I seemed to sink into a chaotic dream.
The only sound near me was this cold yet familiar voice.
But then, in an instant, I woke.
Vigorously embracing a large piece of wood, my legs awkwardly paddled through the water.
The red lantern, though emitting a faint light, was somehow able to dimly illuminate the vast cavern.
Ahead lay a seemingly bottomless waterway.
Wherever the light reached, every whirlpool in the water miraculously disappeared.
"Did you hear a voice?" Bai Zanhe swallowed dryly.
My swimming was clumsy, but I gradually got the hang of it, feeling more adept, "I heard it. I'm not sure if I misheard, but it sounded like... someone I know."
"Come... Falling Cave Girl... come to this deity... come to this deity..."
The enchanting voice, remote and calm, came again.
Bai Zanhe looked around, "Is he... talking again?"
"Xuanjing, is that you? How did you get into Baiming Cave?"
Hearing this voice again, I finally confirmed the owner of the voice, "All along, it has been you impersonating the Dragon God? Issuing false divine oracles?"
The Baiming Cave was eerily quiet.
So much so that the echo of my voice lingered in the cave for a long time.
However, the voice coming from the depths of the cavern stayed silent.
"Over there... there's a coffin," Bai Zanhe suddenly exclaimed.
I focused my gaze and saw colors of the rainbow.
No, more precisely, nine colors.
I blurted out, "Nine Dragons Coffin."
Nine differently colored jade dragons emitted a soft glow, all the while dragging an immensely huge coffin.
I never imagined in my life that I would be so intimidated by a coffin.
Majestic, shocking, dazzling, a marvel of craftsmanship...
All words that represent the ultimate could be applied to this coffin without exaggeration.
The first time I saw the Nine Dragons Coffin Dragging Picture was in the old notes left by my father.
The image sewn on the garment is for those who have passed their tribulation, to wear to the Immortal Realm.
I had never taken it seriously, assuming it was a myth.
This moment, witnessing it with my own eyes, was like a waking dream.
"What a beautiful coffin," Bai Zanhe too was captivated.
The two of us were pushed to the shore by the current, only then coming back to our senses.
I couldn't swim, so Bai Zanhe helped me ashore first.
Once I had climbed up, I bent down and pulled her up, "Stay here and don't move. I'm going to check out the coffin."
Only the Immortal Clan could be afforded the luxury of a Nine Dragons Coffin. Xuanjing, being just a Nine-tailed Fox, surely couldn't enjoy such a privilege.
Could it be that the person lying inside this coffin was...? Tʜe sourcᴇ of thɪs content ɪs N0velFire.ɴet
Lord Yu Longting's father?
I thought of this and my fingers lifted a small jade buckle on the pure white jade stone coffin.
I had seen the design of the coffin before and was extremely familiar with the entire structure of the Nine Dragons Coffin, knowing that this jade buckle was the mechanism for opening it.
With the dull sound of jade rubbing against jade, the pure white jade stone coffin slowly opened, revealing a young man in black with a handsomely refined appearance.
The young man wore a pure black silk deep robe, with his feet in upturned Cloud-Ascending Boots.
The moment I saw his face, my first instinct was to flee, but I bit my tongue to calm myself and quickly tied a Mystical Thunder cloth strip around his wrist, "Xuanjing, it is you, indeed! You've moved your lair here!!" This guy was the source of all misfortunes!!
Indeed, a cornered beast will still fight, repeatedly suffering heavy damages from Lord Longting, yet time and time again stirring up trouble.
Xuanjing, lying in the coffin, suddenly opened his eyes, full of roguish charm, and tore the purple cloth strip with a swipe of his hand, reaching out to grab me.
In my panic, as I stumbled back, he seized my fishbone braid made of silver-red silk and pulled me toward the coffin.
Xuanjing's lips curved up in a sinister smile, his eyes swimming with the dreamy look characteristic of using the Charm Technique, "I've never tasted what a woman of the Snake Lord is like. Now that you've delivered yourself to me, I'm curious to try."