The Undersea Adventures of the Little Jellyfish (JELLYFISH)
They say all mermaids are lovestruck fools. Tang You believed it now.
As he tended to the mermaid’s wound, he muttered, "You have no idea how precious mermaid blood is."
Shen Jixiao, in high spirits, thought of the bounty on his head. "My life is pretty valuable too."
"No one’s life is cheap," Tang You tapped the mermaid’s forehead again with his psychic energy. "So, did you find any leads?"
The metal chain had been torn from the Chimera’s flesh. After cleaning it, they found a tag at the end, engraved with intricate patterns.
"These patterns are symbols of the Sea God."
"Sea God?" Tang You was puzzled. "We don’t have gods here."
"It’s a deity worshipped in the eastern coastal regions—just a belief." Shen Jixiao gripped the tag. "From what I know, only sailors on long voyages carry these, praying for safe passage."
So the Chimera must have originally been a sailor.
"Maybe we can look for clues up there."
The crew’s quarters were above.
"…I have a bad feeling about this," Tang You suddenly said. "The Chimera is coming."
The mermaid and jellyfish turned just in time to see a massive maw faintly emerging from the darkness.
Once spotted, the Chimera seemed to abandon all pretense, flicking its tail a few times before charging straight at them. It moved terrifyingly fast—from the moment they saw it appear in the distance to feeling the currents from its rapid approach, only two or three seconds had passed.
"Get out! Swim for the exit!"
Tang You felt the world spin violently around him as Shen Jixiao pulled him forward. He tumbled uncontrollably, fearing he was about to become a jellyfish roll again.
One moment, he caught glimpses of Shen Jixiao’s mermaid tail; the next, he saw the monstrous maw chasing them from behind. Whimpering pitifully, Tang You soon lost all sense of direction, only aware that the mermaid was likely swimming upward.
When he regained his bearings, he saw Shen Jixiao gripping the mast and snapping it with force, with its sharpened end now aimed at the creature.
"Ah!" The little jellyfish panicked. "Mermaid, you’re not planning to fight it head-on, are you?!"
Shen Jixiao didn’t respond, but his stance made it clear—he was ready to face the beast directly.
Yet the chimera didn’t charge immediately.
After bursting from the ship’s hold, it moved cautiously with its tail flicking repeatedly, betraying a hint of barely perceptible anxiety. The tiny lure atop its head swayed erratically and its once-deadly trap now rendered almost comical.
This time, they had cast numerous illumination spells, revealing the chimera’s true form—a massive deep-sea anglerfish dominated its body, while the other fused creatures were little more than appendages.
The anglerfish’s mouth was grotesque, capable of expanding to nearly its own size. When fully opened, it could create a vortex strong enough to suck in prey smaller than itself. Its teeth were sharp and inward-curving, designed to ensure no escape.
By all accounts, the anglerfish was an ambush predator. But this one, as the chimera’s core and bore a shark’s tail—streamlined and powerful, built for speed.
Blood seeped steadily from its side, the wound sizable.
In a flash, Tang You recalled Shen Jixiao mentioning he had torn chains from the chimera’s body—was this injury his doing?
Just before collision, the anglerfish twisted away, circling beneath them. Its faint lure began pulsing rhythmically.
No attack came, but Tang You and Shen Jixiao grew even warier.
"There’s traces of magic flowing," Tang You said. "This chimera can cast spells."
Shen Jixiao: "The original chimera must have been a human mage."
"What kind of magic is this…?" Tang You extended his psychic senses.
His nerves tightened. This foolish mermaid beside him clearly hadn’t specialized in magic, and Tang You himself wasn’t particularly skilled either. If they faced a powerful offensive spell, they’d be done for.
Below, the faint glow pulsed with an eerie rhythm, growing brighter until it flooded their vision like an inverted sun and moon.
"Careful—it’s an illusion," Shen Jixiao’s voice warned.
The scene shifted abruptly.
...
Tang You saw intricate instruments pointing to data he couldn’t comprehend.
Before him was a one-way window, revealing the storm-laden sea outside.
...He barely remembered what the ocean’s surface looked like. As a jellyfish, a creature of the depths, he was never meant to breach the waves.
