The hull of the boat was painted with a mass of intertwined ouroboros serpents.

Bai Youwei never could have imagined that the most critical clue had been right beneath her eyes all along. And she hadn’t noticed.

The ouroboros — also called the tail-biting serpent — is a common symbol in religion and myth, depicted as a snake devouring its own tail to form a closed loop.

This symbol is commonly understood by humanity to represent “infinity” and “cycles” — which corresponded perfectly to the labyrinth they were in, where no matter which way they walked, they always returned to the start.

On the fishing boat before Bai Youwei’s eyes, there were seven ouroboros serpents.

Seven snakes coiled around each other, tangled like a knot. Their bodies were patterned in black and red — the black close to the color of rust, the red like blood — difficult to make out clearly in the dim light.

Bai Youwei stared, transfixed. On the deck above, Ashalina and Teacher Cheng extended a long bamboo pole toward her —

“Get up here! Quickly!”

The water below was not safe. To unravel the mystery, she would need another opportunity.

She reached out and grabbed the pole. At that moment, the hull was rammed from the other side — a merfolk had climbed up on the opposite end.

Teacher Cheng lost his footing, hurriedly gripped the railing with one hand and held the bamboo pole tight with the other.

Ashalina snatched the blade from the deck and swung it at the merfolk.

Down in the hold, the merfolk that had been fading — barely alive — seemed to sense a companion’s presence and suddenly began thrashing again. The hold door was hammered repeatedly; A-Long and Pan Xiaoxin rushed over to hold it down.

Chaos on deck. Teacher Cheng, desperate, strained forward with the bamboo pole and shouted toward the water: “Youwei! Come on up!”

After falling overboard, Bai Youwei had drifted some distance from the boat; swimming back would take time. And now the boat was in turmoil — Ashalina had been knocked down by a merfolk, crashing heavily onto the deck.

The merfolk opened its jaws wide above her, rows of sharp teeth on full display. Ashalina held the blade crosswise against her chest, pressing back against it with all her strength, her eyes already red-rimmed.

She knew the merfolk in front of her was A-Qing. She knew that this time, it was either her death or his.

“Boss!” A-Long shouted in desperation. Straining to hold down the constantly rising hold door, he couldn’t reach Ashalina’s side in time.

As the merfolk’s sharp teeth drew ever closer to Ashalina, Teacher Cheng bit down, swung the bamboo pole with all his might, and swept it through.

*Thud* — the pole struck the merfolk’s head.

The violent recoil forced Teacher Cheng to let go, leaving both his hands numb and aching. The merfolk, struck by the pole, turned its grievance on Teacher Cheng, let out a hiss, then slammed its tail down and launched itself into the air — straight at Teacher Cheng.

Teacher Cheng’s eyes went wide with panic. He had no time to dodge. The merfolk crashed into him, and both of them tumbled overboard into the water.

The whole thing, from start to finish, lasted only a few seconds. Bai Youwei watched helplessly as Teacher Cheng fell, and felt as though the cold seawater were freezing even her bones.

Two seconds later, Ashalina tore off her life vest, grabbed her blade, and jumped in after him.

Right behind her, A-Long tied a rope around himself and leapt in as well.

The dark surface of the water erupted in splashes — then fell still. Nothing remained.

Nothing visible, nothing audible. No way to know what was happening beneath.

Bai Youwei was in a daze.

It was only when Pan Xiaoxin called out to her from the deck, loudly, that she snapped back to herself.

Bai Youwei was pulled aboard by Pan Xiaoxin alone.

Back on the boat, she was soaked through, her hands and feet already going somewhat numb from the cold.

She turned to look at the water below, and told Pan Xiaoxin to bring the flashlight over so they could see more clearly.

The two of them — one large, one small — sat at the railing, quietly keeping vigil over that stretch of water.

After a long moment, Bai Youwei asked Pan Xiaoxin: “Are you scared?”

Pan Xiaoxin’s eyes went red. He pressed his lips together and said: “Yes.”

Bai Youwei drew Pan Xiaoxin into her arms and tried to pat his back gently, but she looked down and saw her own fingertips trembling slightly.

She breathed in deeply and said softly: “It’s alright. Nothing will happen. I promise nothing will happen…”

—