Iron Bull taucht wieder auf

Kapitel 124

The destructive power of deep-sea water pressure is astonishing; even the synthetic metal deck of a 10,000-ton ship can be mercilessly torn apart like a cardboard box under its destructive force.

"Never give up—" This is my principle in doing things. As long as I have a breath left, I will never give up. I jumped into the water again. My clothes were immediately soaked with seawater, and the cold was bone-chilling. But with my profound internal strength, I gathered my energy and successfully made my way up the tower.

Roughly estimating, I thought I could reach the top of the tower and climb to the top of that transparent glass in about two minutes, but suddenly my head slammed into a hard surface with a bang. My Baihui acupoint was violently shaken, and my true energy dissipated in an instant. Seawater rushed into my nostrils and mouth.

I quickly pinched my nose and covered my mouth, letting my body fall freely downwards. Given this unexpected turn of events, I had no choice but to retreat back into the tower for the time being.

During the descent, I kept looking up, only to be surprised to find a layer of seaweed spread out on top of me—"Could it be... that we've burrowed into a sandbed and are already covered by seaweed? What did I hit? Was it an underwater reef?" My head was throbbing, and the unexpected shock had severely damaged my confidence.

After my body plummeted to the top tower door, I gently moved my arms a few times and re-entered the tower. Once the initial shock subsided, I touched the top of my head; a large lump had swollen up to the side of my Baihui acupoint, and it was incredibly painful.

The most confusing thing is, what exactly did I bump into?

Thinking back, how could I have hit the rocks without making a "bang" sound? It felt like I hit a flat surface, like glass. Like a sparrow trapped in a house, desperately banging against the window, making a "bang bang" sound.

"Could it be glass? Could it be glass like the one above my head?" I sat dejectedly on the steps, watching the seawater dripping down my body turn into trickles and flow downwards.

The worst-case scenario is that we're stuck among the jagged reefs on the seabed. I can't possibly squeeze through the gaps in the rocks to get to the glass. The only way is to circle the tower and see if I can break through the reef encirclement. If we're really stuck, it's definitely a dead end; even a military submarine can't get close enough to carry out a rescue operation.

I let out a long, frustrated sigh, somewhat regretting that I had gotten involved in the internal affairs of Fengge Temple.

If I had just stayed quietly in Xunfuyuan, none of these complicated changes would have happened. My most important mission in coming to Hokkaido was to find clues about my older brother, Yang Tian. Perhaps he is trapped in some mysterious corner, waiting for someone's help... And I, his only brother, have inexplicably fallen to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean because of some trivial matters of others.

"If I die here, will Suren be in pain?" I thought of Suren, and of how she was angry with me in the Egyptian desert for fighting so recklessly for Tina. I knew she genuinely cared for me, worried that stray bullets from the Egyptian Rainbow Army might injure me. And this time? Was she angry because I still couldn't forget Guan Baoling?

I wrung out the water from my sleeves and reached into my pockets: wallet, phone, pen, handkerchief, and of course, the black and silver ring. Everything was soaked from the seawater and piled up on the steps. I had been distracted by Guan Baoling's mention of the tycoon and had even forgotten to empty my pockets before going into the water.

At this point, I couldn't worry about catching a cold. I needed to pull myself together and swim out again to see the surroundings.

"A tycoon? If the tycoon were here, what would he do?" I took off my coat, frowning and sneering.

It is said that the tycoon was very proficient in martial arts and firearms. In his youth, he became famous in the Hong Kong underworld for his "Thirteen Taibao Iron Bell Cover" technique. He once served in the U.S. Marine Corps and received the Black Hawk Combat Medal personally awarded by the president.

"You're too old. This is the age of the young!" I threw a powerful left hook at my imaginary him. In terms of martial arts and wisdom, I wouldn't bow down to anyone. If I were determined to take Guan Baoling away, the tycoon would be absolutely no match for me.

The third time, I entered the seawater and carefully moved upwards along the tower.

I feel that climbing in the water right now is no different from being in a calm swimming pool; I can't feel the deep, slow impact and pulling force of the waves at all.

Anyone with experience swimming at a beach knows that ocean waves possess an irresistible pulling force, often referred to as the ocean's "centripetal force" in lifeguard training. If a swimmer experiences cramps or sudden weakness in the water, they are likely to be pulled into deeper water until they drown. Even without terrifying underwater whirlpools, this "centripetal force" alone can be fatal to novice swimmers.

In areas with a water depth of more than 200 meters, this force is astonishing enough to easily pull a powerless motorboat to unknown waters far from land, until all the crew members are trapped and die.

In this seawater, I didn't feel any mysterious power from the ocean depths. I could move freely and effortlessly without any hindrance. When I looked up, more and more seaweed was pressing and pulling, forming a neat plane above my head.

