Adventure in the Underground Water Vein

Chapter 20: Perilous Journey Through Underground Waterways

Splash!

In the pitch-black darkness, the swift current surged onward towards an unknown destination. Lu Minghao's small body was swept along like a rudderless boat, occasionally pulled by undertows that carried it to uncharted places.

"We'll meet again."

At the bottom of the dark water, Lu Minghao slowly opened his tightly shut eyes. A terrifying smile appeared on his liquid-like body. Just before he sensed he was about to be hit, Lu Minghao had instantly condensed a shadow barrier behind him.

But Lu Minghao knew it wasn't enough. That shadow barrier was as flimsy as paper to the entity pursuing him. Once hit, the suckers on its tentacles would surely latch onto his body and hold him fast.

To that end, Lu Minghao used the shadow barrier to block the tentacles for that briefest of moments, splitting off a portion of his body to successfully evade the attack. He used that thrust to escape into the underground waterways.

However, given Lu Minghao's vengeful nature, he wouldn't simply flee like that. Relying on the 'asexual reproduction' ability inherent to slimes, the body Lu Minghao split off formed a smaller slime.

It was unclear whether it was due to becoming a Lower Demon or a natural talent, but the part of Lu Minghao's body that split off could not only be used to reproduce, but also as a temporary clone. However, doing so meant that the split-off part would lose its potential to become a completely new slime.

Lu Minghao didn't care about this. After successfully entering the underground waterways, he unhesitatingly transferred his consciousness over, hiding in the shadows to observe the entity that was hunting him. It was then he realized that the one secretly targeting him was the Monster Legion of the Eastern Empire.

"So, farewell for now, my enemies. Look forward to the day we meet again!"

In the surging current, Lu Minghao felt the increasingly vast amount of Magic Elements within him. During his desperate escape earlier, the numerous Giant Rats Lu Minghao had devoured had been almost completely digested by Gluttony. With the abundant supply of nutrients, Lu Minghao had finally begun his advancement to a new stage.

"Still, I must be more cautious in the future."

As his advancement began, waves of sleepiness began to overwhelm Lu Minghao's consciousness. In the final second before succumbing to sleep, Lu Minghao resolved that until he possessed sufficient strength, he would run as far as possible if he encountered another situation like the Giant Rat Kingdom.

Splash!

The endless water continued to surge forward, countless tributaries converging into a vast network of underground waterways. Lu Minghao, lost in slumber, was carried along by the current, passing through one diverging point after another, flowing into new tributaries.

Occasionally, he was swept by undertows, entering new branches. In the dark depths, Lu Minghao's body emitted a faint glow as large amounts of Magic Elements converged towards it, bringing a faint luminescence to the dark underground waterways.

Splash!

Suddenly, a large fish several meters long was attracted by that faint glow. It had a ferocious, terrifying head and a robust body encased in an exoskeleton. If an Adventurer were present, they would easily recognize it as a Middle Demon known as a Manta Ray, which lived year-round in dark, cold waters and possessed the ability to control water currents and ice.

The colossal Manta Ray easily swam up to Lu Minghao's body, scrutinizing the slime whose entire form was enveloped in Magic Elements.

The next second, its mouth, lined with serrated fangs, opened wide and swallowed the slime whole. It then swam forward with the current, a hint of satisfaction on its face.

Lu Minghao, swallowed by the Manta Ray, traveled down its esophagus and into its stomach. The moment Lu Minghao's body landed in the Manta Ray's stomach, copious amounts of stomach acid began to generate, intending to dissolve this new meal.

Lu Minghao's sleeping body seemed to instinctively sense the danger. Gluttony began to frantically absorb the remaining food within Lu Minghao, converting it into nutrients to supply his body. The instant Lu Minghao's body touched the stomach acid, new resistances began to form, allowing his body to rapidly adapt to its current environment.

As a consequence, the limited nutrients Lu Minghao possessed after evolving into a Middle Demon were rapidly depleted. In just over ten seconds, they were almost entirely gone. At that point, with the newly formed resistances, Lu Minghao would surely be digested by the relentless stomach acid.

Crack!

Suddenly, something fell into the Manta Ray's stomach. The carcass of a fish, torn in half, landed not far from Lu Minghao's body. Driven by instinct, Lu Minghao's body directly devoured it. With the new food supply, Gluttony began to digest it anew. A strange power began to erode the Manta Ray's body, with Lu Minghao at its center.

Outside, the several-meter-long Manta Ray had just finished a meal. But strangely, it didn't feel the slightest bit full, as it usually did. Despite consuming a large amount of food, its body remained ravenously hungry.

What's going on?

The Manta Ray smacked its lips, feeling that something was amiss. Although the intelligence of a Middle Demon was no less than that of a human, having lived alone in the underground waterways for most of its life, it acted mostly on instinct. It couldn't understand why it was still hungry after eating so much.

The next second, unable to figure it out, the Manta Ray chose to follow its instinctual needs and began searching for food again. Its thought was simple: if it was hungry, it would just eat more.

A day later, the Manta Ray, having preyed on a large amount of food, felt increasingly hungry. It frantically hunted everything it could see. Even its once sharp teeth had become somewhat dulled from the constant gnawing, but the hunger in its body still drove it to seek new sustenance.

Why, why, why can't I get full?!

The Manta Ray's ferocious maw tore ferociously at its prey. Its crimson pupils were filled with hunger and madness. Even though it clearly felt large amounts of food entering its body, its stomach was like a bottomless pit, unable to be satisfied by any amount of food.

An unending sense of hunger drove it to obtain more, more food.

"More, I want more food!"

The next second, the Manta Ray's crimson eyes looked towards a distant underground waterway. It remembered that at the end of that waterway lay a vast amount of food. Once it reached there, it was certain it would be full.

Whoosh!

With a powerful flick of its tail, the Manta Ray's body shot into the underground waterway like a sword. Along the way, anything edible was mercilessly killed and swallowed. The clear water was gradually stained red by the abundant blood.