Chapter 3

The ancient merman Kaelen spoke of was the "beggar" of the Merfolk.

He had no children and no family, yet had lived for five millennia, residing solely in the Abyssal Grotto.

They said his body was in such poor condition that he couldn't leave the Grotto, barely able to even acquire food.

In my previous life, it was Lyra who was married to the ancient merman.

But on the very night she was wed, he died.

The ancient merman should have passed away from old age, but the Shaman declared that Lyra not only cursed her husband but also brought harm to the Merfolk. In a fit of rage, King Theron ordered Lyra to be sealed in the Abyssal Grotto, never to emerge.

Yet, after Lyra was sealed, a White Serpent Dragon burst forth from the Grotto.

This White Serpent Dragon circled the royal palace twice before descending and transforming into human form.

Someone cautiously observed her.

And discovered it was Lyra!

To become a true dragon, one must ascend to godhood.

And a Serpent Dragon is the lowest tier of dragon.

Legend said that a small attendant from the Celestial Dragon Palace was punished and sent to the mortal realm to undergo trials.

If she encountered great peril, she would transform into a White Serpent Dragon.

So, wasn't this my sister?

Suddenly, Lyra became the most celebrated figure in the East Sea.

King Theron even built a separate palace just for her and gifted her a Luminous Pearl of the East Sea.

King Theron actually believed Kaelen's absurd claims and directly betrothed me to the ancient merman.

I feared the Carp Clan would suffer because of me, so I dared not defy him.

Thus, after three days of preparation, I was forcibly dressed in a wedding gown and wed to the ancient merman.

After the ceremony, Kaelen, with his arm around Lyra’s waist, approached me. "Congratulations, Elara. If it weren't for me, you'd still be a lowly carp. Though this ancient merman is frail, he'll surely treat you well."

The ancient merman was on his last legs, unable to even sit up.

In my previous life, he had died on this very day.

He died, and Kaelen didn’t even pin the crime of "husband-cursing" on me. That would have been his great mercy.

I shot him a cold glance, replying without hesitation, "Indeed. Though he's frail and old, his true form is that of a genuine merman."

At these words, Kaelen's face instantly darkened.

His true form was a common black carp, and he detested it when anyone brought up his original form.

"Elara, don't be ungrateful. You've barely married into the Merfolk, and you're already putting on airs."

"What if he's a merman? In his barely clinging-to-life state, he won't last much longer."

"A merman's consort who fails to bear children can be flayed and dismembered!"

Lyra, standing beside him, also mocked me:

"Sister, you've overshadowed me for four centuries. Now, the tables have turned, haven't they?"

"Whose fault is it that you didn't win the Tenth Prince's favor? The Tenth Prince will be five hundred years old soon and will quickly transform into a merman."

"You'd best pray that old merman dies slowly, just long enough to see me and the Tenth Prince get married."

I scoffed.

Kaelen still dreamed of transforming into a merman?

He truly believed his successful transformation in the past was due to his own destiny.

In reality, the true reason was the bloodline within me.

Before I left, my mother had revealed her secret to me.

Her ancestors included the youngest daughter of the East Sea Dragon King.

That princess had descended to the mortal realm for trials, leaving behind many descendants.

Thus, I too carried dragon blood within me. Through our intimate moments with a male, both we and our partners could elevate our cultivation, and I could transfer my dragon blood to him.

And the children I bore could inherit their mother's dragon blood, being born with far greater cultivation than other children.

That was why, in the previous life, Kaelen was able to successfully transform into a merman and quickly ascend to a Golden Merman.

And Caspian was born a Golden Merman, possessing cultivation levels others could only dream of.

I personally raised that child, teaching him to read, how to cultivate, and how to fight.

Yet, in the end, he used the methods I taught him to brutally slice open my true form and chop it into pieces.

"You, a mere red carp, how dare you claim to be my mother, Caspian? I am a Golden Merman! My mother should naturally be more noble, just like Lyra."

Kaelen and Caspian both believed Lyra was a White Serpent Dragon.

But only I knew.

Lyra was no Serpent Dragon at all. She hadn't truly transformed.

Her mother, my mother's attendant, had secretly practiced forbidden arts from my mother, simply causing onlookers to experience illusions.

Thinking of this, I closed my eyes.

I had intended to tell them, father and son, the secret of my dragon blood.

But before I could, they brutally murdered me.

Since they believed I was lowly and unworthy of them.

Then I would simply watch how Kaelen, without my dragon blood, would ever transform into a merman.

After the ceremony, I was sent into the Abyssal Grotto.

It was pitch black inside. They threw me down and quickly left.

Groping through the darkness, I faintly saw the ancient merman in a glimmer of light.