When 'God' Decides To Start Over

Chapter 610 - 254 Yanbo Pool_3

"The Lotus Concubine was not thrown into the Yanbo Pool; she jumped into it herself." Jiuxiao Yun continued, "The tyrant reveled night after night, lost in wine and women, completely ignoring the affairs of state, causing the Demon Kingdom to be filled with resentment. The Lotus Concubine, understanding the greater good, tried in vain to persuade the tyrant and threw herself into the Yanbo Pool, sacrificing herself to inspire the tyrant to be diligent in governance."

"Was the tyrant moved?" Sha Chu, being a woman, still held a hopeful sentiment.

"It’s uncertain if he was moved at the time, but clearly, he did not change. Otherwise, the Demon Kingdom wouldn’t have perished." Jiuxiao Yun chuckled, "The story isn’t over yet. Let me continue. The Lotus Concubine, with a pure heart, after entering the Yanbo Pool, unlike other women who turned into vengeful spirits, transformed into a pond full of lotus flowers. When the lotus blossoms open, it marks the time when the Lotus Concubine awakens. The vengeful female spirits in the Yanbo Pool are then calmed and do not harm people. If one enters the pool when the blossoms have not opened, they will be dragged to the pool’s bottom and drowned by the vengeful spirits..."

"You’re making it sound quite story-like, but it’s not very logical," Sha Chu said.

"A story is just a story; if it were too logical, it wouldn’t be one, would it?" As Jiuxiao Yun was speaking, they saw the lotus flower in the well bloom.

The lotus flower was as white as snow, with a cluster of pink at the tip, blooming as if snow has been dyed with rouge.

"The flower has opened; let’s head into the pool." Li Xiu glanced at the blossoming lotus and then turned to walk toward the pool’s edge.

A group of them walked down into the water one after another, descending the steps. Jing Li led at the front, Li Xiu and Sha Chu were in the middle, and Jiuxiao Yun was at the back.

With those light clusters resembling clouds and mist covering them, they couldn’t see the water below. They walked several steps along the stairs before feeling the water soak over their ankles.

Continuing forward, the water quickly reached above their thighs.

The cloud and mist-like light clusters in front grew denser, making it nearly impossible to see each other’s faces even at close range.

"Be careful, everyone." As Li Xiu spoke, he suddenly felt the ground beneath his feet give way, and his whole body plunged into the water. The stairs were no longer there; beneath his feet was the unfathomable pool water.

Although the group was close together, they could no longer see each other and could only hear the continuous sound of water nearby.

Li Xiu started swimming forward, listening to the nearby water sounds to stay in sync with Sha Chu and the others.

The legend says the Yanbo Pool stretches eighty li. With their physical condition, swimming across eighty li shouldn’t take long.

Jing Li and Jiuxiao Yun slowed down considerably to wait for Li Xiu and Sha Chu; otherwise, they would have long disappeared into the distance.

The water in the Yanbo Pool was somewhat chilly. Li Xiu didn’t fear the cold, but after swimming for a while, he felt the water getting hotter.

Initially, he could barely stand it, but soon, the water felt as if it were boiling, scalding Li Xiu to the point of discomfort.

"Why is the water so hot, Sha Chu, are you okay?" Li Xiu tilted his head back, paddling with his hands, and shouted towards Sha Chu’s direction.

He wasn’t worried about Jing Li and Jiuxiao Yun. With their physical resilience, even boiling water couldn’t harm them.

"Hot? Why would it be hot? This water is quite cool!" Soon, Sha Chu’s voice came from beside him.

As Sha Chu spoke, she swam closer to Li Xiu, soon reaching his side, kicking her legs in the water, paddling with one hand while reaching out to touch Li Xiu with the other.

"Cool?" Li Xiu was full of questions.

Although the water around him wasn’t bubbling like boiling water, its temperature seemed close to boiling; even with good physical resilience, he shouldn’t feel cool.

"Yes, it’s cool but not too cold." Sha Chu reached Li Xiu’s arm and leaned against him, her fingers tracing up his arm until she found his face.

Sha Chu touched Li Xiu’s forehead with her hand, "It feels normal; you don’t have a fever. Why do you feel hot?"

"If it’s not a fever, it must be enthusiasm. Is it because you heard my story about female ghosts in the pool, and a little spark in your heart can’t be contained?" Jiuxiao Yun teased from the side. He and Jing Li also heard Li Xiu’s words, stopping and floating in the nearby water.

"Xiao Li, do you feel hot?" Li Xiu ignored Jiuxiao Yun.

"No," Jing Li answered definitively.

Li Xiu thought, "This is strange. All four of us are in the same pool; there’s no reason why only I feel hot."

"Is there a problem?" Jing Li asked in a deep voice.

"There’s no problem, keep moving." Li Xiu knew that even if there was an issue, they couldn’t panic. They had to swim across before the lotus closed.

Jing Li acknowledged and continued swimming forward. Li Xiu, Sha Chu, and Jiuxiao Yun hurriedly followed.

Yet, the more Li Xiu swam, the hotter it felt, as if he were swimming in boiling water.

Fortunately, his physique was decent. Had he not become a Trial Taker, he might have been cooked by now.

Strangely, Sha Chu and the others were unaffected.

Jing Li occasionally asked if he was okay, seemingly aware that something might be wrong and ready to assist at any moment.

Apart from the heat, Li Xiu didn’t feel anything amiss. Thankfully, although the water was uncomfortably hot, he could barely manage to endure it. They had no choice but to swim forward rapidly; stopping was not an option.

Hearing Li Xiu speed up, Sha Chu and the others followed suit.

Swimming along, Li Xiu felt something brush against his foot, startling him. He quickly drew his leg back, calling out, "There’s something in the water..."

"What is it?" Sha Chu’s voice came to him.

"I don’t know. It was gone after it touched me, like something swam past my leg." Li Xiu frowned; whatever it was disappeared after brushing against his calf, like a fish.

"Commander, could you not scare us? Are you worried there are female ghosts in the water after hearing my story? If you’re scared, just say so. I’ll swim holding you, let the female ghosts come for me." Jiuxiao Yun’s teasing voice came from the left.

"Stop talking nonsense and swim out quickly." Li Xiu urged them to swim onward, certain that something was strange about the pool.

"You’re the one talking nonsense." Jiuxiao Yun muttered.

Setting off again, Li Xiu swam while keeping an ear out for any underwater movement. But the water, like before, was filled with cloud-like omens reflecting the water like milk, obscuring visibility underwater.

Suddenly, Li Xiu felt something like a rope entangle his ankles. Before he could react, a mysterious force yanked him underwater.