Chapter 25: Someone’s Up to Tricks |
The terror of death tightened around his heart again.
This time, Wu Zhong was helpless.
But just as he began to choke on water, a light suddenly appeared in the water.
Through the murky filthy water, Yang Chunsha held her breath and ignited a glow stick, lighting up the underwater surroundings.
She saw Wu Zhong in the water and kicked off, her slim body darting like a fish.
The woman grabbed Wu Zhong and pulled hard!
He didn’t budge…
She pulled harder; Wu Zhong reacted, exploding with effort, adrenaline surging as he desperately kicked upward.
Luckily the water wasn’t deep—this shallow water only reached his waist—so with both their efforts, his head finally broke the surface.
Wu Zhong hacked and gasped for air, feeling alive again; there was no better breath than this.
Yang Chunsha also surfaced, panting, and screamed, "No… don’t kill me, or I’ll kill him!"
She had a knife pressed at Wu Zhong’s throat.
She hadn’t come to rescue him—she’d mistaken Infinite Summer’s intent and grabbed Wu Zhong as a hostage.
Wu Zhong felt speechless and was about to say something when the Night Wandering Deity shoved him back under.
In the dim light, Yang Chunsha thought she saw a figure but assumed it was Infinite Summer and kept screaming, "Don’t come over!"
Because Wu Zhong sank, she also thought he was trying to escape, so she pulled with all her strength.
After much struggle she hauled him up, but he sank again.
The two of them floundered, coughing and choking; when they reached the car, Wu Zhong finally grabbed the door and used it for support to hold on.
"Cough… cough… ugh…" Wu Zhong breathed and coughed wildly.
Yang Chunsha had swallowed some water too; she still held the knife to his neck and looked toward the dim light, "Don’t come closer! Killing me won’t help—you should help me think of a way!"
Wu Zhong shouted, "Don’t move. That’s not Infinite Summer."
Yang Chunsha wailed, "I got stuck here, it’s not my fault! I’m just so unlucky—why am I so unlucky!"
Wu Zhong said, "I know, I know. Stop panicking."
Yang Chunsha tightened the knife against his throat, the blade scraping at his skin, "I really didn’t know this would happen. It’s not my fault—my tunnel was well built."
"Okay! I believe you! It’s not your fault." Wu Zhong yelled.
Those words stunned Yang Chunsha; she stared at him, dazed.
Seeing her finally quiet, Wu Zhong kept watch on the darkness, cautious: "I believe you, sister. This accident isn’t your fault. Something supernatural is messing with us."
Yang Chunsha didn’t understand what he meant; she tightened the knife, "Make Infinite Summer show himself!"
Wu Zhong laughed bitterly, "He’s not here. Put the knife down. Don’t slit my artery. Night Wandering Deities specialize in creating accidents."
"What Night Wandering Deities? What are you talking about?" Yang Chunsha shrieked. "Make Infinite Summer come out first!"
"I can see you, Infinite Summer. Don’t think I won’t recognize you just because you turned into smoke."
Wu Zhong was speechless, but he could tell Yang Chunsha was extremely nervous.
One of his hands under the water kept tugging at his own arm, fingers frantically digging.
"Sigh…"
He brought his underwater hand up and pressed the muzzle of his pistol against Yang Chunsha’s forehead.
"Sister, I’ll say this one last time: please take the knife off my neck."
"…" Yang Chunsha froze with the gun barrel on her brow.
She slowly moved the knife aside and raised both hands.
Her face was blurred, "Killing me won’t help—you need my ability to open a path…"
"Let me train for a few days; maybe before I suffocate I can learn another magic and then we’ll have a way…"
Wu Zhong ignored her, immediately aimed the gun into the dark, "Night Wandering Deity! You understand me—one shot and I’ll blow two holes in you!"
The glow stick’s light had already dimmed considerably, and the water was murky.
Wu Zhong couldn’t locate the Night Wandering Deity in the cave; he whispered, "Sister, do you have another glow stick? Light it and toss it on the car roof."
Yang Chunsha took a breath, produced another glow stick, and lit the cave.
Wu Zhong trained his gun upward and scanned the surroundings.
But there wasn’t even a ghostly shadow.
His pupils constricted; he suddenly looked into the water and then leapt up to climb onto the car roof.
But it was too late—the water seemed to have a pair of icy hands grip his ankle and yank him hard.
The force was enormous, pulling him down in an instant.
Yang Chunsha saw that and was startled.
She finally realized it wasn’t Infinite Summer.
"A ghost?"
Although the water was murky, she vaguely saw a figure—unnerving, flickering, inhuman at a glance.
She hurried up to the car roof; she hadn’t wanted to risk herself for Wu Zhong, but then thought: if that ghost kills him, I’m next.
