Dragon Raja: Lu Mingfei Returns from Sekiro

"Attention all units, 'descent' commence!"

The staff released the lifeline, and Ye Sheng and Jiu Deyaji's figures gradually disappeared into the dark water. Only the lifeline's pivot continued to turn, while everyone else stared at their screens, typing on keyboards and speaking into their headsets.

The depth is fifty meters.

The spotlight could not penetrate the deep water, leaving only a bluish-gray band of light.

Aki's slender figure floated beside Ye Sheng, and Ye Sheng could reach out and grab her.

"I've heard crayfish is pretty good, but I've never tried it before," said Jiu Deya. "Are there any famous restaurants around here?"

“Norma definitely knows,” Ye Sheng said. “But Lu Mingfei is really amazing. When I interviewed him, I never expected him to be so capable. He seemed like an ordinary teenage boy.”

There was a separate signal line connecting the two of them.

Deep diving is extremely dangerous. A single nano-diving suit must withstand pressure equivalent to more than ten times the atmospheric pressure. In the dark and deep water, with only a single signal line connecting to the human world, it is easy for a person to become overly stressed.

But with him (or her) around, the murky underwater world seemed to become clear.

Chapter Ninety-Two: Bronze City

They reached the bottom of the water, as if the world had shrunk to just the two of them, with only spotlights illuminating their presence; otherwise, it was all chaos.

Ye Sheng sprang out steel claws from his webbed feet, gripping the rocks firmly. The mud and rocks were scattered, turning into black smoke that spread underwater.

This area used to be mountainous, and you can still vaguely see what it looked like before it was submerged.

All the stones were smoothed and rounded by the flowing water, their sharp edges worn away.

Ye Sheng bent down and dug in the mud for a while, and picked up a piece of pottery with ancient patterns.

“This pottery shard is at least a thousand years old.” Ye Sheng handed the shard to Jiu Deya Ji. “Baidi City is nearby, but where exactly is it? I can’t see the ruins of Baidi City.”

“I can’t see it either,” Jiudeya reported to the ship. “This is Jiudeya. We have reached the designated location, but we have not found the ruins of Baidi City.”

“It’s nearby,” Mans’s voice came through, laced with noise. “Norma, use sonar to scan the terrain.”

"Understood, prepare sonar scan."

Invisible sound waves spread across the bottom of the water, bounced back after encountering obstacles, and by calculating the time it took for the sound waves to be emitted and bounced, a 3D topographic map of the bottom of the water appeared in front of Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya.

The northeast and southeast are both mountains, forming a gate-like structure. According to Chinese Feng Shui, this is where the mountain dragon and the water dragon meet, making it an auspicious place to build a city.

“Although we can’t see it, the entrance should be nearby,” said Shudeya.

Yesterday, a violent earthquake occurred underwater at the Three Gorges Dam. According to reports from the detectors, metal walls and entrances were exposed from the mudslide. However, another earthquake occurred this morning, burying the exposed entrances back in.

That could very well be the palace of the King of Bronze and Fire. Today, they must find the entrance.

"To save time, I'll trouble you." Shudeya's webbed feet also extended steel claws, gripping the rock firmly.

"I'm always exhausted every time," Ye Sheng complained.

"Don't worry, I'll catch you and make sure you're not swept away." Shudeya chuckled and opened her arms.

Ye Sheng entered her embrace, and her slender arms wrapped around his waist. The two hugged each other and remained rooted to the spot. The diving suits were cold, but they seemed to be able to feel each other's body temperature through the nanomaterials.

When Ye Sheng is activating the snake, he becomes as fragile as a baby.

The Moniach detected a powerful bioelectric current, a burst of it at a point underwater.

Countless tangled snakes slithered out of Ye Sheng's mind. The snakes would bring him the information he wanted, which was why he and Shudeya were chosen as the best diving partners for this mission. Most of the credit should go to Ye Sheng.

The Word of Power: Serpent is arguably the most convenient information-type Word of Power. In the instrument's detection, the swarm of snakes appears as an electric current, but to Ye Sheng, they are all his obedient servants. The snakes can move through obstacles, but when the Word of Power is activated, he loses his ability to protect himself. Without the help of Shudeya, he would be swept away by the current and endanger his life.

Ye Sheng opened his eyes, golden light flowing in his pupils.

"I see the entrance! Request permission to use an alchemical bomb to blast open the topsoil layer; it's right in front of me! At most 5 meters deep!"

