CHAPTER 1077: CHAPTER 1074: CUT OFF FROM THE WORLD

"If I told you I practiced the Turtle Breath Technique, would you believe me?" Lin Tian countered, having already come up with a routine to handle similar questions from others.

Ning Luoxi naturally shook her head and said, "I don’t believe it."

"That’s right. Don’t easily believe what others say. What’s discovered by yourself is the most credible, you’ll know in the future," Lin Tian said ambiguously.

Ning Luoxi looked at Lin Tian and didn’t speak for a while, but eventually didn’t ask anything further.

"Take off the diving suit, the road ahead isn’t easy to walk," Ning Luoxi said.

There was nowhere to hide here, so Lin Tian took off the diving suit in front of Ning Luoxi, though he was still wearing a thin t-shirt underneath. Even though Ning Luoxi was also dressed, watching her unzip her chest, Lin Tian felt his mouth go dry and swallowed repeatedly, feeling intensely tempted.

Lin Tian used great willpower to calm his restless heart, took out a loose outdoor jacket to put on, and packed away the diving suit.

"Later, we’ll walk upstream along the riverbank. There are a lot of scattered stones, and it’s quite slippery, so be careful. Let’s go," Ning Luoxi reminded, then stepped off the rocky platform.

Lin Tian put on the waterproof backpack again, followed her down, and when he reached the riverbank, he specifically measured the water temperature, which was twelve degrees Celsius.

This temperature felt icy to the touch, but it didn’t necessarily indicate an ice-sealed cave ahead. The water flow in underground caves usually has a lower temperature, although this was a bit low, it could be due to other reasons.

The two of them proceeded along the riverbank, although it was filled with stones of varying sizes, some washed down from upstream during floods, others from the crumbling rock walls.

Initially, there were still some glowing crystal stones on the rock walls, but as they ventured deeper, the crystal stones were gone, and the cave was entirely dark, lit only by their lights illuminating the path ahead.

After walking for more than an hour, Lin Tian gradually felt the cold aura inside the cave, he measured the water temperature again, and it turned out to be only eight degrees.

Lin Tian curiously asked, "Miss Luoxi, how far did you go last time?"

"About sixty kilometers. Our current position is about halfway from the farthest point we reached last time," Ning Luoxi replied.

"Sixty kilometers? So, we haven’t even reached past the Jinghua City range, but the water temperature here has dropped to eight degrees Celsius. According to this water temperature gradient distribution, wouldn’t it drop to two or three degrees at the position you last reached?" Lin Tian said quizzically.

If the water temperature over there was already two or three degrees, theoretically, it should be close to the source that causes the low water temperature, so why didn’t Ning Luoxi’s group continue forward?

But Ning Luoxi just shook her head and said, "At first, the water temperature changes quite a bit, but later, the water temperature remains stable. Even further along, it stays around five or six degrees."

"Alright, let’s move faster. Don’t let the Underground River rise while we’re walking, we’ll be washed into the sea," Lin Tian joked.

Because he saw water marks on the surrounding rock walls, during the highest flood, the entire riverbank was submerged. With such fierce water flow and nowhere to hold onto, even if Lin Tian were stronger, he’d still be swept away.

"By the way, do we have a communication signal here?" Lin Tian asked.

Ning Luoxi took out a large, specially designed waterproof phone, looked at it, and then shook her head: "No."

Lin Tian knew that this communication device was different from a regular phone. If even such a specialized communication tool had no signal, they were truly isolated from the world.

He looked at the electronic numbers on his diving watch, compared the altitude above sea level of the surface and the cave, and concluded that this Underground River was over a kilometer below the surface, making it impossible for any signal to penetrate.

Lin Tian and Ning Luoxi continued on this time at a much faster pace, even with the riverbank filled with stones, it didn’t hinder their progress.

As they went further, Lin Tian faintly heard strange water sounds from the depths of the cave. He hurriedly shouted to Ning Luoxi, "Luoxi, what’s ahead? Why are there strange water sounds?" He feared he had jinxed it with talk of the Underground River rising.

"It’s okay, we’re close to where we went last time," Ning Luoxi said without looking back, running ahead.

Lin Tian had no choice but to follow. If the girl wasn’t afraid, why should he be? As they went deeper, the sound of water grew louder, and eventually it was a roaring noise. With the cave’s echo, it was even more thunderous.

Unfortunately, there was a big curve ahead, and even with night vision, he couldn’t see what lay beyond. Lin Tian continued forward, turned the big curve, and finally saw the source of the water sound.

In front, there was actually a waterfall, at least as high as a dozen stories. The fierce water surged down into a deep pool below, creating a booming sound.

The entire sky above the pool was filled with water droplets, sparkling like crystal in the light of their lamps, refracting the light everywhere and making the pool shimmer beautifully.

"Last time, we were blocked by this waterfall, and as we ventured too far, I ordered a retreat," Ning Luoxi stood at the edge of the pool, shouting loudly. It was too noisy here to speak softly.

Lin Tian examined the terrain and saw there was no path forward. To continue, they would have to swim across the pool, and swimming was a minor issue; Thunder Wolf certainly wasn’t afraid.

The challenge was to swim against the waterfall’s force, climb up the waterfall, which was the height of a dozen stories, and few in the Thunder Wolf Team could do so.

Moreover, the rock wall had been eroded by the waterfall for hundreds or thousands of years, smoother than a mirror. The rock’s ability to withstand the water flow for that long meant it was incredibly hard, and normal climbing tools couldn’t penetrate it for fixing ropes.

So, it was understandable that the Thunder Wolf Team had no success, and Lin Tian understood very well.

"Don’t go into the deep pool, there’s danger inside," Ning Luoxi cautioned, seeing Lin Tian getting too close.

"What? Are there Ancient Strange Beasts in there?" Lin Tian asked curiously.

"I’m not sure. This cave has existed for over a thousand years, and last time, when we retreated, we saw shadows moving inside. Creatures able to survive in such a place aren’t weaklings," Ning Luoxi explained.

"So, have you thought about how to get past this waterfall?" Lin Tian asked.

Ning Luoxi glanced around the surroundings, and pointed at the rock wall above, "We can shoot a javelin to anchor into the wall above, and use the momentum to swing across."

The method she suggested was impossible for ordinary people. The sheer impact of swinging down could shatter someone into pieces. But Ning Luoxi, being an Ancient Martial Artist, and a robust Body Technique Cultivator, could withstand such impact force.