Infinite Summer had disappeared inexplicably; the cave was suddenly haunted.
She didn’t want to face it alone—after all, when Wu Zhong nearly drowned before, the force involved wasn’t something a woman could hold back by herself.
"Grab the rope!"
Her car was right there, full of various items.
Though not a fighter by nature, as a low-level mercenary she kept basic supplies—medicine, knives, rope—ready.
"Wooah…"
Wu Zhong surfaced again, and with both their efforts he finally climbed onto the car roof.
"Damn it, you’re supposed to be a god! Playing water ghost now?"
He’d faced danger several times and felt no fear—only extreme fury.
Bang bang bang bang! He fired his gun angrily, four shots at the underwater shadow!
Okay, he didn’t hit anything.
But the bullets’ power was enough to create four pits on the water’s surface.
Those pits didn’t close; they stayed dented. No matter how the waves rippled, those rings remained unmoved.
"Ah?" Yang Chunsha was surprised.
Wu Zhong didn’t explain, staring fixedly at the water surface.
The figure in the water still didn’t emerge, instead drifting around, waiting for an opportunity.
"What is that?" Yang Chunsha asked.
"Night Wandering Deity. One of the ghosts and gods from Mount Lu, responsible for hunting me," Wu Zhong answered.
Yang Chunsha blinked and pointed at the pits in the water, "Then what are these?"
Wu Zhong replied coldly, "It’s rude to ask about someone else’s ability."
"Do you even understand the rules of the disaster world?"
She fell silent—damn, she’d been mocked by a newbie again!
Yang Chunsha adjusted her glasses and looked at Wu Zhong with deeper interest: indeed, he wasn’t just an ordinary civilian. Infinite Summer fighting the 985 unit must be because of him.
Right now, Wu Zhong held his gun and faced the Night Wandering Deity.
The deity had clearly become more skilled; this time it was using the environment and avoiding direct confrontation.
But unfortunately its power still fell short.
With Wu Zhong’s strength plus Yang Chunsha’s not-so-weak help, they were already enough to contend with the Night Wandering Deity.
Whoosh!
During the standoff, a figure suddenly emerged nearby.
Yang Chunsha was startled. Wu Zhong instantly aimed his gun, but it was Infinite Summer returning.
"Brother Xia!" Wu Zhong exclaimed with joy.
Infinite Summer had changed into clean clothes; his hair was neat and fluffy, as if freshly styled…
He held a book in one hand and a cup of milk tea in the other, sipping.
"Here, the book."
He faced the muzzle without fear, casually tossed the book to Yang Chunsha, mouth muffled by the straw.
Wu Zhong lowered the gun and was about to speak.
At the same time, the Night Wandering Deity in the water realized it had no chance and shot out of the water, darting toward a crevice in the rock wall.
"Huh?"
Infinite Summer immediately sensed it, leaped, and snapped his fingers midair, transforming into a purple-armored warrior.
With one arm he grabbed, purple viscous energy trembling in his hand; the cloudlike body collapsed and shattered on the spot.
"Brother Xia, this time—"
Wu Zhong began, but Infinite Summer had already figured it out: "Night Wandering Deity?"
"Yes, Night Wandering Deity—he’s come to get me again!" Wu Zhong gritted his teeth, expression dark.
Infinite Summer looked annoyed, "I was careless. I didn’t expect that in such a short time he’d come find you while I was gone—and he’s gotten stronger."
Wu Zhong said, "Much stronger. The tunnel collapse and the underground river’s backflow were probably his doing."
"He must have been tailing us, creating accidents ahead to try to drown me."
"After failing, he waited for you to leave and personally came to kill me… his strength this time was twice what it was before. That was close…"
Infinite Summer’s eyes hardened: "He still got away. Night Wandering Deities can abandon a physical body at night and traverse at will. The cloudlike form is only an entity when it needs physical power to condense."
Wu Zhong frowned in frustration; though the Night Wandering Deity was fragile, it was truly tenacious.
It came and went without a trace, roaming freely at night.
Chasing from Mount Lu all the way here, unseen and unheard—its small power could overwhelm by using cunning, patiently creating accidents in the dark and killing with the environment.
If one attempt fails, it tries again; if two fail, it tries three times. It grows stronger and continues to entangle.
It was like the arrival of Death itself.
"Let it go for now…"
Infinite Summer turned and glared at Yang Chunsha, "I brought the book for you. Don’t hesitate—use your magic and open a path!"
Yang Chunsha gripped the book tightly, "You appeared just now… how did you do that…"
"Don’t ask when you already know," Infinite Summer sneered.
Yang Chunsha swallowed. Instant teleportation—this was teleportation.
