Cursed Mountains and Seas

Chapter 87 A disaster! The siblings' identities are exposed.
Pfft!Pfft!
Wang Cheng and A Xiao, who were the first to jump into the ancient well, have already landed in the "Jiulong River," which is much wider than the real world.

The turbulent river flows mightily from west to east into the sea, resembling a winding black dragon.

Looking up, they could clearly see a towering, black iron tower, as tall as a mountain, standing at the source of the great river, with bells hanging from it and corpses suspended from it, exactly the same as what they had seen in their dreams.

A strong yet sinister dragon aura swept over us.

Wang Cheng saw many strangely shaped "dragon creatures" swimming around at the bottom of the water.

Even without the heartbeat and vitality of living beings, it must have originated from human willpower and is part of the historical dregs of humanistic phenomena.

Not far from them, on the shore, was Moon Harbor, bathed in a golden light.

A beam of light shot out from the top of Baoshan Beacon Tower, completely isolating Yuegang Port from the dark river waters shrouded in historical dregs, preventing it from being affected.

Knowing the inside story, Wang Cheng couldn't help but feel a trace of worry on his face:
"This is the national treasure of the Shen family, the God of Wealth, the Treasure Basin? If Master's identity is exposed because of this, things will be terrible."

His loyalty to the public good was only because the two interests aligned, but when the two conflicted, the master decisively chose the public good. The master should be the president!

With a graceful somersault, Ah Xiao's clothes fluttered as she touched the crest of a wave with her toes.

Her graceful figure resembled a swaying lotus flower. She glanced back at Wang Cheng, who was also walking on the waves, and asked hesitantly:

"Fugui, Yuegang is alright now."

To save Madam Yan, someone you have no connection with, you might risk your own life. Are you still willing to continue walking with me?

Having been influenced by his mentor, Wang Cheng had long since developed an impenetrable thick skin, and could spontaneously utter polite phrases:
"We are men of our word, and we never go back on our promises. Where righteousness lies, there is no turning back."

Sister Axiao, aren't you the same? I'm just learning from you.

Let's hurry up and go.

Yan Yunxiao was greatly pleased:
"Fugui, on behalf of Madam Yan, thank you. You are truly a good person."

If you take his hand, you must use the method of "yin transformation" to ride the waves upstream.

During this time, Wang Cheng looked up at the Nine Dragon Pool in the far distance and felt as if he had forgotten something very important, but he couldn't remember it for a moment.

At the same time, the sound of splashing into the water behind me rang out like dumplings being dropped into boiling water.

However, Tang Miaofu and her group caught up with them and all fell into the water.

Knowing in advance which historical dregs were involved, these people were well-prepared, each wearing a water-repelling talisman on their chest, and swam in the water as fast as fish.

They were scattered across a wide expanse of water spanning several kilometers, and could not reunite for the time being.

"Captain Tang, let me take them down!"

[Second Cobbler] Eager to make a name for himself, Master Chen and his personal guards took off the roll of leather that was wrapped around their waists and wrapped it around their bodies.

Instantly, they transformed into a group of ferocious fish such as sharks, sailfish, and swordfish, leaving streaks of white in the water as they swiftly pounced on the two.

This is precisely the craftsman's specialty: making livestock!

They can use animal hides stripped from various animals and monsters to transform people into the corresponding animals and gain their abilities.

Of course, they will also inherit some animalistic traits, and over time they may really turn into livestock.

It is in the same lineage as the "Jinyi Technique," which can peel off a person's skin and replace it.

By the time they caught up with Wang Cheng and A Xiao, they had already strayed far from their already scattered main formation.

A-Xiao and Wang Cheng worked in perfect harmony, and with a wave of her hand, they stirred up a cloud of white mist on the river.

Facing the school of fish, Wang Cheng formed the Dragon-Subduing Seal with his hands, subduing the dragon-like destiny within him, and roared:
"Roar--!"

When a dragon flies low overhead after the rain, a casual roar can terrify cattle and horses. They may appear unharmed, but inside they will be charred and killed by the force of lightning.