This situation is exactly the same as when I look up from the top floor.

"It feels like... another glass roof?" I had climbed to the very top of the tower's outer wall and carefully reached up. Sure enough, I touched a smooth, flat surface; it was indeed a piece of glass.

"More glass? Haha, are we... under a glass panel?" Shocked and amused, I couldn't help but cough, spitting out four or five strings of bubbles. The bubbles only rose half a meter before being stopped by the glass, bursting one after another.

Turning to look down from the tower, one can vaguely see the faint glow of shimmering snails and fluorescent sandworms on the sand bed. This peculiar building, with its roof and floor enclosed by glass, looks like a giant industrial chimney, rather than having a surrounding fence like the "Tower of the Dead."

Or it could be described as another "Tower of the Dead" with its railings removed, which, driven by some unknown force, plummeted directly into the sea from beneath Maple Temple.

I slowly rolled over, pressed my back against the tower, and opened my eyes wide to look outside.

A five-meter-long tiger tooth fish, its mouth full of white teeth, swam menacingly towards us. This ferocious carnivorous fish prefers to live in groups, and in deep-sea battles, even the giant tiger shark, known as the "king of the deep sea," is no match for them.

The tower gate can keep out seawater, but I wonder if it can keep out tiger-toothed fish as well. I quietly prepared to slide down, and naturally thought that if a tiger-toothed fish fell into the tower, it would become food for Guan Baoling and me for the next few days. In the water, I'm no match for it, but what about on land? Surely it wouldn't be more dangerous than a pet dog?

At the same time, I cautiously looked behind it, fearing it was a large-scale hunting operation, which would turn the pagoda into a reservoir for tigerfish. Sure enough, about seven meters behind and to the side of this fish, four more of the same enormous size suddenly emerged from the dark gray seawater, their small eyes embedded in the front of their skulls staring motionlessly at me.

When biologists dissected tigerfish, they discovered that the biting force of this fish's jaws was stronger than that of a bullet fired from a .38 caliber revolver, making it extremely sharp and powerful. However, its brain volume was only one-third that of a .38 bullet, and only its optic and masticatory nerves were sufficiently developed.

There is absolutely no way to render these enemies inactive except by cutting their necks.

I still carry a tactical knife in my sleeve. I'd rather use it to fight a tigerfish than to take down a giant saw-toothed crocodile in the Amazon with a toothpick. So, I'm prepared to retreat.

"Four, eight! Seventeen tigerfish appeared at the same time, and behind the turbulent, dark gray background, there are likely many more of their accomplices!" The highest recorded number of adult tigerfish appearing simultaneously in the same area was as many as 640. In that battle, these frenzied creatures attacked en masse, killing at least 15 adult black sharks, while also causing four juvenile beluga whales to become collateral damage.

I had no choice but to flee quietly, because I didn't want to be torn apart by the fish so soon. At this moment, I was only three meters away from the tower gate. If I relaxed my body and sank for four seconds, I could successfully enter the tower.

The seawater near the school of fish suddenly became turbid, stirring up dozens of irregular whirlpools. It was a sign that the ferocious fish were about to launch an attack. I began to sink, and the knife in my sleeve popped out, ready to fight the tigerfish at any moment.

The water got colder, making me unaware that I was already drenched in sweat from shock.

The tigerfish lunged forward with the speed of a telephoto lens suddenly zooming in, its sharp mouth instantly magnifying more than three times in my view. But then something even stranger happened—the first fish to attack slammed into something hard, its mouth and skull violently deformed, and then thin streams of blood began to float to the surface. Its body tumbled and sank, helplessly falling into the water.

"What's going on?" My hand was already gripping the edge of the tower gate. I turned my head to look at this strange scene, completely bewildered.

With four consecutive "thumps, thumps, thumps, thumps," four fish followed in their companions' footsteps, crashing into an invisible wall. The force was too great, and they all went into a state of temporary shock, falling to the seabed.

I retreated back into the tower, panting heavily, recalling the thrilling scene that had just unfolded.

"What did they hit? It was... glass, yes, glass, the same glass wall..." Clearly, the group of tigerfish had spotted me and could tell I would become their meal, which was why they rushed over without hesitation.

In the mysterious underwater world, large carnivorous fish reign supreme, indifferent to the intelligence and status of two-legged humans. They simply open their mouths wide and devour them. Tiger-toothed fish, accustomed to their domineering ways, have little brains that think only of eating; they know nothing else.

Through the tower gate, I put my hand into the icy seawater and suddenly realized something: "If we were completely surrounded by glass walls, wouldn't we be inside a transparent glass box?"

"A transparent glass box, completely isolated from the deep-sea currents, lies submerged in its own unique state..."

