Chapter 13: The Lake-dwelling Mermaid Was Preempted

The mermaid's eyes swept sharply over the kneeling thieves, and the little blue hair on the top of her head was crooked with anger. At this moment, she swam back and forth in the fish pond, examining these uninvited guests.

Chen Shuang had just tied the last bundle of rope and confirmed that the thieves were completely unable to break free. She stood up and clapped her hands.

Feeling someone's gaze on her, she turned around and asked, "What's wrong?"

The mermaid's rage suddenly subsided, her eyes gleaming with sparkling water. She lay on the shore and complained pitifully, "Bad guy, I'm so scared."

He shook his tail fin, swam to Chen Shuang, and stretched out his arm. There was an obvious scratch on it, which looked particularly terrifying against the backdrop of his fair skin. It was blue and red, as if someone had pinched it hard, and it was so swollen that it seemed that a slight scratch would cause blood to ooze out.

He lowered his head in frustration: "It hurts."

Chen Shuang briefly examined the mermaid's injuries and felt relieved: "It's just a minor bruise, don't worry too much, it will disappear in two days."

She looked at the group of uninvited thieves and asked, "They did it, right?"

The mermaid nodded heavily. "If I hadn't been vigilant, the children and I would have been captured by them. They are a terrifying group."

The thieves, whose noses were bleeding and whose heads were buzzing, even felt like vomiting: "..."

Do you want to see who gave us the Dabidou marks on our faces?

Realizing that the thieves were hesitant to speak, the mermaid glared at them fiercely and her tail fin began to slap the water surface in annoyance.

The five burly men retreated silently, huddled together in a cowardly manner, and dared not speak.

"There's a small scratch on your face. Try this." Chen Shuang pointed to a certain spot on her right cheek, rummaged through her backpack, and took out the ointment she had just drawn last night.

In fact, in addition to the pile of clothes yesterday, she also took out a purple item that was said to be a fast-acting treatment. However, she had the "super-speed healing" granted by the [Dragon Necklace], so she didn't need it much, so she just threw it into her backpack.

As expected, even the card pool can’t bear to see the unlucky players get the guaranteed items every time, so they only give out items that may be used.

Praise the merciful God of Kachi.

【Dead Tree Comes Back to Life】

[This medicine is endowed with the ultimate vitality. Even the withered grass in the abandoned land will be revived.]

[How to use: This is an ointment full of healing power. You can apply it to any place you want. The scope of application includes but is not limited to redness, swelling, burns, whip marks, and excessive indulgence. I wish you a happy life and a happy family.]

Although the description of the item seemed strange, the upright Chen Shuang took a look at the plain ointment packaging and decided to ignore these inappropriate elements and use it as a normal medicine.

In addition to the bruises on her arms, there was a scratch on the mermaid's face, which was slowly bleeding. It was unclear whether it was caused by rough gravel or by the argument with the thieves just now.

“Don’t move,” she fixed the mermaid’s face. “It will be fine soon.”

The mermaid listened to the gentle voice in front of her and subconsciously held her breath. Even the shaking of her tail underwater slowly stopped, as if she was afraid of scaring away this moment of intimacy.

He carefully felt the coldness on his face, and a doubt suddenly emerged from his mind. Then, like a wildfire that could no longer be suppressed, he blurted out: "Why are you so nice to me?"

The fish's tail began to sway again, shaking rapidly at the bottom of the water.

The mermaid mustered up her courage and asked what was in her heart: "Don't you think I'm ugly?"

The mermaid in front of him raised her head slightly, her watery eyes raised, like a sea reflecting the stars, her slightly curly blue hair draped gently over her white shoulders, her body was not sickly and thin, but instead contained a vitality that made people yearn for it, her bright blue tail fin swayed slightly with the water flow, and the gorgeous scales on the tail were also eye-catching.

From any perspective, mermaids cannot be described as ugly.

Chen Shuang looked up in confusion: "?"

You say it again to this perfect face that is so tender that you can squeeze water out of it.

The system made a "ding dong" sound.

【Congratulations on unlocking the hidden story】

The darkness-shrouded Forsaken Lands seems to be undergoing some subtle changes. The merfolk, dwelling in the darkness of the night, have begun to revere darkness and power. Since the first outbreak of the "White Terror," they have come to despise fair skin and vibrant scales. While this has increased their chances of survival, it seems a pity for the other races outside the Forsaken Lands who revere legends.

It turns out that it’s a different aesthetic.

In nature, white is always discriminated against because it is too bright. For example, albino lions on the African savannah are often expelled because of their special hair.

Chen Shuang was curious: "What is beauty to you?"

The mermaid said as a matter of course, "The kind with dark skin, a thick neck, a muscular body, and muscles the size of a mountain. The tail shouldn't be too shiny, and preferably a mottled one."

As he spoke, he showed an expression of envy, and then a little inferiority: "I have a friend who looks like this. No matter how hard I try, I can never be as good-looking as him."

No, you are good enough now, don't follow your friend's example!

Chen Shuang was silent.

I can’t imagine what the beautiful fish in the mermaid’s aesthetic looks like.

She roughly imagined the scene according to the mermaid's words.

A group of tanned, fit, muscular fish popped up in my mind, and then they started lifting weights together while shouting "struggle" and "bonds", with their huge biceps bulging high and their strong tails overturning the huge coral reefs on the seabed.

Shen Shuang shuddered violently.

Just thinking about it makes me feel like my eyes are being attacked.

The mermaid refused to give in, her fingers gripping the rocks on the shore tightly, not caring even about the scratches she got.

"You haven't answered my question yet," he said, his tone gradually softening. "Don't you think I'm ugly?"

