With a thunderous boom,
I felt as if struck by the Mystic Thunder from the ninth heaven, nearly crying myself into a faint on deck.
This must be what they mean by "when it rains, it pours"!!
"Wanwan, Baiming Cave is the Dragon God's own lair, so why would he be blocked by a Barrier?" Bai Zanhe asked while steadying herself against the cabin wall, wobbling over to me.
The cave was pitch black, with only the weak light of two Lanterns in my hand and Bai Zanhe's illuminating our surroundings.
The river was in an incredibly bizarre state, filled with whirlpools everywhere.
I tried to calm myself down from the panic, dizzied by the whirlpools, "It's a long story, I'll tell you about it if we get the chance, but right now we need to hold on until Yu Longting comes to save us."
"Wanwan, do you know how to swim?" Bai Zanhe asked.
Seeing me shake my head, she seriously instructed, "If something happens to the boat, remember to hold onto the biggest log and don't let go."
With a slight creak, a misaligned plank made a noise.
In my heart, however, it sounded like the sky was falling and the earth was splitting, my heart skipped a beat violently.
The planks under our feet gave way, water flooding over our ankles.
In less than ten breaths, the entire covered boat disintegrated in the whirlpool.
I couldn't swim at all, the moment I fell into the water,
it was as if my spine was removed, immediately I became disoriented and lost my sense of direction.
How could I find a large piece of wood to cling to amid the jumbled parts of the boat?
Having swallowed several mouthfuls of water, I had no time to catch my breath and calm down, the more I struggled, the more I sank.
The icy river water soaked my body, freezing my joints as if they were locked in ice.
My joints were numb, unable to escape the pull of the whirlpool.
"Hold onto this plank, don't let go." Bai Zanhe handed me a large plank, and the moment I hugged it I knew it was part of the gunwale.
Clutching the plank, I vomited several mouthfuls of water, "Thank you, if it weren't for you, I'd have drowned."
"I'm glad I could be of some use, having a chance to help you," Bai Zanhe said, her face pale from the cold, a person who was very afraid of dying, but at that moment she showed a sweet smile.
I think this is the friendship that comes through life and death, previously it was me who reached out to help her, now it was her extending a hand of aid to me.
Even in dire straits, we could still support and trust each other.
"Sister Zanhe, have you noticed, we can still see, which means there is light."
After finding support, my mind gradually began to think.
Searching for the light source, not far from a rotten plank, I saw a floating red lantern, "Look quickly, that's our Red Lotus Soul Summoning Lamp, if we get it, we might escape from the whirlpool."
It is said that Barbarian Village hasn't sent a Falling Cave Girl to Baiming Cave for one hundred years. Updates are released by novel⸺fire.net
It wasn't a hundred years ago, they sent someone every ten years.
Each time someone was sent in, the custom was for the Falling Cave Girl to carry a Red Lotus Soul Summoning Lamp made of red paper.
The red paper had lotus patterns and incantations drawn on it, which I had looked at closely, and they were specifically to break certain special prohibitions.
"It's no use, I've tried, the resistance of the whirlpool is too great, constantly pulling us underwater," Bai Zanhe had used all her strength, but each time she nearly reached the Lantern, she would be spun back by the whirlpool.
I knew the weight of the plank and me was too much, burdening Bai Zanhe, "Teach me to swim, I'll swim over there with you."
I've never learned to swim before, and I don't know how hard it would be to learn.
Now, when life and death hang in the balance, there's only the option to clutch at straws and see if they'll work.
Ah, if I had learned a little swimming earlier, I wouldn't be such a burden now.
"We can try, you're so clever you might just pick it up quickly."
Bai Zanhe taught me patiently, "This is the position for your hands, it reduces resistance, and you have to change your breathing rhythm too, exhale~ then take a big breath, slowly release~"
Following what she said, kicking and paddling together with her, we headed towards where the Lantern was floating.
Luckily, the Lantern was stuck by the wood, so it wasn't sucked into the whirlpool.
I was closer, grabbing the bamboo stick on top of the Lantern, "I've got it... hiss~" I couldn't help but gasp sharply.
A stream of cold surged from the Lantern to my fingertips, then pierced into my heart, the chill seemingly capable of freezing my entire heart, "Falling Cave Girl... Falling Cave Girl... come here... come here..."