After leaving the previous area, the entire passage became much more spacious, and the path was illuminated by the swaying reflections of the water.
Qian Ling and Yang Mo arrived at the area of the aquarium often referred to as the “undersea tunnel.”
On both sides were transparent walls glowing with a faint, ghostly light. Behind the glass, schools of various fish swam in their tanks.
On one side, the light was brighter, casting a blue hue over the water. Many types of small fish that Qian Ling didn’t recognize darted continuously through the reefs and coral.
The other side was much dimmer, appearing almost dark green.
Not only that, but as Qian Ling glanced over, she couldn’t see a single fish inside.
She leaned against the wall to take a closer look and discovered a trench at the bottom of the tank. In the deep water, two black fish with indistinguishable features were resting quietly.
‘Are there only these two guys here? Is it necessary to make such a big fuss for them?’
Just as she was thinking that, an uninvited guest dove down from above, appearing right before her eyes.
It had a broad, pitch-black body shaped like a kite and a whip-like tail. Beneath its slowly flapping fins, she could see glimpses of white skin.
Because it swam almost flush against the glass, Qian Ling was startled into taking a step back.
After calming down, she realized the figure looked familiar.
Ah, it was a ray… no, should she say a manta ray?
She remembered watching a movie with Yang Mo where the protagonist of an animated film looked exactly like this.
Yang Mo noticed the situation as well and hurried to Qian Ling’s side so she wouldn’t miss the opportunity.
Looking up at the creature, she whispered an introduction into Qian Ling’s ear. “This is called an ocellated eagle ray.”
“Is it the one we saw in the movie?”
“No.”
Yang Mo shook her head at Qian Ling’s guess. “The protagonist of the movie should be a different species. After all, that one didn’t have white spots like these.”
“That’s true. I didn’t notice that before.”
After Yang Mo pointed it out, Qian Ling seemed to understand why “ocellated” was in the species’ name.
After diving, the fish quickly floated upward and out of their sight.
Only then did Qian Ling realize that this tank wasn’t isolated but was interconnected with other areas.
The two continued walking until they reached a T-junction. According to the sign placed there, a right turn led to the giant isopod exhibit that Yang Mo had been looking forward to the most.
“Qian Ling, look over there! That’s it!”
She pointed at the sign excitedly.
As she spoke, Qian Ling felt Yang Mo’s pace quicken even further, so she reminded her, “Don’t be in such a hurry. There are so many people; it’s better not to run around.”
“Mhm, I know.”
Yang Mo nodded and maintained her current speed as she headed in the direction indicated by the sign.
To enter the giant isopod exhibit, they first had to pass through a fire door. From this alone, one could tell that the exhibit was a newly designated, independent area.
Upon entering, it was exactly as expected. The ceiling was higher than before, and to make it easier for visitors to observe these creatures that prefer the bottom of the ocean, the base of the tank was raised about 1 meter above the ground.
In addition, the exhibit was extremely dark. The light emitting from within the glass walls could barely illuminate the opposite wall. This design was likely intended to suit the habits of the giant isopods.
While the previous exhibit had presented a lively side of the ocean, arriving here felt like being dragged into a lifeless abyss.
A similar change occurred in Yang Mo.
Gone was her previous impatience. She first widened her eyes, then slowly walked over to the creature she wanted to observe.
The giant isopod—a strange creature that lives in the deep sea.
True to its name, it had a bug-like, segmented body and many legs. The overlapping plates of its dorsal shell formed an almost hemispherical shape.
Unlike a bug, however, it was the size of a basketball. Its exoskeleton was not oily and shiny like an insect’s, but instead had a texture similar to plaster.
Right where Yang Mo approached, two giant isopods were huddled together on the soft sand.
“Qian Ling… come over here…”
Once she reached the spot, she called Qian Ling over in a soft whisper, as if afraid of disturbing their rest.
When Qian Ling leaned in beside her, Yang Mo began to explain why she had been looking forward to this exhibit.
“It’s not easy for us to see this. Transporting giant isopods from the sea while ensuring they survive is a huge hassle, let alone keeping them for a long time.”
“Is that so?” Qian Ling asked, puzzled. Her voice dropped several decibels to match Yang Mo’s.
This was different from the impression she had from her past life. She described what she had seen and heard before to Yang Mo. “But I’ve seen places where they’re kept, and they seem quite common online. Some aquariums even let visitors touch them.”
In her past life, it had even become a trend during those two years to taste these things as a high-end delicacy.
However, Qian Ling had once searched out of curiosity and found that this perverse trend hadn’t reached this world yet. Telling Yang Mo the truth in this situation would be too cruel, so she chose to keep quiet about it.
After hearing Qian Ling’s description, Yang Mo continued to stare at the giant isopods in the tank, though a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes.
“That’s because… the situations you saw treated them as consumables. Giant isopods are very fragile and timid creatures, which is why an exhibit like this is so precious.”
“I see…”
Qian Ling understood what eventually happened to those other giant isopods.
“And, did you know, Qian Ling? If a giant isopod gets too lonely, it will die.”
Yang Mo placed a hand against the glass wall, watching the two creatures inside with a gaze that was almost affectionate.
Then she tilted her head slightly and continued in a gentle voice, “There was once a giant isopod that stopped eating after it was moved to a separate tank by an aquarium. Even when the keepers tried to help, it would pretend to go through the motions of eating, but in reality, it didn’t swallow anything… until the moment it died from its hunger strike.”
As Yang Mo said this, Qian Ling could see her eyelids drooping slightly, a faint, ambiguous smile lingering on her face.
Her skin was dyed the same hue by the dim green light, and the shimmering reflections of the water rippled across her face. She blended into the environment completely, looking like a ghost drifting in the sea.
“So, it’s wonderful that there are two giant isopods here.”
This was Yang Mo’s final conclusion.
Perhaps she wanted to use these words as a metaphor for something.
But regardless, Qian Ling felt that she looked exceptionally lonely at this moment.
So, she told Yang Mo, “Don’t worry. These two will always have each other’s company from now on.”
“Yeah.”
Yang Mo flashed a smile at Qian Ling, but the smile suddenly froze after less than 2 seconds.
“Wait…”
She seemed to realize something and suddenly explained in a panic, “Qian Ling, that…! I was just talking about the giant isopods, I didn’t mean anything else…!”
Even though the lighting was so dim, Qian Ling could see a faint blush spreading across her face.
Qian Ling held up a palm and leaned in close to her ear as if to whisper a secret. “What do you mean by ‘anything else’?”
“Anything else…? It’s… no, I didn’t mean anything else!”
Yang Mo fell into a complete state of confusion because of the question, while Qian Ling watched her flustered expression and snickered in her heart.
It took a good while before the two of them could finally calm down and continue their tour of the exhibit.