Mermaid Tears

The night view of the Dragon Palace in the East Sea is completely different from that of the human world.

There was no bright moon hanging high in the sky, only countless pearls radiating a soft glow inlaid on the dome and pillars, as if a dazzling galaxy had been brought to the seabed. The deep blue seawater flowed slowly overhead, refracting the pearly light, creating a shimmering, dreamlike scene.

Qian Jin leaned against the crystal window, gazing at the bioluminescent jellyfish and colorful fish swimming outside, and couldn't help but exclaim, "These twinkling lights are so beautiful, like...like pearls were set directly in the sky."

Ao Ming stood beside her and chuckled upon hearing this: "This isn't a pearl. It's a specialty of my East Sea, a mermaid pearl." He paused, then added, "The kind used to decorate the God of Wealth's palace during the Five Gods of Wealth Festival last time."

"Mermaid pearls?" Qian Jin's eyes lit up instantly. "You mean those treasures that are gentler, last longer, and can absorb spiritual energy on their own? Where do they come from? Are they produced in large quantities? Are they valuable?" Questions rained down on her.

Looking at her greedy expression, Ao Ming smiled with a mixture of helplessness and indulgence: "Interested? I'll take you to see it. However..." His tone deepened slightly, carrying a hint of warning, "While the mermaid pearl is beautiful, the process of obtaining it may not be as pleasant as you imagine. In fact, you might... find it unbearable."

Qian Jin's curiosity was completely piqued: "Let's see!"

Ao Ming then led her through the bustling areas of the Dragon Palace, toward a relatively secluded sea area with somewhat heavy guard. The closer they got, the more they could feel a faint aura of sorrow permeating the seawater.

The enormous coral reefs were artificially constructed into individual compartments, each imprisoning a mermaid.

They have human-like upper bodies with beautiful or handsome faces, but their lower bodies are huge, colorful fish tails.

At this moment, most of them huddled in the corners, their eyes numb, looking at the patrolling shrimp soldiers and crab generals with fear.

Many merfolk have obvious scars on their wrists, necks, or fish tails, some of which are even oozing blood.

The way to obtain shark pearls is so simple it's outrageous!

A crab general, carrying a specially made soft whip with fine barbs, walked into a compartment and, expressionless, lashed the smooth back of a female merman with the whip!

"Ah!" The merman let out a painful cry, her body trembling violently, and large, crystal-clear tears rolled down her azure eyes.

However, those tears did not dissolve in the seawater. Instead, the moment they left their eye sockets, they condensed into round, full mermaid pearls with a soft glow, which tinkled and fell onto the sandy seabed.

The crab expertly picked up the mermaid pearls and placed them on the jade plate. Without even glancing at the mermaid who was curled up and crying in pain, it turned and walked towards the next compartment.

Qian Jin's face drained of all color instantly, and her stomach churned violently. She finally understood what Ao Ming meant by "can't stand it."

"How often do they... go through this?" Her voice trembled slightly.

“Normally it’s once a month.” Ao Ming’s voice was somewhat low. “If it happens during months with a large demand, such as Heavenly Court celebrations or immortal weddings, it will be more frequent.”

"Why?!" Qian Jin suddenly grabbed Ao Ming's arm, her fingertips icy cold. "Why use such a cruel method? Couldn't you have used another method? This is torture!"

Ao Ming was silent for a moment, then said, “Tradition… has always been like this. It was like this when my father’s father’s father was still alive… Besides, although the Merfolk are considered fierce by mortals, in the eyes of the Dragon Clan and even the Heavenly Court, they are really… nothing. Their tears are treasures, that is their ‘value’.” His tone carried a hint of sympathy and helplessness.

"Value?" Qian Jin seemed stung. "Value gained through harm? Even His Majesty the Dragon King and the Queen know this? Aren't they going to do anything about it?"

“Father and Mother are not heartless, but…” Ao Ming sighed, “How can ancient rules be changed so easily? Moreover, the Three Realms are not unaware of the methods of extracting pearls from mermaids, but the demand is still enormous, with orders already booked for a thousand years. If the supply is stopped, it will have far-reaching consequences. The East Sea cannot make this decision.”

Qian Jin stopped talking, but bit her lower lip tightly, looking at the numb mermaids and their wounds. She felt sad and guilty, thinking about how she had been thinking about how to make money with the mermaid pearls.

Back at her lodgings, the image of the mermaids being cruelly stripped of their pearls still lingered in her mind.

At night, she tossed and turned, and finally quietly got up, took out the highly effective medicine that Ao Ming had given her when she was injured, and, relying on her memory, secretly slipped away to that coral prison.

The patrolling guards recognized her as a distinguished guest of the Third Prince and did not stop her, though they looked at her with some doubt.

The merfolk became even more terrified upon seeing a stranger, especially Qian Jin who resembled a human, and retreated, shrinking into the shadows. Only one small merfolk, who looked quite young and had exceptionally large, clear eyes, tilted its head, looking at her with a mixture of curiosity and timidity, without immediately turning away.

