Chapter 253: Anan Has a Mermaid Baby, Part 1

Chapter 253: Chapter 253: Anan Has a Mermaid Baby, Part 1

The Canglan Sea Area, the palace of the Mermaid Clan.

The crystal-clear dome refracted a pale blue light, so beautiful it seemed otherworldly.

Su An’an’s pink mermaid tail swayed gently as she followed Lan Cangming through the coral groves.

"The King has been very busy lately."

His adjutant, Lei Ya, swam at her side, his eight tentacles gliding gracefully through the water as he spoke in a hushed voice:

"To welcome you, he personally rearranged the coral in his personal chambers."

Su An’an raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Lei Ya blinked a couple of times, his tone laced with intrigue. "He changed everything to pink."

Su An’an nearly burst out laughing.

Lan Cangming’s silver-blue tail stiffened, and he shot Lei Ya a cold glare.

Lei Ya immediately shut his mouth, pretending to be just an innocent octopus.

The moment they pushed open the doors to the chambers, Su An’an froze.

All the coral groves in the entire chamber had been replaced with varying shades of pink.

Some were even carved into the shapes of land-dwelling flowers, swaying gently with the current.

A soft blanket woven from silver thread was spread across a giant white seashell bed. Dozens of smooth, pink pearls were arranged in the shape of a heart, casting a warm, soft glow.

Su An’an turned to look at Lan Cangming. "You did this?"

A faint blush crept onto Lan Cangming’s ear fins, but his voice remained cool.

"The coral is in bloom. It’s only fitting."

She picked up a pink pearl and swam to his side with a beaming smile.

"Is it a tradition in the Mermaid Clan to arrange pearls into a heart for your beloved?"

Lan Cangming’s tail fin tensed. He gave an expressionless nod. "Yes."

Lei Ya muttered under his breath from behind them, ’What tradition? The King shattered three pieces of coral with his tail while flipping through a manual on romance.’

"Lei Ya."

Lan Cangming’s voice was icy. "Go on patrol. For three months."

Lei Ya’s tentacles went rigid. He shot off faster than a fish.

"It’s time for dinner."

Lan Cangming clapped his hands.

The Luminous Pearls embedded in the dome lit up one after another, their soft blue light pouring down like moonlight to illuminate the coral dining table in the center of the room.

On the dining table, deep-sea crystal goblets held luminous nectar, and silver platters were laden with translucent sashimi.

Bluefin tuna belly, glistening Arctic surf clams, and Su An’an’s favorite sweet shrimp—every slice was as thin as a cicada’s wing.

"These were sent specially by the people of the Sea Clan."

Lan Cangming gestured for her to take a seat and poured her a cup of the nectar. "To thank you for purifying the Sea Ruins."

"This is delicious!"

Su An’an took a sip. The sweet and sour flavor was exactly to her taste.

They were halfway through their meal when an ethereal song suddenly drifted in from outside the hall.

Twelve mermaid dancers swam in, their large, beautiful tails—red, yellow, blue, green, and cyan—tracing paths like fireflies in the glow of the Luminous Pearls.

They held fluorescent seaweed, and their movements stirred up fine motes of light, as if a river of stars were pouring across the seabed.

The lead dancer suddenly flicked a red coral from her sleeve. It bloomed into a flower right before Su An’an. "Divine Female, may the Sea God bless you."

"Thank you!"

Su An’an accepted the coral flower and thanked her politely.

Once the dancers had dispersed, Su An’an toyed with the red coral flower, her gaze drifting unconsciously toward the window.

Lan Cangming’s tail rested lightly at her waist. Its scales shimmered faintly in the dimness, but the very tip was curled in tension.

"Missing the tiger cub?"

he asked suddenly, his gaze landing on her pink tail.

Su An’an chuckled. "A little."

After a pause, her fingertip traced the brightest scale on his tail fin. She smiled deliberately. "And I miss his dad."

The tip of Lan Cangming’s tail went taut. He turned his face away, his voice muffled. "You’re only here for three months at most. Then you go to Night Abyss. Big Cat will have to wait."

"Are you upset?"

