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墨書 Inktalez
Fat Ma had no choice but to extinguish his cigarette.
The tunnel was dark and deep, and no one knew what dangers lay hidden within.
We cautiously advanced step by step. The further we went, the colder it became, and a faint, damp odor lingered in the air, making us feel quite uncomfortable.
Scattered stones on the ground testified to the former glory of this gold mine.
Fat Ma whispered, "It feels like we're heading toward a dead end." He voiced the concern that was on my mind.
I exhaled, "Let's keep going a bit further."
The three of us pushed ahead, the slope gradually becoming steeper, with traces of wheels left behind from the tools used to transport gold in the past.
I held the flashlight and walked at the front. Just as I directed the beam toward the top of the tunnel, a sudden splash echoed through the air. I quickly looked down and realized I had stepped into a puddle without noticing.
I stopped and said, "There's standing water ahead."
Since this tunnel wasn't very wide—only able to accommodate three or four people walking side by side—one person had to stay back for safety reasons. Thus, we moved forward in a single file.
Mud Man said, "It's fine! My clothes are already wet anyway."
I shone my flashlight into the water; it was clear enough that I could see the bottom in the shallow areas.
Many minerals require drainage during extraction. This gold mine had been abandoned for many years, which explained the significant amount of standing water.
The water splashed around us as we walked, making a constant sound of splashing.
After walking for several dozen meters, the water had risen to my knees, and the ground of the Tunnel had become flat again.
We continued on for a while, but the Water Level showed little change.
My previously tense mood relaxed a bit.
I had to admit that the modern construction here was impressive; the Tunnel was solidly built, with no leaks or cracks. Just as I was praising it in my mind, the cement structure began to crack, and I came to a halt.
The Mud Man walked up beside me and said, "Perhaps the gold mine was just dug up to this point and then stopped."
I shone my flashlight ahead but still couldn't see the end. I replied, "That’s possible! But why is there still a path ahead?"
The Mud Man couldn't answer and fell silent.
The water in the tunnel was clear and cold; after being submerged for so long, my feet felt like they were going numb.
Fat Ma said, "Why don't we just turn back and go home? We can always come back later."
The Mud Man added, "What if the donkey doesn’t make it back home and ends up as someone else's meal?"
Our situation was indeed awkward, caught between a rock and a hard place. I bit my lip and made up my mind: "Let’s keep going!"
They both stopped arguing at once.
I gathered my thoughts. The ore in the tunnel had been unevenly mined; although I could still see traces of gold on the walls, it was pitifully scarce. It seemed that by the time they reached this point, the gold mine had been exhausted, and construction had ceased, yet the tunnel continued to extend deeper.
The water level had unknowingly risen above my knees, and as I walked through it, I encountered strong resistance.
I turned back to remind them, "If you can't hold on, just say so. The water is getting colder."
Just as I finished speaking, I suddenly stepped into empty space and fell completely into the water, sinking deeper. The only thought in my mind was how deep and cold the water felt.
Through the curtain of water, I heard Fat Ma and Mud Man calling my name. In the next moment, I heard a splash.
One of my hands was still injured, leaving me unable to swim upward. I tried to break the bandage off, but the water was chillingly cold, numbing me from my heart to my limbs.
I held my breath, unwilling to exhale, trying to keep my mind clear while struggling to free myself from the bandage and searching for a chance to survive.
After my flashlight fell into the water, it extinguished, leaving me in complete darkness beneath the surface. The critical issue was that I was still sinking.
Suddenly, I felt someone tugging at me, just managing to grab hold of my bandage. Using that force, I struggled downward and found myself free. A surge of joy filled me, but then I choked on the water; it rushed into my mouth as I gasped for air. Just then, a hand covered my mouth and pulled me upward.
Finally, we broke through the water's surface. In a daze, I saw Fat Ma as Mud Man shouted, "Fatty, help!"
Fat Ma reached out and grabbed me, pulling me into shallower water. Mud Man quickly climbed up as well. Once on solid ground, my legs trembled uncontrollably; if it weren't for Fat Ma supporting me, I wouldn't have been able to stand.
Mud Man was in a similar state but fared slightly better than I did.
I stammered through chattering teeth, "I'm... freezing... to death..."
Fat Ma asked with concern, "Are you okay? Old Sun!"
