"What is this nonsense about entering the wrong way? What exactly is going on?" I asked, completely bewildered.

No one answered my question. The three of them exchanged glances, as if verifying whether I was feigning ignorance.

Finally, they seemed to come to a conclusion.

Liang Qian leaned in and whispered near my ear, "Xiao Chuan, you truly don't remember anything?"

I was speechless, thinking to myself that if it concerned the events of our initial landing on the island, of course I remembered. But now that I had just crossed over here, what had happened to the "me" before the crossover, I genuinely did not know.

However, since she asked, the only certain thing I could grasp was that before I arrived here, there was another 'me' present.

That 'me' had come here with Liang Qian and the others, and something had transpired in between.

And upon my arrival, it seemed I had taken the place of the original me.

If they weren't lying, we should currently be inside the subterranean caverns of Lop Nur, though this cavern system contained an area strikingly similar to Relic Island.

It felt as if I had time-traveled back to the period when the Lop Nur incident occurred.

But the strangest part was that I had absolutely no memory of ever having been in a place like this beneath Lop Nur before.

When Liang Qian was underground at Lop Nur, she had always been operating separately from us; she and Da Xiong had descended the day before I entered the subterranean caves.

This meant that the scene unfolding now was likely something that happened to Liang Qian and Da Xiong before I had entered the underground caves myself.

It was very likely the part of the story Liang Qian had never told me.

But the most infuriating snag was that I didn't exist at that time—I was sleeping in the tent!

Could it be that I actually entered the underground caves with Liang Qian and the others, and this wasn't my first encounter with the woman in black or Professor Andre?

But then, why did I forget all of it later?

Innumerable questions flooded my mind, reaching a level I couldn't even begin to fathom.

My head was a complete mess. I realized the only way to unravel these mysteries was to descend and see for myself, letting events replay themselves.

"Yes, I really don't remember anything. Can you tell me what happened before?" After thinking for a long moment, I replied to Liang Qian.

Liang Qian's delicate brows furrowed slightly, preparing to recount the preceding events, but Da Xiong stepped forward, cutting her off. "Knowing what happened before isn't important right now. We are in trouble, and if we don't leave this place quickly, I fear something like what happened to Professor Andre will befall us."

Liang Qian nodded. "Alright, let's talk as we walk."

She tugged at my arm, indicating we should move forward together.

But looking at the water-filled subterranean tunnel before me, I felt a knot of worry tighten in my stomach.

Da Xiong asked from the side, "Xiao Chuan, besides this passage, is there no other way to the place you mentioned?"

I paused, replying, "There definitely must be, but I can't find it. If we wander randomly, it's too easy to get lost."

Liang Qian fell silent for a moment, then asked me, "Xiao Chuan, this is our first time here, yet you seem to know so much. I've wanted to ask you about this since the beginning."

I said, "It's too complicated; I'll explain it to you later. For now, we must figure out how to get through this underground tunnel."

Hearing my words, Da Xiong spat twice into his palm, pulled off his soaked windbreaker, and declared, "That's easy then. We dive through. This Uncle Xiong could swim the Songhua River round trip by himself when he was ten!"

Seeing Da Xiong act so decisively, and recalling his earlier behavior, I felt a surge of emotion.

Because Da Xiong had just been complaining about me choosing the wrong path, yet now he trusted me unconditionally. It seemed he wasn't holding a grudge.

But precisely because of that, I felt even more obligated not to let him take the risk.

I had traversed this underground passage before. Reaching the opening above the intersection would take at least ten minutes. Diving speed would be far slower than my previous walking pace. Even if Da Xiong was a great swimmer, he wasn't a fish; he couldn't possibly stay submerged for that long.

So, I stopped Da Xiong. "No. This tunnel is longer than you think. Even if you are the old turtle of the Songhua River, you won't make it swimming through."

When Da Xiong saw me teasing him again, he became indignant and wanted to retort.

Just then, Liang Qian extended a slender hand and covered my mouth, whispering softly, "Wait, listen."

Instantly, all of us fell silent, straining our ears.

Splash... splash...

Soon, a sound akin to swimming reached our ears, coming directly from within the underground tunnel.

Da Xiong's eyes widened, and he whispered, "Bad news, there's a water monster in this tunnel."

I shook my head, signaling him to stay quiet, and listened intently again.

Then I heard the sound seeming to move toward our position. Besides the huala-huala of swimming, there was a gurgling sound, like someone surfacing.

Liang Qian also recognized the unusual nature of the sound and hastily switched on her flashlight, aiming it down the tunnel.

Aided by the ghastly white beam of light, we saw mist permeating the half-submerged tunnel. The semicircular ceiling was covered in various drooping green vines, which were coated in some fluffy moss.

The entire vault was constructed of those black seawall bricks. The gaps between the bricks were narrow, but many small white insects crawled within those seams.

The water surface reflected the unique cold white light of the wolf-eye flashlight. These beams danced slightly with the tiny ripples, startling two water spiders floating on the surface, which promptly fled to the corners of the wall.

I was staring intently when, suddenly, several large bubbles erupted on the water's surface.

The gurgling sound began to echo in the tunnel, and two seconds later, the head of a white animal burst out of the water with a splash.

We all jumped, especially Liang Qian, who squeezed my hand with her somewhat icy grip.

I motioned for her not to be afraid, took the flashlight from her, and aimed it at the white animal's head.

Soon, I realized it was a dog—a very large white dog, likely a Mastiff breed.

This Mastiff was entirely covered in white fur, its eyes like two glossy black pearls, reflecting the cold gleam of our flashlights.

Its fur, soaked by the water, lay flat, dripping water droplets.

Upon seeing strangers, its nose merely twitched; it made no sound of barking, appearing remarkably silent.