Wang Cheng doesn't have that ability yet, but he can certainly use it to scare people.

In an instant, the group of "created beasts" completely lost control of the instinctive fear emanating from the animal skins, and ran around like headless flies.

When animal hides and dragon robes clash, the superiority is immediately apparent!

Only the cobbler, who had transformed into a great white shark, could still keep charging forward.

At the same time, various dragon-like fish species at the bottom of the nearby river responded to the call the moment they heard the dragon's roar and gathered around Wang Cheng.

Clearly, this historical dregs are far more friendly to the dragons than to humans, almost like a second home ground for the two of them.

"The Seven True Ones of the Big Dipper, who govern all spirits. East, west, south, and north, protect yourselves and move forward! Go!"

Wang Cheng pointed forward with his right hand and sword, and the school of fish immediately merged into a torrent that surged back against the group of "creating beasts".

They opened their mouths, their oral cavity filled with sharp, gleaming teeth like daggers, and began to gnaw indiscriminately around the "creating beast."

"Ahhhh——!"

"This is the Enlightenment Technique of [Bai Shuilang]!"

"He's only a seventh-rank official, how could he suddenly attract so many helpers? Does being a disciple of a high-ranking official mean one can disregard metaphysics?"

Most of the "animals" were ordinary people who had not lit the lamp of their hearts. Once their animal skins were torn, they all turned back into human form and were dragged into the deep water by the fish and torn to pieces.

Only Master Chen, a skilled seventh-rank leather craftsman, managed to break through the encirclement, but he was already covered in wounds when he emerged alone.

He was greeted by three black water thunderbolts that A-Xiao had collected from the Gui water rain and dew.

boom! boom! boom!
They formed a triangular shape, surrounding the two cobblers in the middle, before exploding into a huge white splash of water.

Q: Why is the power of an underwater explosion far greater than that of an air explosion when the explosive charge is the same?

This is because water is about 835 times denser than air and is almost incompressible, so it can naturally conduct the force of an explosion perfectly.

Non-contact explosions can still produce enormous destructive power; even an ironclad warship could be cut in half by a heavy torpedo.

Even the second-rate cobbler was no exception.

In the aquatic environment, he was besieged by two opponents of the same level, equivalent to the peak of the seventh rank, and was instantly and brutally killed. As a cloud of murky blood mist dissipated, it spread across the entire river surface.

Only a sliver of red light caught the eye of the money.

It turns out to be a strange technique from the same secret Taoist book, "The Secret Instructions of Human Affairs"—the [Transformation into a Maiden Technique].

As the name suggests, it can turn men into beautiful women, which is simply a great blessing for ocean sailors, making "Brother, you smell so good" a reality.

“I am a righteous gentleman who has studied the Spring and Autumn Annals. How come I have always been associated with this evil practice? It’s just slandering my innocence out of thin air.”

This time, however, Wang Cheng was too embarrassed to say that he would never need it, and quietly put it into the Dharma Treasury.

Then he commanded the fish monsters in the river to charge towards Tang Miaofu's main force further behind.

The pursuers behind them dared not advance any further and all scrambled to swim toward the strongest boatwoman on West Lake.

Tang Miaofu immediately took out two talismanic items from her purse:

The golden plate on which Zhao Feiyan danced is called the "Flying Swallow Plate," and inside the plate is the papaya that An Lushan threw, injuring Yang Yuhuan's breast.

Their former owners were all infamous femme fatales in history. Although they were not of high rank and could only be considered treasures of their respective households, each of them possessed extraordinary qualities.

The papaya, which had remained unspoiled for thousands of years, emitted a faint fragrance, causing the strange, low-witted fish in the water to avoid it, as if they couldn't bear to harm it.

"Don't just stand there, go after them! Kill those two scoundrels!"

But when they broke through the white fog that obscured their view, there was no trace of the two people on the river.

