"That's called vitality waterweed. Many fish love it, and it grows in all the rivers of the spirit realm. It's very abundant and grows quickly! After eating it, you'll feel full of energy!" Happy Carp said, taking a bite of one herself.
Gu Wanyin glanced again at the patch of vitality waterweed growing nearby, lost in thought.
But now wasn't the time to be thinking about waterweeds.
They swam for about ten more minutes when suddenly they saw a light ahead.
Happy Carp poked her little head out to look, then turned back to tell them excitedly, "We really made it in! Come up and see!"
Gu Wanyin and Gu Han poked their heads up too.
Indeed, they seemed to have entered the underground area of the castle.
Before them was a wide underground passage, with fire lamps burning on the walls at regular intervals.
"It's like we're on an adventure..." Gu Han said excitedly.
Happy Carp was the first to jump ashore, transforming into human form.
Gu Wanyin also came ashore, then pulled Gu Han up.
After the two came ashore, the water on their bodies dried instantly.
This left Happy Carp, who was still shaking off water, dumbfounded.
"How... how did you do that? Your water dried up instantly!"
"Because we have powerful magic, of course," Gu Han said mysteriously. "It's called instant wind-drying technique! Want to learn?"
"Yes!" Happy Carp nodded happily.
Gu Wanyin said with a headache, "Stop teasing the child. Let's go ahead and see where this leads. Be careful, stay close to the wall, and don't let anyone spot us."
Happy Carp and Gu Han obediently followed behind her, sticking close to the wall as they moved forward.
After walking for a while, they came to a corner.
Gu Wanyin quickly motioned for them to stop, then carefully peeked around the corner herself.
It turned out there was a dungeon-like area ahead.
Gu Wanyin immediately saw that Nine-Tails, Tree Spirit, and Cat Er were locked in three separate cells.
All three of them seemed to be seriously injured. Nine-Tails had even reverted to her fox form, lying there with her nine tails drooping lifelessly.
Gu Wanyin felt quite heartbroken.
In her memory, Nine-Tails and the others had always been spirited and cheerful.
Now... they looked so miserable...
If she hadn't come, the three of them would likely have died in this dungeon sooner or later.
Thousands of years of cultivation, destroyed in an instant.
She wondered just how powerful these rebels were, to be able to injure such formidable spirits so badly?
Then again, the rebels had been plotting for hundreds of years, all for this moment... How could they not be powerful?
Besides the three prisoners, there were also three guards in the dungeon.
At the moment, they were sitting at a table... playing cards.
"Three with two!"
"Nice one, brother! Three twos with two jokers!"
"Good hand, that's how you play with confidence!"
Gu Wanyin: "..."
Why did she suddenly feel these three guards were rather unreliable?
But she didn't want to wait any longer.
Now that Nine-Tails and the others were right in front of them, there was no need for too much caution.
Gu Wanyin gave Gu Han a hand signal, and the two of them walked out directly.
"Who's there!"
Although the three soldiers were playing cards, they were very alert. As soon as they heard movement, they immediately grabbed their weapons and aimed at them.
"Easy, easy now!" Gu Han said, "We just want to take our friends and go, nothing else. We hope you three gentlemen can be understanding and save us all some trouble! Right?"
"What nonsense are you talking? Who are you and how did you get in here?" one soldier asked fiercely.
"They must have come through the river passage," another soldier said.
"Looks like they're the Spirit King's underlings too! If we three brothers capture them, we can go claim credit from the leader. Quick!"
With that, the three soldiers charged at them with their weapons raised.
Being mere foot soldiers who had only recently cultivated into spirits, they had little magical power and could only rely on close combat.
However, they couldn't even get close to Gu Wanyin and Gu Han!
They had barely taken a few steps when their feet became rooted to the spot, unable to move!
"What... what's happening?"
"This isn't scientific!"
"Wait, we're spirits. Since when do spirits care about science?"
"What are you two babbling about! Hurry and think of something!"
But no matter how the three soldiers struggled, they still couldn't move an inch.
Gu Wanyin and Gu Han walked over to examine the cells holding Nine-Tails and the others, and found that just like the barrier outside, there were barriers here too, all requiring passwords to open.
As expected...
After all, these three soldiers seemed a bit dim-witted. They surely wouldn't rely solely on such unreliable guards to watch over this place.
"See that? There's a password!" one soldier gloated. "Even if you can immobilize us, can you crack the password? I don't think so!"
"What do you know? We have a secret weapon!" Gu Han said proudly. "Happy Carp, come here!"
Hearing this, Happy Carp immediately ran over, making a cheeky face at the three soldiers.
"Ha-Happy Carp? Could she be from the Koi Fish Clan?"
"That's right, I'm from the Koi Fish Clan!" Happy Carp said, hands on her hips.
"Come on, crack the password and show them!" Gu Han said excitedly.
Gu Wanyin: "..."
Why did she feel things weren't going to be that simple?
Happy Carp walked up to the barrier, waved her little hand, and entered the same password as before.
Unsurprisingly, it showed "Password Error".
"Sweetie, the barrier passwords here are likely all different," Gu Wanyin said meaningfully.
"So you mean I have to guess three new passwords?" Happy Carp was starting to worry. "How am I supposed to guess that?"
Gu Wanyin rubbed her chin, suddenly seeming to think of something. She turned around and smiled at the three soldiers.
The three soldiers felt a chill run down their spines under her gaze.
"What... what do you want?"
"Don't be nervous, I just want to make a deal with you," Gu Wanyin said. "As long as you're willing to tell me the passwords, I'll... teach you the secret techniques of playing cards! I guarantee your card skills will reach new heights!"
The three soldiers: "..."
Why did they suddenly feel tempted?
"Don't let her fool you!" one of them said. "Think about it, if the prisoners escape right under our noses, will we three brothers even live to see tomorrow?"
"Don't worry," Gu Wanyin said with a smile. "Later, we'll take them out directly through the castle's main gate, in full view of everyone. That way, the responsibility won't fall solely on you three."
"We still won't tell you the passwords!"
"But... don't forget, you can't even move right now," Gu Han walked up to one soldier and took the knife from his hand, waving it in front of the soldier's face.
The soldier was nearly scared out of his wits!
"You can save your lives and get the secret techniques for playing cards. It's an opportunity that won't come again!"
