41: Initially calming the restless mind

The passage, resembling a sewer entrance, wasn't large. Although partially submerged, it could have provided a navigable environment for the monster behind Zhou Yan.

However, that monster's dorsal fin alone was taller than Zhou Yan. It likely couldn't fit inside, regardless of the water.

Seizing the moment, Zhou Yan performed another sliding tackle on the water's surface to rush inside. Seeing this, the monster grew anxious, exerting its full strength to make one final leap toward Zhou Yan with its massive maw wide open.

"Boom!"

The monster's massive tiger head slammed into the passage entrance, causing the ground to tremble a few times.

Zhou Yan was inside the passage; the ceiling was just high enough for him to stand upright on the water with a little room to spare.

"Is this sweat?"

Zhou Yan raised his arm, looking at the moisture on the back of his hand.

"Drip-drop."

A drop of water landed on Zhou Yan's face.

He looked up and saw that water droplets were constantly dripping from the ceiling.

"So it's just water?"

"Heh, I was going to say, how could something of this level make me sweat?"

He subconsciously ignored the minor detail that his back was already completely soaked.

Looking back toward the exit, the monster was still there staring at him, giving him enough time to observe its full appearance.

A tiger's head with furious eyes like blood moons; fangs dripping with saliva, clutching remains.

A fish's body covered in shield-like scales; dorsal spines resembling broken halberds.

Between its brows, a woman's face faintly appeared—a plain face weeping tears like soaked silk, lips pale and brows sorrowful, silent and still.

Its body churned waves into whirlpools; its face contained grief that turned into sinking pearls.

[Elite · Han Wenya]

[Rank: Qi Refining 8th Layer]

[HP: 20000/20000]

[MP: 10/10]

This big guy was actually Han Wenqing's sister, Han Wenya?

Zhou Yan tried throwing a fireball into her face. Bolstered by True Damage, she let out a pained shriek as the hit shaved off 110 HP.

A second status panel didn't appear. Had she completely turned into a beast, causing the True Damage to lose its effect?

Outside the exit, Han Wenya had first failed her hunt and was now being provoked by her food; her ferocity intensified instantly.

She pressed a tiger eye, nearly as large as the passage entrance, against the opening, perhaps trying to scare Zhou Yan to death this way.

Han Wenqing had once briefly mentioned the names of his sister and brother-in-law: one was Han Wenya, the other was Jia Sanyi.

Then... Zhou Yan turned around and stared at the man locked onto a platform at the end of the passage.

Han Yue's father, Jia Sanyi?

"Young man, do... do not harm her anymore. She is just a miserable Soul. If you ignore her... she... she will leave after a while."

The voice was weak and listless, sounding as if it were being forced out through strained vocal cords.

With a light tap of his toes, Zhou Yan reached the platform in a few leaps.

He looked around, found a relatively clean spot, and sat down.

"You're afraid I'll harm her? Why aren't you afraid she'll harm me?"

Up close, he noticed the man was soaking wet, his face gaunt, eyes circled in black—he was in terrible condition.

*Cough, cough, cough...*

The moment Zhou Yan approached, Jia Sanyi began to cough violently, looking as if he were about to cough up his lungs.

"Damn, I just made one complaint! Don't you dare try to frame me for your death!"

The moment he sat down, Zhou Yan was so startled by Jia Sanyi's state that he sprang up and moved away from the platform, fearing the man would die right in front of him.

"Sor... *cough cough*... sorry."

Seeing Jia Sanyi's 'barely clinging to life' appearance, Zhou Yan cast a Healing Art from a distance.

After receiving the Healing Art, Jia Sanyi's sickly state improved significantly, and a touch of color returned to his gaunt face.

"Thank you for your help, young hero. I am Jia Sanyi."

As if fearing Zhou Yan would misunderstand, he hurriedly added another sentence.

"Please do not misunderstand, young hero. I am not with the people of Langqi Village... *cough cough*..."

After his panic, Jia Sanyi fell back into a state of despondency.

"You have seen my situation, young hero. I was imprisoned here because I discovered the secret of this Underground Water City. And the one outside... she is my wife."

"She was originally a gentle and beautiful woman, but now she has been dragged into this because of me."

"I share an irreconcilable hatred with them, so you don't have to worry about me doing anything. I only called you in because I wanted to save you if I could."

