"Old Shi is your grandfather!" Huo Lei broke out in a cold sweat. If his grandfather's grandson were to get hurt by his hands, then the Bai Lang Village and the Tai Yang Village would become sworn enemies. "Why didn't you say so earlier!"
"If I had said so, would you still have brought me out?"
"No!" Huo Lei said without hesitation. "You are a troublemaker. Bringing you out to cause trouble is on our Bai Lang Village!"
"How am I a troublemaker?"
"Aren't you a troublemaker? If we had taken the usual route, we wouldn't have encountered that coffin. But you insisted on taking a shortcut, and as a result, Xiao Man was put into the coffin, her life or death unknown. Don't you think you are a troublemaker?" Huo Lei was on the verge of tears, but it was too late to regret it.
Little Shi Tou poked his fingers, his face full of innocence. "I meant well. I didn't expect it to turn out like this. Besides, I used to play there just fine. It was only when you guys came that something went wrong. If you ask me, you are the troublemakers."
"Do you believe I'll throw you out, you troublemaker?"
"You wouldn't dare," Little Shi Tou said with certainty. "If you throw me out and I die, you won't survive either. Big guy, we're in the same boat now..."
"What boat? I am the number one warrior of Bai Lang Village!"
Little Shi Tou rolled his eyes. "We are in the same boat, and it's more important to work together to overcome the current difficulties. After we shake off these people, we still need to find a way to save Sister Xiao Man."
"Right, we still need to find a way to save Xiao Man. Are you familiar with the terrain here?"
"Familiar. Keep going straight, about eight hundred meters, and jump down!"
"Jump?" Huo Lei was astonished. "Jump into the Ruo Shui River?"
"Yes, jump into the Ruo Shui River!" Little Shi Tou said without hesitation.
"I think you've gone mad. Being chased by people behind us might not kill us, but jumping into the Ruo Shui River will surely kill us!"
"Listen to me, and I guarantee you'll be fine!" Little Shi Tou vowed.
Huo Lei was approaching the place Little Shi Tou mentioned. He was hesitating whether to listen to him, but the pursuers were coming again. He gritted his teeth and leaped down.
The assassins caught up and peeked down. The mist was dense, and the depth was unfathomable. "Has this kid lost his mind? He actually jumped down!"
"He probably doesn't want to leave the body for us. Without a body, we can't frame them."
"Let's go back and report."
After the assassins left and no sound could be heard, Huo Lei finally breathed a sigh of relief. There was actually a platform below, obscured by the dense mist, so one couldn't see clearly. Peeking down, he saw only the bottomless Ruo Shui River.
"Kid, how did you find this place?"
"Once, I was playing and accidentally fell. I thought I was dead then, but luckily, I landed on this platform and saved my life," Little Shi Tou said proudly. "It's a good thing I knew about this place, otherwise, we would have died here today."
"Indeed." Huo Lei wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Shall we go up now?"
"Go this way." Little Shi Tou pointed inside. "Go in, there's another world inside."
Huo Lei carried Little Shi Tou on his shoulder. "Did you read all this in books?"
"Uncle, although there is a golden house in books, the ancient saying also goes, reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles," Little Shi Tou said with a child's precocious air. "Not reading is being a brute, and only reading is being a bookworm. Only by applying what you learn can you live up to the teachings of the sages."
"I don't understand."
"Stupid, Sister Xiao Man definitely won't like you!"
Huo Lei's expression changed. "I'll give you a chance to say that again, or I'll abandon you here."
Little Shi Tou's expression changed. "You are a bit stupid, but you are still very capable. At least you are obedient."
Huo Lei gritted his teeth. Was that a compliment? It sounded more like an insult!
"You little brat, it seems you really deserve a beating!"
"Uncle, what do you think Sister Xiao Man is doing now?" Little Shi Tou immediately changed the subject. "She's locked in a coffin alone, lying next to that terrifying person. Sister Xiao Man must be very scared. Let's hurry and save Sister Xiao Man."
"That's true." Huo Lei was distracted and started to run. After running for a while, he felt something was wrong. A moment later, he asked, "Why is Xiao Man called Sister, and I'm called Uncle?"
"Sister Xiao Man is delicate and weak, like a fragile flower, so she's naturally a sister. As for you, with your broad back and sturdy physique, and your heroic spirit, you're naturally an uncle. This is a compliment."
"That's more like it." Huo Lei was finally satisfied. "But, is the person in that coffin really a Dragon Fish?"
"Ancient texts record that Dragon Fish are also called Jiao Ren, and the Jiao Ren tribe is blessed with heavenly gifts. They can shed tears that turn into pearls. The Jiao Ren tribe is also the head of the sea race. The person lying in the coffin might be an important figure of the Jiao Ren tribe."
"Jiao Ren tribe?" Huo Lei asked with doubt. "Are they dragons or fish?"
"They are mermaids."
"What are mermaids?" Huo Lei asked with the curiosity of a child. "Do they have fish heads and human bodies?"
"They have human bodies and fish tails. Didn't I say before? This tribe is blessed with heavenly gifts and is the most beautiful among all races," Little Shi Tou said dreamily. "Moreover, Jiao Ren are born without gender. Only when they meet their lifelong love do they choose their gender."
"Born without gender?"
"Yes, the Jiao Ren are mermaids, born hermaphroditic. Only when they fall truly in love do they choose their gender. I saw that the person in the coffin was a man, so that person has a beloved."
"You know all this?" Huo Lei was shocked. "Your grandfather doesn't even control you, letting you read such messy things!"
"What do you mean messy things? These are strange tales, written about gods and spirits," Little Shi Tou huffed. "As descendants of the divine race, how can we not know these things?"
"Descendants of the divine race?" Huo Lei said coolly. "We are descendants of fallen gods." Su Dan Novel Network
"Our fallen god tribe are the true heavenly gods, and they are legitimate members of the heavenly god Xuan Xin," Little Shi Tou said proudly. "The heavenly chronicles record that the heavenly god Xuan Xin will surely return to her rightful position, and our fallen god tribe will also return to divinity."
"She has already turned to ashes," Huo Lei said gloomily. "Her divine personality shattered, she turned to ashes and vanished into the heavens and earth. How could she return? Moreover, this world has long been the homeland our ancestors relied on for survival. Even if she returns, we will not follow her back to the divine race."
"Why?"
"Because a human man caused the death of his tribesmen. Such a person is not worthy of being the leader of our divine race," Huo Lei said hatefully. "Your Tai Yang Village recognizes her as a god, but our Bai Lang Village does not!"