Lu Yao put down the adhesive tape and sweet coffee, turned around and walked over.
There was indeed something floating above the water not far from the Furry Shop.
Lu Yao stuck to the soft membrane and looked carefully for a while, "It looks like... a fish, but why is it lying on its belly?"
The seabed is dark and it is difficult to see clearly at depth.
But those fish were circling upwards in a cylindrical shape. There was light near the sea surface, and some fish could be seen with their bellies turned upside down.
It is really strange that they do not hide from their natural enemies and just float motionlessly in the water.
Bai Jing also stood up and walked over. "Some fishes, in order to avoid predators, attach themselves to other groups and adapt to their living habits. They swim with their heads up or down. The fish floating over there are different species. Under the coral reef, there seems to be a large predator lying on its stomach. They are all motionless and there is no shelter nearby. It looks so strange."
The two observed for a while and found that occasionally schools of fish swam past the edge, staying away from the strangely arranged fish with their belly upturned.
Bai Jing was really curious: "Are they contaminated? Or are they dead?"
Lu Yao shook his head: "I don't know."
The deep sea is too mysterious and profound for humans.
This is another unfamiliar sea area. Although I am curious, I don’t want to go out and explore it.
My ankle suddenly felt warm, as if a small ball of fur was sticking to me.
Lu Yao lowered his head. Dai Jiaotai and Tianka, who had just finished their meal, came over.
When she stepped into the water when she entered the room, she took off her shoes and left them in the bathroom, then changed into a pair of clean flip-flops.
At this time, two furry balls rubbed against my feet, feeling itchy and soft.
Lu Yao squatted down, stroked the whimpering sweet girl with her belly exposed, gently scratched the chin covered with adhesive tape, and looked up to find the scammer.
Pengci chased the plankton outside along the transparent wall membrane, his brows slightly furrowed, looking very serious.
Bai Jing also turned around and continued to lie down while holding Erxin.
It was after eight o'clock when he got up and walked to the door: "Shopkeeper, I'll come over after get off work this afternoon."
Lu Yao was surprised: "Come again?"
Bai Jing turned around and looked at her seriously, "No? Staying here makes my heart very peaceful. If you don't have other plans tonight, I would like to come over and sit with you again."
At this point, Lu Yao couldn't refuse.
Bai Jing put his hands in his pockets and asked carefully: "Owner, can't this store be opened to us?"
Without a temporary worker badge, you cannot enter this special store.
He wanted to continue coming here, and being a guest was the best way.
Lu Yao: “…”
Bai Jing's expression was sincere, he really liked being here.
Lying quietly on the seabed and petting the cat, my mind becomes empty and even my soul seems to become lighter.
Such a place is hard to come by, and he is willing to come no matter how high the price the owner offers.
That's an interesting idea.
Lu Yao did not refuse outright, nor did he respond immediately. After thinking for a moment, he replied, "I need to think about it."
Bai Jing secretly hoped that the owner would agree after considering it, but he didn't say much. He nodded slightly, turned around and went out, took out the temporary worker badge outside the door, and handed it back to Lu Yao.
Lu Yao put away his temporary worker badge and returned to the store.
As expected, no customers have come since then.
The store was in such a location that Lu Yao wanted to find a way to attract customers, but he had no idea.
The nearby fish would not be interested in the hairy creature, and since no one came to the seabed, it could not come ashore to solicit guests.
Lu Yao had one or two diving experiences when he traveled before.
But at that time we were in a safe shallow sea area, and there was a teacher nearby to provide guidance.
She couldn't tell how many meters below the sea the Furry Shop was just by looking with the naked eye.
This place is a threshold space, where dark algae are long and soft, swaying gently with the current.
Below the coral reef was a deep, dark cliff. No one knew what kind of creatures were hiding there. Lu Yao held Erxin tightly in his arms.
When there is only one person left, the deep seabed is too dark and quiet.
"Meow~"
The sweet meow of a cat broke the heavy atmosphere. Lu Yao turned his head and his eyes suddenly widened - outside the transparent membrane, there was a young manta ray swimming close to the membrane, as if teasing someone.
Its flat body is as graceful and light as a butterfly, with two curled fins in front of its head and a long, thin tail swaying gently behind it.
It swam left and right outside the wall membrane, teasing the creature by stretching out its claws to touch it, but it meowed in anxiety when it couldn't find it.
Manta rays, also known as devil fish, are relatively gentle marine creatures.
They mainly feed on small fish, shrimp and plankton, can build relatively complex social systems, and often act in groups.
Lu Yao looked up and didn't see any other manta rays, nor were there any groups of manta rays nearby.
Is this a lone manta ray
The little manta ray seemed to see Lu Yao and suddenly froze.
After a moment, it began to ram into the wall membrane, being bounced back each time.
Lu Yao observed for a while and tried to guide it to the door of the Furry Shop to see if these deep-sea fish could enter the shop.
She was also wondering, could these fish be potential customers of the Furry Shop
The little manta ray swam to the door of the furry shop, saw something, and suddenly turned around and swam away without looking back.
