Chapter 517: 471 Underwater

The water of the Tongyang River is very warm and also very bright; the sunlight from above passes through the water surface, appearing as crystalline and clear as glazed glass.

Although Tang Zhao is wearing clothing specially made for going underwater, it actually looks no different from ordinary clothing on the outside; after all, a Sword Hero or Sword Guest cannot go underwater wearing a Water Suit or bare-chested, so it is nothing more than a layer of special material coated on the outside, which is both waterproof and fireproof, and looks exquisite, gorgeous, and imposingly noble.

Moreover, Tang Zhao and his companions specifically brought an Art Tool for water repulsion, creating a bubble underwater that enveloped the Six Dragon Carriage, keeping everything from the people to the carriage completely dry.

The Six Dragon Carriage, like a dragon in the waves, carved a white wake through the warm water and plunged straight downward.

Although they were underwater, the speed was astonishing, cleaving through waves and breaking through currents, with the feeling of lightning-fast speed.

Zheng Yun sat in the back seat of the Six Dragon Carriage, clicking his tongue in wonder, and said, "This carriage of yours is truly amazing; this speed, this design, it's cool! When will I be able to have a carriage like this?"

Tang Zhao focused on rushing downward and asked casually, "You can have one anytime. Do you have money?"

Zheng Yun said, "No."

Tang Zhao chuckled, "You are certainly straightforward."

Zheng Yun said, "Big Brother, think about my situation. Aside from being inside the Caiyun Gui Sect, I cannot walk alone whenever I go out; a formal Disciple must follow by my side. I am just a human-shaped accessory; what would an accessory need money for?"

Tang Zhao fell silent for a moment upon hearing this, not knowing what to say. If one were to say Zheng Yun was carefree, one could tell from his tone that he still minded it, but now it seemed his behavior was not particularly twisted, and he spoke of his past life with lighthearted banter, without bitterness or deep hatred; one could only say this was also a unique talent of his.

Zheng Yun continued, "Honestly, I also know that my hope of becoming the Jinwu Sword this time is not high, but the Jinwu Sword you all choose had better be a generous person who gives subordinates some benefits and allowances every month; when that time comes, I will save up some money to buy a carriage or a horse..."

The two exchanged idle chatter, and Tang Zhao's gaze looked toward the water below.

The Tongyang River is the exact opposite of ordinary water currents; other water bodies become darker and colder the deeper one goes, but the Tongyang River becomes warmer and brighter the deeper one goes.

That warmth quickly broke the threshold of body temperature, reaching the point of "scorching heat." But neither Tang Zhao nor Zheng Yun felt uncomfortable. However, Tang Zhao was using Sunlight for Body Protection, using heat to defend against heat, so he was not actually in contact with the external high temperature, while Zheng Yun was truly resisting it with his physical body, feeling nothing at all.

Compared to the trial of being truly close to the sun, this bit of temperature was nothing at all. Instead, the light underwater became brighter and brighter, gradually becoming as bright as the daylight on the surface. And the sunlight from above could no longer penetrate to this depth; there must be another light source below.

It was as if they were not diving to the bottom of the water, but rising to the surface.

Yet, even though they could see the light getting brighter, they could not see the way leading to the light.

What surprised Tang Zhao even more was that in such dazzling and scorching water, there was actually quite a lot of life.

A large fish with a massive body and slender eyes swam past Tang Zhao and plunged into a dense cluster of water plants.

Yes, there were not only fish in the water, but also water plants, floating algae, and all sorts of strange and peculiar creatures.

These creatures did not match any common creatures found in water; if one were to make a rough guess based on similar shapes, Tang Zhao felt that some creatures included jellyfish, squid, crabs, ammonites, and dragons...

Of course, they were only similar; for example, that creature suspected to be a "dragon" was only three feet long and looked sluggish, with no trace of any power on its body; no matter how one looked at it, it was not any legendary "Divine Beast," but it had a crocodile head and face, a snake body, and claws, so indeed only "dragon" could fit.

Shall we call it a "dragon-like creature"? There is no such thing as plagiarism in biology; parallel evolution, ha, parallel evolution.

Whether animal or plant, these creatures all presented an exaggeratedly gorgeous appearance under the abundant light. Each one was not only colorful and eye-catching, but also had some exaggerated parts that looked like decorations, just like a peacock's tail; it was unclear what great use they had, as if they were for decoration?

These brilliant colors also distinguished them from another type of bizarre creature, the "Fierce Beast"; compared to the Fierce Beasts entangled in black smoke, they were clean and natural living things.

Under the Tongyang River, there was actually such an independent habitat, different from the Waijie, like a Peach Blossom Spring!

Tang Zhao was very surprised; these creatures could actually endure such high temperatures, truly a miracle of nature! However, why had fishing boats frequently traveling through the Tongyang River never caught these creatures for so many years?

With the simplicity of the common people, if they had ever caught these "monsters," they would have long since made up seventy or eighty urban legends.

At this time, Zheng Yun asked curiously, "Eh, is this the fief of the Jinwu Sword? Is he a Dragon King living in a Crystal Palace, with so many shrimp soldiers and crab generals serving him?"

Tang Zhao praised, "Your description is very fitting."

This place really seemed like the Jinwu Sword's own territory; it was an underwater kingdom, and also a sun kingdom!

