The Supporting Male Characters Who Died Alone All Those Years Later

When she finally boarded the ship, Xi Ya’s beautiful tail had transformed into two straight, fair legs. The black dress clung to her body, accentuating her shapely figure.

He Dongchen took a clean, large towel and wrapped it around her.

The other merfolk, realizing what was happening, quickly approached her warmly to introduce themselves.

Someone handed Xi Ya a cup of cola.

Xi Ya took a sip, and her face scrunched up. “What a strange taste.”

Everyone burst into laughter; they had all reacted the same way the first time they drank cola.

After a brief exchange, He Dongchen asked Ah Yue to take Xi Ya to a room to get familiar with the surroundings.

“Clan Leader, we received word from the island. That boy named An Yanshang is very clever. He’s already noticed something’s off. I’m afraid we won’t be able to keep our cover for long.”

“No matter, I’ve found a solution. Turn the ship around immediately and head straight back to Pearl Island,” He Dongchen ordered.

“Understood.”

The ship turned and quickly made its way towards Pearl Island.

***

Meanwhile, Pearl Island remained calm and peaceful. Hua Xue, still innocent and carefree, chased her butterflies, pestering An Yanshang to praise her.

An Yanshang offered a few perfunctory compliments. After she left, he shook his slightly aching head. Over the past few days, fragments of memories had started to surface in his mind; disjointed images filled with oppression, anger, and ambition, leaving An Yanshang feeling tormented.

What made things worse was that he noticed more and more signs around him, as if countless eyes were watching him from the shadows.

An Yanshang couldn’t understand why they hadn’t made a move yet. On this isolated island, he knew there was no way he could escape.

Unable to figure it out, he pretended as if nothing was wrong, secretly searching frantically for a way off the island.

That afternoon, a strong sense of foreboding suddenly gripped An Yanshang, coming out of nowhere. The feeling was so intense that he could no longer suppress it. He pushed Hua Xue into a small cave he had accidentally discovered. The cave was deep and narrow; once inside, any approaching person would cast a shadow on the ground, revealing their presence.

“Hey! What’s that boy up to?” one of the merfolk watching from afar muttered, frustrated as they saw An Yanshang push Hua Xue into the cave.

One merman tried to approach the entrance and pressed against the stone wall to eavesdrop, only to hear rustling sounds mixed with a few indistinct noises. Instantly, they were furious, wanting to rush in, kick him, and throw him into the sea.

“Don’t be impulsive!” A companion pulled them away, choosing to hide out of sight to avoid further aggravation.

Inside the cave, Hua Xue covered her mouth, her face flushed red. “Y-you, how could you bite my lips!”

An Yanshang looked at the silly Hua Xue and chuckled softly. He lifted her chin with one hand and coaxed, “Hua Xue, do you want to go home with me?”

“Home? Your home?” Hua Xue was stunned.

“No, our home. We’ll leave together.” An Yanshang realized he had grown fond of this simple-minded mermaid. With her, there was no need for scheming or guardedness.

“Yes, yes! Our home!” Hua Xue was overjoyed, her eyes sparkling brightly in the dark cave.

An Yanshang smirked, feeling troubled. “But how can we leave?”

His mind was blank. Earlier, he had seen Hua Xue transform her tail and move freely in the sea, so he thought he could do the same. He had plunged into the water, nearly drowning himself.

That experience confirmed to An Yanshang that he didn’t belong on this island, and he became desperate to leave.

“I know!” Hua Xue exclaimed excitedly. “I have a turtle friend. It’s really big and can take us away.”

An Yanshang was overjoyed and hugged Hua Xue tightly.

The two chose a dark night to leave the island. Hua Xue went into the sea to find her turtle friend, while An Yanshang waited on the shore. Knowing how much the people watching them despised him, An Yanshang crouched behind some rocks, half-hidden, and started pretending to engage in intimate activities.

“Damn! These animals!” the merfolk cursed under their breath.

The moon hung high, and the sea was calm.

Every now and then, ambiguous moans came from behind the rocks, irritating the two mermen, who moved farther away.

Time passed, and the moaning stopped. Only the sound of the waves remained in the night.

The two mermen exchanged glances. Something’s wrong!

When they rushed to the shore, the so-called couple was nowhere to be found!

Pearl Island immediately erupted in chaos. The search party split into three teams; one to search the island, one to guard the boats, and the last to search the sea.

A dozen speed boats swiftly entered the water, searching outward from the island, leaving no corner unchecked.

