Chapter 33: Aquarium Prison (6)

Yun Feibai just smiled when she looked at him, saying nothing, which annoyed him enough to reach out and tease her.  

The Innkeeper behind the counter watched their interaction with a knowing smile in his eyes.  

They handed the 6 Lang coin to the Innkeeper and took their keys before he led them to their respective rooms.  

Su Luo lay on the bed, reflecting on everything that had happened today.  

There was a lot that occurred, but with today’s groundwork laid, things should become much easier moving forward.  

As for the shark plushie, she still had no idea what it was for, but judging by its price, it had to be incredibly powerful.  

Lost in thought, Su Luo gradually drifted off to sleep.  

A night of sweet dreams…  

***

The next morning, the two bid farewell to the Innkeeper and resumed their journey.  

Before they left, the Innkeeper hesitated for a moment, then reminded them, “You’ve basically passed the preliminary test. From here on, it’s all about your strength.”  

“Those who are strong will pass quickly, but those who can’t…” He gave them a meaningful look, took a sip of his strong tea, and said, “They’ll never get out.”  

With that, the Innkeeper waved them off irritably and hurried them away.  

After leaving, the two discussed his words again.  

“Passing by strength? Could it be some sort of arena?” Yun Feibai guessed.  

Su Luo shook her head and said, “Be serious, this is an aquarium! I think it’s got to have something to do with water. Anyway, we’ll find out soon enough. Let’s stop guessing here.”  

Yun Feibai nodded, dropping the topic.  

Soon, they reached another fork in the road and quickly took the right path.  

Ahead appeared a glass skywalk.

As they walked, they admired the scenery, feeling somewhat like they were in a theme park.  

But gradually, they sensed something was off.  

Not to mention the skywalk itself was becoming bluer by the step, but what was with the little fish swimming around in midair?  

Su Luo felt overwhelmed—they seemed to have entered some strange place again.  

Yun Feibai was equally bewildered.

Was this… an underwater world?

It felt almost dreamlike!  

The glass skywalk widened and turned an even deeper blue.

At some point, the ceiling overhead also became blue.  

The scenery shifted from “a desolate mountain with no birds” to “20,000 meter Under the Sea.”  

All kinds of coral stood densely around them, and schools of bizarre fish wandered the thickets.  

Su Luo even saw a huge, unknown fish fly—or rather swim—right over their heads.  

Except for the lack of water, they had truly entered an underwater world!  

Still enveloped in this surreal feeling, they walked further and soon saw a place resembling a toll booth ahead, where a long line of people was waiting.  

They exchanged a glance and stepped forward, quickly falling in behind the queue.  

With so many people, they decided to find out what was going on.  

Su Luo tapped the shoulder of the person ahead.

When he turned, she politely asked, “Excuse me, what’s going on here?”  

The visitor replied, “Oh, we’re activating our pets to protect ourselves later.”  

He paused, looked at them oddly, and asked back, “You don’t know?”  

Seeing the suspicion, Su Luo quickly explained, “We’re a couple. We woke up on the bus, but both of us lost our memories. We only remember each other.”  

She glanced affectionately at Yun Feibai.  

Though still a bit doubtful, the visitor seemed amused and said, “You two really love each other. Not even amnesia could make you forget.”  

Su Luo gave a slightly embarrassed smile.

The visitor, showing off his gossip skills, guessed, “But since you lost your memories together, I’d bet you’re from some big family.”  

The two tensed and pretended to be curious.

“Why do you say that?”  

The visitor said, “Everyone here was exiled for some crime. Only by passing through this aquarium can one be released. Losing your memories makes passing even harder—someone at home probably doesn’t want you to get out.”  

“Besides, this is the Floating Continent’s most tightly guarded place. If you’re not from a big family, their reach can’t get this far.”  

They both nodded thoughtfully.  

Su Luo put on a grateful expression and said, “Thank you so much. Otherwise, we’d have been sold out without even knowing it.”  

The visitor waved off her thanks, “No problem, it’s nothing.”

He was just enjoying the drama.

Thinking that these two might be big shots now trapped here made him quite pleased.  

He cleared his throat and pretended to be knowledgeable.

“Once you enter Sea City, there’s no leaving. So no one outside really knows what’s inside. But no matter where you are, the strong will survive.”  

Su Luo nodded thoughtfully.