Although he did not know how large the Jinwu Sword's territory was or how long it had existed to have today's prosperous appearance, Tang Zhao and Zheng Yun might be the first batch of foreign guests to visit since the kingdom was built. It was comparable to aliens visiting a planet for the first time.

This was also a kind of honor, right?

Although it was accompanied by extreme danger.

As the two dived further, the various agile aquatic creatures became fewer, but the underwater area did not become deserted; instead, a large number of plants appeared, colorful as flowers and resembling coral, in clusters and blossoms, of all kinds, forming patches of underwater Huayuan.

At this time, the surrounding light was already terrifyingly bright, so dazzling that an ordinary person could not even open their eyes. These plants were wrapped in light, and from several yards away, their outlines could no longer be seen. Only eyesight like Tang Zhao's, which did not fear strong light, could see through the radiance to appreciate these magnificent landscapes.

Tang Zhao's heart stirred, and he suddenly thought: these underwater plants cannot be appreciated by ordinary people; they grow so bright and vivid, who are they for?

At this time, Zheng Yun suddenly said, "Why are there so many bubbles?"

Without Zheng Yun's reminder, Tang Zhao had also seen it; at this time, fine bubbles began to appear in the water, like strings of Pearls, and as they went further down, the bubbles became larger and began to churn, forming countless rolling waves, one after another.

"Oh, the water is boiling."

When the temperature reaches a certain point, the water will naturally boil. Tang Zhao had almost forgotten this natural law.

Nothing in the Human World can approach the sun; of course, water is the same, and it should have long since evaporated completely.

In that case, has the water reached one hundred degrees now?

Has it only reached one hundred degrees?

Although Tang Zhao was protected by light and could not feel the temperature, he thought that after such a long time, it should have risen to several hundred degrees; he did not expect it to be a "mere" one hundred degrees?

That is to say, they are still very far from the sun.

Beneath the boiling water, one could see another kind of liquid, also slightly churning, but not boiling; instead, it flowed gurglingly like thick mud—that was red-black magma.

In the past, only volcanic craters had such massive magma, but now it was immediately below the river water, with magma rolling; that must be the riverbed and earth melted by the sun's heat. Although it was only flowing slowly, it had a power that water currents could not compare to, emitting a low roar, as if carrying endless heat and danger.

They had reached the bottom; the journey of the Tongyang River ended here.

"The next step is to go down into this magma."

Although Tang Zhao knew he could repel fire, he still instinctively felt some resistance; for a normal person, going through fire and water is not so easy.

And... he glanced at his surroundings; even in the near-boiling water, clusters of various plants were growing, and some plants even seemed to be actively swimming; they were probably not plants, but animals like sea lilies or sea anemones. Tang Zhao also saw two vine-like plants entangled together, poking each other with vines as if they were butting heads, adding a bit more lively vitality.

After going into the magma, one probably wouldn't be able to see such a vibrant scene, right?

He was about to add full power and plunge into the magma with the speed of the Six Dragon Carriage, when he saw the magma suddenly boil, and a pillar rose up like a fountain!

Tang Zhao was suddenly startled, thinking only: It has discovered us!

Is this an attack on outsiders?

However, looking closely, that magma pillar was only as thick as an arm, rising several yards, and in the air, it took shape, turning into an... arm?!

At the front of the arm, naturally, was a hand, with five distinct fingers, about the size of a normal human hand. It stretched flexibly into the air and grabbed...

Those two vines that were entangled and fighting.

It grabbed one of them and gave a light toss, throwing it several yards away.

The vine did a few somersaults in the air, immediately regained its mobility, clearly uninjured, and no longer remembering the fight, it slid its branches far away and wiggled off.

As for the other one, suddenly without an opponent, it did not fly into a rage either, but swam away full of spirit.

That hand seemed very satisfied and abruptly retracted. It did not pay the slightest attention to the two outsiders who were close at hand.

Tang Zhao watched this scene, feeling quite astonished in his heart, while Zheng Yun behind him had already spoken: "What, is this emerging from the magma the will of the Jinwu Sword? It's quite interesting. Is it here to break up a fight?"

Indeed, a dignified Middle-rank Sword Deity, a figure whose presence makes the elite of a province lose sleep and appetite—is such an existence reaching out a hand from the magma merely to resolve a conflict between two tiny aquatic creatures?

Tang Zhao thought about this and suddenly laughed out loud, saying: "Right, isn't this finding the right person!"

The Jinwu Sword Deity, even if it is a Sword Deity, is still the Sword Deity of the Jinwu Sword! It is also the Spring Pillar of State who inherits the lineage of Dongjun and brings sunlight and warmth to all things!

Why couldn't it have such a temperament?

Tang Zhao had originally come with a plan of proceeding step by step and offering courtesy before resorting to force, which Zhang Rong and the scholars had formulated step by step, but seeing this scene, his heart stirred, and he felt he could be more candid.

He immediately stopped the Six Dragon Carriage, activated his Sword Image, and a ray of Sunlight rose up, merging with the dazzling light all around, then he said in a clear voice: "Tang Zhao of the Jingxing Sword from Yunzhou, along with the Jinwu Sun-Holding Envoy, have come specifically to pay respects to Your Highness the Sword Deity! I wonder if Your Highness could grant us a little time to meet?"