After Master Longbrow jumped into the river, he eagerly descended toward the riverbed.
Though he carried no lighting, as a powerhouse with nine strands of true qi, his eyesight was exceptional, allowing him to clearly see everything within a three-metre radius.
He glanced back, noticing Ye Qiu hadn’t followed, and his heart leapt with glee.
“Lad, didn’t expect me to pull this one on you, eh?”
“By the time you catch on, I’ll already have the treasure.”
“Hahaha…”
Master Longbrow was thrilled.
Soon, he reached a depth of thirty metres, where he spotted a sunken ship.
The wreck rested on a reef, adorned with the Dragon Gate’s flag, and contained a dozen or so corpses inside the cabin.
“Poor sods, dying here like this.”
“Sorry, I’m not part of the Dragon Gate, no obligation to haul you lot out.”
“But don’t worry, your leader will come to retrieve you soon, just hang on!”
Master Longbrow continued his descent.
Before long, he reached the riverbed.
Looking around, he saw nothing but stones, waterweeds, and plenty of silt.
“Where’s the treasure?”
Master Longbrow scanned the area, finding no sign of treasure, and began to wonder, “Did that lad trick me?”
“No, if he was deceiving me, he wouldn’t bother taking Xiao Zhan down with him.”
“There’s definitely treasure here.”
Bold and skilled, Master Longbrow walked along the riverbed, searching for the prize.
After about twenty metres, his gaze suddenly sharpened.
“Eh, what’s that?”
Master Longbrow stopped in his tracks.
Before him lay a large patch of silt.
At its centre, faintly visible, was what looked like a piece of wood protruding from the mud.
“Could it be gloomwood?”
Gloomwood, also known as Eastern divine wood, refers to trees buried in silt, transformed into ebony through thousands of years of carbonisation.
Such wood is priceless, as the saying goes, “Half a square of ebony is worth more than a chest of riches.”
Moreover, gloomwood is an ideal material for crafting items to ward off evil.
“If it’s really gloomwood, I’ve struck gold.”
The distance made it hard to see clearly, so Master Longbrow pulled out a flame talisman.
“Swift!”
With a flick of his right hand, he tossed the talisman.
Remarkably, despite being underwater, the flame talisman ignited instantly, shining like a star, illuminating the riverbed.
In an instant, Master Longbrow’s vision cleared.
Everything within a ten-metre radius was visible.
Now he saw it clearly, the object in the silt wasn’t gloomwood but a half-metre-long ox horn, as thick as a bowl’s rim.
“Hm, why an ox horn?”
Master Longbrow was surprised, “Could an ox have died here?”
“No, no ox is that big.”
He pulled a copper coin from his robe sleeve and flicked it with his finger.
Whoosh—
The coin shot through the water like a bullet, striking the horn.
Clang!
A dull metallic sound echoed.
“A bronze artefact?”
Master Longbrow’s eyes lit up, realising he’d found treasure.
“The horn’s exposed above the silt, does that mean the whole ox is buried beneath?”
“If so, this is absolutely a national treasure.”
“Bloody hell, I’ve really hit the jackpot.”
Excitedly rubbing his hands, Master Longbrow darted forward, landing lightly on the horn with his right foot.
He bent down, touching the horn.
It was cold to the touch.
“No doubt, it’s bronze.” Barely containing his excitement, Master Longbrow gripped the horn, flipped upside down, and shouted, “Up!”
To his surprise, the horn didn’t budge.
Instead of being discouraged, Master Longbrow grew even more excited.
“My guess was right, it’s a complete bronze ox, though I don’t know from which era.”
He channelled all nine strands of true qi, focusing his strength into his right arm, and roared again.
“Up!”
Buzz—
The horn finally shifted, the silt sinking slightly, but it only trembled.
Master Longbrow was stunned.
“I may not be as freakishly strong as the lad, but that pull had at least a few thousand pounds of force, yet it only made the bronze ox quiver. This thing must weigh ten thousand pounds at least.”
“Not just a bronze relic, even if sold by weight, it’d fetch a fortune.”
“The lad didn’t lie to me, he’s good to me.”
Muttering to himself, Master Longbrow began pondering how to extract the bronze ox.
But after much thought, he came up empty.
After all, the bronze ox was embedded in the silt, incredibly heavy.
“Looks like I’ll need the lad’s help, he’s strong enough to haul this thing out for me.”
Then, Master Longbrow hesitated.
“No, no, what if the lad takes a liking to this treasure and wants to claim it?”
“Give it to him? I can’t bear to part with it, it’s a bronze relic.”
“Don’t give it? He’ll thrash me.”
“This is tough…”
Master Longbrow frowned, torn.
Just then, with a loud rumble, the horn moved, and the surrounding silt began to collapse.
In an instant, the entire bronze ox emerged.
Seeing it clearly, Master Longbrow gasped.
“Hiss—massive!”
It was a bronze rhinoceros, about three metres long and two metres tall, with a single horn pointing skyward, eyes gleaming, and a majestic form.
On its back was an inscribed text.
“Refined bronze, mystic rhinoceros, guarding the Ling River, forever taming the waves.”
Beside it, smaller text read:
“Cast in the third year of Kangxi, Qing Dynasty!”
After reading the inscription, Master Longbrow’s excitement vanished, and he cursed loudly.
“Bloody hell, I thought it was some grand treasure, turns out it’s just a water-taming beast.”
“And from the Kangxi era, it’s practically worthless.”
“All that effort for nothing.”
Suddenly, Master Longbrow stared at the bronze rhinoceros, his eyes glinting as he muttered, “Should I bury it back in the silt and tell the lad there’s treasure here, let him get his hopes up for nothing?”
After some thought, he gave up.
“Forget it, this water-taming beast is too heavy. Instead of using it to prank the lad, I’d rather keep looking for treasure.”
“Since there’s a water-taming beast here, there must be other treasures.”
With that, Master Longbrow prepared to leave.
Just then, he felt a chill on his calf. Looking down, he saw a black handprint on his ankle, resembling an infant’s palm.
