PNB Chapter 2077 Beast Shadow Appears
Chapter 2077 Beast Shadow Appears
As the boat drew closer to the shore, Liu Jiulang sensed something was wrong. He looked up and saw no one on the deck.
How is this going?
Liu Jiulang clenched his fists even tighter.
Just as I was wondering what was going on, I finally saw a person appear on the boat, but the person was facing away from the shore and shrouded in fog, so I couldn't see them at all.
With a "splash," the man pulled something out of the water.
Liu Jiulang and Prefect Ding exchanged a glance—no, that's not a thing, it's a person!
These are the yamen runners that Governor Ding just sent out!
Then the man said loudly, "Everyone, look up."
The man was holding something in his hand, and his voice carried exceptionally far; not only they, but even the local people over there could hear it.
Many people have already raised their heads.
Liu Jiulang's brow twitched violently, and he asked Governor Ding in a low voice, "What's going on here!"
Governor Ding was sweating profusely; he also wanted to know what was going on.
Huo Changhe wore a black iron mask, and as he turned around, the hem of his clothes swept across the wood grain of the deck.
He grabbed the constable by the back of his collar with one hand and pushed him step by step to the side of the boat. The sea breeze made the constable's official robes stick to his body. The man's legs trembled, and he swallowed hard before daring to speak: "What... what are you going to do? Disrupting the government is a capital offense!"
Huo Changhe's voice came from behind the mask, deep and heavy like waterlogged iron: "It's none of your business to worry about losing your head. What were you planning to do when you dived into the water just now?"
The constable's eyes darted around erratically, and he hid his hands behind his back: "I am here on the orders of the governor to inspect the sacrificial offerings underwater. Don't do anything reckless!"
"What nonsense?" A clear female voice interrupted. Yan Ruyu, wearing a gilded butterfly mask and holding a megaphone that gleamed coldly, walked to Huo Changhe's side and raised the megaphone towards the crowd on the deck.
“Everyone, take a good look. You are all kneeling there, while he sneaks into the water, claiming to be acting on the orders of Governor Ding. Governor, what do you say?”
A commotion arose in the crowd, and some people leaned forward, trying to get a clear look at the constable.
Governor Ding's scarlet official robe billowed in the wind as he pointed in Yan Ruyu's direction and shouted angrily, "Shut up! Who are you? How dare you trespass on the sacrificial ceremony? Aren't you afraid of the gods' wrath? Get down here now and don't defile this sacrificial site!"
Yan Ruyu gave a short laugh into the loudspeaker, the laughter carrying a hint of mockery through the bronze instrument: "The gods are blaming you? If anyone's blaming anyone, it's you people who use the gods' name to do your dirty work, isn't it?"
She pointed towards the water: "Look!"
Everyone instinctively turned their heads in the direction she pointed. The fog that had previously faded had somehow surged up again, wrapping the water's surface like cotton wool, and even covering the gunwales of the boat with a layer of white frost.
Even stranger, a low roar came from the fog. It wasn't the sound of wind, but a beastly roar with heavy breathing, muffled, as if it were coming from underground.
"What's that?" someone raised their voice, pointing at the shadow in the fog.
A sharp-eyed person gripped the hem of their clothes tightly: "It looks like something is moving! Such a big shadow, is it the water god manifesting?"
"That's not right, the water god isn't like that! That shadow looks... like it has scales and horns!"
The murmurs grew louder; some people stepped back, while others wanted to look ahead.
Seeing the situation getting out of control, Liu Jiulang's heart pounded.
He looked up at the mist on the water's surface, then quickly glanced at the constable's hand hidden behind his back, and thought to himself, "This is bad—the thing in the mist isn't some god at all, it's a divine beast they're hiding underwater!"
If these people were to see through the deception and discover the true purpose of this divine beast, all their actions over the past few years would be exposed.
He stood up abruptly, his voice cutting through the murmurs: "How dare you disrupt the sacrificial ceremony and disturb the gods! Guards, seize these two thieves and throw them into the water as a sacrifice to the gods!"
The constables immediately surrounded them, pushed the small boats moored on the shore into the water, and moved closer to Huo Changhe and Yan Ruyu.
Seeing this, the yamen runners on the boat tried to break free from Huo Changhe's grasp, but Huo Changhe tightened his grip on the back of their collars, making them unable to move.
Yan Ruyu brought the megaphone to her mouth, her voice even louder than before: "Don't believe him! What kind of worship of gods? The things in the water aren't gods, they're monsters!"
"Impossible! How could the governor do such a thing?" Someone next to Governor Ding retorted, but their voice lacked conviction, and their gaze drifted towards the mist on the water's surface.
Governor Ding was so angry that his face turned ashen. He pointed at Yan Ruyu and shouted, "You're talking nonsense! You're spreading heresy and misleading the public! If you dare to speak nonsense again, I will definitely charge you with treason!"
"Treason?" Yan Ruyu raised an eyebrow, twirling the megaphone in her hand. "You dare to challenge me!"
Huo Changhe said to the constable, "Tell the truth, or we'll push you down right now and make you food for the monster."
The constable's face turned pale instantly.
He just saw it; the divine beast was right down there!
The reason I dared to go into the water before was because I knew the mythical beasts hadn't arrived yet, but now...
Although Liu Jiulang couldn't hear what was being said, he noticed the constables' strange behavior and quickly gave one of his own a look: "Don't waste time talking to them! Arrest them first!"
Soon, several constables rushed forward and jumped onto the deck.
A yamen runner reached out and grabbed Yan Ruyu's arm.
Yan Ruyu dodged to the side and tapped one of the constables on the wrist with the trumpet in her hand. The constable hissed in pain and took half a step back.
Huo Changhe also moved. He didn't draw his sword, but instead tripped another constable who was rushing over. The man lost his balance and stumbled forward, almost falling into the water.
"You dare to resist!" Liu Jiulang was furious and called several more constables forward. "All of you, attack! If you dare to resist again..."
His voice held a newfound ruthlessness: "Kill without mercy!"
The murmurs among the crowd grew louder, and a young man stepped forward: "Sir, is what they're saying true? What kind of beasts live underwater? What are they used for?"
As soon as these words were spoken, someone immediately echoed, "That's right, why the rush to arrest people, and why send yamen runners into the water? What are you trying to hide?"
“Yes! We all saw the beast shadows just now, which means they weren’t lying!” someone else chimed in.
These people are Bee Whistle and Beibei. They mingled with the crowd early on to incite the people and guide them to see the truth.
As more and more people began to question him, Prefect Ding broke out in a sweat. He tugged at Liu Jiulang's sleeve and whispered, "Don't be forceful. First, calm them down, then send the people back."
Liu Jiulang nodded, then raised his voice: "Don't be fooled by them! These two are charlatans who deliberately came to disrupt the ritual, hoping to cause it to fail and bring disaster upon us!"
Once they're arrested, everyone will see clearly that the one in the water is indeed the Water God—there's no doubt about it!
Huo Changhe pushed the constable in his hand, and half of his foot was already out of the water. The waves and wind made his clothes flutter.
The constable cried out in fright, "I said, there really is a beast in the water!"