Zhang Xiaozhu stroked the swelling on his forehead that had not completely subsided, and his heart sank, followed by fear.
He squatted down by the river without giving up, but his bruised and swollen forehead was clearly reflected on the water, clearly telling him that it was indeed caused by an impact.
The two scars left by the collision and punch last night were truly before his eyes, making his memory of last night suddenly clear.
"It's not a dream!" Zhang Xiaozhu was so frightened that he almost screamed. The hair on his body stood up with fear. "The unnamed tombstone and the coffin are both real."
He stood up suddenly and looked around, but there were only weeds and thorns on the wasteland. There were no tombstones or coffins anywhere.
"Could it be..." He slowly looked up at the sky. The sky was still the same as yesterday, and it was so gray that he couldn't see clearly. "Could it have fallen from the sky?"
"But why did it disappear out of thin air? Who is controlling it?"
"If I had finished carving my name last night, would I have slept in the coffin forever and never woke up?"
Gulu——
Zhang Xiaozu's mind was filled with unanswerable questions, and he couldn't help but swallow his saliva when he thought of the fear.
"Pawn, why are you so dazed?" Niu Dawa's voice interrupted Zhang Xiaozu's thoughts. He saw Zhang Xiaozu standing by the river for a long time without moving, so he came over to ask if anything happened.
"Did you dream last night?" Zhang Xiaozu turned to ask him.
"No. Why are you asking? Are you dreaming? What are you dreaming about?" Niu Dawa asked curiously.
"We'll talk about it later." Zhang Xiaozhu took off his coat and threw it to Niu Dawa, then went down to the river to catch fish.
When Niu Dawa saw Zhang Xiaopeng catching a big fish in a short while, he couldn't help itching his hands. If he hadn't been injured, he would have jumped into the river and touched a few big fish.
Soon the fish was put on the fire and grilled.
Jin Zhihui woke up from her coma and looked much better than before.
"Yesterday, when darkness suddenly fell, I heard Da Wa calling me urgently, so -"
Zhang Xiaozu sat by the fire, grilling fish, and recounted what happened after darkness fell yesterday.
Niu Dawa and the other three felt as if they were listening to a ghost story. When they heard Zhang Xiaozu say that he had carved his own name on the unmarked tombstone, they all showed a look of horror on their faces.
"When I woke up, Yu Wenrui's people also woke up one after another. I saw that many of them were as frightened as me. They must have encountered terrible things in the dark, but I don't know what happened to me.
.
I also heard some of them shouting that they had opened the war gate and obtained the ancient inheritance." Zhang Xiaozu said.
"Fuck! You have to be careful when you meet them again." Niu Dawa shouted depressedly, secretly hating that he slept too hard, otherwise he might also be able to get an ancient inheritance.
Butcher Zhang frowned and said in deep thought: "We often encounter all kinds of weird things in the ruins. Only by finding the source can we escape from the predicament and eliminate the danger."
Zhang Xiaozu looked at the mountains in the distance and said, "Maybe the answer lies in the mountains."
"When you're full, I'll accompany you up the mountain to find out what's going on." Niu Dawa said.
"Your injury?" Zhang Xiaozhu frowned.
"It's no longer a serious problem. Although I have lost all my cultivation, my physical strength is still there, and these injuries heal quickly." Niu Dawa waved her hand to show that it was okay.
Butcher Zhang pinched out a root of Phoenix Blood Vine from the stone pot, handed it to Niu Dawa and said, "Chew it and eat it. It will increase the speed of your wound healing. Girl, you can also eat one."
He picked up the other piece and handed it to Jin Zhihui.
"Thank you, senior!" Jin Zhihui thanked him.
When the fish was cooked and the four of them were eating, the group of soldiers in the woods suddenly made a movement.
I saw them packing up their equipment, extinguishing the fire, walking out of the woods towards the mountain, apparently intending to climb a mountain.
When Zhang Xiaozu saw it, he stood up and chased after him a few steps, shouting: "Master, are you going up the mountain?"
"Yes." The captain turned around and replied.
"There are groups of rock-backed monitor lizards on the mountain. The ones are as big as houses and are very ferocious. I have been there twice before, but they were driven away by the group of beasts. The military master must be careful when going there," Zhang Xiaozu reminded.
.
"Thank you, little brother, for informing them of the danger. I will be extra careful." The captain thanked Zhang Xiaozu with his hands, knowing that Zhang Xiaozu was repaying their kindness for donating the medicine.
They made a lot of money by exchanging two small pieces of Phoenix Blood Vine root for such an important piece of information.
Zhang Xiaozu returned the favor with his hand, then returned to sit on the beach.
