"How long do you expect to be back?"
"Ten days of good luck."
"Bad luck?"
"Don't ask such self-deceiving questions if you are one of us." Frick lowered his voice, "You know what happens when you have bad luck..."
Hitzfeld's horse riding skills were not very good, but she didn't pretend. She would just get on the carriage when there was one.
After watching Willensel and Leah board the second vehicle, Kak and his companions moved the equipment and tools onto the third vehicle. The entire team then set out directly, passing through the cold and gloomy fortress area and walking out of the gate via the lowered drawbridge.
Looking back through the window, Hitzfeld noticed that the entire outer wall of the fortress was covered with spikes.
Many of the spikes looked like they had been roasted, charred black, and there was a layer of stiff sticky substance on the surface, a bit like a skewer of meat that had not been eaten cleanly.
This quantity and density... She frowned, feeling a shadow in her heart.
Frick said the infestation only occurs during the rainy season.
I hope he's not a jinx.
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Thanks to: Da Leimi, llolka, lowe Luowei, Shu Tiao, Xia Lan, Dark Valkyrie Bingdis, vigiler, salted fish playing with guns, Chanchan black cat type, book guest 12893177384, untalented hahaha, tourist 12315, bottle·in·small·man, inaino, pomelo chef can't talk, water ghost, Jiang Ran, the name I thought about for a long time, under the sky, the master of the bush, Jingkongchan, rare god o detective girl, Mio Lingling, cyber bard Yuanjiang, Yotsuya Jianzi can see, Ameli, soft tongue snail tongue soft, ordinary passing flower man, milia, pigeons are bad civilization, salted fish cousin, Abi sauce can't get excited, tierra... The above readers' blades and rewards~! Thank you for your support!
ps: I had no inspiration for a long time after dinner, and I had to wait until late at night to write. I was so angry.
ps2: Three more updates! Added!
Chapter 33: The World of Plenty
After leaving the city, the first obstacle the team had to face was going uphill.
In terms of height, the slope is not far enough, which makes it too steep. The team needs to expend more energy when going uphill and have to adjust the formation in advance.
The three carriages were placed almost side by side, actually resembling a blunt-angled arrow. There were some knight guards in the middle of each carriage, and they ensured that there was no one behind them.
Hitzfeld could see that this was to prevent any axle from breaking and causing the carriage to roll down from its current height.
"Don't worry." Frick's voice came from the window next to him. "The plateau crossbow horse doesn't have strong explosive power, but its sustained strength and endurance are outstanding."
The horses they rode were not of the same breed as the horses that pulled the carts. The former were taller and larger, so they must have been high-quality war horses.
It wasn't that Hitzfeld didn't trust Frick, but she remembered what happened with this man on the Crystal Sea.
From a mathematical and statistical point of view, the probability of something going wrong when taking risks with Kangana-Flick is 100%... This makes her unable to stop worrying.
However, this emotion soon subsided, because the team was much more cautious than she had imagined, and they slowed down in the last few dozen meters. More than a dozen knights simply dismounted, came behind the three carriages and pushed them forward.
This is how they negotiated the steepest sections.
After we got past that, the terrain suddenly became flat. Although there were still some bumps, it was much better than when we were going uphill.
Hitzfeld was finally able to relax a little. She leaned against the wall of the carriage, looking at the endless red soil plain, and sighed: "I didn't expect it to be a place like this..."
Before we set off, Darent said that the weather today would be good, not too sunny, but cool and not too dark either.
He was right: the scenery she saw was almost a direct collision of orange-red and azure blue - large tracts of plains were visible without any obstruction, and there was not a single cloud in the sky, which was as blue as pure dye.
"The altitude here is quite high," Xia Yibing explained. "For someone like you who is not physically fit, you must strictly control your daily exercise to prevent hypoxia."
It's called a plain, but it's also a plateau. Most people would be a little uncomfortable with this altitude, and even if Hitzfeld is a God Devourer, he should proceed step by step and get used to it in the first few days.
"Xia seemed to have been here?" Hitzfeld noticed sharply that she was not excited.
"I guess I've been here." Xia Yibing sat diagonally opposite, with one foot hanging on the ground and the other leg curled up with her knees held in her hands, also looking at the scenery outside the window.
"That was a long time ago. I didn't go down to the ground. I passed by here on an airship."
"How do you feel, our little princess~" Darent's face blocked the window, and he winked at Hitzfeld as he came up, "I bought special medicine for you, remember to ask me if you feel uncomfortable~"
"..." Hitzfeld was too lazy to pay attention to him. He stood up and looked at his seat, and found that he was riding a tall maroon warhorse like the other knights.
