Upon seeing such a strange person, Yu Qiqi and the others immediately looked at him warily.
How could there be such a person in the world, carrying a coffin back and forth?
Shi Ke looked at Ruan Xiyan, "I didn't expect it to be you."
Ruan Xiyan frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Hand over the carp." Shi Ke said, each word distinct, his eyes flashing with hostility.
"Li'er?" Ruan Xiyan asked, puzzled. "I don't understand what you're saying."
"Since you don't understand, I'll beat you until you do." A blue trident appeared in Shi Ke's hand, with water seemingly flowing on it, making it look incredibly lifelike.
"You've been following us, and now you're spouting nonsense, trying to shift the blame onto us." Yu Qiqi stood with her hands on her hips, glaring angrily at this unreasonable person.
Just as their battle was about to break out, Ah Li's voice suddenly came from the Wind Spirit Space.
"Brother Shi! Master, it's Brother Shi."
Judging from what A-Li said, it seemed that she knew the man in black robes in front of her, so Ruan Xiyan released it from her spatial storage.
Nourished by the Fountain of Life in the space, Ah Li gradually regained her strength and is now able to briefly leave the water.
Ah Li used her strength to levitate herself in the air at a height equivalent to that of a person.
A-Li's gaze immediately focused on Shi Ke. It really hadn't misheard; it was Brother Shi!
When Shi Ke saw A Li, his face was full of excitement. "Li'er."
"Brother Shi!" Ali immediately flew to Shi Ke's side.
Shi Ke carefully reached out his hand and let A Li land in his palm.
Seeing Ah Li's appearance, Shi Ke's voice was filled with disbelief and heartache, "Li'er, how did you become like this?"
He sensed the faint power within Ah Li. "Your power is so weak that you can't even maintain your human form? Li'er, what happened? Did these humans imprison you?"
"I had already seen this human before, but I still missed you. If only I could have found you sooner."
"That way you won't suffer so much. It's my fault for being so useless, finding you so late."
Listening to Shi Ke's rambling, A Li quickly interrupted him, "Brother Shi, have you misunderstood something?"
“Since I met my master, I have not suffered at all, and my master has not imprisoned me. Look, haven’t I been well taken care of by my master?”
Upon hearing this, Shi Ke carefully examined Ali and then nodded seriously, "She has indeed gained weight."
Not only has it gained weight, but even the scales on its body have a bright sheen, which shows how well it's been eating.
"Brother Shi, don't you have any manners? How can you say a girl is fat?" Ali said unhappily. "It's been so long since we last met, and Brother Shi is still such a blockhead, so oblivious."
A girl can say she's fat herself, but she shouldn't let others say it.
"I misspoke, Li'er isn't fat at all." Shi Ke quickly corrected himself, his desire to survive was strong.
She suddenly realized what she meant and exclaimed, "Master? What master! Where did this master come from? Li'er, you have a master!"
Ah Li replied, "That beautiful lady is my master."
"No, no! How can you recognize a human as your master? This is such a big deal, do your parents even know?" Shi Ke spun around in place, looking anxious.
"Have you forgotten what I taught you since you were little? Humans are all treacherous and skilled at disguise. With your naive nature, you wouldn't even know if you were being sold out."
Ah Li glared angrily at Shi Ke, "I won't allow you to talk about my master like that. My master is not the kind of human you're talking about."
"I followed my master and saw many things I had never known before. There are indeed many bad people on land, but there are also many good people like my master."
"If it weren't for my master, I would have died long ago. How could I still be alive now?"
"Brother Shi, you must apologize to my master, or I will ignore you," A-Li said angrily.
"Grandma, little ancestor, I shouldn't have spoken to your master like that. I was wrong, I apologize. Alright, alright, don't get angry." Shi Ke continued, following A Li's words.
He looked at Ruan Xiyan standing there and said, "I'm sorry, I didn't understand the situation. I sounded a little anxious just now. My name is Shi Ke. Thank you for taking care of Li'er during this time."
“Ali is my companion, it’s only right that I take care of it,” Ruan Xiyan replied.
"It was all a misunderstanding. Let's all disperse," Sikong Jian said, looking at the disciples who had gathered there on guard.
"Miss Ruan, you all please have your conversation first."
Sikong Jian wisely left without lingering; it wasn't appropriate for him to eavesdrop on their conversation.
It would be terrible if he accidentally overheard something he shouldn't have, as he was no match for that powerful and mysterious adult.
Ruan Xiyan and the others sat down on the chairs. A Li only clung to Shi Ke for a while before running to Ruan Xiyan's side.
"Ah Li, is he your family?" Ruan Xiyan asked.
“Master, Brother Shi is someone I grew up with. I am from the Koi clan, and Brother Shi is from the Mermaid clan. Our two clans are neighbors and have been on good terms for generations.”
"Mermaids?" Ruan Xiyan and the others exclaimed in surprise.
No wonder she felt his aura was strange when she met him before; he wasn't human after all.
"So this is what merfolk look like?" Yu Qiqi asked with curiosity.
"Brother Shi, what are you doing here?" A-Li looked at Shi Ke. "Your coming-of-age ceremony is over? No, it's not time yet."
"You haven't completed the Mermaid Ceremony yet, how did you get ashore? This is too dangerous!" Ah Li asked anxiously.
Merfolk are a unique race among sea creatures; they can shed tears that turn into pearls, and they have human bodies and fish tails.
They possess human-like faces without needing to transform, and merfolk are generally exceptionally handsome.
Merfolk cannot leave the ocean from birth; if they do, they will quickly dehydrate and die.
Only after reaching a certain age and passing the coming-of-age ceremony held by their tribe can they grow legs and walk freely on land, indistinguishable from humans.
"Don't worry, Li'er, I have a way." Shi Ke said as he put down the coffin on his back and slowly pushed open the coffin lid.
Ruan Xiyan and the others were all drawn to it, wanting to see what was inside the coffin that he never parted with.
When they opened it, they found the coffin filled with clear water.
"This is... water?" Luo Wanyin tilted her head and asked hesitantly.
Yu Qiqi rubbed her eyes, then looked closer and tentatively asked, "This isn't ordinary water, is it?"
"You're right, this is definitely not ordinary water, it's seawater."
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