A Dog That Couldn't Get at the Bone
You Su's heart pounded like a drumbeat in his chest. He stared at the characters that were gradually appearing on the stone tablet. Each character seemed to contain immense power, imprinted on his heart.
He never imagined that this place would be underwater!
In his mind, the sea was a vast expanse of water, but here he could breathe freely, so even though he had been falling for a long time, he never thought of it in that direction.
Rather than attributing the problem to the fact that the seabed looks very different from what he imagined, it's more accurate to say that no one has ever actually seen the real deep seabed.
Even among so many ancient texts, there is no record of it, and no one dares to claim that they have been to the bottom of the deep sea. Humans can only venture into the near-shore areas.
Because everyone on the continent, regardless of age or gender, knows that the deep sea is the lair of Evil Demon.
The vast majority of people would not venture into the abyss to seek their own death, while the few who dared to risk their lives invariably met a tragic end, their remains reduced to a mere, understated record in history books, making the mere mention of the deep sea all the more terrifying.
However, he and Bai Ze ended up here by a twist of fate. No wonder the Ganlong Venerable said that this place connects to the deepest darkness beneath the earth. This place is definitely the most dangerous place in the entire Five Continents, and it is no exaggeration to call it a death zone.
What shocked You Su even more was that someone else had fallen into this place before him! He hadn't fallen in passively, but had entered voluntarily, and according to the inscription, he was still alive!
You Su found it hard to believe that such a ruthless person existed in the Five Continents. Such a feat was unprecedented, and he had never even heard of him before.
After the initial shock, one detail sent chills down You Su's spine.
Behind the stone tablet, there was even an inscription of the date: March 13th, 5095 of the Divine Mountain Calendar.
You Su's pupils widened instantly; this was actually an inscription left nine years ago!
Nine years ago...
I came here at Gan Long's invitation...
This esteemed Palace Lord of Dragon Seeing Palace clearly knew all along that this tunnel led directly to the seabed!
This pioneer probably didn't know what had happened at the Kong Yuan Divine Mountain before; his goal was only overseas. Ganlong Venerable told him about an entrance, so he jumped down.
So what was the purpose of Ganlong Venerable allowing him to enter the seabed from there?
Based on what You Su had seen and heard, this Black Well must have appeared or been discovered about thirty years ago, which is why the Divine Radiance Stone was urgently smuggled in thirty years ago to suppress the wellhead.
This is a matter of life and death for all living beings in the continent. She is a person of top status in the Northern Ao Continent. She could have used the Divine Radiance Stone to suppress it in a grand manner. Although the appearance of the evil well in the heart of the divine mountain would shake the people's hearts to some extent, it could also win people's hearts if handled properly. She should not have been so secretive.
This can only mean that she, or they, must have some unspeakable secret!
"You Su, we're saved!"
Bai Ze cheered, holding You Su's arm. The girl's thoughts were clearly not as complex as You Su's.
"You can read?" You Su snapped out of her thoughts and looked at her in surprise.
Bai Ze blinked. "When did I say I couldn't?" Then, he propped up his delicate chin, his previously excited face instantly drooping, looking worried like a little adult. "Do you think... this isn't another trap someone set?"
As the old saying goes, "A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit," and Bai Ze clearly understands this principle well.
You Su didn't directly deny it, after all, if girls are more cautious, they're less likely to be deceived.
"That is indeed possible." You Su nodded slightly, and just as Bai Ze showed a smug look, You Su added, "However, this possibility is extremely small."
"Why?" Bai Ze asked curiously.
"Evil spirits are most fond of Mystic Qi refined by humans, and this stone tablet contains unimaginably pure Mystic Qi, which is why they flock to this place."
After speaking, You Su raised the stone tablet, and in the dim space, the words on the tablet shone brightly.
"So that's how it is. Then why doesn't the big-eyed monster eat it? Why does it wait for other monsters to come and steal it?"
"Evil spirits devour human Mystic Qi, either by bewitching or by eating them raw, but these methods only work on living things and are useless against stones. This senior deliberately carved the Mystic Qi into the stone instead of using other methods, which must have been foreseen. However, this method is extremely difficult and can only be done by someone who has reached the pinnacle of control over Mystic Qi."
"No wonder Big Eyes doesn't eat it himself... but they can't finish it all and they still fight over it, isn't that just like a dog that can't get a bone?"
Bai Ze made a very vivid analogy, saying that not only low-intelligence beasts behave this way, but even humans who consider themselves wise will desperately pursue things that are completely useless and then take pleasure in possessing them.
You Su put down the stone tablet and continued to explain why it couldn't be a trap:
"Regardless of whether someone could have set a trap here, someone of such strength wouldn't need to go to such lengths if they truly wanted to harm us. Nine years have passed, yet the words carved with Mystic Qi show no signs of fading. The few Mystic Qi left behind with such a casual gesture have attracted countless evil spirits to scramble for them. The purity of the Mystic Qi of the person who carved the words is the highest I have ever seen in my life."
This surprised me even more. The purer the Mystic Qi, the more sensitive the senses of evil spirits become. He knew this and still went deep into the sea, probably prepared for certain death, yet he still survived... To him, we are nothing but insignificant ants, so how could we be considered a trap?"
Bai Ze nodded in agreement, a look of longing on his face. "There really are people that amazing..."
"Knowing full well the perilous situation, they still remembered to leave a way out for future generations, even though it was highly likely that no one would ever come here again. Such an act is truly remarkable."
You Su rarely admired someone so wholeheartedly. The First Elder was one such person, and this powerful figure whom he had only met through a stone tablet was another.
"Hmph, that wicked woman thought she was doomed after tricking us into coming here, but she miscalculated!" Bai Ze's mood changed quickly, and he immediately suppressed his joy. "But how do we find the stone tablet he left behind?"
You Su carefully put away the stone tablet. "It's simple. Since this stone tablet can attract evil spirits to fight over it, there's a high probability that other places where evil spirits gather also contain stone tablets."
"Then we're going to have to fight a lot of monsters like those big-eyed monsters?" Bai Ze asked worriedly. "Can we even beat them...?"
You Su chuckled softly upon hearing this, her smile still reassuring, "I'm here."
Bai Ze grinned and wrapped his arm around You Su's, not to be outdone, and said, "I'm still here."
You Su affectionately ruffled the girl's hair. The outside world was fraught with danger, and You Su himself wasn't very confident about escaping; he was more inclined to take things one step at a time. But now, with the guidance left by this senior, his confidence surged.
When a goal is no longer just empty talk, but has a concrete path forward, people become highly motivated.
You Su couldn't wait to set off immediately and destroy this evil underwater nest.
Just getting back into the flow, Happy New Year everyone! I'll be updating the extra chapters and main story together the day after tomorrow~