Wang Cheng and A Xiao had already dived underwater, like two large fish that didn't need to breathe, shooting straight up the Jiulong River, even faster than those "animal-creating creatures" that had just transformed into fish.

Moreover, the more they swam, the faster they got, and the more energetic they became.

"Sister Axiao, I don't know why, but I feel like this river is particularly easy to swim in. Even if we swim to the source, it shouldn't take more than a day."

Wang Cheng, caught in his professional habit as a ship's naval commander, was silently calculating the mileage when he suddenly heard A-Xiao say in a complicated tone:
"Wang Cheng, your true colors are showing."

Upon hearing this, the former was taken aback.

'A fox's tail? My natal star deity is the Horned Wood Dragon, not the Heart Moon Fox, so where would a fox's tail come from? Wait a minute!'

Suddenly realizing something was off about what the other person was saying, I shuddered.

Forcibly suppressing the urge to turn around immediately, he said with a glimmer of hope:
"Sister Axiao, who were you calling just now?"

Then Ah Xiao continued in a confident tone:

"Oh, I misspoke. It's not a fox tail, it's a... Chiwen tail."

When Wang Cheng turned around, he indeed saw a fiery red dragon's tail trailing behind him.

My heart skipped a beat.

"Oh no! His disguise has been exposed."

No wonder you swam so fast just now.

At this point, he finally remembered what important thing he had forgotten.

That is, once it enters the dregs of history, the dragon aura on its body will manifest in the story of "Fishing for the Dragon at the Stone Drum", and even the Four Seas Coins cannot hide it.

Wang Cheng stared at A Xiao's exquisitely beautiful face, which held a mixture of a half-smile and a hint of gritted teeth, and was speechless.

On the surface, he was fearless and willing to help others even at his own expense, always putting public interest first in order to save Yuegang, save Madam Yan, and protect the Tanka people.

They gained a lot of goodwill and even received a friend's card, but what was the result?

Others were just innocent bystanders, but the Crown Prince was the one who ignited the fire at the city gates!

The thief cried "stop thief!" but was caught red-handed.

All the lofty ideals and grand promises he made under the guise of "Wang Fugui" turned into cold, icy rain, slapping him haphazardly across the face!

Then, as if he had seen something, his expression froze, and he uttered a soft, hesitant sentence:
"Your tail's showing too, Sister Yan!"

"what?"

When Yan Yunxiao looked back, she saw that a long silver dragon tail had appeared behind her, and the more she swam forward, the more obvious the dragon-like features on her body became.

The scales on its cheeks, the sharp claws on its hands, and the pair of coral-like dragon horns on its forehead were crystal clear and lovely.

Although it differs from the silver dragon from that night, it is more than enough to identify its identity.

They were all immediately rendered speechless.

The image she presented to Wang Cheng was similar to that of "Wang Fugui".

From the very beginning, they were "good temple keepers of Dazhao". For their sincere faith and for the temple keepers among the Tanka people who were murdered, they were not afraid of hardship or fatigue and fought bravely on the front line.

During this period of constant natural and man-made disasters in Yuegang, I've almost become a living bodhisattva who saves people from suffering, earning a huge amount of incense offerings and prayers.

Before and after the Japanese invasion, these two were the most active. Among the temple priests and soldiers of the Wufengqi, Shanhaihui, and Tianfei factions who were unaware of the inside story, they all praised them.
Just for this dedication to both public and private matters, Wang Cheng almost recruited her into the Yixin Society (Chapter 66).

In reality, both Wang Cheng and Yun Xiao were willing to act as vanguards, protecting everyone behind them.

It has never had anything to do with being of one mind for the public good or for private interests; it's all just a selfish desire that's more real than real gold!
Before their identities were revealed, they were all using each other as pawns.

The two looked into each other's eyes and, as if on cue, cursed each other silently:
"This old six!"

"This heartless maggot!"

In the end, Yan Yunxiao prevailed. With a furrowed brow, she grabbed Wang Cheng's ear:

"No matter how big or small, Xiao Chengzi, call her Aunt Yan!"

(End of this chapter)