Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Planet BK723, southern fringe of the Federation Star Territory.

Silence.

An impenetrable darkness enveloped everything.

A viscous, clinging fluid covered his bare skin, submerging most of his body. Yet, it didn’t feel uncomfortable—instinctively, he knew this fluid was nourishing and protective.

He couldn’t open his eyes, only managing to stretch slightly from his curled-up position. Lazily, he stretched, his fingers brushing against the walls of the enclosed space.

The surface was damp and soft, like a membrane. The air carried the briny scent of seawater. Strangely, he found this environment soothing, as if lying on the most luxurious, plush bed—safe enough for a peaceful nap.

He couldn’t remember how long he had slept.

In this dark, enclosed space, resting on the wet "bed," he always succumbed to drowsiness. Occasionally, Luo Ci would wake from his deep slumber and attempt to touch the "walls" of his confinement, only to realize just how cramped it was.

As he fumbled around, his fingertips accidentally brushed against his leg—slimy and soft… and a tiny tail?

Wait, a tail?

He struggled to open his eyes but failed. Instead, he groped blindly at the tail. It was smooth and supple, coated in a layer of mucus, yet still distinguishable as small and underdeveloped, its scales still incomplete.

At first, when he felt the scales, Luo Ci thought he might have turned into some kind of reptilian creature. But when his fingers traced the delicate, translucent fin veil at the tip of the tail, that assumption was quickly dismissed.

His heart hammered wildly as fragmented memories surfaced—hazy recollections of being young, afflicted with an incurable illness, and likely having failed to be resuscitated.

Now, here he was, conscious again. Anxious, he flicked the tip of his tail, burning with the need to find a mirror to see what he had become.

He poked at it again.

Soft. Surprisingly pleasant to the touch. Luo Ci examined it carefully but still couldn’t make sense of it. A milky membrane covered most of his body, the mucus clinging to him restricting his movements to some degree.

His struggles grew more vigorous, his tail tip tapping rhythmically against the egg wall.

Suddenly, a low, rumbling boom reached his ears. His ear fins twitched as he strained to listen, but the noise vanished as quickly as it had come. In the darkness, senses were amplified, and Luo Ci wondered if he had imagined it.

After exhausting himself with no answers, the limited energy of the hatchling took its toll. He grew drowsy again.

Finding a comfortable position, Luo Ci curled up and drifted back into a heavy slumber.

……

The Federation's vast star territory was home to countless planets—named yet unexplored. BK723 was undoubtedly one of them.

As a planet on the fringes of the star territory, it was an unexpected honor to receive a visit from the Federation Legion today.

Warships completed their wormhole jump above the planet, their prows emitting dozens of scanning beams. In an instant, the entire planet’s surface was mapped—its terrain, mineral resources, and any signs of life compiled into data and relayed to the flagship.

Half an hour later, the flagship hovered over predetermined coordinates.

After scanning the planet, the Federation Legion quickly realized that landing sites were scarce.

The planet’s surface was almost entirely covered by ocean.

Even Totsuka, the seasoned deputy of the Legion’s vanguard, who had traveled to numerous planets and completed countless missions, found this planet’s water coverage unusually abundant from his perspective.

With practiced efficiency, Totsuka divided the planet into sectors, methodically organizing teams to investigate each one.

Amidst the deafening roar of engines, a towering storage silo rose from the flagship’s back, dozens of small, sleek reconnaissance ships with aerodynamic hulls arcing gracefully out of its bays to carry out their missions.

Once the assignments were dispatched, Totsuka couldn’t help but glance toward the center of the flagship, where a figure dominated the central command seat.

Clad in form-fitting tactical gear, the man was imposing even in repose, his presence exuding an almost palpable pressure.

His eyes shut, his chiseled jawline stood in sharp relief, accentuated by the faint pulsing of veins at his temples—as if he were enduring something unbearable.

Before Totsuka could voice his concern, the man’s eyes snapped open, his gaze carrying physical weight, locking onto him with precision.

"Everything arranged?"

"Yes, sir," Totsuka responded with military precision. "All sectors have been assigned. Only one remains."

"Then let’s go."

Preliminary scans had revealed the planet to be almost entirely an ocean planet. Strangely, no life forms were detected—save for one faint, flickering vital sign.

Thus, Totsuka had dispatched teams to other sectors, reserving the area with the lone vital sign for Marshal Helunen himself. He knew the Marshal’s command style—this was a mission he would handle personally.

The Light Elevator extended from the warship’s side, and a heavily-armed squad descended in formation.

"Gods…"

After half an hour of searching the suspicious zone, Totsuka inhaled sharply at the sight before him.

The entire journey had been unsettling. Even knowing the planet was lifeless, something felt profoundly wrong. At first, they assumed the planet’s environment was too hostile—but they soon realized their mistake.

The climate was mild and humid, perfectly habitable. Pristine, unpolluted oceans stretched endlessly, and the islands’ natural beauty could easily rival any top-tier resort.

One crew member muttered under his breath, "I’d bet anything this place, if developed, would outshine that overhyped ‘Ocean’s Eye’ ranked number one."

Totsuka agreed. And that was precisely why the eerie silence unnerved him so deeply.

Water was the wellspring of life. Planets rich in water usually teemed with biodiversity.

Yet this perfectly habitable ocean world lay before them—beautiful, serene, and utterly lifeless.

