The Undersea Adventures of the Little Jellyfish (JELLYFISH)
The direction the little jellyfish was heading happened to pass by a mermaid settlement. Beyond that, Shen Jixiao hadn't decided where to go next.
Meeting the little jellyfish had given him a sense of direction in the vast ocean.
Occasionally, the little jellyfish needed rest. After learning to create a thin, protective shell with his psychic energy, Tang You would encase himself in a bubble-like shell when tired and attach himself to the mermaid. This way, he could enjoy a peaceful sleep while Shen Jixiao continued their journey.
Even in sleep, his body would twitch slightly, just as it did when awake. Wrapped in the transparent shell, he was no bigger than a pearl, resembling an exquisite glass ornament—so delicate it seemed unreal.
Traveling through water was highly efficient. Through practice, Shen Jixiao had learned to swim almost instinctively with his mind drifting while his tail kept moving.
Surrounded by the sea on all sides, it was easy to lose one's bearings. Occasionally, he would float to the surface to rest for a while. It was then that Shen Jixiao suddenly understood why the little jellyfish planned its route along the ocean currents—in such a place, without any means to discern direction, moving in a straight line was nearly impossible.
"Whew..." The little jellyfish woke up.
When it awoke, its swimming speed increased significantly, its tentacles bouncing and curling, sweeping up invisible tiny particles and drawing them inward.
"You're awake?"
"Mmm, it's nighttime." The little jellyfish looked up and saw the vast Milky Way stretching across the sky. "It's a new moon tonight."
The climate in the deep sea wasn’t very distinct, but on the eastern coast’s land, these days marked the height of spring, with flowers blooming everywhere. The sunlight wasn’t too strong, and the water temperature was gradually warming, though the nights remained chilly—cold seawater and cool moonlight painting a tranquil scene.
Most of the lively, active fish from the day had already settled to rest, but many nocturnal fish took their place, swimming near the surface.
The journey was far from lonely. They passed through swarms of egg-yolk jellyfish, each about half the size of a palm, varying in size but all transparent, with only a bright, uniform yolk-like hue at their centers. Their tentacles were short and non-venomous, and when they swam, they could stretch themselves out into wide, flat discs—much rounder and flatter than Tang You’s sugar-cube-like little jellyfish—resembling countless tiny daisies under the moonlight.
Since the egg-yolk jellyfish were harmless, the little jellyfish and the mermaid swam right into their midst, as if stumbling into a dream of freedom.
"Hello there," Tang You greeted them.
"Hello there—" came the overlapping voices of countless jellyfish in reply.
As he swam, Shen Jixiao marveled, "So many jellyfish."
But soon, he encountered even larger gatherings—thousands of willow-leaf-shaped silver fish, and countless translucent shrimp no bigger than a fingernail, swirling like an ever-shifting cloud along the seabed. It seemed some creatures were born to thrive in numbers, each individual fragile on its own, but together forming a breathtaking spectacle.
Shen Jixiao couldn’t help but wonder—was Tang You’s jellyfish colony like this too? Countless little pink jellyfish huddled together?
It must have looked like a pink cloud at sunset.
……
After swimming for half a day, the mermaid needed to find a place to rest.
By now, the sun was high in the sky, its rays scorching the sea’s surface—too much for the little jellyfish to bear.
Shen Jixiao suggested soaking in the sun-warmed surface water to relax his muscles. Tang You stretched out a tentacle but was unable to scratch its head, let alone understand why soaking in hot water would relax a fish’s muscles.
Wouldn’t that just make the fish pass out?
He squirmed with a squishy sound and soon sank down on his own, leaving Shen Jixiao floating on the surface of the sea like a lone fish.
Shen Jixiao flipped onto his back, belly up, appearing relaxed but in reality remaining vigilant at all times—a faint ripple of magic pulsed across the back of his hand.
It was a specially crafted communication spell, capable of transmitting messages across vast distances, but not everyone could use it.
First, it required an immense amount of magic to sustain. Second, the predetermined magic circuits had to be carved into the body, a process as excruciating as scraping bone and gouging flesh. And if the engraving failed, the pain only multiplied.
Thus, this communication spell never became widespread.
Shen Jixiao activated the magic circuit.
Blue magic rose like smoke, forming a hazy figure in the air—a bespectacled young man that was barely discernible.
"Lord..." His voice was weary, yet still respectful—until he caught sight of Shen Jixiao soaking in the water, bare-chested. His tone instantly shot up at least eight octaves. "Damn it, you bastard actually have the leisure to soak in a hot spring out here?"
Shen Jixiao: "..." Wonderful. Ji Yan's mental state was as robust as ever.
But Ji Yan was indeed the most brilliant mind he had ever met, especially when it came to logistics and coordination.
He pulled out a pearl. "I have a question."
"What?" Ji Yan's eyes widened. "What is that?"
"A pearl. Someone gave it to me."
"..." Ji Yan fell silent for a moment before abruptly switching topics. "That's an expensive pearl. Have you finally agreed to a political marriage? Are we getting a Lady of the Kingdom?"