The captain and his soldiers stopped and discussed in low voices for a while, but did not change their plan and continued walking towards the mountain.
"Pawn, let's go too." Niu Dawa was afraid that someone would get the good stuff first, so she couldn't help but become anxious.
"No rush, since they insist on going up the mountain, let them lure the rock-backed monitor lizard away——"
Rumble——
A sudden roar came from the mountains in the distance, interrupting Zhang Xiaopou's words.
Zhang Xiaosu stood up suddenly, looked at the dust rising over the distant mountains and forests, and said in surprise: "Someone disturbed the rock-backed monitor lizard."
Then he looked at Butcher Zhang and said, "Grandpa, you and Huixianzi find a hidden place to hide, while Dawa and I go up the mountain."
Butcher Zhang knew that now was a good time to go up the mountain, so he immediately took out one of the two Flame Heart Fruits and handed it to Zhang Xiaopou, and warned: "I and Hui Yatou will go over there to find a place to hide. You two should be careful after going up the mountain.
Remember, ferocious beasts are scary, but human hearts are even scarier. Go ahead."
"Be careful!" Jin Zhihui warned worriedly.
"Don't worry, nothing will happen." Niu Dawa reassured, and then ran side by side towards the mountain with Zhang Xiaozu.
Zhang Xiaozu carefully cut the Yanxinguo in half with a knife while running, and handed one half to Niu Dawa, reminding: "It's a bit soft, store it carefully, don't squeeze it. This stuff is for life-saving food at critical moments."
, don’t be greedy and eat secretly.”
The fragrance of flaming heart fruit is alluring. When cut into pieces, the fragrance becomes even more intense and fragrant, making people salivate after just smelling it.
"Tch! Who are you looking down on?" Niu Dawa rolled her eyes at Zhang Xiaopou with disdain, then pointed at the juice overflowing from the cut surface of the fruit and said, "The juice has flowed out and cannot be wasted. I can lick it."
He had long been salivating over the Yanxin Fruit, but he knew it was a treasure that could be used to extend the old man's life, so he was embarrassed to try it.
At this moment, Zhang Xiaozu handed half of it into his hand, and the tangy fragrance made him swallow his saliva.
Suck!
Before Zhang Xiaozu could respond, he impatiently stretched out his tongue and licked the Yanxin fruit vigorously.
A pinprick-like pungency instantly filled his entire mouth.
Niu Dawa always thought that Butcher Zhang shed tears when he ate the Yanxinguo because it was so delicious and moved him to tears. Only now did he realize that it was not the case. It turned out that he was choking because of the spicy taste.
"Zhang Xiaozu, your uncle——!"
Niu Dawa roared with tears streaming down his face, knowing that he was tricked by Zhang Xiaopou. Even if he put this thing in his pocket and covered it to pieces, he would never take a bite secretly.
Suck!
Zhang Xiaozu bit the bullet and licked the juice oozing out of the fruit into his mouth. He didn't want to waste such a good thing.
"ah--!"
The spicy taste filled his mouth, and Zhang Xiaopou roared and rushed forward.
The two were very fast and soon surpassed the twelve-man crossbow team.
When the captain saw Zhang Xiaozu and Niu Dawa running forward, he suddenly wanted to understand why they were so anxious, so he quickly shouted to his subordinates: "They want to take advantage of others to capture the rock-backed monitor lizard."
Let’s take the time to go up the mountain and speed up our pace. We must not miss this good opportunity.”
"yes!"
A group of twelve people immediately started running towards the mountain.
It was easy to tell from the direction of the dust in the forest that the rock-backed monitor lizard was running to the left of Zhang Xiaozu and others, and they did not need to avoid it.
In almost a stick of incense, Zhang Xiaozu and Niu Dawa arrived at the foot of the mountain, just in time to miss the rock-backed monitor lizard rushing down the mountain.
"Is your injury okay?" Zhang Xiaozhu looked at Niu Dawa and asked, worried that the violent running would cause Niu Dawa's wound to open.
Niu Dawa patted the worst wound on his chest and said, "It's okay, it has healed."
The tempered body not only gave his physical body strong defense, but also had super self-healing ability.
"The rock-backed monitor lizard is very good at camouflage. It can blend in with the surrounding environment when lying on the ground. It is extremely difficult to distinguish with the naked eye, but its attack method -" Zhang Xiaozu told Niu Dawa about the characteristics of the rock-backed monitor lizard while going up the mountain.
.
The twelve-man crossbow team not far behind the two men also heard it. Because Zhang Xiaopeng didn't want to avoid them, he didn't lower his voice.
