NHWSG chapter 18

Dimly, he only heard a series of splashing sounds by his ear, as if something had fallen into the water with him.

However, he was so dizzy from the icy and fishy water that he had no time to assess the situation outside.

The instinct for survival forced him to crazily squeeze out the remaining strength in his body. He struggled in vain, but even on land, he couldn’t contend with the mysterious chain. In the water, it was even more so. Despite his desperate struggles, he was still dragged by the chain, unimpeded, towards the riverbed.

Maybe after a long time, or maybe just a few seconds, Sheng Zhao’s remaining strength was exhausted. His slow and feeble movements became slower, and the water-choked lungs were on the verge of exploding. His vision darkened, and he almost felt like he would faint the next moment.

For Sheng Zhao, time seemed to have suddenly transformed into an axis, slowing down to an extreme. However, his senses became increasingly clear. He could almost feel his limbs and body gradually becoming stiff and icy, as if experiencing a slow freezing process, starting from his fingertips.

After reaching the threshold of fear, it seemed to be inexplicably pulled out of his body. Whether it was because his body was now unable to support an excited reaction, Sheng Zhao felt his entire body go weak. His mind seemed to turn into a pile of porridge, and a bunch of bizarre thoughts emerged.

“Do you have sensations after death?” Sheng Zhao suddenly thought. “If I were frozen in the mortuary after taking my last breath, would it feel like this?”

His mind was filled with such whimsical thoughts, but he had become drowsy. He felt a dense pain surging in his chest, as if someone had inexplicably stuffed a bundle of burning fire into him, almost reducing his internal organs to ashes.

Pain and numbness tugged at him from all directions, as if placing him between water and fire, where his fragile body could be shattered at any moment.

“Am I going to die?” Sheng Zhao suddenly wondered.

Before he could delve into this question, he felt a sudden halt in his rapid descent, a brief pause.

Instinctively opening his eyes, enduring the stinging sensation of dirty water rushing into his eyes, he first saw the source of the iron chain.

Contrary to his imagination, the thing did not come from the riverbed of the underground river but from a farther upstream river. The end of the iron chain disappeared into the thick and viscous darkness. For a moment, Sheng Zhao felt as if there was something colossal flashing in the darkness.

“Breathe.”

Without warning, Xing Yingzhu’s voice echoed in his ears. Sheng Zhao, without investigating how he could speak underwater, subconsciously followed the order and took a deep breath.

Then… he realized that, somehow, he could breathe.

Turning his head abruptly, he discovered that Xing Yingzhu was “floating” beside him. One hand firmly pressed on his shoulder, the other reaching around his body, ready to bend down and reach the iron chain entwined around him.

“Damn—”

Sheng Zhao stared at him in shock, momentarily unsure which was more surreal: “How did he appear here?” or “Why did he jump down to save me?”

As he caught his breath, Sheng Zhao finally noticed a thin “membrane” covering him, seemingly appearing out of nowhere. The thing was as thin as cicada wings, emitting a faint glow, tightly covering him from head to toe, like he had been wrapped into a mummy.

His gaze followed the glow downwards, and he discovered that the light source seemed to come from his own pocket.

Xing Yingzhu’s complexion was not good. Judging by his expression, those who knew him would think he was being heroic, while those who didn’t might believe Sheng Zhao owed him 18 million and was about to commit suicide.

The peculiar iron chain seemed wary of him. As soon as Xing Yingzhu reached out, the chain, as if spontaneously coming to life, swiftly left Sheng Zhao’s waist, rushing back into the depths of the river.

With the force pulling Sheng Zhao loosening suddenly, unable to maintain balance in the water, he was swept around by the current and fell into Xing Yingzhu’s hands.

“Boss—”

Sheng Zhao’s brain malfunctioned. He subconsciously wanted to ask why he was here, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he spat out a bunch of bubbles, looking like he was acting in a “Little Fish Adventure,” destroying any atmosphere.

However, Xing Yingzhu cast him a casual glance, seemingly about to say something.

Sheng Zhao stared at him blankly, and his mind involuntarily played back Xing Yingzhu’s tone when speaking.

Unfortunately, he couldn’t hear Xing Yingzhu’s voice. The chain that had just retreated suddenly and mysteriously rushed out again, entwining his ankle and swiftly pulling him backward.

It was as if it had been hiding in the dark, waiting for Xing Yingzhu to let down his guard, and then it would launch a surprise attack.

Accompanying the chain this time was the enormous creature tethered to the end of the chain. The creature abruptly stood up from the riverbed and rushed towards the direction of the chain.

It was only at this moment that Sheng Zhao suddenly saw its appearance.

The creature had two long horns, shining bright eyes with narrow and long pupils, and its eyeballs had a murky yellow tint. Covered in dusty black scales, sharp claws sank into the river’s sandy bottom, and its long body curled up, appearing ready to strike.

From Sheng Zhao’s meager materialistic knowledge, this thing unexpectedly looked like a not-so-handsome dragon.

When it stood up, the originally normal water flow in the underground river was disturbed by it, creating a massive whirlpool in an instant.

The river seemed deeper and wider than Sheng Zhao imagined, and the flowing water carried a salty and fishy smell. He almost felt like they had left the urban area and rushed into an estuary.

Xing Yingzhu’s complexion changed a few times, and he chased after.

Just as they were pulled into the vortex, Sheng Zhao, with the help of the firefly, clearly saw the changes happening to Xing Yingzhu.

His pitch-black eyes suddenly flashed a barely perceptible dark light, his pupils contracted and elongated, and bloodshot veins instantly spread across his entire eyeball.

So, I’m not about to die. Sheng Zhao thought almost numbly. I’m going crazy.

Otherwise, how could he see his usually ill-tempered, fond of red bean coconut milk tea, beautiful boss transform in an instant, looking even more terrifying than the creature behind him?

The demonic dragon seemed to want a quick resolution. Sheng Zhao, dazed, had already been dragged to the riverbed by it. Subconsciously curling his body to protect his head, he still felt the stones on the riverbed scrape against his back and shoulders.

He could almost sense the changes in the water around him. The dragon’s bloody mouth was wide open, and Sheng Zhao could even see its bloodshot fangs from the corner of his eye.

The nauseating stench of rotten flesh was inches away. Sheng Zhao retched, but strangely, he didn’t feel afraid.

—Because the pointed teeth of the monstrous dragon remained a hand’s width away from his face, unable to get any closer.

A giant serpent, several dozen meters long, agilely bit onto its throat, and then suddenly exerted force, slamming it fiercely onto the riverbed.

The accumulated mud and debris at the riverbed were splashed up three feet high, instantly muddying the water. Sheng Zhao was forcefully pushed back by this powerful impact, crashing onto the adjacent riverbed, nearly vomiting out last night’s dinner.

The dragon emitted a sound, a muffled roar that seemed both angry and fearful. Sheng Zhao, struggling, managed to climb up from the riverbed, only to be almost knocked out again by the dragon’s roar.

Glancing at the scene, the giant serpent looked more pleasing than the dragon. It was entirely black, with only a circle of eye-catching scales around its neck. When illuminated by the fluorescence, it revealed a shimmering and colorful dark green.

The dragon, though majestic, was more of a show-off. It had two long horns and unexpectedly engaged in a back-and-forth struggle with the giant serpent. Rolling on the ground in a difficult manner, it attempted to remove the black serpent from its body.

Despite his uncertainty, Sheng Zhao, in a desperate move, reached out to grab a protruding stone on the ground to prevent himself from being washed away by the water. He opened his mouth, blowing bubbles, and shouted shakily at the giant serpent, “Boss, is that you?”