Chapter 93

"Gurgle..."

Caught off guard, Jiang Zhi choked on several mouthfuls of water.

The water in this lake was colder than I had imagined.

The current was so strong that she couldn't open her eyes. Jiang Zhi felt her body sinking deeper and deeper, as if she were falling into a bottomless abyss.

After an unknown amount of time, the downward force suddenly eased.

Through the blur, Jiang Zhi glimpsed a soft halo ahead, and the flowing water gently supported her in the direction of the halo.

She subconsciously blew a bubble towards her lips.

Transparent bubbles gently rose, softly blocking the surging water flow, and Jiang Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.

As my gaze passed through the gradually clearing water curtain, the surrounding scenery slowly came into view.

The pressure of the lake water made my chest feel heavy.

It was pitch black all around, with only the buzzing sound of water flowing over bubbles.

"Beep—Found #&#$, recommended to bookmark."

The familiar voice rang in my ears once again.

Jiang Zhi was overjoyed.

There really is treasure hidden here!

However, before she could figure out the location of the treasure, a ball of light that ignored distance and seemed to have traversed space suddenly appeared in front of Jiang Zhi.

She blurted out instinctively, "What...are you?"

As soon as she finished speaking, the ball of light "whooshed" into her mental pool.

Jiang Zhi felt as if her head was about to explode, and a dizzying sensation overwhelmed her.

The next second, her consciousness was swallowed up by the tide, and Jiang Zhi's vision went black. Her body went limp uncontrollably.

Can……

Although she had fainted, she was still conscious.

Images began to creep into her mind one after another.

The shadow of a small sapling swayed gently in front of her eyes.

It is growing slowly, almost at a standstill, despite the scorching climate.

Mutant beasts passing by trample over its slender branches, and insects and ants in the forest will occasionally climb up and nibble on its new leaves.

After an unknown amount of time, a gentle ball of light suddenly descended from the sky, softly covering the sapling that had already sprouted branches and leaves.

Jiang Zhi's heart stirred—

The ball of light was exactly the same as the one she had seen in the lake before.

The next second, the scene before my eyes suddenly sped up, like a documentary that had been fast-forwarded, with the trajectory of plant growth rapidly flowing in the light and shadow.

The branches and trunk grew rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye, the bark changed from light brown to dark brown, and the branches and leaves spread out into a giant umbrella that blocked out the sky.

In a short moment, the sapling has transformed into a mighty tree that pierces the sky, with a faint golden light still lingering around its top.

All the mutated creatures in the surrounding area migrated to this giant tree.

Birds fluttered their wings and landed among the branches, while beasts climbed up the tree trunk...

Jiang Zhi was stunned when she saw the last part.

This tree looks so much like that big cloud nest tree from before!

Jiang Zhi's mind suddenly lit up, as if a flash of inspiration had suddenly exploded, and she instantly realized what was going on.

Were those images that flashed through her mind just now answering her question?

So—the oak tree they encountered before grew into that shape because it was nourished by the orb of light by chance?

Thinking of this, Jiang Zhi's heart pounded wildly.

So the meaning of this ball of light appearing in front of her now is—

The scene before my eyes suddenly vanished.

Then the ball of light suddenly shone brightly, and the moment it touched Jiang Zhi, it transformed into countless warm threads of light that gently enveloped her.

A massive surge of energy flooded into Jiang Zhi's spiritual pool, churning within her body with an unstoppable force.

The force was so overwhelming that Jiang Zhi felt a sudden, intense dizziness.

The next second, he completely lost consciousness and fainted.

Without her knowledge, the dashboard suddenly beeped.

—"Discover the will of the world, please bookmark it."

The next second.

"Chirp—"

The furry touch made Jiangzhi suddenly open her eyes, her heart still pounding.

"Chirp chirp!?"

Jiang Zhi was stunned for a few seconds before she realized what was happening. She looked down and found that she was completely dry.

The mutated rhinoceros and the herd of beasts maintained their previous posture of bowing their heads.

The convoy in the distance remained quietly in place.

Jiang Zhi was dumbfounded.

