This Spiritual Energy is Lethal!
Chapter 408: The Seeds of Betrayal

Chapter 408: Chapter 408: The Seeds of Betrayal

Down on the muddy slope, a basic wooden raft tethered to the shore by a thick rope floated aimlessly on the water’s surface; without a close look, one might mistake it for discarded trash.

The raft wasn’t large, but it had more than enough space for three people. Jacob was the first to jump onto the raft, picking up a bamboo pole that had been hidden nearby in the mud.

"Come on board, we’re taking the water route," Jacob said.

"This won’t sink, will it...?" Chen Ke was not very trusting of the raft.

"Unless you’re a 440-pound fatso, there’s nothing to worry about," Jacob replied with a laugh.

Xu Jing, without a second thought, jumped right on, and the raft shivered slightly. Jacob steadied it by pushing the bamboo pole into the water.

Chen Ke carefully descended the slope, gently stepping onto the raft to avoid getting mud on his trouser cuffs.

"I didn’t expect you to be such a stickler," Xu Jing said with a laugh, seeing how cautious Chen Ke was.

"I just don’t like soggy socks," Chen Ke shook his head.

"You actually don’t like the feeling of wet clothes clinging to your skin?" Xu Jing asked Chen Ke.

"That depends on the kind of water..." Chen Ke replied.

Jacob didn’t interject; he pulled out a dagger, cut the rope loose, and pushed the raft away from the shore.

The raft, carrying the three of them, drifted upstream, following the red stream of blood toward what looked like the perimeter of a slaughterhouse, where the houses gave way to grey walls.

A few minutes later, the raft reached a drain outlet on the shore, from where a foul stench of blood and inexplicable odor poured out of the pitch-dark outlet.

All three furrowed their brows and pinched their noses at once.

"Are you sure it’s inside there?" Chen Ke asked.

"It’s just the safest route, trust me," Jacob spread his hands.

"You’d better be right. Let’s not waste any more time, go inside," Xu Jing said.

Jacob propped up the bamboo pole and pushed the raft into the drain, as they slowly disappeared into the darkness, surrounded by monotonous water flow, pitch-black darkness, and foul odor.

Xu Jing and Chen Ke both activated their Spiritual Vision and started scanning their surroundings; their pupils showed a ring of blue in the darkness.

There were no people around. The academy hadn’t set up defenses at the drain outlet, probably because it was a good distance underground from the academy, making guarding it practically a giveaway of their presence.

Jacob put on his courteous mask, pulling up the hood of his windbreaker and covering the lower half of his face with a black scarf, while Chen Ke noticed Jacob seemed to be observing something as well.

The raft floated through the pitch-black sewer for more than ten minutes.

"We need to get off ahead and proceed on foot—the water is shallower there, and the raft can’t go any further," Jacob said.

"I thought we were going to stay on this raft the whole time," Chen Ke wasn’t keen on getting off.

Even in the pitch-dark surroundings, he could imagine the fecal water underfoot showing a disgusting inky green, perhaps with decades of accumulated filth clinging to the bottom of the drain.

"Stop being so delicate. Jump down, I have clothes for you to change into," Xu Jing said.

"Ugh...Fuck..." Chen Ke, reluctantly, dipped his foot into the water to gauge its depth.

"The water’s about knee-high. Come on down," Jacob jumped down first, pulling up the front half of the raft’s rope.

Xu Jing gave Chen Ke a push, and with wide eyes, he landed in the water, splashing all over himself, as a strong stench of feces hit him.

Xu Jing softly stepped into the water at this time, standing behind Chen Ke, waiting for Jacob to tie the raft to one side.

Jacob pulled out a small kerosene lamp from his bosom, struck a lighter, and the dim orange-yellow light illuminated a small space around the three of them.

The walls around them were sticky, arched brick with nauseating black and yellow substances stuck in the crevices, resembling squeezed-out fat juices.

The sewage underfoot was a bit better than Chen Ke had imagined— the deep yellow water was chilly, and his toes slipped in his socks as if coated with a layer of oil.

He saw the red blood flow was wider than it was outside; it mingled with the sewage like two colors of paint poured into a dye vat.

"Follow the direction of the blood; at least we won’t have guards on this stretch, but once we reach the academy’s grounds, it’s hard to say," Jacob reminded.

"Being assigned to patrol down here is miserable enough," Chen Ke sighed, the place reminded him of Opportunity City.

"Keep quiet, focus on our goal," Xu Jing said, signaling Chen Ke with her eyes.

Chen Ke nodded, reached inside his trench coat, and disengaged the safety on the Type-67 pistol.

The three trudged forward in the dirty water, slowly advancing under the guidance of the faint kerosene lamp, not long after they spotted the architectural traces of a sewer maintenance passage, finally finding a place meant for people to walk.

They climbed over the railings onto the stone-paved ground, stepping down the stairs, moving deeper step by step, as if walking into the secret depths of this ancient city.

It seemed like everyone who schemed preferred to stash their secrets underground—perhaps it was a human trait.

After an indeterminate time, within Chen Ke’s "Spiritual Vision" range, he detected human silhouettes, and from their posture, they seemed to be holding projectile weapons.

Clearly, Xu Jing saw them too; she patted Chen Ke, who nodded at her.

"How long have we walked? Haven’t we reached the academy yet?" Chen Ke asked, Jacob hadn’t hinted at the presence of guards ahead.

"Not yet, don’t be hasty," Jacob smiled, but he had already put away the kerosene lamp; his large coat appeared to have a "Dimension Pocket" as it could hold anything.

"We have walked quite a distance," Chen Ke said.

"Trust my instincts, Lin. I know where we are," Jacob replied dismissively, still leading the way.

However, he was leading them towards the most populated area.

"It’s too dark here, shouldn’t we keep that small lamp on?" Xu Jing interjected at that moment.

"That little lamp ran out of oil; we can’t rely on it anymore," Jacob turned back and spread his hands, although in the darkness, Chen Ke and Xu Jing theoretically shouldn’t have seen his gesture.

The journey through the sewer grew complicated as they delved deeper into the city’s central pipeline system—networks of pipes crisscrossing, with some places even having large iron gates.

Suddenly, a white daylight appeared ahead, and Chen Ke heard a sound akin to a waterfall; they arrived at a drainage hub where all the sewage was collected and then discharged into the Taist River through the pipes they were in; twenty meters above, there was a circular drain opening revealing the gloomy sky of Langdon.

"Look, this pool is full of blood, but only the water from the two holes across is red," Chen Ke whispered, pointing at the drainage pipes across, afraid that his voice would carry through the pipes to the guards’ ears.

Xu Jing nodded; moving forward along the blood-stained pipes should lead them into the underground secret space of the academy.

At this moment, however, Chen Ke still hadn’t seen the red mist on the ground like he had above; they were probably still some distance from the academy.

"Let’s keep going; we’re almost there," Jacob’s voice too became cautious, as if he too feared disturbing the guards.

"He’s right, in critical moments, remember to do what’s necessary," Xu Jing said to Chen Ke with a smile.

Chen Ke understood her meaning and nodded.

The three treaded carefully through the water, heading toward the pipe emitting the blood flow.