Prohibit Certain Players from Contacting the Dungeon NPC!

Chapter 13: The Misty Fishing Village

Yu Kai only knew that after Yu Chen said something, his grandfather's expression changed dramatically. He couldn't help but be curious about what his uncle had said, glancing back and forth between the two.

Yu Fan leaned heavily on his cane, his hands trembling as he looked at Yu Chen with a complex expression. "No, Ah Chen, I’ve always considered you family… always have."

A sarcastic smile tugged at Yu Chen's lips as he subtly glanced at the confused Yu Kai. "Really? You truly never hated me? After… they died."

Yu Fan knew very well who Yu Chen referred to as "they." He closed his eyes, trying to block the sadness that welled up. "I… I'm sorry."

After uttering those words, he quickly pulled Yu Kai away.

"Grandpa, don’t pull me! I want to play with Uncle! You promised last night!" Yu Kai protested as his grandfather led him away.

With Yu Fan taking his grandson away, only Yu Chen remained in the courtyard, along with the little monster hidden in the pool nearby.

The sudden silence after the chaotic scene was unbearable. Yu Chen, however, kept his eyelashes lowered, silently picking up a withered yellow leaf from the table and watching it spin on his fingertips.

Mu Miao seemed to perceive the deep-seated loneliness that clung to Yu Chen. Despite being so full of life, there was no trace of vitality in him. Mu Miao felt an inexplicable sense of unease and called out, "Yu Chen!"

Yu Chen looked up at him, and the decaying aura enveloping him vanished in an instant, as if it were merely Mu Miao's illusion. "Awake? I thought you were dead asleep."

Used to Yu Chen's sharp tongue, Mu Miao opened his arms, wanting to go to him.

Yu Chen clicked his tongue. "You're getting more clingy."

Despite his words, he stood up and walked to the edge of the pool, bending down to lift Mu Miao out of the water.

With his arms wrapped around Yu Chen's neck, Mu Miao settled against him, pressing his delicate, pale face against Yu Chen's neck. He closed his eyes, savoring the rhythm of his heartbeat. "Yu Chen, why did you lie to him, saying you’re a monster? You’re clearly human."

His clear, innocent eyes fixed on Yu Chen, leaning closer to his neck. "Listen, that’s the heartbeat of a human. You can’t fool me."

"Living a bit longer than an ordinary human… that’s not a big deal. I’ve seen humans live for hundreds of years! In any case, you’re a human, not a monster."

Mu Miao stated this with certainty, like a child who felt proud to have unraveled an adult's obvious lie. Unfortunately, to the complex-minded adult, this only seemed amusing.

Yu Chen smiled helplessly, ruffling Mu Miao's soft hair. "Yes, you’re the smartest fish. Nothing can fool you."

He was similar to Mu Miao, yet also different.

Mu Miao was a being born from nature, while he was merely a creature stitched together on an operating table, created through surgical procedures.

How could they possibly be the same?

Leaning against Yu Chen's shoulder, Mu Miao didn’t grasp the complexities of human emotions. However, he understood from observing his brothers that companionship was the best comfort when someone was sad.

In a gentle voice, Mu Miao lightly patted Yu Chen's back, as if soothing a child. "Don’t be sad, that old man has poor judgment and doesn’t see things clearly. Don’t take his words to heart. Oh, and he also said I’m improper!"

Mu Miao thought Yu Chen was upset because of Yu Kai's scolding and was trying to comfort him.

A hint of amusement flickered in Yu Chen's eyes. "Alright, I’m not angry anymore."

Satisfied, Mu Miao nodded and reached up to pat Yu Chen's head, praising him. "Good boy."

Yu Chen's body stiffened imperceptibly for a second. Although Mu Miao's actions were somewhat intrusive, he felt no resentment; instead, there was an odd sense of satisfaction.

Unaware of Yu Chen's complex emotions, Mu Miao was suddenly greeted by a gust of wind. He reached out to catch a yellow leaf that had blown toward him, which landed softly in his palm.

Mu Miao stared at the leaf and suddenly looked around at the trees.

