Chapter Thirty-Two: Infiltrating the Lake of Spirits

Fuyang and Ah Huang chatted late into the night, not falling into a deep sleep until three o’clock in the morning. The next day, he woke naturally at seven, feeling invigorated, without the slightest trace of fatigue.

He realized that ever since Dong Weike had taught him that bizarre spell for making a mouth appear on his hand, and after he’d devoured a faceless ghost in the bathroom that night, his stamina and mental energy had improved remarkably. His body was in top form; four or five hours of sleep each day was more than enough.

Clang.

The door to the adjacent room swung open.

Qin Mei emerged, clad only in her underwear, yawning as she walked out. Her jet-black hair tumbled carelessly around her shoulders, her skin as fair and flawless as porcelain, her shapely curves enough to drive any man mad. That lazy, half-awake look of seductive languor only made it worse.

Fuyang was dumbstruck, his body reacting instinctively to the intoxicating sight.

Qin Mei had forgotten she was sharing a two-bedroom suite in the hotel with two men that night, thinking she was in her own place. When she realized her mistake, she saw Fuyang standing there, blood streaming from his nose.

“Ah! You… pervert! Creep!”

She snapped awake, clutching her chest and fleeing back into her room, leaving Fuyang standing awkwardly in the living room, swallowing hard and rubbing his nose in embarrassment. “It’s not like I meant to see anything… Damn, why is it that early in the morning my little brother is harder than steel? What am I supposed to do? Still, Qin Mei’s figure is truly sensational…”

Of course, this was just a minor episode. There was a lot of important work to be done.

He called Zhao Shanshan to share his and Ah Huang’s suspicions. She was extremely anxious, but the good news was that, thanks to repeated urgings from the Jiangcheng police, the specialized divers and equipment would be ready today.

“What are we waiting for? Let’s get to work!”

Noon, by the shores of Linxin Lake.

Zhao Shanshan gazed at the clear, deep waters and sighed. “Who would have thought such a beautiful lake could conceal endless terror?”

Ah Huang, sounding like a charlatan, shook his head sagely. “The more beautiful something is, the more dangerous! It’s just like women… Uh, Captain Zhao, I didn’t mean anything by that.”

Seeing Zhao Shanshan glaring daggers at him, he scrambled to explain himself.

A police officer ran over and saluted. “Captain Zhao, the reinforcements from the provincial capital are ready. They’re all experts in combat and reconnaissance, and trained professional divers—the elite of the elite.”

Fuyang’s eyes lit up. That was a relief; after all, this was a supernatural mission. Ordinary people, even police officers, would probably be terrified.

“Alright, Xiao Yangzi, we’re going down too!”

Fuyang was stunned. “What? Me? I’m going too?”

“Of course! Are you going to back out?”

He had no choice. With Zhao Shanshan watching, he couldn’t argue with Ah Huang without looking like a coward.

The two approached three “frogmen” already suited up in professional diving gear.

“We don’t have any equipment?”

“No need! Watch this.”

To the astonishment of the police officers, Ah Huang produced two yellow talismans, chanting, “By urgent decree, the Three Pure Ones grant me power! Freedom in water!”

He slapped the talismans onto his and Fuyang’s chests.

“These are Water-Avoidance Talismans. For an hour, we can breathe underwater as easily as fish.”

Incredible!

The police all gasped in awe, marveling at the feat—truly a master!

Then the two of them picked up spare underwater spotlights, wireless comms, and other small gear.

Zhao Shanshan looked at Fuyang, hesitating before finally saying, “Fuyang, be careful down there.”

He nodded, and together with Ah Huang, followed the three frogmen into the depths of Linxin Lake.

The water was freezing!

That was Fuyang’s first sensation as he plunged into the haunted lake. Though it was late summer, the lake felt colder than winter.

Thankfully, the magical effects of the Water-Avoidance Talisman distracted him, making things more bearable.

Taoist arts truly were mysterious!

With the talisman on his chest, not only could he breathe freely underwater, but his vision was remarkably clear, able to see his surroundings in detail.

Both he and Ah Huang were competent swimmers. They signaled to the three frogmen, then dove deeper into the heart of the lake.

Water pressure was immense.

Ordinary people would feel a strong sense of oppression after just a few meters underwater, regardless of swimming ability. Specialized equipment and training were essential.

The Water-Avoidance Talisman resolved that issue as well.

Linxin Lake was a full fifty meters deep!

Fuyang couldn’t fathom why, when that mysterious expert helped the Nationalist Government build the forest to suppress the mass grave and burial mound, they made the central artificial lake so deep.

Five minutes later, they reached the lakebed.

It was pitch black; light couldn’t penetrate this far. Only special underwater spotlights allowed for exploration.

The lakebed was covered in silt.

There didn’t seem to be anything unusual.

Fuyang frowned. “Could Ah Huang have made a mistake? But I saw it with my own eyes that night—the drowned corpse demon definitely crawled out of Linxin Lake…”

He saw a frogman give a downward gesture, signaling to probe deeper into the silt with their detection rods.

Ah Huang nodded, and the group swam down a bit further.

Now, they were less than a meter from the silt bottom.

One of the frogmen took a black rod, about a foot long, pressed a button, and several segments shot out, extending it to about a meter and a third.

He inserted the rod into the silt, probing and moving it around.

Suddenly!

His movements froze. The next moment, he yanked hard, as if something in the muck was tugging back on the rod!

Fuyang’s heart leapt into his throat, anxiety spiking.

The frogman struggled, pulling several times, and finally managed, with a mighty tug, to pull a hand out of the mud!

It was a swollen, rotting human hand, gripping the end of the detection rod tightly, as if trying to drag the officer into the silt.

“Damn it! It’s a tug-of-war with a ghost!”

Fuyang felt his scalp tingle and a chill run down his spine.

The frogman, terrified, let go of the rod.

But to their horror, the rotted, bloated hand refused to let go. It whipped the detection rod through the water and struck the officer hard in the stomach!