Lian Li pressed his palm against Yun Huizhou’s chest muscles. His fingers twitched slightly, as if he wanted to give them a squeeze but felt too embarrassed to do so.
The water was still cool, yet Yun Huizhou’s body temperature was warm.
The simultaneous sensation of heat and cold felt somewhat strange.
Because Yun Huizhou wasn’t tensing up, his pectorals were somewhat soft and felt quite springy to the touch.
Lian Li gave them a quick pat and immediately withdrew his hand, saying, “It’s good that you’re alright.”
Though the water on his body had been wiped away, his hair and trousers were still soaked. Yun Huizhou used his internal energy to evaporate the moisture, and they were soon dry.
Since they had found the location, the two didn’t plan on wandering around anymore. Instead, they prepared to take a proper rest right there.
Soon, noon arrived.
The two ate something in advance. Once the lotus began to heat up again, Yun Huizhou took the flower and entered the lake once more.
This time, Yun Huizhou stayed inside for much longer than before.
After realizing that Yun Huizhou had been underwater longer than the last time, Lian Li could no longer sit still.
He began to pace frantically along the shore.
He wanted to go down and check the situation, but his reason told him not to. First, his martial arts weren’t as high as Yun Huizhou’s; second, he wasn’t as good a swimmer. There wasn’t much he could do down there, and the transparent lotus wasn’t in his hands anyway.
He kept track of the time. When another five minutes had passed, he truly couldn’t hold back any longer. He raised his hand and began to unbuckle his belt, preparing to dive in and see what was happening.
He wouldn’t go deep—just ten meters or so.
Just as he had stripped off his upper garment, the sound of splashing water rang out.
He immediately turned his head. Yun Huizhou had already emerged and was floating on the surface. He called out, “Lian Li.”
Lian Li replied, “You’re finally up. You’re five minutes later than last time. Get out here, quickly.”
To his surprise, Yun Huizhou shook his head and said, “I followed the lotus’s guidance and found a passage. Moreover, the lotus, which had lost its color, turned red again as I approached the passage. I’m planning to go in and take a look.”
Lian Li frowned and said, “There’s no rush. Don’t dive twice in such a short span of time. What if something happens? Come up now.”
Yun Huizhou didn’t move, instead continuing, “If we wait until tonight, it will be even harder to see underwater.”
Lian Li realized he was using a straw man argument and immediately countered, “I’m telling you to come up and rest for a while, not to wait until the next time the lotus heats up. We still have the whole afternoon.”
Seeing that Yun Huizhou still wanted to argue, Lian Li steeled his heart and jumped straight into the lake.
He even specifically used his lightness skill when he leaped, aiming for the center of the lake right next to Yun Huizhou.
Yun Huizhou was startled by this move. Seeing Lian Li sink into the water like a lead weight the moment he hit the surface, he immediately rushed over to fish him out.
It wasn’t until he was holding Lian Li in the middle of the lake and saw the younger man glaring at him that he remembered—this kid knew how to swim, and his skills weren’t bad at all. There was no way he would sink like a stone the moment he touched the water.
The boy had done it on purpose to scare him.
Yun Huizhou felt somewhat helpless and said, “You… don’t scare me like that.”
Lian Li grabbed his wrist and pulled him toward the shore. “Come up with me. Otherwise, the moment you dive in, I’m following right behind you.”
Yun Huizhou had no choice but to yield. He used a bit of strength to pull Lian Li into an embrace, then leaped out of the water and landed on the shore.
“Fine. I’ll rest for two hours before going down again.”
Thinking he would be going back down soon anyway, Yun Huizhou didn’t bother putting his shirt back on.
The two walked to a slightly shaded spot and sat down. Lian Li asked, “How big is the passage you found?”
If the passage was too small—just enough for one person to squeeze through—he would have to persuade Yun Huizhou to give up and look for another entrance.
It was simply too dangerous; it would be disastrous if he got stuck.
If they had a long enough rope, it would be fine. They could tie it to Yun Huizhou, and if anything happened, he could tug the rope to signal Lian Li to pull him out.
Unfortunately, they didn’t have a rope that long. The longest thing they had was Lian Li’s whip.
Yun Huizhou answered, “It’s quite large. The height and width are both about two meters. It’s very spacious to swim through.”
Seeing Lian Li’s expression after he finished speaking, he knew Lian Li was worried about the safety of entering the passage.
He smiled and pulled Lian Li over, giving him a kiss. “Don’t worry. I definitely cherish this little life of mine. We haven’t even married yet; I’m not willing to die.”
Seeing Yun Huizhou suddenly turn playful, Lian Li felt both helpless and amused.
However, he didn’t reject the intimacy. He reached out, hooked his arms around Yun Huizhou’s neck, and returned the kiss.
Two hours passed quickly, and Yun Huizhou prepared to enter the lake again.
Before he went down, Lian Li repeatedly urged him not to be reckless and not to go too deep. He would rather they try multiple times than have something go wrong due to haste.
Yun Huizhou kept nodding, obediently indicating that he understood.
After two dives, although Yun Huizhou hadn’t mapped out the entire lake, he was familiar with the areas he had visited.
He reached the vicinity of the passage he had discovered faster than before. This time, he didn’t bring his blade, taking only Lian Li’s whip underwater.
A blade required a hand to hold it, and even if it were hung on his body, it would inevitably affect his balance underwater. A whip wrapped around his waist, however, had little impact.
Yun Huizhou hadn’t lied to Lian Li; the passage was indeed very spacious, enough for four people to walk side-by-side. If it weren’t underwater, he wouldn’t even have to bend his head to walk through.
He held the transparent lotus in his hand. It wasn’t the time for the lotus to heat up or turn red, but as he approached the passage, the lotus indeed reacted. The red color began to spread.
The further he went into the passage, the more the red spread.
He calculated his swimming speed against the rate at which the red was spreading; he would have time to reach the end and return with time to spare.
However, he was also afraid that Lian Li would worry if he stayed underwater too long, so he increased his speed further.
As he swam, he suddenly saw a faint light ahead. He circulated his internal energy, remaining vigilant, without slowing his pace in the slightest.
Soon, he realized he had left the passage and entered a much more expansive area.
The water here was freezing.
The water at the bottom of the oasis lake had already been quite cool due to its depth, and the water in the passage was even colder than the lakebed.
But both were nothing compared to the water he was in now.
The water here was bone-chillingly cold. Even with his internal energy protecting his body, he felt chilled to the core.
What was even more peculiar was that although the passage was clearly connected to this area, there was no gradual transition in the water temperature.
It was as if he had taken a single step from a cool place and suddenly found himself in a world of ice and snow.
This abnormal situation made Yun Huizhou even more certain that the supreme treasure was right here.
Where a supreme treasure is born, there must be anomalies.