She glanced at the back of the car, remembering that she had a pair of pants in her suitcase. She would show Darent how powerful she was when she found a chance.
But it seemed that there was little hope... because the wooden man quickly clamped the horse's belly, rushed out with a cheer, and wandered back and forth in the team without restraint, showing off his superb horsemanship.
"Xia, have you seen the information here?" Hitzfeld decided to do some serious research. "This looks like a restricted area for life..."
She admitted that this place was beautiful, two colors that were pure to the extreme...the intersection of the earth and the sky was like a landscape in a painting, but after looking at it for too long it became too monotonous.
It was purely xenophobia. The team had been walking for more than ten minutes after entering the plain, and she had not seen any living creatures other than them in her sight.
“Not really.” The woman shook her head. “Don’t think that way. Worms aren’t the only dangerous things on the plains.”
"What else?"
"Red coyotes, vultures, mudstone spiders, salamanders..." Xia Yibing counted on her fingers, "Among them, red coyotes have the lowest combat power. They dare not touch any large-scale gathering of groups. The vultures won't be a big problem as long as there are people on guard. The biggest problem with these things is that they are stupid. They don't care whether you are dead or asleep. As long as you dare to pretend to be motionless, they will dare to fly down and take away your eyes."
"What about the mudstone spiders?"
"Oh, that's also a social predator. They can change their base color according to the environment. Most of the time, they like to hide and cling to the deep cracks of hills or stone walls. The most common dish on their menu is worm juice."
"They eat worms?" Hitzfeld narrowed his eyes.
She has done very little research on red soil, so she really has to rely on Xia Yibing's database in this regard.
"Do you know how worms hunt?" Xia Yibing asked her the question first.
"According to what I've heard these days, they determine the location of their prey based on the vibrations coming from the ground, and then dig out of the soil to hunt." Hitzfeld said the information she knew.
Red earth worms are very similar to earthworms, except that they are much larger and longer than earthworms. They have sharp short spines around their bodies like caterpillars, and their snouts are similar to those of lampreys, covered with circles of fine teeth.
These monsters also have no eyes, they rely on light-sensitive organs and vibrations to identify directions. Their skin and flesh have incredible elasticity like snakes, and their hunting method is to rush out and try to swallow their prey whole.
If they could do this, they would wrap their prey like a layer of flesh and blood, grinding it with their teeth while secreting gastric acid, and begin digesting the prey before it is completely dead.
"That's right." Xia Yibing nodded. "The red soil plain is basically composed of two types of terrain, namely the red soil type and the fault type... The former is flat and convenient for walking, but there is also a greater chance of encountering worm swarms. The latter will have many rock walls protruding from the surface, and there will be some vegetation and poisonous insects around it. At the same time, it is also a natural barrier against worms."
"Is this a special terrain formed by an earthquake?"
"Correct."
"Because the stone wall may extend underground, it may be composed of extremely dense rock layers, so it is difficult for worms to penetrate... So the mudstone spiders are invincible against the worms from the beginning?"
"That's it." Xia Yibing showed an approving look. "They will use their limbs to deliberately knock on the ground to create vibrations. Because of their weight, the worms that respond to this movement will not be too big. When the worms are tricked into coming out, they will extend their chelicerae in mid-air... The worms that jump out basically can't go back."
“So it’s considered a natural enemy of worms.”
“Not really… Although this kind of worm lives in groups, its reproduction ability is not strong. It is far inferior to the red soil worm.”
"Is it a threat to anyone?"
"The largest mudstone spider can grow to be two meters tall." The woman nodded. "Don't underestimate it... this kind of insect is very flat. If you look at a two-meter-tall mudstone spider from above, its limbs may be more than eight meters in diameter."
“That’s a threat.”
"Not only is it threatening, but it's also very serious. If you get bitten by that thing, your hands or feet must be amputated as soon as possible."
"What about the salamander?" Hitzfeld asked with a frown.
She discovered that Xia described these dangerous species in order from weak to strong.
The mudstone spider is already so troublesome, what is the fire salamander behind it?
"Salamander..."
Having said that, Xia Yibing couldn't help but half-squinted her eyes.
"I'd rather have a small swarm of worms than face even one salamander."
"why?"
"Because this species is full of lunatics," said Xia Yibing.
"They only have front limbs and no hind legs. They can stand upright with their snake-like lower body. Their maximum movement speed is very fast, faster than horses... They also have sails on their backs, just like those of ancient dinosaurs. The sails can absorb heat and gather it into their incredibly magical hearts. They can even survive for a short period of time in the magma of the earth's crust."
