The Undersea Adventures of the Little Jellyfish (JELLYFISH)
The little jellyfish had short-circuited, unable to process anything. Dazed, he lay in Shen Jixiao’s palm as the two mermaids led them forward.
The silver mermaid introduced himself as Joe Stival. Joe was his given name, while Stival was the name of their settlement—all mermaids with this surname belonged to the same clan, though not necessarily by blood.
From Joe, they learned that their settlement was expecting the birth of a mermaid child, hence the heightened security.
Mermaids were long-lived creatures, most living between two to three hundred years, and reaching sexual maturity relatively late—usually after twenty. Yet, they were also fiercely monogamous, rarely changing partners once bonded. Unlike most fish, they couldn’t produce offspring in large numbers. Each pregnancy yielded only a few, raised jointly by both parents until the child could briefly leave them after a year.
Thus, in their tradition, birth was a highly ceremonial affair.
And an extremely perilous one—female mermaids and newborns were particularly vulnerable.
"With no new clan leader, the protective aura grows weaker by the day. Newborns are too prone to misfortune." Joe’s expression darkened. "By the way, what’s your name, young one? Which settlement are you from?"
Shen Jixiao naturally couldn’t answer truthfully. He repeated the story he’d told the little jellyfish: "Shen Jixiao. I... haven’t found my family yet. I was sold to the surface as a child and only recently returned to the sea."
The silver mermaids bristled, scales flaring. "Stolen mermaids children?!"
"What kind of shitty human gave you that shitty name?" Joe’s elegant lips spat out anything but elegant words. "Child thieves deserve to rot in hell."
"..." Shen Jixiao hesitated. "A human noble gave it to me."
His father.
"How tragic." Joe’s dislike for humans was palpable. "We’ll do everything we can to help you."
His eyes, silver with a faint blue sheen, studied Shen Jixiao. "At first, I thought you were from the city. Your scales are remarkably pure—closer to the bloodline of the ancient mermaids than even mine."
Shen Jixiao glanced at his own tail. His scales were also silver at the base, but under light, they shimmered with iridescent blues and purples, like scattered stardust.
He’d always thought they looked a bit too flashy.
Compared to Joe’s, his own scales did seem far more vibrant.
Joe was enthusiastic, ushering them forward until they reached a meticulously maintained trench. "Look, that’s our settlement. Over there are our nests, that’s the ancestral hall, and further in is where the newborns are kept. That area’s off-limits these days."
The mermaid nests were built into the rock—half natural crevices, half carved out with magic.
Though they were deep enough for sunlight to be scarce, the mermaids had adorned the walls with luminous pearls, sustaining their glow with magic. As the little jellyfish had said, they were indeed creatures who prized beauty. Carefully tended seaweed and anemones were arranged in orderly patterns everywhere.
All of it was encased within a thin psychic barrier—the true boundary of their settlement.
"Wait here," Joe said. "I need to inform the elder before you can pass through the barrier."
He swam inside.
"So this is a mermaid's settlement..." Shen Jixiao murmured.
He’d never imagined, in his first life, that he’d ever step foot in such a place.
Meanwhile, Tang You was still lost in thought. "Two hundred years... Did I know the mermaid clan leader back then?"
Shen Jixiao tapped the jellyfish’s head. "Stop thinking. If you keep this up, you’ll digest your own tentacles."
The little jellyfish was an enigma, every tentacle seemingly hiding its own secrets. But everyone had secrets—like the fact that Shen Jixiao wasn’t a pure-blooded mermaid.
He believed that respecting others’ secrets, especially irrelevant ones, was key to lasting relationships. Just as Ji Yan never pressed him about the origins of the fins on his ears.
The little jellyfish was a good jellyfish—one who gave him gifts. That was enough.
Tang You hurriedly pulled his tentacles free. "Maybe I stored all the related memories in the pearls... But the mermaid clan leader’s been gone for two hundred years?"
"I don’t know much about mermaids society. Could you tell me more?" Shen Jixiao changed the subject.
"Of course. Though I’m sure Joe knows far more. As you can see, mermaids have ancestral halls. They care deeply about lineage and have their own beliefs, and hold rituals on specific occasions. The clan leader resides in the royal palace, overseeing all settlements. Usually, they’re a mermaid of pure bloodline and immense psychic power. It’s said the clan leader possesses a trace of ‘divine power,’ granting protection to the others."
"Oh, and mermaids society is matriarchal. The clan leader is usually female."
After a pause, Tang You added, "If you want to know more, ask Joe. This seems like a friendly settlement."
Before long, Joe returned with a female mermaid in tow.
