was he going to die here?