Borrowed Sword

Chapter 41: Mandarin Ducks Frolicking in the Water

Beside the underground river, Han Shuangjiang stood up, her gaze resolute, revealing the stubbornness within her character.

She had said she would help Chu Huaixu obtain the opportunity.

You said I am your key—fine, then I shall help you open this stone door!

Chu Huaixu looked at her effortlessly breaking through the fifth aperture, utterly envious.

“System, level me up too! Level me up, damn it!”

【Cultivation Method Experience Points】 were insufficient, so he simply couldn’t do it.

The two exchanged a glance; he understood her eyes.

Chu Huaixu could only sigh and say, “Alright then.”

This game play companion had her own professional habits—how could she let her clients take risks while on duty?

But logically speaking, an ordinary secret realm trial shouldn’t be able to stop the World Protagonist.

Truth be told, this feeling of being protected by a woman wasn’t bad at all.

“Be careful,” he reminded.

“Okay.”

As soon as the words fell, Han Shuangjiang directly entered the water.

Chu Huaixu was left alone by the riverside, sighing with emotion. As expected of the female lead in 《Borrowed Sword》 who was wholeheartedly focused on “building her career”—she didn’t hesitate at all.

The Water-Repelling Pearl given by Liu Tianfeng unexpectedly displayed its value again at this moment.

That Big Ice Block didn’t get wet—revealing her graceful and astonishing curves.

Everything was just as Chu Huaixu had expected. The moment she entered the water, the formation activated.

The two stone walls on either side were no longer suspended in midair. They really dropped down, cutting off the slowly flowing water.

With this, it was no longer an underground river.

Instead, it became a giant pool of water.

There were four fist-sized holes in the water. Chu Huaixu had been staring at them, suspecting they were some sort of mechanism or part of the formation.

Han Shuangjiang, in the water, was also paying attention.

However, these four holes showed no anomalies for the moment.

In the next moment, the formation in the water was activated!

Some of the water streams became enveloped in Spiritual Energy, like blades of water!

They suddenly all shot toward Han Shuangjiang.

With cultivation at the Qi-Opening Stage, there was no way to dodge!

Because there were simply too many water blades.

They surged in from all directions, and Han Shuangjiang didn’t even have time to swim to the other side.

The barrier of the Water-Repelling Pearl could only provide simple water resistance and was soon slashed apart by the water blades.

Han Shuangjiang’s entire body was instantly submerged and soaked, the water blades slicing through her clothes, cutting her snow-white skin, leaving one bloody mark after another in the water.

From the pain, she nearly sank on the spot.

Chu Huaixu’s eyes narrowed. He immediately intended to do something.

But Han Shuangjiang spoke up at that moment, “It’s fine. I can swim to the other side.”

Strangely enough, the water blades didn’t strike that hard.

All they managed was to cut the skin and leave shallow gashes.

Still, even so, there were too many of them!

They came from all directions in the water and continued to increase!

While swimming, Han Shuangjiang dodged some, but she still ended up with seven or eight wounds on her body.

At that moment, a loud rumble came from the four holes beneath the water.

Immediately after, large amounts of dark bluish-black liquid gushed from the holes.

Chu Huaixu’s pupils shrank. He cursed inwardly.

A sudden surge of liquid of that color—anyone would be startled.

He had originally been standing beside one of the holes, observing it closely.

Once the liquid appeared, he quickly smelled a strange odor.

“This is... a medicinal smell?”

“A spiritual herb?”

“Dark bluish-green, and this somewhat familiar scent... this is Body Tempering Medicine Liquid!” He immediately reacted.

Body Tempering Medicine Liquid was used for Medicinal Baths.

Cultivators who followed the Body Training path had to ruthlessly torture their own bodies every day.

After the torment, they would soak in the Body Tempering Medicine Liquid.

Those torn and bloody areas would quickly heal, having excellent healing effects and a faint strengthening effect on the physique.

Chu Huaixu sniffed and found the scent quite authentic. He was certain this was top-grade Body Tempering Medicine Liquid—it even had scar-removal effects...

Don’t forget, this dungeon was the 【Pill King Token】, and this senior was an official disciple of the Pill King! A Pill Alchemist!

The entire pool quickly changed color.

The wounds on Han Shuangjiang’s body began healing rapidly after being soaked in the Body Tempering Medicine Liquid.

Chu Huaixu looked up at the stone door across the pool, a bad premonition rising in his heart.

He suspected that even if Han Shuangjiang managed to swim across, that transparent barrier would still block her—she wouldn’t be able to come ashore at all!

Because the person who designed this trial, their goal was to make you continuously get injured in this pool, and then continuously recover.

To carve wound after wound into you, then heal you, and then carve again!

“Damn it, you sick pervert!” Chu Huaixu glanced at the stone door across the river, cursing fiercely in his heart.

...

...

A distance of fifty meters—with the physical qualities of someone at the Qi-Opening Stage, one could reach the opposite shore very quickly.

Things developed just as Chu Huaixu had predicted. That transparent barrier across the river remained in place.

Han Shuangjiang was soaked in the water and simply couldn’t come ashore, firmly blocked by the barrier.

She raised her hand and punched toward the barrier, but it only created a semi-transparent ripple in the air—it didn’t budge at all.

Her brows furrowed, a few wet strands of hair clinging to her forehead. She couldn’t help but let out another muffled groan.

Because the number of water blades was still increasing.

Some wounds were healing quickly, but new ones were also appearing.

Han Shuangjiang tried to climb up the barrier to leave the pool, but this barrier felt like some mysterious force—she simply couldn’t do it.

This meant her body was bound to remain in the water.

“Probably needs to be endured for a while—once time’s up, the trial ends.” That was Chu Huaixu’s guess.

It had to be said—this was an extremely perverse design.

Even if you had prepared a bamboo raft in advance inside your Storage Token, it would be meaningless.

Because if no one entered the water, the formation wouldn’t activate, and the countdown wouldn’t begin.

And a cultivator at the Qi-Opening Stage, lacking Spiritual Energy, couldn’t activate artifacts either.

“Some robes refined from heavenly materials and earthly treasures do have defensive properties and don’t require Spiritual Energy to activate. At this level, water blades wouldn’t work on them—they wouldn’t leave a scratch.”

“But with this pervert’s design, I highly suspect that if no blood is shed, the formation won’t continue operating!”

“Because only after Han Shuangjiang bled did the second formation activate and the Body Tempering Medicine Liquid start flowing!”

“The real key now is—did the person who designed this trial truly intend it this way? Does the countdown only start after getting hurt? And... is there even a countdown at all?”

After all, this was just his speculation. Maybe the point of this stage wasn’t that at all, but to make you think fast in a crisis and find another way to break through?

But never mind that—once this old man jumps in, I’ll know!

This kind of newbie-stage dungeon—most likely the system would provide a hint!

In the pool, the number of water blades began increasing even more.

The next wave of water blades would double.

What was most suffocating was—you still didn’t know how many waves remained or how many times it would double.

Han Shuangjiang was a very stubborn person, with her own sense of determination.

At this moment, her Silver Teeth clenched tightly, she endured the pain all over her body.

The wounds weren’t deep, but there were too many.

One wound on her arm healed, and another immediately appeared.

It was worse on her thighs.

Her clothes had already been slashed quite tattered by the water blades.

Some snow-white, smooth skin became exposed.

Even under such conditions, she still gritted her teeth and shouted, “I... I’m fine! Help me find a way to break this!”

Still putting on a brave front, huh.

“Stay right there!” Chu Huaixu shouted loudly.

As soon as he finished, he leapt in!

...