Chapter 139

Dragon Fish King Jinjin and

After a moment, under Ling Yue's guidance, those onlookers who loved a spectacle finally dispersed, leaving only the fish Jinjin, whose gorgeous appearance attracted many gazes.

"What a beautiful fish—when did the Yangtze have such a dragon fish?" an archaeologist couldn't help exclaiming.

The more experienced ones, hearing this, chimed in: "Yeah, it looks like a mutant dragon fish, somehow grown this huge."

Seeing them get more and more excited, Ling Yue glanced at the innocent Jinjin and couldn't help saying: "It's domestically raised, not a wild dragon fish."

The archaeologists: "???"

"How do you know that?"

Ling Yue: "... Because it's mine."

Everyone stared at her, both dumbfounded and yet feeling it was unsurprising, because Ling Yue had just been with it and was quite familiar.

Hearing Ling Yue tell others that it belonged to her, the dragon fish king Jinjin, shy yet excited, flicked its fins: "He~ hehehe~"

It hadn't forgotten its main purpose; the underwater wreck wasn't far from Hope River Mouth, and soon the underwater archaeology team's vessel arrived at the exact spot.

The archaeologists donned their prepared diving gear; although Ling Yue could have just jumped in, that would have seemed too eccentric.

So Ling Yue chose to go with the flow.

"Splash"

The underwater archaeology team began diving; no one paid attention to whether Ling Yue was nearby, because once their professional duties were involved, each person's mind was filled only with their own work.

Ling Yue kept a proper distance outside the wreck, slightly tilting her head; even though it wasn't her first time seeing it, the ship's framework still stunned her.

It's hard to believe that with ancient technology they could build such a five-story-tall ship; its massive ribs, now broken, stood like a towering mountain plunging straight into the water.

Murky light shifted around the hull—the archaeologists at work.

Not long after the fog lifted on the shore, a crowd arrived, each carrying long spears and short cannons, eagerly staying on the bank, their faces beaming as they exchanged compliments.

"Hey there, Chief Editor Wang, what brings you here in person?"

"You say that, but Chief Editor Li, you're here too, aren't you?"

"Hahaha, we're all after the same story—a newly discovered ancient wreck at the bottom of the Yangtze; if proven, it wouldn't just astonish our whole city, but the entire nation."

To snag the first-hand scoop, major media outlets rushed to the shore; as for pictures, not being able to get the material was hardly an issue.

Everyone showed off their own skills, like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea.

Underwater, though silent, the excitement was no less than above.

Lights flickered, and even a few fish gathered together, because they had found the large chest hiding gold and silver ingots; the archaeologists' inspection footage was transmitted live to the ship, where several elderly professors unable to dive watched, wearing reading glasses.

"Zoom in, zoom in a bit more."

They spoke excitedly, eyes fixed on the markings beneath the ingots, murmuring: "Yuan——"

Hardly had they begun when the underwater archaeologist Yuan exclaimed in surprise: "Yuan? Could this be a Yuan dynasty merchant ship?"

"A merchant ship?"

The old professor shook his head—no merchant ship could be this size—but he didn't say it aloud, instead continuing the search; eventually someone found the sealed wooden crates in the hold.

Because they were sealed, they didn't open them right away, but prepared to do so on the next dive after making thorough preparations.

The high-definition camera panned over, when suddenly the team leaders' voices came: "Loop back!"

"Scan it again from scratch!"

The crew member, puzzled, was suddenly halted by a kind female voice in his ear: "Xiaolin, just open this box."

Hearing this, the teammates were greatly surprised, then they heard Professor Xu Fengyan say: "This box is already broken, its contents exposed—go ahead and open it, no problem."

The team member approached nervously; looking from above, everything seemed intact, but when his hand touched it, several people working together discovered a large hole nearby—something none of the youngsters had noticed, yet Professor Xu knew.

While they were astonished, they carefully opened the box; in that instant, everyone held their breath.

A box of pristine porcelain, a large bluish-gray plate, its surface covered with colorful patterns and figures, expressive and romantic, was carefully lifted; the dark seal on the bottom instantly met everyone's eyes.