Qian Jin tried her best to make her expression look gentle. She slowly approached, pointed to a fresh whip mark on the little mermaid's arm, and shook the medicine bottle in her hand.

The little mermaid hesitated for a long time, blinked her big eyes, and finally slowly and tentatively extended her injured arm.

Qian Jin carefully dipped her fingertip in the ointment and gently applied it to his wound. The ointment was cool, and the little merman let out a soft, comfortable groan, his fear gradually replaced by curiosity.

Once you do it the first time, you'll do it a second and a third time.

Qian Jin went almost every night, bringing more and more ointment. The merfolk gradually changed from initial fear and wariness to acceptance, and would even deliberately expose their injured parts when she came.

Although they couldn't speak, a glimmer gradually appeared in their beautiful eyes. They would gently wag their tails at Qian Jin and emit soft, melodious chirps to express their gratitude.

That night, Qian Jin was worried that the medicine was almost used up and didn't know how to ask Ao Ming for some more without being questioned. However, Ao Ming came to her door on his own.

He placed several bottles of high-quality medicine on her table, looked at her, and said in an emotionless tone, "Don't think I don't know where you go every night."

Qian Jin's heart tightened, and she was about to explain when she heard Ao Ming continue, his voice carrying a hint of helplessness and a faint reproach: "Your own injuries haven't even fully healed yet, but you're already thinking about others every day. Take it."

Qian Jin froze and looked up at him. Ao Ming looked away, his ears slightly red: "Ahem... I'll go with you tonight."

That night, Ao Ming accompanied Qian Jin to the coral prison again. The merfolk, upon seeing Ao Ming, were still instinctively afraid and shrank back.

Qian Jin quickly waved to them reassuringly, indicating that it was alright, and then naturally took Ao Ming's hand, leading him to apply medicine to the little mermaid.

Ao Ming's body stiffened, his movements somewhat clumsy, but under Qian Jin's guidance, he tried to move as gently as possible. The merfolk, watching this strange yet harmonious scene, gradually replaced their fear with confusion and a hint of curiosity.

After applying the medicine, Qian Jin looked at these beautiful creatures and, remembering that she would eventually have to leave, felt a sudden surge of reluctance and worry. She sighed softly and murmured unconsciously, "Alas... what will you all do if I'm no longer in the Dragon Palace..."

She was speaking to herself, but to her surprise, the mermaids who could understand human speech seemed to understand the meaning of parting in her words.

First, the little mermaid froze, her large blue eyes quickly filling with tears, and then, one after another, huge, crystal-clear teardrops rolled down her cheeks.

Immediately afterward, as if it were contagious, the surrounding merfolk all looked over, remembering the gentleness and kindness the human girl had shown them these past few days, and thinking about the darkness that would return after she left, they were overcome with grief and began to whimper softly.

In an instant, a sense of sadness spread, and the mermaids all wept.

A huge amount of mermaid pearls instantly covered the ground!

However, this time, the mermaid pearl that slipped from their eyes was completely different from the ones they had seen before!

They were no longer the usual soft white light, but instead radiated an extremely pure and dazzling seven-colored brilliance! Each one was round and flawless, with rainbow light flowing inside, breathtakingly beautiful! The spiritual energy they contained was even more pure and abundant, far surpassing those mermaid pearls born from suffering!

Ao Ming's eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the seven-colored mermaid pearls that were falling continuously and almost covering the seabed. He exclaimed, "This...this is...'Rainbow Tears'! Legend has it that only the purest and truest emotions of mermaids can be condensed into rainbow mermaid pearls! I've only seen records of them in ancient books! They actually exist!"

Qian Jin was also stunned. Looking at the incredibly beautiful beads that had fallen due to reluctance and sadness, and then at the mermaids who were crying uncontrollably, a thought flashed through her mind like lightning!

She suddenly grabbed Ao Ming: "Quick! Pick it up! Take it to the Dragon King and Dragon Queen to see!"

In the main hall of the Dragon Palace, the Dragon King and Dragon Queen looked at the plate of shimmering, spiritually vibrant seven-colored mermaid pearls presented by Ao Ming. After listening to their son and Qian Jin's explanation of the whole story, their faces were filled with shock and emotion.

The Dragon Queen picked up a Rainbow Tear Mermaid Pearl, feeling its warm and pure energy, her eyes filled with pity: "So... you don't need to harm them, you have to treat them sincerely to obtain the finest pearls..."

The Dragon King stroked his long beard, a hint of emotion appearing on his majestic face: "This method is indeed... even better. A mermaid pearl of this caliber would be worth at least a hundred times more..."

Qian Jin immediately said, "We can obtain higher-quality mermaid pearls without harming them. The customer doesn't pay more spirit stones but gets a more valuable product. Isn't that a win-win situation?"

The Dragon King looked at Qian Jin, his admiration growing even stronger. He pondered for a moment, then posed a practical question: "That's true, but how can we keep them producing these tears? We can't have Qian Jin saying she has to leave every month, can we?"

Qian Jin had already anticipated this; her eyes curved into crescents, revealing a sly yet confident smile.

"That's easy! I have a way!"