After a few seconds of stunned silence, Sha Yi gradually regained her composure.
No matter what, Xi Yi was still in this body of water, and she had seen its depth earlier. Even if there was something lurking beneath, as long as she wasn’t threatened by suffocation, there was still a chance.
But nearly a minute had already passed since he had thrown her ashore. She had to act quickly to give him a chance to surface, or he might drown!
She swiftly scanned her surroundings, and her gaze finally settled on the tree trunk that had once held the vine-wrapped infant and the charred corpse of the infant’s mother. It still lay diagonally in the murky water, though now only half remained, as if another part had been struck off during last night’s thunderstorm.
With great effort, Sha Yi pulled the half-broken trunk from the water. Gripping one end, she plunged the other into the deep water and began stirring and jabbing violently.
Thanks to the trunk’s length and buoyancy, she didn’t exert much effort. As she prodded, she soon hit something strange—soft yet incredibly resilient, nothing like the muddy bottom or the decayed leaves that should have been underwater. Instead, it felt elastic and seemed to move on its own.
Move?
Sha Yi was startled. Could this be the thing that had dragged Xi Yi underwater?
The thought made her furious. She jabbed harder at the submerged object. Whether it was the sharpness of the trunk or her own perception, she felt the wood pierce straight through it.
This sensation gave her pause, but before she could react, the thing beneath the water seized the opportunity to wrench the trunk free with such force that the end she was holding was ripped from her grasp. It flew back and struck her squarely on the side of her face.
The searing pain drove her to near madness, and her worry for Xi Yi only fueled her rage. Instinctively, Sha Yi snatched the trunk mid-air and thrust it back into the water with lightning speed.
Human bursts of strength are astonishing, and she was no exception. This strike not only pierced the elastic object underwater but also drove the trunk deep into the sediment, standing at a steep angle with much less length exposed than before.
At that moment, amidst the pouring rain, an eerie sound echoed—still resembling a baby’s cry but rougher and hoarser, as if some suppressed vibration was struggling to break free. The entire water surface trembled violently in response.
Sha Yi decided there was no turning back now. Whatever it was, striking while she had the advantage was her best bet. Even if she couldn’t defeat it, stabbing a few more holes would only help Xi Yi.
Unfortunately, before she could act, the submerged creature made its move.
In the heavy rain, the deep water erupted with a violent splash, and a massive, grotesque purple-black monstrosity surfaced. Before Sha Yi could even get a clear look, she and the broken trunk were hurled away with terrifying force.
This throw was far worse than Xi Yi’s earlier toss. Her back slammed into a massive tree, the impact so brutal that her vision darkened, and she nearly lost her breath.
Groping for the broken trunk, Sha Yi coughed several times before managing to stand.
The rain was still too heavy to make out the creature clearly. She could only vaguely discern its outline—enormous, standing at least three to four meters tall, with a length nearly double its height. Its body was a deep purple-black, resembling an octopus, but it wasn’t an animal. It looked more like an aquatic plant.
Sha Yi wiped her face and edged closer, finally getting a clear view.
It was indeed an absurdly large plant. Its roots were hidden, but it bore a massive purplish-red sphere at its top. Its long leaves resembled serpentine bodies—thick, rounded, and numerous, eerily similar to octopus tentacles. Some of these fleshy leaves even had sharp, serrated edges. She realized now that what she had stepped on earlier must have been these serrated leaves.
At the moment, some of its leaves curled above the water and in the air, while others remained submerged, coiling like countless giant purple-black snakes. Against the dark, murky water and the gloomy sky, the sight was horrifying.
She had no doubt that Xi Yi was trapped beneath, tangled in its submerged tendrils. The creature had likely surfaced only because she had wounded its stems and leaves with her jabs.
Sha Yi desperately wanted to figure out the best way to deal with it, but Xi Yi’s time underwater was running out. She couldn’t afford to hesitate. Sprinting to where the water had erupted, she grabbed the broken trunk and swung it with all her might at the monstrous plant.
To her surprise, the colossal plant was knocked halfway over by her strike, clearly caught off guard.
This was unexpected, but she didn’t dwell on it—because she finally saw Xi Yi. As the plant tilted, its submerged tendrils surfaced, revealing Xi Yi tightly ensnared within them.
His face was flushed from lack of air, but he was still struggling, using his arms to push against the constricting tendrils. Her strike had given him a brief respite, and he gasped for breath before roaring and forcing the tendrils open a little more.
Sha Yi noticed he was covered in cuts, likely from fighting the creature when first dragged under. Now, even if he could breathe, escaping its grip would be nearly impossible. If he stopped resisting, the tendrils would surely crush his ribs. In his current state, reaching for his bone knife was out of the question.
She couldn’t let the creature drag him under again, but she had no better plan. She couldn’t enter the water, couldn’t pull him ashore, and couldn’t let the creature right itself. Was her only option to keep battering it with the trunk? Would that even work?
Frustration overwhelmed her. In desperation, she swung the broken trunk again with all her strength.
Once more, the effect was immediate. Before the creature could fully right itself, her blow sent it reeling backward. Its massive, serpentine tendrils thrashed wildly in the air and water, sending rain and spray flying in all directions.
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