Translator: Moonlit
Editor: Aiya-ge
Li ZouXing’s thumb was still proudly sticking up.
Gu WenCheng glanced at his thumb, then slowly lifted his head to look at Li ZouXing’s face.
The little mermaid crouched in the water pit, only daring to show half of his head, nervously observing the situation. He held a skewer in his hand, waiting for his mouth to clear before peeking out and taking a bite, then plopping back under the water.
Beside them, the Dream Team members were just watching the show with an air of satisfaction, each of them metaphorically wearing a big “smirk” on their heads.
Li ZouXing quickly adjusted his expression, trying to look as innocent as possible. He stared at his own hand in puzzlement and said, “How did it end up like this?”
Teammates collectively rolled their eyes.
Gu WenCheng chuckled twice, pretending to be innocent too, “Yeah, how did it end up like this?”
“I don’t know,” Li ZouXing continued with a hint of genuine confusion, attempting to portray the little mermaid’s innocence. He countered, “WenCheng, you indeed are the ‘wife,’ as I told you before. I’m the one who takes the initiative.”
“…” Gu WenCheng’s expression twisted as he couldn’t argue with that. It was true that Li ZouXing had declared himself as the one who initiated things. But at that time, Gu WenCheng had thought it was just Li ZouXing’s male ego refusing to admit vulnerability.
If Gu WenCheng didn’t care about the dominance aspect, that was impossible. However, he also didn’t put much stock in the idea of who was in the dominant or submissive role.
No one had defined who should be at a disadvantage in a sexual relationship, and Gu WenCheng believed that he was the one who should take care of Li ZouXing. He cherished Li ZouXing.
But his boyfriend didn’t appear as clueless as he pretended. In fact, the one who seemed completely clueless was Gu WenCheng. He squinted his eyes, trying to figure out how Li ZouXing knew all these things.
Upon reflection, he remembered Li ZouXing’s behavior in the bathroom when he had pushed him to confess his feelings. Li ZouXing’s actions back then didn’t seem right.
He already knew how to engage in intimate activities at that time.
Where did he learn it? Who taught him?
Gu WenCheng’s emotions were in a state of fluctuation. Li ZouXing could easily sense his feelings. Initially, he had found it lighthearted, as they really couldn’t fight, and it was just a cute little quirk in their relationship. But now, he wasn’t so sure because Gu WenCheng’s emotions were more intense and turbulent than he had expected.
He furrowed his brow, walked over, and held Gu WenCheng’s hand, leading him to the seashore for a heart-to-heart talk.
Their teammates watched their departing figures, still curious, and one of them turned to the little mermaid and asked, “Aren’t you surprised that your ‘boss’’… ‘wife’ is a man?”
The little mermaid pursed his lips, feeling like they were underestimating him. “Many underwater species reproduce with two males.”
“Wow…” The Dream Team members, who lacked this knowledge, had their jaws dropping, and their perspectives were suddenly refreshed.
Ji Yu was ecstatic at this revelation. He suddenly widened his eyes and exclaimed, “ZouXing’s confession plan! It can take place underwater!”
This… sounded incredibly cool!
…
Once upon a time, pretending to be pure was a lot of fun. But now, when things took an unexpected turn, it was nerve-wracking.
Li ZouXing mistakenly thought that what upset Gu WenCheng was his pretense of ignorance. In reality, there was a significant difference. Gu WenCheng’s current concern was who had taught his sunshine so much knowledge.
In simple terms, he was jealous.
The jealousy was quite obvious, but Li ZouXing didn’t pick up on it.
With the vast expanse of the azure sea in front of them, one of them was contemplating how to broach the subject, while the other was figuring out how to subtly phrase his questions.
Both of them had their share of masculinity, and neither wanted to let the situation linger. They simultaneously said, “You—”
They exchanged bewildered glances, and then both burst into laughter.
“Who taught you all this knowledge?” Gu WenCheng pressed, unable to contain himself, “Is that person still alive?”
His intent to harm was clear, and Li ZouXing found himself caught off guard. He pondered deeply for a moment and replied, “Don’t worry, they’re no longer in this world.”
“They?”
Gu Wen Cheng was shocked; there was more than one person involved?
Dammit!
His face turned ashen, and Li ZouXing, in an unusual display of candor, continued, “Previously, it was all theoretical knowledge. The practical experience was gained through you.”