"No..." Shen Jixiao rubbed his temples. "A friend gave it to me. I just want to know what to give in return."
Ji Yan's expression turned even more disdainful. "A friend? You don’t even know what they like?"
Shen Jixiao: "I do. They like pearls."
"..." Ji Yan didn’t respond. His gaze swept over Shen Jixiao before suddenly asking, "What’s that on your neck, between your fingers, and on your ears?"
Shen Jixiao: "A disguise."
"Oh?" Whatever Ji Yan was thinking, he didn’t press further. "I understand you need a break, but this vacation can’t last more than two weeks. Envoys from the Southern Kingdom are arriving next month, and you must be present."
"Understood."
"What does your friend like to eat?"
The little jellyfish couldn’t consume anything from land. Tang You seemed to eat everything and nothing at all. Shen Jixiao could only shake his head.
"They like pearls. What about gemstones?"
No idea. Another shake of the head.
"My advice? The formality doesn’t matter, but you need to reciprocate with equal sincerity." Ji Yan couldn’t even be bothered to offer proper suggestions. "I’m guessing the pearl isn’t an ordinary one? Otherwise, you wouldn’t be so conflicted."
Ji Yan wanted to discuss more work-related matters, but Shen Jixiao heard the little jellyfish calling out. "For these two weeks, you have full authority over the city’s affairs." He then severed the magic circuit.
......
"What’s wrong?"
Shen Jixiao dove underwater. By now, he could freely switch between lungs and gills.
He saw the little jellyfish... and an enormous, bizarre fish.
"Mermaids..." Tang You murmured. "There’s been a bit of an accident."
Tang You explained everything.
Turns out, this massive, flat fish was called an ocean sunfish. It had just come from the direction of the mermaid's settlement. According to it, the mermaids had recently barred any large creatures from approaching their community and patrolling at an unusually high frequency. No one knew why.
"If we go now, we might be turned away," Tang You said, clearly worried.
"It’s fine. Finding this place is already a success."
Since they’d come this far, there was no point in turning back. They advanced further toward the mermaids' settlement, and sure enough, they soon encountered the "barrier" the sunfish had mentioned—an intricate construct of psychic energy that only reacted when a creature with similar abilities passed through.
They were still a long way from the actual settlement.
Shen Jixiao frowned. "Do mermaids have such a large territory?"
"Not usually. Something must have happened." The little jellyfish mused. "Let’s follow this barrier. Maybe we’ll find a patrolling mermaids. They’re usually friendly to their own kind. Should we go left or right...?"
But before they could decide, a disturbance in the psychic energy made the choice for them—a mermaid was swimming straight toward them.
Shen Jixiao clenched his fingers slightly. This was his first time seeing a real mermaid.
The stranger was a male, with a tail of pure silver and a spear of unknown material in hand, with his expression stern. Though Shen Jixiao knew little about mermaids society, his instincts told him this one was likely a guard of some sort.
The unfamiliar mermaid studied them.
"Hello," the little jellyfish greeted. "We’re here to visit."
Shen Jixiao braced for rejection.
"Please, come with me," the mermaid nodded. "It’s been a while since we’ve had visitors."
The little jellyfish spun in delight, turning to Shen Jixiao. "See? mermaids are friendly to their own kind."
But the very next moment, the stranger added, "The previous clan leader left instructions. If a psychic little jellyfish ever came to visit, we were to welcome them with the utmost hospitality."
The silver-scaled mermaids swam closer. "You are an honored guest."
Little Jellyfish: "Huh...?"
Shen Jixiao: "Have you been here before?"
Little Jellyfish: "I really don’t remember... I thought the mermaids only had one clan leader. I don’t recall any connection with them."
The silver mermaid guard flicked his tail, leading them forward. He seemed young and meticulous. "We do only have one clan leader. Since the previous one disappeared, no successor has taken their place. Your matter was arranged during their reign."
The little jellyfish was utterly baffled.
"Good thing I memorized the clan rules inside out," the mermaid said, sounding almost proud. "Article 428 specifically mentions you. Most fish wouldn’t even notice."
Tang You was even more confused. "It’s written into the clan rules...?"
"We have a habit of codifying important matters into the rules. There are over 600 now—all lessons learned through blood and tears. Though these days, few of the younger generation bother to memorize them." His tone carried a hint of disapproval.
"Can I ask... when was the previous clan leader’s time?" Tang You felt that if it was something so significant, he wouldn’t have forgotten if it had happened in recent decades.
The young mermaids answered, "Two hundred years ago."
He studied the little jellyfish. "I can hardly believe it, but the clan rules were right—a pink jellyfish with immense psychic power. You’re remarkably long-lived. After two centuries, you’re still so full of vitality."
Shen Jixiao also looked at the little jellyfish, his eyes clearly asking: What’s this about two hundred years?
Tang You: "..."
Nope, couldn’t remember.
Tang You’s tiny tentacles flailed briefly before curling inward, tucking themselves into his center—a subconscious gesture of nibbling on his own limbs.
He had officially become an overloaded jellybean of confusion.
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