When system cheat becomes rampant!-Chapter 685 - 504: The Flagstone Path

As Xiang Beifei's feet touched the water, it seemed as though it slickly moved aside, not wetting his body. He pondered for a bit, then withdrew his spiritual power, and found that his clothes were actually still dry.

"Erha, are you coming or not?" Xiang Beifei looked up and asked.

Erha looked down at the liquid beneath its feet and shook its head frantically, scared that the fluid would be forced back into its body, which was definitely not a pleasant experience.

"Woof, woof!" Xiaohei mocked Erha for being a scaredy-cat.

"Then you wait here and keep watch for me, alert me immediately if there's any situation," Xiang Beifei said.

Erha, too, was a creature from the Spirit Gathering Book and could communicate with Xiang Beifei telepathically.

After leaving Erha on the outside, Xiang Beifei continued downwards. The steps that were just now invisible at the bottom of the lake became increasingly numerous, layer by layer, as if they appeared in tandem with his descent.

These steps weren't connected to each other; they were individual slabs about half a meter in length, floating in the middle of the lake water as though held up by some mysterious force, arranging themselves into a path leading into the abyss.

He descended deeply, counting roughly over two thousand steps. By an estimate of twenty centimeters per step, he was now four to five hundred meters below the lake's surface. The light from above the lake could no longer penetrate down here, and visibility was getting weaker.

The stone steps beneath his feet seemed to be covered in moss, slippery and emanating a faint green glow, barely outlining the edges of the steps.

Whoosh!

At that moment, several dark shadows darted around the steps in the water!

Xiang Beifei was on high alert, looking to his left.

However, those shadows quickly vanished into the pitch-black water, and he saw nothing!

"Is it the Ghost Mustache of Remnant Visage?"

He stood in place and observed for a while, but still could not make out what had just flashed by in the darkness; if it was Ghost Whiskers, he didn't understand why they suddenly left the steps.

Xiang Beifei intended to chase after them for a clearer look, but as soon as he left the steps by about a meter, the steps beneath him flickered as if they were about to disappear.

With his strong perception, he was certain it was not the disappearance of light, but the disappearance of presence!

He frowned and quickly stepped back onto the steps, which then wobbled into visibility again.

He had a premonition that if he strayed too far from these steps, he would likely lose the path entirely.

Xiang Beifei did not concern himself with the shadow in the water, instead continuing downward.

After descending for a minute more, the steps on the ground suddenly smoothed out, and then he found himself on a bridge!

Strictly speaking, it didn't resemble a stone bridge, but more a stone pathway floating in the water, similar to how the stone slabs that formed the steps extended out flatly in the water to become a pathway spanning across the lake.

Xiang Beifei stood at the edge of the stone pathway and looked down, still unable to see the lakebed, only the dark abyss. He then looked ahead and it seemed like there was a mountain, possibly situated at the lake's bottom.

The dim light, coupled with severe visibility obstruction, prevented even Xiang Beifei from discerning anything about the mountain.

But the stone pathway under his feet continued to piece together toward that mountain, whose contours were vaguely discernible, occasionally seeming to have something stretch out from it before quickly retracting, as if desolate beasts were clinging to it, which was extremely strange.

Xiang Beifei observed the mountain for a long while and then shifted his gaze forward, soon spotting eight Ghostly Visages on the stone pathway ahead, heading toward that mountain. They treaded very cautiously, but as soon as Xiang Beifei caught sight of them, they vanished into the darkness.

Xiang Beifei used his spiritual power to disguise himself and then hurried forward, wanting to see what these fellows were up to.

The closer he got to this pitch-dark mountain, the stronger the water pressure and current seemed to be, a sense of oppression enveloping the area. He couldn't see the lake's surface when looking up, nor the lakebed when looking down, surrounded by flowing water that felt suffocating.

Approaching the mountain, Xiang Beifei realized it was a coral reef, which was odd in a freshwater lake because the darkness made it hard to see far. He didn't light any lamps, worried about attracting the attention of both the Ghostly Visages and something else at the bottom of the lake.

At that moment, he recalled Long Guocheng's "Witnessed by All." This ability of Long Guocheng's allowed him to see clearly in darkness and emit a light visible only to himself, aiding his illumination, invisible to others without permission.

Xiang Beifei searched his inventory for a moment and only found a small piece of candle, which was a "Witnessed to All Candle" provided by Long Guocheng as a spare for each member of their team during an expedition in the wilderness beyond the domain last year.

It was just unfortunate that if the system items were not used for a long time, their spiritual power would gradually dissipate. The piece of candle, having been stored for a year, looked somewhat worn and was nearly ineffective.

Xiang Beifei pinched the candle, and the essence of Revert to Simplicity acted on it, the candle rapidly returning to its original state. He then infused it with his own spiritual power, enabling its use.

The candlelight flared to life, but Xiang Beifei quickly realized that something in the water was suppressing the light from the candle, so much so that its glow couldn't reach two meters away.