This section of the mine that Han Yu was in had likely shown signs of collapse before. The water beneath was not flowing cleanly, but pooling and shifting, creating pockets of pressure that could rupture unpredictably.

A path like this would not be an escape route.

It would be a death trap.

Han Yu continued, his pace unhurried, his expression calm. To any observer, he was simply a diligent disciple studying terrain for puppet development. Nothing more. Nothing less. Yet beneath that calm exterior, his mind was working tirelessly, calculating, discarding, refining.

Every aquifer he encountered added another piece to the puzzle.

Some were too narrow. Some too unstable. Some too shallow. Others were entirely sealed in the depths, their presence only detectable through faint traces of residual moisture and the subtle distortion of Qi flow in the surrounding rock.

Time passed.

Hours, though Han Yu did not count them consciously. The mine had no clear distinction between day and night. Only the steady glow of spirit lamps and the quiet persistence of labor.

Eventually, he began to notice a pattern.

The deeper sections of the mine held larger aquifers. The terrain there was older, more eroded, and more complex. The water channels were not merely seepage lines or fractured reservoirs. They were structured. Carved over time by persistent flow.

Natural.

Ancient.

And far more promising.

It was in one such region that Han Yu paused.

The tunnel here widened slightly, its walls marked by a different texture. Smoother in some areas, jagged in others, as if shaped by both water and pressure over a long period of time. The air carried a stronger hint of moisture, and the ground beneath his feet felt subtly hollow.

He activated the talisman again.

The map shifted.

Expanded.

And there it was.

A thicker blue line.

Not wide, but distinct. Unlike the scattered threads he had seen before, this one had continuity. Direction. It stretched beyond the immediate mapped area, disappearing into regions that had yet to be explored.

Han Yu's gaze deepened.

He crouched once more, placing his hand against the ground. His spirit sense descended, slower this time, more controlled.

The response was immediate.

A steady current.

Not turbulent. Not stagnant.

Flowing.

He followed it as far as he could without overextending himself. The channel was deeper than the previous ones. Wider too. Not excessively so, but enough to suggest that it could sustain movement.

'Possible.'

He did not act on that thought immediately.

Instead, he marked the location in his memory and moved on.

The second promising aquifer lay even deeper.

Reaching it required navigating through a series of narrower tunnels, some barely wide enough for two people to pass side by side. The formations here were denser, their layered inscriptions overlapping in intricate patterns that hinted at the instability of the surrounding structure.

Yet despite that, the aquifer beneath was stable.

Han Yu could feel it before he even checked.

There was a consistency to the Qi in the area. A subtle rhythm that aligned with the flow of water beneath the rock.

When he finally confirmed it, his suspicion was validated.

This was not a mere aquifer.

It was closer to a river.

Still underground. Still constrained by the surrounding terrain. But far larger and more continuous than anything else he had encountered.

Han Yu stood in silence for a moment, committing everything to memory.

Then, without hesitation, he reached out through his connection.

'Chitterfang.'

The response came almost instantly.

'I'm coming!'

Time passed.

Nearly an hour.

Han Yu remained where he was, his presence calm and unobtrusive, as if he were simply studying the terrain. When Chitterfang finally arrived, he did so without a sound, emerging from a narrow crevice in the wall before climbing onto Han Yu's shoulder.

His whiskers twitched excitedly.

"I found many paths," he said proudly. "Some go very deep."

Han Yu gave a slight nod.

"Good," he replied quietly. "Now, I need you to check something else."

Chitterfang tilted its head.

Han Yu pointed to a specific section of the ground.

"Dig here. Carefully. Do not cause a collapse. Once you reach the water, observe. Measure the space, the depth and the flow of the river."

Chitterfang's eyes gleamed.

"I can do that!"

Without another word, he leapt down and began digging.

Its small form moved with astonishing efficiency. The earth parted easily under its claws, not through brute force, but through precision. It navigated the ground carefully, avoiding areas that might trigger instability, adjusting its path as needed.

Through their connection, Han Yu received constant updates.

'Still digging.'

'Rock layer here. Hard.'

'Going around.'

'Water soon.'

Han Yu remained still, his spirit sense focused downward, tracking Chitterfang's progress indirectly.

Then, finally.

'I see it!'

A faint shift passed through Han Yu's perception as Chitterfang broke through.

Water.

Deep.

Moving.

Han Yu extended his spirit sense through the opening Chitterfang had created. The connection was not direct, but it was enough.

What he saw made his eyes narrow slightly.

The river was wider than expected.

Approximately three meters across.

The current was steady, not too fast, but not slow either. Enough to carry objects along, but not so strong as to make controlled movement impossible.

Along one side of the river, there was a narrow strip of solid ground.

Not wide.

Perhaps half a meter at most.

But continuous.

Han Yu observed it carefully.

The ground was uneven, but stable. It followed the curve of the river, extending into the darkness beyond.

This was not a random formation.

It was a natural passage.

"Follow it," Han Yu instructed.

Chitterfang nodded and moved forward.

Time passed slowly after that.

Minutes turned into hours.

Through their connection, Han Yu received intermittent updates.

'Still going.'

'Path is narrow.'

'Water deeper here.'

'Still space to walk.'

Han Yu did not move.

He waited.

Patient.

Calculating.

Four hours later, the tone of Chitterfang's voice changed.

'I reached something.'

Han Yu's focus sharpened instantly.

"What do you see?"

There was a brief pause.

Then,

'The path ends.'