Chapter 388 - 282: Underground Affairs, Water Ghost’s Mischief

Chapter 388: Chapter 282: Underground Affairs, Water Ghost’s Mischief

The dock was built on the shore of a lake.

Looking down from the sky,

the lake connected to a great river. The waterway snaked like a jade belt, stretching into the distance until it met the horizon.

Tang Wen took a closer look at both the lakeshore and the riverbanks.

There were no obvious signs of a drop in the water level.

Tang Wen was baffled.

’This place is also part of the Northwest Wilderness.

It probably hasn’t rained much in the past year.

So how is the water supply still so abundant?

If this were my previous life, a year without rain would have killed off most of the life on the surface.

First, most of the plants would wither and die.

Only a few drought-resistant ones would survive.

Then the herbivores would plummet in number.

Followed by mass starvation among the carnivores.

The food chain would suffer a catastrophic blow.

Humans, too, would turn into complete beasts, fighting over clean water sources.

Whoever had the biggest fist would get the water and survive.

They might even gain power and rule over others by controlling the water.’

Hidden in the clouds, Tang Wen couldn’t help but marvel, "It’s been dry for so long, yet the water here is still so plentiful."

By now, the two of them had straightened up, standing a full arm’s length apart.

Now that they were separated, they no longer had to be so tense.

Xia Qingge stopped trying to grab at the clouds and looked down. "This lake is probably connected to many underground rivers."

Underground rivers... The lake near Flame Camp also connected to a bottomless underground river.

He asked curiously, "Are there many underground rivers in this world?"

"Of course there are. Wherever there’s a lake, there are underground rivers. A lake this big... who knows how many underground rivers are feeding into it and draining from it at the bottom," Hu Qi said, its voice deep and booming.

"Are the underground rivers stable?" Tang Wen didn’t understand.

’Anhe—underground rivers.

Based on his knowledge from his past life, Tang Wen knew that the formation of underground rivers was a complex process. The subterranean environment was intricate, and constant erosion from the water flow could easily alter geological structures.

The channels of an underground river could easily just collapse.

This meant that stable, flowing underground rivers should be even rarer.’

"Of course they’re stable," Hu Qi replied. "The world below is vast beyond imagination. It has mountains, waterfalls, rivers, and countless strange Exotic Beasts. When we get underground later, you can’t be careless."

"Exotic Beasts can live there? Is there light underground?"

"Of course."

"That’s impossible, isn’t it?"

"Why couldn’t there be light? Aren’t there stars at night?" Xia Qingge’s question revealed her apparent lack of astronomical knowledge.

Hu Qi explained, "The stars are beyond the sky, infinitely far away. There’s no night underground, but there are large quantities of glowing rocks."

Its words didn’t faze Tang Wen much.

His memory contained many images of subterranean worlds from fictional works.

He had no desire to go there.

If he had a choice, he wouldn’t want to go underground at all.

Xia Qingge took a sip of wine, her expression eager and ready for an adventure.

Tang Wen fell silent.

’Hu Qi’s words made me realize I can’t keep looking at things through the lens of common sense from my previous life.

In my former world, a year without rain was practically an apocalyptic disaster.

The lands of the Northwest Wilderness have now gone a year without rain, but from the looks of it, the environment has only become a little harsher, without any drastic changes.

Beneath the vast Northwest Wilderness lies a complex subterranean world.

The underground isn’t just home to Demons, but also all sorts of Exotic Beasts, forming a diverse ecosystem.

The intricate network of surface and underground water systems might also be one of the main reasons for the frequent droughts on the surface.’

Observing the boats of all sizes shuttling back and forth on the water below,

Tang Wen asked another question, "Since the underground has such abundant resources, why are humans still fighting over things on the surface? Wouldn’t it be better to develop underground?"

Hu Qi shook its large head and countered, "What makes you think humans haven’t gone underground?"

"So you’re saying there are humans underground? With cities?"

"There certainly are. However, ordinary people can’t live underground for too long." This was the first time Hu Qi had revealed such things to Tang Wen.

The latter was listening intently. "With so many masters on the surface, can’t they take down the Demons?"

"It’s because of those glowing rocks."

"The rocks?"

"They only exist in limited areas, and when summer comes, they stop glowing."

"Huh?" Tang Wen was taken aback. ’The rocks have to hibernate? No, aestivate, I guess.’

"Not only that, but they also dim or go out completely for a few days at a time, with no pattern."

’So that’s how it is.’

Tang Wen could imagine the despair of being plunged into darkness.

’An ordinary Martial Artist might have a slight advantage fighting a Demon in the light.

But if the light source suddenly vanished mid-battle, what awaited them would be a massacre—a one-sided slaughter.’

"No wonder they can only play defense," Tang Wen said, nodding thoughtfully.

Xia Qingge was also very interested. "Have Fourth-Grade Masters gone down there?"

The White Tiger glanced at her with its big eyes. "Of course."

It didn’t state the conclusion, but the two of them could guess.

If Fourth-Grade Masters could have solved the problem just by going down there, the crisis posed by the Underground Demons would have been resolved long ago.

Tang Wen asked again, "Have the Demons never charged out?"

Hu Qi made a human-like "tsk" sound. "Those below Fifth Grade can’t stir up much trouble if they come up. But if a Fifth-Grade or higher one comes up and we don’t respond in time, it’s a disaster. That’s why the entrance to the underground caverns in Ganshan City is located in the Inner City. However, just as we don’t like the dark, they aren’t too fond of sunlight. They usually stay hidden in the lightless parts of the underground."

Just as the two humans and one tiger were chatting about the underground,

WHOOSH.

Another White Tiger barreled into the cloud.

It was so fast that Tang Wen didn’t even see which direction it came from.

Before anyone could ask, Hu Ershiyi waved a furry paw and said, "I’ve scouted out those ships below. A few of them over there are loaded with nothing but grain. The other big, iron-hulled ships are carrying ice and meat—all kinds of meat!"

"Exotic Beast Meat?"