Chen Shuang sighed: "How could it be?"

She applied a little more ointment and carefully applied it to the mermaid's arm.

Compared with the muscular fish, the mermaid in front of him was like a high-scoring work of excellent genetic regression, successfully recreating the mysterious mermaid race that was as beautiful as the elves thousands of years ago.

She spoke truthfully, "You are as beautiful as a creation sculpted by God himself."

What should it be called, Nuwa Bishe?

No, no, the job here is different. Since it is in the Lost Land, it should be called the Dark God's Bishe.

Chen Shuang was applying the medicine seriously and didn't notice that the ice deep in the mermaid's eyes suddenly melted like the softest water.

The human before him lowered his head, his expression focused, his black hair draped in front of him, and he felt the urge to touch it. Jia Lan had never lived in such peace with another creature before. Even his own kind, his friends, would occasionally show contempt and disdain for him.

He seemed to have seen this scene before. When a newborn was born in the tribe, the older and more experienced elders would gently touch the forehead of the new life and give the child the most sincere blessing.

As an outlier in the species, Jia Lan had never received any blessing. The moment he was born, even his parents wanted to abandon him. The clan leader stepped in to save him, and the blessing came to nothing.

He cared about it at first, then pretended not to care, but now... Jia Lan felt the cold touch on his face, and suddenly felt that those things were not important anymore.

He has received the most sincere blessing.

The mermaid didn't move, so Chen Shuang easily applied the medicine. By the time she closed the lid, the mermaid, who had been fighting fiercely just now, had calmed down.

The exploded scales flattened out gently. The mermaid looked at her deeply and then buried her face in the water. Then she sank completely, leaving only bubbles that occasionally emerged on the surface of the water.

The system made a "ding dong" sound.

Congratulations, you have gained the trust of the mermaid.

The stubborn mermaid who ran away from home finally found someone who could appreciate him.

[Congratulations, you have completed the second adventure event and your personal identity has been upgraded

Name: Chen Shuang

Race: Human

Position: Dark Kingdom Priest

Authority: You have the initial deterrent power over all dark followers (you possess the purest dark essence besides God, and it is the instinct of life to be devoted to you)

experience:

The Lost Land's Struggle History [Expand]

Skill:

[Witch's Secret] lv30

[Dark Priest Healing] has reached the maximum level

[God's Eyes] has reached the maximum level

[Divine Power] has reached the maximum level

[Shadow Clone] Level 1 (New)

Chen Shuang's eyes flickered slightly as she checked the details of the new skill [Shadow Clone] in her mind.

Shadow Clone

[Real smart people have learned to work with shadows, but when Mr./Ms. Shadow is working diligently, please coordinate your workload to avoid bad labor relations.]

[This skill requires a lot of mental strength, please use it with caution]

Chen Shuang gave it a quick try and found that her mental power was still some distance away from being able to summon a shadow clone. It seemed that she would need to add some mental power training later.

The system's boost sound hasn't ended yet.

[Congratulations, you have +1 citizen]

Lake-dwelling mermaid

An ancient neutral race living in the Forsaken Lands, they spend their lives searching for a sense of belonging. Their fragile souls belie their powerful, high-magic physiques. Please do not listen to the mermaid's song, even if it means no harm.

Current citizens:

[Dark Dependent: Xiaohong]

[Fallen Angel Fei]

[Dark Dragon Lilitan]

[Swamp Giant - Little Mud]

[Lake-dwelling mermaid, Jialan]

[Congratulations, your faction's stability value has increased by +500]

The angel left when the thief was captured and the situation looked good. The mermaid also dived into the water after applying medicine. Now, only Chen Shuang and five bruised men were left by the fish pond.

The magic ants that should have gone out mining stayed at home because of today's emergency. Xiaohong and six other companions guarded Shen Shuang. The giant magic ants' hideous mouthparts almost scared the thieves to faint.

"Tell me about your value," Chen Shuang's eyes swept calmly over the five people with different expressions, "If you can't satisfy me, I can't guarantee that there will be no accidents."

Xiaohong responded with a threatening "sizzling" sound. With it as the leader, the rest of the ants in the magic ant army gathered together. The magic ants, as big as gray wolves, waved their antennae and surrounded the trembling thief in circles.

How cool, Chen Shuang thought.

It's over!

The thief leader felt his throat trembling and was filled with regret.

Exiled to the Lost Land with no food or ammunition left, yesterday, Madman listened to the Dog-Headed Military Advisor and brought everyone here to dig a tunnel, hoping to steal something from this unusual-looking palace at night, preferably food.

As soon as they came in, they saw a clean lake, which was very rare in this damn place called the Lost Land. The brothers were surprised to go into the river to drink water, and were also surprised to find fish in it.

Just based on the water and food sources, this palace can be listed as one of the top valuable resource sites in the Lost Land.

Later... later he was slapped.

The thief leader had a swollen face and a dull look in his eyes.

His head still hurts and his vision is a little blurry. Oh no, it seems like there is double vision.

He looked at the huge number of hideous and terrifying monsters around him and felt that his life might be over.

No, I can’t die in such a miserable way!

The leader, who was about to give up his dignity and kneel down to beg for mercy, felt a gust of wind passing by his side, and heard a heart-wrenching cry in his ears.

The dog-headed military advisor who had given him the idea yesterday and had come with him to rob him now lay on the ground, his face covered in tears and snot, begging for mercy with a heartfelt voice: "I'll tell you! I'll tell you everything! It was all their idea, I'm innocent!"

The thief leader's face suddenly turned black.

Grass!

Got preempted!

He said all my words!!!