The villains are redeemed, and the heroines cry and beg for forgiveness.

72. I will definitely bring you back to the sea!

Little Conch's long pink hair cascaded down Gu Ran's chest, and tears fell like pearls from a broken string.

The moment Xiao Hailuo confessed her feelings, Gu Ran's mind went completely blank.

It was a huge surprise, but after the surprise came a wave of fear and anxiety.

If the little conch had confessed her feelings to him at a different time, he would have been overjoyed, because he would have realized his own feelings and that he also loved the little conch.

However, the little conch's health is deteriorating, and today the little conch is behaving very strangely.

For so long, the "Mmm-Mmm Monster" has been pretending to be mute, but now it's no longer pretending.

Gu Ran would rather she keep pretending...

Gu Ran placed his hand on Xiao Hailuo's smooth back and hugged her back: "I like you too, I've liked you for a long time."

The little seashell buried in Gu Ran's chest smiled happily.

I never knew that being in love felt so wonderful.

Gu Ran held her shoulders, pulling her away from his chest, and looked intently into her pink eyes.

"Okay, then we're lovers starting today." Gu Ran gently wiped away the glistening tears from the corners of her eyes with his fingers. "Now, can you tell me about yourself?"

The reason for the little conch's deteriorating health has always been a concern for him. He had previously thought that the little conch couldn't speak, so he was helpless. Now, he realized that the little conch was actively hiding the truth.

Furthermore, since the little conch had been hiding its ability to speak, Gu Ran knew there must be a hidden reason behind it. He had to figure it out in order to find the right solution and resolve the problem.

"I'm sorry, I didn't really believe you before. I was afraid you were a bad person, so I didn't dare to talk to you. But when I found out you were a good person, I felt embarrassed to tell you that I had lied to you before." Little Conch lowered her head and admitted her mistake like a cat that had made a mistake, her voice full of embarrassment.

Gu Ran was somewhat amused and exasperated: "Alright, it's good that you're wary of humans. There are indeed many bad people among humans. But if you're afraid that I'm a bad person, why did you feed me and help me catch so many small fish in the first place?"

“I saw despair in your eyes back then… Did you want to… die?” The little conch glanced at Gu Ran cautiously. “I understand that feeling… That’s why I felt sorry for you and wanted to save you.”

“At first I didn’t know how to save you, but I thought you must be hungry after lying there for so long, so I caught a fish. I thought you must be too weak to hold on after being hungry for so long, so the first fish I gave you was dead, in case you didn’t have the strength to hold it with your hands.”

"Then you wouldn't eat, and I saw you were staring blankly, so I thought you didn't know how to eat, and I demonstrated it for you. Then I thought you didn't like the dead fish, so I caught you a few more live ones..."

Gu Ran finally understood the psychological motivation behind the little conch's behavior when she first met him; it turned out she was pitying him.

However, the little conch shell did indeed save him.

“But my grandmother told me that there are many bad people among humans, and…” At this point, a look of fear suddenly appeared on the little conch’s face. “They are indeed very bad people. I’m afraid that you are just as bad as them, so I don’t dare to get too close to you.”

Gu Ran's heart skipped a beat. Could the root of the problem be here?

He immediately hugged the little conch's delicate body tightly and comforted her gently, "Don't be afraid, I'm here, everything will be alright, I will definitely protect you."

The thought that the little conch, despite its fear of humans, overcame that fear to save him filled Gu Ran with emotion.

Especially that time with the brown bear, if it weren't for Little Conch's help, Gu Ran really didn't know if he could have fought the brown bear given his physical condition at the time.

Nestled in Gu Ran's arms, the fear on Little Conch's face lessened considerably.

"Later I realized that you are different from those bad people, especially since you gave me such delicious food that I had never eaten before, so you must be a good person."

"But at first I thought I was poisoned, so I thought you were a bad person. I'm sorry, I misunderstood you."

The little conch said apologetically.

"It's okay, it's all in the past. Besides, our misunderstanding has been cleared up, and you've helped me a lot. If it weren't for you, I might really be dead," Gu Ran comforted gently.

He really didn't take it to heart, but he didn't expect that Little Conch would apologize for it now.

"What's wrong with your health? Why is it getting worse?" Gu Ran steered the conversation to the question that concerned him most.

"It's probably because I'm a mermaid," the little conch shell thought for a moment and said. "Mermaids are a race of the sea, living in the sea and eating foods unique to the sea. Right now, I'm in a river on land. If it's just for a short time, it's fine, but if it's for a long time..."

"If it goes on for a long time, then your health will deteriorate like this," Gu Ran said in a deep voice. "Why didn't you tell me? If I had known that was the reason, I would have definitely helped you return to the sea!"

"They must be waiting for me outside. They are all very bad people who want to catch me with a big net. I'm afraid to leave here. I'd rather die here than be caught by them." Little Conch seemed to remember something frightening, and a trace of fear flashed in her eyes. She clung to Gu Ran and refused to let go.

"And you're here too, I don't want to be separated from you." When she spoke of Gu Ran, Xiao Hailuo relaxed, buried her head in his chest, and said in a muffled voice, "Being with you, even if I die, I should be very happy."

Gu Ran was moved; he finally understood the whole reason.