On the ship, someone drew a deep breath, as if beholding an unimaginable sight.

"Yuan blue-and-white?"

As the rarest ancient porcelain, Yuan blue-and-white, being inimitable and of supreme quality, had fetched hundreds of millions at international auctions just a few years prior; yet here they were, seeing a whole box full of it—perhaps even more.

Next, the underwater archaeology team continued to find other items: besides these ceramics, there were crates of silk, though ravaged by time, some portions had survived for various reasons.

The professors could affirm that this would be another new discovery in domestic history, its value not to be underestimated.

They needed to mobilize personnel from across the country to salvage the wreck.

Beside them, the dragon fish Jinjin watched these people acting so cautiously, somewhat puzzled: "Isn't it just a pile of rotten wood?"

It relayed this to Ling Yue, who almost laughed out loud: "What do you want to see? Archaeology is just like that—we find it dull and tedious, but to them it must be the happiest thing in the world."

The dragon fish king Jinjin wagged its tail, losing all its initial enthusiasm; in the next instant, not knowing what Ling Yue whispered in its ear, the listless little fish instantly sprang back to life.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

Ling Yue gave a greeting and headed straight ashore; as for what she had just said, only Jinjin knew—right now it was excitedly circling her in the water, blowing bubbles.

Not long after, the first round of underwater excavation of the wreck ended.

The diving archaeologists surfaced one after another to catch their breath and rest; nobody expected it to be noon already.

Everyone had been starving in the water, and they unanimously decided to go ashore and eat!

As the boat docked, it was immediately swarmed by reporters filming; those all-seeing, all-hearing journalists had already gotten the news, and while the state hadn't yet sent anyone, they hoisted cameras and microphones to question the archaeology team.

The archaeology team members were already starving to death, waving their hands and saying whatever—filling their stomachs was the biggest thing in life!

On the boat, Ling Yue watched the reporters surround it impenetrably, feeling very glad she hadn't gone down.

Ling Yue hid to the side, watching, when suddenly she heard a cry of alarm.

Many reporters gathered together in shock, their discussion loud enough that even Ling Yue on the boat could hear it clearly.

"Good heavens, what is that? A large turtle lying in the sand?"

"It scared the hell out of me—this turtle is truly huge."

Ling Yue sensed something was wrong, and she locked eyes with the goldfish that had just surfaced in the water: "Could it be——"

Feng Shui Turtle, right?

Compared to the lively and swift Dragon Fish King Goldy, the Feng Shui Turtle Master is simply the opposite extreme; it has lived over five hundred years, having seen no great winds or waves—what's so strange about archaeology? It would be better to lie by the river and sleep soundly.

Of course, this sleep means burying itself in the sand, leaving only a breathing hole exposed.

But it never expected that a group of people would be keeping watch at the spot where it was sleeping, and out of boredom they'd dig randomly on the beach, actually uncovering a Feng Shui Turtle lying buried in the sand.

"Oh dear!" it shrieked, pulling its head into its shell as a crowd of people chattered noisily above, buzzing in its ears.

"You scared the life out of this five‑hundred‑year‑old old timer—don't you people have any public morals?"

"Don't you know to respect your elders and love the young?" the Feng Shui Turtle continued to complain, when suddenly it noticed the reporters weren't as noisy as before.

Because not far away, several police cars came straight toward them, uniformed officers pouring out with a clatter, taking their positions, and the reporters who had been surrounding them instantly fell silent.

On shore, the archaeology team members who had originally been tangled up looked at each other, then took the opportunity and ran straight out.

At the same time, government‑dispatched naval forces began guarding the waters above the sunken ship, and they set up surveillance equipment to prevent criminals from sneaking in to steal the national treasure.

The reporters who had come to their senses stayed where they were, sighing with regret.

What a great opportunity—just because of a moment's curiosity… wait… where's the big turtle?

They looked up and saw the Feng Shui Turtle plant its limbs and dash madly across the sand, making a "pat‑pat" sound; it poked its head out, its tiny mung‑bean‑sized eyes fixed on the water, already having switched from the big ship to the fishing boat the innkeeper had brought, on which Ling Yue was.

