Chapter 41: Eternal Day (V) Please

The warm steam rising from the bathtub blurred the cold boundaries of the bathroom and also made Wen Yin's figure standing in front of the bathroom door hazy.

The mermaid in the water tank looked at her with fear until she repeated it again.

"In the tub."

The blue tail fin flapped twice in vain on the edge of the water tank, and the mermaid named Cangli drooped her eyelashes helplessly and resignedly.

The slender arms supported themselves on the lowered edge of the cylinder, and then drooped down softly at the moment of exerting force.

This was repeated several times, and the overflowing water had soaked the entire ground.

Fortunately, the ground seemed to have a special drainage structure, and Wen Yin stood aside, so the water splashes did not wet her clothes.

"Buzz..."

Wen Yin pressed the button to lower the baffle again, and the seawater mixed with unknown substances flowed down, leaving countless dark wet marks on the ground.

Cangli's body suddenly shrank in the water tank until the baffle was completely lowered and the sea water was cleared, and he finally slid out of the water tank.

His name is Cangli.

When Wen Yin saw this name at this moment, it seemed to fit her cruelly.

The dark blue fish tail that was completely exposed to Wen Yin's vision was like the most dazzling gem in the dark sea.

His skin was like a deep-sea pearl, with a cool white hue. Out of the water, it was so thin that it was almost transparent in the air, as if it would break with the slightest touch.

At this moment, he was barely holding up his upper body, lying on the cold ground. The look in his eyes when he looked up was filled with an inhuman, jade-like coldness.

It seems to be so distant, yet so fragile that it can be easily hurt.

Looking upwards, I saw a face that could make even gods sigh.

The lines of his facial features were meticulously carved, without a single flaw. However, when put together, he wasn't simply handsome, but rather had a kind of androgynous, eerie feeling peculiar to deep-sea creatures.

Her nose was high and straight, and her lips were beautiful but pale, a sickly pale pink, like coral faded by the sea.

However, the most captivating thing is those eyes.

Her thick, long eyelashes were slightly raised, casting a small, fragile shadow under her eyes.

There seemed to be a vortex hidden deep in the dark blue pupils, which could suck people's minds into the lightless abyss.

Silent fear rippled across his enchanting eyes, completely shattering his inhuman coldness and hardness, leaving only a desperate, glass-like feeling of fragility.

He only looked at Wen Yin for a second before looking away in panic.

The fingers supporting the ground were slender, with translucent, webbed membranes between them. They were pale and lifeless, and were even trembling slightly.

The water in the bathtub was still flowing. He looked up in the direction of the bathroom, and then under Wen Yin's gaze, he finally moved to the edge of the bathtub in an embarrassed manner.

The slender tail fin dragged a wet trail with blood on the ground.

There was a "splash" sound as the fish's tail slapped into the water. He held onto the edge of the bathtub and the whole fish slid in.

Wen Yin looked back and saw that his entire body had sunk to the bottom of the water, leaving only half of his head and a pair of blue eyes still filled with panic.

He stared at her cautiously and without blinking as she stood at the bathroom door.

For a moment, the only sound in the entire space was the dripping sound of overflowing water.

Just as the man and the fish were looking at each other, a sharp and distorted scream that did not sound like a human voice suddenly came from outside the terrace.

“Ugh!!”

When the cry sounded, Wen Yin saw Cangli tremble all over, then shrank back until his back hit the hard wall of the tank.

[It's the passenger next door... pulling out the mermaid's scales.]

028 heard the noise and went around outside for a patrol.

[What kind of special hobby is this... That mermaid looks so miserable.]

[028, shared perspective, taking me around all the rooms on the cruise ship.]

At the same time as 028 spoke, Wen Yin also left the room and came to the terrace. At this moment, she stood on the edge of the terrace, letting the cold sea breeze lift up her dark blue skirt.

The echo of the shrill and distorted scream from the next room seemed to still vibrate in the air, making people tremble with fear.

[Host, perspective sharing is enabled.] 028's voice rang out.

Wen Yin's vision suddenly rose and withdrew, penetrating the barrier of the wall and looking down coldly at the interior of the brightly lit "Eternal Day".

The first thing that catches your eye is the luxurious suite next to it on the left.

The scene was like a slice of hell.

In front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, a handsome man in a silk robe was smiling, holding a jewel-encrusted, delicate tool similar to surgical forceps in his hand.

He clamped a piece of tail fin scale of a silver-white scaly-tailed mermaid in the bathtub and tore it out fiercely!

“Swish!”

Along with the teeth-grinding sound of flesh being torn apart, the silver scale that should have shone like moonlight under the light was torn off along with a small piece of flesh underneath.

The light golden blood was like tiny splashes of golden sand, instantly dyeing the clear water in the bathtub red.

The silver-tailed mermaid suddenly arched its body like a shrimp out of water.

The same inhuman, extremely distorted howl that Wen Yin had just heard came from his throat.

Its body twisted and slapped wildly, splashing huge splashes of water, but the bathtub walls were smooth and it had nowhere to gain leverage.

