Chapter 55: Eternal Daylight (19) Nightmare
Wen Yin's consciousness was still immersed in Cangli's desperate blue eyes. The picture in front of her eyes suddenly twisted and shook, and the scene changed instantly.
Feeling of suffocation.
This was Wen Yin’s first feeling.
It's not the suffocation from breathing, but the suffocation of the senses from being trapped in a small space.
As far as the eye could see, there was a blurry and swaying curved transparent glass cover, which tightly confined her in the narrow cylindrical space.
She was still attached to Cangyu's body, looking at everything around her from his perspective.
In the turbid sea water, the young mermaid's body was fixed to the inner wall of the container, unable to move.
With a slight struggle, the chains on his neck and wrists made a dull sound, and the skin on his wrists was rubbed and bleeding.
A flexible tube connected to an external instrument was piercing a major blood vessel at the base of the tail fin, and dark red blood was flowing out continuously and slowly.
It was Cangyu, who was also caught.
Blinking slowly, Wen Yin could feel the extreme weakness and numbness of this body.
He twisted his neck very slowly, and his sight finally fixed on the glass tank next to him.
There, Cangli was imprisoned.
Wen Yin had no idea how long the time jump had lasted, maybe a few months or maybe a few years.
She saw that Cangli's originally gorgeous blue scales had almost completely lost their luster and become dull.
His long, sea-blue hair floated witheredly in the water. His eyes were tightly closed, and his chest rose and fell only very faintly, as if he would stop breathing completely in the next second.
Yu Guangzhong, two staff members wearing white protective suits, masks and gloves came over.
Stopped in front of the container containing Cangli.
They quickly turned off the blood-drawing device connected to Cangli.
Then he opened the lid of the container and used a special scoop net to fish out the soft and unresponsive Cangli from the water and placed it flat on a stainless steel operating table next to him.
The operating table had a cold metallic luster, which formed a sharp contrast with Cangli's pale skin.
He lay there limply, his tail drooping slightly unconsciously.
"This one doesn't work either. It's drained."
A staff member spoke indifferently, his voice muffled through the mask.
"Well, for the record, number 077. The blood has been drained, but the scales can't be wasted."
Another one took over and picked up a tool similar to pliers from the tool bench next to him.
"It's said above that these scales must be removed when there's still a bit of life energy left. This is for the best results, as they maintain their vitality and can be used for high-end skincare or ground into medicine. Those bigwigs love them very much."
When Wen Yin heard this, she felt a chill suddenly come over her.
As soon as he finished speaking, the staff member used pliers to clamp a larger scale on Cangli's tail without hesitation and exerted force suddenly.
“Swish!”
An extremely slight yet extremely sharp tearing sound rang out in the empty space.
The scale was torn off the skin, revealing the bright red tender flesh underneath that was slightly bleeding.
On the operating table, Cangli, who was barely breathing, suddenly twitched.
His tail weakly slapped the metal countertop, making a slight muffled sound.
The pair of tightly closed eyes trembled and opened a crack, and big turbid tears kept pouring out from the corners of the eyes, mixing with the water stains on the table and dripping onto the cold ground.
The former agility and vitality have disappeared, leaving only despair and pain of being at the mercy of others.
"Hurry up, while there's still some reaction."
The first staff member urged, his tone unchanged.
The clamp dropped again.
One piece after another...
“Swish… swish…”
That teeth-grinding sound continued to ring out.
Cangli's body trembled slightly with every tear, the twitching of her tail became weaker and weaker, but her tears seemed to never stop flowing.
Just as the staff tore off the last larger scale near his waist and abdomen, Cangli seemed to have used up his last bit of strength and turned his head with great difficulty.
His blue eyes, which had completely dimmed and lost focus, looked far away in the direction of Cangyu.
There was no resentment or fear in those eyes, only endless sorrow and reluctance, and a very faint trace of apology.
It seemed as if he was saying that he couldn't hold on any longer.