Zhang Xiaozu felt that the mountain was dangerous and unknown, so he might have to fight the danger together with the twelve people behind him. They had strong bows in their hands, which were really a powerful weapon for offense and defense, so he decided to use this point first to decide whether it was important or not.
Information that is both unimportant and important can form a good relationship.
"Did you smell it? It's the fragrance of flaming heart fruit."
After climbing up the mountain for more than a stick of incense, Zhang Xiaozu suddenly smelled a familiar fragrance wafting past his nose, and a strange look suddenly flashed in his eyes.
Niu Dawa has already run in the direction of the scent, because his sense of smell is much more sensitive than Zhang Xiaozu, after all, he has the inheritance of Master Gou.
"Be careful under the Phoenix Blood Vine, the rock-backed monitor lizard will hide underneath and attack unexpectedly." Zhang Xiaozu quickly reminded.
Whoosh!
Niu Dawa's method was simple and direct, just throw the knife in his hand towards the Phoenix Blood Vine.
Half of the blade was thrust into the ground with a sneer, telling Niu Dawa that there was no rock-backed monitor lizard under the Phoenix Blood Vine.
"Hey, I got it." Niu Dawa picked off the flaming heart fruit and shouted happily.
The crossbow team that followed closely behind was very envious.
Zhang Xiaozu got under the vine and dug with a knife. He avoided the main root, but still quickly dug out several roots, each of which was as thick as his little finger.
"Colonel, Flame Heart Fruit, Phoenix Blood Vine!"
The crossbow team surpassed Zhang and Xiaopeng and climbed up the mountain. Soon someone discovered the Flame Heart Fruit and shouted excitedly.
"Come on, come on, hurry up, there must be more up there!" Niu Dawa shouted in displeasure, with a look of great loss on his face.
Hearing Niu Dawa's shout, the members of the crossbow team also became excited. They immediately left one person to dig up the roots of Phoenix Blood Vine, while the others spread out to search upwards.
"Haha, Lieutenant, I also saw a Flame Heart Fruit!" A soldier shouted in surprise and found a Phoenix Blood Vine. He climbed up a steep slope on his hands and feet and reached out to reach the Flame Heart Fruit on the vine.
Suddenly, a rock-backed monitor lizard jumped out from under the vine, threw him down from the steep slope, and then opened its mouth to bite his head.
"ah--"
The soldier wanted to resist, but it was too late and he let out a desperate scream.
boom!
Zhang Xiaopeng, who happened to be passing by, at the critical moment, kicked away the rock-backed monitor lizard that was jumping on the soldier.
The rock-backed monitor lizard rolled and fell down the mountain. Its body was almost as big as an old sow, and it seemed to be a half-grown child.
Zhang Xiaozu saw the rock-backed monitor lizard fall down the slope and lie on the ground with its mouth open. He immediately glared and shouted urgently: "It wants help, shut it up!"
puff!
Before Zhang Xiaozu could finish his words, the captain of the crossbow team had already stabbed the rock-backed monitor lizard's mouth, and the sharp sword directly penetrated its brain.
This person is decisive and ruthless in his actions, has extraordinary skills, and is a ruthless character.
The rock-backed monitor lizard struggled twice but stopped moving.
"Thank you little brother for your help, otherwise the consequences would be disastrous!" The captain thanked Zhang Xiaozu with great gratitude.
"It's a small effort, nothing worth mentioning." Zhang Xiaozu responded with a smile, and then walked up the mountain.
The soldier calmed down from the shock, climbed up the steep slope again, picked off the Yanxin Fruit, then caught up with Zhang Xiaopou, handed the Yanxin Fruit to Zhang Xiaopou and said: "Thank you for saving your life, I will give you this Yanxin Fruit."
, let’s express our gratitude.”
"No need, I found one." Zhang Xiaozhu pointed to the front to the right. There was a Phoenix Blood Vine twenty steps away, with a Flame Heart Fruit hanging on the vine.
"I was stingy and stingy at the foot of the mountain. I'm extremely ashamed." The soldier shouted at Zhang Xiaopeng's leaving figure.
When Zhang Xiaozu asked them for medicine at the foot of the mountain, it was he who rejected Zhang Xiaozu. Finally, after the captain spoke, he picked up the two thinnest rhizomes and gave them to Zhang Xiaozu.
"It's okay." Zhang Xiaozu turned around and gave him a smile.
"Pawn, come on, come up! Haha, damn, you're rich!" Niu Dawa called anxiously to Zhang Xiaopou fifty steps away. His voice sounded like he had discovered a great treasure.
(Today I cooperated with the epidemic prevention and control. I had a busy day and came back very late, so I could only reluctantly update one chapter.