In a state between dreaming and waking, Yu Bai seemed to smell the aroma of food.
At first, he thought his sense of smell was playing tricks on him. The laboratory always smelled of sharp disinfectants—how could there be something delicious?
Yet the scent grew stronger, making the little merperson salivate.
He opened his eyes, seeing the vast sky filled with stars, and finally remembered that he was no longer in the laboratory.
The coat draped over him slipped off as he sat up, pooling on his lap.
The side of Xiao Bai’s cheek bore a faint red mark from being pressed, his brows furrowed slightly with sleepiness, and his half-open eyes were misted with a thin layer of moisture, adding a touch of dazed vulnerability.
A tuft of hair stood rebelliously upright, making one want to reach out and smooth it.
He looked even more endearing.
With a tiny yawn, he instinctively glanced towards the desk.
Fu Linyuan, having likely finished his official duties and not wanting to disturb him, was resting in the chair with one hand propping up his temple.
The room was deathly quiet, the only sound the slow ticking of the clock on the wall.
Yu Bai also noticed a few covered dishes on the nearby coffee table.
The enticing aroma he smelled earlier was seeping out from beneath those covers.
Lifting one of the covers, he recognised roasted meat.
And noodles.
However, it seemed they had been sitting there for some time, as the food had gone cold.
The little merperson glanced at the roasted meat, then turned to look at Fu Linyuan, whose eyes remained shut.
He waved cautiously at the latter.
…No response.
It seemed Fu Linyuan had fallen asleep.
After some thought, the little merperson set aside the coat on him, got up, and tiptoed behind the man.
If he could read, he might have noticed that the lit-up display on Fu Linyuan’s smart device contained a lengthy shopping list.
The top items were all renovation services, marked as urgent.
Judging from the initial entries, the Empire’s Marshal seemed intent on installing a pool at home.
[tn:AWH INSTALLING A POOL FOR XIAO BAI?]
The subsequent items were children’s educational materials.
Even an expensive companion-learning AI robot had made its way onto the list.
But Yu Bai couldn’t read yet and wasn’t interested in the glowing words on the screen anyway.
His focus was entirely on Fu Linyuan.
More precisely, on Fu Linyuan’s mental sea.
Yu Bai’s own mental strength hadn’t fully recovered to its peak, so he could only sneakily examine Fu Linyuan’s mental sea while the man was relaxed and resting.
Gently, the cool palm of his hand covered the man’s brow as the little merperson closed his eyes and released his mental power.
It was a gray, hazy world.
A narrow path extended through the dark sea, its destination unknown. Low-hanging black clouds weighed heavily over the scene, the air thick with oppressive tension.
Ferocious waves crashed onto the shore, as if attempting to swallow the path whole.
The rough gravel beneath Yu Bai’s feet cut into his pale soles, drawing blood.
The sharp pain in his feet was vivid, but Yu Bai seemed oblivious. He walked along the uneven path, glancing around as if searching for something.
After an indeterminate amount of time, he finally found his target at the end of the path.
Or rather, beyond it.
The jagged path disappeared into a section of shallower, clearer water. In the distance, a large white rock stood out.
The closer he got to the rock, the more normal the water’s color became.
Without hesitation, Yu Bai dove into the clearer waters, causing a small splash.
The dark seawater stung against his silver-white tail, but as he swam into the untainted area, the pain gradually subsided until it vanished entirely.
With graceful flicks of his beautiful tail, Yu Bai quickly reached the rock.
The little merperson surfaced, propping himself up on the edge of the rock with his hands, his tail swishing to lift himself up.
At the center of the rock lay a sickly adult lion.
The lion’s large frame and thick mane, gently swaying in the sea breeze, gave it a commanding presence. Yet it seemed oblivious to the intrusion into its territory, lying there with its eyes closed as if in deep rest.
Drawing closer, Yu Bai saw its body was riddled with wounds. Blood seeped from the injuries, pooling beneath it and staining the rock a darker hue.
Listening to the lion’s labored breathing, the little merperson tentatively extended a hand, brushing its forehead lightly.
This was Fu Linyuan’s mental sea.
And the lion before him must be Fu Linyuan’s mental embodiment.
Feeling the coarse, dry fur beneath his palm, Yu Bai pondered for a moment before summoning his mental energy.
Then, his pale pink lips parted gently.
In this bleak world of crashing waves and roaring winds, a soft melody emerged.
The lion’s ears twitched reflexively.
It seemed to want to open its eyes but was held back by an invisible force, urging it to continue resting.
With each ancient and melodic note, something miraculous began to unfold—a soft light gathered at Yu Bai’s pale fingertips, and the smaller wounds on the lion’s body started to heal visibly. Its fur regained some of its lustre.
The dark clouds above the rock seemed to dissipate slightly, and even the previously turbulent waves began to calm.
However, it didn’t last long. The little merperson's complexion paled with each note, his lips losing their colour. The song grew fainter, and the lion’s healing slowed until it came to a halt.
The light at his fingertips faded. Yu Bai stifled a cough, covering his mouth.
Though his healing ability remained, Fu Linyuan’s injuries were simply too severe.
His current strength wasn’t enough to fully heal him.
Not even close.
What’s more, the excessive use of his mental energy meant that once he returned to reality, he might not be able to maintain his human form for long and would need to retreat to the sea to recover.
As this thought crossed his mind, the lion beside him stirred slightly, its eyelids beginning to flutter.
Entering someone else’s mental sea while their subjective consciousness was active was extremely risky. Thus, Yu Bai reluctantly began to withdraw his energy.
When he opened his eyes, he was back in the office.
His hand still rested over Fu Linyuan’s eyes. The man’s lashes twitched slightly, tickling Yu Bai’s palm.
At the same time, a wave of unprecedented exhaustion overwhelmed him.
Before Fu Linyuan could wake, Yu Bai quickly slipped back onto the sofa, curling under the coat once more.
Where did those wounds come from? The starship?
As he closed his eyes, Yu Bai couldn’t help but wonder.
He had seen many human mental seas before and knew that spending too much time on starships could damage them.
It seemed there was a substance in deep space that polluted human mental energy, driving them into fits of rage.
His own mental energy just so happened to purify such contamination.
If only…
Fatigue from overextending his powers washed over him, and before Yu Bai could finish his thought, he fell into a deeper slumber.
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