"Huff, huff, huff... Finally... here." Xinbadi felt his entire body relax as the small pool from their arrival reappeared before them.

Thank the Three Gods, thank the Children of Earth and Mother of the Sea, he muttered in his heart. The cave was now brightly lit, allowing them to escape at top speed. Also, the closer they got to the sea, the more the cave narrowed, like the mouth of a jar. This was probably why the Ironclad Giant Scorpion hadn't followed them all the way.

But this still didn't mean they were completely safe.

He hadn't forgotten the tide-like crawling sound – he wouldn't be surprised if all the desert scorpions of Endless Cape had gathered here. Xinbadi only knew that these predators could cross the stone wall at any moment, tracking their scent and tearing them to pieces.

Fortunately, scorpions couldn't swim. As long as they escaped into the sea, they could get out of danger.

"Quick, put on your helmet!" Xinbadi grabbed the diving helmet from the ground and eagerly fitted it over his neck.

However, he found that the Fjordlander hadn't moved.

"Hey, what are you spacing out for!"

"You... go first." Rex said in a low voice, his back to him.

Go first? Xinbadi was stunned. Damn it, was this guy still thinking about those glowing relics?

Anger welled up in his heart. He took three steps forward, grabbed the other man's shoulder, and turned him around. "Are you crazy? Do you know what the situation is now—"

His words caught in his throat as Xinbadi stared in surprise at Rex's chest. There was a tear in the clothing made of soft leather and intestinal membrane, with specks of blood on either side.

"Your diving suit..."

"It's broken." Rex forced a smile, uglier than a cry. "The last desert scorpion didn't sting me, but its pincers grazed my suit."

The Sandman fell silent. The wound on the other man's chest wasn't large, just a scratch on the skin, but a damaged diving suit meant seawater would pour into his helmet through the neck seal.

After a long while, Xinbadi finally spoke, "If we only use the air hose..."

Rex shook his head with a wry smile. "Unless we're very close to the surface, the force you need to inhale would be like a suction pump."

The two tubes had to be connected to maintain balance.

The other man had told him this before.

So that's why he had hesitated when answering his question earlier...

Probably, the Fjordlander had already realized his predicament at that time.

Rex took off his pouch and handed it to him. "This is the stone tablet sample – please give it to my assistant. Tell them I've found a discovery no less significant than that of Thunder."

Xinbadi noticed that his fingers were trembling slightly.

"Your assistant... do they have a spare diving suit?"

"There are only these two – from selecting materials to sewing, making a suit takes at least half a year." Rex took a deep breath – it was clear that he was trying to control his emotions. "I know what you're thinking. In fact, running all the way here, I've thought through every possible method. The result is that without a diving suit, it's impossible to get out of the cave. Perhaps, this is fate..."

"Fate?"

"People of the Material Association... can't become true explorers." He bit his lip. "Take advantage of the fact that the scorpions haven't come yet, and leave quickly! As long as you can bring the news back, even if I can't get the title of explorer, my name will definitely spread throughout the Fjordlands along with this invention!"

Xinbadi tilted his head, looked at the pool in silence for a moment, then slowly said, "I refuse."

"Eh?" Rex widened his eyes in disbelief.

"You still owe me twenty-nine gold dragons. If you die, who am I going to ask for them?" he said irritably. "This agreement is only known to you, me, and Muli. I don't think your assistant would pay that money – judging from their clothes, those two are no better than the Sandmen."

"We just don't have money now!" Rex protested, "To, to buy a steam engine from Graycastle... the cost exceeded expectations slightly... When the fame of the diving suit spreads, many merchants will come to buy it, then you don't have to worry about money at all!"

"But the problem is that this money has nothing to do with me, and probably won't have anything to do with you either." Xinbadi threw the pouch and helmet on the ground. "Do you think that if you turn into scorpion excrement, those people outside will still insist that you invented the diving suit? Just change the wording slightly, and they can gain both fame and fortune. There's nothing more cost-effective than that. So not only will my twenty-nine gold dragons be lost, but your wish may not come true either."