In the sweltering heat of summer, the lush green leaves had quietly begun to wither, as if autumn had arrived, while the refreshing summer breeze felt like a chilling north wind, gradually taking away the vibrant life.

A sinking feeling gripped Mu Miao's heart. His body, which could adapt well to extreme cold, trembled slightly, and he didn't even notice the bruises he had pinched into his own pale arms.

He called out to 001 internally: 【001, what’s going on? Why are the leaves yellowing in summer? Is it possible that… this world is about to…】

001 interrupted him: 【That’s perfectly normal! Don’t overthink it. Who said there can’t be withered leaves in summer? You’re just making a fuss over nothing. Go on, don’t bother me while I’m trying to rest.】

Feeling somewhat reassured, Mu Miao obediently apologized, 【Is that so? I guess it’s my lack of experience. I’m sorry for bothering you, 001.】

Mu Miao pressed his lips tightly together, trying to ignore the strange feeling in his heart. Yes, the yellowing leaves in summer were not abnormal; at the very least… at least it hadn’t made its appearance yet.

Noticing Mu Miao’s serious expression and furrowed brows, Yu Chen couldn't resist lightly tapping his long eyelashes.

Mu Miao blinked, allowing it.

Yu Chen's fingers slid down to Mu Miao's beautiful fish tail, tracing along the scales. "Where are your legs?"

Mu Miao's eyes widened. "Huh?"

Legs? How did Yu Chen know he had legs?!

Panicking, Mu Miao turned his head away, stammering, "What legs? I’m a fish! How could a fish have legs?"

Yu Chen found it amusing and pinched Mu Miao's chin, turning his head to stare into his eyes that darted around nervously.

He pointed at Mu Miao's tail. "Don’t deny it; I saw it last night. Running around naked and accidentally falling over, showing your…"

Mu Miao's face turned bright red all of a sudden, and he quickly covered Yu Chen's hand, stopping him from continuing with his embarrassing story.

Fish also have their pride!

Yu Chen glanced at Mu Miao's tail, raising an eyebrow at the flustered little fish, clearly suggesting: show me your legs, and I won’t say anything more.

Mu Miao's watery eyes were filled with shame as he hesitated, softly making a request, "Um... I can show you my legs. But you have to give me a piece of clothing; I have nothing to wear..."

Yu Chen's hand enveloped the little merman's hand, which was smooth and delicate, feeling soft and wonderful to the touch, making Yu Chen reluctant to let go. "You took a set of clothes from me last night—where are they?"

Feeling guilty, Mu Miao stammered, "I... I lost them."

"Oh, so you lost my clothes," Yu Chen nodded thoughtfully. "What should we do now? How are you going to compensate me?"

Mu Miao panicked. If he needed to sneakily take Yu Chen's clothes, how could he repay him? He was on the verge of tears. "I have nothing to give you! How about I offer you my scales? But that's not worth much... what should I do?"

Mu Miao genuinely considered plucking some scales from his body to repay the debt since that was all he had of value, and if it wasn’t worth much, he could just give more.

As he braced himself to pluck a bit of scale, Yu Chen suddenly pressed his hand down.

Yu Chen pointed to the bracelet on Mu Miao's wrist. "Wait, I don’t need your scales. I’ll take this."

Mu Miao hesitated. That bracelet was a gift from Dana. Was it really okay to give it to Yu Chen?

Without further discussion, Yu Chen unfastened the bracelet and took it from him. Mu Miao thought about asking to exchange it for something else, but he felt a cold object slip onto his wrist.

Looking down, he saw it was another exquisite dark green bracelet, though he didn’t know what material it was made of. It felt cool against his skin.

The bracelet was adorned with many small charms—flowers, plants, swords, and arrows—all delicately crafted and beautifully made.

And without exception, they were all the color of Mu Miao's eyes.

Yu Chen admired Mu Miao's wrist, feeling a sense of satisfaction as the white wrist now bore something that belonged to him. He could gaze at it endlessly without growing tired of it.

As for the original bracelet…

Yu Chen silently put away the bracelet he had taken, planning to toss it into some dirty place, finding it visually displeasing.