MASG chapter 53

⚠️ Warning: Mentions of blood, body horror, and psychological distress appear in this chapter.

Small mushrooms with bright red mycelium sprouted, filling the cracks in the deck unnoticed.

Xia Yu and Xiang Xing could finally spend some time alone together, but someone was watching them from outside the door. They were both endlessly curious about each other. A member of their kind had appeared for no apparent reason, and no matter how they thought about it, they couldn’t understand it.

However, they soon discovered an interesting fact: their communication was too smooth. In fact, they wondered if they had entered each other’s minds.

“You…” Xiang Xing touched Xia Yu’s finger, wanting to ask if it hurt.

“I don’t feel anything.” Xia Yu instantly understood. “We don’t feel much pain. You…”

“I don’t feel anything either.” Xiang Xing smiled. The wound on his stomach had completely healed. He pointed to Xia Yu’s face. “Fast.”

Xia Yu nodded quickly. “Yes, you’re slow.”

Xiang Xing was also surprised by this. He had thought that his healing speed was fast, but compared to Xia Yu’s, it was insignificant. “Fish?”

He wanted to ask Xia Yu about mermaids. If Xia Yu could fool those people, then he must know a lot about mermaids.

Fearing eavesdroppers, Xia Yu answered briefly, “A friend.”

“Oh.” Xiang Xing understood. One of his friends was a mermaid, which explained Xia Yu’s knowledge of them. Although they lived relatively close to each other—one in Yukun City and the other in Qingyao City—their lives were worlds apart.

Out of curiosity, he touched Xia Yu’s arm again. “Flesh?”

Xia Yu gripped his arm in return. “Yes.”

Those two simple words conveyed a lot. Xiang Xing immediately understood that their flesh was poisonous. However, he seemed to be a step behind Xia Yu, his recovery speed and toxicity were far inferior. Just then, the door opened, and the man who entered glanced at the wall clock. “Go wash yourself clean.”

“Wash myself clean?” Xia Yu countered.

“There’s a bathroom inside. Come out in your bathrobes after you’ve washed up,” the man said, brandishing a revolver. Xia Yu didn’t argue and led Xiang Xing into the bathroom. They undressed facing each other; neither cared about embarrassment in this crucial moment, and they quickly took a hot shower. As the hot water soaked his hair, Xia Yu guessed what he was about to face.

But it was his own choice, and he was mentally prepared.

Halfway through their shower, the man pushed open the bathroom door and tossed in two clean bathrobes. He seemed to be planning to leave but, for some reason, didn’t. He leaned against the door and whistled as he watched them shower.

This made Xia Yu extremely uncomfortable. He had never been looked at like that before. It felt like sticky, dirty water was running over him—a nauseating feeling that wouldn’t go away. So, as soon as they finished showering, they immediately put on the bathrobes, covering their bodies completely.

“Not bad looking, just a bit too delicate. He could easily hold both of you in one hand,” the man whistled again. “I wonder what kind of lucky buyer will be so fortunate.”

“I hope he’s lucky enough to enjoy it,” retorted Xia Yu, certain that these people wouldn’t harm him. If they did, his price wouldn’t increase. They followed the man out of the room and down a dark passageway, passing many unfamiliar faces, both men and women.

Whistles and malicious stares filled the air around them in an instant. Someone even pinched Xia Yu’s buttocks hard.

He squeezed his legs together, preventing the hand from going any further, and quickly caught up with the person in front. This place was too filthy. He missed the middle floor, everyone’s kindness, and his younger brother with his clear eyes. They bathed together, too, but his brother would never look at his body with filthy eyes, much less make any advances.

At the end of the passage were two beds surrounded by flowers. If Xiang Xing remembered correctly, they were white roses.

The person gestured for him to lie down, his eyes still extremely lewd.

This must be it: beds on either side. Xia Yu chose the bed on the left, lying down calmly and carefully inhaling the flowers’ fragrance. His composure gave Xiang Xing courage, rekindling his despair over friendship and his will to survive.

He had been betrayed by his friends, but Xia Yu wouldn’t betray him. Surely his good friends would come to the Black Sea to rescue him and themselves in the process.

The two of them lay down together on the very close beds, hand in hand. The beds began to rise like a stable elevator, and the light grew brighter as they ascended. However, what awaited them was not a pleasant scene. Suddenly, they were transported into the auction hall.

“Next up is the premium ingredient for this tasting event: live twin mermaids!”

A masked woman stood on the steps. The opulent décor couldn’t conceal the sin and bloodshed within. When he heard the words “tasting event,” Xia Yu clearly felt Xiang Xing’s hand tighten.

