The Undersea Adventures of the Little Jellyfish (JELLYFISH)
"What’s this about?" The little jellyfish dissolved the King Crab Gundam beneath him. "Spiritual energy fluctuations?"
"I’ve never paid attention to that."
He condensed a wisp of spiritual energy in front of him.
"It might be related to my traits, or perhaps the way spiritual energy grows? I’ve heard that even among mermaids, there are several cultivation methods—different systems, you could say. Those within the same system would be more alike." Tang You tried to recall. "Ah, I can’t remember clearly. I never practiced much. Maybe the person you’re looking for has a spiritual energy source similar to mine."
"If you want to study this, you might have to visit the mermaids' territory. I know mermaids are especially skilled in these things. Or maybe the Sirens of the Deep?" Tang You mentioned beings Shen Jixiao had never heard of. "The sirens are great at divination. You could seek them out, but they don’t like mermaids—they’re fierce. You have to be careful when dealing with them."
"Shen Jixiao, I’m serious. You can’t…" Tang You had been about to say that the living are more important than the dead, that he shouldn’t be too lovestruck, but that would be too cruel for a mermaid. He knew just how deeply mermaids valued emotions. "You can’t take too many risks."
Shen Jixiao: "Alright."
After all the twists and turns, he still had to return to the mermaid community for a look.
Shen Jixiao memorized the psychic imprint Grandma Giant Clam had shown him. If he ever encountered mermaids or sea demons in the future, he could ask them for clues.
They returned the conch pearl to the Grandma Clam and rested for a while. Tang You mentioned that he had left several pearls in this coral reef, but over time, some had been buried deep within. To retrieve them, they would have to dig through the reef.
The old Shen Jixiao might have dug without hesitation, but now, surrounded by a school of little fish, he hesitated. The fish led him to more suitable food for mermaids. They had no fear of strangers—even a mermaid many times their size—and even swam up to ask if he could sing.
Compared to these innocent little fish, he felt like an evil, foolish mermaid.
Digging through the reef would disturb these small creatures. No matter how careful he was, the corals would still suffer damage.
In the end, Shen Jixiao couldn’t bring himself to do it.
Fortunately, the little jellyfish soon found an unburied pearl—seemingly on the outer edge of the reef.
After resting, they decided to move on.
By now, Shen Jixiao was certain the little jellyfish had lived for a long time.
—A jellyfish with a lifespan of only a few months couldn’t possibly have collected so many pearls or made so many friends.
Yet every time the topic of age came up, the little jellyfish avoided it.
Tang You remembered the species of these fish, what they liked to eat, that there had once been a friend here, and even many secrets known only to certain races. But when it came to how long he had lived or what he had been doing recently, he claimed not to remember.
Shen Jixiao couldn’t help but think of a certain condition.
Dementia.
"…"
He quickly shook off the thought. The little jellyfish was so small and lively. Though not as hyperactive as most little fish, he still loved swimming around and playing, full of energy.
How could such an adorable little jellyfish have dementia?
"Mermaid, what are you thinking about?"
While Shen Jixiao was lost in thought, the little jellyfish had woven a seaweed wreath and embedded the translucent pearl Shen Jixiao had crafted with his psychic energy. As the mermaid looked up, Tang You placed the wreath on his head.
The pale blue hair and dark red seaweed suited each other perfectly.
The mermaid instinctively flinched, then relaxed when he realized it was just a floral crown.
"Tang You, didn’t you say you wanted to go home?"
"Mm!" The little jellyfish answered promptly. "I want to visit my kind. But my home is very far away—see, there aren’t any jellyfish like me around here."
Shen Jixiao thought about it. As they swam through the area, they had indeed encountered other jellyfish, but nearly all were larger than Tang You. As an illiterate, foolish mermaid of the sea, Shen Jixiao hadn’t initially considered the differences between jellyfish species. He couldn’t even tell apart comb jellies from true jellyfish.
Some were blue, some purple, some opaque, some completely transparent. Some had slender tentacles, others thick ones. The only common trait was their graceful, pulsing movement—slow and rhythmic.
Among all the jellyfish he had seen, Tang You was one of the smallest.
So he always thought the little jellyfish wasn’t very old.
"I thought you were still a baby jellyfish."
Tang You retorted, "Am I not a little jellyfish?"
"No, what I meant was... I thought you were still in your juvenile stage."
