Chapter 52

Another violent impact followed. The thing was too fast; Leng Huai couldn't even see what it was. He only knew that it was very large and exceptionally ferocious.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

After countless violent impacts, the hull finally gave way, and with a tearing sound, a hole was smashed open, and river water poured into the boat.

Looking at his feet submerged in the river, Leng Huai knew that a life-or-death catastrophe was about to befall them.

The sounds of the wind and waves continued to assault my eardrums.

Seeing that their efforts were ineffective, Mu Xue and Mu Tai had no choice but to give up.

Mu Xue looked at the boundless river, her heart filled with anxiety: "Brother, what should we do?"

Mu Tai didn't have any good ideas for the time being.

After another impact, the small boat immediately fell apart.

All three fell into the water.

Leng Huai immediately swam towards Mu Xue's direction.

The river water was a bit murky, so he couldn't see very clearly. He could only swim in the direction he had fallen into the water, but after swimming for a long time, he still couldn't see Mu Xue and Mu Tai.

Just as Leng Huai was wondering what was going on, he suddenly felt something swimming rapidly toward him from behind.

He turned his head and saw a huge black spider, ten times his size, looking down at him.

This is……

Mutai?

Or Mu Xue?

It seems like neither of them are true...

How could they be that big?

Before he could think, the black spider attacked him, extending a sharp spider leg to stab at Leng Huai. Leng Huai quickly swam to the side to dodge it.

The spider's thick, long legs were covered in hair, which made people feel nauseous, and Leng Huai couldn't help but frown.

Looking at the black spider's round, incredibly hard, enormous head, he suddenly realized that this was the thing that had crashed into the bottom of their ship.

Dodging attacks in the water is not easy. He is not good at swimming by nature, so it is already quite remarkable that he can stay in the water for such a long time.

He was about to suffocate from not breathing air for so long.

He swam in the opposite direction of the spider, trying to reach the surface of the water.

But the spider wouldn't let him go, gliding swiftly through the water as if it owned the place.

Leng Huai was quickly caught up, followed by a series of attacks. He desperately dodged, but was still slashed on the arm by the sharp spider legs. Blood oozed from the wound, creating ripples in the water.

The black spider wanted to attack Leng Huai again, but unexpectedly it came into contact with blood. It felt a burning sensation and immediately withdrew its outstretched spider leg.

Leng Huai keenly noticed the black spider's unusual behavior. Ignoring the pain in his wounds, he quickly swam towards the surface of the water and finally breathed in fresh air, which helped him recover.

A few planks of boat were floating on the river; the rest had sunk and disappeared.

"Mu Xue! Mu Tai! Where are you?" Leng Huai shouted loudly, but no one answered him.

The next second, his ankle was entangled by something thin, which quickly dragged him into the water.

The feeling of his feet being entangled was extremely uncomfortable, and he was rapidly sinking into the depths of the river.

This feeling...

He suddenly remembered that when Mu Xue was in the arena, he was bound by these thin threads.

It's spider silk!

He didn't put up any resistance in the arena, but he could feel that the spider silk was thin and tough, making him feel painfully constricted.

Now it was the exact same feeling again; he felt like his ankle was about to be torn off by the silk thread.

Where exactly is this spider going to drag him?

He remembered the boatman who had mysteriously disappeared.

Could it be that the boatman was this black spider?

A bad feeling welled up inside me.

I wonder if Mu Xue and Mu Tai are still alive.

Remembering Mu Xue's frightened look, and knowing he had said he would save her if she fell into the water, he was afraid he would have to break his promise.

Being dragged for so long caused him great discomfort, and he felt like he was suffocating.

He tried to break free from the silk threads binding his feet, but they seemed to be permanently attached to him and he couldn't get rid of them no matter what he did, so he had no choice but to give up.

He watched in despair as the water receded further and further away from him, and slowly closed his eyes.

As if sensing his despair, the spiritual energy within his body began to fluctuate wildly again, and a scalding heat swept over his entire body.

His spiritual power has always been very strong, which is his innate talent. However, this spiritual power is too turbulent for him to control, and it will occasionally pop up and cause trouble.

Leng Huai, however, was somewhat hoping that this spiritual power could cause trouble and perhaps catch the opponent off guard.

As if knowing what Leng Huai was thinking, his body began to tremble uncontrollably.

The black spider sensed Leng Huai's unease through its silk, but ignored him, assuming he was just making a commotion to get its attention.

Soon the black spider led him to an underwater cave, which was well hidden among the seaweed.

Two people stood at the entrance of the cave, seemingly waiting for the Black Spider to return.

Leng Huai spotted two children-like figures from afar.

When they got closer, Leng Huai realized that the two people were Mu Xue and Mu Tai, who had disappeared long ago.

Mu Xue smiled and said, "Father, you're finally back!"

Leng Huai was struck dumb, his eyes widening in disbelief as he stared intently at the two people.

Mu Xue smiled brightly, showing none of the fear of water she had displayed on the boat.

Mu Tai noticed that Leng Huai was staring at him with a scrutinizing gaze, and his eyes darted away.

Leng Huai clenched his fists. If he weren't underwater and unable to speak, he would definitely have questioned these two people to find out what exactly happened!

No matter how much he asked, the truth was right in front of him: they had deceived him, and that was undeniable.

He went through all the details of his encounters with Mu Tai and Mu Xue in his mind. Perhaps he had been targeted from the moment he first met Mu Tai, and they had conspired to put on this show.

But why are they doing this?

Seeing Leng Huai's expression, Mu Xue smiled innocently: "Leng Huai, don't blame us for being ruthless. It's all because you're simple-minded and all brawn and no brains. You have such strong spiritual power but don't know how to use it, and you're so rich! You're simply a gift from God!"

