Can I Trust You?

Anbaixiu had no idea how the Ryans had managed to escape from inside back then; all he knew now was that crossing through the seabed was no easy task either. Even after diving deep into the ocean to evade the terrifying lightning above, the seafloor was still riddled with countless whirlpools. Furthermore, these bizarre currents had carved the seabed into jagged fragments, turning it into a veritable labyrinth. One had to either navigate through these labyrinthine rock formations on the seabed or charge straight through the whirlpools above—testing whether the power of the currents was greater or one's own bones were sturdier. This was definitely no ordinary natural environment. It was either the handiwork of a deity or the creation of some legendary wizard with a perverse sense of humor using World Weaving. Having already seen the golden great desert, Anbaixiu was no longer easily surprised. In that era when magic flourished, the abuse of arcane power was a common occurrence. Floating cities looked down upon the mortal world, and wizards believed they had touched the realm of the gods—until, with a colossal roar, that entire magical civilization was reduced to ashes. Anbaixiu surveyed his surroundings, then turned his gaze behind him. Beside him, Ariel hovered in the ocean depths, curiously taking in everything before her eyes. Blessed with the Water Breathing spell, Ariel could stay submerged for extended periods. She had changed into form-fitting underwater light armor, looking more stunning than a mermaid. This was underwater combat armor specially crafted by the Raging Tide Kingdom from the hide of unique sea beasts, reserved solely for high-ranking generals. "You really didn't need to come with me," Anbaixiu said to Ariel, wiggling his fingers. Communicating underwater was not easy. Non-aquatic races could not produce stable vocal sounds in the sea, so Anbaixiu had to rely on auxiliary spells to achieve this effect. Unfortunately, Ariel was not undead and could not communicate via a soul link, leaving them with this combination of sign language and sound transmission. When Anbaixiu ventured into the sea, even Heji Stone hadn't wanted to follow, yet Ariel had insisted on tagging along. Anbaixiu had no idea what was going through her head. Wouldn't it have been perfectly fine to just wait safely aboard the ship? Ariel parted her lips, letting out a stream of bubbles. Realizing she couldn't produce steady sounds like Anbaixiu, she could only reply with hand signs: "To be honest, ever since I was a child, I've always been curious about what lies inside this sea." That was a lie. Anbaixiu didn't even need his power of divination to sense it. Anbaixiu could only say to her, "Princess, if you can't be honest with me, I'd advise you to head back." Seeing her lie exposed, Ariel had no choice but to admit: "I can't let you take risks alone. This concerns the future of the Raging Tide Kingdom." If she could, Ariel truly wanted to drag Anbaixiu right back. Even knowing full well that Anbaixiu was a lich, Ariel still feared he might run into danger in this eerie stretch of water. If that happened, the future of the Raging Tide Kingdom would be ruined. The Raging Tide Kingdom could afford to lose her as a princess right now, but it could never abandon the alchemy factory project. Even though Anbaixiu was a lich and theoretically could revive after dying, Ariel didn't dare gamble. What if this was a secret realm left behind by some deity, harboring something capable of killing a lich outright? Even knowing it was irrational, Ariel had decided to come along. Ariel wasn't completely gambling with her life either; she possessed an artifact bestowed by Talos, which should be able to preserve her life at a critical moment. Precisely because she had a measure of assurance, Ariel insisted on venturing forth alongside Anbaixiu. Anbaixiu had no choice but to let her accompany him. "I plan to head inward through this seabed labyrinth. The whirlpools above are too terrifying to pass through easily." Ariel agreed with Anbaixiu's assessment. Charging into the whirlpools would quickly leave one dizzy and disoriented from the currents, unable to control their direction, let alone make it inside. Still, traversing this undersea labyrinth wouldn't be easy either. Over the years, who knew how many dangerous marine creatures had made it their lair? Ariel drew the warhammer at her waist and signaled to Anbaixiu, "I'll go first, follow me!" "Huh?" In all his days, Anbaixiu had rarely enjoyed the privilege of having someone else scout ahead and clear the path for him. Back when he was an adventurer, Anbaixiu had been a divination wizard, usually the one taking the lead and using premonitions to sense impending danger. Later, when he retired from adventuring and no longer had teammates, he had to rely solely on himself. Ariel actually stepped in front of him to blaze a trail—such treatment genuinely touched Anbaixiu a little. However, there was no need for that. With a wide wave of his hand, dozens of finger-sized Small Fry Mark Is flew out from his private space, lining up in formation before the two of them. "Princess, did you forget that I'm a lich? How could a lich ever lack cannon fodder to scout the way?" A blush crept onto Ariel's face. She really had forgotten about that. Focusing solely on protecting Anbaixiu's safety, she had completely overlooked his true identity. She could only obediently step back to his side. Directing the undead to scout ahead, Anbaixiu began navigating into this bizarre underwater labyrinth. The seabed