Chapter 186: Entering The Pond (2)

The group grunted in acknowledgement and retreated several paces.

The old man grasped the Ice Crystal in his left hand and held the Angelica Ginger in his right, then he slowly brought his two palms closer together and twisted, causing a faint golden light to spill out from within.

The old man shut his eyes and started mumbling to himself. Over time, the golden light within his hands gradually became brighter. When the light was about to become so bright that everyone present wouldn’t be able to keep their eyes open, the old man’s eyes abruptly opened, and he shouted, “Come!” He then threw the Ice Crystal and Angelica Ginger that was still glowing gold into the pond.

A “bang” was heard from within the tranquil waters of Shadow Snaring Pond. Then, the water at the centre of the pond split apart and rolled, almost as if something was causing it to slosh about. The air within the cavern was becoming damper as well, while the ice above their heads appeared to be melting.

When the water looked like it was about to spill out of the pond, the old man said, “It’s here.”

The group turned their attention to the centre of the Shadow Snaring pond where the water was the most turbulent. Suddenly, a beam of golden light shot out of it, followed by a mass of golden light that slowly surfaced from within the pond...

A golden fish gradually appeared before the eyes of everyone present. Its body was half the size of the pond and entirely wreathed in a dazzling light. Two long whiskers that sprouted forth from its mouth could be seen wantonly swaying about in the water.

The old man pointed to the enormous golden fish and said, “This is the Dragon Mouth Catfish. Hurry up and get on its back, it’ll take you to the heart of the Shadow Snaring pond.”

The group heeded the old man’s advice and quickly jumped onto its back. Once they were all aboard, the old man jumped on as well and grabbed onto its fin. He then pulled out several deep blue pearls from within his sleeve and presented them to the group.

“This is a Water Avoiding Pearl. Suck on it.”

The group obediently took the Water Avoiding Pearl’s from the old man and sucked on them. When everyone was sucking on a pearl, the old man reached out his hand and patted the fish on its fin.

The fish’s tail immediately began to sway back and forth before it suddenly submerged in the water. However, the group only felt a formless pressure press down upon them from all directions. The scenery in front of them blurred, and they felt the incredibly realistic sensation of entering the water. When that happened, Morning Glory Chime clung tightly to Quiet And Steadfast’s clothes.

Feeling something tugging at his clothes, Quiet And Steadfast glanced downwards and took a step forward in an attempt to separate himself from Morning Glory Chime.

Shen Jingbin stood just in front of him. Quiet And Steadfast stepping forward brought him very close to her, causing her to eye him suspiciously. In response, he used his eyes to draw her attention towards Morning Glory Chime.

Seeing Shen Jingbin look towards her, Morning Glory Chime covered her mouth and said shyly, “I don’t know how to swim, so I’m a little afraid of water. I did it on reflex… please don’t blame me Brother Quiet.”

Pure Crane, who was standing right at the front, heard the commotion and turned to ask, “What’s going on?”

“Nothing!” Morning Glory Chime rushed to reply him.

Shen Jingbin shrugged her shoulders and said, “Mm, nothing happened.”

When Pure Crane turned back, Shen Jingbin ribbed Quiet And Steadfast with her elbow.

Know your place! Stop going around cavorting with other women!

Quiet And Steadfast rubbed the spot where he’d been hit.

He felt wronged.

Going back to Crying Fish who was outside the cavern.

Two black spots could be seen in the sky shortly after the messages were sent out. When the black spots drew nearer, they revealed themselves to be Neverending Journey and Nine Ballads.

When she landed, Nine Ballads asked, “Where is she?”

“Inside the cavern,” Crying Fish replied.

Neverending Journey also raised his own question, “Guild Leader Fish, you said you saw my Vice-Leader and Jade Sea Pavilion’s Quiet And Steadfast together. May I know where they are?”

Crying Fish looked at him and used her chin to motion at the Ice Extermination Cavern. “They’re inside there as well.”

“Let’s go in then,” Said Nine Ballads as she narrowed her eyes dangerously and led the way into the cavern.

“Guild Leader Journey, please,” To demonstrate her sincerity, Crying Fish ushered him forward and allowed Neverending Journey to take the lead.

Neverending Journey didn’t stand on ceremony either. He gave a swish of his sleeves and followed Nine Ballads into the cavern.

“Let’s go too,” Crying Fish said a word to her own party and stepped in as well.

When they reached the depths of the cavern, all that appeared before everyone was a deserted scene. Not only could Shen Jingbin and company not be seen, but there wasn’t even a single trace of the old man from before.

Upon realising that there wasn’t a single soul within the cavern, Nine Ballads immediately spun on her heels and walked up to Crying Fish, her expression stormy as she demanded, “You said she was here, where is she?!”

“She’s not here?” Crying Fish was a little stunned by this. She looked towards the two people she’d assigned to guard the entrance of the cavern. “I told the two of you to guard the entrance! Why are they missing?!”

The two players were perplexed as well. They hadn’t seen anyone leaving the cavern.

“Leader, the two of us have been guarding the entrance the whole time. We honestly haven’t seen them leave.”

“Are you sure there’s only one exit?” Neverending Journey asked.

Crying Fish surveyed the area before she said, “All exits to this place have been sealed. You have my word that this is the only way out.”

Neverending Journey immersed himself in his thoughts and walked over to the Shadow Snaring pond. His eyes lit up when he saw the faintly rippling water of the pond and said, “Hmph, I’m afraid they’ve descended to the bottom of the pond.”

Crying Fish was overcome with astonishment. She ran up to it and cried, “The bottom of the pond?!”