Gu WenCheng felt relieved. Li ZouXing hadn’t explained anything, but he wasn’t angry anymore, and the murderous intent had disappeared. Now that those people were no longer around, whom else could he kill?
“WenCheng, two men being in love with each other is considered abnormal in this world, and it has never happened before,” Li ZouXing, his hands behind his head, lay on the beach, and continued, “Have you ever thought about why, with eight major star systems, tens of thousands of planets, and billions of species, no one has ever considered that two men can be in love?”
Gu WenCheng mimicked his posture, lying on the ground. He mumbled, “Why?”
If he hadn’t confirmed that he loved Li ZouXing, he would never have thought of such a pairing. But damn it, he was extremely concerned about where Li ZouXing had read all that theoretical knowledge and who had prompted him to read it.
Li ZouXing chuckled, his tone light as if he was in a good mood. Gu WenCheng couldn’t help but turn to look at him.
“It’s because this world has been waiting for us,” he said, “Everyone… is waiting for Li ZouXing and Gu WenCheng to fall in love.”
The sea breeze gently caressed them, and the sound of the waves whispered in their ears.
This statement was whimsical and absurd to the extreme.
However, Gu WenCheng suddenly felt a stinging sensation in his eyes, and they became dry.
The feeling of loneliness within one’s heart is something that others may not understand.
Reject warmth, disregard warmth, yet yearn for warmth.
Li ZouXing’s words repeated in his mind several times, and he found them romantic, extremely romantic.
It was as if the world truly was as he had described it, eagerly waiting for their love to blossom and then waiting for everyone to realize that two men could also be in love.
Li ZouXing withdrew his hand from beneath his head and drew a beautiful line on the sandy beach, then gently touched Gu WenCheng’s left fingertip.
Gu WenCheng followed from his fingertip, intertwining their fingers.
In the original text, Gu WenCheng had always been ruthless. If someone in the harem deceived him, the best result was parting ways. No one would have thought that he could be so easily appeased, with just three sentences totaling over a hundred words from Li ZouXing, he had already let go of his anger.
Li ZouXing couldn’t help but wonder, was it because he was the one speaking or the effect of their fondness for each other?
But who cared?
In any case, Gu WenCheng loved Li ZouXing.
There was no need to know the reason; Li ZouXing trusted him and, more importantly, he trusted himself.
Their atmosphere was great, and their teammates on the shore, who had been watching them, also breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness, these two were fine.
While it was said with a tinge of schadenfreude, the stone in their hearts had finally fallen.
To be honest, they were a perfect match. What other couple could resolve their conflicts so quickly and peacefully?
Knowing that everything was fine, they were in the mood to continue discussing their previous topic.
Ling Nian agreed, saying, “Ji Yu’s idea is excellent.”
“You can go underwater at any time, and now we can control our mental powers effectively,” Si Wo Lin thought for a moment and asked the little mermaid, “Is there a particularly beautiful place under the sea on White Star Sea?”
Xi Nan quickly added, “A place suitable for confession.”
As observers, they had heard quite a bit of gossip and knew that Li ZouXing had never formally confessed his love to Gu WenCheng. How could that be?
A relationship with your loved one was just a matter of saying “I love you” and hearing “I love you too,” right?
The little mermaid pondered, holding his chubby chin.
The teammates watched him with anticipation.
To their delight, the little mermaid suddenly raised his head, his eyes bright, “I know of a place! It’s a place that humans have never discovered!”
“Very, very beautiful!”
“It’s just underwater,” the little mermaid was genuinely puzzled, then raised a critical question, “Can you still talk underwater?”
The Dream Team: “…” They can communicate through gestures.
Or even with mental powers.
“In that case, let’s go now,” the little mermaid looked up at the sky, which had already taken on a reddish hue as the sun was about to set, “It’s the most beautiful time at that place right now!”
The teammates exchanged glances, surprised by the sudden turn of events. However, they swiftly discarded their bamboo skewers, removed their shoes, and headed towards Li ZouXing and Gu WenCheng. Before the two could react, the teammates dragged them up from the beach and pulled them into the sea.
Well, isn’t that what surprises are all about?
The little mermaid happily let out a cry and, with his tail fin, splashed water as a path for them.
Seeing that the human movements were too slow, he willingly grabbed one person and then another, increasing their speed as they rushed toward the ocean floor.
