As Jiang Chen descended past the 2,197-meter mark—the deepest point any human had ever reached—a thought crossed his mind.
"One small step for me, one giant leap for mankind."
It was absurd, really.
The last person who said this was walking on the moon.
And here he was, plunging into the depths of the Earth.
But still, it felt right.
Because at this moment, Jiang Chen wasn't just exploring.
He was rewriting history.
The live chat erupted.
[Bro really just Neil Armstrong'd his way into the abyss!]
[People go to space, Jiang Chen goes underground. Balance.]
[Honestly? He's earned that line.]
---
Meanwhile, around the world, countless explorers and cave divers were watching the stream with a mix of admiration and envy.
They had all dreamed of this moment.
But Jiang Chen had done it first.
He, along with Debi, had shattered the limits of human exploration.
---
Beyond 2,197 meters, everything changed.
Their descent slowed considerably.
The first 2,000 meters had been mapped—marked by the explorers before them.
But now?
They were in completely uncharted territory.
No paths. No markings. No guideposts.
Only darkness.
And danger.
The deeper they went, the more treacherous the terrain became.
Labyrinth-like tunnels twisted and turned unpredictably.
One wrong step could lead them into a dead-end—or worse, a bottomless pit.
Fortunately, Jiang Chen had one advantage.
His Terrain Scanning Locator.
Using sound waves, it mapped the area, revealing the safest possible route.
But even with this technology, progress was grueling.
At times, water poured through cracks in the rock, flooding sections of their path.
They waded through freezing subterranean rivers, climbed slippery stone walls, and pushed through waterfalls that crashed down from unseen heights.
Fatigue clawed at them.
For three days, they pressed forward.
Step by step.
Meter by meter.
Yet, instead of exhaustion or despair—
They felt exhilaration.
Because the longer they walked, the deeper they went.
And the deeper they went, the more they realized—
This wasn't just a discovery.
This was a revolution.
Their descent wasn't measured in mere hundreds of meters.
They had already broken past thousands.
Scientists and researchers watching the stream were stunned.
No one had imagined that Veryovkina Cave could be this deep.
Discussions began.
Maps were redrawn.
The scientific community even proposed renaming this newly discovered section—
Jiang-Dai Cave.
A tribute to the two explorers who had ventured where no human had ever gone before.
---
Then—
Jiang Chen and Debi stopped.
They had reached a massive underground cliff.
Before them, a roaring waterfall plunged into the void, disappearing into unseen depths.
Jiang Chen activated the Terrain Scanner.
His eyes narrowed.
"The path continues behind the waterfall."
Debi stared at him. "You're joking."
He shook his head. "We need to rappel down and enter through the waterfall itself."
Debi turned back toward the cascade.
Water thundered down a 20-meter drop with violent force.
The current was monstrous.
One mistake, and they'd be swept away.
Never to be seen again.
The risk was immense.
Jiang Chen wasn't worried about himself.
But Debi?
He wasn't sure.
And for the first time on this journey—
He hesitated.
Jiang Chen turned his head, about to check on Debi—
Only to see that she had already secured her safety rope and was positioning herself for descent.
She smirked. "What? You think I can't handle it? What's that saying in Chinese? 'Women hold up half the sky'?"
Before he could respond, she let go of the rope—
And leaped straight into the rushing waterfall.
Jiang Chen sighed, shaking his head with a wry smile. "I swear, if I ever meet her Chinese teacher, I need to ask what the hell they were teaching her."
With no time to waste, he quickly followed.
In truth, he didn't doubt Debi at all.
If anything, he admired her.
After all, she wasn't just the first woman to reach this depth—
She was the first human.
A title that made it impossible for anyone to underestimate her.
But what they had underestimated—
Was the sheer force of the waterfall.
The moment they dropped beneath the crashing torrent, it felt like being pummeled by a thousand fists of ice.
The water was relentless, hammering their bodies and making it impossible to see.
Unlike normal rock climbing, there were no stable footholds. No places to grip.
This wasn't just a descent.
This was survival.
The live chat was in complete chaos.
[OH MY GOD THIS IS INSANE]
[THEY'RE NOT CLIMBING, THEY'RE LITERALLY GETTING BEATEN DOWN BY A WATERFALL]
[WHO NEEDS HOLLYWOOD ACTION MOVIES WHEN YOU HAVE JIANG CHEN??]
And then—
Disaster struck.
A sharp snap echoed through the cave.
Jiang Chen's eyes widened.
Debi's rope had just—
Broken.
The constant water pressure, combined with the sharp edges of the rock, had worn it down.
In an instant, she lost control—
Her body swung wildly in the air, suspended only by the last safety line above her.
But even that wouldn't last long.
In the violent rapids, nothing held forever.
Jiang Chen's instincts took over.
He didn't hesitate.
He didn't think.
He let go of his own rope—
And plunged straight down.
It was a race against time.
Against gravity.
Against death itself.
His body cut through the waterfall like a missile, diving toward Debi as the final safety rope above began to unravel.
And then—
With a snap, the last anchor ripped free from the rock.
Debi's rope slipped—
But before she could plummet into the abyss, Jiang Chen reached out—
And caught her.
He grabbed onto her safety rope, looping it tightly around his arm.
But the force of the catch yanked him downward with violent momentum.
The strain burned through his muscles as he gritted his teeth, his other hand desperately gripping his own rope to slow their fall.
The wet gloves on his hands smoked from the sheer friction.
But he held on.
Finally, their descent stabilized.
For now.
But the danger wasn't over.
Below them—
A raging torrent awaited.
No footholds.
No solid ground.
And if they fell into the water—
They would be swept away.
Jiang Chen exhaled sharply, his grip tightening.
There was only one way to save Debi.
And it required absolute precision.
No mistakes.
No second chances.
The live chat was frozen in stunned silence.
Because right now—
Jiang Chen was about to attempt the impossible.