Didn't she fall into the water?

Was everything just an illusion?

If she were to actually fall into the water, her brother and teammates would not be able to remain indifferent.

She checked her mental pool, but it was still empty.

Jiang Zhi was suspicious. Could it be that this lake could lead people into an illusion?

The mutated rhinoceros didn't give Jiang Zhi time to think. As soon as the worship ended, it slowly straightened up, and the beasts behind it also stood up straight.

Without further delay, Chirp took off into the air with Ginger Branch.

After a brief exploration, Jiang Zhi had some ideas in mind.

She waved to the crowd from above, indicating that they should head back first.

Everyone immediately understood.

The four teams from the east, south, west, and north tacitly changed direction and headed back the way they came.

The mutated rhinoceros stood by the lake, watching the person and bird take off. Its thick nostrils twitched slightly until they disappeared from sight, then it slowly lowered its head and re-entered the lake.

On the way back, Jiang Zhi couldn't help but examine her mental pool again.

Still nothing was discovered.

Was it really just a hallucination?

Nothing seemed wrong with the dashboard either.

"Chirp chirp, did you notice anything wrong just now?"

The big head tilted again, "Chirp?"

Jiangzhi: ...Okay, I guess we won't find anything.

Since nothing unusual was found, Jiangzhi didn't dwell on it any longer.

She had Chiu Chiu carry her around in all four directions.

When they returned to their encampment of about a hundred people after the exploration was completed, the other four teams had also returned.

Unexpectedly, while they were out scouting, the mutants and soldiers who stayed behind had already cleared most of the weeds from the encampment and quickly set up their tents, which were neatly arranged in a row.

The smoke rising from the stove was quickly absorbed by a soldier using his special ability.

Several elderly professors were huddled around a makeshift fire, while their assistants busily handed them pots and pans. A faint aroma of food wafted on the breeze.

Looking at it this way, it does have a certain down-to-earth, everyday feel to it.

Jiang Shu couldn't resist the sight of food.

I've been eating dry food every day lately, and my mouth is getting so bland.

Seeing that he could eat some cooked food, he couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Dad, what are you cooking?"

Jiang Shan was sitting in front of the fire helping to watch it when he saw Jiang Shu and the others return. He smiled and said, "Meat porridge."

Some soldiers caught some small animals that were nesting nearby, and they killed and cooked them on the spot.

Huang Xianming parked the car to the side, and as soon as he got out, he said with a look of disapproval, "You guys are too bold. You don't even know if there's any threat on this grassland, yet you dare to open fire..."

Professor Yang laughed and said, "Colonel Huang, don't misunderstand us. We only dared to do this because Captain Lin told us that there was no danger nearby."

Upon hearing that it was with Lin Yuan's consent, Huang Xianming said nothing more.

"Now that you're all back, let's go inside the tent and tell each other about the situation on this grassland."

Professor Ning was about to pull Jiang Shu, who was standing next to him, forward as he spoke.

Jiang Shu's eyes were glued to the pot, and he asked eagerly, "Professors, aren't you cooking?"

"What's more important than eating?"

The professors didn't really enjoy cooking; they were just doing it out of boredom. In reality, it was the assistants who did the actual work.

Jiang Shu smacked his lips. "Professors, how about we talk about it after we've eaten?"

Luo Yonghui happened to be passing by and, upon hearing this, tapped him on the head, "Fool! Hurry up and go inside!"

Jiang Shu hissed, "Uncle Luo, we're on Colonel Huang's side now. You're overstepping your bounds!"

It would have been better if Jiang Shu hadn't mentioned it, because once he did, Luo Yonghui started to regret it again.

When Chen Shaoting and the others heard that he had temporarily "rented" out Jiang Shu, they all condemned him.

I was subjected to a lot of sarcastic remarks along the way.

"You brat, get inside right now!"

Jiang Shu glanced longingly at the meat porridge before slowly following the others into the tent.

On the other side, Jiang Zhi was worried that Qiu Qiu was hungry, so she hurriedly called out to Yan Liang, wanting him to take out the mutated beast meat that Er Shun had given her from the space device and give some to Qiu Qiu to fill her stomach.

