Hero Saves the Beauty (Part 2)

Six hours ago.

The searchlights illuminated the core of the temple in a pale white light. Crystals floated within the pillars of light, their exteriors translucent, their internal structures complex, resembling a mass of energy constantly folding and contracting.

Shen Huai'an was secured to the platform. Suppressors were locked to his wrists, ankles, and waist, and indicator lights remained steady.

He looked the same as usual—quiet, restrained, and emotionless.

The robotic arm pushed the platform closer to the beam of light. Everyone present stared at the instrument readings. Li Liguo, suppressing his excitement, said, "The fit is good; we can begin contact."

Shen Huai'an raised his hand, his movements neither hurried nor slow.

At that moment, he made a judgment—

This is the only chance.

Once the crystal is officially recovered, humans will seal, decompose, study, and utilize it.

After that, he had no chance of escaping using it, and Yunhe had no way of surviving either.

He did not hesitate.

The moment his finger touched the ground, he didn't "touch" it. Instead, he absorbed it directly.

The crystal seemed to be emptied out, rapidly contracting and transforming into a stream of energy at a speed imperceptible to the naked eye.

The alarm immediately went off.

The instrument reading jumped to the danger zone, and the control system automatically switched. The suppressor applied pressure, and the current intensity instantly doubled.

The platform is locked, and the defensive weapons around it are charging.

Li Liguo roared, "He's trying to escape! Turn the suppressor up to the maximum—!"

Xiao Lin remained silent, staring at the screen with a colder gaze than anyone else.

It's too late.

That wasn't a "sudden loss of control." That was a deliberate act!

Shen Huai'an clenched his open fingers suddenly, and a powerful suction force erupted instantly. The crystalline energy streams that had been flying everywhere—the sacred object—transformed into streams of light and instantly entered his slightly open mouth, the movement too fast to be caught.

A terrifying, invisible energy surge exploded outwards from him. It was a pure storm of spirit and energy.

Sparks flew from all the electronic equipment inside the cabin, the screens went black instantly, and the piercing alarm was immediately drowned out by an energy shriek. Any researchers or guards who approached felt as if they had been struck in the brain, bleeding from all seven orifices and collapsing inside the cabin.

A piercing metallic creak rang out. Amidst the teeth-grinding sound, the restraints on Shen Huai'an's wrists, ankles, and waist shattered as if by an invisible, immense force; metal fragments flew and embedded themselves in the cabin walls.

The moment the restraints were released, Shen Huai'an's body began to undergo a terrifying transformation:

His humanoid disguise melted and peeled away rapidly, a surging silvery-white liquid replacing his skin and muscles, like liquid breaking free of its cage. A massive, three-meter-long pure silver fishtail gradually replaced his legs, slamming heavily onto the platform, causing the high-strength alloy platform to twist and deform. His upper body, covered in fine silver scales, stretched out—

His long, silvery-white hair danced wildly in the turbulent energy currents. His icy-blue vertical pupils shone brightly in the darkness, like frozen, cold stars.

As the crystal was absorbed, the human form of Chen Huai'an began to disintegrate. It wasn't an explosion or a tearing, but rather—like water seeping from under the skin, the muscles and skin naturally reconstructing their structure.

Throughout the process, some people began to retreat, some drew their weapons, and some stood still. Human fear always comes very directly.

Having fully reverted to his mermaid form, Shen Huai'an showed no roar, no anger, and no intention of retaliating against anyone present.

He did only one thing:

leave.

He rushed straight to the observation window. It wasn't recklessness; he chose the thinnest part, the one most vulnerable to cracking due to pressure difference.

—He is familiar with the structure of research vessels.

The observation window was squeezed and deformed. The deep-sea pressure had completed its remaining work. With a loud bang, seawater burst through, like a black wall.

The cabin was in complete chaos.

Using the current to propel himself outward, Shen Huai'an moved with simple precision, as if he had done it countless times before. He didn't even glance back.

Because he didn't come to kill anyone.

It's not about "revenge," nor is it about so-called "freedom."

He went to Yunhe.

He knew someone was watching her, and he also knew she was now a "bargaining chip".

He knew that the longer it went on, the more likely humanity would choose to sacrifice her. So he had no reason to waste a single second.

The silver tail cuts through the ocean currents, its direction resolute and direct. Deep-sea pressure, undercurrents, ocean layers, temperature differences, and interference from tracking devices—

He knew all of this, but he didn't care.