Shen Jixiao had vanished. Within the illusion, they could become anything—but any harm suffered here would translate to real wounds.
Yet Tang You wasn’t overly afraid of illusions. He possessed rare psychic strength, capable of brute-forcing his way out of common mental traps—given a little time.
But in reality, the chimera was likely already lunging for the kill.
He grew slightly impatient, his mental energy rampaging wildly through the illusion.
"Captain, Captain..." Tang You suddenly heard a human voice.
His perspective shifted uncontrollably.
"What happened?" His own voice was low and deep, carrying authority.
"The No. 2 power furnace in the third engine room has shut down for no apparent reason," the human at the door reported nervously, dressed in what seemed to be a sailor uniform popular two decades ago.
"Understood," the authoritative voice replied. "Wells, is there anything else?"
The sailor named Wells looked hesitant. He was still a young man, and Tang You noticed a chain hanging around his neck—a tag identical to the one Shen Jixiao had picked up, except this one was brand new.
"Captain... do you think we can survive this storm?"
"Of course," came the immediate, unwavering reply.
Yet when the perspective shifted as the captain stood up, Tang You caught sight of the entire room. A half-unrolled scroll lay on the table—depicting the image of a mermaid. It was the Chimera scroll.
Had the "captain" opened it himself?
It didn’t seem so.
Tang You spotted a broken seal of wax near the table, along with a small lamp melting a fresh lump—clearly preparing to reseal it. Perhaps they had discovered a sealing issue while organizing supplies and were fixing it.
The gaze didn’t linger in the room. Tang You realized the perspective was moving toward the door.
Outside stretched a long corridor that was dimly lit by faint yellow lamps along the ceiling.
The deeper it went, the darker it became.
And they were heading straight into that darkness.
A chill ran down Tang You’s spine. He struggled fiercely, refusing to follow the illusion’s will.
But when he finally turned back, the scene changed again.
—Now it was the familiar underwater world.
Much more bearable.
Even if the "self" in the illusion was drowning, with barely a dozen centimeters of air left, about to watch helplessly as the ship—and themselves—were buried beneath the waves.
"Captain... Captain..." The same voice, now frantic. "Why aren’t you on the lifeboat?"
"Wells?" The voice was shocked, bewildered. "Why would you... cough... You came to save me? You shouldn’t have. You’re young, not like me... Ah, the Tarlik is my life. Wells, you... you could have left. Now you’ll die here with this old man."
"Captain... Erik and the others didn’t leave either." Tears streaked Wells’ face. "You always said, ‘As long as the ship stands, so do we’."
Tang You listened quietly. He never stopped trying to break the illusion with his psychic energy while searching for the mermaid.
The mermaid had vanished too, and it took a while before he finally brushed against its consciousness.
"Tang You?"
"It’s me. Are you alright?"
"Yes," the mermaid replied. "I saw those memories too. I know those names—Wells Li’ai, sailor, died at eighteen; Erik Bianmolice, first mate, died at thirty-three; and the captain, Kersey Seod, fifty-four. They all perished in that shipwreck."
Tang You’s psychic energy churned the illusion, making the scenes flicker faster and faster.
The light dimmed gradually.
They sank to the seabed—yet did not die.
From this perspective, he couldn’t see his own transformation, but Tang You guessed the person had already used the Chimera. The way they moved grew more and more like a fish.
Tang You could sense it—they had wanted to save the others. At first, they succeeded. The transformation allowed them to breathe in the deep sea.
But Chimera was, after all, forbidden magic.
Humanity and reason were devoured by savagery, and the Chimera itself fueled a violent desire for battle.
Kill. Devour. Grow stronger. Kill. Devour...
In the end, all that remained was a monster.
"Shen Jixiao, get ready. I'm about to break through this illusion." Tang You had already touched the edge of the illusion and began relentlessly releasing his spiritual energy until it burst through the boundary.
"Sigh."
Tang You heard a voice—aged, weary, no longer commanding.
"Are you the captain?"
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have..." The voice grew faint. "I doomed..."