As soon as Chiu Chiu saw the corpses of these mutated beasts, it turned its head away in disgust, flapped its wings, and flew away.

Jiang Zhi:......

The baby is quite a picky eater.

Judging that Chirp had its own way of finding food, Jiangzhi didn't insist and went into the tent with the other team leaders.

As soon as the curtain was lifted and we entered, we heard Captain Qian from the Southern Base saying, "That lake must be the center of this space. Our teams set out to explore from different directions, but we all ended up meeting up at the lake."

With a shredded blade of grass dangling from his mouth, Tang Mao mumbled, "And those beasts are quite strange—many of them are natural predators, but they behaved themselves peacefully by the lake and didn't cause any conflict."

Professor Shen is very interested in mutated organisms.

"Is that mutated rhinoceros also there?"

Huang Xianming nodded: "I think that although those mutated beasts didn't clash, there was still at least a level suppression between them."

At least the other mutated beasts seemed to be terrified of that mutated rhinoceros.

Except... that white eagle.

Thinking of this, he looked at Jiang Zhi: "Comrade Jiang, you were closest at the time, did you notice anything?"

Jiang Zhi's mind flashed with the image of herself being dragged into the water, but she quickly suppressed it.

She shook her head: "That mutated rhinoceros was fairly friendly to Chiu Chiu, but unfortunately they seemed to be performing some kind of ritual at the time, so they couldn't go into the water to investigate."

As she spoke, Jiang Zhi informed several professors about the abnormalities of the mutated beasts.

Upon hearing that the group of mutated beasts had actually paid homage to the center of the lake, Professor Shen paced back and forth excitedly.

Finally, I asked Professor Yang and the others, "Do you remember that thing that the satellite detected?"

Everyone was stunned.

Huang Xianming was the first to react: "Professor Shen, you suspect that thing is in this grassland?"

Professor Shen nodded.

"If they are really here, then the abnormality of those mutated beasts can be explained."

Jiang Shan and Jiang Shu were completely confused, so Huang Xianming explained to them, "In the year of the Great Cataclysm, our country's satellites could still occasionally capture some blurry images."

"At the end of that year, while our base was still building a new city wall, a huge light and shadow appeared in the sky above Shashi, covering the surrounding area. This phenomenon lasted for a whole month."

Professor Yang nodded. "At that time, the three bases with relatively complete satellite base stations—the Southern Base, the Kyoto Base, and our base—could all see this image."

"Moreover, similar situations have occurred in Tibet, Mongolia, and Yan'an cities one after another. The senior leaders of our several bases have discussed and studied this situation."

"We discovered that only one thing could explain it."

Jiang Zhi asked curiously, "What is it?"

Huang Xianming patiently explained, "About one or two hundred kilometers away from our No. 15 collection area, there is a giant tree—"

Jiang Shu was taken aback, then said, "Colonel Huang, you're not talking about that place Uncle Luo took us to before, are you?"

Huang Xianming was also stunned, "You two have been there?"

Everyone couldn't help but look at Luo Yonghui.

Luo Yonghui cleared his throat. "Well, I saw that they were quite capable, so I asked them to help out a bit..."

Upon hearing this, Zou Minghua's face twisted even more!

He said that with the strength of Luo Yonghui's team, how could they find so many special ores so easily and with almost no damage? It turned out that they had invited two big shots to oversee things!

That old bastard got off easy!

Huang Xianming nodded, his tone becoming more serious: "Since you have seen it with your own eyes, you can understand even better that even if an ordinary oak tree mutates, it could never grow like this. The evolution and mutation of this oak tree has exceeded the scope of common sense, so we all guess that the oak tree may have been able to evolve due to some special reason."

This is precisely why they reasonably suspect that the orb of light that appeared in Shashi might share the same origin as the unknown factors that facilitated the evolution of the oak tree, both possessing the ability to cause super mutations in mutated organisms.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Zhi immediately recalled the evolution of the oak tree she had just seen in the lake, and a thought struck her.