It takes a certain amount of courage and imagination to come to this conclusion. I smiled wryly as I gazed at the swaying seaweed above me, where various unidentifiable deep-sea fish swam freely among the seaweed, enjoying their underwater world.

"Wind, wind—" Guan Baoling called my name as she slowly walked up.

I dejectedly agreed, realizing that my courage and strength were rapidly disappearing. The technology to build such a glass box is perfectly capable of being achieved by humans, but what's the point? If it's for deep-sea diving, a high-speed submarine could easily suffice; why go through all that trouble with stone towers, stairs, and glass roofs?

Guan Baoling tiptoed up through the puddles and saw the black and silver ring on the ground. She exclaimed in surprise, "Huh? A black and silver ring? How did you get something like that?"

A look of fear suddenly appeared on her face, and she took a big step back, pressing her back against the wall.

I smiled wryly and said, "Don't be afraid, this isn't mine, it's—" If she knew that the ring had once been on her, she might be even more frightened, so I changed my words and said, "The ring belongs to someone else, namely the American journalist Reese, whom you've met before."

My deduction was correct; no two black and silver rings in the world are exactly the same. The owner of the Woodpecker Black and Silver Ring is, and can only be, Reese.

I knew I must look terrible, dripping wet and covered in salty seawater.

Guan Baoling picked up the ring and examined it carefully several times. All the childishness and ease on her face disappeared, replaced by a faint sadness: "Feng, is this a black silver ring from Guatemala? My friend got this strange disease because of this evil thing—" Her lips trembled as she turned the ring, gazing at the amber stone in the light.

The illness she refused to admit was Daheng's; she kept it from me, covering it up for him, which shows how important Daheng was to her.

"Yes, it's a black silver ring, but it's worn by someone else. If it's enchanted with black magic, it will only affect the wearer. Don't worry." I smiled bitterly. What we should really worry about is our own fate. We're thousands of meters below the sea. Although we're not in immediate danger, our life-or-death situation will come within seventy-two hours to a week.

Guan Baoling is so frail, I don't want to put such a heavy burden on her shoulders. If the final result is just death, why not let her live out the last part of her life happily and peacefully?

“A curse—we are all human beings living on Earth. Although we have different skin colors, we are all ‘humans’, all of the same kind. Why must we fight each other?” She put down the ring, feeling sad and heartbroken, and turned to look up at the roof.

If we disregard the threat to survival, simply gazing upwards at the intricate and beautiful seaweed and the playful fish would undoubtedly be an incredibly pleasant and joyful experience, much like exploring the underwater world in a marine park. This genuine underwater beauty is far more wondrous than any artificially synthesized world, and no amount of money could guarantee such a sensory enjoyment.

The seaweed's fibrous roots are rapidly multiplying and spreading, and soon it will completely cover the glass box. Even if a deep-sea submarine comes to search for us, it won't be able to find us. Perhaps, this encounter is destined to bury Guan Baoling and me together.

"Feng, are we going to die? There's no way we can escape from here, is there?" She no longer used false happiness to hide her unease, and her bright eyes dimmed considerably.

She's a smart woman; my shallow lies couldn't fool her at all.

"Yes, unless a miracle happens." I stopped hiding it and decided to face the harsh reality together.

“A miracle? I know that miracles don’t happen every day, and life isn’t a script that can be edited and modified at will.” She walked towards the tower gate and put her hands into the dark curtain of water.

“Outside, there’s a huge glass box separating the sea from the stone tower. This strange structure we’re in is incredibly perplexing, but we can’t break through it. I’ll swim out again to check how far the outer wall is from the stone wall. If there’s not even seaweed or fish in this glass box, that’s a huge problem—we’ll starve to death because we can’t find food…”

I made a grinding sound, hoping to make her laugh.

In an instant, a strange question flashed through my mind. Before I could speak, Guan Baoling exclaimed, "No, impossible! If it's a sealed glass box, then where did Reeseka go? She didn't come back. I thought she got lost or was swept away by the underwater currents... Assuming the space is sealed, she should, she should..."

She covered her face with her hands, unable to bear to continue.

The same question kept coming to mind—"Where is Resica? If she's still in the box, then by the time I find her, she might already be a floating corpse."

This is an extremely cruel hypothetical scenario: in the confined space of the ocean floor, Guan Baoling and I would be living alongside a corpse. I took a deep breath, wiped the water droplets from my hair, and said resolutely, "I'll go find her. Maybe she's still alive...maybe she's found another hiding place. Don't be afraid, don't be afraid..."

Reese bit her lip, her long eyelashes trembling with difficulty, her thin shoulders hunched, and she whispered, "I'm not afraid, I'm just sad. If I die, he will be so sad, he loves me so much..."

