The rushing water surged from the hole in the wall of the main burial chamber into the side chamber. The immense liquid pressure pushed the coffin lid against me, and I felt as if my internal organs were about to be squeezed out.
Under the light of my headlamp, I saw the bearded man holding a sharp knife in the middle of his hand, swimming straight toward me.
Seeing this person's actions, I panicked.
I had never met Jiang Man or Duan Jinyan before, so I didn't know which side this bearded man belonged to.
Moreover, neither side is a benevolent force, so it's not impossible for them to engage in a bloody battle under these circumstances.
The bearded man swam up to me, grabbed the coffin lid with one hand, and thrust out a knife in his other hand.
At that moment, I couldn't even lift my arm; I just instinctively closed my eyes.
The pain of the blade piercing my body that I had imagined did not come. Instead, the coffin lid pressing on me became much lighter.
When he opened his eyes, he saw that the bearded man had changed his posture. He was kneeling on the wall, using one hand to lift the coffin lid open a crack, and then propped the knife inside.
This made me feel much lighter, and the bearded man grabbed my rat-patterned clothes by the shoulder and pulled me out through the gap.
"Bang!"
As soon as I was pulled out, the knife supporting the coffin lid shifted due to the water flow, and the coffin lid slammed heavily against the wall.
The bearded man was an excellent swimmer. He held onto my shoulder with one hand and still swam very nimbly. I caught my breath and started swimming as well.
A large hole about one meter in diameter has been blasted into one side of the main burial chamber wall by directional blasting, and a rope is floating in the water that has poured in.
The bearded man dragged me to the front of the swaying rope. Seeing that I grabbed the rope, he gave me a push, signaling me to escape through the passage in the wall.
By this time, I was almost out of breath. I grabbed the rope and struggled to leave the main burial chamber, floating towards the surface of the water.
"Splash!"
After I surfaced, I shone my headlamp around and saw a whirlpool in the distance. I couldn't see anyone else around, and the island in the middle of the lake was several tens of meters away from me.
Since Song Laosan and Monkey's fate was still unknown, my first reaction was to go back to the island and find them.
Just as I was about to move, the bearded man surfaced and grabbed my arm, swimming in the opposite direction.
Although the bearded man had just saved my life, he now felt like he was trying to take me hostage, so I struggled and shouted, "What are you going to do!"
The bearded man was incredibly strong; he gripped my hand like an iron clamp and casually shut off my headache: "Come with me, I have something to tell you!"
He grabbed me so tightly I felt like my bones were about to break, and he dragged me away into the distance.
Without a word, the bearded man quickly dragged me to the opposite direction from the island in the lake and lifted me onto a large rock at the edge: "Duan Shenxing, you must hear every word I'm about to say and remember it!"
When I saw that the bearded man could pronounce my name so accurately, I widened my eyes in surprise and wanted to turn on my headlamp to get a better look at him: "How do you know my name?"
"Don't move, listen to me!"
The bearded man gripped my wrist and cut to the chase: "Your dad has been keeping an eye on you, and his situation is far more complicated than you imagine! This industry is too murky. A newbie like you, barging in recklessly, will eventually be devoured, leaving not even bones! Remember, after you leave here, leave this industry forever and live your life peacefully! Be patient and wait; one day your dad will come looking for you, but you must never look for him again, understand?!"
I realized this person wasn't Duan Jinyan, and I felt inexplicably angry: "Who exactly are you? Why didn't Duan Jinyan say these things to me himself?"
The bearded man didn't answer directly: "That's not your concern. You just need to remember my words: never again try to find out where Duan Jinyan is!"
"You just told me to wait, but do you know how many years I've waited for this day? Since Duan Jinyan gave birth to me, why did she abandon me like a stray dog? Do you think that just one sentence from you can heal the wounds I've suffered for so many years? Or do you think that just because you said Duan Jinyan would come back to me, I should be grateful?"
At that moment, all the anger and grievances in my heart were released: "I don't care who Duan Jinyan is or what his status is, but everything you said is not a favor he has done for me! It's something he owes me! Something he owes the Duan family! Since he doesn't acknowledge me as his son, then I will collect the debt for the Duan family!"
"call!"
Seeing my agitated state, the bearded man sighed, "I know what you've been through isn't fair, but where in this world is there so much fairness? As Duan Jinyan's son, these are things you should bear, and things you must bear!"
"boom!"
Just as we were talking, a deafening explosion suddenly came from the island in the middle of the lake, causing the water to surge.
Hearing the distant explosion, the bearded man instinctively stopped and said seriously, "Kid, I know this isn't fair to you, but I'll say it again: since you're Duan Jinyan's son, you have to bear it all! Remember, from today onwards, you're not allowed to have any contact with Duan Jinyan! Since you've come to this tomb, you can naturally return the way you came. Remember, from now on, never enter this line of work again. Go back to your old life, pretend you don't have this father, and don't cause him any more trouble!"
The bearded man's almost commanding tone filled me with intense dissatisfaction. I was about to curse him out, but he didn't give me a chance to retort. After uttering a single sentence, he turned and jumped into the lake.
"You bastard! Come back here!"
I turned on my headlamp, but it only illuminated the ripples on the water's surface. The beard was nowhere to be seen; it had vanished into the dark lake.
"Oh shit!"
The bearded man's behavior made me curse him out.
Although he saved my life, in my opinion, everything he did was to warn me to stay away from Duan Jinyan from now on.
His words made me feel like I was a childish, insignificant person in this whole affair, unable to even express my own opinions. Even though Duan Jinyan had done me no favors, I could only choose to obey his words unconditionally.
Despite my anger, the explosion on the island in the middle of the lake also gave me a bad feeling. Seeing that the bearded man had disappeared without a trace, I also jumped into the lake and swam desperately towards that side.
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