Peerless Bodyguard of a Stunning Beauty

Seeing a door open on the wall of the sewer pipe, the Black Ghost immediately scrambled to his feet. While giving Zhao Rong a thumbs-up, he said, ”You’re a genius, Master Zhao Rong! How did you know the entrance mechanism for the Mermaid Homeland was right here? Because you knew it was here, you kicked me right to this spot so I would open it… Master Zhao Rong, you’re amazing.”

Hearing this, Zhao Rong was taken aback. He looked through the doorway at the ocean world within and said, ”This is clearly an aquarium. Why are you calling it the Mermaid Homeland?”

As he climbed up the sewer pipe wall, the Black Ghost pointed at the world inside the door. ”That’s right! The so-called Mermaid Homeland is none other than Qujiang Ocean World...”

Hearing that the legendary sewer mermaids were actually housed in an aquarium, Zhao Rong was so shocked he nearly fainted.

He swallowed hard, took Wang Meili’s hand, and started walking toward Qujiang Ocean World. ”Damn it,” he said, ”why didn’t you tell us sooner that the sewer mermaids lived in Qujiang Ocean World? We could have just bought tickets and gone straight in, avoiding all this trouble, and my assistant wouldn’t have been bitten by a zombie!”

The Black Ghost just laughed. ”A single ticket for Qujiang Ocean World is 399 yuan. For the four of us, that would be nearly two thousand! It’s way too expensive. It was much better to follow me, go through the secret room, then the sewers, and finally enter through this side door. Not only did we save money, but we also got a different kind of thrill...”

With that, the Black Ghost stepped through the large door into Qujiang Ocean World. Zhao Rong, Wang Meili, and the assistant followed him through the opening in the sewer wall.

The moment the four of them were inside and had shut the door, the dozen or so killer rats that had been chasing them slammed into the solid surface.

After entering Qujiang Ocean World through the hidden side door, the four of them hadn’t walked far before they blended into the crowd of tourists. Nearby, a single mother with her two children was touring the exhibits, explaining the various types of fish to them. Beside Zhao Rong stood a young couple, kissing as they admired the marine life around them. Next to the Black Ghost stood a burly man, his arms covered in tattoos.

Swept along with the crowd, the group moved from one attraction to the next. In a short time, they had toured the entire facility.

By now, the zombie venom in the assistant, who was standing behind Zhao Rong, was beginning to take full effect. Suddenly, he lunged, hugging Zhao Rong from behind. He opened his mouth wide, flashing two fangs, and aimed for Zhao Rong’s neck.

Quick as a flash, Zhao Rong spun around and grabbed the assistant’s chin. ”Assistant, what do you think you’re doing?”

The assistant’s consciousness snapped back into focus. He clutched his mouth, looking pained. ”We have to find the mermaid, quickly. I feel like I’m about to turn into a zombie...”

Hearing this, Zhao Rong urgently prodded the Black Ghost. ”Black Ghost, where is the sewer mermaid? You have to take us to her now! If the assistant turns into a zombie in here, with all these tourists, it’ll cause absolute chaos.”

The Black Ghost, however, was still enthusiastically admiring the various sea creatures in the tanks. Zhao Rong’s words finally snapped him back to reality, reminding him of their urgent mission.

”Zhao Rong, if you hadn’t reminded me, I’d have almost forgotten,” the Black Ghost said hastily. ”But before I take you to find the mermaid, you have to listen to a little story of mine…

”Ever since I was a kid, my dream was to visit Qujiang Ocean World and see the marine life inside. But my parents were strict, and it was always ’do your homework, do your homework, study, study...’ So I never had the time back then.

”When I finally grew up and wanted to come, I was faced with family pressure. I had to work my fingers to the bone for my wife and kids just to provide for them. So, even now, my dream had never come true.

”But today, it finally did. I actually got to visit Qujiang Ocean World! And I saw all the sea creatures I ever wanted to see. It’s truly an immersive and different kind of feeling...”

Listening to the Black Ghost, Zhao Rong felt a pang of sympathy, but a glance at the twitching assistant behind him hardened his expression. He glowered at the Black Ghost and said, ”Hurry up and take us to the mermaid. If the assistant turns, it will be too late for everything.”

