Chapter 132: Caught Fish but in Danger
Shen Lingning's heart sank suddenly, and a bad premonition came to her mind. She immediately remembered the internal information she had read before, a tool specially used by tomb robbers - the Luoyang shovel!
Although it doesn't look clear, the shape is extremely similar!
She didn't dare stay any longer, nor did she dare touch those things.
Immediately follow the original route and carefully retreat to the bottom of the cliff with the help of a rope.
When her feet touched the ground, she felt her back was soaked with cold sweat, not just because of the danger of rock climbing.
She didn't dare to delay for a moment, picked up the backpack containing the beehive, and quickly evacuated towards the exit of the valley.
Just as she was about to approach the hidden cave exit, she suddenly heard a few muffled voices and footsteps coming from not far away!
Shen Lingning's hair stood on end, and he immediately dodged and hid behind a huge rock, his heart almost jumping out of his throat.
"Damn, this place is so cold. When will we be done?"
A gruff male voice complained.
"Stop talking nonsense! The boss is pressing us. We have to get this shipment out before the snow closes the mountain. I thought I heard some noise over here just now. Let's go check it out. Maybe a wild boar has dug up our hidden treasure."
Another slightly gloomy voice sounded.
"What are you afraid of? Besides us, who else would be here in this barren place? Probably a monkey..."
The footsteps are getting closer!
Shen Lingning held his breath, pressed tightly against the rock, his fingers subconsciously touching the dagger between his legs, his mind spinning rapidly.
A head-on fight is definitely not going to work. There are at least two people on the other side, and from the sound of their voices, they are definitely not good people.
Just as the two men were about to go around the rock and find her, a frightened mountain rabbit suddenly jumped out from the dry grass nearby and ran away quickly.
"Hey! It's a rabbit! It scared me!"
A rough male voice cursed.
"Okay, I'm glad you're alright. Go back quickly. They're waiting over there."
The gloomy male voice seemed relieved.
The footsteps gradually faded away. Shen Lingning leaned against the rock, breathing heavily, cold sweat sliding down his forehead.
It’s too dangerous!
It turned out to be a tomb robber!
And from the sound of it, it seems that they are an organized gang with a "boss" and are in a hurry to transport "goods"!
This Medicine King Valley is indeed not simple!
She didn't dare to delay any longer and immediately went into the cave and left this dangerous place as quickly as possible.
Shen Lingning returned safely to the foot of the mountain and reunited with Xiao Zhang and Xiao Li, and immediately told them what he had seen and heard.
Xiao Zhang's face changed drastically: "Luoyang shovel! They must be grave diggers! These people are so bold!"
He immediately decided to go down the mountain to report.
What Shen Lingning didn't know was that while they were discussing this tense situation, an old man herding sheep on a distant ridge silently put away his telescope, turned around and walked quickly towards Xinghuagou at the foot of the mountain... The company commander of the village militia was his nephew.
Xiao Liu went down the mountain overnight to report the urgent information.
While Shen Lingning and Xiao Li were waiting anxiously on the spot, they did not dare to waste time.
According to Mr. Chen’s map and guidance, the next target location is Heilongtan in the Heihe River Basin.
The next morning, at daybreak, Shen Lingning, escorted by Xiao Li, took a jeep to Heihe.
The deeper you go into the mountains, the lower the temperature becomes. Along the way, you can see deep snow and thin ice on the river surface. The branches of the pine and cypress trees along the road are covered with rime.
It is still late autumn outside the mountain, but here it is already covered with ice and snow.
The car could only drive to a small fork in the road at the end.
Shen Lingning carried the prepared backpack containing ice-picking tools and a thick cloth bag. He insisted that Xiao Li stay in the car to meet him and wait for Xiao Liu to bring back instructions from his superiors. He then walked upstream along the frozen river bank alone.
Occasionally, you can see some scattered footprints and animal hoof prints on the snow on the river bank.
After walking about a mile or two, she met two men who looked like local villagers, wearing old cotton jackets and carrying homemade hunting rifles. They were setting traps by the river, apparently trying to catch some wild rabbits and pheasants to improve their diet.
Shen Lingning's heart tightened, but thinking of what Mr. Chen said, that the local old hunters might know the location of Black Dragon Pond, he bit the bullet and went forward to ask for directions.
"Two brothers, how do I get to Black Dragon Pond?"
She tried to keep her tone calm and harmless.
The two men raised their heads and looked at her.
Although Shen Lingning was wearing a bulky cotton coat, he had a handsome face and an accent that clearly showed he was from another place. The backpack he was carrying looked quite heavy, and he appeared alone in this desolate wilderness...
The two exchanged glances, and the one with the scar on his face grinned, revealing his yellow teeth. "Black Dragon Pond? It's far away, and the road isn't easy to travel."
"Girl, what are you doing there alone? That place is really spooky."
Another shorter and stronger man echoed, "Yes, I heard there are mandrills! They specialize in catching women and children walking alone."
Shen Lingning's heart was filled with alarm. The two men had flickering eyes and slick tones, which did not seem like honest farmers.
She remained expressionless and said politely, "Thank you for reminding me, brother. I'll go take a look. The old man at home said there is some herbal medicine over there."
Scarface chuckled and said, "Looking for medicine? You'll need someone to lead the way. How about this? We're both going over there to set up a trap, so how about we take you for a ride?"
As he spoke, he naturally took a step closer to Shen Lingning.
Shen Lingning immediately took a step back, his hand quietly reaching for the dagger hidden in his sleeve: "Don't bother the two brothers, I can find it slowly by myself."
After saying that, she ignored the two of them, turned around and quickened her pace as she walked upstream along the river bank.
She could feel those two malicious eyes glued to her back.
After walking for more than ten minutes, she looked back and could no longer see the two people, but her uneasiness grew stronger and stronger.
She didn't dare to take the existing paths, and chose to walk in difficult and sheltered places, with her ears perked up.
Sudden!
"Bang!"
A crisp gunshot broke the silence of the forest!
A bullet hit a tree trunk not far from her with a "whoosh", splashing a cloud of wood chips!
Shen Lingning's scalp went numb, and he instantly fell to the ground and rolled behind a big rock.
My heart is pounding!
These two men actually have guns!
And he really dared to shoot!
"Damn it! I missed! That woman dodged quickly!"
It was the voice of Scarface.
"Chase her! She can't get away! Catch her, she must have something good on her!"
The short and stocky man's voice was filled with greed.
Footsteps and shouting were rapidly approaching behind her.
Shen Lingning knew that he could not outrun two strong men who were familiar with the terrain, not to mention that the other party had guns!
In desperate situations, her mind was unusually clear.
She spotted a dense, snow-covered bush nearby and dove in, concentrating her mind intensely. The next second, her figure disappeared behind the bushes, leaving behind only some swaying branches and scattered snow.
"Huh? Where's that person? He clearly hid behind the bushes just now!"
Scarface rushed over with a hunting rifle and used the barrel of the gun to push aside the bushes, but there was nothing inside.
"That's weird! It's such a small place, where can you go?"
The short and strong man also arrived and looked around in confusion.
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