“These are extremely rare live mermaids, unlike any you can buy on the market.” The woman moved among the guests, introducing Xia Yu and Xiang Xing as casually and vividly as if she were introducing a tuna about to be dissected before diners. “I believe you’ve all seen white sirens, right? There are many types of mermaids. White sirens are the easiest to buy, but this kind—I believe there are only two in the world, and both are currently in my hands.”

“I…” “How can you be so sure there are only two?”

“Are you that confident?”

“Just the entrance ticket to stand here costs millions. You’re really asking for a fortune. But I’d like to meet them. If the price is right, we can talk.”

“No, no, no. I don’t intend to sell the whole thing. Don’t even think about it.” The woman shook her finger seductively and stood above the group of top billionaires, looking down at them. These people have everything they could want. Their lives have reached their peak, and ordinary pastimes are no longer enough.

That’s why they come to the Black Sea seeking thrills. They get the most excited when they silently listen to the groans of the Leviathan and the cries of its victims.

They are also among the cruelest and most cunning people in the world. Don’t be fooled by their current enjoyment. Beneath the deck, their bodyguards were crammed in. She looked at the group of VIPs again and announced, “Now, let me show you his special abilities.”

Here she comes! Xia Yu watched helplessly as the woman approached and began to unbutton his bathrobe.

“Please only target me, okay? My recovery is faster.” Xia Yu wasn’t afraid.

“Don’t worry. I won’t kill you.” The woman ripped open his robe and swiftly moved her electronic knife up and down, tracing a line across his thigh. Before their eyes, a wound appeared on his leg, blood splattering onto the white rose petals—a shocking sight.

Dozens of distinguished guests gathered around the rose-covered bed. Beneath their exquisite masks were faces of various colors. Men and women alike uttered gasps of astonishment. The wound healed completely in less than half a minute, leaving no signs of injury on the thigh.

“Superb self-healing ability—this is the secret to eternal youth,” the woman said, displaying her wares. “Now, who still doubts my goods?”

Xia Yu gripped Xiang Xing’s hand tightly. His breath came in heavy gasps, and he could hear his own heartbeat. The golden clock swayed in the room, its hands ticking away. Suddenly, a distinct swallowing sound reached Xia Yu’s ears.

“Three million. I want a piece from the inner thigh—the most tender part.”

“I want a slice from my abdomen with lots of fat, but thinly sliced.”

“I want ankle meat. Thicker pieces taste better.”

Sounds of swallowing turned into bidding mixed with women’s laughter. A scalpel was brought in, and Xia Yu underwent the sterilization process once again, much like when he had surgery as a child. He truly became like a fish on a chopping board, each part having a different price, all perfectly fresh.

The pure white petals gradually turned red, drop by drop, until half of one petal was stained. At that moment, Xia Yu realized that he was the world’s most insatiable ingredient, satisfying those perpetually hungry diners at the top of the food chain. Occasional clinking of glasses echoed as tears streamed down Xiang Xing’s face. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw people earnestly savoring the translucent slices of “mermaid meat” and discussing, with feigned seriousness, which wine would best complement them.

“May we! Forever young! Forever enjoying!” a shout seemed to come from somewhere.

A clear, stemmed glass was raised high, with different colored liquors swirling within. The masked woman—the hostess of this feast—downed her drink in one gulp. Then she gently sipped another slice of meat from her plate and swallowed it with the wine. It was all so beautiful; she could almost see billions of points flowing into her account.

Countless sums of money flowed into her account, but money and material possessions had become meaningless numbers to her. She had experienced the joy of the wealthy—the pursuit of things beyond money.

Things that others couldn’t have—special, dangerous, even deadly things. Golden powder drifted before her eyes, and the entire world turned into a haze of intoxicating luxury. She wanted to chase eternal pleasure—pleasure hundreds of times stronger than the brain could bear; pleasure wrung dry of all restraint.

That was the kind of youth that never fades! While others showed their first wrinkles and their bodily functions began to decline, she had already returned to her physical peak, regaining the youth of her twenties or thirties. Those who fear death the most are those who revel in pleasure. Only by living can one truly enjoy life.

Enjoy this beautiful, dazzling life! Suddenly, the woman fell from the platform and landed among the crowd. She looked at her arm, deciding to preserve this youthful moment forever and make it her eternal instant.

Blood filled the cracks in the wooden floor. Amidst the beautiful, bloodstained roses, Xia Yu stood up, covered in wounds. The veins in his arm glowed blue, like fluorescence, running up his upper arm and reaching toward his neck, almost touching his Adam’s apple.

Clearly, this group of top billionaires was not at the top of the food chain. They were the prey of the Blue Jellyfish.

