Chapter 1062

Qiqi glared at Hu Xiaotian and said, "What are you looking at?"

Hu Xiaotian curled the corner of his mouth in a disdainful smile, then puffed out his chest; no need to argue—when it comes to chest muscle development, I'm far bigger than you.

Qiqi naturally understood his meaning, snorted, and turned her pretty face to the side.

What Hu Xiaotian's wet outfit revealed wasn't just his pectoral muscles; he thought his figure was far more eye-catching than Qiqi's current one, and the one who would truly feast their eyes definitely wasn't himself.

For the first time, Qiqi felt a twinge of nervousness and fear in her heart, which even she found inexplicable—she shouldn't be afraid of this guy.

Walking side by side, they came to the waterway of the underground passage leading to the Jade Pool. Before entering the water, Hu Xiaotian asked, "How exactly did you know there's a secret chamber beneath Mount Piaomiao?"

Qiqi said, "The royal family has plenty of secrets." After stretching her limbs on the shore, she dove into the water first.

Hu Xiaotian followed, jumping in after her and trailing behind Qiqi, seeing her tall, graceful figure glide through the water like a mermaid, the Night Pearl in her hand lighting the way ahead. Since the old emperor's restoration, the defenses here have been withdrawn; although Mount Piaomiao remains a forbidden zone, no guards patrol the Jade Pool's surface anymore.

Both had mastered the art of prolonged underwater swimming without needing to breathe, but Qiqi was slightly weaker in this regard and had to catch her breath midway. She reached beneath the waterfall, found the underwater dragon head, entered through the waterway in the dragon's ear, opened the passage as before, and entered the Dragon Spirit Sacred Realm.

Surfacing from the water, Hu Xiaotian wiped the water from his face, climbed up first, then reached out and pulled Qiqi up. Using the light and shadow of the Night Pearl, Qiqi opened the hidden cavern; they walked down the stairs and arrived before a pool about ten zhang long and wide.

The pool water was calm and still, and on the far side lay the corpse of a giant crocodile—the same one they had killed on their previous incursion. Because the body had lain here too long, it had rotted and spoiled, filling the entire stone chamber with a stench that made one want to vomit.

Qiqi covered her mouth and nose with gauze. Hu Xiaotian simply held his breath—the smell was truly nauseating. Qiqi prepared to swim across the pool, but Hu Xiaotian shook his head, wondering whether another giant crocodile might lurk in the water, and he slipped his arm around her slender waist.

Qiqi was startled by his sudden move, blinking and exclaiming, "What are you doing?" Before she could finish, Hu Xiaotian leapt up, carrying her as if riding clouds and mist, skimming over the pool to land on the opposite bank.

Qiqi instinctively clung to his body, never expecting his lightness skill to have reached such a level; she felt much more reassured.

From Qiqi's calm gaze, Hu Xiaotian also sensed how she differed from last time. Previously, both of them had entered this place with pounding hearts; her steadiness now likely stemmed from the sense of security he gave her, believing he had enough ability to protect her, while his own composure came from increased martial prowess. It seems a man's strength is the real foundation, and being relied upon by a woman brings a psychological satisfaction. Hu Xiaotian suddenly realized: when had he also started seeing her as a woman?

Qiqi returned to the bronze cauldron, moved it aside as before, revealing the stone cavity below—now empty. Hu Xiaotian remembered that last time they had found a box, from which Qiqi had taken a bamboo slip.

Qiqi turned her carried dagger around, using its hilt to tap the four walls and floor of the stone cavity, then illuminated it with the Night Pearl, carefully examining for any other mechanisms.

Hu Xiaotian chuckled, "Didn't you already take everything last time?" Yet he guessed Qiqi must have overlooked something; otherwise she wouldn't have come back down here.

Qiqi ignored him, continuing to search wholeheartedly, but after a long while she still found nothing.

Hu Xiaotian asked, "What exactly are you looking for?"

Qiqi said, "The long dragon carved on Mount Piaomiao was made at the suggestion of the strategist Zhuge Yun Chun, whom the Mingzong Emperor Long Yuan consulted after he restored the realm; it was carved on both sides of the Jade Pool's central Mount Piaomiao, embodying a feng shui pattern that signifies Dakang's dragon soaring across the four seas and the Long clan's realm lasting for eternity."

Hu Xiaotian asked, "You mean the stone cavern beneath Mount Piaomiao was also left behind by Zhuge Yun Chun back then?"

Qiqi said, "While perusing the Long clan's genealogical records, I happened upon a fact: the Mingzong Emperor's ability to restore the realm and save Dakang from peril was due to the aid of Zhuge Yun Chun, I suppose; and this senior Zhuge compiled his lifetime's military insights into a book, which the Mingzong Emperor named the 'Divine General's Formation Diagram.' The imperial archives contain many references to this military treatise, yet I have searched everywhere and found no trace of it. Logically, that shouldn't be the case—Zhuge Sir was honored by the Mingzong Emperor as State Preceptor, a figure revered by all Dakang's ancestors, and his military art should have been treasured beyond measure; yet for some unknown reason it mysteriously vanished."