‘It seemed this place was a prison—or rather, a passage out of prison.’  

Only by clearing the aquarium could one leave this prison.  

But the prisoners locked up here were likely the most vicious criminals, so only a select few could pass.  

For the vast majority, this place was a Beheading Machine for prison inmates.  

Sighing at that thought, Su Luo looked up at the long queue, wondering when it would be their turn.  

The activation process was full of surprises.  

Some cheered after awakening powerful sea creatures, while others wept upon activating weak ones.  

Su Luo was curious about what she would activate since a pet’s nature was closely tied to one’s own abilities and potential.  

She guessed she wouldn’t do badly.

As for Yun Feibai… judging by his flashy demeanor, he would probably awaken something equally spectacular.  

***

Soon, it was Su Luo and Yun Feibai’s turn.  

Su Luo went first.

Under the Testing Officer’s instruction, she placed her hand on the Sea Crystal.  

The Sea Crystal was a special mineral native to the Floating Continent, used exclusively for Pet Activation.

By channeling mental energy into it, one could awaken a pet.  

Su Luo focused her attention on her hand as instructed.  

The Sea Crystal soon emitted a soft light that bathed her, and from her chest rose a ball of white light.  

As the light faded, a delicate and adorable creature was revealed—a jellyfish.  

Su Luo’s awakened jellyfish was beautiful, somewhat like a Teru Teru Bozu (a traditional Japanese doll).  

Its entire body was white and slightly transparent, drifting gracefully in the air—a truly stunning sight.  

Su Luo recognized this type of jellyfish.

She had been fascinated by their beauty after seeing a picture once and had voraciously researched them.  

Though she wouldn’t call herself an expert, she definitely knew more than most.  

Among jellyfish, those both beautiful and deadly were well within her knowledge.  

Her awakened jellyfish was called the Box Jellyfish.

Also known as the Cubomedusa, the Box Jellyfish is one of the most venomous creatures on Earth and is also called the Sea Wasp.  

There are about 20 species, all marine, that actively hunt fish and crabs.

They live solitary lives, and their tentacles contain powerful toxins dangerous to humans.  

When a Box Jellyfish stings a person, muscle pain sets in, but within two minutes, the victim’s organs begin to fail.

Death follows in four minutes.  

This jellyfish topped a biologist’s toxicity ranking for Blue Star’s creatures, so Su Luo was well aware of its lethal potential.  

She hadn’t expected to activate such a seemingly delicate but actually highly deadly species.

She thought this might align with her “play dumb, strike hard” strategy.  

Among the many Box Jellyfish, hers was the most toxic—the Australian Box Jellyfish.  

The Australian Box Jellyfish kills in just 30 seconds.

Also called the Sea Wasp, its shape resembles a cube.  

Its venom can almost instantly kill an adult.

If stung, unconsciousness comes in 10 seconds, death in 30—too fast even to say goodbyes.

Truly terrifying.  

Though currently not submerged in water, for these activated pets, this place counted as their aquatic environment.  

The Box Jellyfish quickly turned transparent and floated beside Su Luo.  

Since all activated pets shrank to about the size of a human head, its transparency made it almost invisible to others.  

No one around knew this was one of the deadliest species on Blue Star; they only saw a prettier-than-average jellyfish.  

The Testing Officer treated people differently based on their awakened pets.

For strong activations like Su Luo’s, she barely spared a second word, merely waving them off.  

Su Luo waited as Yun Feibai activated his pet following the same procedure.  

This time, the white light that emerged from his chest was enormous.  

When it faded, a fierce-looking ocean creature appeared, nearly twenty meters long.  

Its huge mouth seemed capable of swallowing everyone present.  

It resembled both a crocodile and a lizard, but Su Luo thought it looked more like a dinosaur from ancient times.  

After its grand reveal, the creature quickly shrank to just twenty centimeters and settled on Yun Feibai’s shoulder, eyes closed.  

This time, many recognized it and gasped aloud, “Is that a Mosasaurus?”  

The Mosasaurus was the largest apex predator of the Mesozoic Era.

Though it lived for a relatively short time, no one could match it during its reign.  

It thrived in the Cretaceous period, reaching lengths up to 21 meters and weighing 33 tons.  

Even the ancient fearsome shark, the “Golden Kitchen Shark,” at 8 meters long, was its prey.