On that extremely beautiful face, the facial features were distorted due to severe pain, tears mixed with light golden blood rolled down, the mouth opened and closed silently, leaving only the desperate hissing sound.

But the handsome man seemed to be appreciating the most beautiful music and the most beautiful painting, his narrowed eyes flashing with excitement and cruelty.

He casually threw the silver scale, which was still covered in flesh and blood, into a running machine nearby, where several other bloody scales were already lying.

A buzzing sound was heard, and the hard scales were ground into powder in the machine.

Wen Yin watched him add some liquid to the bloody powder, stir it evenly, and then apply it on his face with great satisfaction.

He seemed to be using powder made from mermaid scales... to apply a facial mask.

Wen Yin's stomach was churning.

The perspective switches instantly.

Another room, the style is extremely luxurious.

An old man who looked quite old was lazily lying on a sofa covered with snow-white fur.

In his hand was a goblet also inlaid with gemstones, filled with a viscous, dark red liquid that emitted a faint fluorescent light.

And in the huge aquarium at his feet, a male mermaid with a dark green emerald-like scaly tail was floating weakly.

Its wrists were locked with specially made silver shackles, fixed to the wall of the box.

The shackles were connected to a thin hose, the other end of which pierced the blood vessels on the inside of its wrist.

Pale golden blood was being slowly and continuously drawn out through a hose and injected into an exquisitely shaped silver instrument that was working next to the sofa.

The instrument emitted a low humming sound as it extracted or purified the blood, eventually turning it into the dark red liquid in the old man's cup.

The dark green-tailed mermaid's face was as pale as paper, even more pale than Cangli's. His eyes were empty and numb, like an exquisite doll whose soul had been completely sucked out.

Only the faint rise and fall of his chest proved he was still alive. Every time blood was drawn out, his already transparent skin lost even more of its luster.

The old man elegantly took a sip of the "nectar" in the cup and let out a sigh of satisfaction, as if he was tasting a rare wine.

The relaxed expression even made the wrinkles on his face look less.

The perspective changes again.

This time, it was a room decorated as cozy as a boudoir, with soft music playing and ambiguous lighting.

A relatively young man was leaning over the edge of a large, circular jacuzzi. Inside, curled up was a female mermaid with a rare pink-purple scaly tail and an extremely delicate appearance.

The man was not being violent, his actions could even be described as "gentle."

In his hand he held a delicate, pearl-encrusted soft-bristled brush, which was smeared with some sweet-smelling cream.

It was gently brushing the mermaid's pearl-colored shoulders and arms exposed on the water, as if wiping a precious piece of porcelain.

However, the female mermaid was trembling violently, her pink-purple eyes filled with unspeakable fear.

She shrank back desperately, sinking her entire body into the water, leaving only the part being scrubbed exposed to the air.

But the man did not allow her to dodge. One hand, seemingly gentle but actually powerful, clasped her wrist, while the other hand continued the horrifying "cleansing" ritual.

His eyes were filled with morbid fascination and possessiveness, as if he was admiring a living work of art that belonged entirely to him.

The mermaid let out a suppressed, animal-like whimper from her throat, tears silently sliding down her face, mixing with the water in the bathtub.

The perspective was like a cold lens, rapidly switching between the closed luxury suites on the cruise ship, nakedly displaying scenes of human tragedy in front of Wen Yin's eyes.

Some mermaids were forced to wear gorgeous clothes decorated with pearls and corals, and were posed in various positions like puppets for masked guests to take photos.

Every time the flash light came on, it reflected the dead despair in the mermaid's eyes.

Some are kept in small, transparent water tanks like display cabinets, placed at the head of the bed or in the middle of the living room, while guests chat and laugh or sleep soundly beside them.

Completely ignoring the pair of eyes in the water tank staring at them, filled with deep hatred and fear.

There were even some rooms where rough collisions and violent splashing sounds could be heard, along with the broken cries of the mermaids and the excited roars of the guests. The scene was unbearable to watch.

Wen Yin only took a glance and let 028 cut away quickly, but the instantaneous impact was enough to freeze her blood.

Other rooms were dead silent.

In the bathtub, a mermaid with a dull tail and old wounds on her body floated quietly, her chest still. Masked guests pressed the call bell with an indifferent expression, as if requesting a "change" or "cleaning."

The nights on the Eternal Day were not a luxurious vacation at all, but a carefully planned feast filled with greed, tyranny and morbid desires.

Behind every closed door, silent torture is taking place.

Those beautiful mermaids, which are called "gifts", are nothing more than living resources that the guests can take at will.

Blood, scales, body, and even the last bit of dignity as a living being were all squeezed out.

Wen Yin's vision suddenly returned to her original body. She was standing on the terrace, her knuckles gripping the railing slightly white from the force.

The face beneath the white mask was ashen, and he almost felt nauseous.

The suppressed, intermittent sobs of pain from the next room were still coming like background music, reminding her of the ubiquitous cruelty of this cruise ship.

She took a deep breath in the fishy and wet sea breeze, and after calming down, she turned and walked back to the room, gently closing the door to the terrace to block out all the sounds.

