Master Longbrow finished reciting, turned to Ye Qiu, and asked, “Little brat, how’s my poem?”
Ye Qiu said, “Your poem…”
Before he could finish, Master Longbrow cut in, laughing, “Are you about to say this Taoist wrote it well?”
“No need to praise me, or I’ll get proud.”
“As the old saying goes, pride leads to regression, humility to progress. This Taoist must stay humble.”
“But honestly, my poetry is just average, not on par with Su Dongpo.”
Not on par? It’s leagues behind by a hundred thousand miles.
Ye Qiu was just mentally scoffing when Master Longbrow added, “But compared to Xin Qiji, it’s more than enough.”
Don’t you dare insult Xin Qiji!
You’re not worthy!
Ye Qiu wanted to punch the old thing in the face. He’d seen shameless, but never this shameless.
“Old thing, enough nonsense. Figure out how we get down there,” Ye Qiu said.
“This Taoist is prepared,” Master Longbrow said, sitting down to remove his cloth shoes, pulling four yellowed talismans from the soles and handing two to Ye Qiu.
Ye Qiu looked disgusted. Before even taking the talismans, he smelled a sour stench.
He felt like vomiting!
“Just a few talismans, hidden so carefully, really?” Ye Qiu said scornfully.
Master Longbrow explained, “Little brat, don’t underestimate these talismans. They were drawn by Master Cave Mystic himself. He used them to reach the bottom of Tianchi back then.”
Oh?
Ye Qiu’s face showed surprise. Taking the talismans, he instantly sensed their extraordinary nature.
They were drawn on parchment.
Each stroke carried a profound charm.
“These are… Water-Repelling Talismans?” Ye Qiu recognized them.
Master Longbrow exclaimed, “Well, look at you, kid, you’ve got some knowledge, spotting it right away. Yes, these are Water-Repelling Talismans.”
Ye Qiu knew them because the Ye family ancestor’s teachings mentioned such talismans.
However, Water-Repelling Talismans were advanced, and with Ye Qiu’s current cultivation, he couldn’t draw them.
This showed Master Cave Mystic’s cultivation was unfathomably deep.
Master Longbrow said, “Master Cave Mystic left dozens of Water-Repelling Talismans, but my wasteful master used most of them. Now only these four remain.”
“With these, we can easily enter Tianchi and come back out.”
Ye Qiu said, “The talismans can get us into Tianchi, but old thing, don’t forget, there are still plenty of swordfish in there. What if we’re attacked by them underwater?”
Master Longbrow laughed, “Little brat, with your cultivation, you’re scared of a few swordfish?”
Ye Qiu said, “A few? I’m not afraid. But what if thousands of swordfish attack?”
Swordfish were incredibly fast, their fin spines razor-sharp. Facing thousands would be trouble.
“No need to worry, mere swordfish won’t dare attack us,” Master Longbrow said confidently.
Ye Qiu glanced at him and asked, “What’s your plan?”
Master Longbrow pulled a handful of Flame Talismans from his sleeve, handed them to Ye Qiu, and said, “Swordfish fear fire.”
“These Flame Talismans, drawn by me, can burn in any environment.”
“Even underwater.”
Ye Qiu realized Master Longbrow had made thorough preparations to find the treasure in the Golden City.
“In that case, let’s not delay. Let’s go down and see.”
Ye Qiu took the Flame Talismans and put them in his pocket.
“Little brat, using the Water-Repelling Talisman is simple. Just place it under your tongue,” Master Longbrow said.
Ye Qiu said, “Show me how.”
Master Longbrow placed a talisman under his tongue and said, “Got it?”
Ye Qiu’s face broke into a bright smile.
“What are you grinning at?” Master Longbrow asked.
Ye Qiu smiled, infused true qi into the talisman, then crushed it. Instantly, the Water-Repelling Talisman emitted a faint blue glow.
Splash!
Ye Qiu jumped into Tianchi, the blue glow forming a shield around him, repelling the water.
Like a massive stone, his body sank rapidly toward the bottom of Tianchi.
“Damn, you can use the Water-Repelling Talisman like that?”
Master Longbrow was stunned, only then realizing why Ye Qiu had smiled.
He quickly pulled the talisman from under his tongue, gagged twice, then crushed his own Water-Repelling Talisman.
Just like Ye Qiu, the talisman emitted a blue glow upon breaking.
Master Longbrow jumped into Tianchi, the blue glow enveloping him, and his body plummeted toward the bottom.
The water was pitch black, visibility zero.
Master Longbrow pulled a military flashlight from his robe sleeve, chuckling, “This Taoist knew it’d be dark down here, so I got a military flashlight from Tang Fei in advance.”
“Little brat, didn’t expect that, did you?”
“Plunging down like you did, if you hit a rock or something, it’d be a miracle if you didn’t die.”
“Oh, wait, I forgot, your body’s tough, not afraid of a fall.”
“No matter, as long as I see you in a mess, this Taoist’s happy.”
Unbeknownst to him, Ye Qiu’s Heavenly Eye allowed him to see clearly within thirty metres, even without a flashlight.
Suddenly.
Ye Qiu sensed movement below, white streaks shooting up like lightning.
“Swordfish!”
Ye Qiu was about to use a Flame Talisman when he noticed the swordfish seemed to ignore him, rushing past.
What’s going on?
Ye Qiu looked up and saw a light source above, with the swordfish heading straight for it.
Ye Qiu cursed inwardly, “That old thing hid a flashlight and didn’t tell me. Now he’s drawn all the swordfish to himself. Good luck!”
Master Longbrow was still smug, hoping to see Ye Qiu embarrassed, when he suddenly noticed countless swordfish charging at him. Startled, he immediately used a Flame Talisman.
Boom!
Flames appeared.
But to his surprise, the swordfish didn’t flee or scatter upon seeing the fire. Instead, they surrounded him.
Soon, hundreds of swordfish were around Master Longbrow, eyeing him menacingly.
At the same time, they bared their teeth at him.
Master Longbrow’s scalp tingled.
“This Taoist is old and tough, why are you surrounding me? If you want food, go eat the little brat!”
In his panic, Ye Qiu’s voice reached him.
“Old thing, turn off the flashlight,” Ye Qiu transmitted secretly.
Master Longbrow reacted, quickly switching off the flashlight.
Then.
A scream echoed.
“Ah… this Taoist hit a rock, it hurts…”
