They had reached the foot of Misty Mountain, and Qiqi began swimming upward. Although she could go a long time without taking a breath, she could not hold her breath underwater forever, and now she needed air. Only then did Hu Xiaotian realize how miraculous the Playing Dead Dog technique the old beggar had taught him was. After swimming underwater for so long, he had not felt even the slightest hint of suffocation. Weird, truly weird-but I like it! Though he had no need to breathe, he still followed Qiqi to the surface. The two patrol boats had already rowed far away, and everything in the Jade Pool remained as usual.
Qiqi leaned close to Hu Xiaotian's ear and said, "You liar. Not even half a word out of your mouth is true."
Hu Xiaotian could not be bothered to argue. Even if he told her the truth, she would not believe him. Qiqi took another breath and dived underwater again. Hu Xiaotian followed her down along the side of Misty Mountain. By the light of the luminous pearl in her hand, he discovered another long dragon carved beneath the mountain. This was a third dragon, in addition to the two clinging to the mountain above. It coiled around Misty Mountain, its head at the very bottom, half buried in the lakebed's silt-a giant dragon sucking up water. Since this dragon sculpture lay entirely underwater, people usually noticed only the two dragons on the mountain, unaware that another lay below.
Hu Xiaotian's initial reluctance gave way to intense curiosity. Qiqi seemed very familiar with Misty Mountain's terrain. Could there be some treasure hidden beneath it? After swimming some distance, they felt an underwater current flowing toward them, considerably hindering their progress. They were already approaching the area beneath the waterfall.