Chapter Seven: She Can Control Sharks

The massive chimpanzee lumbered clumsily toward the shore, lowering its head to glare at the sea with impotent fury. It roared, but dared not enter the water. Meanwhile, the situation of the few people in the water was far worse—Qiuya Bai could not swim.

She flailed, bobbing up and down as the waves relentlessly battered her face. “Help…!” she gasped.

Qiao Le barely managed to keep from being swept away by the waves, but he was powerless to save Qiuya Bai. If he attempted a rescue, he might not survive himself. Misfortune compounded itself when a white fin suddenly broke the water’s surface. She widened her eyes in terror.

The white fin swiftly approached Shen Li. Someone shouted, “Watch out! A shark!” She had known from the start that jumping into the sea after Shen Li was the most foolish decision!

At least on land, the chimpanzee from the production crew could only catch them and eliminate them—it wouldn’t cost them their lives.

Behind the monitor, the staff stared intently at the screen. Someone asked the director, “Should we go save them?”

The director’s smile was impossible to hide. “Don’t worry, everything is under the control of the technical department.” No sooner had he spoken than the technical director’s mouth twitched awkwardly. “Um, director, the shark wasn’t released by us—it’s real.”

“What!” The director leapt to his feet, terror creeping over his wrinkled face.

If someone died, there would be no chance of continuing the show!

Mr. Pei would never admit to any deal with him, let alone save his life.

“Quick! Send the rescue boat at maximum speed!” The director shouted, his usual aura of control vanished. Then, something happened that shocked everyone.

The white fin leapt from the water—a beautiful white shark soaring out of the sea, lunging at Shen Li. She opened her mouth wide and dragged Shen Li beneath the surface.

A powerful whirlpool and surging waves swept away both the shark and Shen Li. The rescue boat sped at full throttle but was too late.

Everyone watched the water in stunned silence, jaws unhinged.

What should they do now?

The director screamed in panic, “Call the police! Get an ambulance here!” Holding the walkie-talkie, he ordered the professional lifeguards on the boat, “Do everything you can to save her! No more lives can be lost, do you hear me?!”

One life was already too much. He could only feel relieved that the victim was Shen Li.

Fortunately, Shen Li carried the weight of another life on her shoulders. Her death would be celebrated, and there was still room to maneuver.

—Is this really how it ends???

—Can someone survive being eaten by a shark?

—Well, at least the heavens finally took her.

—She can’t go to heaven; she belongs in hell!

—Right, Shen Li deserves to die!

...

Just as the barrage of comments began their frenzy, the water churned violently. The same white shark surged out again. Qiao Le’s pupils dilated as he frantically swam toward shore, while Qiuya Bai dog-paddled helplessly. For a non-swimmer, it was futile.

She tried calling to Qiao Le, who glanced back before gritting his teeth and swimming back.

He couldn’t let her witness a living soul perish. Shen Li deserved her fate, but Qiuya Bai did not.

Alas, his swimming speed could not keep up with Qiuya Bai’s sinking. Within a second, she vanished beneath the waves.

Just as everyone anxiously rushed to save them and the rescue boat sped forward, the shark lunged toward the spot where Qiuya Bai was drowning.

Everyone’s hearts sank to the bottom.

Qiuya Bai was likely doomed...

Then, suddenly, the shark broke the surface again. Riding on its back were none other than Shen Li and Qiuya Bai. Qiuya Bai clung tightly to Shen Li. The aerial camera zoomed in as Qiuya Bai trembled, and Shen Li whispered soothing words.

An even stranger sight appeared: Shen Li reached out and stroked the shark’s head, and the shark obediently turned its head to allow her to touch it.

—What?! Who on earth is she?!

—She’s alive! No, I’m amazed she can control a shark!

—I’m speechless. What can she not do???

Neither the audience watching at home nor the production crew could believe their eyes. Everyone involved in this accident was stunned.

The girl rode the white shark across the sea. She commanded the shark to stop beside Qiao Le and helped him onto its back.

The sea breeze played with her flowing black hair, damp strands framing her face, which had been cleansed by the seawater and now shone with an ethereal glow. Her naturally wavy hair lightly fell across her forehead and behind her ears, fluttering in the wind.

Her water-soaked floral dress billowed like a triumphant banner. The once overcast sky parted slightly, and a long-hidden sunbeam bathed the girl in golden light.

At that moment, she seemed like a deity.

After Qiao Le reached the shore, the chimpanzee, drawn back and seeing its prey escape, lost all will to continue the chase. The shark carried them to the sea’s center, cutting off any chance of pursuit.

Qiao Le was still shaken, blinking hard, trying to dispel what seemed like a hallucination. No matter how he rubbed his eyes, reality insisted: Shen Li was truly controlling the shark.

Though technology was highly advanced, and the rich now used virtual screens instead of phones or computers, logging in to surf the web seamlessly, this technology was newly broken through and extremely expensive. Only the wealthy could afford it; the lower classes still used basic phones.

Even among the elite, virtual screen usage was limited to communication and internet access. Virtual projection technology was confined to the world’s top technical experts. To date, fewer than thirty people worldwide could master it.

“Black and White Opposition” was the first show to utilize this technology. Its novelty helped maintain peak viewership.

The technical director was the only person capable of fully controlling this virtual technology within the technical department. Without assistance, he could project anything anywhere across the island chain.

Therefore, none could fathom how Shen Li could control a shark. Before they could exhaust their guesses, Qiao Le voiced their question for them.

“Why does the shark obey you?”

Shen Li scanned her surroundings, fixed her gaze on the camera, and smiled lightly. Her clear, bright eyes shimmered like a galaxy filled with stars. “Because I created it.”

Silence fell like death behind the monitor. The director’s face drained of color; the technical director looked incredulous.

One must understand: on this land, only he could create any living creature, even those not existing in reality.

Shen Li claimed she could create one?

What a joke!

Yet the facts were undeniable: either he believed Shen Li had mastered the projection technology, or he believed she could control the shark.

Obviously, the latter was absurd; the director quickly grasped this.

He immediately ordered, “Hack into Shen Li’s system and alter the shark’s parameters!”