“Permission granted. I will take the key and oxygen tanks with me down the dive. I must find Norton’s egg,” Mance’s voice came through.

Rear cabin.

“Baby, can you feel it?” Mans pinched the baby’s nose.

“Be careful when using him. He is our only key. Even Chu Zihang cannot compare to him in terms of the purity of his dragon blood. We will never find another one like him.” A woman in her thirties or forties sat by the cradle. She was charming and beautiful, and her hands were adorned with exquisite jewelry. It was clear at a glance that she came from an extraordinary background.

“Where’s the newborn I brought?” Mans picked up the baby.

“You mean Lu Mingfei? I don’t know, but I don’t think he can compare to the key,” the woman said.

“I’ll be careful.” Mans teased the baby, gently poking the baby’s soft cheek with his finger. “He’s much better behaved than Chu Zihang. Angers asked me to take him with me for this moment.”

He went to the front cabin, where Selma helped him put on his diving suit.

This is a specially designed diving suit with a spherical transparent pouch in the abdomen. When you wear it, you look like a pregnant woman in her tenth month of pregnancy. That pouch is for the key.

Selma carefully changed Key, who was wearing a diaper, into an oversized wetsuit, and then placed the good baby in front of Mance's belly.

"Preparations for descent are complete. Descent commences."

Mans grabbed a new oxygen tank, a small red ball, and a black metal box, and plunged into the water.

Underwater, spotlights pierced through the darkness, and Professor Mans, who looked like an astronaut, emerged from the river.

"Hey, the key." Ye Sheng tapped the transparent pouch, and the little baby waved his fingers. "Professor, you're such a good father. Look how well-behaved he is under your tutelage."

“We’ll talk about jokes after the mission is over. Take me to plant the bomb, and keep a safe distance from Jiudeya,” Mans said.

He handed the oxygen cylinder and the specially made alchemical bomb to Jiu Deya, and followed Ye Sheng as he moved, burying the fist-sized red ball in the soil.

Then, he and Ye Sheng swam to a distance, where a muffled sound rang out and a large crater was blasted open in the topsoil, revealing the bronze wall to the world again from the millennia-old soil.

Painful faces are carved into the wall, like demons being fried in oil, their expressions ferocious, with fangs growing from their mouths.

The three stood on the bronze wall, marveling at it.

“The city is made of bronze; Norton’s egg must be inside,” Mance said.

"How exactly did they manage to forge such a massive bronze city? The snakes swam through those mechanisms—it's truly ingenious. Even modern technology couldn't accomplish such a feat," Ye Sheng said.

“Professor von Schneider once speculated that Norton hollowed out the entire mountain, using it as a mold, and then poured molten bronze into the mountain. As the bronze city took shape, the high heat caused the mountain rocks to crack, thus creating a colossal structure that was impossible to complete with technology.” Shudeya gently stroked the bronze wall.

"That scene was truly insane," Ye Sheng exclaimed. "The ultimate manifestation of power and strength—is this the Dragon King?"

“According to legend, there is a similar bronze palace in Northern Europe.” Mans swam to the center. “It is a dragon king that has not yet awakened. The best priority is to capture it alive, and the second best is to kill it.”

“This is from the Equipment Department.” Mans handed over a black iron box. “If you find any signs of Norton’s egg awakening, detonate it. It will destroy the egg. Remember, you must be at least 50 meters away before detonating.”

"Grab the oxygen tank, I'm going to 'open the door'." When Professor Mans opened his eyes, a dark golden light flowed in them, even more intense than the light Ye Sheng shone when he used "Snake".

He placed his hand on the bronze wall and chanted softly, like a hymn or a roar.

Then, he did something that would make any diver's heart stop: he pulled off his mask in deep water!

Word of Power: A Dustless Land!

Mans's voice echoed in the air, as if a transparent glass dome protected them, enveloping the three of them.

In the deep, quiet darkness, the spotlights finally shone bright beams.

Chapter Ninety-Three Crisis

The vortex spun on the surface of the transparent shell, and high-pressure air leaking from the Mans oxygen cylinder quickly filled the bubble-like space.

It was as if an invisible wind emanated from Mans's hand; wherever he touched, the damp bronze wall instantly dried, large chunks of patina were peeled off, revealing a new, bluish-black metal surface.

The狰狞 ​​face became clearer; it turned out that what was in his mouth was not fangs, but burning firewood. The copper rust had simply blocked the flames from burning the firewood.

