Chapter 137 – Love in a Fallen City: You Are My Eternal, Unfading Starlight – The First Merman Who Almost Drowned (01)
“Tang Tang is finally back, wuwuwu…”
As soon as Bai Tang returned to the system space, a white round ball dropped onto his shoulder and began bawling loudly.
“How could you commit suic*de? Do you know how worried I was about you? Waaah…”
“I was wrong…” Bai Tang pouted. At the time, he couldn’t think of a better solution. Both Yu Hongbo and Qiu’er scolded him.
Feeling misunderstood, the boy grew increasingly aggrieved, and golden teardrops welled up in his eyes.
“Ah, Tang Tang, don’t cry! I didn’t mean to scold you, I was just so scared, wuwuwu~” The system quickly tried to comfort him.
But when it came to a crying contest, the little squirrel had never lost to anyone. As a naturally timid squirrel, it was already a huge accomplishment for it to have traveled through so many worlds and dealt with humans.
[Points calculation: 1000 points awarded for breaking up the male and female leads; 500 points awarded for stopping the death game. Please continue your efforts, Host.]
The system’s mechanical voice, for once, offered a rare word of comfort to Bai Tang after the points were tallied.
“Let’s go to the next world.”
Since he couldn’t cheer up Tang Tang, the system decided to leave it to the male lead and figured it needed to do some deep learning itself before taking Tang Tang back.
Bai Tang quickly wiped away his tears. “Then… what kind of world is it?”
The system flipped through its data. The next one was a B-level world. Not particularly dangerous—pretty similar to the ancient world they’d just been in.
It pulled out a book. The cover showed a dazzling stage with brilliant lights, and in the center stood a man and a woman. Shockingly, the lower half of the female lead’s body was a fishtail.
“A m-mermaid?!” the system exclaimed in surprise.
It looked over at Bai Tang. The little squirrel was terrified of water, after all.
Sure enough, the story described in the book went like this:
In the interstellar calendar era, human reproduction had become increasingly difficult. Mermaids became the main means of continuing the species. However, because of their rarity, not everyone could have a mermaid. Only the wealthy and powerful, or those who had made great contributions to the interstellar alliance, had that privilege.
The male lead, Turs Walker, was a general in the interstellar alliance. After returning victorious from a major battle against the Zerg, the alliance decided to reward him by allowing him to choose a mermaid from the mermaid base as his wife.
Turs Walker arrived at the mermaid base, and his cold, strikingly cool appearance made many mermaids fall for him at first sight. Among them was the male side character, Bai Tang, a mermaid with a brown-gray tail.
At the same time, Le Mengqi from the modern world had transmigrated into the body of a mermaid with a turquoise tail—the female lead. She refused to accept a fate where she could be casually chosen and used as nothing more than a tool. Taking advantage of General Turs Walker’s visit to the mermaid base, she found an opening and escaped.\
Mermaids were delicate and physically weak. Anyone who wanted to own one needed either great strength or immense wealth. Le Mengqi fled without care, but she was completely unaccustomed to land. In a dehydrated state, her magically transformed legs reverted back into a fishtail in public, causing an uproar.
At that moment, Bai Tang—who had just been casually picked by Turs Walker—was riding in the car back home with the general. As a high-ranking officer, Turs took it upon himself to suppress the incident, leading to his first meeting with the female lead.
Turs Walker rescued Le Mengqi and gently carried her back to the mermaid base. From that moment, feelings quietly began to grow between them.
Bai Tang, however, immediately sensed danger. Le Mengqi was known as one of the most beautiful mermaids in the entire base.
There was a trial period after a mermaid was selected. During this time, the guardian (owner) was not allowed to do anything that was only permitted after marriage, but otherwise, they were to live like a normal couple. If the guardian decided the mermaid was unsuitable, or if the base discovered the guardian had harmed the mermaid in any way, the mermaid would be returned to the base and the guardian would lose ownership rights.
Bai Tang genuinely liked Turs Walker and was afraid of being sent back.
As luck would have it, Le Mengqi asked the base staff to accompany her to thank General Turs Walker in person.
When Bai Tang saw that, he panicked—his love rival was coming to his doorstep!
So, Bai Tang lost his composure. In an attempt to make Le Mengqi back off, he deliberately flaunted the things Turs had bought for him, showing off how much the male lead adored and cared about him.
But the more Bai Tang acted this way, the more Le Mengqi felt that Turs Walker was a great partner. After all, there was a trial period—she could just find a reason to have Bai Tang returned. Turs Walker was a gentleman; he clearly wasn’t the type to force a mermaid into anything.
And with that, she sprang into action. During her visit to thank Turs Walker, she casually sang a song. Mermaid songs were always beautiful, but Le Mengqi, who had trained in vocal performance, completely outshone Bai Tang in that department. She even told the male lead about her dream—to debut as a singer.
Turs Walker deeply admired Le Mengqi for being someone with ambition and ideals—especially since she was doing so while being a mermaid, which made things even more difficult.
With the male lead’s help, the female lead quickly rose to become a rising star on stage.
As the two grew closer—pink bubbles of romance practically floating between them—Bai Tang became increasingly unwilling to accept it. He posted a flood of secretly taken photos online, capturing the male and female leads in seemingly intimate poses. He blurred out Turs Walker’s face but exposed Le Mengqi, accusing her of stealing someone else’s fiancé.