After one glance, the last glimmer of light in Cangli's eyes was completely extinguished.
His eyes slowly closed.
The last rise and fall of his chest returned to calm.
The staff seemed to have completed their task. They threw the tongs, which were covered with tiny pieces of blood, flesh and scales, into the disinfection box.
"Alright, throw it back. The cold storage is full for now, so put it back in the tank and keep it at low temperature. It's a treasure, so it can't be wasted if it dies."
A staff member said casually, as if handling an ordinary fish.
They lifted up Cangli's cold body, which had become a bloody mess, especially the tail, which had almost no intact skin, and threw it back into the glass tank where he was originally imprisoned, just like throwing away garbage.
The corpse sank into the dark blue water and floated slowly. The long hair spread out like seaweed, covering the pale and tender face that was no longer alive.
"Alas, these mermaids are really good things. Their blood can reverse aging, their scales can be made into treasures, and even their bones can be ground into powder... But they are too fragile. The higher-ups are in too much of a hurry to get them. Otherwise, it would be much better to raise them slowly and enjoy a long-term relationship."
Another staff member sighed as he sorted out his tools.
Their conversation was cold and utilitarian, and it stung Wen Yin's heart.
Wen Yin felt as if all the blood in his body had frozen.
She saw her vision shaking violently. It was Cangyu who was frantically banging his head against the inner wall of the glass that trapped him!
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The dull sound of impact echoed in the small space.
Through the reflection of the shaking glass wall, Wen Yin only saw Cangyu's face filled with endless pain, hatred and despair.
The scene before my eyes once again spun and reassembled like a broken lens.
The blinding pale white light suddenly pierced into my eyes.
Wen Yin subconsciously wanted to close her eyes, but because the perspective was following her, she could only open her eyes like Cangyu.
His sight slowly focused, and he saw a complex shadowless lamp hanging above him. Multiple bulbs emitted a pale light, exposing everything on the operating table.
The lamp body is made of polished metal, smooth as a mirror.
Wen Yin saw through the reflective mirror that "herself" was lying on her back on an operating table.
The pungent smell of disinfectant penetrated my nose.
At the edge of the field of vision, several figures wearing masks and rubber gloves were swaying, and there was a crisp and cold sound of metal instruments colliding.
"...There aren't many males left. After No. 077, there aren't many worthwhile ones left."
A slightly tired male voice sounded, coming through the mask.
"Most of them die completely after their blood is drawn, or like those before, they starve themselves to death. It's such a waste of resources."
"That's why the higher-ups are so anxious for us to complete the matching extraction as soon as possible."
Another voice answered, with a businesslike indifference.
"The success rate of egg extraction from females isn't very high. We've finally found a few compatible eggs. We need to quickly extract the sperm from the males and try artificial insemination. Otherwise, the 'supply' will be completely cut off."
Wen Yin's heart sank.
It turns out that they not only drain the blood of adult mermaids, but also use them as breeding fish and artificially cultivate the next generation, just to continue this bloody industrial chain.
Through the reflection of the light bulb above her head, she could see several figures in white coats surrounding "her" waist and abdomen.
You can see their gloved hands and the cold metal instruments in their hands.
There was also Cangyu's jet-black fishtail, and the area where the tail connected to the upper body, which was covered with dense scales...
"This one looks quite young, with a jet-black tail. It should be of good quality. I hope we can successfully obtain enough active ones this time."
The first voice said, seemingly observing.
"Tsk, what a bother! The scales are closing too tightly. They're not cooperating at all."
Another voice complained, its tone tinged with impatience.
"As usual, give him a shot of a mixture of aphrodisiac and muscle relaxant, but increase the dosage."
As soon as he finished speaking, someone injected several tubes of medicine into the blood vessels on Cangyu's tail.
Soon, Wen Yin heard a difficult groan from "his" throat.
Through the distorted reflection above, Wen Yin could only see the area covered with dense, inky black scales, which, under the powerful effect of the drug, opened extremely slowly and humiliatingly...
