Chapter 29: The Underwater World

  Water overflowed over my head, I stared blankly at the man on the shore who was desperately stretching out his hand, fingertips were right in front of my face, but couldn't lift it up. Tears gushed out, mixed with water. Can't tell where are tears and where is water.

  The man on the shore must have loved her, Mo thought, otherwise he wouldn't be so sad. If having him for this lifetime is enough, then it's fine if the three-year period comes early too. Slowly closing his eyes, letting himself sink to the bottom of the water, surrounded by darkness.

  Han Lin's eyes were cast downward, her lips bitten tightly to hold back tears. The people on the shore were stunned by this sudden turn of events; Xuan Jiu Tian furrowed his brow, staring at the spot where Mo had sunk; Su Sheng Yi couldn't bear to look, closing her eyes and burying herself in Xuan Jiu Tian's chest, tears streaming down her face. Xuan Yu turned away, leaving quietly. Huang Feng Bing muttered "Wang Fei... Wang Fei..." under his breath, then suddenly drew his sword and swung it at his own neck. Xuan Nuo reacted instantly, grabbing the blade with his hand, blood flowing from the wound to form a puddle on the ground.

  "What are you doing?!" Xuan Nuo's face was filled with anger, his eyes blazing with fury.

  "If the princess is injured, I'll take responsibility!" The small face that dared to undertake was full of determination, and the eyes like a deer's were shining with autumn water. The cherry-red lips were pursed into a line. Seeing Xuan Nuo's bleeding finger, Huang Xing Bing relaxed his grip, and Xuan Nuo took advantage of the opportunity to pull out his sword.

  "The Queen's affair was an accident, don't blame yourself..." Xuan Jiu Tian's voice also choked with sobs.

  Just as everyone on the shore was wringing their wrists in anxiety, Mò Mò gradually heard a familiar voice calling her "Mò..."

  Opened his weak eyes, and it was still dark all around.

  Ink...

  "Who called me?" Ink slowly sank down, seeing a bright light at the bottom of the water. A faint blue glow spread out, and pieces flew apart, sticking to Ink before merging in. As she watched those glowing pieces gradually disappear into her body, Ink felt a moment of dizziness. "Is this the underworld? Not bad," she thought.

  The faint blue light membrane protected a dark shadow, and Mo Mo waited until the light membrane dissipated to see the outline of a building. The fence, walls, and dome were all clearly visible. Trying to move his limbs, he found that they moved freely. He swam towards the main house in the complex, where the iron gate had hollow carvings of flowers and birds, and small officials lay on the large door ring. When he pushed it open, instead of water gushing out, there was a layer of transparent membrane similar to air. Mo Mo walked inside, and the objects inside were dust-free, as if someone swept every day.

  On both sides of the black chair, there is a small tea table with a bowl of clear tea on it. On the wall opposite the main hall, there is a painting that looks exactly like the one in the Temple of the Goddess. However, this painting has four people and two boats in addition to the ink. The scene is identical to the illusory realm created by the official for Mo Mo. Below the painting, on the table, there are three objects: an ink jade, a scepter, and a book.

  Mo took out the Xuanmo Mist Stone he had been carrying with him and compared it to the Moyu. It turned out that they were originally one entity. After combining them, a circular ring appeared. The Xuanmo Mist Stone was just a black lotus on top. He put it down and picked up the staff. The uneven surface was covered in black jade stones, but the staff was not heavy. It felt like dry wood. If it weren't for the black stones on top, no one would have picked it up if they saw it on the road. He stuck the staff into the ground and picked up a book with a black cover. On it were written three words: "Cutting Off Emotions".

  "How can it be here too?" Mo Mo flipped through. The dance moves were exactly the same. The difference was on the last page. There was a poem on it:

  Treasures have always been created by the workings of nature.

  Because of people's hearts reflecting in their eyes

  Heavenly music is originally made by ghosts and spirits.