In the bathtub, Cangli was still curled up in the corner, with only half of his head and a pair of frightened blue eyes exposed.

The scream just now and the cold feeling emanating from Wen Yin obviously made him even more frightened.

He shrank himself even smaller, almost burying his entire head in the water, leaving only his wet blue hair and slightly trembling shoulders exposed above the water, like a frightened bird, waiting for an unknown misfortune to come.

Wen Yin looked at the fragile figure in the bathtub and recalled the tragic scenes she had just seen.

She walked to the bathtub, slowly squatted down, and tried her best to make her voice sound calm, but there was a hint of complex emotions that could not be completely concealed.

"Don't be afraid," she said softly, looking into those blue eyes filled with fear. "I won't... pull out your scales."

-

The soft voice drifted in the mist, like a stone thrown into a deep pool. It did not stir up any ripples of trust, but instead deepened the fear beneath the water.

Cangli's deep blue eyes were fixed on Wen Yin, but there was no sign of relaxation in them.

It seemed that Wen Yin's words were just a new trick to him, or a hypocritical comfort before a longer torture.

Wen Yin looked at the scar on Cangli's shoulder, raised her hand and pointed, but before she could ask, this simple action made Cangli's body suddenly stiffen.

He almost immediately struggled to half-raise himself from the water, his wet blue hair sticking to his pale cheeks and bare chest, with water droplets sliding down his firm muscle lines.

He looked at her with caution and fear.

He seemed to think Wen Yin wanted to do something to him.

The next second, she saw Cangli giving her an extremely stiff, flattering smile.

He even tried to move his scarred, dark blue scaly tail that sank to the bottom of the water, but the pain made his face turn pale in an instant, and his movements turned into tiny, painful spasms.

He raised a pale, slender hand, trembling, and stretched it out towards Wen Yin cautiously.

The fingertips with webbed membranes gently touched Wen Yin's raised hand, and then quickly retracted, like a frightened mimosa.

But his eyes were fixed on Wen Yin, with a sacrificial, heart-wrenching humility.

As if to say: Don't hurt me, I can still... please you.

Wen Yin's hand stopped in mid-air.

It's not like she had never seen darkness before, but the naked and desperate struggle for survival based on species and the crushing power of pure tyranny carried a cruelty of another dimension.

She withdrew her hand silently, and her voice was a little dry when she spoke.

"This water..." She pointed to the bathtub, "is fresh water. Is it... bad for you?"

She remembered that mermaids were deep-sea creatures, and freshwater environments might not be suitable for them.

Cangli obviously didn't expect her to ask this.

He blinked blankly, his long eyelashes still drenched in water. Fresh water? Disadvantages?

He seemed not to dare to hesitate for too long and immediately shook his head vigorously.

The movement was so large that it affected the wound on his shoulder blade. He groaned and his face turned even paler.

Wen Yin looked at him with a pale face and shaking head, and said nothing more.

Then she turned and left the bathroom.

The bathroom door was closed but not locked.

Wen Yin felt a little tired.

She didn't know if it was because she didn't get enough rest, or because the shaking waves made her drowsy, but at this moment she just wanted to have a good rest.

She walked to the four-poster bed with dark blue velvet curtains, and didn't even have the energy to think about whether the seaweed and shell carvings on the headboard were still "watching" her.

She simply took off the shell mask on her face and threw it on the bedside table, revealing the beautiful and gentle face underneath the mask, which was obviously tired.

She didn't even bother to change out of her dark blue evening gown. She just took off her restrictive high heels, lifted the silky quilt, and lay down in it with her clothes on.

The soft mattress wrapped her up, and outside the window was the deep and boundless night with occasional flashes of light, which she couldn't tell whether they were stars or lights from a cruise ship.

[028, alert. ]

She issued a final instruction in her mind, her voice thick with weariness.

[Roger that, host.] 028's childish voice also softened.

Wen Yin quickly fell into a light sleep, her breathing becoming even and long. However, even in her sleep, her brows were slightly furrowed, as if she could not find peace in her dreams.

There was dead silence in the bathroom.

There was only the faint sound of water dripping from Cangli's body back into the bathtub.

Cangli maintained the posture of sinking to the bottom of the water for a long, long time.

There were no footsteps.

There was no sound of the door opening.

There was no expected torture.

There was only a silence that left him feeling helpless.

He carefully and very slowly floated up a little, revealing only a pair of eyes, and looked cautiously through the frosted glass door towards the bedroom. He could only see the vague outline of a figure lying on the bed.

After confirming that Wen Yin's breathing was steady and she had fallen into a deep sleep, the panic, flattery, and humility in the pair of blue eyes in the bathtub quickly faded away like the tide.

Instead, there was a bottomless, cold and focused gaze.

The look no longer belonged to a frightened mermaid captive, but more like that of a being sitting high on the throne.

Through the glass, he examined the rare and incomprehensible prey he had captured unexpectedly.

After a long while, his dark blue tail fin swayed gracefully in the water a few times. Counting the steady breathing of the human on the bed, he leaned against the edge of the bathtub and closed his eyes.