“They’re over there! They’re escaping on a turtle!”

The clan leader had previously mentioned that Hua Xue could summon a turtle and had advised them to prepare several speed boats. They hadn’t expected it to actually happen!

The speed boats quickly converged, closing the distance rapidly.

An Yanshang laid on the turtle’s back, completely soaked. Hearing the noise behind them, he was frantic. No matter how fast the turtle swam, it couldn’t outrun the speed boats!

“Why are they coming?” Hua Xue asked, confused.

“Who are they?” An Yanshang shouted.

“My clansmen.”

Beams of strong light shot from behind, fully exposing their figures.

An Yanshang’s heart sank.

He thought he heard something slicing through the air. Instinctively, he threw himself to the side. When he looked back, he saw a tranquilizer dart embedded in the turtle’s back.

An Yanshang didn’t have time to wonder why he recognized the object. He quickly removed the tranquilizer dart from the turtle and held it in his hand.

“Hua Xue! Make the turtle stop!” the merfolk chasing them shouted.

“No! I want to go home with Yanshang! Stop following us!” Hua Xue protested.

“Damn! This fool!” the merman cursed under his breath and aimed another tranquilizer shot at An Yanshang.

An Yanshang couldn’t dodge in time, and the dart hit his shoulder. He grunted in pain, quickly pulling it out. As the speed boat drew closer, An Yanshang, panicking, shouted at Hua Xue, “We can’t let them catch us! I’m not like you! I can’t grow a tail!”

Hua Xue frowned, finally realizing the gravity of the situation. That’s right, An Yanshang was human, and if the merfolk caught a human, they’d throw him into the sea.

Hua Xue became serious, patting An Yanshang’s shoulder. “Then wait for me on the mainland. I’m a Princess! They won’t hurt me.”

With that, she turned and dove into the sea, her tail splashing as she swam toward the speed boat.

“Hua Xue!” An Yanshang laid on the turtle’s back, watching her figure fade in and out of sight in the water. His heart filled with overwhelming emotion, almost to the point of bursting.

The turtle dutifully continued forward, while the speed boats stopped pursuing them.

Everything seemed to be over.

The tranquilizer in An Yanshang’s shoulder began to take effect. His consciousness blurred as he slumped over the turtle’s back, staring up at the star-filled sky.

More and more fragments of his memory began to piece together.

He remembered now. He was an illegitimate child of the An family, scorned from a young age, living under others’ roofs. He had infiltrated the cultivation base to steal the secrets of Pearl Island, only to be caught in a storm and rescued by a mermaid.

The entire island! It was filled with merfolk!

Merfolk that only existed in myths!

An Yanshang felt he was in deeper trouble than ever before, but at the same time, it was an unprecedented opportunity!

If he could make it back alive and reveal the secrets of the mermaid island to his family, his future would be bright.

An Yanshang struggled internally, torn between ambition and the image of Hua Xue selflessly diving into the sea to buy him time.

Before he could decide, his eyelids grew heavier, and he finally succumbed to the tranquilizer, losing consciousness.

Just before his eyes closed, he seemed to see something massive descending upon him.

Whoosh!

***

He Dongchen commanded his clansmen to throw down a giant net, capturing both the turtle and the male lead.

Xi Ya hugged her arms, eyeing the unconscious An Yanshang with disdain. “Is this the weakling?”

He Dongchen clenched his fist against his mouth, coughed, and said, “He’s not weak. He managed to escape under the eyes of so many people.”

Unfortunately, they happened to encounter him on their return journey and caught him in a net.

As he spoke, someone handed him a phone. He Dongchen took it and said, “The human has been captured. You can head back now.”

“That’s great news,” the caller on the other end sighed in relief.

They had been in a difficult situation with Hua Xue, unable to advance or retreat. They were relieved to hear from the clan leader that they didn’t need to continue the chase. If they hadn’t caught him, they would have been blamed as the Mermaid Clan’s criminals.

He Dongchen hung up the phone, instructed his men to drag An Yanshang away and keep a close watch on him, then turned his attention to the turtle lying on its back nearby. This turtle was practically the heroine’s trump card.

He pondered for a moment and instructed, “Keep it alive for now. Later, find a cargo ship to release it into the ocean on the other side of the earth.”

If it managed to swim back, He Dongchen would be impressed.

As the ship slowly docked, He Dongchen led the merfolk off the boat. An Yanshang was being dragged behind, his legs bumping against each other, but no one paid any attention.

