Invasive Experiments (Part Two)
Two hundred and fifty-three years ago.
The Western Sea. 23,787 meters below sea level.
Temple ruins.
Hundreds of long, silvery shadows with human torsos and fish tails darted around the underwater volcano, their slender arms outstretched towards the center, like mayflies drawn to fireflies.
“Our distant ancestors…”
The high priest, with his white hair and beard, held a staff with his tail curled up, his ear fins standing up high, and his hands resting on the "altar" located in the very center.
—It's called an altar, but it's really just a large depression, similar to a dormant volcano crater. However, for the entire tribe, its significance far outweighs the lives of any individual.
"Distant ancestors...please protect the holy descendants!"
"—Please protect the descendants of the saint!"
"—Please protect the descendants of the saint!"
...
All the mermaids raised their hands in unison, maximizing their "spiritual power." The figure lying in the center of the altar stirred slightly, as if about to awaken—
"He..."
The younger elders hesitated for a moment, then looked at the high priest and whispered, "Why haven't they differentiated yet?"
The high priest suddenly opened his eyes. His now cloudy blue eyes were fixed on the snow-white, almost transparent shadow. Even from his angle, he could only see the long, swirling silver tail, still slender and delicate.
Seven days have passed. In their entire lives, they have never before failed to complete differentiation in seven days. This is extremely strange!
“This is truly an ominous sign,” another elder said. “High Priest, a similar thing happened more than a thousand years ago, that time…”
He didn't say anything more.
One thousand one hundred years ago, the largest internal strife in mermaid history erupted. In that conflict, the Golden Scale Clan decisively defeated the Silver Scale Clan and the Void Sea, forcing the Silver Scale Clan to flee to the Western Sea, leaving only fewer than three hundred survivors. And that wasn't the end of it; for the next thousand years, the Golden Scale Clan has still not let these remaining Silver Scales go—
Perhaps they feared that once the enemy had a chance to catch their breath, they would recuperate and seek revenge for the annihilation of their clan. Or perhaps it was simply because the Golden Scale Clan loved territory—and territory, of course, the bigger and more the better.
The Silver Scale Clan had considered retaliating. However, to retaliate, they first needed sufficient strength. The problem lay here: against the Golden Scale Clan, the Silver Scale Clan was utterly powerless. Not only were their numbers less than one percent of the Golden Scale Clan's, but even their most formidable asset—superior spiritual power—was insufficient to rely on.
Now……
Now, Ceresis, the child chosen by the "oracle" once again after a thousand years... how could she have encountered such misfortune once more...?
"Ancestors, bless us," the high priest murmured in sorrow. "Silverscale can no longer withstand any more changes—"
"Ancestor! He has differentiated... differentiated!"
At the same moment, the mermaid on the altar finally began to "change." Her previously coiled tail slowly unfurled, and then…
Originally just over two meters long, it gradually lengthened and thickened. The narrow tail fin grew larger and wider, its color gradually changing from pure white to a shimmering, iridescent sheen…
It's like petals on land are blooming rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"He..."
"...It's been transformed! It's been transformed!!"
"It's male...!"
At the cry of "It's male," all the mermaids stopped swimming, their postures stiff, drifting aimlessly in the water like lifeless fallen leaves.
It's over.
It's completely over.
——————————
The effects of the anesthesia finally wore off.
When Shen Huai'an regained consciousness, Yunhe was applying medicine to him.
Because her wound needed careful treatment, she had already crawled into the cage, curled up into a small ball, her forehead covered in sweat—even though the lab was actually running cold air.
Shen Huai'an opened his eyes slightly. The wounds on his tail were excruciatingly painful. He subconsciously lifted his tail, only to let out a heavy groan of pain!
"...Ah, you're awake."
Yunhe's voice was a little hoarse, with a barely perceptible sob. Shen Huai'an's gaze first fell on the newly bandaged wound on his tail, then returned to her face.
“Yunhe”.
He felt very tired and didn't have the energy to continue with the polite formalities, so he simply said in a very soft voice, "Don't worry, I'm fine."
The second sentence was: "So? Your 'stock' is mine now."
"you--"
Yunhe was amused by his words. She wasn't stupid; she knew Shen Huai'an was trying to comfort her, so she retorted irritably, "Still joking! Do you know how much flesh was ripped out of you? It's almost big enough to cook a dish!"
“Xiaoyun,” Shen Huai’an coughed weakly, but his eyes narrowed slightly with an ambiguous look: “I remember, your graduate major was heterogeneous genetics.”
"..." Yunhe paused in his movements. What did this mean?
