Even during the day,
the lake surface was shrouded in thick fog,
making it impossible to see the other side, let alone reach the center of the lake.
This old-fashioned pedal boat was very laborious to operate; every rotation of the axle produced a harsh friction sound,
and the pedaling sensation transmitted to the legs made one feel as though they were trapped in quicksand,
As the boat gradually moved deeper into the lake, everyone felt increasingly overcome by the enormity of Green Lake... it was like a vast mouth that could swallow intruders at any moment.
On the boat
sat a man with a huge physique and carrying a great sword, and a woman wearing a hat decorated with feathers, seated in the front,
while Yi Chen and Blond Edmund sat side by side in the back.
The staff member sat facing the boat's bow, with wide eyes fixedly watching the four, particularly their pedaling, giving off a vibe of supervising slaves.
"Although those passengers before us didn't encounter any trouble,
this lake always gives me a very bad feeling—if something goes wrong midway, we may need to cooperate involuntarily.
Let's introduce ourselves again,
I am Edmund, from the Mariano family."
He continued introducing his two companions, patting the broad back muscles of the man in front,
"This is Dagbert, a formidable man from the Northern Realm. This physique is partly inherited and partly sculpted by the harsh cold... He is definitely a gentleman of strength in the making.
And this lovely lady is Juliana, a good friend I met at the training ground."
"William."
Yi Chen quietly announced the name of his body's original owner, then continued:
"Also, I don't recommend chatting here..."
"Agreed."
With introductions over,
everyone focused their attention on the lake,
due to the potential pathological risks and boating rules, everyone behaved very modestly, refraining from touching the water and merely observing the lake with their eyes.
As Yi Chen stared at the lake surface for a prolonged time,
he unexpectedly sensed a peering sensation coming from deep beneath the lake... as if something terrifying at the bottom was watching him.
When this feeling was conveyed to Little Grape, it secreted a large amount of saliva.
"There seems to be something delicious down there!"
While everyone was observing and alert to the happenings around the lake.
Crack~
The pedal boat suddenly jammed as if something had entangled the main paddle.
"Seaweed? Or some other debris?"
Considering the unknown danger,
Yi Chen did not rashly stick his head out to inspect the surface of the water, but extended his right arm, using Little Grape hidden in his sleeve to observe the situation under the boat.
Through the relatively clear lake water,
a large amount of unsettling things were revealed—hair.
Thick black hair entwined around the paddle,
and beneath the hair was a corresponding bloated corpse.
After briefly explaining the situation, the three members of Edmund's group also became alert, one of their hands already gripping a weapon
Just then,
the staff member, who had been staring blankly and unblinkingly the whole time, instinctively performed his duty.
He donned a pair of plastic gloves that reached up to his elbows and leaned halfway out of the stern to start clearing the entanglements on the paddle.
Seeing this,
Yi Chen and Edmund, sitting in the back, also grabbed the young man's clothes to prevent him from accidentally falling into the lake.
Just as the strands of black hair were being pulled out and everyone was about to get free,
the staff member's body suddenly stiffened,
and a force beyond imagination came into play... so powerful~ Hiss!
Only torn shreds of fabric remained in the hands of Yi Chen and Edmund,
and the staff member instantly fell into the water, disappearing without a trace.
Crack!
Blond Edmund switched from his usual friendly demeanor, his eyes resolute, while snapping his fingers,
everyone on alert,
cautiously watching all around,
yet, the tranquil surface of the lake temporarily revealed no terrifying thing.
Drops of sweat slid down Edmund's forehead as he awkwardly said:
"It's strange, previous tourists never had any issues, but trouble happened when it came to us... Is it coincidence? Or has someone among us been targeted by something in the lake?"
This remark immediately reminded Yi Chen of his lakeside walk the previous night, and the accidental act of throwing the 'Sheriff' into the lake.
However,
Edmund soon confessed on his own,
"The three of us killed several pathological individuals from the town after the party last night, which might have angered the presence behind them.
I'm sorry to have inadvertently involved you, William."