"Wow," Hitzfeld exclaimed. "What's so crazy about them?"
"When they decide you're a threat enough, they'll rush over and explode."
Chapter 34: The First Attack
Xia Yibing described to Hitzfeld a vibrant and even magnificent plain world.
She listened with great interest, and instead of being afraid, she seemed particularly excited when she read the passages that described deadly creatures.
"You're so weird, Aisuen." Xia Yibing was speechless about this effect.
The reason why she described these creatures as so terrifying and gave many examples of cannibalism was to scare the girl and make her more dependent on her.
It would be best if she could be scared to the point of trembling and unable to sleep without her arms around her.
Of course, this is actually impossible. After all, he has faced the evil god and has seen all kinds of dangers. Hitzfeld's courage can definitely stand the test.
But this is a bug...
In theory, shouldn't a girl be disgusted by these stomping arthropods? Instead of saying she's afraid of something, at least show some reaction. Why is she getting more and more excited the more she talks? ...Now she's asking her if mudstone spiders and salamanders are delicious?
"I've never eaten a salamander." Xia Yibing was almost depressed. "I've eaten a mudstone spider once... on that airship. It was cooked the same as lobsters and crabs... both were quite tender."
"Boom boom boom!"
"Get ready to rest!"
There was a sudden knock on the carriage wall, followed by Frick's voice.
Before they knew it, the team had been walking on the plain for two hours. Even without considering taking care of people like Hitzfeld who were entering the plain for the first time, it would normally be time to rest.
The knights stopped, formed a circle with their horses, took the blankets provided from the back of the saddles and spread them on the ground, then set up a few simple cloth tents and lay down in piles of three or five underneath, seizing the time to recover their strength.
Riding a horse is also a physical job, just like driving a car is also a physical job.
Hitzfeld jumped off the carriage without waiting for Xia Yibing to help him, and as soon as he got off, he felt a gust of hot wind blowing on his face.
As time approached noon, the temperature rose unnoticed.
A blazing fireball hung in the blue sky, and the air became extremely dry. When she took off her hat, she could feel it was like a stove burning her scalp, and when she stamped her feet, she could clearly feel that the land here was even drier and harder.
"This is the best weather." Smail's voice came from behind.
Turning around, I saw him walking towards me with a bulging bag on his back. He took out a brown water bag from it and handed it to me.
"Here, wash it clean. No one has drunk it yet."
Hitzfeld brought her own water bottle, but she didn't refuse such a kindness, so she took it and took a few sips.
The climate and the at least ten-day journey ahead made her fully aware of the value of water, so even though she was actually quite thirsty, she didn't dare drink too much.
"Drink as much as you want, you're welcome!"
Seeing her like this, several young knights grinned, "We have the ability to find water sources! No one can live on just the water they bring!"
They had heard that this patrol would include a lot of "strange people", including a young detective. The knights of the Plain Parish had basically never heard of the story of Hitzfeld and Crystal Sea, and before they actually met her, they were quite worried that this might be a delicate lady.
I had been prepared to be harassed by the capricious young lady, but after getting to know her, I discovered that she was not that kind of person at all, and my liking for her suddenly increased.
This is not just empty politeness. The more people who hold back the team, the greater the chances of the team surviving as a whole.
This is a matter of life and death, so we cannot be overly cautious.
Since they were so generous, Hitzfeld was no longer polite. He took a few more sips from the water bag and handed it to Xia Yibing.
"Why do you say this is the best weather?" she asked Smail, looking at the ground thoughtfully. "Is it because of the land? The hardness of the land?"
"That's it." Smail raised his eyebrows, gaining a new understanding of her insight.
He also stamped his feet vigorously and said, "This is red soil. This temperature will bake the ground to a dry and hard state, which is equivalent to adding a layer of hard soil armor near the surface, which can effectively prevent worms from drilling out."
"Like now, if it's cloudy and the air humidity is high, as soon as you stop, before you even sit down, a lot of little worms will come out of the soil."
It turned out to be the case.
Hearing him say this, Hitzfeld couldn't help but look at the blankets under the others a few more times.
At first I thought it was worn purely for comfort, but now I see it is also to protect against worms.
"Those little bugs are not threatening, right?" Xia Yibing also finished drinking the water. She directly took the water bag and it seemed that she was not going to return it.
"They are not threatening, but they are annoying, and there is a risk of infection if they get contaminated by the stomach acid they spray."
This is not to say that stomach acid is poisonous, but in a wild environment like this, any skin break can lead to infection.
"But there is one thing." Smail's voice lowered, "That is... if you encounter worms in this kind of terrain, they are usually not small guys..."