"Good disciple, hurry up and save me!"

Behind them came the relentless click‑click of shutters and all kinds of commentary; the Feng Shui Turtle ran faster and faster, then with a plop jumped into the water.

Don't let the Feng Shui Turtle Master's usual slowness fool you—when it needs to hurry, it wastes no time, its thick, powerful limbs paddling through the water, and in no moment it reached Ling Yue's little fishing boat: "Scared the turtle out of me!"

"How can those people be noisier than a school of fish? It's like eight hundred ducks constantly quacking in my ears—so aggravating!"

What could Ling Yue say? She hauled it aboard, and in an instant the boat's water level rose a notch; she couldn't help thinking, "Master, have you gained weight again?"

The Feng Shui Turtle stretched its neck and told her, "What fat? I've just grown bigger!"

"I thought you hadn't noticed—look, there are many more divination marks on my shell."

It sighed as it spoke: "Come to think of it, I haven't grown in over a hundred years, but this year I suddenly sprouted a ring—could it be the Yangtze's water nurturing turtles?"

Ling Yue shook her head; even the turtle didn't know, and Ling Yue certainly didn't—after all, she's never lived on the Yangtze.

Ling Yue had the innkeeper take the boat to Wangjiangkou; by then the reporters were completely out of sight, and she finally stepped ashore.

Ling Yue waved a hand, turning down the innkeeper's invitation: "I've got a few things to do, so I'll pass for now."

The innkeeper nodded, showing understanding.

He locked the boat, mounted his electric scooter, and headed home.

Ling Yue stayed on the riverbank, looking left and right for a while, making sure no one else was around, then she tossed out a handful of pet food: "Big catfish?"

"Mmm… I'm here!"

Beneath the clear water a dark mass slowly rose, until with a splash a pink‑white big catfish broke the surface, gobbling up the pet food Ling Yue had scattered as it spoke.

Seeing the catfish feast so happily, the Dragon Fish King Goldy instinctively opened its mouth; as for the Feng Shui Turtle Master, being a five‑hundred‑year‑old veteran, it certainly wouldn't be like these youngsters who can't resist any temptation.

The scene shifted: Goldy floated at the shore, its mouth nearly forming an O, as the pet food poured through Ling Yue's hand into it.

Goldy swayed left and right, afraid a grain might fall from its mouth.

On the other side, the Feng Shui Turtle Master lowered its head modestly; before it lay a mound‑like pile of pet food, and it elegantly opened its mouth—with an "ah‑woo" bite, the mound instantly lost a corner.

Once the few small animals had eaten their fill, Ling Yue traced a sigil in the air, stuck it on herself, and dove straight into the water.

The formerly calm and impenetrable water surface instantly split in two, like Moses parting the sea, not a drop touching her,

and after she went down, she walked as if on dry land. The river water on all sides was pushed aside by an invisible transparent barrier, just like an underwater tunnel, allowing Ling Yue to see every creature in the water while those creatures could not touch her.

For the place she occupied, all water flow was cut off.

Seeing this, the big catfish was utterly stunned; it had never seen a human who could make the river yield to her like Ling Yue, and it exclaimed in shock, "Are you a great demon?!"

Ling Yue blinked, still speechless, when the Dragon Fish King Goldy beside her burst out laughing: "Of course Yueyue is human—I can vouch for her!"

If it weren't for its short fins, it would probably already be slapping its belly with a "pa‑pa‑pa"; the big catfish was startled by its fierce look, then cautiously stole a few more glances.

Still doubtful in its heart, it thought, "How could a human be this powerful?"

It wagged its tail and suddenly said, "Ah, I've figured it out."

"She must be—a god!"

Ling Yue staggered a step, almost falling; beside her, the Feng Shui Turtle Master chuckled, teasingly glancing at this little disciple of hers.

Ling Yue: "…"

"Let's hurry on our way, by the way—you said the Dragon Palace is how far from here?"

