Chapter 68: Preparation for the Descent

"Ming-fei, are you ready? This is taking an unreasonably long time."

Seeing that Ming-fei still hadn't come out of his room, Manstein walked up to his door and knocked to urge him.

"Stop knocking. The few minutes of waiting mean nothing for an operation of this scale."

After a short while longer, the door clicked open, and Ming-fei stepped out of the room.

He carried an indescribable, strange odor, wore a specialized tight-fitting wetsuit, and had a waterproof messenger bag slung around his waist. His expression was gloomy.

Manstein first rubbed his nose, then looked around from side to side.

His Spiritual Discipline was "Snake," the same as Ye Sheng's. Half-bloods possessing this Discipline possessed superior perception and mental energy. It felt to him as though some ugly, dangerous entity had appeared nearby.

"Whoa, what is that smell? We'd better get moving as soon as possible. I have a very bad feeling about this..."

Arriving at the ship's rail, Zero was already waiting there. Manstein re-emphasized the precautions:

"Keep an eye on your respective oxygen gauges; they should last about three hours, which is enough for you.

The data cable also serves as a life-line. With a nanopolymer outer layer, it generally won't break. If you accidentally lose consciousness, we'll use this line to haul you back up.

The wetsuit is custom-made, fully sealed, and can withstand twenty atmospheres of pressure. The surface is made of nanometer material, but be careful not to tear it..."

Angeles walked out of the cabin carrying a rectangular iron case in each hand, cutting off Manstein's instructions:

"Manstein, I'm sure our finest team members already know everything you've said by heart. Why don't you go check on the work of the surface operations team instead, and let me say a few words to the team members?"

Naturally, Manstein wouldn't dare disobey Angeles's order. He nodded subobediently:

"Yes, Principal."

Angeles gently set the two rectangular iron cases on the ground, yet they still emitted a dull thud as they made contact with the deck.

First, he patted one of the more slender iron cases and flipped the hidden latch on top, producing a clear, resonant chime. Dark gold, sharp radiance flowed along the crack of the opening lid, and Ming-fei could even hear the breathing of something inside.

Internal mechanisms operated, drawing out seven completely different swords and blades. The dark gold cutting edges revealed patterns of ice silk, pine needles, and flames under the light.

"Alchemical swords: The Seven Deadly Sins.

One of the achievements brought back by Ye Sheng and Aki's operation in the Three Gorges from the Bronze City. They are all forged from regenerated metal; they look identical in material, yet each possesses different rigidity and flexibility.

Forging new metal according to one's own will—this is supreme alchemy, something any alchemical master can only look up to. It belongs exclusively to the 'Throne of Alchemy,' the King of Bronze and Fire!"

At this, Angeles paused slightly, as if waiting for a reaction from his audience.

Zero, who resembled a block of ice, kept her delicate face taut and remained silent.

As a mage, Ming-fei was similarly unimpressed by close-combat cold weapons. He merely thought they all looked magnificent, and that they would probably make decent sacrificial blades for setting up rituals and slaughtering human offerings.

Lacking an appreciative audience, Angeles sighed and continued:

"In the hands of a suitable wielder, these seven weapons will unleash unparalleled lethality. Naturally, the purpose for which they were forged by the 'King of Bronze and Fire' was not for ant-like humans, but for other Dragon Kings as noble as the creator himself."

The seven swords and blades had already slid back into their case because no one pulled them out. Ming-fei reached out to lift the case, but surprisingly found he couldn't budge it:

"Isn't the plan just to plant a bomb in the Dragon King's bedchamber and run? Lugging this thing around will just be extra baggage during the escape, won't it?"

"According to the Department of Research's analysis of the cracks on the Dragon King's 'egg,' it is highly likely that the Dragon King was forcibly hatched prematurely due to external interference. Under such circumstances, its power is less than one percent of its peak, leaving it no choice but to re-encapsulate itself in an egg to incubate. The bomb is actually meant to be used if you can't find it."

Angeles shrugged.

"When it really comes time to run, you can just toss it aside; we can always salvage it later anyway.

But if you happen to run into its egg or determine that its state is weak, don't pass up the opportunity to directly assassinate a Dragon King. If this old man weren't already unable to withstand deep-water pressure, I'd want to go into battle myself."

Ming-fei figured that if he strapped this thing to his back, he wouldn't be able to take more than a few steps anyway. He nudged the quietly standing Zero with his elbow:

"Zero, you carry it."

Zero offered no objection. Though she was short and her arms were as slender as thin bamboo, she effortlessly hoisted the heavy *Seven Deadly Sins*, which was almost as tall as she was, onto her back.

Angeles picked up the other black case and strapped it onto Ming-fei's back. This thing was similarly heavy, throwing off his balance and causing him to take two steps backward:

"As for the second case, just wait until you reach the Bronze City to open it. It can help you attract the Dragon King."

"Good luck!"

Angeles pushed Ming-fei and Zero on the shoulders simultaneously, and the two tumbled over the ship's rail into the river at the same time.

...

The light emitted by the floodlight on top of the diving helmet could penetrate less than five meters into the river water. Before Ming-fei's eyes lay a dense, dark green expanse, the water turbid and filled with floating matter.

"Don't make too many extra movements while descending; we must maintain a consistent speed."

Zero's cool voice came through the earpiece.

Ming-fei was currently adjusting the angles of his body and head in the water, constantly striving to prevent himself from unwittingly falling straight into the dream realm of Glaaki the Great Old One. This forced Zero to frequently tread water in place and wait for him.

"Then you should go a bit slower. There might be hallucinations or similar things appearing later, so stay alert."

Glaaki's dream realm could only be observed at specific angles. Because the heavy iron case caused him to descend too quickly, even though Ming-fei tried his utmost to adjust his perspective, he could only occasionally catch fleeting glimpses of that black city as it drew closer.

"Hallucinations generally only occur during the ascent; we're descending right now, so it won't..."

Zero's voice gradually grew distant and faint, perhaps because her petite body could no longer withstand the push of the undercurrent, gently sweeping her away from Ming-fei's side.

Gentle.

No shifting of scenes, no warning signs. It was simply that the water pressure—which had originally surrounded and compressed Ming-fei's body to the point where he had to breathe deeply just to keep his eardrums from bursting—suddenly became lighter, much gentler.

Ming-fei's brain grew weary and lazy. When his sensory organs transmitted the information perceived from the outside world, his mind simply had no desire to process the neural impulses generated by that data.

This plunged Ming-fei into a semi-conscious, dreamlike state. He only felt as though he had entered a safe and comfortable condition, completely detached from the rest of the world.