“Yanshang!” Hua Xue’s face turned pale. She struggled free from her restraints and staggered toward An Yanshang, urgently slapping his cheeks. “Wake up, wake up!”

An Yanshang remained unconscious due to the tranquilizer, unable to wake up.

Panicking, Hua Xue clung to An Yanshang and questioned the others, “What did you do to him?”

Before anyone could respond, Xi Ya stepped forward and looked down at Hua Xue with a hint of a smile. “Hua Xue, long time no see.”

Hua Xue looked up and saw Xi Ya’s face. She fell silent immediately, clutching her head and groaning in pain. “My head hurts so much.”

The others exchanged glances, and He Dongchen waved his hand. “Take them back and keep a close watch.”

“Yes, Sir.”

He Dongchen turned to Xi Ya, who wore a complex expression, and spoke softly, “Let’s go back and rest for the night.”

Xi Ya nodded.

There were several villas in the center of Pearl Island for the merfolk to rest. Being near the sea and heavily guarded, it was a highly coveted position with intense competition every 2 years.

Only Hua Xue could stay on the island without worries.

Xi Ya’s room was arranged next to He Dongchen’s. Perhaps because he was the first person she saw upon waking, Xi Ya felt an innate trust toward He Dongchen. While she might not stay by his side constantly, she wanted to know where he was at all times and whether he might leave.

Xi Ya was the true Princess of Xitu, with her rose-gold tail, so the other merfolk saw no problem with it.

“Good night,” Xi Ya said before entering her room. It was said to be a human bedtime ritual. During these days, Xi Ya had enjoyed human food, learned human writing, and clumsily played with a phone, making rapid progress.

“Good night,” He Dongchen replied with a smile.

The night passed without incident.

***

The next morning, He Dongchen awoke to cheers. He pulled back the curtains and saw Xi Ya transformed into a mermaid, joyfully swimming in the garden pool, surrounded by other merfolk who drooled over her rose-gold tail.

He Dongchen chuckled; it seemed the Mermaid Clan was indeed obsessed with tails.

Suddenly, Xi Ya looked up from the pool, saw He Dongchen by the window, and beamed a brilliant smile.

After breakfast, He Dongchen took Xi Ya to the basement. They passed through several security checkpoints and entered a secret room.

An Yanshang was lying in bed, already awake. Hearing the commotion at the door, he scrambled out of bed, his face earnest, and almost swore to the heavens, “I won’t tell anyone!”

He Dongchen raised an eyebrow and said slowly, “An Yanshang, the illegitimate son of the An family’s third branch. Your mother was a deceived college student who died when you were 6. Since then, you were brought back to the An family, becoming one of several illegitimate children, unremarkable. You infiltrated Pearl Island to steal the secret formula for cultivating pearls, didn’t you?”

An Yanshang looked down, his fists clenched tightly. He hated the term ‘illegitimate child’ more than anything!

He Dongchen smiled lightly and continued, “Curiosity killed the cat. You’ve uncovered the secrets of our Mermaid Clan, which is far more terrifying than any pearl formula.”

“What do you want?” An Yanshang relaxed his grip and tried to look harmless.

“Three choices,” He Dongchen said without preamble.

“First, death.”

An Yanshang’s pupils contracted, and he shook his head rigidly.

He Dongchen smiled. “Second, become a merman. We would all be brothers and sisters.”

An Yanshang was taken aback. Merfolk, being amphibious, were technically superior to humans. Was there such a good thing?

Xi Ya noticed his confusion and briefly explained the drawbacks of becoming a merman and Hua Xue’s background.

An Yanshang suddenly understood. No wonder Hua Xue was so naive and easily deceived; she was naturally dull-witted.

Xi Ya spoke seriously, “Hua Xue’s bloodline is already thin. If you take half of it, it will likely become even weaker. As for the offspring from your union, no one can predict. The worst outcome might be an ordinary fish.”

An Yanshang shook his head violently, his face full of rejection. Who could accept that their child might turn into a fish?

“What’s the third option?” he asked hopefully.

He Dongchen smiled gently. “Hua Xue falling in love with you already broke our Mermaid Clan’s rules. We will erase her intelligence and turn her into a real fish. As for you, for Hua Xue’s sake, we’ll spare your life. You’ll remain on the island as a laborer for the rest of your life.”

Death, becoming a mermaid with uncertain prospects, or sacrificing Hua Xue while becoming a lifelong laborer.

An Yanshang forced a bitter smile. “Do I really have a choice?”