The little jellyfish lifted a tentacle, its short limbs scratching its head in confusion: "I’m an adult jellyfish. Our species stays this small when fully grown, unlike some relatives that can grow over ten meters long."
"Ah, we’re here." Tang You stopped. "Right in this spot."
The number of coral reefs had dwindled, replaced by jagged, pale-gray rocks, around which a few large yellow-green fish swam. Their bodies were broad and flat and their fins disproportionately tiny compared to their size, flapping in the water to maintain balance. What stood out most were their mouths—thick, triangular, and keratinous, resembling a bird’s beak.
They were gnawing on the coral reefs and crunching noisily through the hard structures underwater. Coral reefs contained little nutritional value; it was practically like chewing on rocks.
Seeing the merman’s curiosity about these fish, Tang You explained, "These are parrotfish. Coral reefs are part of their diet, but don’t worry about them eating all the coral—it’s part of the reef’s cycle. They produce other substances that support smaller organisms."
Shen Jixiao then recalled that while Tang You befriended small fish, he never interfered with the natural order of predation. He only opposed deliberate cruelty.
"The pearl seems to be inside the rocks," Tang You said. "Let’s split up and look for any holes. Don’t be fooled by the lack of coral—this place is home to plenty of creatures."
Eels, octopuses, and spiny-backed fish all favored these jagged rocks for shelter. Some crevices looked narrow but could hide a meter-long moray eel.
The little jellyfish drifted forward slowly as he avoided the use of psychic scans for fear of startling the residents.
"Is anyone home?" He paused near a rock with an inconspicuous, eerie-looking hole. The jellyfish inched closer before peering inside and asking again softly, "Hello? Is anyone home?"
Gurgle, gurgle...
From the unfathomable depths of the cave came an unsettling sound.
The little jellyfish shivered and wrapped its tentacles around itself.
It was terrifying.
The hole seemed like a pipe ready to swallow him whole, a monster lurking inside that might drag him away and dissolve him into a puddle of transparent goo. Trembling, the jellyfish mustered one last attempt: "Um... excuse me—"
The shadows inside the cave shifted. Slime and fangs—only the sinister glint of two eyes reflected in the darkness, staring fixedly at the tiny jellyfish curled up at the entrance.
"Eek!!!" Tang You couldn’t hold back a scream.
The merman shot over in an instant, with his every scale on high alert. He moved so fast that his wake stirred up white sand, creating swirling eddies.
He saw the little jellyfish huddled inside a transparent bubble shield that was dropped at the mouth of the cave and hugging itself in fear. Meanwhile, from within the cave, a head slowly emerged, its shadow engulfing the jellyfish.
Shen Jixiao’s gaze sharpened, already prepared to eliminate the threat.
"Who are you?" A young moray eel bared its teeth, revealing a mouth full of sharp fangs as its gray eyes glaring at the little jellyfish. "What are you doing here?"
The jellyfish finally lowered the tiny tentacle that had been blocking its view. Recognizing it was just a moray eel, it immediately relaxed and hastily called out to Shen Jixiao, "Wait, merman, this is a misunderstanding."
"I'm just a passing jellyfish," Tang You replied apologetically, still trembling slightly from the lingering fear of his earlier illusion. "Sorry for disturbing your rest. It's just... a long time ago, I left a pearl here. I was wondering... if you've seen it?"
The moray eel eyed the jellyfish and the merman suspiciously.
After a long pause, it retreated into its hole before pushing out some sand and gravel before rolling out a perfectly round pearl.
"Is this yours?"
"Mhm, mhm!"
"So it was yours," the moray eel muttered.
It opened its mouth again, revealing its sharp, menacing teeth. The merman subtly clenched his fist, ready to choke the eel if it attacked the jellyfish.
"Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting for you?" The eel's voice was unexpectedly soft as it hid in the crevice. "My father always said you'd come back. Take the pearl and go."
"Okay, thank you."
The eel swiftly retreated into its hole and refused to come out again, though faint mutters of "Socializing is terrifying" could still be heard.
Shen Jixiao: "..."
So it looks fierce but is actually socially awkward?
Meanwhile, the little jellyfish had already picked up the pearl and began sifting through its memories.
"Huh?" It let out a small gasp. "Why don’t I remember this pearl at all…"
Tang You quickly finished scanning the pearl, still puzzled, then used his psychic energy to place it in Shen Jixiao’s palm. "Merman, this has memories of a storm inside. It’s so strange—I don’t even know when I recorded this."
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