Chapter 2433 - 2433: Familiar Iron Chains

Hearing Fat Wang's words, Ye Qing was instantly furious beyond measure. He grabbed Fat Wang and said, "You damn fatty, can you be a bit more reliable? I almost died underwater, and now you tell me the location is wrong?"

"Uh, I... this is my first time here too, I just miscalculated the position a little." Fat Wang chuckled awkwardly, "But don't worry, this time the location I've calculated is absolutely correct. Let's go, I'll take you there, it's not far from here, just a little over five hundred meters!"

"Over five hundred meters is not far?" Ye Qing widened his eyes, really wanting to strangle Fat Wang.

"Over five hundred meters isn't far at all. Walking around in a garden is three or five hundred meters, that's nothing!" said Fat Wang.

"But the problem is we're in water, a distance of over five hundred meters, how long would it take me to find it?" Ye Qing exclaimed angrily.

"That's why I'm making amends by taking you there myself!" Fat Wang laughed awkwardly as he led the way, knowing that he had miscalculated and didn't dare to be tough anymore.

Ye Qing followed behind Fat Wang with a gloomy expression. He had just been praising this damn fatty for doing things well, but now he's caused such a big blunder. Not only did he get the place wrong, but he almost got someone killed. Fortunately, the water monster feared the Taoist Sovereign, otherwise, Ye Qing and the others would likely have died here. Even if Ye Qing didn't die, Fat Wang would probably end up killing himself!

The two of them walked along the cliff edge, and although five hundred meters wasn't far on land, it was different in water. However, the one advantage was that the water was calm now, restoring the tranquility a lake should have, making it somewhat easier for them to move in the water.

After marching forward for over five hundred meters, Fat Wang pointed to a stone wall in the distance and said, "It's around here, just go over and look for it!"

"Are you sure it's around here?" Ye Qing asked, eyes wide, not quite trusting Wang after being fooled by him earlier.

"I am absolutely and positively sure, it's right around here!" Fat Wang replied firmly, "If it's not around here, you can punish me by not allowing me to eat meat for three years!"

You have to admit, Fat Wang was really sincere this time, even making such a vow. Ye Qing no longer doubted, swam to that area, and dove underwater, starting to search the stone wall for an entrance.

Luckily, there were no other unusual occurrences underwater, no currents, and no water monster, so Ye Qing wasn't obstructed. However, after searching the stone wall thoroughly, Ye Qing found nothing. The fifty-meter area of stone wall nearby showed no signs of any entrance, it didn't look like there was an entrance at all.

After fussing around and finding nothing, Ye Qing surfaced and loudly asked Fat Wang, "Hey, you damn fatty, did you get it wrong? Why isn't there anything?"

"Wrong? Impossible!" Fat Wang immediately swam over to Ye Qing and said, "It's right around here, how could it be wrong?"

"There's no entrance at all!" Ye Qing replied.

"No entrance?" Fat Wang, puzzled, also dove underwater and searched thoroughly. However, the result was the same as Ye Qing's, nothing was found.

"Doesn't make sense?" Fat Wang scratched his head and said, "It's right around here, why isn't there an entrance?"

"You didn't mistake the location, did you?" Ye Qing asked.

"Impossible!" Old Wang Ba replied decisively, "Unless Eighth Master's map has a problem, otherwise it wouldn't be wrong!"

"Then what's going on now?" Ye Qing shrugged.

"You ask me, who am I supposed to ask?" Fat Wang also looked frustrated, feeling like his professional knowledge was being challenged.

Ye Qing frowned deeply, it was supposed to be around here, but there wasn't a single sign of an entrance on the surrounding stone wall, what was going on? When Ye Qing was searching earlier, he even used The Ancestor of Miao Dao's Scabbard to tap on the stone wall a few times to check if it was hollow behind. However, the echo was dull, indicating the stone wall was solid and there wasn't an entrance.

"There surely isn't an entrance on the stone wall!" Ye Qing slowly turned his head to look at the distant water surface, speaking quietly, "It's supposed to be around here, but not on the stone wall, could it be at the bottom?"

"Impossible, right?" Fat Wang said, "The map marks the entrance is on the mountain!"

"But in fact, this underwater area is also part of the mountain. It's just that the water level is too high, submerging part of the mountain base!" Ye Qing looked at the distant water surface and said, "The location should be nearby, or maybe we really should dive underwater and take a look?"