"Alright! It's on! Quick, get the collector ready!"
The staff member's voice carried a hint of urging success.
Then, in the reflected image, an instrument of unknown material came into contact with it...
"Damn it! If only these monsters could mate on their own, it would save us a lot of trouble."
A staff member complained softly while operating.
"But they are all so fierce that they would rather die than cooperate, forcing us to resort to this laborious manual method."
"Haha, that's right."
Another voice laughed vulgarly.
"But seriously, these things look really weird..."
"Shut up! Concentrate on the operation! There must be no contamination during the collection process!"
The first voice sternly interrupted the obscene banter.
Those cold and filthy words, and the blurry but recognizable images of the humiliating operation being carried out on the metal lampshade above her head, doubly stimulated Wen Yin's nerves.
Her perspective was controlled by Cangyu, and she stared motionlessly at the lamp on the operating table from beginning to end, staring at the distorted yet cruel real-time image reflected on the smooth surface.
The light hurt his eyes and his vision began to blur, but Cangyu didn't even blink.
It seems that only through this almost self-abuse "viewing" can the hatred and humiliation of the moment be engraved more deeply into the bone marrow.
All struggles are in vain and all resistance is crushed.
Even the most instinctive reactions and the most private parts of the body are manipulated by drugs and are operated and commented on like objects.
In this cold white light and the voices of people talking, Cangyu's soul seemed to have been extracted, leaving only an empty shell.
However, in this extreme numbness and despair.
Wen Yin suddenly felt a line of hot liquid sliding uncontrollably from the corner of "her" eyes and quickly sinking into the wet hair at her temples.
The image in his sight shattered and distorted again. The image switched, and an extremely harsh alarm sounded in Wen Yin's ears.
The red fire alarm indicator light was spinning and flashing wildly in sight, and thick, choking black smoke was pouring into the cabin from the vents and door cracks.
The air was filled with the acrid smell of burning, melting plastic, and a heavier smell of smoke.
Wen Yin, through Cangyu's gaze, looked through the glass container and saw that the originally orderly laboratory outside had fallen into chaos.
The staff in white coats were running around in panic, shouting something.
The sounds of important documents being gathered, items being knocked over, and the crackling of flames intertwined.
"Quick! Evacuate! There's a short circuit in cabin number three and it's on fire. The fire is out of control!"
A panicked voice shouted at the top of its lungs.
"What should we do with these mermaids?! There are still quite a few!"
Another voice, hesitant and alarmed, pointed to the rows of glass containers.
"I can't care less! Life is more important!"
A voice that sounded like the one in charge roared back, its tone sharp and cold.
"If these things die, they're dead! They're rare, but as long as the sea isn't dry, we can always catch new ones! Don't dawdle, hurry up and leave! Your life is at stake!"
"But……"
"No buts! The hatch is about to lock automatically! If we don't leave now, we'll all be grilled fish! Go!"
The staff no longer hesitated and rushed to the exit. The sound of their footsteps hurriedly faded away and soon disappeared in the thick smoke and alarms.
The heavy hatch in the distance began to slowly descend, completely isolating the last escape route and turning this space into a heating furnace filled with poisonous smoke.
The temperature is rising rapidly.
Outside the glass container, the flames grew brighter and the black smoke thicker, almost blocking all vision.
Wen Yin followed Cang Yu's gaze and scanned several adjacent containers with difficulty.
The few remaining dying mermaids inside seemed to realize that the end was coming.
But their reaction was unexpectedly calm.
No struggle, no crying.
Some simply slowly opened their dim eyes and quietly gazed at the approaching firelight outside the cabin door. In those eyes, there was no pain, no fear, only a deadly calmness and a twisted sense of relief.
Finally, it can be over.
These are the days of being exploited, humiliated, and treated as objects.
The flames finally engulfed the hatch and poured into the space violently.
The high temperature caused the glass container to begin to crack under the weight!
“Crack…bang!”
One container after another exploded in the heat wave!