Leng Huai's chest was already aching from the pressure; he was afraid he would be driven to death by these three spider demons before he could suffocate.

Mu Xue: "Do you know what we water spiders are best at?"

Mu Xue walked up to Leng Huai, her childlike face revealing a greedy expression: "Absorb other people's spiritual power and use it for your own! Your spiritual power is the most powerful I've ever seen. If you could give it to us, then we Water Spiders could rule the world!"

So that's it! What they want is the spiritual energy in his body!

He knew his spiritual power was not weak, but he never imagined it was so great that it would become the object of others' covetousness.

A tear rolled down his cheek.

They were the first friends he had ever made. He thought he would have companions in his life and would no longer be lonely, but why did it turn out like this?

The anger in his heart had reached its peak.

Just as Mu Xue was about to reach out and transfer the spiritual energy within Leng Huai's body, Leng Huai's body suddenly erupted with a powerful energy that sent her flying far away.

Mu Xue had never felt such strong spiritual power before. She immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, glanced in Leng Huai's direction with disbelief in her eyes, and then fainted.

Seeing this, Mu Tai quickly helped Mu Xue into the cave.

The black spider stretched out its eight legs and attacked Leng Huai. He didn't hold back and used all eight legs in the attack.

Anyone who dares to bully his precious daughter has a death wish!

Leng Huai had regained control of his body. He first used his spiritual power to envelop himself so that he could breathe.

This was, in fact, the first time he had ever used his spiritual power underwater; it was all out of instinct!

When the black spider's antennae touched Leng Huai's aura, it felt as if it had been electrocuted, and its whole body trembled.

Under the intense spiritual attack, the black spider gradually succumbed and fainted.

Mu Tai watched as his sister and father fell to Leng Huai's attacks, and a hint of anger appeared on his face.

Leng Huai glared angrily at Mu Tai: "Mu Tai, you two siblings are liars! You deceived my feelings! I treated you as brothers!"

Mu Tai didn't speak; he stood silently in place, lost in thought.

The more silent he remained, the angrier Leng Huai became, believing that he was tacitly agreeing.

He even went to great lengths to help Mu Tai rescue his sister and brought them both out of the arena. It turns out it was all a deception by the two of them!

He's so stupid, so incredibly stupid!

"Mu Tai, if you stop now, I can forgive you and we can continue to be friends."

He was resentful and couldn't believe that his judgment was so bad. He had given them his heart, only to receive this result.

He stared intently at Mu Tai, hoping to glean some clue from his eyes.

But Mu Tai's face remained unchanged throughout, expressionless and calm, just like when he first met him, composed and emotionless.

It wasn't until Mu Tai began to use his magic that Leng Huai finally lost all hope.

What kind of friends are we talking about, risking their lives for each other? It's all bullshit! Bullshit!

He seemed to have gone mad, his eyes bloodshot, and spiritual power burst forth from his body, churning the entire river upside down.

Mu Tai was already at a disadvantage before he could even make a move. He knew he was no match for Leng Huai. Even if the three of them teamed up, they couldn't defeat Leng Huai, let alone absorb his magical power.

Leng Huai was in a bloodthirsty frenzy, killing every living creature in the river he saw, in pairs! He wiped out every single living thing.

The river water was stained with blood, turning a dark red color that was shocking to behold.

So much so that this unnamed river was later called the Blood River by both the north and south.

As Mo Xiaoxin watched Leng Huai's two recurring memories play, she felt an indescribable sorrow.

It's surprising that Leng Huai, who seems cold and ruthless and kills without hesitation, experienced so many things in his childhood. No wonder he has become the way he is today.

Life is unpredictable, and fate is unpredictable!

There was also a black line, which puzzled Mo Xiaoxin.

Because there is no image of this line.

Black Mist spoke up at the right moment: "This thread is a knot in Leng Huai's heart that he has never been able to untie. It is a knot left to him by his mother, whom he has never met."

"His mother?" Mo Xiaoxin murmured.

“He never saw his mother, so there are no images of her. That’s right, he was a child who lacked love. He always longed for someone to love him. He knew his mother didn’t want him anymore. He was very sad, which is why he wanted to make friends and have family.”

Mo Xiaoxin was shocked; it turned out that the root of everything was his mother.

These three thick lines are tightly connected to the black heart.

On the other side of the black heart, there is a thin white line connecting it.

Mo Xiaoxin walked over to investigate, but there was nothing there. It was all white, like the faint light of sunlight shining into the misty forest.

This thin white line gives a completely different feeling from the previous three black lines.

The white lines projected out, though the contents are not clearly visible, give a feeling of warmth and comfort, like sunlight shining on you after the clouds have parted, creating a sense of hope.

Those three black lines will only plunge people into endless despair.

Perhaps it was some turning point in Leng Huai's life that gave him a sense of hope?

"So, after reading about Leng Huai's past experiences, don't you feel sorry for him?"

The sudden sound of the black mist interrupted Mo Xiaoxin's thoughts.

Mo Xiaoxin was indeed indignant for Leng Huai, but she refused to admit it: "Why should I feel sorry for him? He doesn't even like me!"

He's always threatening to kill me, so why should I feel sorry for him?

The black mist laughed loudly: "It doesn't matter if you don't admit it, but I know that you two have a deep connection. Do you know why there is a white line full of hope?"

Mo Xiaoxin shook her head.

"This white line appeared after you came out. Before that, in this darkness, there were only these three black lines that were tightly wrapped around Leng Huai. This is also the hurdle that has been troubling him all along."

"What? You're saying I brought this white line?" Mo Xiaoxin asked incredulously.