C19 Azure Drake Waterfall

"Have you noticed the water's vibrations getting more intense?" Chen Yuan asked abruptly as they swam.

He quickly regretted speaking up, remembering that Liu Xiaoxiao was unconscious from inhaling water, leaving only Kang Na alert.

True to form, Kang Na's response was on point. "No! I haven't! But why are we drifting further from the shore? Kang Na is so tired! Kang Na wants to sit on shoulders, be lifted high! Kang Na wants fish—"

Her words trailed off into something odd.

Chen Yuan shook the water from his hair, thinking his vision was blurred.

On closer inspection, Kang Na was correct! They were indeed much farther from the shore than before.

"The current is pulling us backward. What's happening?" Chen Yuan turned to look and nearly leaped out of his skin. A massive whirlpool had formed behind them!

The whirlpool spun relentlessly, drawing the surrounding water into its grasp.

That explained why they were moving away from the shore.

"We can't let ourselves get sucked in. Something bad will definitely happen!"

Not knowing what lay within the whirlpool, Chen Yuan knew instinctively that reaching land was far safer than remaining on the unpredictable water. With this thought, he swam harder.

But it was futile.

"There's—a—monster! Huge teeth, massive mouth! Below us! Look down!"

Kang Na's frantic cries caught Chen Yuan's attention. Glancing back, he saw through the water's surface the eerie orange pupils staring up from the depths.

What was it?

"Monster! Monster! Run! If we don't, Kang Na will hide in the sword!" Kang Na yelled.

"Kang Na, this is no time for games! If you hide, Xiaoxiao will be pulled into the whirlpool and eaten by that monster!" Chen Yuan admonished.

With Kang Na present, she could at least look after the unconscious Liu Xiaoxiao. As for Chen Yuan, he had to act quickly.

Facing the imminent threat of the whirlpool and the looming beast, Chen Yuan had already devised a plan.

"Kang Na, hold on tight!" Chen Yuan called out, and in the blink of an eye, Kang Na had expertly wrapped her arms around him in a koala-like embrace.

Moreover, as she retracted the dark blue tether attached to her, Liu Xiaoxiao was also pulled into Chen Yuan's other arm.

At that moment, they were less than three meters from the whirlpool's center.

Chen Yuan suddenly stopped fighting the current and instead leaped towards the massive beast lurking beneath the water!

The water grew more violent as they neared the beast, its ghastly white teeth visible through the spray. With Chen Yuan's dive, the last few meters vanished in a flash!

At the critical moment, Chen Yuan forcefully pushed off from a dark foothold, propelling himself, Liu Xiaoxiao, and Kang Na out of the whirlpool's grasp like an arrow released from its bow.

The underwater behemoth let out an unexpected roar as the once-spinning whirlpool came to an abrupt halt. The next second, a geyser erupted, sending a massive column of water, thicker than the three of them combined, hurtling towards them in mid-air.

Chen Yuan remained calm.

As if he had anticipated it, he stepped out once more just as the water column was about to crash down on them!

This new burst of momentum kept his nearly falling figure aloft, and he soared over once again.

Chen Yuan landed firmly on the shore, and Kang Na smoothly climbed from his waist to his shoulder, sitting as erect and solemn as a triumphant warrior.

"Hmph!" Kang Na was a woman of few words, always maintaining an air of aloofness.

"Weakling," she taunted, staring down at the water's surface.

"Kang Na, come down and check on Xiaoxiao. She's been in the water too long; we can't let her get hurt from swallowing too much water!"

While speaking, Chen Yuan gently lowered Kang Na from his shoulder with one hand and supported Liu Xiaoxiao with the other, helping her lean against a tree by the water's edge.

He kept his eyes fixed on the water, knowing that the creature they had glimpsed might not let them go so easily.

His concern was justified. Suddenly, six towering water spouts burst from the deep pool before them, exploding simultaneously on the water's surface with a thunderous boom that was painful to the ears.

A deep, guttural roar erupted from beneath the water, sending shivers down one's spine.

The fury in the roar was unmistakable.

"Uh-oh! Dad, I think you've made it mad," Kang Na, the young strategist, said earnestly as she followed Chen Yuan's instructions, pressing down on the chest of the unconscious Liu Xiaoxiao.

"Are you sure it wasn't you who angered it?" Chen Yuan asked, his face lined with frustration.

"Of course not! Kang Na spoke so quietly, there's no way it could have heard her!" Kang Na retorted with fervor.

The pair seemed to have completely disregarded the presence lurking beneath the water. As a result, the creature's rage intensified. Then—

With a thunderous crash, a mass of water, bluer than the sky, plummeted down upon them.

They were thoroughly drenched.

"This is exceedingly unfriendly," Chen Yuan remarked, glancing down at his soaked clothes. His gaze inadvertently fell on Liu Xiaoxiao and Kang Na under the tree, causing his face to turn beet red. He quickly averted his eyes.

"Dad, you're blushing!" Kang Na's observation was keen.

"Quiet, Kang Na! Watch out for that monster!" Chen Yuan bellowed, his embarrassment turning to anger. He pushed aside the alarming thought that had just crossed his mind and drew the hefty black sword from his back.

A brief calm followed the series of explosions on the water's surface.

Then, the sound of bubbling grew loud and clear, drowning out the relentless rush of the waterfall.

Next, a dark, mountainous shape rose from the center of the deep pond.

It wasn't a mountain at all, but a colossal beast! It was covered in green and black scales, each adorned with mysterious markings. The creature's head had just broken the surface, topped with two orange-yellow vertical eyes that coldly surveyed everything below.

"Roar!"

The beast opened its mouth, releasing a torrent of foul-smelling water. The two rows of ghastly white teeth, once obscured by the water, were now terrifyingly visible.

But the spectacle was far from over.

As the beast revealed just its head, the silhouette of its body beneath the deep pond seemed to fill the entire expanse.

"Cough, cough, cough." Beneath the tree, Liu Xiaoxiao, with Kang Na's assistance, managed to expel a considerable amount of water she had inhaled from the pond. Her eyes fluttered open groggily, only to be met with the sight of an enormous creature!

"An Azure... Azure Drake!"

Her eyes widened in bewilderment, still seemingly disoriented.

Just a moment ago, she was adrift in the rapids, so how had she come face to face with such a creature, the likes of which were only spoken of in myths, in the blink of an eye?

When had legends become so devalued?