"You did your best." Tang You slowly withdrew his spiritual energy as he sensed the illusion gradually dissipating. "No life willingly embraces death. All these years, even after losing your sanity, you never left this ship. You kept cleaning the crew's rooms. You still remember them, remember the Tarlik."
"Is that so..."
The illusion collapsed.
"Kill me." The little jellyfish and the merman heard one last clear sentence. "Let my bones rest here."
Back to reality.
The Chimera's gaping maw was right before them.
Shen Jixiao gripped the broken mast, its jagged end sharp. Gathering his strength, he thrust it straight into the Chimera's mouth.
The wood couldn't withstand the force, splintering apart, but Shen Jixiao felt the tip pierce flesh and bone.
When the mast lodged in and couldn't be pulled free, he grabbed a thick iron chain, swinging it with a dull whoosh through the water. The chain's end was weighted with a stone covered in algae. He swung it in a wide arc, smashing the stone against the Chimera's head.
Yet, even after such a heavy blow, the Chimera thrashed harder. Its spine bore the barbed spikes of some unknown fish, its tail fin razor-sharp, slamming violently against the ship's hull. If not for Shen Jixiao pinning it to the wreck, it might have escaped.
The sea turned red with the blood of both creatures.
Shen Jixiao wasn't sure where the Chimera's vital points lay—after devouring so many beings, it might have more than one heart and more than one brain. He could only exhaust his own strength in the fight.
Until there was no more movement.
"It's done." Shen Jixiao panted, nearly too weak to swim upward. He clung to a chain along the ship's edge, slowly pulling himself up.
The little jellyfish popped his head out.
His spiritual energy was also drained.
But as Shen Jixiao ascended, Tang You mustered a final surge of energy to give the merman a lift.
"Thank you." Shen Jixiao looked up.
"No need..." Tang You struggled weakly.
To Shen Jixiao's surprise, he also hauled the Chimera's remains onto the deck.
"Rest for a while, merman," Tang You said.
"Goodnight, Chimera." The little jellyfish solemnly laid the creature on the deck and covered it with strands of seaweed. "Goodnight, anglerfish. Goodnight, shark. Goodnight, little fish..."
"Goodnight, Captain, First Mate, sailors."
......
"Is that your pearl?" After resting, Shen Jixiao spotted something glowing amidst the Chimera's remains.
"My pearl!"
Tang You, now recovered, swam over eagerly.
His pearl—finally found.
But when he lifted it with his spiritual energy, he realized the once snow-white, lustrous pearl had turned a deep crimson.
Red pearls were exceptionally rare. He was certain the pearl he had recorded his memories in had never been this shade.
Yet within it pulsed his unmistakable magic.
"......"
Tang You couldn't make sense of it.
Cradling the pearl, he channeled his spiritual energy into it, sifting through the recorded fragments of memory.
The blood-red pearl emitted a deep crimson glow, its images projected onto the ship's outer walls. But the little jellyfish wasn't looking at those—his mind was entirely immersed within the pearl itself.
The pearl he had engraved for Shen Jixiao, as well as his own, used a simplified version of the same spell.
The one he kept for himself, however, employed the original, more complex version. It took much longer to engrave, but once completed, it captured not just the visuals but also the sounds and emotions of the moment in perfect detail.
It was like watching a film of the past.
The mermaid rested nearby. He had no interest in prying into others' privacy, so even when Tang You projected fragments of his memories onto the walls, he deliberately avoided looking.
Until he heard a distant, rumbling roar.
The faintly glowing pearl was now projecting a storm—lightning splitting the clouds, waves surging, winds howling.
Towering waves of dozens of meters high, obliterated everything in their path. A massive ocean liner, tossed upon the tempest, was reduced to nothing more than a fragile leaf. Masts snapped, sails tore, and screams were swallowed whole by the storm, leaving no trace behind.
The mermaid stiffened.
He couldn’t mistake this—it was the day the Tarlik sank.
But how could the little jellyfish’s pearl contain a scene from eighteen years ago?
…Then again, this pearl had been left here, so it made sense for it to be connected to the ship.
But… could a jellyfish live for eighteen years?
…
"Tang You."
The little jellyfish had just emerged from the pearl’s memory when he met the mermaid’s intense gaze.
"What was recorded in that pearl just now?"
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