I shook my head and replied, "It's nothing serious; just cold..." By the time I regained my composure, half an hour had already passed.
Suddenly, the Mud Man said, "There’s an opening underwater."
"What do you mean?" Fat Ma asked, pressing for more information.
The Mud Man explained, pointing to the deep water area, "Just now, while I was underwater, Old Sun struggled and pushed me a bit, and then I fell into an opening."
I perked up at the Mud Man's words. He continued, "It’s strange; after passing through that opening, it was just as spacious inside as this pool, but I didn’t take a close look."
After he finished speaking, I asked, "How long will it take to get through that opening?"
The Mud Man and Fat Ma exchanged surprised glances.
After a moment, the Mud Man replied, "It shouldn’t take much time."
Fat Ma said, "Old Sun, you’re not thinking of going down again, are you?"
I nodded; that was indeed my intention. Fat Ma didn’t voice any objections. The Mud Man’s words had piqued my curiosity, and it might be an exit, I thought.
"Let’s eat something first to replenish our energy," Fat Ma suggested. Now we only had two flashlights left; one had already been broken by Bubble.
If we were going down, we needed to ensure that important items were waterproofed.
After finishing our rations, we packed the remaining food into a bag and then took out two plastic bags to wrap the flashlights.
Once everything was ready, the three of us discussed our plan.
We decided to let the Mud Man lead with the light while I held onto his clothes and Fat Ma held onto me. This way, we wouldn’t get lost since the water below was indeed very deep.
The Mud Man was the first to enter the water, followed by me and then Fat Ma.
Last time, I had fallen in by accident and panicked, but this time I was somewhat prepared, so it was a bit better.
As I entered the water, a bone-chilling cold surged through me.
The Mud Man led the way, the light he carried was dimly visible underwater, illuminating only about a meter around us.
We all controlled our bodies to avoid sinking. After swimming for a while, the Mud Man picked up speed; I knew that the exit might be just ahead.
At this moment, I was freezing; the water was too cold, and with my injured hand, I was losing strength.
Suddenly, I felt myself being pulled down. When I turned my head, I saw Fat Ma's eyes wide open like a cow's, his cheeks puffed out. I realized something was wrong—Fat Ma was being dragged underwater by something.
Fat Ma kicked his legs desperately. My heart sank; we had to act quickly. If we didn’t get eaten by some monster, we would drown from lack of air.
The Mud Man sensed it too and turned his head. Suddenly, the light illuminated everything.
Fat Ma’s struggling face became clearer, looking as if he were about to run out of breath.
I gestured to the Mud Man and plunged underwater with my dagger. The Mud Man grabbed Fat Ma. As I dove into the depths, my scalp tingled with horror; Fat Ma's foot was being gripped by a sinister white claw. My first thought was that I had encountered a water ghost again.
I took a deep breath and thrust my dagger down at that white claw.
Immediately, black blood surged out, but the claw did not loosen its grip. The lack of oxygen was making my head spin. I needed to resolve this quickly; I stabbed again with my dagger. Still no effect.
I grabbed that hand, but as soon as I touched it, it was yanked upward. A wave of panic washed over me—it was just a hand! I suppressed my fear and gave Fat Ma's leg a hard slap.
Fat Ma turned his head to look at me, and I gestured for him to follow. Understanding my signal, Fat Ma swam upward.
This Fat Ma was entirely a product of my imagination, I thought to myself.
The Mud Man continued to lead the way, and as we passed through that opening, I had reached my limit. I quickly broke the surface of the water, gasping for air.
As Fat Ma emerged from the water, his first words were, "That scared the hell out of me, damn it."
The Mud Man reminded us, "Let's talk once we're on land."
We needed to test whether the Mud Man's assumption was correct.
Once we three made it to shore, my lips trembled uncontrollably, and my words came out in a jumble.
Fat Ma let out another scream as he noticed that eerie hand still gripping his pant leg.
With a forceful tug, Fat Ma pried it off and tossed it back into the water, cursing, "What bad luck." Then he added, "Old Sun, you broke its hand!"
I wanted to respond to Fat Ma, but I could hardly speak. After bouncing around a bit to regain my composure, I managed to mumble to Fat Ma, "You're just imagining things; it's only a hand."
Fat Ma immediately shot back, "No way!"
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