She was older, her scales a beautiful turquoise and eyes like spring water. Adorned with ribbons, pearls, and a tiny shell on her forehead, her face was strikingly beautiful—age only adding to her dignified grace.
"Greetings. I am Elder Qingbo of Stival," the turquoise mermaid said. "Joe has already told me about you."
"I deeply sympathize with your plight," she said to Shen Jixiao.
Upon seeing the little pink jellyfish, she paused briefly before smiling. "It seems the strange clan rules written by the previous leader have finally come into effect."
"Please, both of you, follow me. I’ve been too busy lately to properly entertain you, and for that, I apologize. But in a few days, we’ll be holding a celebration for the newborns—please do join us." As she mentioned the newborns, a smile spread across Qingbo's face.
"Congratulations!" The little jellyfish rummaged around and found a pearl. "Consider this a gift for the little mermaid."
"Thank you so much."
"Ah… no need for formalities with me," the jellyfish said, looking troubled. "I’m just a little jellyfish."
Qingbo selected a den for them to stay in temporarily. After hearing Shen Jixiao’s request, she thought for a moment. "This will require a trip to the ancestral hall. It records all kinds of spiritual fluctuations—perhaps we can find the one you’re looking for. And while we’re at it, we can test your bloodline."
She said kindly, "Little mermaid, we’ll help you find your home. Even if your bloodline doesn’t belong to Stival, you can choose to live here."
Shen Jixiao: "Thank you."
He felt a pang of guilt—the mermaids had no wariness toward him at all.
……
[The ancestral hall]
It was the most exquisite structure in the entire settlement, almost something that shouldn’t exist underwater.
Every pillar was carved with intricate patterns, the bluestone polished to a smooth sheen and the floor reflecting their images like a mirror.
In the center, they saw a luminous pearl protected by layers of barriers.
"Every mermaid's spiritual fluctuations are recorded here, no matter how far they travel or where they go," Qingbo said as she opened the barrier. "Try extending your spiritual energy and touching the pearl. If your bloodline is connected to Stival, the pearl will react."
"……"
Shen Jixiao fell silent.
Qingbo waited for a while before noticing that Shen Jixiao still hadn’t moved. She then demonstrated, extending her spiritual energy from her fingertips and pressing it against the luminous pearl.
But Shen Jixiao still couldn’t do it.
"You… don’t have spiritual energy?" Qingbo widened her emerald-green eyes, scrutinizing the young adult mermaid before quickly dismissing the thought. "No, your spiritual energy is abundant."
"I don’t know how," Shen Jixiao finally admitted. "No one ever taught me."
"That’s right, Sister Qingbo. Shen Jixiao has been on land all this time—no one taught him how to project his spiritual energy," Tang You added.
"On land, I awakened my spiritual energy very late, and it wasn’t strong enough. My…" Shen Jixiao hesitated, not mentioning his teacher. "Someone I knew told me my talent wasn’t enough to learn anything related to spiritual energy."
Qingbo’s expression went blank. She had never encountered a mermaid whose spiritual talent was denied—even on land, legends of mermaids and sirens using their spiritual energy to bewitch humans were widespread.
She reached out with slender fingers and touched Shen Jixiao’s forehead. The mermaid flinched slightly.
"Close your eyes, calm your mind, and feel the world around you," Qingbo’s voice was soft and soothing. "Feel the water, the ocean, the things most familiar to you."
Shen Jixiao closed his eyes.
He heard singing.
Wordless, yet intoxicating, gently cradling his thoughts and coaxing them outward.
He wasn’t familiar with water or the ocean—everything around him felt foreign. Instinctively, he resisted the idea of fully opening himself up, even feeling deeply uncomfortable. He always wanted to maintain some semblance of control, forcing himself to stay alert even as the mermaid’s song tried to lull him, ready to face any danger that might arise.
But this time, the little jellyfish was right beside him. Maybe he could try relaxing in front of these unfamiliar mermaids, just once.
He rose and fell with the song, hearing the tide embrace him before receding. Everything was both blurred and clear, without boundaries, without solidity.
…… Shen Jixiao felt it.
In the endless, winding depths, he touched something soft and familiar, cool like water. Though his eyes were closed, he "saw" with unprecedented clarity and his senses sharper than ever before.
He saw a little pink jellyfish swaying its tiny tentacles to the mermaid’s song and humming the same melody. It was unbearably cute, making him want to reach out and touch it.
"Ah!" The jellyfish suddenly recoiled, shielding its head. "Shen Jixiao, you poked me again!"
"You projected your spiritual energy!"
Qingbo paused, stopping her song. After a moment, she smiled. "It seems the first thing you sensed was the little jellyfish."
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