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墨書 Inktalez
Everyone turned to look at the source of the sound, only to see Wang Meng struggling to drag A Li towards the shore, her arms caught under his. Six and I exchanged a glance, both drenched in cold sweat, unable to suppress a gulp.
Six's body trembled as if something beneath the water was trying to pull him down. He widened his eyes and asked me, "Seriously, how many women do you have?"
I wanted to laugh but couldn't. Clearly, my expression answered everything.
In an instant, Six's shoulder suddenly jerked, and he vanished beneath the water. The others on the shore were still unaware of the situation below, busy helping Wang Meng. Only Third Granduncle Master, amidst the chaos, managed to cast a sidelong glance at us.
At the moment Six sank, Third Granduncle Master shouted, "Not good! There's something in the water!" As soon as he spoke, I felt a hand grip my leg tightly, pulling me down. I struggled desperately to rise, but I had no strength in the water. In less than two seconds, I too was submerged.
As I went under again, my mind had adjusted somewhat. I quickly steadied my breath and reached for the staff at my waist. Whatever it was—human or ghost—would first taste my strike!
With a swift motion, I brought down my staff. The hand gripping my leg was cut by the blade of the Three-edged Sword, and a piercing scream echoed from below as it released its grip.
At that moment, I spotted Six not far beneath me, his neck entangled in a long strand of hair. His face was turning red from suffocation; one hand desperately pulled at the hair while the other fumbled at his waist but found nothing useful. He was rolling his eyes back and even sticking out his tongue.
I quickly dove down and grabbed the hair around his neck. With a fierce slash of my sword blade, I tried to cut it—but it wouldn’t sever! My heart sank further; this thing was definitely not human.
Just as I was about to make another attempt, Six suddenly stepped back a few paces. I moved forward; he retreated again. Each time I advanced, he would pull back. It was as if that hair had eyes, aware of my intentions and deliberately avoiding my strikes.
Six seemed to have reached his limit. Seeing me hesitate to help him, he grabbed my hand and used my staff to cut at his own neck. After three or four desperate slashes, that thick strand of hair finally snapped. Its owner let out another shrill cry and fled into the dark depths of the lake, disappearing from sight.
As soon as Liuzi and I surfaced, he immediately launched into a tirade against me. My conscience felt terribly guilty, and I wished to take revenge on him, leaving him to fend for himself. If it hadn't been for their repeated life-saving efforts in the underground river of the tomb, I would have long since been a meal for the creature down there!
Liuzi was so agitated that the veins on his neck throbbed, and he was practically growing a beard from anger. At that moment, I couldn't be bothered to argue with him; he wouldn't listen to anything I said anyway. I decided to let him vent his frustrations while I played the role of a silent bystander.
Just then, Wang Meng and Third Granduncle Master hurried over, panting and asking what had just happened.
Recalling the sensations from underwater made me shiver. I suggested we all get on land first before discussing it in detail. Once we were ashore, I went to check on A Li's injuries. She was lying in a sleeping bag while the Yellow Witch tended to her by the campfire. A Li had only choked on some water and was temporarily unconscious from exhaustion; there was nothing seriously wrong with her, and she would be fine once she woke up.
Being around this group had apparently rubbed off on me; I had developed some of Third Granduncle Master's paranoia. While the Yellow Witch spoke, I took A Li's hand (which is normal between friends) and quietly checked her pulse myself. After confirming she was alright, I felt relieved.
Turning around, I sat by another campfire, dealing with my wet clothes and the scratches on my legs while recounting what had happened earlier to everyone. Liuzi added his perspective to my account, but he rambled on too much, making it less valuable—better left unsaid.
Third Granduncle Master roasted by the fire as he analyzed our story (mainly mine), saying, "So none of you actually saw what attacked you?"
Liuzi scratched his neck and replied, "Not entirely. When I was on the surface of the water, I saw her head—her hair partially obscured a face that was looking up at us."
Dali gulped nervously, his face turning pale. "What was wrong with that face? Was it… scary?"
"Scary? What are you talking about?" Liuzi mimicked his tone. "Are you trying to make it sound particularly frightening?" Dali nodded like a bobblehead, his face contorted in fear.
Liuzi tilted his head, ready to tease him further when he slapped Third Granduncle Master on the back of the head and exclaimed, "You idiot! Speak nicely!" His tone resembled how I usually scold my junior disciples—he truly was like my own apprentice.
Caught off guard by the slap, Liuzi quickly became serious again. "It wasn't scary; she actually looked… quite good-looking. She resembled that woman, which is why I thought it was her."
I followed Liuzi's gaze and looked at A Li, who was still fast asleep, and felt relieved; otherwise, it would have led to another argument. With that thought, I addressed Liuzi and everyone else, saying, "She has a name—A Li, the pear from the Li Tree."
Liuzi scoffed, about to say something dismissive when Third Granduncle Master shot him a glare, prompting him to turn back to me and ask, "Is it possible she's human?"
I shook my head. "It's almost impossible for three reasons. First, from the moment I first sensed her presence to when she pulled Liuzi and me into the water, at least ten minutes passed. Adding in the time we spent submerged, it was at least another three minutes. Just think about it—who can hold their breath for thirteen minutes underwater? And that doesn't even account for the time she spent escaping after sinking. Of course, if she had a breathing apparatus, then forget what I just said. Second, her hair is much sturdier than that of an average human; Liuzi should know this well. Let me clarify something: it wasn't that I was unwilling to help when I saw her in trouble; as soon as I tried to intervene, her hair yanked Liuzi backward as if it had eyes of its own that could see which direction I was moving in." (At this point, Liuzi looked like he wanted to argue, but I quickly continued before he could.) "Thirdly, her screams were incredibly loud and piercing. You might not have heard them clearly from the shore, but underwater, it nearly ruptured my eardrums! What kind of woman makes such a sound?"
What I didn't expect was that someone would actually refute my points. That person was none other than the Yellow Witch.
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