Although White Star Sea’s merfolk appeared shy and timid in front of humans, under the sea, merfolk were the rulers of the deep.
Various types of fish swam around them. Due to the small size of the merfolk, these fish enjoyed sticking close and being affectionate with them. As for the dangerous and enormous sea monsters, they simply ignored the merfolk and the humans accompanying them.
The little mermaid pouted, “Hmph, they’re not afraid of me at all.”
The Dream Team: “…” They finally understood why he had a growling stomach, even though he had no injuries. It was because this little guy didn’t know how to catch his own food. When they thought about it, running away from home might not be such a bad thing after all.
They were now experiencing what the underwater world was like.
Their enhanced senses, coupled with the strength to move freely underwater, created a unique sensation as their skin was covered with a thin layer of mental energy that made the surrounding water feel unusually smooth.
Their eyes could clearly see the environment around them, from the small creatures crawling in the sand to the affectionate interactions of fish of the same species and the occasional massive beings that passed by, leaving them in awe.
There were many undersea creatures that they had never seen before and couldn’t name, like species one would expect to find in a virtual world.
Even more magical was the fact that the underwater world wasn’t pitch-black but was illuminated with scattered points of light.
The group couldn’t take their eyes off the scenery. They used their mental powers to explore the sea and absorb oxygen while excitedly gazing around.
Their mental abilities had to reach a certain level for them to explore this far and effectively absorb oxygen for themselves.
Li ZouXing and Gu WenCheng, who had initially been unhappy, now had a change of heart as they watched their teammates, who had been obsessed with light bulbs for three hundred years.
After all, what could be more beautiful than seeing romantic words come to life in such a stunning setting?
Gu WenCheng thought to himself.
As it turned out, there was something even more beautiful.
Countless pale blue jellyfish floated to the sea surface, emitting a shimmering light that was more dazzling than the starry sky.
Beneath their feet were clusters of fiery red underwater flowers, their soft petals swaying with the water’s gentle movements, creating beautiful waves of blossoms.
The place was quite deep, almost entirely dark, but the ice blue of the jellyfish and the fiery red of the underwater flowers created a striking contrast of colors.
It was incredibly enchanting.
Everyone stood there, captivated by the spectacle, feeling like they had stepped into a fantasy world. Merfolk swam above them, humming cheerful tunes with the voices of joyful children.
Li ZouXing almost instantly realized what was happening; this was the confession spot prepared by their teammates.
A confession.
A response to Gu WenCheng’s confession.
His heart raced in his chest, his fists clenched, and he felt an unexpected surge of nervousness.
Their teammates looked at him with eager expressions, their eyes filled with encouragement, all saying, “Go!”
“Go for it!”
“Respond to Gu WenCheng’s feelings for you!”
“Be together!”
His emotions affected Gu WenCheng, who turned to look at him, his hand instinctively reaching for his chest.
His heart was pounding unexpectedly fast in a place he had never anticipated, and it was accelerating.
There was a faint, almost unbelievable sense of hope building within him.
Suddenly, Li ZouXing grabbed his hand.
Gu WenCheng’s heart tightened in response.
He gently guided him towards the center of the bright lights, where the song surrounded them, and the jellyfish floated around.
“Well, it’s like this…”
Li ZouXing wasn’t sure what to say, and even the telepathic communication struggled to convey his words. This was too formal, and many things he could normally say with ease were suddenly difficult to express.
He thought and organized his thoughts in his mind, repeating and rephrasing his words.
The prolonged silence made their teammates and the little merman anxious too, their hands covered in sweat under the influence of the mental membrane.
Sweet words were easy until the moment you wanted to say them, and suddenly, they became hard to articulate.
After much contemplation, with the water’s gentle movements and the unnoticed sweat forming on Gu WenCheng’s forehead, Li ZouXing spoke sincerely, “I like you, Gu Wencheng.”
Each word was carefully pronounced, with the reflection of jellyfish and a bouquet of flowers in his eyes.
“I really like you.”
There were no words more heartfelt than these.
Their teammates erupted in applause, even though they couldn’t hear it underwater, their enthusiastic support was evident.
The little merman’s singing became even more joyful, filled with a sense of high spirits.
As for Gu WenCheng, he was now standing still1 TL’s crazy note: or maybe ‘floating’ still…? HAHAHHAHAHAHHAHA.