A surge of flame rushed straight to the Baihui acupoint on the top of my head. In an instant, my Dantian and Tanzhong acupoints became unbearably hot, as if hundreds of ants were frantically biting my meridians at the same time.

"Calm down, calm down, calm down—you must calm down!" I shouted to myself. This abnormal feeling in my body was a sign that my internal energy was going astray.

It took me a full three minutes to barely suppress that nameless anger, letting out a dozen or so breaths of frustrated resentment. The tycoon was indeed very good to Guan Baoling; what did I have to be angry about? Couldn't she accept being taken care of by someone before she met me?

I stared at her face so close to mine, wondering if other men had touched that beautiful face before me. The scene in front of Maple Temple, where the tycoon stepped down the helicopter stairs and commanded the entire audience, filled me with both envy and jealousy.

Will she be the girl who belongs to me? Will she belong to me? From this moment on, she belongs to me—

(The fifth installment, "Underwater Horror," is now complete. Please see the sixth installment, "The Sea God's Nameplate.")

The Sixth Sea God Plaque

— Chapter 1 - The Ruthless Dilemma —

“I went to find Resica, but she didn’t come back. That doesn’t mean she’s dead in the water. In this situation, every extra person can help.”

I didn't tell her about the tigerfish being knocked unconscious, as that would only cause her more worry.

The anger within me gradually cooled after I stepped into the sea, and I thought of my elder brother, Yang Tian, once again. He was the "King of Tomb Raiders," revered by everyone in the underworld. Back when he was at the height of his fame, Daheng had yet to rise to prominence. The saying "each reigns supreme for a decade or so" perfectly encapsulates the rule of the underworld: heroes rise and fall.

No one can remain at the top forever, dominating the world forever. One day, everyone grows old and declines, and new masters emerge to take center stage. As long as you're young, you'll always have the chance to surpass your predecessors. Perhaps the tycoon of today will be my tomorrow.

"I will become the next 'King of Tomb Raiders' who surpasses my elder brother and become famous throughout the world."

I slowly paddled towards the bottom of the tower. If Resica really had an accident, she would have sunk to the bottom; that was inevitable.

When I intentionally swam outwards, I touched the glass barrier about ten meters from the tower. This barrier was a perfectly rounded, curved cylinder that enclosed the tower. I imagine that outside the glass box, there must have been turbulent currents, while we were like ornamental fish in an aquarium, able to swim freely and easily.

When a person's state of mind gradually becomes peaceful, the limit for holding one's breath will naturally increase. This time, I walked around the tower once and touched the glass floor at the bottom before returning inside.

Guan Baoling, looking preoccupied, came down from the top of the tower and stood on the transparent ground waiting for me.

"We're encased in a glass cylinder, but I haven't found Reese, whether she's alive or dead." I wiped the water droplets from my face with a wry smile. The feeling of my soaked clothes clinging tightly to my body was unpleasant, but there was nothing I could do but endure it.

Not finding Reese brought my train of thought to another halt. The undeniable truth is, "I must see her alive or dead." How could someone as perfectly healthy as her simply vanish into thin air?

Within the space I could search, there was no seaweed or microorganisms, but I could tell that everything I had come into contact with was genuine seawater. Since it was seawater, how could it remain clear forever without producing microorganisms? Unless someone had specially purified this water—Guan Baoling stood by the tower gate, her face extremely gloomy, a stark contrast to her radiant and cheerful demeanor at Xunfu Garden.

Resica is a reporter for Discover magazine; her physical strength and emergency response skills are certainly less than a tenth of mine. So where could she be? Could there be a barely noticeable hole in the glass enclosure that she could pass through? But surely she wouldn't be foolish enough to put herself hundreds of meters deep in the ocean as bait, would she?

"Feng, have you ever heard of something called a 'Sea God's Nameplate'?" Guan Baoling frowned, her beautiful brows furrowed, like Xi Shi clutching her heart, making me feel a pang of sympathy.

I thought for a few seconds, then shook my head: "No, what is it then?"

Guan Baoling pointed outside the tower gate and answered in a very confused tone, "I don't know, but Reese went into the water a total of five times. When she came back the fourth time, she told me that there was a plaque embedded in the tower with this sentence engraved on it in strange characters. Her expression was very strange because those characters were not the Japanese we would assume, nor the universally spoken English, nor the Spanish that was everywhere during the pirate era, but—ancient Chinese characters..."

"What?" I exclaimed.

“Yes, they are ancient Chinese characters.” Resika repeated four or five times, with a very certain tone. “Those characters are the Small Seal script created by Prime Minister Li Si after the Qin Dynasty unified the six kingdoms in ancient China.”

"Ha, ha ha—" I burst out laughing, finding Guan Baoling's words utterly, utterly bizarre.