If that wasn't her hallucination, then the professors' current guesses are likely correct.

Professor Shen nodded. "Captain Luo investigated Shashi before. I wonder if you found anything?"

Luo Yonghui shook his head: "There's nothing there."

"In that case, that thing might be in that lake."

A moment of silence fell over everyone.

Something that allows a species to undergo super-evolution, even if humans can't use it, can be used by mutated organisms.

It has immense research value no matter how you look at it.

But that area is now the territory of a mutated beast horde, and judging from their behavior, even if they find this thing, they may not be able to take it away.

So, while everyone was tempted, they could only hold back at this moment.

After a moment, Huang Xianming continued with the results of the investigation: "In addition, we didn't find any major threats along the way, so this place is generally safe."

Captain Qian: "Me too."

The professors breathed a sigh of relief. "Then, as long as those mutated beasts don't cause trouble while we're here, we can take a good rest."

Tang Mao: "It's safe enough, but I didn't see any kind of exit."

Lin Yuan concluded: "So the remaining issues are finding an exit and how to get out."

Knowing that Jiang Zhi had gone to investigate, Luo Yonghui looked at her and asked, "Jiang girl, did you find anything that looks like an exit?"

Jiang Zhi shook her head, "Apart from the lakes, the rest is grassland, and there's nothing special about it."

Thinking of something, Lin Yuan asked, "The white eagle flew out of the deep pit. If we can figure out how it got out, we should have a direction."

Jiang Zhi's tone carried a hint of helplessness: "It's a pity, I don't know how it got in. As for getting out, it probably took advantage of the momentum of the blue light when the mutated beast horde surged in, and managed to escape."

In other words, if the passage connecting them to the outside world is not opened, they are likely to remain trapped here indefinitely.

Seeing that everyone's expressions were not good, Jiang Zhi continued, "However, I guess this blue light will appear once every once in a while."

“I just saw a tiger with a broken tail, exactly the same as the one we encountered three years ago. If I’m not mistaken, it’s probably the same one.”

Jiang Shan frowned. "Azhi, are you talking about that mountain tiger that ran down from Wuyu Mountain?"

Jiang Zhi nodded.

Jiang Shu's eyes widened. "So, all those mutated beasts that passed through Wuxu Town weren't actually heading to Shashi?"

"I've observed it carefully, and it does indeed correspond to the mutated beasts I've seen before."

Everyone's faces lit up with joy. "That's great! This means the exit might be open at set times."

Professor Ning snorted: "Don't be so happy so soon. Who knows when it will open? Would you be happy to stay here for a year?"

Professor Shen smiled and tried to smooth things over: "Don't think of things so badly."

Lin Yuandao said in a deep voice, "There's no rush right now. It will take at least two or three days for the situation outside to recover. In the next few days, we should search carefully again. It would be best if we could find an exit. Also, we need to send people to keep an eye on those beasts. They can sense blue light, and we can make good use of that."

Huang Xianming: "Team Leader Lin is right. Chief of Staff Liu, take stock of the food you have and see how long we can last."

Although there are quite a few small mutant animals on the grasslands, there are so many of them that they wouldn't even be enough to fill a gap in their teeth.

Professor Yang: "Yes, yes, we need to prepare in advance. Also, take out the communication equipment and try to contact the base."

Liu Haining quickly agreed and went to handle it with his assistant.

Finally, everyone discussed the situation of this alternate dimension and the mutated beast horde from various perspectives.

Jiang Shu listened with great interest, while Jiang Zhi seemed a little distracted.

Jiang Shan looked down at her. "Tired?"

Jiang Zhi came to her senses: "Dad..."

You look like you have something on your mind.

Jiang Zhi pursed her lips: "I'm thinking about something, Dad... how long do you think we humans can hold out?"

This world is becoming increasingly unsuitable for human habitation.

I thought those gigantic mutated creatures were scary enough, but what if they all absorbed the energy from that ball of light and grew into colossal behemoths like the Cloud Nest Tree, blotting out the sky—

When that time comes, and these mutated creatures undergo super evolution, will humans still be able to survive in the cracks?

