When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 197: A Good Predator

Chapter 197: A Good Predator

Lily and her group were placed in a distant building from Jin Jiuchi, Gu Luoxin and Noir. Guards were stationed in front of the building, and they needed permission to move around freely.

Inside a certain room, the three players gathered for a discussion— or to be exact, it was Duan Jie’s teammates who came to seek Lily. She remained as composed as ever, but the other two were visibly anxious. "W–What should we do? What if we miss the chance to get the return ticket? We will not be able to get out of this Cycle alive!" they fretted incessantly.

"Shut up!" Lily snapped at them harshly, impatience bubbling in her chest. One after another, there were more and more weak players who actually made it to mid-level Cycles. It seemed the Nightmare had gotten too lenient in filtering these useless people out! If not because she would need them to act as a foil later...

Remembering her plan, she took a deep breath to curb her murderous intent and reminded them coldly, "You have chosen to follow me, so I hope you can put a little bit of trust in me. I say that I will get the return ticket, so of course I will. Or should we just end our cooperation right now?"she asked with a sharp glare.

"No, no!" The other two were quick to reassure her. "W–We are just too nervous, Miss Lily. Please don’t take it to heart. Now that we have decided to team up with you, of course we will trust you wholeheartedly!"

Team up? Lily sneered inwardly. Are you worthy?

Her mind couldn’t help but wander to the man she had seen earlier— an aggressively gorgeous face, heterochromatic eyes and devilish smirk, Lily had never seen anyone as alluring and charismatic. Not to mention, he was also lively and disobedient...

She licked the corner of her lips. She liked this type of man the most. She enjoyed breaking them, taking in their faces full of humiliation and despair, before eating them up. Just the mere thought of it was enough to send excited shivers down her spine. Oh, she couldn’t wait to get that man in her hands and toy with him to her heart’s content! The more she thought about it, the more excited she became, and even these two useless players appeared less bothersome. Besides, there were also a lot of handsome merfolk in this place who were more than enough to serve as her appetizers before she eventually got to the main course.

Lips curved into a seductive smile, she leaned on the couch and deliberately crossed her slim and long legs, showing off her smooth milky skin. And as expected, the two players’ gazes were immediately drawn to her, full of lust, desire and reverence.

Lily reveled in their gazes like a flower basking in sunlight. She crooked her finger, beckoning to them, "Come. Now that we have some free time, why don’t we have some fun?"

***

While Lily indulged in her appetizers, Shen Nianzu separated from Jin Jiuchi and returned to his room to study the merfolk custom from the book the head guard had sent him. Now that he was supposed to act as the groom, he had to play his part until they could secure the return ticket, and it would be better to prepare for any unexpected situations.

The book from the merfolk clan came in the form of intricately woven scrolls, made from delicate strands of underwater plants. The scrolls were lightweight and flexible, allowing them to move gracefully with the currents, and they were often bound with seaweed ribbons or threads made from the finest fibers of kelp.

Shen Nianzu treated the scrolls with great care, afraid that he would accidentally damage their delicate beauty.

"Hmph," came Jin Jiuchi’s petulant voice from the mirror shard he had placed on the table beside him. "Why so serious? Don’t tell me that you’re really going to do that mating dance with Ariel?"

"If the situation forces me to," Shen Nianzu said as he began to read. He had initially worried that his ability to understand merfolk language was limited to mere conversation, but upon realizing that he could also comprehend their written texts, he let out a sigh of relief, albeit this newfound understanding raised another question in his mind:

Why could he grasp their language all of a sudden?

No, rather than say all of a sudden, it’s like his brain had seamlessly translated the foreign language into one that he was familiar with, making him feel as if he had known this language as long as he had been aware of his native tongue. This unforeseen phenomenon puzzled him. Could it be attributed solely to his skill card, which contained the element of a merman, or was there any other reason?

"So if the situation doesn’t force you to, you will not dance with her?"

Too engrossed in his own thoughts, Shen Nianzu absent-mindedly responded, "Of course not. Do you think I’m willing to do this?"

"Okay, so Nian’er is unwilling..." Jin Jiuchi in the mirror lowered his gaze, and a hint of abnormal madness flickered in his eyes. However, to avoid Shen Nianzu noticing anything amiss, he quickly feigned innocence and complained in a sulky tone, "Not fair... I also want to dance with Nian’er!"

