Overlord Salamander

About the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, the rapidly rising water level forced Chen Wan to retreat further and further back. She clutched Yuan Ming's White Ape Beast Hide and Bronze Longsword in her arms, her entire body pressed against the stone wall.

At this point, the river had flooded the entire cave, and the water level had reached Chen Wan's waist.

Her heart, once filled with anxiety, now turned to despair. An unavoidable thought surfaced: How could I have been so foolish? He's not coming back...

After all, he was just a Furred Beast Slave. Even if he found a way out without incident, he wouldn't risk coming back to save her. They were strangers, after all, just passing acquaintances.

It was laughable how she had felt a sense of relief when he left, seeing the beast hide and longsword he left behind.

Just as Chen Wan was wallowing in self-pity, the water surface in front of her suddenly churned, and a dark figure emerged, letting out a series of panting breaths.

She almost couldn't help herself and was about to unleash a Fireball Technique at the person.

Upon seeing that it was an incredibly ugly humanoid Toad, she suddenly felt a surge of emotion, her eyes welling up with tears.

Yuan Ming, who had rushed back, was also surprised by the changes here. He spoke in a deep, muffled voice, "It looks like a flash flood. I almost couldn't find you."

"How is it, did you find an exit?" Chen Wan asked urgently.

"The underground river is much longer than I thought. I swam for a long time but couldn't reach the exit," Yuan Ming said, shaking his head and gasping for breath.

Chen Wan's expression immediately stiffened, and her heart sank.

"However, I found a cavity up ahead. It's much larger than this place, so it won't be submerged for now. We can rest there temporarily, catch our breath, and then continue downstream to find a way out," Yuan Ming said, taking a deep breath and changing his tone.

"We can only try," Chen Wan said, feeling somewhat speechless at Yuan Ming's dramatic pauses.

Seeing the water level gradually rising to her chest, she didn't want to stay another moment.

"How long can your breath hold?" Yuan Ming asked.

"I haven't cultivated water techniques, so I can only hold my breath for about half an hour at most," Chen Wan said after thinking.

At this moment, she deeply regretted discriminating against water techniques just because she was a disciple of the Fire Refining Hall. Fortunately, disciples of the Fire Refining Hall were required to have good breath control for prolonged artifact forging, so her breath capacity wasn't weak.

"Half an hour should be enough. Later, you can cling to my back, and I'll take you for a dive," Yuan Ming said after a moment's thought.

Upon hearing this, Chen Wan glanced at Yuan Ming's back, which was covered in black bumps, and looked hesitant.

"At your speed, you definitely won't be able to swim over there in half an hour without me," Yuan Ming said indifferently, glancing at her.

Chen Wan took a deep breath and nodded.

She held Yuan Ming's White Ape Beast Hide and Bronze Longsword in one hand, and the other hand, enduring the discomfort, rested on Yuan Ming's shoulder.

"Take a deep breath," Yuan Ming instructed.

Chen Wan immediately complied.

The next moment, Yuan Ming's body suddenly sank, and he plunged into the water with Chen Wan's body.

Yuan Ming flipped his legs outward, kicked hard, then brought his legs back together and clamped them, his body shooting forward with the current, covering seven or eight zhang in an instant.

Reaching the edge of the cave, the river converged and flowed into a subterranean passage.

Yuan Ming didn't hesitate, taking Chen Wan with him into the passage and swimming hard downstream in a frog kick.

Inside the cave, it was pitch black.

Chen Wan's eyes were tightly shut, and all she could hear was the muffled sound of the flowing water. Her heart began to race, and the hand gripping Yuan Ming's shoulder involuntarily tightened, her body instinctively pressing closer to Yuan Ming's back.

Yuan Ming felt Chen Wan's tension behind him and could only use his hands and feet to swim rapidly downstream.

After about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Chen Wan gradually got used to the cold sensation underwater and couldn't help but open her eyes.

However, she couldn't see anything in the dark water, only vaguely sensing the stone walls enclosing her from all sides, which evoked a sense of claustrophobia.

After looking for a while, she closed her eyes again, finding it more bearable this way.

But just then, she suddenly felt her heel touch something.

However, she hadn't moved erratically, nor had she made any kicking motions. It was impossible for her to have touched anything other than water.

If that was the case, then something must have followed and touched her.

Are there fish in this underground river? Chen Wan wondered.

Before she could figure it out, the sensation of touch came again, and with much greater force than before.

Sensing that something was wrong, Chen Wan immediately opened her eyes and turned her head to look behind her.

What she saw made her jump in fright, and she almost cried out, her grip on Yuan Ming tightening.

Behind them, in the dark river, a huge black shadow had appeared, and by no means did it look like a fish.

Chen Wan suppressed her fear and, with the hand holding the beast hide and Bronze Longsword, vigorously patted Yuan Ming's back.

