When we entered the misty passageway, everything around us was a vast expanse of white, as though we had passed through a thin membrane.
Icy lake water instantly enveloped our entire bodies.
The white blur before our eyes gradually faded, replaced by darkness.
We lost our vision briefly, but it quickly began to return.
I knew we were out. We were now at the bottom of the lake in Flower-Gazing Valley.
As my vision gradually recovered, I found the lake water around us murky, leaving us unable to speak.
But Master, Daoist Qingshan, and Mao Jing were all beside me.
Master even gestured for me to swim to the surface quickly.
I immediately nodded and began swimming upward...
The higher we went, the clearer the water became. Black Buddha gradually came into view, though its head had already been smashed apart by Master.
We continued swimming upward, and one or two of the monster fish we had failed to kill earlier appeared around us from time to time.
We raised our hands and killed them, their blood staining the water around us red.
Mixed in with the bloody water, we rapidly floated upward...
Before long, we saw light.
When we surfaced again, we found ourselves back on the lake in Flower-Gazing Valley.
At the same time, voices continually rang out around us.
"Out! They're out..."
"Finally, they're out!"
"Fellow Daoist Song, Fellow Daoist Qing Shan, young friend Jiang..."
"Brother Jiang, Brother Mao, swim back quickly!"
"..."
Everyone spoke at once.
We did not hesitate and quickly swam toward the shore.
But the moment I climbed ashore, I was so exhausted that I lay down directly by the water's edge.
I panted heavily, "Huff, huff, huff."
"..."
"Brother Jiang, are you all right?"
Zhang Yuchen spoke from nearby.
Uncle Yu, Tian