Cold.
Darkness.
The underwater world was eerily silent.
The bus sank slowly, ever deeper into the inky river water.
The icy river water pierced their bones as Lu Fei and Jing Jian clung to the seats, their bodies compressed by invisible pressure, struggling to breathe.
A faint golden light shimmered at their shoulders. They finally felt relief in their lungs one after another, able to breathe again.
"Dragon scales are truly miraculous!"
Jing Jian pressed a hand to his pounding chest, still shaken. The moment they plunged underwater, he'd thought they were done for.
Fortunately, these dragon scales proved reliable enough.
He stretched out his hand, feeling river water flow through his fingers. Though completely submerged, they could breathe as if on land, with visibility remaining unaffected. The surroundings appeared clearly despite dim lighting limiting their view.
Yet this was marvelous enough.
"I told you it would be fine!" Lu Fei relaxed slightly. Without the dragon scales, he'd never have invited Jing Jian on this underwater adventure. He wondered though - with two passengers missing, would the bus still take them to River Lord's domain?
Dark shadows occasionally flitted past the bus windows, indistinct shapes that might be fish or something else entirely.
The bus continued sinking.
The belly of Hulu River ran deeper than imagined.
As darkness thickened around them, both men grew increasingly anxious, nerves taut as they monitored their eerie surroundings.
Finally.
The bus trembled faintly upon reaching the riverbed.
Yet it didn't stop. After several shudders, it began crawling forward.
The driver remained at the wheel, hands clutching it normally, creating the surreal illusion of a bus driving along the river bottom.
Their scalps prickled with unease as they cautiously peered outside.
Patches of inky black seaweed writhed beneath the bus, propelling it deeper into the abyss.
"Seems the bus will visit River Lord whenever it enters water, regardless of passenger count," Lu Fei murmured.
"Makes sense! Better few passengers than none at all." Jing Jian nodded. "Speaking of which... what exactly is River Lord?"
"No living soul has seen its true form. We'll know when we arrive."
The bus had been traveling underwater for a long time.
The scenes outside the windows gradually changed, with many crooked mud pillars appearing, resembling a twisted forest.
The bus passed through these mud pillars and came to a complete stop in a clearing.
The door opened.
The motionless driver's body went limp, melting like a candle before dissolving into a pool of soft, putrid sludge.
"We're here."
Lu Fei and Jing Jian exchanged a glance, their hearts simultaneously leaping into their throats. They pressed against the window, cautiously observing the outside.
In this underwater world, everything appeared distorted.
Amidst the blurred gloom, a large mansion formed from clay loomed intermittently through dense underwater vegetation.
"There's actually a house here!"
"It must be there."
The two waited for a moment, but there was no movement from the house.
"Let's go take a look."
They cautiously stepped out of the bus and began drifting lightly across the underwater terrain.
Before they could approach the mud-walled house, a pair of enormous hands suddenly shot out from the aquatic plants nearby.
"Look out!"
Startled, the two scrambled to dodge.
But their movements were ultimately constrained underwater. One of the massive hands clamped firmly around Lu Fei's leg.
The hairy black paws possessed terrifying strength, dragging Lu Fei relentlessly into the dense thicket of water weeds.
Deep within the aquatic plants, a pair of dark green eyes seemed to lurk.
"It's the water monkey!"
This underwater fiend had a simian form, with disproportionately long arms and a body covered in black fur. It lurked among aquatic plants, reaching out to drag anyone who approached into the depths.
Lu Fei knew brute strength couldn't break free from such a creature's grip.
"Stay still—I'll help!" Jing Jian swung his Seven-Star Ritual Sword, thrusting toward the hairy giant hand.
The hand didn't retreat. Struck by the enchanted blade, it shuddered violently before releasing Lu Fei and retreating into the weeds, blending seamlessly with the vegetation until it became nearly invisible.
Jing Jian stabbed at the water plants several more times, but the cunning creature kept dodging through the foliage, leaving him unsure if his strikes landed.
"Leave it. Finding the passengers comes first."
Lu Fei waved him off.
However miraculous the dragon scales were, their power had limits. They couldn't afford to waste time here.
Abandoning the water monkey, the two skirted the dark weeds and swam toward the mud hut.
A pair of jade-green eyes emerged from the thick vegetation, glaring venomously at their retreating figures. Though unwilling to let them go, the creature didn't pursue—as if terrified of the mud structure.
As they approached, the hut revealed itself as large and grotesquely misshapen, its architecture unnervingly distorted.
A dense, sinister aura seeped from within.
"This must be the place."
Without another word, they crept toward the pitch-black window, intending to scout before entering.
But the moment they drew near, the wall split open with a gaping maw and abruptly swallowed them whole!
Darkness engulfed Lu Fei's vision. When his sight returned, he found himself inside the hut, thick sludge writhing over his body as if determined to coat every inch of his skin.
He channeled his magic in panic. The dragon scales on his shoulders shimmered gold, and the sludge instantly loosened, sliding off him.
"Brother Jing!"
Disregarding everything else, Lu Fei urgently searched for Jing Jian.
"I'm here!"
A muddy figure beside him spoke in Jing Jian's voice. A faint golden light glowed, and as the sludge flowed downward, Jing Jian's face emerged.
After cleaning off the mud, both of them felt a chill.
They hadn't even glimpsed the River Lord's face yet but had nearly fallen into a trap. Truly, dangers lurked everywhere.
"This is already the River Lord's territory. We'll have to counter his moves as they come. Let's first locate the dead passengers."
On high alert, the two pressed their backs together and began cautiously exploring the house.
The interior was spacious and tall, filled with crude furniture molded from mud.
Cultivated spirits often mimic humans.
It seemed the River Lord was no exception.
Passing through several tall, twisted spaces, Jing Jian suddenly pointed to the front-left.
"Lu Fei, look! There are people over there!"
"People? Could they be the passengers?"
Lu Fei's heart tightened. He halted immediately to observe.
In the dim room ahead, shadowy figures indeed swayed faintly.
"Let's get closer."
They quickened their pace slightly and reached the doorway.
Behind them, the sludge bulged silently, and a massive eyeball emerged, glaring at their backs with malice.
Lu Fei sensed something amiss and turned around.
The eyeball had already retracted into the mud, leaving nothing in sight.
Though uneasy, he had no time to dwell—Jing Jian was urgently beckoning him.
"Lu Fei, those people are actually moving!"
How could dead people move?
Lu Fei hurried over and cautiously peeked inside, his scalp instantly tingling with dread.
The room was filled with clay figures in various postures.
The clay figures kept walking around, performing different actions as if deeply occupied.