The big catfish blurted out, "Just ahead! Turn left, then right twice, loop around, weave through a pile of rubble, and you're there!"

Ling Yue fell silent at once, but looking at the big catfish's demeanor, it really seemed accustomed to this.

The river grew darker and darker as they went deeper; soon hardly any light remained. Ling Yue switched on her phone's built‑in flashlight, and a sudden beam pierced the gloom.

In the beam's glow, many little fish and shrimp were drawn to the light; along the way, the big catfish kept opening its mouth with "ah‑ah‑ah" sounds, gulping down any shrimp that had just appeared.

Quite the catch—she was actually using her light to fish and eat!

This sneaky trick opened Goldy's eyes wide.

Ling Yue suddenly recalled that, though the big catfish looks meek, in popular science it's a carnivorous animal with mild toxicity.

Not long after, they reached the rubble field; Ling Yue frowned, noticing that these stones seemed shattered by some external force rather than formed naturally, and some bore neat chisel marks.

This stretch of rubble was actually quite large; the closer she got, the louder a strange sound became—like a rapid, murmuring discussion.

"We're here!" the big catfish cried excitedly.

Amid a stretch of deep‑green waterweed, Ling Yue tilted her head slightly—Dragon Palace?

Her first reaction was, "Holy cow, there's really money."

Far from what she had expected, it resembled a ruined luxurious palace; the outer corridors' pillars were thick and sturdy, carved with golden coiling dragons that twined around them.

Further ahead lay a blinding expanse of gold and jade brilliance, utterly unlike its luxurious, high‑key demeanor; inside the palace was a desolate, lifeless atmosphere.

Ling Yue lifted her gaze; inside was empty and deserted, long abandoned, no longer retaining its former vitality—only this lifeless palace remained.

Ling Yue suddenly realized that, on the road through the rubble, they had encountered no small fish or shrimp—this was abnormal.

She lowered her eyes slightly, approached it, and the big catfish instantly flared: "Don't go!"

Ling Yue: "?"

Big catfish: "There's an invisible barrier inside; I carelessly rammed into it back then, and my head still hurts QAQ"

Seemingly recalling that sensation, the whole fish felt awful, especially its head, which began to feel dizzy again.

Ling Yue nodded, thanked it for the warning, still prepared to go, but she proceeded cautiously, probing carefully to avoid repeating the big catfish's tragedy.

However, after Ling Yue probed for a while, her feet stepped onto the tiles with no obstruction at all; she turned to ask the big catfish, whose round eyes widened in disbelief as it stared at her.

"How could that be!"

It swam to the spot where the tragedy occurred, flicked its fin, and said: "Right here, the catfish went—"

The big catfish tried bumping, and in an instant it entered—easily, unbelievably.

"You believe me, right!"

Ling Yue nodded, the corners of her eyes lifting: "I believe what you say is true; perhaps—"

Her gaze swept around, sensing an unusual aura; at that moment, the Feng Shui Turtle Master slid, lying prone on the tiles, its golden sheen making the turtle dizzy, yet not impairing its perception.

The Turtle Master raised its head and spoke before Ling Yue: "Perhaps the palace's formation has failed."

Even before entering the Dragon Palace, the Turtle Sense had sensed a special aura—a double overlay of the Spirit‑Gathering Formation and the Grand Protective Formation; such a novelty, even it had seen only once, back when it was small, following its heavenly master.

The Feng Shui Turtle chattered on, and the big catfish listened until its eyes were about to cross like mosquito‑coil rings, feeling dazed and admitting it understood nothing.

Ling Yue nodded, finding it fascinating, and incidentally picked up some knowledge not found in books.

"Yueyue, be careful!"

Ahead of Ling Yue, the Dragon Fish King Jinjin suddenly shot forward like a small cannonball, its tail about to coil in panic.

Ling Yue noticed it earlier than it did, after all, she was no ordinary person; but she felt no malice in those auras, only benign observation, so she dismissed it.

"Are you human?"

"Wuwuwu Dad Mom, are we finally saved!"

