bestfiction Chapter 71 The Evergreen Pine
Chapter 71 The Evergreen Pine
Zhong Ming had an expression as if he had swallowed a dead rat, but he didn't say anything.
He made too many mistakes: he didn't do enough reconnaissance, he failed to confirm the positions of his teammates, and he even allowed his teammates to be within range of the sleeping powder's attack...
This was just what he could think of; from Xueyan's professional perspective, there should be many more problems.
"Alright, short guys, get through quickly."
"Report, instructor, what should we do with these tigers?"
The two tigers were still trapped in the trap and could not move, only able to roar angrily.
"It doesn't matter. With two dragons moving through the water, there won't be any living creatures along the banks for a hundred miles. They'll just die sooner or later. We'll release them when we come back."
After Xueyan finished speaking, she did not allow anyone else to express their opinions and took the lead in crossing the valley.
The others had no choice but to follow. However, after this battle, the new recruits of the first and second teams were clearly superior to Zhong Ming's team. In particular, the captain of the second team was as proud as a rooster, walking ahead of the third team with his head held high and his eyes fixed straight ahead, without even glancing back.
The group trekked through mountains and rivers until evening, when the sun was setting and darkness had fallen.
"Instructor, should we set up camp here?"
"Set up camp? We've arrived at our destination, why set up camp?" Xueyan walked at the front, standing on the top of the high hillside, looking down at the small, exhausted men below.
"Have we arrived at...the place?"
Zhong Ming mustered his last bit of strength, took a few quick steps, climbed over the annoying rocks, stood up straight, panting, and looked in the direction the instructor had pointed.
He was immediately stunned into silence. As far as the eye could see, there were endless rows of lush green pine trees, which reflected golden light under the setting sun. A gentle breeze rustled through the pines.
"This entire area consists of a single tree, a thousand-year-old pine."
Even Chen Dahai, who wasn't much of a talker, exclaimed, "It's a masterpiece of nature, a masterpiece of nature!"
As soon as he opened his mouth, he suddenly dropped several feet, and Xuan Jing and Zhong Ming simultaneously put their hands on their hips.
“We’ve carried you all this way. Considering we’ve put in the effort, shouldn’t you give us some spirit stones for the journey?” Zhong Ming gasped for breath, still venting his anger. “I’m being treated like a laborer as the team leader. And Yue Kaishan, we’ll make him pay for the journey too when he wakes up. He slept through the entire recruit training. If this continues, I’ll be the one sleeping next time.”
Chen Dahai patted the burly man who was snoring loudly; it seemed he wouldn't wake up for a long time.
Xuanjing also took the opportunity to say, "I don't need to use my share of the money. If we really start fighting, you can't skimp on your crossbow support. You need to send more to my side."
"Why?"
"I'm afraid of dying." (Said righteously)
Zhong Ming wanted to slap himself. With his heavily armed defenses, he hadn't even asked that question.
Chen Dahai readily agreed, "But there's one thing I need your help with: if we win, I hope you can help me collect my crossbow bolts."
At that moment, he noticed a hidden gaze. He glanced sideways and saw that it was the girl carrying the bow and arrow. He wondered what she was thinking.
Instructor Xueyan remained silent for a long time, holding a strange ruler in her hand. She measured it several times in the air, then gestured towards the vast expanse of pine trees in front of her, shook her head, and said, "Oh, it seems it needs some trimming before it can be put into the special monster bag. Not good."
After saying that, she called to the various teams to immediately descend the mountain.
When the group jumped down the mountain, they were shocked to find that they were in a ravine with a small lake in the middle. Pine trees covered the entire ravine, and they were not in the center of the ravine, but rather growing diagonally from the rocks on the side.
There were almost no other plants below. They stopped at the edge of the pine trees, where all that was in front of them were dead pine needles, carpeting the ground. On the soft ground, you never knew where a sharp stone or a broken piece of dead wood might be hiding.
"Sword cultivator, chop down some wood. The rest of you, find some pine resin, wrap it in gauze, and make torches."
Upon hearing this, the swordsman's expression showed slight dissatisfaction. His sharp blade was not meant for chopping wood, but he still obeyed orders. With a thought, his flying sword flew out of his sleeve and danced in the air several times, causing countless pine branches to fall to the ground.
"Swish swish swish~~" The pine tree trembled, and countless pine branches creaked. At the same time, the terrifyingly huge canopy swayed, like a huge dark cloud pressing down from the horizon. As the sun set, the last bit of afterglow slowly disappeared, creating an extremely frightening atmosphere.
"Don't be afraid." Xueyan spoke calmly and with a reassuring power.
The group, who had adopted a "strategic retreat" posture, calmed down a bit, and all eyes turned to Xueyan.
"Why are you all looking at me? Keep working." She leaped into the dense pine branches, and a few breaths later, she had a handkerchief in her hand, covered with pine resin.
"Tie them all to the torch and light them quickly."
In the second team, a fire cultivator lit the wooden sticks for everyone. As the warm firelight shone, everyone realized that the terrifying rustling sound coming from the branches was actually a swarm of squirrels.
"These squirrels are the guardians of the pine trees, but they love the smell of burning pine resin. You can carry torches without worrying about them attacking you."
This statement puzzled Zhong Ming. These squirrels lived in pine trees, and this ancient pine tree was a huge home for them. But why did they like burning pine trees?
Want to order something to play at home sometime?
"So what? You can protect your home without interfering with digging up the underground mines." Xuan Jing's tone was somewhat sarcastic, implying that you bunch of fools were all squirrels.
Xueyan raised the torch and approached the squirrels on the branches. After shaking it a few times, several squirrels fell into a deep sleep, seemingly satisfied. These little guys had used the pine resin, which contained a small amount of spiritual energy, as a method of cultivation. After absorbing too much of it, they fell into a deep sleep, just like the mineral mole on Zhongming's back.
"Follow my footsteps and don't step on anything else. This place is much more dangerous than the swamp." She moved nimbly, her toes barely touching the ground as she slid dozens of steps away. But after she left, the spiritual energy that flowed into the ground from her toes suddenly exploded, creating small shockwaves that dispersed the recently scattered pine needles and revealed the soil beneath.
The group immediately followed. Although they were all quite skilled, most of them were still inexperienced. When surrounded by the "beast horde," only Instructor Xueyan could give them a sense of security.