"Aren't you going to welcome our first guest performer?" Zhang Haiyang said with a smile.
Everyone was startled and began to clap, but their applause was uncoordinated, with some starting after others had finished.
Zhang Haiyang was a little displeased, but this was just the beginning, and people were likely unaccustomed to watching marine animal performances.
He believed that once they saw the end, they would applaud enthusiastically from the bottom of their hearts.
He had planned this performance for a long time.
He would stake his life on it, this performance would be absolutely spectacular and would leave everyone stunned!
He couldn't wait to see the adoring gazes of everyone; he was already impatient.
The sea lion slowly approached everyone, and the performance began just across a pool of water.
From clapping to spinning, then to circling, and finally, Zhang Haiyang threw a ball, which the sea lion accurately caught with its mouth and balanced on its head.
After completing a series of actions, it looked at the audience with its big, dark eyes.
Led by Ning Wei, everyone applauded for it, and the sea lion even clapped along.
The sea lion's performance concluded, and Zhang Haiyang threw it a piece of fish. Then, with him in front and the sea lion behind, they slowly walked behind the black curtain.
The sea lion's back was exposed to everyone, and they noticed several rotten patches on it, which appeared to be inflicted by humans.
No wonder it was so obedient, not even needing Zhang Haiyang's prompts to complete the entire routine. The reason was clear.
At this moment, Ning Wei suddenly understood a saying she had heard: "No trade, no harm."
If no one watched animal performances, would they be able to spend their lives foolishly in zoos, waiting for food and water, simply being confined in glass cages like imbeciles, for people to gaze at?
Either way, neither option was acceptable; one was emotional harm, the other physical.
If animals could speak, they would likely shout their refusal of everything humans imposed upon them.
Everyone dared not speak, sitting silently in their seats, waiting for the next act.
Zhang Haiyang was still wearing that strange outfit, and this time, a sea elephant followed him out.
Bai Yang and the three other survivors with her trembled upon seeing the sea elephant, unable to sit still, slumping against the people next to them.
Bai Xue, who was close to the exit, also glanced over.
In that single glance, she saw what was chasing them.
She whispered to the person next to her, "It was the sea elephant chasing them, and its tusks were covered in fresh blood and shredded flesh."
At this point, everyone was very united. After Bai Xue finished speaking, the person next to her would relay the information to the next person.
Soon, everyone present knew the true appearance of the sea elephant.
Ning Wei squinted at the cute sea elephant in front of her. Its tusks were clean and white, unlike what Bai Xue had described.
Perhaps, this was not the same type of sea elephant.
After all, when the time came, the large iron gate would descend, and those dangerous sea elephants would have no chance to enter.
However, Ning Wei was very curious about what was behind the black curtain. In the illusion, she had been so focused on the novel mermaid that she had overlooked the most crucial part.
The sea elephant slowly moved, and for every few steps Zhang Haiyang took, he threw it a small piece of fish, likely just enough to get between its teeth.
The sea elephant's performance was similar to the sea lion's; it dragged its heavy body and performed a few simple actions.
Such performances were acceptable at first, but over time, they became rather tedious.
Zhang Haiyang caught the expressions on everyone's faces out of the corner of his eye and then glared fiercely at the sea elephant.
The immense sea elephant trembled under his gaze.
Zhang Haiyang took a whip from the basket of fish and cracked it hard on the ground, producing a sharp sound.
As soon as he revealed the whip, the sea elephant lowered its head as if begging for mercy.
Zhang Haiyang spoke to himself, "See, this sea elephant is quite intelligent, isn't it? It's begging me for mercy."
Zhang Haiyang's face was filled with smugness, as if he had conquered the entire ocean simply by intimidating a sea elephant through torture.
Just because your name is Haiyang (ocean) doesn't mean you own the ocean.
Everyone could only complain in their hearts, maintaining a neutral expression outwardly.
Zhang Haiyang was not angered by the lack of response.
He continued his performance, "Now for the main event. Everyone, please pay close attention."
Under his guidance, the sea elephant slowly approached the pool. The dark water began to bubble again, indicating that the creature below was about to reappear.
Everyone's impression of the pool was still tied to that young man. So, when bubbles started to rise, everyone except Ning Wei and Li Ye flinched backward in fear.
If changing seats didn't mean death, they would certainly not want to be in their current positions.
Zhang Haiyang also approached the edge of the pool, and the bubbling intensified.
He reached out and patted the sea elephant's slick body, "Are you ready? We're going to start the ball game."
The sea elephant nodded, its big, dark eyes fixed on the bubbling spot.
Its gaze was deep, as if it could see through the water to the very bottom.
Everyone was extremely tense. Ning Wei, afraid of missing the show, leaned forward.
Li Ye grabbed the back of her clothes and whispered, "Behave yourself. Everyone else is scared, but you're the most excited."
Ning Wei pouted and, with the strength of Li Ye's arm, sat back properly.
Suddenly, a large, dark head emerged from the pool, protected by splashes of water. A figure that appeared to be a woman's back was presented to the audience.
She only showed a small part of her body: long, dark, seaweed-like hair, a fair and smooth back, and she seemed to be holding something in her hands.
The sea elephant became extremely agitated upon seeing this item, swaying from side to side on the floor, making creaking sounds.
Zhang Haiyang nodded at the "person" in the water, signaling that the performance could begin.
The creature, whose back resembled a human's, suddenly sent up a spray of water. Against the backdrop of the splashing water, a human head was tossed into the air.
The head spun in the air, and finally, the sea elephant caught it steadily with its own head.
Upon seeing the head, everyone recognized it as the young man who had been dragged into the water earlier.
Although they had witnessed him being pulled into the water, and blood had appeared, they had not seen a corpse, so they had still held onto a sliver of hope.
If his head was now being used as a ball, the people in Li Zi'ang's group had completely lost hope.