It resembled the strange sound Ling Yue had heard before; once translated into human speech, she turned instantly, and in that instant a heavy shadow descended.

The big catfish hid behind a pillar, terrified: "It's a long‑nosed big monster fish!"

Ling Yue gazed at them, eyes shining; two large and one small—if the Yangtze sturgeon Xunxun was already large, these two fish were truly gigantic, hence the Yangtze sturgeon's epithet 'elephant fish'.

Perhaps because its size is enormous, it is the 'elephant' of the water.

Ling Yue glanced at the panicked big catfish and explained: "Strictly speaking, they are Yangtze sturgeon, native species of the Yangtze, not some monstrous beast."

Hearing that she could communicate with the big catfish, the Yangtze sturgeon family stared at her in astonishment; the younger sturgeon showed this more clearly, while the other two, clearly elders, regarded her steadily and greeted: "Hello, human."

Ling Yue, calm and composed: "Hello."

She showed no panic at suddenly encountering a giant beast, remaining utterly composed; her next sentence even turned the tables: "Are you Xunxun's family?"

Upon hearing this, the three Yangtze sturgeon instantly grew excited, rippling the water: "Do you know Xunxun, or do you know my sister?"

Ling Yue was unfazed, not in a hurry; she found a step in the hall, sat down, and looked at them: "Let's talk slowly."

"Good!"

The father Yangtze sturgeon looked at her and recounted the whole story.

"Initially we and Xunxun were separated by a poacher's net; when we realized, Xunxun had vanished, so we brought Mimi and searched the water, inadvertently encountering a group of invasive fish; because Mimi had been wounded, they tried to parasitize it, and my wife and I ground them into minced meat."

But there were too many of them, coming one** after another; we couldn't waste time here, so we picked a direction and left, never expecting to be inadvertently trapped here for a while.

"My wife and I are fine, but Mimi might not be able to hold on much longer."

Finally, it cheerfully said: "Since you know where Xunxun is, could you take us to find her?"

The much‑smaller Yangtze sturgeon Mimi clung to its mother's belly, an adorable little darling; its beautiful eyes looked at Ling Yue: "I really miss my sister."

Ling Yue frowned slightly; no wonder she sensed the three sturgeons' aura a bit weak—they had been hungry for a while.

She immediately replied: "Of course; Xunxun entrusted me to find you—" she paused, then added: "I never imagined you'd be trapped here."

No wonder those fish hadn't noticed; if it weren't for this timid catfish we bumped into, they might have remained undiscovered for a long time.

Ling Yue asked if they felt unwell; the three fish shook their heads, and the littlest Mimi opened its mouth: "I… I'm so hungry QWQ"

The Yangtze sturgeon's usual fare is aquatic oligochaetes, or small fish; they are carnivorous.

But Ling Yue gazed at the spotless Dragon Palace and sighed: "Since we can now come and go, you can head out to eat first; we'll meet by the river later."

"All right!" Even though the palace is huge and beautiful, they'd been there ages and hadn't seen a scrap of food.

Mimi had long been eager to get out.

Its parents guarded it on the side; frankly, given the Yangtze sturgeon's massive size, even without their escort, few fish would dare provoke it.

Ling Yue watched them leave, not rushing to follow; she exchanged a meaningful glance with the Feng Shui Turtle Master beside her, curling her lips.

The Dragon Fish King Jinjin reacted quickly: "Wrong—are you hiding something from me?"

The Feng Shui Turtle looked at it affectionately: "Little Jinjin, you've finally gotten smart once."

Dragon Fish King Jinjin: QWQ

Looking back on this period, it had struggled alongside the Feng Shui Turtle Grandfather in the Yangtze, enduring countless hardships and falls to achieve its present growth.

Suddenly hearing the Turtle Grandfather praise it, its first reaction was not joy but fear.

Jinjin steeled itself and asked them: "What are you up to?"

Ling Yue: "Shh—"

"Feel it carefully." She could pat her chest and guarantee that the little creatures she raised were no ordinary roles; Jinjin hadn't noticed, simply because it wasn't paying attention.

