Chapter 65: It doesn't matter, I'll take action.

"Once you're weakened, your random attacks won't be completely useless. At least they'll have some deterrent effect. Water and fire are opposites, so this weirdo clearly doesn't want to fight you head-on, which is why it's stalling for time.

The Black Water River is freezing cold, and even a Spirit Tamer would find it difficult to stay in the water for long. The coldness drains a significant amount of heat, severely depleting stamina. Once you're completely weakened and unable to fight, that's when the creature will strike."

"Damn it!" Shen Lingxue clenched her teeth. As a woman, she was already intolerant of the cold, and now, fully submerged in the river water, coupled with the spiritual energy she had expended attacking the water earlier, she felt an intense chill throughout her body. Her originally fair complexion had turned abnormally pale, and her lips were gradually losing their color.

She never imagined that, as a seasoned Spirit Master, she would end up in such a predicament in a D-rank strange incident.

She also sensed something amiss. Was the strange entity with the ability to move a lake truly only D-rank? Was it due to its unique ability, or its overwhelming power?

"Shen Lingxue, light the fire." Fang Xiu suddenly said.

Shen Lingxue paused, "My flames may surpass ordinary flames in temperature, but if you expect me to burn rivers and boil seas, that's not realistic."

"I'm not asking you to dry up the river. Just raise your hand and hold the flame. It can provide some heat. The icy river water will drain your stamina. The current situation is unclear, so we must conserve our strength."

Shen Lingxue hesitated for a moment. Was this supposed to be a human torch? Or a human heater?

Nevertheless, she complied. She raised her pale, swollen palm, and boom!

A blazing, bright flame erupted, and the intense heatwave immediately dispelled some of the cold.

"Ah, so warm, like soaking in a hot spring." Zhao Hao made an inappropriate joke.

Shen Lingxue glared at him coldly: "Under normal circumstances, feeling warm in extreme cold means you're about to freeze to death."

"Ah!?" Zhao Hao was startled and quickly pulled the unconscious fat man closer to himself, intending to absorb some heat.

Shen Lingxue, who had been maintaining the flame, though her face had regained a hint of color, her expression grew increasingly somber.

"With my spiritual energy, holding this flame can only last ten minutes. After ten minutes, my spiritual energy will be depleted. What we're doing now is like drinking poison to quench thirst—trading spiritual energy for physical strength.

Once my spiritual energy is depleted, what will we do if the demon appears?"

Fang Xiu calmly looked at her and said indifferently, "It doesn't matter. I'll intervene."

"You'll intervene?" Shen Lingxue looked at Fang Xiu with great skepticism. After all, in her eyes, Fang Xiu's ability was to foresee the future, which was indeed powerful but lacked any combat capability.

However, Zhao Hao believed Fang Xiu's words without a doubt. Back when Fang Xiu was in the mental hospital, he had always remained calm, even in the face of the most dangerous anomalies, as if he were certain of victory.

"Xiu Ge, you... you saw a glimmer of hope?" Zhao Hao had wanted to ask if he had seen the future, but remembering the confidentiality agreement he had signed, he could only ask indirectly.

Fang Xiu didn't explain; he simply nodded faintly.

"That's great, Xiu Ge! We're counting on you!" Seeing Fang Xiu nod, Zhao Hao acted as though they had already escaped danger.

However, in reality, Fang Xiu hadn't seen the future. He hadn't even seen the strange creature's form yet.

But none of that mattered.

The reason he had Shen Lingxue release the flames was ostensibly to stay warm, but in reality, he wanted to deplete her spiritual energy.

He speculated that the water spirit had yet to reveal itself because it was wary of their strength, hence its choice of tactics.

So who was the water spirit afraid of?

It could only be Shen Lingxue, the seasoned spirit master, and one specializing in fire!

As time passed, the flames in Shen Lingxue's hands grew weaker and weaker, nearly extinguishing. She intended to extinguish the flames to preserve some combat strength, but Fang Xiu stopped her.

"Keep burning."

Shen Lingxue looked at Fang Xiu's calm face and ultimately chose to believe his words.

This was also due to the various神奇 effects Fang Xiu had demonstrated at the Investigation Bureau.

When faced with someone who can foresee the future, people tend to instinctively choose to believe them.

Finally, Shen Lingxue could no longer hold on.

"I can't do it anymore. My spiritual energy is depleted."

As soon as she finished speaking, the flame in her palm suddenly extinguished, plunging the surroundings into complete darkness.

All that could be heard was the sound of flowing river water; there was no other sound.

The scene was eerily silent.

"Water... there's something in the water!" Zhao Hao suddenly exclaimed in horror.

Fang Xiu and the others immediately looked in the direction Zhao Hao was pointing. In the black river water, several even darker, snake-like creatures were slowly spreading out.

"What should we do now?" Shen Lingxue looked at Fang Xiu nervously. Without her spiritual abilities, she was like a lamb awaiting slaughter, her survival entirely dependent on Fang Xiu.

Whether it was a illusion or not, Shen Lingxue felt that Fang Xiu's eyes seemed to hold a suppressed yet intense sense of joy.

This was not an illusion; Fang Xiu was indeed excited.

He had not encountered anything strange for over a week, and at that moment, he felt like a long-suppressed lover who had finally seen a seductive woman.

Without a moment's hesitation, he dived headfirst into the water.

Shen Lingxue and the others were immediately startled.

They never expected Fang Xiu to be so bold.

Underwater.

Fang Xiu saw nothing but darkness, only vaguely discerning those serpentine creatures swiftly swimming toward him.

Blood Eyes Open!

He activated his Blood Eyes, and his right eye instantly filled with countless blood-red hues, densely packed until all the whites of his eye were covered in blood red, leaving only a pitch-black pupil.

Through the Blood Eyes' vision, Fang Xiu finally saw what those black water snakes were.

They were strands of jet-black, glossy hair!

This hair was similar to the hair he had seen on the village chief and others earlier, equally thick and glossy.

These strands of hair seemed to want to wrap around Fang Xiu and the others and drag them into the water.

But Fang Xiu wasn't going to give them the chance. A silver light flashed in his hand, and a surgical knife emanating a cold and eerie aura appeared in his grasp.

Swish, swish!

With a few swings, the strands of hair were immediately severed.