Gossip about the hottest mermaid pop star was irresistible. Once this explosive story broke, it caused a huge stir.
Turs Walker quickly discovered that Bai Tang was behind the scheme. As a result, he sent Bai Tang back to the mermaid base and publicly acknowledged his relationship with Le Mengqi, receiving widespread support from the public.
Bai Tang, now returned to the base, went back into the selection pool. Thanks to Le Mengqi’s arrangement, he was chosen by a wealthy man with sadistic tendencies. In the end, Bai Tang died tragically in that man’s bed. Due to the man’s wealth and influence—and Le Mengqi leveraging General Turs Walker’s power to cover up the scandal—it was all swept under the rug. From then on, nothing stood in the way of the male and female leads’ happily-ever-after.
“That female lead is such a green tea b*tch,” the system muttered. Having seen many worlds and read many stories, it had learned to recognize the type.
Le Mengqi looked down on mermaids, yet enjoyed all the privileges that came with being one. She claimed to be independent and strong-willed, but clung to the male lead to climb the interstellar entertainment ladder. Whenever trouble came, she would immediately act pitiful in front of him. In public, she pretended to be generous and unbothered, smiling sweetly—while behind the scenes, she schemed ruthlessly. She couldn’t be more disgusting.
In the original storyline, the male side character died without ever knowing that it was Le Mengqi who had sealed his fate.
Sure, the male side character hadn’t done great things—but how was it justified for the female lead to steal someone else’s fiancé and expect no criticism? All Bai Tang had done was post the truth online.
The system’s righteous indignation didn’t affect Bai Tang. He was eagerly anticipating his reunion with the male lead.
Ah Bo, I’ve come to find you.
The teleportation began. After a dizzying spin, Bai Tang fell—splash!—straight into the water.
“Ah… glug glug… help…” Everything within reach was slippery—he couldn’t grab onto anything.
“Tang Tang, don’t be scared. You’re a mermaid now, so you can breathe underwater. Take a deep breath,” the system tried to guide him calmly.
But as soon as Bai Tang opened his mouth, a mouthful of water rushed in— “Glug glug…!”
“General Walker, this way please,” the guide from the Mermaid Protection Base said, leading Turs Walker forward.
As they passed a fork in the hallway, Turs suddenly felt a strange unease. It was as if something unseen was guiding him down the other corridor.
“General Walker, that area is for underage mermaids…” the guide called out as he chased after him.
Walker arrived at the mermaid activity area and saw bubbles rising from the middle of the pool.
A wave of panic surged through his chest. Ignoring the guide’s attempt to stop him, Walker stripped off his outer uniform and dove into the water.
Bai Tang felt something supporting his waist, lifting him up, while pressure was being applied to his abdomen.
Guide (in shock): Wait, mermaids can drown?!
Bai Tang coughed up several mouthfuls of water. Through the haze, he saw a man in a military uniform.
“W-Who are you?”
The little mermaid’s pale, tender face was scrunched up, the corners of his eyes tinged red. He looked so pitiful that it tugged at the heartstrings. Even his soft, milky voice lacked any sense of threat.
So cute…
Turs thought, though his face remained as expressionless as ever.
“Tang Tang, that’s the male lead~” the system added helpfully, inwardly complaining, D*mn it, why does the male lead show up faster every time? I’ve recited all the tranquility mantras I know!
“Hello, I’m Turs Walker. What’s your name?” Turs greeted the little mermaid as gently as he could.
His subordinates were all intimidated by his cold demeanor—let alone a timid and shy mermaid. He just hoped he didn’t scare the little guy.
“Um, General Walker, this area is for underage mermaids…” Meaning they couldn’t be selected.
Before the guide could finish, a soft, sugary voice cut him off.
“I turn of age tomorrow.”
The guide looked surprised, and Bai Tang suddenly realized he might’ve sounded a little too forward. He nervously glanced up at Turs for his reaction.
“W-What I mean is… I’m not a kid anymore…” the little mermaid tried to “fix” what he said. After a pause, he added, “My name is Bai Tang.”
Smack—
Having been out of water too long, his tail reflexively slapped against the floor, splashing a bit of water and startling Bai Tang.
“Th-That’s my tail?” Bai Tang asked in disbelief.
“Yes, that’s right. The color of the tail is based on Tang Tang’s original form—it’s beautiful, isn’t it?” the system said proudly.
The original host’s tail was brown-gray, but after Tang Tang arrived, it began to change. It would slowly shift to a reddish-brown, brighter and more striking than before, though the change was subtle and not easily noticed unless one looked closely.
The little mermaid stared blankly at his tail—he looked incredibly cute doing so. Turs couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle his hair. It felt soft and silky to the touch.
“Tang Tang hasn’t reached adulthood yet, so he can’t stay out of the water for too long,” Turs said, gently picking him up and placing him back in the water.
“I—I…” Bai Tang was afraid of water. He clung tightly to Turs’s sleeve, panic written all over his face.
“Don’t be afraid. I’m here. I won’t let go.”
I’ll never let go for the rest of my life.
The moment Turs saw the little mermaid, he had already decided: this was his mermaid—and only his. No one else should even think of taking him away.
Author’s Note:
Bai Tang: Waaah, water is so scary! I have to stay in it for a lifetime? (sobs)
System: In the interstellar era, the average human lifespan is 300 years. Statistically, Tangtang has about 270 more years to go.
Turs: Don’t be scared, baby. I’ll soak with you.