"...What exactly do you want to do?"

"Accept the unknown, overcome yourself."

Xinbadi recited it silently in his heart, then exhaled a long breath. "Mogin people don't like being in debt, nor do they like breaking their promises. An agreement is an agreement, whether the other party is the King of Graycastle or a Fjordlander – I promised to help to the end, right?"

Rex couldn't help but be stunned. "But how will you..."

"Look at the pool," he took off his waterproof suit, "haven't you noticed that it's getting smaller?"

Only then did Rex notice a ring of wet bluestone around the pool, proof that the water level was dropping.

"The Whirlpool Sea has entered the ebb tide, which means that the distance we need to wade through is getting shorter," Xinbadi said, word by word. "If all goes well, we only need to float ten meters after swimming out of the water cave to be rescued. It's impossible to do this wearing a diving suit, but there's a chance if we strip naked – including the stones you collected. Now, take off your clothes."

"Take... take off clothes?"

"That's right, to wait for the tide to recede as much as possible, we must be prepared to block the desert scorpions, and the most effective method is arson." Xinbadi nodded. "But there's plenty of moisture here, and it's not easy to ignite plants, so we need kindling." He pointed to the oil lamp. "Grease and leather should be able to burn for a while."

Rex was silent for a long time. "...Don't try it, it's impossible to succeed."

"Why?"

"You can't judge when the tide will recede to its lowest point at all. Every meter the sea level rises, the distance through the water cave will increase several times. Rash actions will only exhaust all the air in the long water cave." He said with a painful expression, "And the main thing is, I can't swim at all! It's ridiculous, right? I'm clearly a Fjordlander – even seasickness is better than this! It's because I can't swim that I can't throw myself into the sea like others and become a true explorer!"

"I saw it early on, when diving," Xinbadi said calmly.

"What...?"

"Ascent and descent all rely on the basket, and underwater walking is clumsy as hell. Without this suit, you probably can't even get into the water."

"Since you know, why do you still say you want to swim out?"

"Because you don't need to swim, just cooperate with me to hold your breath and go – the process may be a bit painful, or even lose consciousness, but as long as you don't move, I can take you out." Xinbadi said slowly.

"Just you alone?" Rex looked incredulous.

"I told you, there was a deep pool in the oasis where I lived as a child, and everyone loved to see who could dive deeper and longer." Xinbadi raised his head. "I was never the best in the clan... but that wasn't because I tried my best, but because I was afraid."

"Af... afraid?"

"Yes, it was as deep as a giant mouth, making me feel like if I dived a little further down, I would be sucked in. So I always kept half a breath, and pretended to be exhausted in front of everyone... Over time, even I believed it." He looked directly at Rex. "You said I've always underestimated myself, perhaps that's true – so I want to try, where my limit really is."

"Likewise, you can't leave because you can't swim? Are you sure that's your limit?" Xinbadi said loudly, "Have you really not underestimated yourself!"

Rex unknowingly clenched his fists.

"At least you're not afraid of the sea at all. In this regard, you're much better than me." Xinbadi raised the corners of his mouth. "How about it? Want to take a gamble with me? Explorers... how can it count as exploring without taking risks?"

……

An hour later, the choking smoke had almost filled the entire cave.

And the previous pool had now gradually receded to the water cave, just enough for two people to fit.

The rustling sound of desert scorpions crawling could already be faintly heard on the opposite side of the smoke.

Like an incoming tide.

The two exchanged glances, understanding that this was the final moment.

"Let's go, Honorary Explorer." Xinbadi took a deep breath, and with Rex in his arms, submerged into the water.

The cool seawater merged with him.

It was as if everything had returned to his childhood.

But this time, Caron or other clansmen were no longer by his side.

The only thing he had to surpass was himself.