Fang Shuwen asked Fang Lingxin:

"Can you swim?"

Fang Lingxin shook her head decisively:

"I’ve never swum before."

But Shui Qianrou said:

"I can. I can carry Sister Lingxin."

She grew up in the Celestial Water Palace, surrounded by the sea, so her swimming ability was far beyond anyone else’s.

Fang Lingxin found this a bit amusing:

"You think you can carry me?"

Fang Shuwen, however, nodded:

"She really can... Alright, then I’ll have to trouble you with Sister Lingxin.

"I’ll follow behind you."

At this point, he looked at Yu Yaoguang:

"How are you getting across?"

"Me? I’ll use my Lightweight Technique..."

Yu Yaoguang looked at the turbulent water, feeling a little intimidated.

The area was dimly lit, so Fang Shuwen didn’t see the hesitation on her face. He just assumed she must be highly skilled in her Lightweight Technique and nodded immediately:

"Then let’s each show our own special skills."

As they spoke, Shui Qianrou took Fang Lingxin into the water, and Fang Lingxin was instantly terrified.

’This master of mine is usually so reliable,’ she thought. ’How could he be so muddle-headed at a critical moment?’

’Shui Qianrou is so young, with such little arms and legs. How could she possibly...’

But even as she had that thought, she realized she was perfectly fine. One of Shui Qianrou’s slender little arms held her head above the water, gripping her by the collar, while her other arm paddled like a windmill. The two of them were rocketing through the water at an astonishing speed.

Fang Shuwen followed close behind. His swimming skills weren’t particularly great, and he was having a little trouble keeping up with Shui Qianrou’s pace.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of wind by his ear. Looking up, he saw Yu Yaoguang striding forward, her feet treading on the surface of the water as she ran.

He was just nodding to himself in approval when he suddenly felt a turbulent undercurrent beneath the water. Amidst the murky shadows, something seemed to be rising rapidly, its target being none other than Yu Yaoguang.

Without a second thought, he hurriedly shouted:

"Yu Yaoguang, watch out below!!"

Hearing his shout, and though she didn’t know what prompted it, Yu Yaoguang reacted without thinking. With a tap of her foot that sent water splashing, her entire body shot into the air.

And at the very moment her body left the water’s surface, a massive, gaping maw filled with fangs burst out of the water.

If she had been a fraction of a second slower, she would have been swallowed whole by the creature.

The creature was enormous, its body nearly two meters wide. The half of it that shot from the water was about ten feet long. It hadn’t given up on Yu Yaoguang and kept leaping, trying to swallow her.

Fang Shuwen recognized it at a glance: it was a Piggy Dragon.

These days, they were called crocodiles.

In that instant, he had no time for anything else. He slammed a single palm onto the water’s surface, using the force to launch himself up as he thrust his right palm forward.

The Piggy Dragon was still trying to swallow the person, little expecting such a palm strike to suddenly come at it from the side.

Its entire massive body was sent flying through the air, spinning for dozens of feet before finally crashing hard onto the surface of the water. It then slowly sank, only to gradually float back up again.

Fang Shuwen had killed it instantly with a single palm strike.

SPLASH! Yu Yaoguang fell back into the water.

After struggling to the surface, she thrashed her arms about uselessly. Fang Shuwen’s first instinct was to hurry after Fang Lingxin and Shui Qianrou. If there was one crocodile in the water, who was to say there wasn’t a whole group?

’If there were more, wouldn’t those two girls be in danger?’

But then he looked at Yu Yaoguang and knew he couldn’t just leave her.

Fortunately, he glanced over toward Shui Qianrou and saw that the two of them were already nearing the shore.

He immediately rushed to Yu Yaoguang’s side and pulled her toward him.

A drowning person will clutch at a straw.

Let alone a big, strong arm?

Yu Yaoguang didn’t have time to think; she just clung to that arm for dear life.

Fang Shuwen felt a pleasant softness against his arm. Seeing Yu Yaoguang’s pale face, he was left speechless. ’No wonder she wanted to use her Lightweight Technique... She can’t swim at all.’

With one arm immobilized, he had to use his other to paddle, quickly chasing after Shui Qianrou and Fang Lingxin.

After her initial panic, Yu Yaoguang had now regained her composure.

For some reason, she suddenly leaned close to Fang Shuwen’s earlobe and blew a soft breath of air.

"How does that feel?"

"Not bad." 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Fang Shuwen nodded, then glanced at Yu Yaoguang.

"Very impressive."

Hearing his blunt comment, Yu Yaoguang couldn’t help but blush and scoff.

Fang Shuwen roared with laughter at her reaction. Seeing that Shui Qianrou and Fang Lingxin were already on the shore and looking back at them, he had no time to continue his ’battle’ with Yu Yaoguang. He simply pressed a hand on the water’s surface, carrying her as he rose into the air. After just two steps of [Ascending the Clouds], they were on the shore.

Looking back, they saw the water shimmering, and below its surface, dark shapes were churning in groups.

The bodies of the people who had died on the water earlier were now mostly gone.

Turning back to look at the shore, they saw a man-made gateway.

Fang Shuwen’s brow furrowed:

"These Piggy Dragons... could they have been raised here by someone?"

Yu Yaoguang had let go of Fang Shuwen’s arm. Hearing his words, she nodded slightly:

"Since there are signs of man-made construction, this pool was likely created intentionally.

"I just don’t know where the water comes from."

"Connected to an underground water source?"

Fang Shuwen thought for a moment:

"If it were a pool of stagnant water, the smell would be completely different.

"Besides, with nothing to eat, these Piggy Dragons would have starved to death long ago... It’s either connected to an underground water source, or it links to a river in that valley.

"But the entrance and exit are clearly not large enough for these big creatures to come and go as they please, so they can only live here."