She suddenly swam over to Lan Cangming, her finger tracing a line from his chest to his throat, feeling his heart begin to hammer.

"Did the Mermaid King prepare all these so-called ’traditions’ just to chat with me?"

Lan Cangming grabbed her wrist, his blue eyes shining with startling intensity in the dim light.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. His tail fin tightened stealthily, pulling her into his embrace. "Anan, stop teasing."

Su An’an tilted her head back and pressed a kiss to his flushed ear fin, nuzzling it gently. "I’m not teasing."

She watched his body tense instantly, her eyes crinkling in a smile. "I know you went to great lengths to prepare for my arrival. I love it."

Lan Cangming dipped his head abruptly, about to say something, but she pressed a finger to his lips. "Don’t talk. It’s time to sleep."

Outside the window, a school of tiny glowing fish swam past, illuminating their entangled tails.

His silver and her pink twisted together in the water, forming a gentle knot.

「The next morning.」

The current in the chamber carried a faint chill. Su An’an opened her eyes, enveloped in softness.

The seashell bed beneath her rocked gently with the current. The silver-threaded blanket was still warm, and she could almost feel the lingering heat on her skin from where their tails had been entangled last night.

She turned her head and saw Lan Cangming sitting on a nearby coral chair, reading a book.

The morning light filtered through the seawater, casting dappled patterns on his long, silver-blue hair.

"You’re awake?"

He turned, his ear fins glowing a faint pink in the morning light. "Breakfast is ready."

A clam-spirit handmaiden had already brought over a tray of food.

A crystal bowl was filled with milky-white sea-milk, with a few slivers of pink seaweed floating on top.

Beside it, a large spiral shell held fluorescent shellfish meat sliced into the shape of petals, served with an amber-colored honey sauce for dipping.

Su An’an scooped up a spoonful of the sea-milk. A clean, sweet flavor with a hint of salt melted on her tongue.

’So good!’

She closed her eyes in blissful enjoyment.

Seeing how much she was enjoying it, Lan Cangming swam over. "When you’re finished, I’ll take you somewhere."

"A surprise?"

Su An’an raised an eyebrow, deliberately hooking the tip of her tail around his.

Lan Cangming’s tail tensed sharply, but he didn’t pull it away. He gave a slight nod. "Mm-hm!"

Su An’an finished her breakfast quickly, and then she and Lan Cangming headed out.

Lan Cangming led her through a series of coral tunnels, stopping before a reef surrounded by glowing jellyfish.

With a light tap of his finger, a curtain of seaweed slowly parted.

Su An’an’s pink tail swayed gently, her pupils dilating slightly.

Before her was a coral grove unlike any she had ever seen. It was entirely translucent, like pink crystal, and from its branches bloomed flowers of pink and gold.

Fine particles of starlight flowed from the flowers’ centers, swaying gently with the current. The sight was breathtaking.

"What is this?"

Su An’an reached out to touch one. It felt as soft as a real petal.

"Pregnancy Spirit Coral."

Lan Cangming’s voice was deeper than usual. His large tail unconsciously drifted closer to her pink one.

"It’s a secret treasure of the Mermaid Clan. It only blooms once every thirty years, and fertility is highest during the bloom."

’Fertility?!’

Su An’an couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, shooting him a sidelong glance.

’Who would’ve thought? This iceberg of a fish actually had a few tricks up his sleeve, bringing me out here to fool around in the wild.’

Just then, the golden motes of light from the coral converged into a stream, guiding them deeper into the grove.

Lan Cangming took Su An’an’s hand, leading her through a naturally formed archway and into a grotto encircled by soft seaweed.

The ceiling was embedded with Luminous Pearls, casting a dreamlike, ethereal glow over the entire space.

A soft divan made of pearls rested in the center, surrounded by pale pink jellyfish that floated like a natural curtain.

"So this is your surprise?"

Su An’an raised an eyebrow.

The Mermaid King’s ear fins were completely red, but he nodded with feigned composure.

"Not bad. I like it."

Su An’an chuckled, her finger tracing a path across his chest.

Lan Cangming suddenly seized her wrist, pulling her into his embrace.

His blue tail entwined with her pink one as they sank together onto the pearl divan...