However, Shen Huai'an's mention of it brought it up, and she did remember. There was a time when she had "mooched" off Shen Huai'an's research group to boost her performance, and perhaps she hadn't even noticed it herself, just casually mentioning it?
"Um," she scratched her head sheepishly, "it's my major, but..." Her voice trailed off, "...I forgot everything I learned after I started working..."
Shen Huai'an didn't speak. He simply moved the wound, which he hadn't had time to treat, slightly outward, drawing her attention involuntarily.
His wounds... were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Mermaids possess healing abilities second only to vampires among all other species. Damn! How could she have forgotten that!
"Even if you have a strong self-healing ability," she stubbornly insisted, "it will still hurt..."
Yunhe.
She heard him say in his heart, "From the day I became like this, this was the situation I was destined to face. You know that too, don't you?"
She choked up.
So he continued, "Don't meddle in my affairs too much; it won't do you any good."
I know. She thought to herself, even though my intuition tells me you're hiding a lot from me and have been using me, you still shouldn't be treated like this! Don't you?
Now it was Shen Huai'an's turn to be speechless.
And I like you! I've liked you for a long time—no, no, no, I haven't! Ahhhhhh, how did I blurt out my true feelings?! Oh yeah, isn't this exactly what I felt?! Waaaaaah, so embarrassing! My toes are practically digging out a whole luxury mansion! ...
Shen Huai'an: "..."
Yunhe: "..."
The man and the fish stood facing each other in silence. After a long while...
"Um, I..."
I heard it.
Shen Huai'an's expression seemed somewhat complicated. He looked at her with an expression that could be described as sympathy and pity, and continued to transmit his thoughts: Of course, if you feel uncomfortable, I can pretend I didn't hear anything.
Yunhe: "..." _(:з」∠)_
It's over.
It's completely over.
They went too far.
—She should have thought of this from the beginning. This kind of communication, where you speak your mind, can easily lead to revealing your deepest secrets to others. She should have realized this sooner.
There was another moment of silence. Silence is Cambridge tonight (no).
Yeah, so what if I have a crush on you!
Having figured out the pros and cons of all the issues, the cloud researcher simply lay down on the spot, bending wherever she pleased. She pressed the antiseptic cotton firmly against his wound, causing him to groan in pain again: "..."
Now they were speechless again.
There's something I must say upfront. Shen Huai'an sighed silently, "Mermaids and humans are reproductively isolated, you know that, right?"
Yunhe: "..."
She genuinely didn't know. Wait, why did he suddenly bring this up?!
"Are you crazy?!" she cursed inwardly. She spoke loud enough to ensure Shen Huai'an could hear her clearly even through telepathy. And so, she immediately got what she wanted, hearing Shen Huai'an laugh and say:
I was just kidding, and you actually believed me?
Yunhe: "...!"
"Hmm! Ugh!" Er Gou from the next pool was making a ruckus again. This artificial mermaid, for some unknown reason, suddenly became unusually excited. Yun He subconsciously glanced back at it, only to hear Shen Huai'an sigh, "It's being interfered with by pheromones."
Yunhe immediately and subconsciously asked, "Pheromone?"
Shen Huai'an nodded and said frankly, "Mine."
Yunhe was so startled by his two casual words that she almost fell off her chair!
"The inhibitor I mentioned before," Shen Huai'an said calmly, but his ear fins had already turned a vibrant pink, "has it been approved?"
Yunhe immediately realized what was happening, and hurriedly climbed out of the cage again, running to the desk to grab the inhibitor she had just received: "..."
Her hand was halfway outstretched, but she hesitated to place the inhibitor in his hand. Shen Huai'an raised an eyebrow slightly: "What?"
“This thing,” she swallowed, “that might… affect that, that ability.”
Inhibitors are equivalent to chemical castration. If used excessively, they might prevent future offspring...
“I know.” He nodded confidently. “Give it to me.”
——————————
Li Liguo's "absence" lasted for less than half a month.
When he reappeared, he was beaming with pride and smugness. Shen Huai'an seemed unsurprised, so much so that he didn't even bother to lift his eyelashes as he entered, simply continuing to drink his nutrient solution.
"I've been very busy with official duties lately, please forgive me!"
Li Liguo laughed heartily, and a lewd hand casually patted his shoulder through the cage (the part without glass): "Thanks to your help, Chief Shen, it's a success!"
Have you achieved any results?
As Yunhe typed her report, her ears perked up. What results? A very bad feeling suddenly crept into her heart.
"However, this achievement is currently only in the theoretical stage." She could even hear Li Liguo rubbing his hands excitedly like a fly buzzing around: "To put it into practice, we'll need your help, Brother Shen, ahahaha..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
