Chapter 50: Flood Dragon

"Cough cough... uh..." Chen Yi He struggled to open his eyes; his vision was filled with gray mist, the mist ranging from grain-sized to dust-sized, gathering together in a hazy sheet. Although the environment here was not the pitch black of night, it was also a case of not seeing one's hand in front of one's face: "What... what on earth... where is this?"

Chen Yi He felt his lower right rib about to break, his stomach churning uncomfortably, his head dizzy, and he felt nauseous.

He discovered he couldn't stand up; his whole body was limp and he couldn't feel his limbs. His heart felt like a pendulum, violently swinging back and forth against the walls of his chest.

This is a sealed zone with no ceiling in sight, yet without clouds or sun; underfoot is sticky mud, lacking the fragrance of grass and flowers, surrounded by mist, like a gloomy rainy day in London, or like a battlefield graveyard in a movie.

The atmosphere here was truly oppressive, oppressive to the point that breathing was not smooth and free. Chen Yi He possessed the strength of the Third Heaven, yet he never expected to ever feel short of breath for no reason!

Although not as bad as before drowning, if it continues the pain can be imagined.

Could it really be a graveyard?

"A graveyard?" Chen Yi He muttered to himself.

Only at this moment did he feel that sinister presence rushing at him; countless hairs stood on end, his forehead icy, his face beaded with cold sweat, his eyes seeing stars, an unnamed fear gripping him tightly. With ignorant yet fearful eyes, he longed to see through the mist, awaiting what seemed like thunder that could strike at any moment.

After he had somewhat calmed down, his ears suddenly received a wailing sound like that of a ghost; no matter how he covered his ears, he could not block that sound.

Chen Yi He plunged into panic, wondering what had happened; when he covered his ears, he noticed his cheeks were fuzzy: "Could I have mutated?!" He touched his face—not just his cheeks, but also his chin and upper lip—covered in long hair…

Chen Yi He needed a mirror to see what had become of him—had he turned into a jungle-man like Tarzan, or into a demon and monster?

"Wrong, where is the Dragon King? Where is Dongfang?" Chen Yi He then realized he was alone—what about his companions?

Chen Yi He struggled to recall what had just happened, but couldn't remember anything. "Ugh ah ah!" He clutched his head, which felt like it was about to burst, and rolled on the ground in pain, howling…

"Bang!" As he rolled about recklessly, his head struck a hard boulder, causing sharp pain…

"Mmm hah hah..." Chen Yi He rubbed his head; he was really about to go mad, not even knowing what he was doing, like a madman running wild in the street.

When he realized his head had struck not a boulder but a tombstone, he was frightened to the point of "smoke pouring from his seven orifices"! He almost collapsed face-first.

Behind the tombstone was a low, inconspicuous earthen grave.

After resting for an unknown period—perhaps one or two hours, maybe three or four—Chen Yi He finally mustered the courage to stand, telling himself "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid…" as he encouraged himself and stepped closer to the tombstone…

The tombstone was very old; its left and right edges had been worn smooth by time, and the inscription was badly blurred. Only after brushing away the weeds covering it could one see clearly what was written: the six characters "Qingcheng Mountain, Zhang Dacheng."

"Qingcheng Mountain, Zhang Dacheng? Who is this person?" Chen Yi He fell into thought, momentarily forgetting his fear, and then recalled his companions: "Dragon King, where did Dongfang Xing go? Why am I the only one here?"

Dragging his painful, exhausted body, he felt around and found another grave: "Shaolin Temple, Xuan Hui." The two characters "Xuan Hui" Chen Yi He recalled; he had seen this name before in the Scripture Pavilion of the Xiao Family Fortress. It was said that Xuan Hui was a once-in-a-century genius of Shaolin Temple, but after entering the Thousand Heavy Gate he never emerged, his talented fate ending in bitter disappointment at twenty years old.

"Uh, mm… ah ah ah!" Chen Yi He's head suddenly felt as if it were exploding; he leaned on Xuan Hui's tombstone, bracing himself bit by bit so as not to fall.

