Chapter 29: The Intentions of Ni Ximei (Part II)

Ni Ximei and Shuisheng headed off to rendezvous with Yan Ruobing and the others.

"You are the last ones; everyone else has arrived," Yan Tong said happily upon seeing them.

"Apologies, Captain. The spot where the boundary portal dropped us was quite remote. We spent some time searching for you all," Ni Ximei said, brushing it off with a brief excuse. She was tight-lipped about what had just transpired and kept silent.

Seeing Shuisheng return safely, Yan Ruobing felt a sense of relief.

"It’s good that you’re back. Don't go wandering off again. This island features inscriptions, which means there must be someone who carved them—perhaps the powerful immortals from the other world that they speak of. No one knows what other dangers lie ahead."

Wen Fengxian cast a slightly peculiar glance at her.

Shuisheng noticed a massive Ice Prison Bear lying among the Yan family’s security team. It looked exactly like the one he had seen in the video. Clearly, they had also made some gains. To kill the beast, four guards had been injured, one of them even suffering a broken leg.

"Young Miss, perhaps we should send a team to swim inside and scout," Yan Ning suggested, gesturing toward the area ahead.

The terrain where Yan Ruobing’s group was located was rather strange. The icy beach they stood on featured a waterway; one end led to the sea, while the other led to a tunnel-like cavern in the mountainside. The water in the cave was two people deep, filled with floating ice, and looked chillingly deep at a glance.

Because of this, most people remained on the outside, watching and waiting. A few brave souls had already swum in.

"Captain Yan Tong, what do you think?" Yan Ruobing turned to ask.

"I believe we should wait a little longer, until we receive more news from within," Yan Tong maintained his habitual caution.

"If we do that, won't others get there first, kill the powerful magical beasts, and loot the precious treasures? We have too many people here and too few beasts; there’s not enough to go around," Yan Ning disagreed.

Both had valid points. Yan Ruobing could not make an immediate decision. While waiting, Shuisheng closed his eyes to rest.

Suddenly, someone approached from behind and slapped a heavy hand onto his shoulder. He turned to look and was surprised to see Lu Xingzhou, Deputy Section Chief of the Combat Enforcement Division of the "Heavenly Court" organization’s Fuling City Brigade. His subordinate, Lin Shaowei, followed close behind like a shadow.

"Deputy Chief Lu, greetings." Remembering how he had essentially fled that day, Shuisheng felt quite awkward.

"So you came as well." Lu Xingzhou had noticed him earlier but felt it inappropriate to approach while he was with the Yan family.

"Just here to join the excitement," Shuisheng replied.

"Stay safe. Since that boundary vanished and the real portal appeared, to my knowledge, at least eight people have already lost their lives in the world beyond this point... and the number of injured is countless." Lu Xingzhou was genuinely concerned for the boy’s safety; he was too young, only a Level 2 Esper, and had never undergone formal combat training.

"Thank you for your concern, Deputy Chief Lu," Shuisheng said, looking back. "I am with the Yan family."

"The door to the Heavenly Court organization’s Fuling City Brigade is always open to you. If you change your mind, come find me at any time," Lu Xingzhou said.

"I appreciate your kindness, Deputy Chief Lu," Shuisheng replied. "However, while I love the Heavenly Court organization, I love money and freedom even more."

Lu Xingzhou: ...

After Lu Xingzhou returned to the Heavenly Court group, Ni Ximei came over to Shuisheng.

"The Heavenly Court is excellent—the guardians of safety in the Esper world, stable work, an 'iron rice bowl,' and plenty of room for promotion. Many young espers would kill to get in. Why wouldn't you want to join?"

"A catty of wild yellow croaker sells for 80 to 100 Donghua coins. If the tide is good, I can catch a dozen or two a day," Shuisheng said. "The money I make from fishing in one day equals a week’s salary for a new recruit there."

Ni Ximei was speechless.

"I watched you fight those people from the Crocodile God Society earlier. Your combat experience is too poor, and your ability to judge the direction and speed of an opponent’s attack is insufficient," she said. "Since we are waiting for news, there is time. I can teach you a few tricks, if you want?"

Shuisheng was overjoyed; this was exactly what he needed. He had lived in a fishing village for years and had only developed his abilities a little over a year ago. What kind of combat environment could he have had? Whether on the boat or here, he had only survived by escaping extremely dangerous situations. He had read many cultivation manuals, but he lacked someone to teach him or guide him in real combat. He immediately and humbly asked her for instruction on the ways of battle.

Ni Ximei, a Level 5 Esper with twenty years of cultivation and a wealth of combat experience, began to teach him the principles of offense and defense, starting from the basics. Yan Ruobing and the others watched them coldly, not interfering.

About half an hour passed.

"Ah!..."

A blood-curdling scream echoed from the depths of the cavern. The sound lingered, reverberating in the hearts of everyone outside. A few of the more timid espers couldn't help but shrink back in fear.

Ni Ximei’s instruction to Shuisheng came to an abrupt end. "Don't forget what you promised me," she whispered to him.

A moment later, the sound of splashing water approached from within. Everyone tensed. Soon, five or six espers emerged from the cave, shivering, their bodies covered in frost. As soon as they reached the shore, they collapsed, gasping for air as if they had just narrowly escaped death.

"What is it like inside?" Someone couldn't hold back and rushed forward to ask.

"Wait, let them catch their breath first." Yan Tong produced a flask of strong liquor and handed it to a man in his forties who was shivering uncontrollably. "Here, have some strong spirits to warm yourself up."

The man gulped down several mouthfuls, his spirit steadying, before passing the flask to the others. Then, in fragments, they described the situation inside.

They were part of one of the first groups to swim into the cave, hailing from the "Three Mountains Sect," a well-known sect in Xichuan Province skilled at traversing mountains and investigating mechanisms. They had made extensive preparations for this portal, hoping to find treasures from the other world to strike it rich. Upon entering, they found the water level was high—the cave was about two and a half meters high, and the water was at least two meters deep, leaving only enough room for them to keep their heads above the surface.

They had used their abilities to coat their bodies, struggling against the freezing water while carefully guarding against traps or beasts. Fortunately, they encountered nothing else along the way except for a few broken fences. Further in, they emerged from the cave but remained in the waterway, which flowed into a large pool.

They saw shadow-like water ghosts swimming in the pool and were terrified. Then, two jailers with pale blue faces, wearing cyan-white armor and wielding long halberds, appeared with a giant canine, discovered them, and began their pursuit.

It was difficult to dodge in the waterway. Several people were stabbed to death in the water by the jailers’ halberds, and the water-ghost shadows quickly attached to them, draining their blood and flesh. Seeing this, the others fled in a panic. The two jailers and the giant dog pursued them relentlessly, killing people along the way. Of the twenty-four or twenty-five people who had entered, only these five had returned.

The people by the waterway were deathly silent, listening to the account, not missing a single word. Twenty-four or twenty-five went in, and only five came out; the death rate was so high that many gasped in horror.

"You only saw two armored jailers and one giant dog?" Zhu Qingtong, the provincial leader of the Nanxing branch of the "Wind and Fire Sect"—who had previously killed an Ice Prison Bear—asked again. The Wind and Fire Sect was the largest civilian esper organization in Donghua, with significant influence.

"Yes," the disciple of the Three Mountains Sect said. "Those were the only three living things we saw, though there may be others we didn't notice. Also, on the side of the pool inside, there appeared to be another entrance leading to an underground space..."