  The Dark Way of Asking is Astonishing Life

  Hongmeng Dahua

  Yin and yang give birth to each other

  Nothing is nothing but true fantasy realm

  Neither sorrow nor joy can penetrate

  Mò Mò kept muttering to himself, but couldn't understand the meaning behind it. He furrowed his brow and thought for a moment, "I can ask Xuán Nuò about this." Suddenly, he felt a jolt, leaned against the leg of the table, slid down, and sat on the ground, staring at the pitch-black outside the door, "Can I still go back?"

  "...Ink..." The voice from the water was right next to his ear. Ink was startled and quickly stood up, waving his sleeve as he looked around at the empty hall.

  "Ink..." He realized that the voice came from the back hall, Ink thought for a moment, and shouted loudly "Who is it? Come out, I've already died once, I'm not afraid of you!"

  "The sound of 'ink'... was still familiar, holding that staff, with the ink ring also in hand, slowly following the sound around the gate of the great hall, seeing that behind it was also a vast darkness. It was like an illusory realm of emptiness, making people unable to find their direction, and also unable to feel time."

  That sound still echoed, leading Mo Mo to move forward into the void. Using his cane as a probe, he walked for a while until he couldn't see the bright hall from before, and all around him was dark fog. Suddenly, the ground beneath him gave way, and he plummeted downwards in an instant. The steep cliffs on either side jutted out, scraping Mo Mo's skin painfully, and the rushing wind by his ears warned him of his impending death.

  Suddenly, Mo felt a lightness in her body and sensed that she was flying upwards. She touched the soft fur beneath her and opened her eyes to see the red symbol on Officer's forehead faintly shining in the dark surroundings. "Officer?!" Mo exclaimed in shock, tightly embracing its neck as tears welled up in her eyes. In times of crisis, even having one more animal by your side can bring a few points of calmness to an anxious heart.

  When Mo Mo stood on the ground again, he touched the fur of Guan Tong, calmed down, and heard that familiar voice from afar. Mo Mo climbed onto Guan Tong's back, took to the air, and flew over the vast chasm. Ahead, there was a thin bright line; as they drew closer, it turned out to be a small path with jasmine petals shining white on either side. The path stretched far into the distance, ending at another main mansion.

  The iron gate had a hollowed-out flower bird, and on the large door ring lay a small official seal. Mo Mo's heart was racing, and the sound came from this door. With force, she pushed it open, and inside was still the same room they had met before, with the same painting above the table, but now empty. Mo Mo touched the book and inkstone in her pocket, gripped her fist tightly, and walked towards the small table with a teacup. Indeed, as Mo Mo thought, everything was the same. She had returned to the starting point!

  That sound still pierced through the void and came from the back hall, Mo Mo turned around and hugged Guan Tong, sobbing silently, Guan Tong also transformed back into a cat shape, jumped into Mo Mo's arms, licking away Mo Mo's tears.

  "Why did you have to follow me?! Now look, you can't get out either!" Mo tightly hugged it, squeezing out a thread of voice from the official's throat, reminding Mo of its discomfort.

  Loosen the official seal, let it turn back into a white tiger, and try several times again. It was still that iron-colored gate, that painting, and that bowl of tea...

  Mo sat down on the chair, poured out half of the tea for Guan Tong, and then drank all of it in one breath. He hugged Guan Tong on the chair, found a comfortable position, and fell asleep.

  At some point, Mo was woken up by a rustling sound. In a daze, she carried the still sleeping Guan'er and followed the sound to the back hall, where she saw not the dark emptiness, but a place that looked like a temple.

  "Here... I think I've been here before..." Momo touched the golden soft armor, searching in her mind, but she didn't have any impression. She slowly turned around, looking at the surroundings.

  "Why does it feel so familiar?" Mo walked over to a platform-like structure, where a black canopy hung from the ceiling, blocking her view. "Mo..." A voice came out clearly from inside.

  Reaching out and pulling down, a large block of ice crystals appeared, with a person curled up inside. The eyes suddenly widened, and the person was so familiar...