Chapter 132: Chapter 133: A Deadly Stalemate
That much effort had to be draining a lot of blood. Hee Lingchuan could smell the metallic tang growing stronger, though he couldn’t tell if it was his, the giant crocodile’s, or both.
Hee Lingchuan couldn’t understand why the giant crocodile didn’t just drag Wu Shaoyi underwater and drown him. As it turned out, Wu’s Long Spear was constantly forcing its head up, and the beast couldn’t take it anymore.
This giant crocodile had roamed far and wide, eating whatever it pleased. Who would have thought it would run into such a prickly meal here?
Judging by its state, it was utterly furious.
"Can’t you let go and jump out?"
"No, it’s trying to ram me to death! I’ve already tried twice," Wu Shaoyi said. "This thing is intelligent!"
Most importantly, his injuries were too severe. He couldn’t run fast at all.
Although its great mouth was stuck, the Crocodile Demon’s locomotive-like body would knock anyone it hit unconscious, whether on land or in water.
’So the crocodile’s mouth is the safest place?’ Hee Lingchuan gave a bitter smile, imagining the fangs just below.
"Then how can I help?"
"Think of something, quick!" With a person appearing out of thin air above him, Wu Shaoyi was not about to let this god-sent opportunity pass. "I’ll be sure to reward you!"
’How am I supposed to save him?’ Hee Lingchuan was stumped.
’Stab the giant crocodile to death with my Broken Blade? Don’t be ridiculous. I’d probably be flung off before I could even scratch its hide.’
’Find a Stalactite to replace the Long Spear? Impossible. The crocodile wouldn’t just sit there and let me.’
A dozen or so ideas flashed through his mind, but Hee Lingchuan dismissed every single one.
Below, Wu Shaoyi was desperately urging him on.
Hee Lingchuan was getting flustered by the constant urging. He decided to just shout, "Hey, you! Crocodile Demon... God! Can you understand human speech?"
Just a moment ago, he had clearly heard Wu Shaoyi call this thing the "Crocodile God."
The crocodile was absurdly large, so it had surely become a Demon. But no one would call it a god for no reason.
Wu Shaoyi must know its origins.
Besides, Uncle Hao’s Yaozi Demon could understand and speak human language. Perhaps this Crocodile Demon, whose Daoist Practice seemed far more profound, could too?
’It’s worth a shot. No harm in trying.’
So he added another shout: "How about I help you get rid of that prickly toothpick?"
Compared to the giant crocodile’s size, a burly man like Wu Shaoyi was just a morsel, not nearly enough to fill its cavernous maw. To a creature this size, calling the Long Spear a toothpick was perfectly reasonable.
The moment he asked the question, the churning water suddenly grew still. There were only a few soft splashes.
It was pitch black below, and Hee Lingchuan couldn’t see a thing. He had no choice but to ask Wu Shaoyi, "What’s its reaction?"
"It nodded." Wu Shaoyi’s voice sounded quite dejected. "It can understand!"
’That’s right, this is the Crocodile God, who once received Sacrificial Offerings. Why did I fight it to the death from the start, assuming it couldn’t understand me?’
’Why turn a problem that could be negotiated into a battle where both sides lose?’ At the thought, Wu Shaoyi wanted to slap himself across the face.
’Has my brain gone rusty at a time like this?’
Hee Lingchuan let out a long sigh of relief. ’Now that I can communicate with a monster like this, doesn’t that make the rescue a whole lot easier?’
’I’m such a genius.’
Next, he had to try negotiating. "Crocodile God, let’s make a deal. I’ll take out the toothpick for you, you’ll let the two of us go, and you’ll help us get to shore. How about it?"
The next second, a cold voice resounded in both of their minds:
"Agreed."
Demons with sufficient Daoist Practice mostly communicated with humans telepathically, as their vocal cords were unsuitable for speech.
’This big crocodile is being so agreeable?’ Hee Lingchuan was taken aback. "You promise?"
