When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 225: Divine Prop

Chapter 225: Divine Prop

A breathtaking canvas of golden hues unfurled across the distant horizon, welcoming the world’s awakening to a fresh day and the auspicious birth of a newborn divine entity. Time seemed to halt for a second as the majestic merman traced a graceful arc through the air, only to resume once again when he dived into the water.

Gu Luoxin clutched his chest, gasping for breath. Every fiber in his body was buzzing in excitement and his mind was blissfully blank. That ethereal and dazzling figure seemed to have been branded into his eyes and heart.

"Xiao Shen... becomes a merman?" he mumbled in a daze. Then as the realization sank in, he exclaimed again, louder this time, "Oh my God, Xiao Shen becomes a merman! Xiao Shen, Xiao Shen, he—" he turned to Jin Jiuchi, intending to share the euphoria, only to find the man with his head tilted up, both hands covering his face. Upon closer inspection, he was trembling as well. Gu Luoxin was taken aback. "Da Shen, what’s wrong with you?!"

Fearing that the man was not feeling well, Gu Luoxin rushed to him in a fluster. And then, he saw a trail of crimson liquid seeping out through the gap between Jin Jiuchi’s fingers. Gu Luoxin almost jumped in shock, "D–Da Shen?!!"

Jin Jiuchi, at the height of his excitement, ended up getting a nosebleed that did not stop until five minutes later.

Even though half of his face was smeared with blood, he could not suppress the exuberant grin on his lips. "Did you see that? Did you see his tail? Did you see how beautiful he is? From now on, he is the God of the Sea!" He kept boasting again and again, just like a proud parent showing off his beloved child.

Nobody blamed him, though. Gu Luoxin couldn’t stop the flow of his tears either. He had been worried to death since Shen Nianzu was infected, and it escalated to a crescendo of despair when Shen Nianzu began to lose his reason and logic. Only now, in this moment, did he allow himself to relax. The radiance of Shen Nianzu’s transformation even managed to offset the trauma he suffered from seeing Jin Jiuchi devouring Ariel limb by limb.

"Yes, yes, I saw! I saw them all! He is so beautiful!" He blubbered, all the while sobbing like a wheezing duck.

Two fanboys, one drenched in tears and the other smeared with blood, found themselves sprawled on the ground with a litter of balled tissue papers around them.

They had successfully completed the tasks and eliminated all the threats in this Cycle. All that remained was to wait for the bus to fetch them, and hence the atmosphere was extremely light and carefree right now. Shen Nianzu was hoisted onto the ship with the help of the bandages prop, and as soon as he emerged, Gu Luoxin and Jin Jiuchi surrounded him like a horde of overexcited children.

"Nian’er, Nian’er!"

"Wuwuwuwu, Xiao Shen!"

The corner of Shen Nianzu’s lips twitched upon hearing the excited chatter around him, but because he was in a great mood right now, he was content to let them blabber away. Noir approached from the side with the somewhat sullen Lucius perched on top of his head, and he told Shen Nianzu, "Congratulations for obtaining a divine prop."

Those words successfully seized Jin Jiuchi and Gu Luoxin’s attention, leaving them bewildered. "D–Divine prop?!"

A flicker of surprise crossed Shen Nianzu’s eyes, only to turn into understanding when he saw the black cat clawing away on Noir’s curls, making it look like a messy bird nest. "Lucius is also a divine prop?" he inquired.

Noir confirmed with a nod, "Mn, he chose to come with me."

Gu Luoxin’s jaws dropped in sheer astonishment. "Xiao Shen, you got a divine prop?! And Great God, Lucius is a divine prop too?!" Holy shit, he had assumed that the little ancestor would be epic level at most, but who would have thought that it was a whole level higher than that?! Even though it was just one level, the difference between epic and divine was akin to the expanse between Heaven and Earth!

"What? What is it?" Jin Jiuchi showed a confused look. "What’s so special about a divine prop?"

"Y–You didn’t know?!" Gu Luoxin was astounded at how oblivious he was. But on second thought, Jin Jiuchi was not someone who cared about something like that, so he took it upon himself to explain, "Do you know about the levels of prop in the Nightmare Cycle? Starting from the lowest, there are Common, Valuable, Rare, Epic and Divine. The ones in the store are limited only to Epic level, and their price can reach as high as millions of points! It’s said that divine prop is extremely special because it retains consciousness, can accompany us to the real world, and is bonded to a single player. Do you get it, Da Shen?! It’s like gaining an additional skill card that belongs only to us! By the way, are those rumors true?" He turned to Shen Nianzu and Noir, eager to know.

"Yes," Shen Nianzu replied with a helpless look. He reached out a hand to reveal a small mermaid nestled within his damp silver hair. The creature was the size of a palm, with long silver hair and nearly translucent tail. It was akin to a miniature and female version of Shen Nianzu!

"This is the Goddess of the Sea, a divine prop. From now on, her name is Aqua," Shen Nianzu introduced her to Gu Luoxin and Jin Jiuchi who were utterly captivated by how tiny and adorable it was. Shy, the mermaid waved at them before disappearing back into his hair. "Since the merfolk clan is no longer here, she said that she wanted to leave with me. With her, I will have the power to transform into a merman and command a large body of water."

"Wow..." Gu Luoxin and Jin Jiuchi exclaimed in unison, their eyes sparkling in awe.

Gu Luoxin wanted to say more, but he noticed that Shen Nianzu kept sneaking occasional glances at Jin Jiuchi, seemingly wanting to say something but hesitant to. In an instant, a brilliant light bulb floated above his head, prompting him to exclaim, "AH!"

When three pairs of eyes shifted to him, he summoned every ounce of his acting skills and declared, "Oh my God, look at the time! We have one hour left until we have to board the bus, and I haven’t explored Atlantis thoroughly yet! I believed there must be a lot of treasures hidden in the city! Great God, do you want to go with me? We will be treasure hunting. Who knows, we might even find a few more gold bars!" He discreetly winked his eyes at Noir again and again, hoping to convey his intent.

Noir looked confused at first. He was about to reject – solely because he did not want to enter the water again – but Lucius casually let out a meow while licking its paw. He let out an understanding ’ah’ and nodded, "Let’s go."

Looking at Gu Luoxin who was eager to get away from the ship, Jin Jiuchi asked in confusion, "What’s wrong with Xinxin? Did he hurt his eyes?"

Shen Nianzu palmed his forehead and sighed. Perhaps the first thing he had to do after returning to the real world was to register Gu Luoxin in an acting class...