This is a truly bizarre painting, so lifelike, conveying immense pain and regret that it makes one wonder what the expression would be like if someone were burned alive.

"Baby, it's your turn." Mans carefully took out the key, supporting the baby's chubby arms with both hands, and slipped it under his armpits.

The baby didn't cry or fuss. His eyes shone with golden light. He looked only a few months old, with a pacifier in his mouth and sparse lanugo on his head. Yet, this child's face exuded the solemnity and dignity of a mafia boss.

Unfortunately, there is no baby gangster assassin in a suit named Reborn in this world, only a key burning with dragon blood.

The baby gazed at the face, slowly stretched out its little hand, and placed its fingers on the face's brow.

The metal protrusion pierced the baby's tender skin, and blood spread from between the eyebrows, seeping into the wrinkles on the face.

In an instant, the face contorted, shifting from pain to pleasure, and a low, soothing sound came from the baby's mouth. Ye Sheng reached out and caught the nipple, causing the bronze wall to vibrate and hum.

The baby's blood flowed into the mouth of the bronze human face, and the inanimate object seemed to come alive, sucking the blood forcefully. The baby's expression, however, was as solemn as that of a martyr, showing none of the behavior of an ordinary baby crying when its mother is gone. The baby even placed its other hand on the bronze human face, as if it were about to kiss the face's mouth.

Mans quickly stopped this dangerous and terrifying act, picked up the key, and Shudeya took out a hemostatic bandage and tied it around the key's injured finger.

Blood flowed into the mouth of the human face. After a moment of silence, the human face slowly opened its mouth. The sound of metal tearing came from the depths of the bronze wall. The wall, which was originally tightly sealed, slowly separated like a monster opening its mouth, turning into a square-shaped deep well.

A dark passage appeared above the bronze human face, large enough for an adult to pass through.

The baby looked at the finger, seemingly realizing it was hurt, and glistening tears welled up in its eyes. Ye Sheng put the pacifier back in, silencing the baby.

"This is the passage." Professor Mans put the baby back in the diving suit and picked up the old oxygen cylinders that Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya had changed out of.

"The Living Spirit, Norton's masterpiece, kills matter itself with extreme flames and then contains the spirit and soul of the living. It is the guardian of the Bronze City, and only high-purity dragon blood can temporarily satisfy it."

Mans pulled up his diving mask and held up two fingers: "You probably only have two hours. The passage to the living spirits will close, and you must complete the mission before then."

"Approximately?" Ye Sheng said, "Could you be more precise? This is the Dragon King's palace; no one knows how dangerous it is inside."

“Then let’s not discuss this with me anymore, let’s hurry up,” Mans said. “I will close the Dustless Land, and once the water fills the passage, you can swim in.”

"Be careful not to break your lifelines. Norton hasn't woken up yet. As long as you don't trigger any mechanisms, the danger shouldn't be too great." Mance stuck a steel fork into the muddy ground nearby. It had a camera on it that could monitor any abnormalities in the passage.

After he finished speaking, the transparent protective shield slowly shrank, and the water once again submerged the bronze wall. Mans gave a thumbs up and was slowly pulled up by the lifeline.

Ye Sheng and Jiu Deya jumped into the passage one after the other.

Mans climbed onto the gunwale, took off his flippers and wetsuit, and handed the baby to the elegant woman.

"Life parameters are normal, signal is normal, so many bronze statues, my god, is this the Dragon King's palace!" Selma exclaimed. On the screen was a live video transmitted by Ye Sheng and Jiu Deyaji.

Fortunately, there was still plenty of air inside the Bronze City. It was like a black box, which was only opened just now, connecting it to the outside world.

The water flowed down the channel like a downward fountain, but the fountain's opening was too small to fill the space inside the Bronze City in a short time.

“Oxygen levels are normal.” Ye Sheng looked at the report from the instrument. “It’s strange. Logically speaking, thousands of years of oxidation and chemical reactions in Bronze City should be enough to deplete the oxygen here. Is the instrument broken?”

“No, it’s working perfectly,” Mans said. “After all, this is the Dragon King’s masterpiece. Before we went in, nobody knew what he put here. Don’t forget your mission, don’t pay attention to anything else, and don’t take off your masks.”

"Understood." Ye Sheng and Jiu Deyaji walked forward cautiously.

Huge metal discs appeared on the screen, one, two, three...