Nie Yan swam into the currents. He felt the surging water sweeping up against his body.
He took out his Silk Spinner Ring and gradually released a web line, which floated forward under the influence of the flowing water.
The web line resembled the plants, swaying back and forth with the currents.
The longer the web line grew, the harder it became to control.
Nie Yan carefully guided the web line forward, meticulously paying attention to its every movement.
One meter, two meters, three meters... thankfully the currents here weren't too chaotic. Soon, the web line gew to six meters long. The thin strand of silk slowly drifted toward Sulgata's Feather.
Just as Nie Yan was about to succeed, the three Sea Demons appeared to sense something and gazed over in his direction.
Nie Yan hurriedly held his breath and stopped what he was doing.
The three Sea Demons only spotted a long strand of silk floating in the water. With their meager intelligence, they couldn't figure out its use. They stared at it with vacant expressions before returning to an idle state.
Seeing the three Sea Demons turn away, Nie Yan breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank god they didn't swim over to investigate."
Nie Yan continued to extend the web line. At about 10 meters, it was already long enough to touch Sulgata's Feather.
He had no way of controlling the web line's direction. He could only slightly tug and pull at the thread, praying luck was on his side.
The web line swayed in random directions, having almost made contact with Sulgata's Feather several times, only to be swept aside at the last second.
Nie Yan made several attempts. As he released the web line into the currents one more time, it sped along toward Sulgata's Feather. However, it looked like it wouldn't properly stick. He couldn't stay underwater for much longer, 10 minutes at most. Even if he succeeded, he would still have to escape the pursuit of the three Sea Demons.
"I can't waste any more time!" Nie Yan gritted his teeth. He took a deep breath and focused his mind. Paying close attention to the flow of the currents, he maneuvered the web line to the best of his ability. With a light thwick, it stuck onto Sulgata's Feather.
As the line went taut, Nie Yan immediately hooked his finger around the strand of silk and flicked his wrist. Instantly, the web line went up, down, and around Sulgata's Feather, becoming more and more entangled.
Nie Yan jerked his hand back, reeling in the web line with Sulgata's Feather in tow.
At this moment, the three Sea Demons were alerted. They let out an ear-piercing cry. The sharp sound caused Nie Yan's eardrums to tremble as he started hallucinating.
Mind Immune!
Nie Yan immediately snapped out of his daze, fear still lingering in his heart. "I almost lost consciousness there! A beat slower, and I would've been a goner for sure!"
As the web line retracted into his hand Nie Yan grabbed hold of Sulgata's Feather. He had no time to put it away in his bag.
One of the Sea Demons charged forward, her sharp trident stabbing towards Nie Yan's head.
Just as the attack was about to land, Nie Yan activated the Pygmy Ring. He instantly shrunk to a third of his original size.
The trident missed and struck the coral cluster. BOOM! Rubble and bits of coral muddled the water.
Nie Yan's face paled in fright. Seeing the other two Sea Demons closing in on him from both sides, he quickly kicked his leg and tunneled into crevices between the corals. His body was small, so he had no problem passing through.
After turning small, Nie Yan could freely travel in the small passageways that existed within the coral reef.
Seeing Nie Yan slip away, the Sea Demons repeatedly struck the coral clusters with their tridents.
BANG! BANG! BANG! Their ferocious attacks devastated the coral reef.
Nie Yan fled for dear life, shuttling through the passages between the corals.
It was a game of cat and mouse. The three Sea Demons spread out to find traces of Nie Yan. Even when they spotted him, with him nimbly tunneling here and there, none of their attacks connected.
Finding such a small person within this lush coral reef was incredibly difficult.
Nie Yan checked his status. He could only stay underwater for six more minutes. The three Sea Demons were still in hot pursuit. He had to flee faster!
Nie Yan activated Shadow Waltz and buffed himself with several other stealth enhancing skills. His silhouette gradually faded into the shadows cast by the coral reef.
The three Sea Demons looked all over. However, it was as though Nie Yan had vanished into thin air. He was nowhere to be found. After searching for a while longer, they could only helplessly turn back.
About five minutes later, Nie Yan exited the coral reef. He was outside of the teleportation restricted zone. He glanced at his inventory. Items like his Unknown Transfer Scroll and Return Scrolls were no longer grayed out.
As the effects of his Underwater Breathing Potion were about to wear off, Nie Yan took out a Return Scroll.
The Return Scroll glowed with a brilliant light.
The clock ticked away, one second, two seconds, three seconds...
Nie Yan suddenly found breathing become more and more difficult. He held his breath. A powerful force descended on his body. This was the water pressure at the bottom of the lake. As he started running out of breath, his vision grew increasingly blurry. "Dammit, don't tell me I'm going to die here...? What horrible luck."
Suddenly, a brilliant light dazzled his eyes. The Return Scroll had activated.
Nie Yan gradually regained consciousness. As he opened his eyes, he was already back in Calore. Since he was at the bottom of a lake just a moment ago, he felt a sharp pain course through his entire body. Luckily, he still returned alive.
After resting for a bit, he finally regained his strength. Looking at his hand, Sulgata's Feather was still bundled up tightly in his web line.
Nie Yan slowly untangled the web line. Pulling out Sulgata's Feather, he examined its properties.
Sulgata's Feather (Legendary Fragment)
Description: A fragment of Sulgata's Shadow. This feather is brimming with a mysterious magical power.
Properties: Strength +80, Dexterity +120
Nie Yan put away Sulgata's Feather. He also took off Sulgata's Cloth Boots and placed it beside Sulgata's Feather in his bag. With a dazzling light, the two items gradually merged together.
A few seconds later, the light faded away.
A pair of exquisite boots appeared before Nie Yan's eyes. They were completely black and weaved out of a delicate silk while also sporting a sleek and flashy design. The edges were covered in mysterious runes. This was the style of the Dark Era. These runes represented an ancient history.
Sulgata's Shadow was finally complete!
Nie Yan was a bit moved. After spending so much time, he had finally acquired these Legendary-grade boots!