Shen Nianzu scoffed, cupping his chin in his hand as he studied the steps and forms of the mating dance depicted in the scroll, "Let’s talk about this after you become a merman."

In the end, he spent the entire morning learning about the merfolk mating ritual. At noon, the head guard informed Shen Nianzu that the banquet was ready, and the King awaited his presence. He carefully closed the scroll and pocketed the mirror before leaving his room.

He met up with Jin Jiuchi, Gu Luoxin and Noir in the middle, and was surprised to discover Noir’s withered and listless state, looking as if he had nothing left to live for. Even his usually curled and fluffy brown hair had flattened, and his emerald eyes looked hollow.

"What’s wrong with him?" Shen Nianzu asked.

Gu Luoxin put on a look as though wanting to cry but had no tears. "Extreme seasickness."

"Oh." Nodding, Shen Nianzu no longer inquired further and followed the head guard to the location of the banquet. It appeared to be a place previously used to welcome envoys, built partially underwater and partially above, allowing two species of different habitats to mingle.

Upon arriving at the grand hall, the gate guards announced their presence, and Shen Nianzu finally laid eyes on the King. He was a venerable-looking merman with a long, flowing golden hair and wise deep-set eyes that seemed to hold the wisdom of ages. He wore an intricate crown of pearls and shells, a symbol of his authority and status as the ruler of Atlantis. The King’s gaze fell upon them, and a smile appeared on his stern expression, "Welcome, guests from afar. It must be hard for you to make your journey here. Please, have a seat."

Of course, Shen Nianzu’s seat was different from others, as he was placed near Ariel in a slightly elevated position to show his status in the eyes of the merfolk clan.

"Hi," Ariel tucked her hair behind her ear shyly. "We meet again." She had clearly dolled herself up, no longer was she looking unkempt and disheveled like before. Pearls adorned her crimson hair which had been braided over her shoulder, her lips tinted in rouge, and her azure eyes appeared particularly tender and moist as the bashfulness belonging to a woman in love reflected within. It was simply impossible for men to resist such an allure, but fortunately Shen Nianzu was not straight. Not a hint of ripple formed in his heart in the face of such deadly temptation. In his eyes, Ariel was nothing more than the core NPC who was his ticket for getting out of this place.

Nonetheless, Shen Nianzu still attempted to show a smile and praised her, "You look beautiful, Princess."

"Oh, you!" Ariel swatted his arm playfully, her face flushing and eyes sparkling in happiness. "What a sweet talker you are!"

The King cleared his throat and gave her a warning look, which successfully made her behave because she knew that she was really in the wrong this time, for having run around as she pleased.

The banquet began without a hitch as soft music drifted through the air. Sumptuous dishes were presented one by one and the players, who had not eaten anything since last night, quickly devoured them as if they had been starved for a week. The King engaged in small talk, asking about the accident which had befallen their cruise ship, and Shen Nianzu answered each question smoothly.

The food was delicious, the music was soothing and pleasant, and the King seemed to have an excellent impression of them. All in all, everything was going well, but not Jin Jiuchi.

Jin Jiuchi felt extremely unwell right now.

Everytime he saw Ariel inadvertently touch Shen Nianzu’s arm or shoulder, or lean forward to talk to him intimately, a ferocious glint would flash through his heterochromatic eyes, though he quickly masked it with an expressionless façade.

He felt as if a ball of cotton had been stuffed into his airway, making it difficult for him to breathe. Even the delicious food did nothing to distract him from the discomfort all over his body. If one inspected closer, they would have noticed that his eyes were getting increasingly gloomy and sinister, as his dark side started to take control. However, he kept Shen Nianzu’s words in mind and did not cause trouble this time.

Not yet, he told himself.

A good predator would always bide their time instead of rushing in recklessly, wasn’t it what you taught me, brother?

After the extravagant meal, the King finally broached the important topic, "You have no idea how grateful I am to you for bringing Ariel back safely. She is the pearl I have cherished for years, and I truly can’t bear to lose her. Your contribution will certainly not go unnoticed. Is there something you desire, young man?"

Even though the King directed his question only to Shen Nianzu, the others quietly perked their ears up.

Could they finally ask for the return tickets?!