Seeing the blank look on his daughter's face, Jiang Shan felt a strange unease.

My daughter has always been very opinionated, and she has only shown this expression twice since she was born.

One time is when choosing a major in the college entrance examination, and the other time is when choosing a work location after graduating from university.

Jiang Shan knew that Jiang Zhi's hesitation was not due to a lack of ability, but rather because she was too outstanding, which made her hesitate and deliberate when it came to whether or not to take on that responsibility.

He patted her on the shoulder: "It's definitely possible."

Jiang Shan's steady and powerful voice came from above: "Humanity has never been sustained by any one person, but there are always people willing to step forward first. We just need to do our part within our capabilities."

Jiang Zhi's fingertips trembled slightly, and when she looked up, the confusion in her eyes had faded a little.

"Dad..."

Jiang Shan smiled, seemingly knowing all her worries, and comforted her, "Don't worry about the base either. I heard from Professor Yang and the others that the base has its own emergency plan. Even if we encounter such a cold wave, the chances of surviving it are still very high."

"Alright, always thinking about this and that will turn you into a little old lady. You've had such a tiring journey, take a good rest now."

Jiang Zhi nodded.

Jiang Shu leaned over and put his arm around his sister's shoulder. "Hey, Azhi, aren't you hungry? We haven't eaten in ages. Come on, let's go outside and get something to eat."

Stepping out of the tent, not far away, the people at the southern base had also set up a campfire.

Although they are now on the same side, they still fight separately since both sides still have food reserves.

After being disturbed by the ginger tree, the ginger branch did indeed feel a bit hungry.

So he went to Yan Liang and asked for the smallest field mouse he could find, intending to roast it and eat it.

Jiang Shu originally intended to give some to Er Shun as well, but the guy turned around and ran off to the grassland to run wild.

Anyway, this space seems safe for now, so Jiang Shu let it be.

Yan Liang had already roughly dealt with the field mouse, removing its internal organs. Jiang Shu took it, cleanly peeled off its skin, and casually threw it into the fire to burn.

They came out on a mission, and time was tight.

The main force carried very few cooking utensils; apart from a soup bucket used to boil water for the soldiers, there was nothing else that could be used.

Jiang Shu really went all out for this taste.

First, they dug a pit in the open space, cut some wild grass, stuffed it into the pit, and burned it until the soil was scorching hot.

Then, the cleaned field mice are wrapped tightly in thick, large patches of wild grass, covered with a layer of wet mud, and buried in a hot pit.

Jiangzhi lent a helping hand, and the brother and sister worked for a long time, then waited for another half hour. Jiangshu couldn't wait any longer and reached out to peel away the charred outer leaves.

With a "crack," the mud shell was broken open, and the aroma of wild grass mixed with the smell of smoke wafted out first, followed by the steaming hot air of field mouse meat, carrying its meaty fragrance, which wafted into the nose.

The people at the neighboring southern base were so enticed by the aroma that they kept swallowing their saliva.

However, out of consideration for face and rules, they couldn't openly come over, so they could only sneakily peek over, trying to see what kind of meat could smell so good.

Jiang Shu was incredibly shameless in this regard. He didn't care whether others were tempted or not; he shared half with the professors and Lin Yuan, and the rest was all for his family of three!

Professor Yang and the others' eyes lit up as they ate.

The field mouse meat was surprisingly tender.

The meat juices burst in your mouth, fresh and fragrant, with a unique smoky flavor from earthen kiln baking, and the more you chew, the more satisfying it becomes.

The only downside was that there was no salt.

He beckoned to Liu Haining, "Chief Liu, you should have some salt on you, right? Here, take it out and sprinkle it on this field mouse."

Liu Haining swallowed hard and eagerly handed it over.

"By the way, give some to the Jiang family; they'll probably need it in the next few days."

Seeing Liu Haining hesitate, Professor Yang assumed he was unwilling and said in a deep voice, "Stop thinking about your little schemes. You know the situation of the Jiang family. Once we return to the base, they will definitely become people you can't reach. Don't be reckless, or don't expect me to help you out then."