It seems that fish are not their guests.
Lu Yao cut a plate of fruit and placed it on the low table. He sat on the floor in the "Deep Sea Dragon Palace" with a 360-degree view, touched his soft and plump belly, and looked at the scenery outside the window.
Pull aside the transparent wall film camouflage and you can see the mountain view outside the shopping street.
The trees are verdant and stretch like mountains, the sky is high and the clouds are light, and the breeze is charming, which is completely different from the deep and dark seabed.
There was a sudden knock on the door. Lu Yao was stunned for a moment. It seemed like it was the door to the deep sea world.
She sat still.
The creature outside the door was very persistent. It knocked three times and then stopped. It was very patient.
Lu Yao typed into the system: "What's outside?"
System: […The manta ray is back again, carrying a bunch of fresh fish.]
Fresh fish
Lu Yao had a guess in his mind, and he moved slowly to the door. After hesitating for several times, he gently opened the door.
Although the sea water was blocked by a transparent membrane, the cold breath of the deep sea still swept over Lu Yao's senses.
She blinked her eyes and quickly opened them again.
Outside the door, the little manta ray swam up and down a few times and then suddenly crashed into the door.
Lu Yao subconsciously turned sideways to avoid the oncoming warm hug.
The little manta ray rolled onto the soft white sand beach, and a cute female voice of pain was heard.
“Ah, that hurts!”
Lu Yao turned around with surprise in his eyes.
The reckless little manta ray disappeared, and sitting on the white beach was a young woman with a ponytail, wearing a black suspender and denim hot pants, and holding a string of snappers that seemed to be tied with corals.
The fishes' mouths were still opening and closing, looking very alive.
"Are you a fish or a human?" Lu Yao closed the door and reached out to the girl.
Du Qingmei looked down at her hands and feet, her eyes full of disbelief.
She's back!!!
A slender white hand reached out to her, and she excitedly grasped it, using the force to stand up, and hugged Lu Yao tightly, saying happily: "It's a person! It's really a person! That's great!!!"
A bunch of fresh fish with a salty and fishy smell came slapping heavily on Lu Yao's back.
I don’t know if it was the fish fin or something else that poked my skin.
Lu Yao took a deep breath and used a little strength to push the girl away, "So you are also a human?"
Du Qingmei realized that she had frightened the other party a little, nodded slightly, stepped back, and handed the snapper skewers in her hand over: "Here, how long can these fish last for the cat?"
Lu Yao: “???”
Du Qingmei: "The sign outside the store says that you can bring dried fish to pet cats. I went to catch some, but I don't know how to make it into dried fish. Is fresh fish okay?"
Lu Yao typed into the system: "... The currency of this world is not fish, right?"
System: [The situation in this world is quite complicated. Dried fish, treasures, antiques, and paper money can all be exchanged. However, this guest can probably only find fish.]
… What kind of world is this
She already owned three stores in another world and prided herself on having extensive experience in opening stores, but now she was confused.
"You are a human, how did you get into the sea? And how did you turn into a manta ray?" Lu Yao asked as he took the sea bream skewers.
Du Qingmei followed Lu Yao onto the white sand beach and officially entered the furry shop. She looked down and saw three round little fur balls scattered everywhere, and her heart almost melted.
She had just had an affair with a scammer outside, so she quickly ran over, reached out her hand carefully, and touched the scammer's soft fur before answering Lu Yao.
"I don't know what happened. I woke up in the sea and turned into a fish. I swam here for a long time and couldn't find a way to turn back into a human, nor could I leave this sea."
The scammer was very bold. He was not afraid or dodged when being touched. He simply lay down on the ground, revealing his soft white belly.
Du Qingmei narrowed her eyes and the corners of her lips curled up uncontrollably. This was so cute.
After staying in the sea for a long time, touching this soft and warm fur-covered cub will greatly increase your healing level.
She couldn't help but bend down, put her face close to the bumped belly, closed her eyes and took a deep breath, sighed with satisfaction, then looked up at Lu Yao.
"I was shocked when I saw a kitten outside just now. I thought I was trapped here for too long and started to hallucinate. Are you the owner of this store?"
Lu Yao nodded.
Pengci let out a delicate cry, turned over, stood up, and meowed as he rubbed Du Qingmei's hand.
Du Qingmei knelt on the ground and simply hugged Pengci into her arms and stroked him gently, with a look of shock in her eyes: "You can actually do such a thing, are you a witch living under the sea? Or are you actually a mermaid?"
Lu Yao shook his head: "... To be honest, I was wondering just now, could you be a mermaid?"
Du Qingmei shook her head frantically, "I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Du Qingmei, I'm 24 years old, an ordinary office worker. One day I woke up and suddenly found myself in this sea area, and turned into a deep-sea fish."
Lu Yao briefly introduced himself and pointed to the strange fish not far away with their bellies turned upside down: "Do you know what's going on with those fish?"
Du Qingmei nodded.