Jinjin felt she was deceiving herself, and blew a stream of big bubbles: "What feeling could there be—"

Before the words were finished, it had already stopped moving; all along, the things it had overlooked became crystal clear. It was in the Dragon Palace, as if bathed in the light of a little sun, giving rise to a warm feeling from inside out.

It felt as comfortable as lying on the most comfortable warm bed in the world.

Jinjin took a deep breath, opened its eyes, and Ling Yue had already walked toward the depths of the palace; the rear hall and the empty front hall were exactly alike, devoid of any vitality. The difference was that it now had a Nine Dragon Wall, its surface bearing lifelike golden dragons whose solemn, majestic eyes were inlaid with gems of various colors; in the midst of the nine dragons was a pure white sphere that resembled jade but was not jade.

Ling Yue glanced around, initially seeing nothing; she furrowed her brows and saw the Feng Shui Turtle Master already tapping each floor tile, when it suddenly let out a cry.

Ling Yue: "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

The Feng Shui Turtle Master said with a solemn expression: "The Dragon Palace is truly rich—even the floor tiles are made of pure gold!"

Ling Yue: "……"

"Why don't I take some back and make you a gold nest?"

The Feng Shui Turtle Master said: "I couldn't possibly accept that—let's just forget it. Let's hurry and keep looking; I can feel that there must be a formation eye here."

Ling Yue agreed wholeheartedly; suddenly, her ears twitched, and she heard a faint sound, as if something had suddenly split.

"Crack—crack—"

The next moment, Ling Yue's gaze pierced through space and landed squarely on the Nine Dragon Wall; to be precise, it was the pure white bead in the middle.

Her senses were sharp and her eyesight excellent; she clearly saw above the bead a thin, uniformly expanding outer shell. She walked over and, leaping up, could see on the smooth jade bead above, wisps of spiritual qi leaking out.

Ling Yue furrowed her brows; the already tottering grand protective formation finally couldn't bear the load, and in that instant it completely failed.

"Ling Yue."

From below came the Feng Shui Turtle Master's call; Ling Yue turned her head to meet its gaze: "What are you waiting for? Hurry up and take the formation eye!"

Ling Yue placed her hand over the sphere, gathering all her strength in her palm, and she felt the seemingly indestructible jade ball beneath her hand begin to loosen.

In the blink of an eye, she forcibly pulled it out.

"Crack~crack~"

After a deathly silence, Ling Yue lowered her head to look at the jade ball; its originally smooth surface was now covered in tiny cracks. She turned it over, watching as more and more cracks evenly spread across the ball.

Ling Yue looked at the other animals and asked, "What do you think this is?"

Everyone shook their heads, and in the end Ling Yue herself decided, "I'll take this ball away to observe it."

As she spoke, her palm suddenly moved; Ling Yue lowered her head to look and almost jumped from the vibrant life force—what she had been holding in her hands was no longer an unknown jade ball but clearly a living egg.

I just don't know why the creature inside hasn't come out yet.

Finally, Ling Yue prepared to take the egg away, but the spell formations set up here had all been destroyed; having been underwater all this time, it likely couldn't hatch anything, and perhaps taking it ashore might offer a slim chance of life.

Ling Yue went ashore, not noticing that Little Gold had suddenly fallen silent; it felt that the secrets of that palace were surely more than just this.

Little Gold wanted to speak, but it never found the chance.

Little Gold wagged its tail, watching the three Yangtze sturgeons that had surrounded Ling Yue so tightly it almost bit its own teeth—wait, does it even have teeth?

Anyway, it just felt uncomfortable.

At this point, Ling Yue had already gathered with the three Yangtze sturgeons, and hearing her and Little Seeker's perilous yet thrilling experience, even the most steady elder was frightened.

It wished it could crush those invading fish with its tail!

They nervously slapped their fish tails in the water, stirring up waves tens of meters high; even though Ling Yue was on shore, she could feel it very vividly.

Because the spray had splashed onto her face.

The elder Yangtze sturgeon father looked at her and couldn't help but ask: "Where is Little Seeker now? When can we see it?":,,."