At this, the Black Ghost finally quickened his pace, heading for a room not far away with a sign on the door that read, ”AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.”

He reached the door and glanced around furtively before slipping inside. A minute later, he returned, saying anxiously, ”Okay, I’ve knocked out the guard. Hurry, come with me to see the sewer mermaid.”

When Zhao Rong, Wang Meili, and the assistant entered the room, they immediately saw the guard passed out on the floor.

Wang Meili felt sorry for the man. She asked the Black Ghost, ”Why did you knock him out? Couldn’t we have paid to get in?”

The Black Ghost hurried toward the back of the room. ”This is a restricted area of Qujiang Ocean World. Didn’t you see the sign?”

”Why is it restricted?” Zhao Rong asked. ”Is there some unspeakable secret in here?”

The Black Ghost hesitated. ”Don’t ask questions for now. Once you go inside and see it with your own eyes, you’ll understand everything.”

Suddenly, the assistant, who was trailing behind them, was overcome by the venom again. He leaped forward, grabbed Wang Meili, and lunged, aiming to bite her forehead.

But just as his fangs were about to sink into her skin, Zhao Rong snatched a loose brick from the floor and, with lightning speed, smashed it over the assistant’s head.

With a puff of dust from his scalp, the assistant collapsed. Even on the ground, his arms remained raised high, his body rigid. It was clear he was on the verge of becoming a full-fledged zombie.

After passing through one ”AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY” door after another, the group finally saw her: the mermaid, confined in a concrete pool. Just then, the assistant, who had been knocked out by the brick, slowly began to stir.

The Black Ghost pointed at the creature in the pool. ”She is the last remaining mermaid in this world.”

At the word ”mermaid,” the assistant’s mind cleared instantly. He looked around wildly, searching for her.

Didn’t the Black Ghost say that if I... with the mermaid... the zombie venom would just disappear? I’ve really hit the jackpot! As a virile young man with powerful urges, I can finally let loose today!

Just as the assistant was gloating to himself, the mermaid in the concrete pool spoke, her voice excruciatingly grating and spine-chilling.

”Who are you? Are you the scientists from Xijing City, sent here to dissect me?”

As she finished speaking, a horrific stench, comparable to canned surströmming, wafted from her. In the same instant, everyone turned away and began to vomit uncontrollably. The foul odor was simply unbearable.

And when the assistant, who had been so eager just moments before, realized that he was expected to *do that* with such a nauseating creature, he immediately went soft.

After he finished retching, the Black Ghost explained, ”Originally, mermaids didn’t exist in this world. But one day, a genius professor from Xijing University conducted an experiment, mixing human ’essence’ with fish ’essence.’ He hoped his experiment would cultivate the world’s first mermaid. But, to his dismay, it failed. So, the professor poured the vial containing the mixture down the toilet, flushing it into the university’s sewer system.

”Years later, a group of sewer workers discovered entire schools of mermaids in the sewers beneath Xijing University. They immediately reported what would become known as the ’Sewer Mermaid Incident’ to the Xijing City government. Soon after, a team of scientists from Xijing City began capturing them. They assumed that the mermaids were a new species that had emerged from DNA mutations caused by the unique environment of the sewers. So, they dissected and experimented on the ones they caught. As a result, the sewer mermaids died off one by one, rotting away until only this one was left.”

Hearing this, Wang Meili pointed at the creature in the pool. ”Black Ghost, is this the last surviving sewer mermaid in the world?”

Zhao Rong’s eyes widened. He stared first at the mermaid in the stinking water, then back at the Black Ghost. A startling idea came to him.

”Black Ghost,” he asked, ”are you that professor who did the experiment all those years ago? And the ’human essence’ you used... was it yours? In a sense, that means all these sewer mermaids are your direct descendants, genetically speaking. They’re just human-fish hybrids. And you brought us here because you have your own hidden agenda, your own personal secret you needed to see through...”

Hearing this, the Black Ghost stumbled back a step in shock. Then, he confessed everything.