rocks forming the maze had been polished smooth by endless ages of ocean currents, and their texture was exceptionally hard. Anbaixiu tested them briefly; ordinary spells could only leave marks on the stone and failed to destroy it outright. Yet as the two ventured deeper into the labyrinth, expecting to encounter numerous perils, to their surprise, the Small Fry undead leading the way met with no attacks whatsoever. It wasn't that the labyrinth lacked life; rather, the creatures were afraid of Anbaixiu and Ariel. These deep-sea creatures were all in hiding. Occasionally, a Small Fry Mark I would detect a vital signature, only for the creature to flee so quickly it couldn't be caught. Puzzled, Anbaixiu asked Ariel, "How strange. Didn't you say this place was exceptionally dangerous?" Ariel shook her head and answered helplessly, "I don't really know either. This is my first time entering the Sea of Thunder as well. Perhaps they can sense our strength?" After all, they were two legends; scaring off these undersea creatures wasn't surprising. Still, Anbaixiu felt something was off. Marine creatures didn't possess high intelligence. The harsher the environment, the stronger and more aggressive the creatures inhabiting the region ought to be—that was the law of nature. When encountering an unfamiliar intruder, such beasts would certainly take a bite to test the taste rather than immediately turn tail and run. "Princess, something doesn't feel right. Let's wait here for a moment." Anbaixiu halted his steps and commanded the Small Fry cannon fodder to press deeper into the undersea labyrinth. As the distance between them grew wider, the cannon fodder finally came under attack. From the gloom, two thick tentacles shot out, coiling around two of the Small Fry before rapidly retracting into the darkness. A low growl rumbled from the dark. It seemed the attacking sea beast had swallowed the two undead and suffered poison as a result. A continuous, rumbling din echoed. The sea beast was likely colossal in size, and the trace of poison merely caused it discomfort rather than dealing a lethal blow. Anbaixiu carefully sensed the creature's movements from a distance until tranquility returned to the seafloor. Only then did he say to Ariel, "It seems the issue lies with the two of us." "What issue?" Ariel asked, puzzled. "My undead troops are attacked by sea beasts, but we aren't. Therefore, there must be something on us that terrifies them, and it's definitely not that the beasts can sense our prowess." Although both were legends, Anbaixiu had been meticulously concealing his dark mana, and Ariel was similarly cautious, revealing none of her aura. It was impossible for these sea beasts to tell from such a distance that the pair were dangerous. Thus, it had to be something they carried that frightened these creatures. "While I don't know what you're referring to, shouldn't that be a good thing? Why call it an issue?" Ariel felt a bit unable to keep up with Anbaixiu's train of thought. Furthermore, she had an odd sense of déjà vu—had she seen a situation like this somewhere before? Anbaixiu explained, "We've never been here before, and these sea beasts have never seen us, so what exactly are they afraid of? If we can find the key to this, perhaps we can learn far more about this sea. I have a premonition that this adventure will yield extraordinary gains." Anbaixiu's confidence made Ariel's sense of déjà vu even stronger, but knowing now wasn't the time to dwell on it, she asked humbly, "Then how do we find out? Try throwing our belongings out one by one?" Anbaixiu shook his head. "No need to go through all that trouble. Whatever can affect these dreadful monsters certainly isn't ordinary goods. Princess, that hammer in your hand is an artifact bestowed by Talos, right? My guess is that it might be this very object that is influencing the sea beasts. Testing it is simple enough: we split up, and I'll delve deeper into the labyrinth alone to see whether the beasts attack me." "No!" Ariel refused resolutely. "We already have a protective charm, even if we don't know what it is. Why take the risk?" Ariel couldn't understand. She only wanted to ensure Anbaixiu's safety. Anbaixiu insisted, "Princess, you're someone who has been on the battlefield. Would you face an enemy wielding a weapon you know nothing about—even knowing that weapon is immensely powerful? Right now we can scare off these sea beasts, but what if we encounter stronger monsters as we go deeper? They might not be scared away. "If an enemy chooses to attack, we can't remain ignorant of what the beasts are actually afraid of. If we clearly hold a trump card capable of countering them but can't produce it at the critical moment, wouldn't that be far too dangerous?" Anbaixiu's words sounded very reasonable. Ariel pondered for a long time without coming up with any counterargument, yet she still insisted, "You absolutely cannot take risks. Why don't you retreat from the labyrinth first and let me test it?" Anbaixiu was rendered speechless. And here he had thought Ariel had matured, yet she was still the same stubborn blockhead as before. Anbaixiu could only say to her, "This is the first time I've ever seen someone trying to take risks on behalf of a lich. If you don't trust me, take this." Anbaixiu handed a small, silver-white casket to Ariel. Taking it, Ariel asked in confusion, "What is this?" Anbaixiu said with grave seriousness, "This is a lich's phylactery. Should my form be destroyed, I will be reborn here. I have placed my very life in your safekeeping. Princess, can I trust you?"