"The Armored Dragon Race never lies!" the giant crocodile’s voice echoed. "I swear on the blood of my ancestors!"
Hee Lingchuan had heard that Demons, as a rule, didn’t lie—save for a few specific types.
He thought for a moment, then took out a candle from his Storage Space, lit it, and tossed it to Wu Shaoyi.
Wu Shaoyi caught it with great difficulty.
If the Crocodile Demon were still thrashing, such a simple action would have been impossible.
Hee Lingchuan instructed it, "Get out of the water!"
The giant crocodile slowly swam forward, and soon its huge head emerged from the water.
By the light of the candle, the two men discovered that the cave was very large, half submerged and half above the lake’s surface.
There seemed to be something deeper in the cave, but that wasn’t the priority right now. Hee Lingchuan gave it a quick glance and paid it no mind.
After climbing onto the Stone Beach, the Crocodile Demon rested its massive head on the rock and went still.
"Get out."
Wu Shaoyi struggled with all his might but couldn’t get up.
The tense confrontation with the giant crocodile had already exhausted all his strength. Now that he had relaxed, he couldn’t even lift a hand.
He tried two more times but couldn’t even stand.
The giant crocodile tilted its head, shook him out of its mouth, and tossed him onto the Stone Beach.
"Pull the spear out!"
Wu Shaoyi couldn’t even stand. How could he possibly have the strength to pull the spear out for it?
He had no choice but to call to Hee Lingchuan, "Kid, get down here and help!"
’It’s so much safer up here,’ Hee Lingchuan thought.
He really didn’t want to go down, but both Wu Shaoyi and the giant crocodile were urging him insistently.
They were both sick of each other.
The two neat rows of large, bloody holes on Wu Shaoyi’s body, gushing blood with every passing second, were no illusion. Recalling how he had wrestled with the giant crocodile for several double-hours despite such grievous wounds, Hee Lingchuan had to believe he was now completely spent.
If he hadn’t run into Hee Lingchuan, Wu Shaoyi would have died with his Long Spear still rammed straight into the giant crocodile’s mouth.
So, Young Master Hee heaved a heavy sigh, held his nose, and jumped.
SPLASH! He hit the water.
Then, with a few freestyle strokes, he swam to the edge of the Stone Beach.
He first moved Wu Shaoyi deeper into the cave, fed him a small pill, and then walked back to the water’s edge.
The giant crocodile was waiting for him there with its huge mouth open, tears streaming from the corners of its eyes.
Every one of its teeth was longer than his Broken Blade, and its bloody maw could easily hold three adults.
Standing beside it was not a pleasant experience.
Hee Lingchuan carefully peered into its mouth and found that Wu Shaoyi’s Long Spear was wedged in a devilishly clever way. The spear tip was dug deep into the beast’s upper palate, while the shaft was jammed deep into a cavity in its lower jaw.
That’s right—this crocodile had a cavity that went all the way to the root. A rather deep one, at that.
That’s why the wedged Long Spear caused it such excruciating pain.
No wonder it had agreed to Hee Lingchuan’s terms without hesitation.
’What’s missing out on one person? A toothache is the real killer.’
Still, walking into such a bloody maw to perform dentistry on a monster required a lot of courage. Hee Lingchuan rubbed his hands together, lightly lifted a foot, and stepped onto its lower jaw.
The Crocodile Demon must have sensed his apprehension, as it actually tried to comfort him. "You need not worry. I never eat my dentist." Crocodile-kind often kept the company of birds, who would peck the rotten flesh from between their teeth to help them maintain oral hygiene.
"..." Hee Lingchuan glanced at the row of sharp teeth hanging directly over his head. He was not comforted in the slightest. The creature’s bad breath was overwhelming; if he stood there much longer, he feared he’d pass out from the stench.
’I have no idea how Wu Shaoyi put up with this.’
"Open your mouth wider," Hee Lingchuan told it frankly. "I need to push it a little deeper into your upper jaw. Just bear with it."
He gripped the Long Spear and gave it another upward shove.
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