He only cares about that one coordinate.

Yunhe.

—This is the only one.

——————————

Now, deep within the Golden Scale Nest.

Cold blue blood trickled down from the corner of Shen Huai'an's mouth, dripping onto Yun He's hair, and quickly dissolved in the dark seawater, like a wisp of a dissipating ghost.

Having just forcibly broken through Nixos's "dimensional array," the tearing power targeting the Silver Scale bloodline nearly crushed the last vestige of his willpower to remain conscious. The excruciating pain felt like countless red-hot needles piercing through his already mangled body.

But he can't stop.

The sound of water crashing in my ears was like endless muffled thunder.

Holding Yunhe, Shen Huai'an charged straight through the breached cave wall, revealing deep-sea currents and rubble outside. The wounds he sustained while forcibly breaking through the formation were still tearing at him, and his breathing was noticeably labored and trembling.

Hold me tight.

He only said two words, his voice very soft, but it suppressed all her panic.

Yunhe was held tightly in his arms, barely able to move. She could feel the strength in his arms gradually dissipating—not loosening, but slowly being exhausted.

Behind them, Nixos's unusually calm command rang out: "Pursue."

In the surging water, the Golden Scale Warrior approached at full speed.

Shen Huai'an didn't look back. He only stared ahead—the seabed topography was undulating and chaotic, with many coral breaks and deep cracks. He was familiar with this area, and he forced himself to squeeze through the narrowest crack.

—We must shake off our pursuers.

But the blood was flowing too fast.

Each flick of its tail caused the wound to reopen, and blue blood vessels spread out in the water.

Yunhe finally couldn't help but whisper a reminder to him: "...You're bleeding."

Shen Huai'an did not respond. But his shoulders were trembling.

He no longer had the energy to respond.

They passed through crevice after crevice, the water growing deeper and colder. The surrounding light gradually faded, leaving only scattered bioluminescence, bluish-green like stars. Yunhe could only hear her own heartbeat and Shen Huai'an's increasingly erratic breathing.

She suddenly realized a problem:

He was dragging her along on instinct.

It wasn't about "taking her away to escape." It was about "keeping her alive."

Suddenly, a golden beam of light streaked across the water from behind, grazing past them and causing a violent tremor. Shen Huai'an immediately rolled over, using his back to block the second beam. The movement was small, but it froze his entire body.

Yunhe reached out to help him up, her fingers touching a cold, slippery spot with shockingly deep wounds.

"You, you stop for a second—"

"Shut up," he said. His tone was emotionless, just a calm command.

He surged upwards again, shaking off his pursuers in an instant, and finally broke through the sea surface.

A blinding light burst into view.

The air rushed into their lungs, and both of them choked simultaneously. But the pursuers caught up.

A golden shadow broke through the water, creating large waves on the sea.

Shen Huai'an was almost completely exhausted. He held Yunhe as they floated on the sea, their breathing so shallow it was almost nonexistent.

Yunhe gritted her teeth: "Let me go... Taking me with you now is just suicide!"

Shen Huai'an did not answer. It wasn't silence. His consciousness was beginning to falter.

But he didn't let go.

He's now driven by the thought of "remembering to protect her."

Yunhe's heart tightened.

She reached out and pushed his shoulder. That push took away his last bit of support.

Shen Huai'an's body then sank down.

Yunhe's heart sank. But she didn't hesitate—she reached out and grabbed his wrist. Then, almost simultaneously, they were dragged back into the sea. The seawater pressed down again, chilling to the bone.

Above them were pursuers, and below them lay the deep sea. Yunhe couldn't dive at all, and she was even less skilled at swimming with a creature much larger and heavier than herself.

She should have struggled to escape upwards. But she just clung to him tightly, her knuckles turning white.

"Don't let go—do you hear me?" She gritted her teeth, her voice broken by the seawater: "I won't let go even if I can't drag you, Chen Huai'an."

There was no echo, and no response.

She simply pulled him along, swimming little by little deeper into the trench.

Not because it's safe there. It's because there are no pursuers there for the time being.

The group of golden-scaled warriors behind them were also stunned.

Because a human actually led a dying silver-scaled creature into the deep sea—a depth that even the golden-scaled creature itself wouldn't easily descend to.

The colder the water, the less light there is. The shadows of the two people slowly sank into the deep sea.

Only a thin, long blue streak of blood remained, which stretched out, diluted, and disappeared in the sea.