The wound was healing rapidly. The Blue Jellyfish seemed to have a particular fondness for Xia Yu’s thigh flesh, having dug a hole in the inside of his thigh. Blood flowed down his slender calves, soaking his ankles. Supported by Xiang Xing, Xia Yu descended the steps while looking at the frantically twisted people on the ground.

“They seem insane,” said Xiang Xing, stepping into the blood.

But this was definitely not Xia Yu’s blood. They were killing each other. Lost in a blissful hallucination, they laughed as they devoured their own or others’ bodies, tearing at them with ravenous bites.

“Now…what do we do?” Xiang Xing grabbed Xia Yu and lifted him into his arms.

Xia Yu’s leg had lost too much flesh, and it wouldn’t grow back anytime soon. With his right hand missing a piece of flesh, he pointed to the door. “Get out of here!”

“Okay!” Xiang Xing strode out from the bloodied crowd. A hand, gnawed down to the bone, grabbed his calf. Xiang Xing suppressed his nausea and kicked it away. He dared not run because the blood made the ground slippery. He walked fearfully to the door.

No one knew what lay beyond the door, but it was their only escape route.

The door was heavy. Carrying Xia Yu, Xiang Xing struggled to open it. Xia Yu put his hand on the doorknob, and together, they pushed it open. As soon as they took their first step, however, they were spotted by a group of people.

Perhaps they appeared too terrifying because the kidnappers were momentarily stunned.

However, Xiang Xing reacted quickly, turning and running in another direction.

The instant the gunshot rang out, both of them were startled simultaneously, and Xiang Xing’s body jolted. He hadn’t fully recovered, but the deep wound in his thigh that revealed bone was already covered by new flesh. A maniacal laugh mixed with the stench of blood burst out from the doorway, and bullets seemed to fly right next to their ears. Those on the lower floor, hearing the commotion, began rushing up and blocking their escape routes.

“That way!” Xia Yu pointed to the left-hand outer corridor.

“Hold on tight!” Xiang Xing turned left, running as fast as he could. The outer corridor was close to the fence, and beyond that was the sea. They only had one path. The footsteps chasing them grew louder and louder. With his arm around Xiang Xing’s neck, Xia Yu pondered where they could run.

“Let’s jump into the sea!” Suddenly, Xia Yu looked at the water.

“But…” Xiang Xing hesitated.

“No buts. We’re jellyfish. At least we won’t die in this sea. Staying on the ship, however, will definitely kill us. They’re people. They won’t dare jump. Trust me. We just need to hold on until my friend arrives!” Xia Yu was unwavering. According to the time Jingwei had said, Talos’s ship should have arrived by now. His words encouraged Xiang Xing, who immediately ran toward the fence. However, just one step away, a dozen men leaped from the upper deck and grabbed him by the back of the neck.

Xiang Xing lunged forward, using his last bit of strength to push Xia Yu into the sea. “Run!”

Xia Yu reached out to Xiang Xing, and his hand was completely healed. A feeling of weightlessness washed over Xia Yu as he was thrown into the air. Meanwhile, Xiang Xing was pinned against the fence, drifting further and further away. They still hadn’t escaped the den of iniquity together, even after finally reaching this point.

To make matters worse, a dozen or so fearless kidnappers also fell into the sea.

Splash! Xia Yu sank into the icy sea. People kept falling, not too close and not too far away. Blood spread in the water. Xia Yu surfaced for air, but just before one of the kidnappers’ hands could grab him, the man vanished for no apparent reason.

Not even a scream was left.

What happened? Xia Yu looked around. Only swirling eddies remained on the surface. The man had sunk and never resurfaced. Another person swam toward him, but as Xia Yu pondered which way to swim, that person disappeared, too.

It was as if a strange suction force existed beneath the sea, instantly pulling people into the depths. Terrifying phenomena occurred one after another. One by one, the people around him disappeared until, in less than three or four seconds, only Xia Yu remained.

Could this be the danger of the Black Sea? “Will anyone who falls into the sea be swallowed by it?” Xia Yu was terrified when two icy hands gripped his waist, pulled him underwater, and embraced him in a familiar hug.

It was a small embrace, not large enough to completely encircle him. When Xia Yu saw Mo An’s face clearly, he noticed his drooping ear fins first. They looked as if he were overwhelmed with grief or admitting his mistake. A black fishtail wrapped around Xia Yu’s legs, and its four pectoral fins gently patted his waist as if to soothe the frightened man.

Xia Yu was still shaken. Had Mo An killed all those people? When did he become so ruthless?

“Wait, wait! I’m poisoned!” But as Xia Yu came to his senses, his first instinct was to push Mo An away.

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