Having been reprimanded, Liu Haining felt a little embarrassed.

But after witnessing the siblings' strength, they lost all their pride.

He stammered, "No, I'm afraid they won't want it if I send it over."

Professor Yang was speechless. "Don't you know how to have your assistant deliver it?"

Liu Haining, with a shameless grin, said, "Yes, yes, look at me, my brain isn't working properly. I'll have my assistant send it over right away."

Professor Liang didn't pay attention to their conversation; all he knew was that the field mouse meat in his hand was incredibly delicious with every bite.

"Hmm, young man, is this field mouse low in toxicity?"

Before eating it, my fatigue had subsided somewhat.

It felt so comfortable.

Of all the people, these old guys had it the hardest.

Putting everything else aside, Professor Shen has only been out for seven or eight days, and his hair has already turned quite gray.

They were all tired from the journey.

Even the assistants were afraid that the professors would collapse from exhaustion after returning from this mission.

This way, you can eat low-toxin foods, and your body will recover a lot.

They weren't mutants; they were full after eating only a small piece and gave the rest to their assistant.

Jiang Shu sprinkled the salt his assistant had given him evenly over the field mouse meat, then divided it among Jiang Shan and his sister, and they ate it with relish.

While eating, he said, "This was a gift from Ershun. I'm letting you try my cooking because you've taken such good care of my dad."

The professors laughed heartily.

"Professor Jiang, you've raised your son well!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Shan blushed. This brat, he's putting on an act.

Jiangzhi ate slowly. The salted field mouse meat was salty and slightly earthy, but not pungent at all. Perhaps because she hadn't eaten meat in a long time, Jiangzhi found this simple flavor very delicious.

Everyone finally got a chance to relax.

Even mutants are exhausted after being on edge for so many days.

Apart from the mutants and soldiers who were on guard duty on the perimeter, Jiang Zhi noticed that everyone else had a rare look of relief on their faces.

It got dark quickly.

No one expected that this space without the sun would also have day and night cycles.

Just like during the day, the moon is still not visible in this place at night.

About three hundred people cleared a space on the grassland, pitched tents densely, and the colorful canvases swayed gently in the evening breeze.

Several fires were lit in the open space in the middle, the flames crackling and illuminating the people sitting, lying down and chatting around them.

Clothes were drying by the fire, and water bottles and backpacks were scattered on the ground. In the distance, wary figures moved back and forth between the tents. The smoke and voices mingled, creating a sense of reassuring warmth.

Even after the fire was extinguished, the surroundings were still visible. Under the moonlight, the entire camp was brightly lit, as if covered with a layer of white frost.

Occasionally, a breeze would blow, causing the grass to rustle and the chirping of insects would occasionally emerge from the grass, mingling with Er Shun's snoring and drifting far away on the evening breeze.

Jiangzhi slept in her own tent.

Sensing the interaction between Chirp and the mutated beast horde.

It seems to have stopped on the head of the mutated rhinoceros again.

I always felt that the mutated rhinoceros was very indulgent towards Chiu Chiu.

Lost in thought, Jiangzhi drifted off to sleep.

She seems to be dreaming again.

In her dream, Jiangzhi sank into that cool lake again.

She was like a fish that had lost its way, swimming endlessly in the water, just like someone trapped in a water tank desperately trying to find a way to the sea.

After struggling in the lake all night, Jiangzhi was exhausted and her body felt weak. Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer and shouted at the empty water, "Where is the exit?! I need to get out!"

The moment the words were spoken, the scene before my eyes shifted.

The bottom of the lake seemed to have become a mirror.

She could see the situation outside Shashi from up there.

—The entire city of Shashi seemed to be enveloped in a biting cold, with ice crystals forming on the broken walls and ruins, and everything frozen solid.

The road outside the sinkhole was frozen into a slippery ice shell. The wind swirled snowflakes that hit the abandoned doors and windows. It was deathly silent, without a trace of life in sight.

The entire bottom of the lake seemed to have become a giant exit leading to Shashi...

exit! ?

Realizing this, Jiang Zhi suddenly opened her eyes.