Yuan Ming immediately realized something was wrong. He twisted his neck to look back and see what the problem was, only to hear a faint "wuwu" crying sound from behind him.

The sound was somewhat childish, and carried by the current, it pierced his ears with perfect clarity.

If he hadn't been wearing the Toad beast hide, he would have gotten goosebumps all over.

Just then, Chen Wan placed the White Ape Beast Hide and Bronze Longsword beneath her, circulated her mana, and waved her palm behind her.

Her palm immediately lit up with a faint red glow, illuminating about a third of the water behind her.

In the dim light, she saw a huge, yet flattened, white human face. Its mouth was gaping, taking up a third of the entire face. Its two black eyes, like tiny beans, were surprisingly small and located on the sides of its cheeks.

She let out a startled yelp, choking on water, her breath instantly thrown into disarray.

The pale, ghastly human face seemed startled too, its whimpering cries growing more urgent. Red and black patterns suddenly appeared on its white cheeks, and it opened its gaping maw, lunging towards Yuan Ming and Chen Wan.

As Yuan Ming turned, he clearly saw the creature's face and inwardly gasped, "Overlord Salamander?"

He immediately pushed off with his legs, swimming forward with all his might, his speed dramatically increasing as he put distance between himself and the monstrous thing.

However, the whimpering behind them intensified. The beast, suspected to be an Overlord Salamander, had no intention of letting them go and was rapidly closing in on them.

In her panic, Chen Wan had lost all composure. Her fingers dug deeply into Yuan Ming's back, her nails piercing his skin, and she had already swallowed several mouthfuls of icy river water.

Just then, a burning pain shot up her ankle. Glancing down, she saw that the humanoid monster could actually spew out a crimson, lava-like mucus from its mouth.

The mucus stuck to her ankle, corroding a large hole in her pants and burning her skin.

Yet, it was precisely this intense pain that ignited Chen Wan's fighting spirit, snapping her out of her panic. She reached into her sleeve and pulled out another Crimson Fire Thunder.

But as she was about to throw it, she recalled the scene of being chased by the Fire Python in the cave earlier. If she threw the Crimson Fire Thunder here, it was uncertain if it would kill the fierce beast, but the resulting water surge alone could stun them both.

If the cave collapsed again, they wouldn't even have whole bodies left; they'd be buried together right here.

Chen Wan felt incredibly frustrated. It was precisely in the water that her meticulously cultivated fire magic was severely restricted; even the Fireball Technique couldn't be cast.

As she hesitated, she suddenly saw Yuan Ming slow down beneath her, one hand pressing against the stone wall.

What is he doing?

The next moment, the stone wall behind them suddenly lit up with cyan glows on both sides, and two sharp wooden spikes, about two feet long, abruptly thrust out.

"Wood Thorn Technique." Chen Wan was surprised, not expecting this Furred Beast Slave to know any spells.

The pursuing Overlord Salamander was struck by the wooden thorns, a long gash opening on its body, from which crimson blood began to flow.

In pain, its ferocity surged. It opened its mouth and suddenly spat out a large glob of crimson mucus, aiming for Chen Wan.

If it hit her, half of her back would likely be corroded.

At the critical moment, the hand Chen Wan was gripping Yuan Ming's shoulder with was suddenly grabbed, then pulled forward, flinging her off his shoulder.

The blob of crimson mucus landed squarely on Yuan Ming's back, letting out a sizzling sound.

Yuan Ming endured the intense pain and surged forward, swimming to Chen Wan's side. He drew the Bronze Longsword from her hand with one hand and pushed her from behind with the other, sending her flying forward.

Immediately after, Yuan Ming spun around, channeling mana into the Azure Fish Sword he held, and swung it down at the pursuing Overlord Salamander.

Swish!

The Azure Fish Sword flashed with light. A powerful force split the water, striking the Overlord Salamander directly on its face.

The creature let out a tragic howl. As a bloody gash opened on its face, it spewed a large amount of venom from its mouth, shooting towards Yuan Ming.

As Yuan Ming turned to flee, a stream of black venom suddenly shot out from a dark lump on his back. It dispersed into the water, forming scattered dots that surged towards the Overlord Salamander.

The two venoms mixed, slightly countering the salamander's corrosive venomous attack.

Yuan Ming seized the opportunity, swimming forward with all his might. He caught up to Chen Wan, pulled her into his arms, and kicked his legs furiously, carrying her madly forward.

Behind them, the Overlord Salamander plunged headfirst into the area where the venoms had mixed. The water there immediately began to boil.

The toxins formed by the mixture of the two venoms were something even it couldn't withstand.

The Overlord Salamander let out continuous, miserable cries, no longer able to pursue the two.

After this ordeal, both Yuan Ming and Chen Wan had lost a considerable amount of stamina, and their breathing was disrupted. Whether they could reach that cavity now became uncertain.