Chapter 409 - 220: A Chance Encounter with the White Dragon Jade Spirit Dolphin
Chapter 409: Chapter 220: A Chance Encounter with the White Dragon Jade Spirit Dolphin
SMACK~
Xiaojiu raised a paw and, with lightning speed, whacked Overlord on the head and meowed in annoyance.
"Meow!"
’You think you’re so smart, don’t you?’
"Meow meow~"
Overlord scrambled back, begging for mercy.
’I was wrong, Boss.’
’It was my fault.’
’I was just trying to say the Two-legged Beast is amazing.’
’He’s so, so much stronger than the two female Two-legged Beasts at my home.’
"Meow~"
Xiaojiu flicked its tail, responding with a haughty air.
’Of course he is.’
"Woof~"
Bai Wan chimed in with a bark. ’Master is the greatest!’
"Woof woof~"
’No matter what Master does, he’s the best at it.’
Leopard looked on with adoration.
Hu Zi nodded earnestly in agreement.
"Meow meow!"
Overlord chimed in with a solemn meow.
’There’s no denying it, the Two-legged Beast is incredible.’
’Can I get a new master?’
"Meow~"
Xiaojiu glanced at Song Wan, then crushed Overlord’s hopes without a shred of sympathy.
’Don’t even think about it.’
"Meeeow~"
Overlord flopped onto the boat’s deck and started rolling around.
’Poor, pitiful me~’
...
The interlude with the "miraculous current" was gradually washed away by other conversations as the tour boat moved on.
Perhaps it was a coincidence, or maybe some rare hydrological phenomenon. In any case, they were all safe, and that was the most important thing.
Gao Zhenyue stopped puzzling over the unnatural current and started debating with Ye Haibing about which restaurant they should go to that night to "calm their nerves."
Qian Yu put it out of their mind and started complaining about how cunning criminals were these days.
Song Wan was busy consoling Overlord while snapping a few more pictures of the river, gathering material.
Yang Qi leaned against the boat’s rail, admiring the autumn colors on both banks.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to him: ’Could the Earth Listening Technique hear things underwater?’
He decided to act on the thought immediately.
Yang Qi channeled his Magical Power and cast the incomplete Advanced Magic.
His hearing instantly sharpened, and an invisible sense swept beneath the boat and across the surface of the water.
The world beneath the waves unfolded within his mind’s eye in a completely new way.
The lazy sway of the aquatic plants, the nimble, swift paths of fish darting by, the slow, steady rhythm of river clams opening and closing to filter feed...
’It actually works!’
Yang Qi was thrilled.
He kept the Earth Listening Technique active, listening to the riverbed below as the boat glided forward.
Suddenly, a completely different "pulse" slid into his perception like an elegant musical note—it was smoother, swifter, and possessed a sort of intelligent rhythm.
This pulse wasn’t coming from beneath the boat, but from a deep-water area about thirty meters ahead and to the side. It was moving in the same direction, fading in and out of his senses.
He could sense its emotions: relaxed, curious, and even a bit playful.
Occasionally, it would draw near the surface, as if observing the strange "Two-legged Beasts" on the boat, before playfully diving back into the depths in a graceful arc.
Intrigued, Yang Qi focused his senses, continuing to "listen."
It wasn’t a common fish.
Its form was larger, its pulse more complex. It carried the unique, warm-blooded life rhythm of a mammal, along with a serene spirit that seemed to resonate with his own.
’A Yangtze River finless porpoise?’
An aquatic animal came to Yang Qi’s mind.
A type of freshwater porpoise known as the "Goddess of the Yangtze" or the "Panda of the Water." They were highly intelligent, lively by nature, and extremely rare in the Yangtze River and its tributaries.
’I can’t believe I’m seeing one in the Vortex River today!’
Yang Qi kept his expression neutral, his eyes scanning the water in the direction of the pulse.
The river’s surface glittered under the sun, and apart from a small fish occasionally leaping from the water, there was nothing to see.
The porpoise’s gray back blended almost perfectly with the slightly murky water. Combined with its swift, stealthy movements, an ordinary person would never spot it without an Advanced Magic like the Earth Listening Technique.
Ye Haibing and the others were deep in lively conversation, pointing out reeds and water birds along the bank, completely oblivious to their elegant companion beneath the surface.
Yang Qi didn’t say anything.
It was a blessing just to have an unexpected encounter with such an endangered marvel of nature.
The Yangtze River finless porpoise seemed to sense his attention. It subconsciously swam a little closer, even swimming alongside the boat for a short stretch, its joyful emotions radiating outward like ripples.
But it remained cautious and never broke the surface. It soon dove back into the deep, heading upstream toward more open waters, leaving behind only a trail of happy pulses that slowly faded into the distance.
A small smile touched Yang Qi’s lips as a warmth spread through his chest.
The tour boat continued along its route, rounding a sandbar in the middle of the river and starting the journey back.
As the sun slanted west, the river’s surface began to shimmer with a golden light.
After a long afternoon of fun, Ye Haibing, Gao Zhenyue, and the others were growing tired. They leaned back in their seats, resting or admiring the pre-sunset river view.
Yang Qi had already stopped using the Earth Listening Technique.
Casting an Advanced Magic like that consumed a significant amount of Magical Power.
Now, he was relying only on the natural perception afforded by his Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer Cultivation to sense the auras of the water and the riverbanks.
Just as the boat was about a kilometer from the dock and passing a shallow area thick with reeds and shrubs, a faint, strange, and anxious cry suddenly reached his ears.
’That’s...’
A jolt went through Yang Qi. He immediately cast the Earth Listening Technique again, enhancing his hearing.
Instantly...
’...What’s happening... I can’t move...’
’...Rock... I’m stuck...’
’...This is awful...’
’...It hurts...’
It was the cry of a Yangtze River finless porpoise!
’Is that the same one from before?’
No, the emotional pulse was slightly different. This one felt younger, its "voice" filled with panic.
It was a different one—perhaps a companion to the first.
This porpoise was trapped!
’It’s stuck between rocks in the shallows?’
Yang Qi’s heart clenched.
Once a finless porpoise is beached, if it can’t return to deep water quickly, it will die from skin dehydration, loss of body temperature regulation, and the pressure on its internal organs.