"Where on earth is this?!" Chen Yi He roared toward the sky, trying desperately to ease the pain in his head, then summoning all his strength to run! He sprinted all the way! In the mist, unable to tell direction, he just ran!

Along the way, he could see nothing clearly; several times Chen Yi He bumped into a tombstone or earthen mound before stopping. He saw things like "Wudang Mountain, Shan Dao," "Emei Sect, Mie Jue," "Shu Mountain, Li Xiaoyao," and so on—weren't these all great heroes among heroes? Why did they die here? Chen Yi He seemed to have forgotten that he was in a pirated martial arts novel; here the setting was all decided by the author! These great heroes were all defined by the great author.

Chen Yi He wandered aimlessly, walking and walking until he reached a lake. He knelt by the shore, cupped his hands to lift a handful of clear water, and washed his face. "How could this be?" Chen Yi He touched his cheeks; it turned out not to be mutant hair but his long-untrimmed sideburns! How long had it been since he'd groomed his beard?

He was a senior high school student; at this age, one just begins to grow facial hair, and now he had grown into an ape-man… The dust on his face had already scabbed, clinging tightly to his skin; he had to wash it over and over to get it clean.

After washing clean, facing the mirror-like lake surface, from his reflection he finally looked like a person… "Damn… what the hell kind of place is this? What happened?" Chen Yi He lamented; although he had not forgotten his name, his origin, or his friends, he simply could not recall how he had ended up here.

What exactly happened in between?

Where exactly are his companions?

"Purple Tempered Sword? Where is the sword?" Chen Yi He suddenly recalled the Purple Tempered Sword he had snatched from Huang Gao Yu, the junior villa lord of God Sword Mountain Villa; feeling his back, he found the sword still there, and only then did he remember that he had entered the Thousand Heavy Gate!

"Thousand Heavy Gate… Thousand Heavy Gate?!" Chen Yi He also struggled to recall; the more his head felt like it was exploding, the more it seemed these three words were a taboo!

Just as Chen Yi He was once again sinking into pain, the calm lake surface underwent an abnormal disturbance! Bubbles larger than his head kept rising from the bottom, "gurgle… gurgle… gurgle…"; these bubbles had originally risen in the lake's center, far from him, yet they were now drifting toward his direction!

"Roar!" When that unnamed monster broke the water surface, it kicked up waves of unknown height! The wave struck Chen Yi He awake; a creature that was neither dragon nor snake was staring at him.

Chen Yi He had read in ancient texts that this was the legendary Jiao Long! A water beast bearing dragon blood, it only needs to undergo nine tribulations to transcend tribulation and become a true dragon, gaining greater power! Yet one must not underestimate it just because it hasn't become a dragon, especially when it opens its blood‑filled maw!

A sudden feeling of alertness swept through Chen Yi He's entire body; now was not the time to ponder problems but to think about how to escape, for the ancient texts said even a Fourth Heaven expert would struggle to contend with a Jiao Long!

"Roar!" The Jiao Long let out a furious roar, who knows how far it carries! As Chen Yi He tried to leap up and run, the roar gave him an extra shove, flinging him far away; he finally rolled several times on the ground.

However, the Jiao Long burst out of the lake and charged toward Chen Yi He.

The Jiao Long's thick, long body loomed vaguely in the mist—no one could tell its length or thickness! In an instant it surged to Chen Yi He's face.

Those vicious eyes fixed on Chen Yi He, its tongue like a snake's forked tip, extended long and swaying in midair! "Smack!" With a sudden strike, it fell, sweeping toward the tiny human!

This Jiao Long is nothing like the white‑furred giant tiger of Tiger Mountain that could be compared to it! One has no idea how many times stronger it is!

"What on earth is this place? Why does it even have such a monster?!" The Jiao Long appeared ready to swallow Chen Yi He whole; Chen Yi He ran for his life, while the Jiao Long behind him fell like lightning, repeatedly striking beside him—"Bang!" hitting his rear, then "Bang!" hitting his side!