Yi Chen responded coldly:
"Think about how to get out of this lake."
Half of the black hair still remained entangled around the paddle, and if they continued cleaning, they might be dragged down as well.
At this moment,
Dagbert from the Northern Realm volunteered to stand up,
his hefty great sword was perfectly suitable as a makeshift paddle, and he had experience rowing back when he lived in the Northern Realm.
The great sword plunged into the lake,
alternating from left to right,
propelling the boat forward at a speed more than twice that of before with just one person's power.
It is worth noting that,
the black hair tangled around the paddle, along with the corpse, was dragged along, creating a somewhat eerie scene.
However,
the danger had not been eliminated,
the large ripples caused by the motion of the great sword seemed to awaken something slumbering at the bottom of the lake,
and as waves rippled out,
some black silhouettes about the size of a human body became faintly visible under the water... They swayed their soft, elongated bodies as they approached the boat.
Seeing this,
Edmund gently patted his companion's muscular shoulder,
"Dagbert, just keep rowing straight... leave the rest to us."
"Hmm."
After saying this,
Edmund picked up a pistol decorated with feathers in his left hand, loading a silver bullet,
and gripped a silver-plated short sword in his right hand, his gaze as sharp as an eagle's sweeping the surroundings.
Juliana bent over to pull a dagger from between her boots, assuming a standard combat stance as well.
Yi Chen pulled out the Silver Axe from his waist, and Little Grape was mounted on his shoulder.
"Here they come!"
Splash~ Water sprayed upwards!
An arm covered in fish scales and embedded with shells clung to the edge of the boat.
When a severely bloated head surfaced, the cold muzzle was already pressed against its scalp.
Bang~ A gunshot tore through the silent veil over the lake.
Red fluid spread across the surface of the water as the first troublesome merfolk sank to the bottom of the lake.
After completing the kill, Edmund still found time to offer advice:
"To deal with these parasite types, just destroy the brain... They haven't evolved into real 'Patients' yet, so they aren't too troublesome to handle.
But keep one thing in mind,
don't let them damage the boat, I really don't want to end up in this filthy, disgusting Green Lake."
As soon as he finished speaking,
three pairs of arms stretched towards the boat from different directions,
and swollen, rotting heads with protruding mouths full of sharp teeth also emerged.
Blond Edmund executed a precise move with his swordsmanship, sending the short sword in his right hand into the face of his target, breaking apart its brain.
Juliana swung backhand, her dagger horizontally piercing the temple of another target... even faster
by a notch.
Compared to the two well-trained individuals,
Yi Chen, this 'halfway convent' transmigrator, naturally fell short in many aspects.
However,
faced with the perilous situation in the lake,
a strong desire to slay his target formed in his mind,
and driven by this urge,
strands of plant roots emerged from the back of his hands and palms, entwining themselves around the Hand Axe, even merging with the hickory wood handle.
This made Yi Chen hold it tighter,
and swing it with more force,
Kill!
Silver light flashed, striking precisely at the merfolk's neck.
Fish scales,
skin,
cervical vertebra,
nothing could hinder the chopping force.
Whoosh!
A bloated, rotting head was flung into the air, landing smack on the boat with a splat.
As this head still attempted to wriggle and harm Yi Chen,
a black ball of flesh leapt down from Yi Chen's shoulder,
instantly devouring the two 'grapes' of the merfolk's head and further burrowing into the eye sockets, eating the fresh sashimi inside the skull clean.
As this scene unfolded,
both the rower Dagbert and the other two fighters cast surprised glances towards Yi Chen, raising their estimation of him a notch higher.
...
As the group fought together,
after killing about twenty of the mutated merfolk from the lake,
the boat reached the shore.
The corpse entangled around the paddle was also dragged ashore.
When Yi Chen saw the appearance of this corpse, his body trembled.
This corpse with thick long hair was actually the Sheriff he had thrown into the lake... but in his memory, the Sheriff had short hair.
It was as if the lake acted as a cultivation plate, causing any organism thrown into it to be stimulated and grow rapidly.
"Is it really because of me..."