Hu Xiaotian thought to himself that all military strategies in the world are merely derivatives of Sun Zi's Art of War; although he is not a military expert, he is thirty.

Qiqi said, "No, if you go to Dongliang Commandery, surrounded by Da Yong forces, finding the 'Divine General's Formation Diagram' might let you defeat the many with the few and gain a foothold there; otherwise, wouldn't you be like a lamb entering a tiger's den?"

Hu Xiaotian chuckled; it seemed even Qiqi didn't have high hopes for his mission, yet this girl rarely showed concern for him—his engagement to her wasn't in vain.

Qiqi said, "With disaster looming, you can still laugh?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "In your view, I'm doomed this time; don't worry—worst case, I'll just run away."

Qiqi bit her cherry lips; although she didn't believe Hu Xiaotian would actually do that, she still felt uneasy and whispered, "Are you really thinking of giving up?" A gloom rose in her heart—if Hu Xiaotian truly abandoned her, this trip to Dongliang Commandery would be a perfect chance to escape; in fact, what she really wanted to say was, "Are you really going to stop caring about me?" But Qiqi, being strong-willed, couldn't show such weakness before him, lest he think she needed to rely on him.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Nothing is more important than one's own life."

Qiqi nodded and said, "If one does not act for oneself, heaven and earth will destroy them!" Her face could no longer hide her dejection.

Hu Xiaotian saw this, sighed inwardly—Qiqi now had no one to rely on either—and said softly, "Actually, you could also look for an opportunity to go to Dongliang Commandery and meet up with me; after all, that's your fief, and once you're far from Kangdu, even the emperor's reach is limited."

Qiqi shook her head and said, "I won't leave; as long as Dakang still has a glimmer of hope, I will never give up striving."

Hu Xiaotian said, "What if Dakang were to perish one day?"

Qiqi bit her cherry lips: "If that day ever comes, I will sacrifice my life for the nation!" Her beautiful eyes shone with firm resolve, and Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but feel a measure of admiration for her gaze.

The two searched the stone chamber for half a day but found nothing suspicious; Qiqi's gaze fell on the ten-zhang-square pool, and she mused, "Could there be some secret beneath the water?"

Hu Xiaotian said, "The pool is deep and the water cold; who knows if there's another crocodile lurking? I think we'd better not take the risk."

Qiqi replied, "How can we know without checking? Wait for me—I'll go down and have a look."

Hu Xiaotian sighed; when she spoke, her feet hadn't moved at all, her lovely eyes fixed on his—clearly she was saying this on purpose, really meaning she wanted him to go down. He said, "Then I'll go down instead."

Qiqi shoved a case of Violent Rain Pear Blossom Needles into his hand: "Be extra careful." This was enough to prove she wanted him to go down.

Hu Xiaotian said, "If I get eaten by the crocodile, you'll become a little widow."

Qiqi didn't get angry; she giggled and said, "If you really get eaten, I'll spend my life mourning you as a widow."

Hu Xiaotian shook his head, thinking, "If I die, you keeping vigil won't bring me back to life," then he listened closely to the water's movements before jumping in; as soon as he entered, he felt ripples beside him—Qiqi had followed him into the water.

The Night Pearl's light illuminated Qiqi's pretty face; she smiled like a flower, extended her index finger, and nibbled at it before him, as if teasing him for being timid.

Hu Xiaotian pointed upward, indicating she should return; if anything went wrong down there, he'd have to free a hand to protect her, making things even more complicated—but Qiqi had already begun descending.

They descended more than ten zhang without reaching the bottom; Hu Xiaotian dared not relax his vigilance, straining his eyes, on high alert, fearing some terrible creature might surge from the depths. Fortunately, for now it remained calm—apart from the two of them, no other living things existed in the pool water.

Hu Xiaotian found the iron chain that had bound the giant crocodile, followed it downward while swimming, and at about twenty zhang the chain ended, its other end fastened to a dull-black water-subduing bronze ox lying on the pool floor, the ox fully five zhang long.

Qiqi also reached the bronze ox's back, lifted the Night Pearl to illuminate its spine, and saw many patterns on the ox's back, delighting her—but her breath-holding skill was evidently inferior to Hu Xiaotian's, so before she could finish examining the patterns, she had to surface for air.

After catching her breath she dove again, but still couldn't stay long before surfacing once more, because the pool's depth exerted tremendous pressure at the bottom. The second time, Hu Xiaotian worried something might happen to her, so he rose together with her.

Qiqi lay panting on the shore for a moment, then said, "No good—I can't hold out that long; the bronze ox's back also bears a pattern lock, and if I could endure a bit longer, I should be able to open it." (To be continued~^~)