The tremors in the tower, triggered by that surge of energy, gradually subsided.
The agitated sea fireflies, seeing the bubbles disappear, returned to the gaps between the tower's stone bricks. They burrowed their beaks in, awaiting the next wave of bubble tides.
This tower undoubtedly held secrets. To continue their investigation, they needed to find a way to ascertain the situation inside.
Zhang Qiling and Hei Yanjing, with their extensive experience, immediately recognized the tower, designed without an apparent entrance, as a stroke of genius by its creator. The mechanisms for opening it were likely hidden within the palace complex, requiring explorers to overcome numerous trials, pool their wisdom, and break through each barrier.
However, in reality, for these two, such a convoluted and troublesome process of deciphering was entirely unnecessary.
After all, any overly complicated thinking and planning often stemmed from a lack of sufficient force.
Hei Yanjing estimated the tower's thickness and felt it would be a waste to use their scarce underwater firearms. He drifted back a step, bent down, and extended a hand in a peculiar gesture of invitation.
Zhang Qiling, now accustomed to Hei Yanjing's strange behaviors, ignored it and drew out his Black Gold Ancient Blade.
It was unclear if this was the Black Gold Ancient Blade's first time at sea. As soon as it was unsheathed, it seemed quite excited, eager to slash at something to celebrate.
However, after waiting for a while, it discovered that Zhang Qiling had stopped for some unknown reason. It buzzed in confusion, stirring up a small eddy.
Then, Zhang Qiling slowly ran his hand along the blade.
Black Gold Ancient Blade: A touch? Is this a touch? Yay!
Black Gold Ancient Blade: ...Wait, is this a final meal?
The unfortunate Black Gold, for once, showed a glimmer of intelligence, but it was of no use. It couldn't prevent its destiny of being used to cut stone.
The Black Gold Ancient Blade, capable of swiftly slicing an octopus into pieces, demonstrated exceptional skill and professionalism even when cutting stone. Despite the significant resistance underwater, it remained impossibly sharp, severing the tower's apex!
The spire of the tower slowly dispersed a cloud of dust in the water, making no sound. It drifted down to the bottom, settling on the soft sand.
The revealed square entrance was of considerable size; even Fatty, with all his bulk, wouldn't get stuck. Zhang Qiling reached in a hand to feel the water inside the tower. It was faintly warm, as if something below was continuously transmitting heat upwards.
The Black Gold Ancient Blade's earlier strike, while not creating a loud noise, had startled the sea fireflies. They scattered like meteors, tracing bright white trails in the dark seabed.
But soon, they discovered the newly created entrance.
Just as another surge of energy emanated from the tower's base, the newly opened passage acted like a chimney, expelling large quantities of bubbles outward.
The sea fireflies, as if discovering a new continent, swarmed towards it instantly. Their small bodies jostled against each other, completely blocking the opening, which was large enough for even Fatty to pass through.
Some intelligent sea fireflies understood the difference between a single meal and a continuous supply. They didn't linger at the exit but plunged directly into the depths of the tower, quickly vanishing into the pitch-blackness, their bioluminescence seemingly swallowed.
The two waited outside for a while. Hei Yanjing made a gesture—
(They didn't come out.)
...The sea fireflies that had plunged into the tower disappeared as if they had never existed.
Zhang Qiling glanced at the sea fireflies outside. After their meal, they had begun to gather for mating. Their long, fanned tails intertwined, a process lasting about fifty seconds.
The mating instinct within their bodies compelled them to abandon all other temptations, prioritizing the continuation of their species.
The sea fireflies that had entered and did not return promptly likely encountered something below and could not come back.
This conjecture made the two of them vigilant. In the deep sea, any minor threat could have severe consequences, especially since no one knew what strange species inhabited the perpetually dark seabed.
Zhang Qiling activated the long-range searchlight installed on his diving suit. Hei Yanjing understood and immediately moved forward, observing the interior under the beam.
Unlike the greenish stone bricks on the exterior, the interior was a strange grayish-white.
Hei Yanjing drew his dagger and scraped at it a couple of times. A lot of grayish-white powder flaked off, drifting in the water like some dried-out shell.
Beneath the dagger, the stone brick remained grayish-white, suggesting the adhering shell was extremely thick.
Zhang Qiling picked up a piece of the shell. It crumbled into fine powder with a gentle rub, clearly the solidified secretion of some organism accumulated on the stone bricks over countless years.
...The flakes Hei Yanjing had scraped off looked quite fresh, indicating that these unknown creatures were still active.
Just as the two were speculating about the source organism, the tower beneath them suddenly vibrated again!
Unlike the previous tremors caused by energy, this vibration was continuous, subtly unnerving, and felt more like a massive entity was rushing upwards from below!
Zhang Qiling and Hei Yanjing made a decisive move, simultaneously bracing their feet against the tower's outer wall. After a brief exertion, their bodies shot out like arrows released from a bow, rapidly retreating over ten meters in an instant!
Seeing the two finally leave, the sea fireflies found a large area cleared in the "tower cafeteria" and eagerly swam closer, wagging their tails to claim front-row positions.
But the moment they approached—!
From the tower's excessively large stone brick gaps and the newly opened large mouth, vast patches of white "coral" suddenly "grew"!
These corals had distinct branches, flowing out of the stone brick gaps like liquid, then instantly growing larger. Their surfaces had a slightly fuzzy texture, with raised bumps that swayed with the currents.
And from the tips of those raised bumps, a milky white secretion was slowly seeping out.
Zhang Qiling looked at Hei Yanjing:
(?)
Hei Yanjing observed closely and nodded in confirmation.
...These were not harmless corals at all, but insidious predators disguised in pure white!
Unaware of the danger, the sea fireflies, though somewhat wary, couldn't resist the allure of the energy emanating from within the tower. They approached slowly and tentatively.
And the instant they neared the "coral"—
In the center of those warm, harmless "coral" branches, a fine slit suddenly split open, and from the depths of those slits emerged mouths like elongated blades!
The bumps, swaying with the currents, quickly coalesced into clusters, resembling cauliflower heads that evoked disgust. These "cauliflowers" tightly enveloped the sea fireflies, and within moments, crushed the glowing fish into a pulp and stuffed them into their mouths. xxs壹贰
Could these "corals" be the source of the energy emanating from below the tower, attracting the sea fireflies?
...No, that wasn't right.
The energy from below the tower was immense and appeared at regular intervals, clearly originating from a single organism!
These "corals," rather than being native inhabitants of the tower, seemed more like parasites on the colossal unknown creature at the bottom!