And Infinite Summer hadn’t been in a Multivariate Moment state when he returned; he just snapped his fingers—this meant it was his absolute trait.
No one had heard of Infinite Summer having that trait; it was clearly his secret.
No wonder he always escaped missions easily; he didn’t fuss about backup. In the disaster world everyone plans escape routes for safety before provoking a major force or taking dangerous jobs.
But Infinite Summer was different—his efficiency on missions was notoriously fast because he can teleport using an absolute trait that nothing multiversal can block.
If he hadn’t brought an ordinary civilian this time, after provoking the 985 unit he wouldn’t have needed help; he could have walked away easily. While 985 hunted him, he was probably sunning on the Mediterranean drinking juice.
He was still here in the car, purely for Wu Zhong’s sake.
"Hurry up, don’t freeze," Infinite Summer urged as he stared at her.
Yang Chunsha shivered and immediately cast a spell, splitting the rock wall to the side.
Stone roared like a mudslide, flowing and slowly opening a path.
She cautiously walked forward, with Wu Zhong and Infinite Summer following.
As the space widened, the water level inside quickly dropped.
Infinite Summer picked something up by the car and slid it into a cloth pouch at his waist; Wu Zhong glanced and his pupils constricted—a dead head.
Yes, a human head, preserved and a bit shriveled.
"Ah? Sick freak?" Wu Zhong’s heart lurched.
Then he recalled Infinite Summer had tossed something into the water before leaving, and it clicked.
"Could it be… I know now—this is his teleportation marker."
Wu Zhong’s face went odd as he realized Infinite Summer’s teleportation medium was that head.
Probably any corpse or severed head worked, which explained the meeting at the Mourning Hall and waiting near corpses at the Funeral Parlor.
Seeing Infinite Summer didn’t want to explain, Wu Zhong wisely didn’t ask further.
Infinite Summer studied the four circular rings on the ground and asked, "What’s this?"
He picked up a ring; Wu Zhong suddenly realized, "I made those…"
They were four water rings, or water bracelets—composed entirely of murky water.
They were created when his gunshots struck the water surface… water gates!
Now that the water level had receded, these four water gates still hadn’t disappeared.
Infinite Summer played with them, surprised at first—Wu Zhong’s ability indeed had room for development—then his expression turned conflicted, troubled, and regretful.
"You really can’t dispel them?"
Wu Zhong picked one up and casually crushed it; it slumped away through his fingers, "I can’t dispel them, but I can destroy them. If destroying them means they’re no longer doors, then that counts as dispelling."
"Hmm, these nonstandard doors aren’t passive. I don’t usually blast water like that. Only when I strongly intend to open a door would something like this form."
This fit the nature of disaster artifacts: some ghostly things behaved exactly like that. Infinite Summer nodded helplessly and put the remaining three unusual water gates away.
"It seems when you open a door where no door should exist—or say, create a door—the door’s existence state becomes locked."
"Except for you, no one can change its properties, and it cannot be destroyed."
Wu Zhong recalled previously opened doors could be cracked by others; people just couldn’t change the open/closed state.
But the water gates he had formed persisted even when the water themselves were gone. This kind of 'open-hole flow' trigger wasn’t simply opening a door; it actually created a door.
So the water’s properties were anchored—the state at the moment of creation is immutable, including its elemental composition.
Wu Zhong tilted his head, "I understand, but indestructible? It feels soft; it can be broken."
Infinite Summer hummed, "It has elasticity, not absolute rigidity. It can be damaged and show cracks, and even conduct and transmit energy, so it’s not like Bastet Metal that’s truly indestructible."
"You can think of it as damageable, but no matter the damage, it’s still that door."
"Hmm, kind of like soft invincibility."
"Don’t use this trick casually in the future."
"Understood." Wu Zhong nodded.
Infinite Summer then quietly asked, "Did she see it?"
Wu Zhong still nodded.
Infinite Summer’s gaze at Yang Chunsha’s back sharpened instantly.
Sensing this, Yang Chunsha turned abruptly, "Earth Flow Wall!"
The book in her hand moved on its own as if blown by wind; she had already walked twenty or so meters and now turned to seal off the path behind them.
A huge wall rose, dividing her from the two men and trying to trap them in a death snare.
"Heh."
Infinite Summer sneered, purple light swirling as he launched at high speed.
His body became a faint purple blur, nearly invisible, and he surged to the rock wall, striking three punches in succession.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The rock wall shattered and exploded open. At that moment Yang Chunsha hadn’t yet raised a second wall.
"Ah!"
She screamed as flying rubble scratched her face and arms.
The next second everything blurred before her eyes, and Infinite Summer seized her with one hand.
He clamped her by the neck and hoisted her high.