"You can't die." Gu Ran stroked Xiao Hailuo's long, wavy pink hair. "You're my lover now, and I want you to be my wife."

"So you won't die, I won't let you die."

"I told you, I would definitely bring you back to the sea!"

The little conch shell said softly, "But there are bad people outside, it's really dangerous. And my grandmother told me that mermaid girls can't fall in love with humans, so if we go back to the sea, my grandmother will definitely object. Only here, this is the place where the two of us can truly be together."

“I will help you drive away those bad guys,” Gu Ran said earnestly. “As for your grandmother, I will persuade her. No matter what it takes, I will make her agree to our relationship.”

73. New Testament City, Slave Trade and Mermaids 4k

After finally acknowledging their feelings, Gu Ran and Xiao Hailuo's relationship rapidly intensified after they confessed their love to each other.

They fed each other, held hands as they watched the sunset, and snuggled together...

This left the powerful figures outside the light screen drooling over their lovey-dovey moments.

Cheng Youmeng and Xue Xiling both showed complicated expressions, and even Gu Qingqing's expression was somewhat complicated as she watched Gu Ran and Xiao Hailuo showing off their affection.

In a corner of the crowd, unnoticed by anyone, a faint black aura flashed by once again.

Of course, during this time, Gu Ran not only cultivated a relationship with the little conch, but he also went around to check the surrounding area to confirm his location.

After surveying the surrounding terrain, vegetation, and biological species, Gu Ran deduced that he should be within the "jurisdiction" of a major city in the south.

Although it was far from Saint Yor City, it was not difficult for Leng Feng, who possessed spatial abilities, to send him here.

It has to be said that Gu Ran is really not used to losing his spatial ability, since it is excellent for both traveling and fighting.

However, Gu Ran did not regret it. He lost his spatial ability, but he was able to give his sister a better life. He did not die, but instead found the person he liked. It could even be said that he turned misfortune into blessing.

Since spiritual energy could no longer effectively slow down the deterioration of the little conch's body, Gu Ran no longer channeled all his spiritual energy into her, but instead reserved half to enhance his own martial arts realm.

After all, he needed to take her back to the sea, and since he didn't have the teleportation ability of spatial powers, the journey would be extremely long and fraught with danger. He had to improve his strength.

Especially those "bad guys" that Little Conch mentioned. Although Little Conch didn't know much about the human world, Gu Ran could roughly guess their identities, even if he had to guess.

There is only one way to make such people repent—kill them!

Therefore, whether it's protecting himself on the way to the sea or avenging the little conch, improving his strength is a very urgent matter for Gu Ran.

"This should be a valley in the southern hilly area. Although we don't know exactly where it is yet, it doesn't matter. The rivers in the south all flow into the sea, so as long as we follow the main channels of these waterways downstream, we will definitely reach the sea." Gu Ran held the little conch shell and talked about the results of his investigation over the past few days.

However, the little conch shell didn't show any happy expression on her face; she was still somewhat reluctant to leave.

"Don't worry, I'm actually very capable," Gu Ran reassured her, knowing she was concerned about their safety on the journey.

Of course, Gu Ran was actually unsure about his current martial arts level, after all, he was of "mediocre talent", had not been cultivating for long, and had transferred all the spiritual power he had refined to the little conch.

He said this to boost the little conch's confidence. Although he didn't say it aloud, he made up his mind that even if it cost him his life, he would protect the little conch and safely return her to the sea.

After roughly figuring out his location, Gu Ran began preparing to pack his luggage, mainly some easy-to-carry food.

For example, dried fruits that can be stored for a long time. It's a pity that Gu Ran doesn't have the ability to start a fire, otherwise he could smoke some dried meat.

Roar!

A brown bear slowly walked out of its den, intending to catch some fish by the river to fill its belly.

Suddenly, it discovered that a bold and audacious upright ape was blocking its way.

It looked at the upright ape curiously, thinking that this ape was too big to be slapped by it.

Gu Ran was also sizing up the huge brown bear.

Because martial arts training is different from superpower development, it is difficult to specifically feel one's strength before condensing one's Qi in martial arts. Generally, one's strength is assessed by fighting against superpowered individuals of the corresponding level.

However, in this place, Gu Ran naturally couldn't find an ability user of the corresponding level to rate him, so he set his sights on this brown bear.

Although this brown bear is not a ferocious beast and its strength is certainly limited, it still allows him to have a standard to measure his own strength.

For example, if he can't even beat this brown bear, it means that his current strength is still very weak, and he must be extremely careful after leaving the valley.

If he can defeat this brown bear, then he can estimate how much stronger he is than a brown bear based on how much effort he put in.

Roar!

The brown bear was furious when it saw that Gu Ran showed no sign of leaving.

This bipedal ape is really ignoring it!?

The brown bear charged at Gu Ran, raising its paws, ready to give him a big high-five.

boom!

The giant bear paw slammed down on the stones on the ground, shattering a rock the size of a face.

Gu Ran didn't want to confront the brown bear head-on immediately, so she easily dodged it.

"too slow."

Gu Ran commented in his mind.

The enormous beast that once threatened his life now poses no threat to him whatsoever.

After getting a general idea of ​​the strength comparison between himself and the brown bear, Gu Ran flashed behind the brown bear and gently threw a punch.