The mermaids trapped in it seemed to even have a peaceful smile on their faces the moment the flames licked them, but were quickly engulfed by the flames.
Heat waves, thick smoke, and the smell of death hit us in the face...
-
“Huh…”
Wen Yin took a deep breath, like a drowning person finally emerging from the water.
She sat up from the bed and found that what she saw was no longer the sea of fire, but the bedroom she was familiar with.
Outside the window was the calm sea, as if nothing had happened.
But her face was already wet, and tears were flowing uncontrollably from her eyes, dripping onto the velvet quilt.
Spread out large wet marks.
She was breathing slightly, and the light and shadow of the flames and the desperate yet relieved eyes of the mermaids seemed to still linger in front of her eyes.
Wen Yin suddenly woke up from her dream, breathing rapidly, her face pale, and especially with traces of tears on her face.
028 An anxious voice immediately rang in his mind: [Host, what's wrong with you? Did you have a nightmare?]
Wen Yin's heart was pounding wildly, and the aftermath of extreme pain and despair still lingered around her.
It took her a long time to finally separate the palpitating pain in her heart from reality.
She subconsciously turned her head to look in the direction of the bathroom, her voice trembling with a barely perceptible tremor.
[Where is Cangli?]
[He's fine! He's fine, just staying in the bathtub.]
028 quickly replied, trying to comfort her.
[Host, what on earth did you dream about? Your emotions are fluctuating...too much.]
Hearing that Cangli was safe and sound, Wen Yin's nerves, which were still extremely tense after waking up from the dream, relaxed a little.
She gently raised her hand, wiped away the tears on her face, and looked at the blue sea outside the window with a somewhat empty gaze.
Memories of last night gradually returned.
The sudden appearance of the boat owner Cangyu, that cold and powerful kiss, and... the warm blood that was ferried over.
[It’s Cangyu’s blood…]
Wen Yin's voice sounded a little tired.
[His blood allowed me to see what he had been through.]
She did not describe the scene in the dream in detail, but just let out a breath.
What happened after I fell unconscious?
[Host, wait a moment. I'll play it back for you!]
028 responded: [After you fell unconscious, I used a powerful item to calm your mind and spirit, but... it wasn't very effective against the blood of a 'strange creature' of that level, and you remained in a deep coma.]
As the words fell, the images recorded by 028 began to emerge in Wen Yin's mind.
In the picture, her eyes were closed, her face was flushed, and her breathing was rapid. She was obviously in a coma caused by the kiss and blood.
Cangyu had returned to his human form and was standing beside the bed. His tall figure loomed over her, his gaze lingering on her face for a long time.
Cangli quietly hugged Wen Yin, with his dark blue fish tail coiled around her human legs.
He raised his head slightly and looked at his brother, his eyes filled with inquiry and a hint of dependence.
After a long time, Cangyu slowly spoke. His voice was so low and distorted through the video.
"The pure human body, fragile and short-lived."
"If you can't become an immortal like us," he paused, his fingertips gently wiping the corners of his lips, which were still stained with dark red blood, "then becoming a mermaid with a long lifespan is not a bad option."
His gaze turned to Cangli, his tone calm and deep.
"Ari, take good care of her."
After saying this, he did not linger, turned around and merged into the shadows, leaving the room silently.
After Cangyu left, Cangli did not do anything out of the ordinary. He just gently embraced Wenyin, who was still unconscious and feverish, into his cool and broad arms.
He gently rubbed his chin against the top of her head and stared at her without blinking in the night, as if guarding some precious and fragile treasure.
He used his body heat to cool her down, listening to her breathing gradually steadying.
It was not until the deep inky sky outside the window gradually faded away and a hazy fish belly white appeared on the horizon that Cangli reluctantly and carefully let go of his arm.
Finally, Wen Yin saw Cangli in the picture slowly lower her head and gave her an extremely gentle kiss, almost without any lust, on her forehead covered with fine beads of sweat.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com