Diligence System: From Servant to Martial King-Chapter 322 - 268: Do Not Marry the Man You Know, Cai Shang Seeks the Door, A Strange Encounter Beneath the River, Mistakenly Boarding a Pirate Ship (Part 3)

Chapter 322: Chapter 268: Do Not Marry the Man You Know, Cai Shang Seeks the Door, A Strange Encounter Beneath the River, Mistakenly Boarding a Pirate Ship (Part 3)

Li Xian grew increasingly uneasy, seeing the tall trees on one side and mountains stretching far and wide. He considered plunging into the forest, attempting to escape using the complex mountainous terrain. But upon further consideration... Who is Wen Caishang? How skilled is she at geomancy? Even from hundreds of miles away, she could pinpoint his location accurately. How could this mere mountainous terrain possibly hinder her?

Li Xian forced himself to remain calm, feeling that despite the vastness of heaven and earth, there was no path for him. Looking at the wide river, he suddenly thought, "The river flows endlessly. Perhaps I must do this to escape. I’ve exhausted all the silk, yet Wen Caishang can still track me down. Surely I am carrying something that allows her to determine my location."

"I shall jump into the river. The rushing water might hide my tracks. Even if it can’t, using the water’s current for speed would certainly be faster."

With the "Jade Water Pearl" in his mouth, Li Xian leaped into the river.

Instantly, he felt his whole body becoming heavy. He sank rapidly to the riverbed as the currents swept over him. It was deep and dark, hiding untold terrors. He employed all his swimming skills, pushing and treading the water... able to move horizontally with ease, but attempting to rise even a little was exceptionally difficult.

Without the "Jade Water Pearl" in his mouth, he would surely drown. Riding the water’s flow, each step carried him several yards forward, moving with unimaginable speed. Yet, with the darkness all around, he had no sense of time in the outside world.

The depths of the water disrupted the silk’s sensation. Wen Caishang frowned faintly, intuitively realizing Li Xian sensed her presence and devised an escape plan.

She sneered coldly, "You clever boy..."

But the riverbed was more than ten yards deep.

Li Xian activated his "Heavy Pupils" to observe the details. The muddy riverbed was thick and heavy, with shipwrecks, skeletal remains, and snake and fish beasts passing before his eyes.

With the "Jade Water Pearl" pressed under his tongue, he created an internal furnace, stoking the fire, boiling the qi, and exhaling white mist. The water flow immediately became clearer.

Due to the clarity rising and the turbidity sinking, he kept treading the riverbed. Each step stirred up muddy sand, blurring his vision. The water current carried him inexorably forward.

When first stepping onto the riverbed, it was pitch-dark and murky, with a fierce current. Otherwise, it was still manageable. But as he proceeded, the dangers in the river gradually revealed themselves in their grim aspect.

Li Xian stepped heavily, his right foot sinking deeply into the mud. The river spanned thousands of miles, with diverse and peculiar conditions along its bed. Here, silt had accumulated over centuries, even millennia, transforming into a riverbed marshland.

Going through the "Clarity Rising, Turbidity Sinking" process, he sank continuously, almost being swallowed by the silt.

Even with the Jade Water Pearl, the situation was perilous.

Traveling the riverbed, though an ingenious idea, proved more hazardous than land. Li Xian steadied himself, unsheathing the Sinking River Sword, teasingly thinking, "Sinking River Sword, oh Sinking River Sword, this time we truly might sink with the river."

He thrust the sword into the silt, stirred forcefully, and the silt loosened and muddied by the current. Li Xian took advantage of the situation to pull out his right foot, swimming away and relocating several yards.

But for dozens of miles, there was nothing but silt marshland. The water current carried Li Xian swiftly, each leap covering several yards, yet when his feet touched the riverbed, he was invariably sinking.

He continued on for several miles.

Gradually, Li Xian gained insight. The sticky silt at the river bottom made standing firm impossible. He could roll his body to prevent his feet from sinking and travel faster.

Li Xian had faced many pursuits and constantly gained experience through battles, continuously improving. The greater the danger, the calmer he became. Despite his current predicament, driven by Wen Caishang, he felt no grievance or anger, for he knew coming from a humble background, he had to pay a higher price and be prepared for the pain of being counterattacked by ’forces.’

He could only cope with composure, seeking change amidst stillness.

"But today’s encounter, should I have the opportunity in the future. To truly defeat the lady, I must thoroughly vent my anger. If I can absolutely conquer her with my strength, would I still fear her as I do now?"

Heart Fire burns fiercer, desiring more power.

Riding the water’s rush and employing the "Jade Palm" to push the water, he leaped forward, covering several yards in an instant. But elevating half a yard above, the Clarity Rising, Turbidity Sinking characteristic inevitably pulled him downward. It was akin to an ordinary Clay Embryo jumping off the ground.

Li Xian, agile and swift, flipped his body each time before landing, preventing himself from becoming trapped in the silt.

During one leap, he suddenly saw a huge boulder at the river’s bottom, almost crashing into him head-on. Li Xian hurriedly maneuvered to avoid it narrowly.

He did not know how long he had traveled.

The riverbed became deeper, emitting a slight chill. He suddenly shouted a silent curse, for through his Heavy Pupils, he saw a vertical deep hole appear ahead on the riverbed.

It was pitch-black, with no visible bottom.

Li Xian immediately halted his movements. But the rushing river, with the deep hole suddenly ahead, was unyielding. How could he simply stop? The water current carried him over the top of the vertical hole, and he began to sink rapidly.

Li Xian quickly paddled, swimming to the opposite wall of the hole before reaching the bottom. He hurriedly reached out to grab the wall but grasped only handfuls of mud—how could he stabilize himself?

If he continued sinking indefinitely, how could he survive? Li Xian swiftly drew his sword, deeply embedding it into the hole’s wall.

This dark hole seemed to be carved out of the silt. The wall was also silt, and Li Xian’s downward momentum was intense. The Sinking River Sword penetrated several feet into the sandy wall, yet he still sank slowly.

Li Xian mused, "I need to go deeper." Secretly channeling his Inner Qi, the sword’s light flared, and the Sinking River Sword penetrated entirely into the sandy wall. His downward momentum slowed a bit more.

Li Xian exerted power with both feet, deploying the Vast Leg with his left leg and the Clear Wind Leg with his right. He kicked deeply into the quicksand wall, his calves embedded, using this leverage for support.

He finally stabilized completely, ceasing to sink further. Li Xian breathed a sigh of relief.

"I was truly fearless like a newborn calf. I underestimated the danger of the natural environment. I thought after leaving Tiger Cry Ridge, I had a rough understanding of perilous places. This Bishui River, with people coming and going, and boats traveling back and forth... I thought there was nothing strange about it. Relying on the wonder of the Jade Water Pearl, I dared to jump into the great river."