False evidence

Chapter 290 Escaping the Insect Encirclement
"Underwater?"

"If they're not in the water, where did all these water spiders come from?"

My mind raced: "Water spiders breathe by condensing air bubbles on the bristles and webs on their bodies, and they can use this method to transport and gather air."

Liu Hong asked in surprise, "You mean, we're inside a bubble right now?"

"Or did you really think it was in a glass bottle?"

"What are you planning to do?" Liu Hong spat again. "Don't worry about me. If you have a solution, go on your own."

"I think you've really lost your mind. It was your girlfriend who pulled you down; why would she want you dead?" I gritted my teeth. "But when a woman gets angry, she's too dangerous for strangers. My lover and friends might be in danger, so I can't just sit here and wait to die. Besides, once this bubble bursts, you'll definitely drown too... We have to go together!"

"I told you not to worry about me! I'm not going to live to see tomorrow anyway!"

"Stop your damn nonsense!" I said impatiently. "Now I'll tell you two things: First, I know where the Yin-Yang Fan is!"

Liu Hong was startled: "You know?"

I said to myself, "Second, Wei Min might die! Don't ask me how I know, just think about it, if she's killed, do you think the person who killed her will let your daughter go?"

"Anyone who dares to hurt them, I'll kill their whole family!" Liu Hong roared.

"You idiot, what's the use of just talking tough!"

"Tell me, what should we do?"

I said, "It's impossible for such a large bubble to form in the open water. Although we can't see what's going on outside, I think the bubble is most likely attached to tree roots that have spread underwater, or in aquatic plants. The former is fine, but the latter is a matter of luck."

Liu Hong calmed down and said, "I understand. As long as we break the bubble and hold our breath, we can float to the surface. If we're surrounded by seaweed, and get tangled up, then..."

"Hmm. These spider silks are just too many and too dense, not very tough. The bursting of bubbles and the force of the water flow should be able to break some of them, so it won't be difficult to get rid of them."

"But these water spiders are poisonous!"

"It's poisonous, but not fatal, otherwise you wouldn't be alive now. Anyway... we have to give it our all!"

Liu Hong said, "After all this talk, how do we pop the bubbles?"

I asked, "What is will-o'-the-wisp?"

Liu Hong immediately understood what I meant: "The will-o'-the-wisp is only the size of a nitroglycerin pill; if you spit it out, it won't even reach the bubbles. But... I have dentures!"

"I... rely on..."

"Prepare!"

I quickly took a deep breath and held it.

With a "whoosh," a powerful torrent swept in from the side.

As I thought, the bubble was easily punctured by the dentures that Liu Hong spat out.

But to our surprise, the force of the water flow was far greater than we had imagined.

Before I could react, I was pulled downwards by a huge suction force.

A sudden flash of green fluorescence appeared.

At first, I thought Liu Hong had spat out will-o'-the-wisps, but when I saw the tiny green flames clearly, I was shocked.

We were indeed at the bottom of the river, and the bubbles from before were indeed attached to other objects.

But those weren't aquatic plants; they were several enormous, white skeletons!

Those few points of fluorescence are formed by scattered bones being swept up and collided by the rapids!

Normally, phosphorescence is extremely difficult to produce in water, yet the water spiders that were swept away by the current quickly began to condense bubbles. This is because the close-knit skeletons collided and rubbed against each other, creating this spectacular sight!

The water flow washed away the water spiders on my body, and I broke free of my restraints without much effort.

By the light of the phosphorescent fire, I saw that Liu Hong was still covered in large patches of spider silk. I quickly swam over to him, not bothering to tear off the silk, and grabbed him with one hand, quickly swimming upwards.

In the past, I would never have been such a good swimmer. Firstly, having received the Yin power of the water ghost, I could hold my breath for a relatively long time; secondly, the skeletons underwater gave me a strong sense of crisis. Human skeletons weren't that large; they were clearly the bones of large mammals like cattle and horses!

Judging from the water flow, if it were long-deposited bones, they should have been washed away long ago. Only if the flesh and blood had been gnawed away in a short period of time would they remain so intact.

This inevitably reminds me of those rare, giant water spiders...

As the water flowed, Liu Hong finally broke free from the spider silk's grasp.

He also sensed the danger and began paddling frantically.

I was now far from the range of the phosphorescent light, but because of the water ghost's yin energy, my eyesight in the water was much better than that of an ordinary person.

I instinctively looked down and saw a large shadow chasing after me like a huge aquatic beast!

I was horrified, but I forced myself to remain calm. Upon closer inspection, I could see that it looked as if a dark thread was being pulled behind Liu Hong.

I swam to his other side and discovered that the so-called 'line' was actually blood flowing from his right ear. The dense swarm of water spiders seemed to have followed the scent of blood.

I quickly covered his ears while gesturing to him.

We are, after all, human, and we are nowhere near as agile as aquatic spiders in the water. Even if we surface, once caught by a water spider, the paralysis caused by its venom makes it difficult to get ashore.

Liu Hong understood what I meant, covered his ears, waved for me to look up, and then returned the gesture.

I understood what he meant, and I was both shocked and furious—he actually wanted to separate me from the other side and lure the water spider away!

Why is this guy being so stubborn at a time like this!

I didn't waste any more time with him. I swam a couple of strokes and grabbed his hair before he could swim away.

Finally, the two broke through the thin ice and surfaced.

Once they figured out which way to go, they quickly swam ashore.

"Where the hell am I?" I asked, looking around.

"What did you say?"

Liu Hong turned his head to look at me and asked.

The two looked at each other, and he realized what had happened. He covered his right ear and smiled bitterly, "I was pierced by a thin bone. I'm ruined."

"Isn't there still the left side? Being alive is more important than anything else!"

Seeing that it was already pitch black, I clicked my tongue and wondered, "Where am I?"

We emerged from a fairly large body of water. I'm not exactly directionally challenged, but in this unfamiliar place, surrounded by trees and without any landmarks, I couldn't even tell which way was which.

Liu Hong looked up and shouted, "Over here!"

He strode forward and said, "This river is east of Xiaomin's house, we just need to go west!"

I realized that although there were no stars or moon, it was drizzling and the wind was blowing. He was using the wind direction to determine his bearings.

"What did you say?" Liu Hong asked me loudly.

“I didn’t say anything!” I shouted back.

"What?" Liu Hong looked at me.

"Damn it! Is your left ear just for show?"

Liu Hong chuckled dryly: "You're the third person to know my secret."

Seeing that he was still looking at my mouth, I suddenly realized what was going on.

Liu Hong turned his head to the side and continued forward: "My left ear was just for show anyway."

(End of this chapter)