Chapter 428: The Merfolk King

Chapter 428: Chapter 428: The Merfolk King

After Roger left, the only sound in the oppressive cave was the monotonous echo of waves crashing against the reef.

Bai Wanwan’s heart felt as if it were sizzling in a pan of hot oil.

So many days had passed. Roger had brought her to a stretch of sea far from the mainland, and there was still no word from her Beast Husbands.

The Beast World Continent was simply too vast, and there were no tools for communication. If her Beast Husbands couldn’t find her trail, or if their paths didn’t cross, the chances of finding her later would be astronomically slim.

’I can’t just sit here and wait to die!’

A bold idea began to sprout in her mind.

She went to the back of the cave and pulled out the Jue Sha Dress from a corner. Roger had torn it, and it was now utterly filthy. It was the only thing she had that still carried her scent and would be easily recognizable.

She clenched her jaw and gathered all her strength.

"RRRIP! RRIP!"

Soon, she had completely ripped the magnificent dress—once a symbol of happiness—into shreds of varying sizes.

After she was done, she went to the edge of the cliff and gazed out for a moment. Then, she carefully climbed down the steep cliff face to the reef flats exposed by the receding tide.

The icy seawater washed over her ankles, and the salty, fishy smell of the sea rushed to meet her.

She scanned her surroundings warily. The distant sea was calm, with only seabirds circling overhead.

Confirming there was no danger, she placed the dress fragments into her System Space.

She leaped up and plunged into the sea, quickly swimming out of the cave entrance, trying to find a place to go ashore.

"Hua Sheng, do you think I’ll be able to get through this?"

"Don’t worry, Host. At worst, you still have the laser gun. Besides... that male is an Orange Rank powerhouse now. You could choose to have a litter of cubs with him. He’d definitely start treating you like your other Beast Husbands."

"No way! I don’t even like him."

After saying that, she put her head down and continued to swim.

But the place Roger had found was too remote and steep. She swam for a long time, nearly reaching the point of exhaustion, before she finally saw the reefs becoming lower.

By the time she managed to crawl up, she was completely drained of strength. She collapsed onto her back, not wanting to move a muscle.

After resting for a little while, she struggled back to her feet and staggered across the reef flats.

She quickly tucked the Jue Sha fragments, which glowed with a faint, iridescent light, into the crevices of different reefs, or pinned them down at the corners with slightly larger rocks.

Some she placed in conspicuous high spots, others she hid by low-lying tide pools. She hoped these fragments would act as trail markers, guiding any Beast Husbands who might be searching for her, even if it was just a faint, slim hope.

She didn’t dare go far; Roger’s warning was still ringing in her ears.

She only hid the Jue Sha fragments along the coastline.

By the time she finished, she had been soaking in the frigid seawater for nearly two hours. She didn’t even notice that her fingers had been cut by the rocks and shells.

She dragged her exhausted, ice-cold body and struggled to swim back to that gloomy, damp cave.

What Bai Wanwan didn’t know was that before she had come out, an elegant and swift figure had appeared silently near this stretch of sea.

Hua Han had been tailing Roger the whole time. He could sense a strange aura about Roger, so he had kept his distance.

The route they had taken confirmed for him that the male intended to take Bai Wanwan to the sea.

But a few days ago, he had lost their trail and could only search the nearby waters.

He had still missed Bai Wanwan. After searching this area, he headed to a nearby tribe to continue his search.

Not long after Hua Han left, this stretch of sea welcomed another important figure.

Jiao Yin, King of the Merfolk, was leading several of his clan’s elders on a patrol of the waters, which had been plagued by the Crocodylus porosus Beastmen.

A senior Merfolk reported worriedly, "My King, the Crocodylus porosus Clan has gone too far! They’ve already attacked several of our shallow-sea settlements, and dozens of our kin have been brutally devoured! If this continues, unless our entire clan migrates, I’m afraid our people in these waters..." The elder’s voice was filled with grief and indignation.

Jiao Yin’s long, silver hair fluttered in the sea breeze. His eyes, as deep as the ocean, stared at the waves, his handsome face covered in a layer of frost. "I will personally speak with the Crocodylus porosus King. Before that, send out the order for all nearby Merfolk to immediately relocate to deeper, safer waters for temporary refuge."

As soon as he finished speaking, his gaze unintentionally swept over the reefs being washed by the waves below.

A fragment of fabric, half-buried under rubble and shimmering with a faint iridescence, suddenly caught his eye.

’That material...’ Jiao Yin’s heart skipped a beat!

He took a few steps forward and, under the astonished gazes of the accompanying Merfolk, bent down to carefully pull the fabric fragment out.

It was cool and smooth to the touch. Even stained with seawater and sand, its quality was extraordinary.

It was Jue Sha from his own clan!

But it was tinged with a familiar scent, a scent that had been etched into his mind and never faded.

To confirm it wasn’t just his imagination, he brought the fabric to his nose and took a gentle sniff.

An incredibly familiar, sweet fragrance—the unique scent of a female—instantly filled his nostrils!

’It’s her!’

This Jue Sha was imbued with Bai Wanwan’s scent.

’What is she doing here?’

’This desolate, dangerous coast is no place for a treasured female like her to be!’

Jiao Yin’s heart leaped into his throat.

He whipped his head around, his sharp gaze sweeping across the coastline, the cliffs, and the reef flats like a searchlight, trying to find any trace of her.

"Clan Leader, what are you looking for?" the elder asked, confused.

Jiao Yin calmly folded the precious Jue Sha fragment and tucked it into the sleeve pocket of his seaweed-woven garment.

He suppressed the shock and worry in his heart, his voice regaining its kingly composure. "It is nothing. Dealing with the Crocodylus porosus Clan is our priority."

He knew that the meeting with the Crocodylus porosus King could not be delayed; the lives of more of his people depended on it.

But he had already secretly decided that as soon as this matter was settled, he would return immediately and find out exactly why Bai Wanwan was in this part of the sea.

’Because she helped me, and I owe her!’

Jiao Yin led the group of Merfolk, swimming toward the murky bay occupied by the Crocodylus porosus Clan.

Along the way, as they passed a shallow flat dotted with rugged, strange rocks, Jiao Yin’s sharp eyes once again caught something unusual.

On a reef not far ahead, a male Beastman dressed in dark leather armor was bending down and picking up a piece of... shimmering, iridescent fabric from a crevice!

Jiao Yin’s heart suddenly sank.

He had seen this Beastman before. He was a Traveling Merchant from the Tiger Clan.

He immediately signaled for the Merfolk behind him to hide and wait.

He watched with his own eyes as the male Beastman scavenged through the nearby reef area, meticulously searching and collecting every single Jue Sha fragment that Bai Wanwan had painstakingly placed, clutching them tightly in his hand.

Roger’s expression was terrifyingly dark. He clutched the fabric fragments as if they were proof of Bai Wanwan’s betrayal.

He scanned his surroundings warily, and after confirming no one was there, he turned and strode quickly toward a steep cliff.