Every nerve was wound taut. No one dared relax. A chilling possibility loomed: What if this planet hosted a supremely dominant, ruthless apex predator? One so lethal it had eradicated all other life?

Especially considering their mission’s objective—to eradicate the merfolk.

It was impossible not to suspect that the planet’s deathly silence was the work of merfolk.

But how did they know merfolk were here?

The century-long scourge of invasion had spanned over a century. Back then, the Federation had planned to establish a spatial jump station here as part of their defenses. But the moment the survey team arrived and had their first encounter with the merfolk, their starship was torn asunder. Only by fleeing in emergency pods did they barely escape with their lives.

News of the incident exploded across the Federation, sparking immediate public outcry. Merfolk were infamous throughout the galaxy—brutal, savage, and classified as a high-risk species. In their heyday, they had ravaged countless planets. Yet, for the past century, they had seemingly vanished.

During the war, the Federation had no resources to spare for investigation. Afterward, with legions exhausted and no desire to provoke the merfolk’s wrath, the matter was shelved—under the pretense of preparing defenses for the next inevitable invasion.

Only Marshal Helunen had not forgotten. He had taken the initiative to lead his Legion to BK723.

If a peaceful agreement could be reached with the merfolk, well and good. If not… expulsion or extermination were the only options.

Including Totsuka, nearly everyone was convinced the planet harbored merfolk—ones so utterly ruthless and cold-blooded they had wiped out all other life.

"Beep..."

Helunen released a metal probe, its smooth spherical body opening an optical sensor to survey the scene from above.

Whatever it saw, the probe emitted a sharp warning tone before flying back to Helunen's shoulder.

Following the optical sensor's guidance, the group arrived at an expansive thermal seabed, where a massive and stunning coral reef cavern, mostly submerged underwater, came into view.

Among interstellar species, some aquatic species preferred laying eggs in coral caves or seaweed. Yet, even for their experienced observers, they had never encountered such an awe-inspiring coral reef cavern before.

Thermal springs surrounded the area, their flowing currents continuously providing stable warmth for the egg.

Just how large was this coral reef cavern?

Their flagship, already the largest warship recorded in the Star Alliance archives—ten times the size of the Federal Head of State's palace—was paled in comparison to a single small thermal spring vent near the cave, which was nearly the size of three warships combined.

Inside the coral reef cavern, innumerable black pearls and fine, soft sand covered the ground.

A thumb-sized black pearl would be a priceless treasure on the black market, but here, each pearl was larger than their fists. At the center lay a milky-white egg.

The sole life signature detected by the optical sensor originated from there.

The egg was only the size of a palm, appearing even more pure and flawless against the backdrop of black pearls. Under the light, its faint pink hue shimmered like iridescent crystal, a color so ethereal that no human could replicate it—so mesmerizing that no one could tear their eyes away.

The optical sensor circled the egg three times before issuing a critical alert—the life signs within the egg were critically weak, as if they could vanish at any moment.

Totsuka deduced that, judging by the state of the coral reef cavern, it had once been fully submerged. Over time, perhaps due to a drought period, this underwater garden had gradually surfaced, bringing the mermaid egg with it. Many of the black pearls beneath had dried and become brittle under the sun, and the mermaid egg was likely in serious peril as well.

He couldn't look away. "Sir, what should we do?"

They had come searching for an adult mermaid, but instead, they found a mermaid egg—one in peril.

In such cases, the Star Alliance generally held two divergent philosophies. The first was intervention and rescue, especially for rare species' offspring.

Mermaids had not been seen for many years. Even during their active era, few had ever laid eyes on one. Though mermaids were classified as dangerous species, they were undeniably a rare species. Based on the probe's preliminary assessment, if this was indeed a mermaid egg, it would fall under interstellar rescue laws.

The second view was to respect the natural order of life—to leave it untouched, as survival was ultimately a matter of natural selection.

But the mermaid egg was so beautiful, and the optical sensor had issued a crisis alert, indicating its life signs were precarious. Totsuka couldn't bring himself to abandon the egg here alone.

Helunen frowned slightly, carefully analyzing the surroundings. Based on his experience, this lifeless planet had shown no signs of other life activity for at least a year.

Even if the little mermaid managed to hatch on its own, it wouldn't survive long without a food source.

He bent down, pressing a fingertip lightly against the eggshell. It was delicate and pliant, but thankfully not too dehydrated.

"Take it."

Totsuka let out a relieved breath. "Yes, sir!"

He handed his weapons to his teammates, removed his coat, and with painstaking care, gently cradled the mermaid egg in his hands. Every step he took was deliberate, fearing he might accidentally damage it.

The mermaid egg was extraordinarily beautiful, like an exquisitely crafted work of art. Under the sunlight, a soft glow even shimmered along its shell.

The squad members were battle-hardened soldiers, veterans of countless battles, yet faced with this tiny mermaid egg, their tough hearts melted. They couldn't help peeking at it or lightly touching it.

Totsuka reveled in his teammates' envy, thinking—if even the egg was this stunning, how breathtaking would the little mermaid be after hatching? No wonder everyone was so taken with it—even the Marshal seemed fond of it, even making an exception and allowing it aboard the ship.

The moment the words left his mouth, he realized he had accidentally voiced his thoughts aloud.

On the Light Elevator, the tall man paused and glanced sideways. "Once aboard, keep it away from me. I'm not interested."

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