Without doubt, without question, and without even the slightest inquiry into the cause or effect.
Just three simple words.
Yet, they struck Xu An to the core.
It was as if this merman knew she would come, and was waiting for her deliberately.
Xu An frowned, and retorted, "Do you know me?"
The merman shook his head.
"I don't know you, nor did I know it would be you, but someone once said that someone would come who would bring me release. I guessed that person was you."
Xu An: "Who is this person you speak of?"
The merman offered no answer, only a faint smile. His delicate, helpless demeanor made him seem as if he could breathe his last at any moment.
But even bound by chains, he refused to kneel.
He was as proud as a peacock, stepping with a light, airy gait.
Yet, no one could resist his beauty.
"I've also forgotten. It seems to be a memory from long ago."
The merman's voice was ethereal, especially when he seemed to be recalling something, sounding like a hymn sung in a sacred cathedral.
Liu Jinhua stared at the merman in terror. "You... you, how..."
The merman looked at her, his shallow gaze devoid of any emotion.
"You know, I can regenerate."
Listening to the conversation between the merman and the proprietress, Xu An surmised that Liu Jinhua must have cut out the merman's tongue at some point.
Or perhaps used other means to silence him.
But in reality, the merman had always been able to speak.
Thinking of this, Xu An suddenly recalled when the proprietress had been scraping flesh from the merman.
Did the merman remain silent then as well?
The merman shifted his gaze from Liu Jinhua to Xu An.
"Kill me, please?"
His voice carried a hollow, distant quality.
As if bewitched, Xu An raised her long saber, drew it, and walked step by step towards the merman.
Liu Jinhua, seeing Xu An's demeanor, finally understood that Xu An wasn't joking about killing the merman.
She then shouted furiously, "You crazy woman, what are you doing? How dare you kill him? He can bring you endless wealth, how dare you!"
Seeing Xu An approaching the merman without hesitation, she looked towards Sixth Brother in the distance.
"Old Six, what are you doing? This crazy woman is going to kill this merman. If this merman dies, how will you explain yourself to Shen Zhi? Hurry up and stop her!"
Liu Jinhua roared ineffectually from her spot on the ground.
Sixth Brother also seemed to awaken from a daze, struggling to his feet.
But as soon as he moved, Zhou Haimei kicked him down again.
"What, do you think I'm dead?"
If Sixth Brother were in his prime, perhaps they could have traded blows.
But the current Sixth Brother was emaciated and weak, no match for Zhou Haimei at all.
With Zhou Haimei firmly controlling Sixth Brother, Liu Jinhua, seeing no hope from Sixth Brother, pulled out her dagger and lunged at Xu An.
Attempting to take Xu An down with her.
But Xu An acted as if she couldn't see Liu Jinhua, walking straight towards the merman with her long saber held high.
Ze Yuan spoke to Xu An, "Are you just going to let that fish control your body?"
Xu An replied coolly, "Let's see what he wants to do."
"What else can that fish do but want to commit suicide?"
Xu An countered, "I don't know either, but something feels off."
If this merman possessed the ability to control minds, and his intention was to die from the start, why didn't he control the proprietress to kill him immediately?
But the proprietress had never harbored any intention of killing this merman.
Xu An was certain that the proprietress's initial attempt to threaten her was an act of her own volition.
Yet now, this merman was controlling her body and trying to kill her.
This could only mean that the merman was indifferent to his own death. What mattered was
Who killed him.
And Xu An was the executioner chosen by this merman for himself.
"I feel something is wrong with this merman, as if he's waiting here specifically for me. Or perhaps he's not waiting for me, but I don't know why he's so certain that person must be me."
Her words were convoluted,
But Ze Yuan understood.
This "me" didn't refer to a specific individual, but rather a certain trait within Xu An.
It was because of this trait that the merman believed Xu An was the one destined to kill him.
Therefore, Xu An had yielded control of her body to him,
Just to see what this merman intended to do.
Gradually, even Zhou Haimei noticed Xu An's strangeness.
"An'an, what are you doing?"
Seeing Xu An not responding, Zhou Haimei was about to go over.
The moment she took a step,
The seemingly defenseless merman softly uttered a word.
"Stay."
The next second, Zhou Haimei was horrified to find her body frozen.
The proprietress, sprawled on the ground, tried to speak, but gazing into the merman's azure eyes,
The words caught in her throat.
But she knew that whatever the merman spoke was an irresistible command.
It was like an order issued from his mouth,
Impossible to resist.
Even if your mind was perfectly clear and you knew not to do it,
Your body would completely disobey your brain, acting according to the merman's command.
Zhou Haimei cried out, "An'an, something is wrong with this fish, my body won't move!"
But Xu An didn't answer her.
Perhaps finding Zhou Haimei's voice too grating,
The merman softly said, "Be quiet, please."
The next second, Zhou Haimei found herself unable to speak.
Sixth Brother behind her, thinking this was an opportunity, gripped his dagger and tried to kill Zhou Haimei.
But the merman seemed to have installed surveillance throughout the room.
No one's movement could escape his notice.
"Put down the dagger."
Almost instantly as the words fell, Sixth Brother found his body immobile. The dagger he tightly gripped clattered to the ground.
Sixth Brother stared at his hands in disbelief.
The merman opportunely added, "She is her friend. If she dies, she will be angry."
This "she" clearly referred to Xu An.
A deathly silence filled the air.
Everyone seemed to have underestimated this merman and overestimated themselves.
Xu An's halting steps began to move again.
Step by step, slowly yet firmly, she approached the merman.
A peculiar smile graced her face, as if eagerly anticipating something.
As Xu An advanced, the smile grew wider, her lips practically curling upwards.
Xu An's blade pointed upwards and suddenly stabbed towards the merman's tail.
In a flash,
The tip of the blade stopped precisely on the scales of the fish's tail.
Not advancing a single inch further.
Everyone around held their breath, not daring to even exhale.
They even thought the blade had already plunged into the enormous fish tail.
But only Xu An and the merman knew.
The blade tip remained suspended on the scales, motionless.
Suddenly, the merman's ragged roar echoed,
"Why can you break free of my control? Who exactly are you!"