Zhou Yan didn't ask how Jia Sanyi intended to save him, but instead stated his own identity first.

"I heard Han Wenqing mention you and your wife."

"Wenqing! *cough cough*... Wenqing... is he alright?"

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Yan said:

"Better than your wife is now. He can still speak human words, and... well, his appearance is slightly more normal."

Zhou Yan had considered being more tactful, but since Jia Sanyi was already in this state, he probably wouldn't be broken by this small blow.

Upon hearing this, Jia Sanyi was merely a bit dejected and eventually let out a sigh.

"He still came back. He shouldn't have come back."

Hmm, this guy was stronger than expected.

"Aren't you going to ask about your daughter, Han Yue?"

"Mm."

"Mm?"

Seriously, man? Your brother-in-law went to play Wolf King, and your wife has completely turned into a monster—you had reactions to those. How come for Han Yue, it's just an 'Mm'?

Could it be that the wife is true love and the child was just an accident?

Before Zhou Yan could start scolding him, Jia Sanyi explained the whole story.

It turned out that Yi Sanyi would come to torture him periodically, but he was also able to glean some intelligence from those encounters.

According to what Yi Sanyi said:

Han Yue's transformation had begun long ago. The reason it hadn't reached the final step was because the Immortal Giant Abyss hadn't found a suitable vessel and didn't want to waste Han Yue, who was a somewhat special and rare Material.

Just a short while ago, Yi Sanyi had come again. This time he told him that Han Yue had been sent to the altar this morning and they were prepared to conduct the final experiment.

"Sigh." Jia Sanyi let out a sigh, as if sighing out the last bit of his Soul.

"Regarding my daughter's fate, I want to wail, I want to be furious."

"However, I have been trapped here for too, too long. Here, I can do nothing but feel sorrow."

"And now, I have long since lost the ability to feel sorrow."

"Young hero, flee!"

"Don't worry about anything else anymore. You are no match for them."

"You really don't want me to save your daughter?" Zhou Yan looked at the person before him, feeling somewhat moved in his heart.

"My wife's patrol range is fixed. She won't stay outside its bounds for too long."

Zhou Yan looked back; the monster blocking the entrance was indeed gone.

"Wait for half a quarter-hour, then rush out. Whether you go to the opposite bank or climb up... *cough*... climb up the current bank, you must head upward. Heading upward will always lead to an exit..."

"You..." Zhou Yan wanted to say something more.

But Jia Sanyi had already closed his eyes, appearing as if he didn't want to speak anymore.

You say you can no longer feel sorrow, yet aren't you currently in a state of wordless grief?

Perhaps in Jia Sanyi's eyes, his daughter Han Yue was already dead, and the only thing that would continue to exist was a monster named Han Yue.

He didn't want any more innocent people to suffer calamity because of him.

Zhou Yan cupped his hands to bid Jia Sanyi farewell and waited near the exit for half a quarter-hour as instructed.

When the time was up, he rushed out of the passage once more.

Before Han Wenya could chase him from a distance, he had already reached the opposite bank.

Facing the now-landed Zhou Yan, Han Wenya only continued to roar, while the burn marks from the flames on her face were slowly receding.

Normally, Zhou Yan would have teased Wang Yao a bit, but now he was exceptionally calm.

"Tch."

"I still don't want to see a little girl calling me Big Brother Zhou after being turned into that kind of half-human, half-ghost monster."

The environment of his past life had protected Zhou Yan too well. Although he could always learn about the world's suffering through the internet and knew that no one had it easy,

it was, after all, separated by a layer of cold screen, allowing him to maintain the status of a lofty onlooker.

And after coming to this world, because he had a game panel, he still had a somewhat 'playing through a game' mindset.

He said he wanted to integrate into this world, but subconsciously, he still treated others as 'NPCs.'

Families destroyed, lives lost.

When such suffering truly appeared before his eyes, it was a different sight altogether.

"Old Demon Giant Abyss, Dynasty Warhorse!" Zhou Yan clenched his fists, his heart completely made up.

Ultimately, Zhou Yan was in his youth. Though he was more mature than some of his peers,

the youthful spirit in his bones remained. Now that his blood was boiling, he desperately needed an outlet.

Once upon a time, who hadn't fantasized about being a hero who saves the distressed... Raising his head, Zhou Yan looked toward that lofty, vermilion pavilion.

"Yi Sanyi, you'd better give me a good explanation!"