Fat Wang and Ye Qing exchanged glances for a moment, then both bent down and dove into the water, swimming toward the bottom.

Within a fifty-meter radius, the two searched the underwater area meticulously, not overlooking any possible spot. Less than five minutes later, the rope connecting Ye Qing and Fat Wang shook—a signal from Fat Wang.

Ye Qing hurriedly swam over, arriving beside Fat Wang shortly thereafter. Fat Wang was standing next to a huge rock. Seeing Ye Qing approach, he immediately said, "Ye Zi, come quickly, look over here!"

Ye Qing walked to Fat Wang's side, looking in the direction Fat Wang pointed. He saw next to the huge rock underwater, a chain thicker than a human wrist wrapped around it, with one end extending into the rock below, its purpose unknown.

Upon seeing the chain, Ye Qing frowned immediately. He had seen such underwater chains before, outside the secret chamber where Patriarch Bodhidharma passed away—chains wrapped around a lava-cast object, totaling three, extending into a cave. That cave had been suppressed by the Immovable Bodhisattva Seal at the time.

Now seeing the same chain underwater again, Ye Qing couldn't help but start pondering. Could it be that the same situation exists underwater here?

Despite the confusion in his mind, discovering this chain drew Ye Qing and Fat Wang's attention. Such a thick chain is rarely used by anyone. Moreover, the chain underwater showed no signs of rust, which ordinary metal couldn't achieve. Clearly, there's something problematic below the giant rock where the chain extends.

Ye Qing gestured to Fat Wang, signaling him to retreat a bit.

Fat Wang, who had previously entered the secret chamber with Ye Qing of Patriarch Bodhidharma's passing, encountered those chains, and suffered at the hands of the great dragon crocodile. Naturally, seeing the chain again now, he dared not waste words. Seeing Ye Qing's gesture, he immediately retreated, avoiding lingering in the area.

Ye Qing picked up the chain, slowly tracing it to the bottom of the giant rock. The chain extended into the silt below, seemingly nailed to the riverbed. Yet Ye Qing knew this wasn't the whole story; there must be something special underwater.

Ye Qing followed the chain beneath the silt, which was particularly loose, as if there were no solid ground beneath. He reached about half a meter below and still hadn't touched the bottom, increasing his astonishment.

Ye Qing gestured to Fat Wang, signaling him to grab his rope while Ye Qing held onto the chain, diving into the silt. Since the silt was loose, akin to thick water, he decided to go down and see what's inside.

The silt was even softer than Ye Qing imagined; diving in, he encountered no resistance. Grabbing the chain, he kept diving until fully submerged in the silt, yet he faced no obstacles. The situation surprised him further, confirming his suspicion of something unusual nearby.

Ye Qing didn't stop and kept diving deeper. After descending five or six meters, he finally encountered some resistance, as if hitting a wooden plank blocking his way down.

However, Ye Qing was prepared, grabbing the Scabbard of The Ancestor of Miao Dao and splitting the plank open.

Once the plank was split, Ye Qing felt the silt around him sinking downward, and he sank along with it. But soon, he plunged into a clear water area. Opening his eyes to look around, he found himself inside a cave!

Seeing the cave's interior, Ye Qing suddenly understood, realizing what had just happened. This seemed to be the entrance's location, with someone having previously blocked it with a plank. Over time, as underwater currents moved, silt slowly covered the plank, obscuring this entrance.

Yet, being a plank below and with floating silt, the silt was quite loose. It wasn't difficult for someone to dive through the silt, and by opening the plank, this entrance would be revealed. The design was indeed clever; who would have thought the entrance was below the silt?

Finding the entrance, Ye Qing pulled on his rope forcefully to signal Fat Wang to follow him in. Then, Ye Qing continued swimming forward along the cave.

The cave initially went downward but then turned straight, leading toward the mountain wall after about ten meters. By then, Fat Wang had caught up from behind. Clearly, he was also stunned by the underwater cave, gesturing excitedly at Ye Qing from afar.

Ye Qing ignored Fat Wang, continuing forward along the cave. Soon, the cave rose vertically, and Ye Qing and Fat Wang swam upward, covering a distance of about ten meters, when suddenly the surroundings brightened—they found themselves in a cave!