Sinking to the Bottom of the Water

The tranquil Dragon Spring Pool.

Two "corpses" slowly drifted with the current...

Once past the Dragon Spring Pool's bottleneck, the water flow would become turbulent again.

Li Shuidao was submerged in the water, as if immersed in a quiet dream.

He felt a subtle power enveloping him, granting him a peculiar ability. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open, and he gasped for air.

However, it took him more than ten breaths to realize he wasn't breathing air, but the icy water of the Dragon Spring Pool.

After a moment of stunned realization, Li Shuidao understood that this was all thanks to the innate Spiritual Power of his Companion Toad.

The Water Breath Technique!

After all, it was an amphibian.

Right behind Li Shuidao, a toad as large as a basin, with skin as hard as granite, instantly shrank, its skin turning a tender green like jade.

The Jade Toad pushed off with its legs and burrowed into Li Shuidao's sleeve.

Wang Tiankun's corpse was nearing the bottleneck when a hand emerged from underwater and yanked his nape forcefully, pulling him directly into the water and down to the bottom.

Deep underwater...

Li Shuidao used a large stone to weigh down Wang Tiankun's corpse.

Destroying the evidence.

With a splash.

Li Shuidao swam to the shore and dragged Wang Xuanfeng's corpse down as well.

He didn't know if he was dead yet, but he was going down with the other one anyway...

Wang Xuanfeng was pulled into the water again, vanishing into the tranquil depths.

Just then.

A figure descended the steep cliff, arriving near the Dragon Spring Pool in a few leaps. This person was Wang Changjian, an elder of the Wang family.

He looked up. Water splashed from the waterfall on one side, while the pool on the other was as calm as a mirror.

The roaring of the waterfall echoed in his ears.

Besides that, there wasn't even a shadow of anyone.

"Wang Xuanfeng! Wang Tiankun!" Wang Changjian couldn't help but loudly call out the names of his clansmen.

His voice echoed through the valley, filled with anxiety.

However, his calls quickly dissipated into the air, with no response.

A sense of unease filled Wang Changjian's heart. He cleared his throat and shouted again, "Wang Xuanfeng! Wang Tiankun! Come out!"

His voice pierced the tranquility of the pool like a sharp sword, reaching Li Shuidao's ears deep underwater.

The culprits were indeed more than one!

This wasn't some joint operation by the Wang family, aiming to devour his Companion?

Unfortunately, they had gotten it wrong from the start. Li Shuidao's Companion wasn't a Gecko at all, but a Jade Toad.

Li Shuidao gently moved Wang Xuanfeng's body and tucked it under a large rock underwater, casually picking his pockets.

There wasn't much of value, just about ten Jade Coins.

After a long while...

Li Shuidao quietly parted the underwater weeds and peeked out.

He scanned his surroundings, ensuring there was no danger, then gently stepped on the weeds and silently left the pool.

Suddenly!

A gust of wind blew from behind him, sending a shiver down Li Shuidao's spine.

He had been struck by a blade. That Wang family elder was clearly powerful.

It's over!

He should have hidden for longer.

Li Shuidao drew his sword and turned, preparing for a desperate fight.

To his surprise, not far behind him stood a woman.

She wore a brightly colored skirt and a magnificent headdress, standing gracefully on an exposed, bare rock. She frowned as she looked at Li Shuidao.

It was Senior Sister Jiang Xue!

"Senior Sister!" Li Shuidao exclaimed, his voice filled with surprise.

"Is that the Water Breath Technique?" Jiang Xue inquired.

Li Shuidao gave an awkward smile and admitted, "This junior's Companion is indeed a Jade Toad."

"Hmph!" Jiang Xue snorted, rolled her eyes, and then continued, "Where did Wang Tiankun go?"

"Senior Sister, Wang Tiankun and his clansmen ambushed me." Li Shuidao pointed to the cut on his shoulder and said with a choked voice, "After the market ended today, I went to the Great Stone Platform but didn't see you. Wang Tiankun lied, saying you were waiting for me at Dragon Spring Pool. Little did I know, he and his clansmen were ambushing me there. They wanted me to hand over my Companion Gecko. I don't have a gecko! Luckily, there was a pool nearby. I submerged myself and used the Water Breath Technique to escape..."

"I understand, let's go back." Jiang Xue turned and led the way, with Li Shuidao obediently following.

"Senior Sister, what punishment will Wang Tiankun receive?" Li Shuidao asked cautiously.

"I will report this to Madam truthfully. Whether Wang Tiankun violated the sect rules cannot be determined by your word alone. If it is verified, Master will confiscate his Companion and cut off his path of cultivation," Jiang Xue said.

"Then... what if Wang Tiankun flees out of guilt?" Li Shuidao asked indirectly.

"Then we'll notify the Wang family of Viper Valley, and let the Wang family make some compensation. The matter will be considered settled," Jiang Xue said.

"Uh... won't we notify the sect's Law Enforcement Hall?" Li Shuidao asked again.

"Hmph! The people in the Law Enforcement Hall are not easy to deal with. They can squeeze oil out of barren land. Don't involve them if you can avoid it. Moreover, bringing such a trivial matter to the Law Enforcement Hall would make Master lose face. Others would think Master can't even manage his own disciples."

"Oh... I see." Li Shuidao continued to ask.

Jiang Xue, however, continued to mutter, "If Master goes to the Wang family, they'll offer some symbolic compensation, but it won't be much. After all, Wang Tiankun is just a minor character, and no significant losses were incurred."

"It's settled that easily?" Li Shuidao looked astonished.

"What else do you want?"

"Then why doesn't my father dare to leave the sect?"

"Oh... what did your father do?" Jiang Xue asked with great interest.

"He didn't do anything wrong. My father just does odd jobs in the sect every day, but he's afraid to leave. He says if he were to leave the sect and become a rogue cultivator, I would be implicated," Li Shuidao said with a frown.

Hearing this, Jiang Xue, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped. She turned and looked at Li Shuidao meaningfully, then smiled, "This only shows that your Li Family from Divine Wood City is indeed quite strict."

Only then did Li Shuidao realize that it wasn't the sect that threatened his life, but his family.

He had originally thought that the underlying logic of this world was that the sect, as the master, controlled the families with chains. He never expected that the families would bind themselves with chains and then fawn over the masters, just to be good servants.

The chains of enslavement were more terrifying than the rules set by the superiors.

No wonder Li Tianjue was like that...

Li Shuidao was filled with emotion.

"If someone like Wang Tiankun were to leave Master's cave dwelling without permission, and if no significant losses were incurred, Master would likely let it go. But if the losses were huge, Master would report it to the Law Enforcement Hall, and then the Wang family would be in big trouble..." Jiang Xue said as she walked, unable to keep anything to herself.

Jiang Xue, that woman, was a blabbermouth!

Li Shuidao was almost certain that this woman was the one who spread the false news about his Gecko Companion.

Given her personality, the secret of his Toad Companion would probably no longer be safe.

Li Shuidao frowned deeply. He needed to take precautions...

Five Elements Water generates Wood: Toads of the same rank have almost no damage effect on the Centipede's poison body.

Five Elements Earth restrains Water: Gecko poison deals exponentially more damage to the Toad's poison body, and the poison is difficult to eradicate. The Toad's poison has little effect on the Gecko's poison body and does not persist.

From now on, he must always carry Gold-elemental poisons that specifically counter the Centipede's poison body, and also prepare an antidote for Earth Poison, lest he capsize in a ditch