Chapter 117 Twists and Turns, Trust, a Beautiful Stone, Goal Achieved...
After settling everything at home, Lai hitched up the mule cart, packed enough food and supplies, and finally set off.
Ray didn't dare tell Hagrid about this beforehand. He always wanted everything to be settled before he could proceed, lest he end up disappointed.
To avoid attracting attention, Lei set off very early.
The mule cart left the village steadily and picked up Iru and another goblin that Laiyi had never seen before at the foot of the mountain.
"His name is Hulu, and he knows a little earth magic."
"Iru explained. Lei nearly spat out his water."
Goblins really do name things pretty randomly.
"Hello, Lord Victor, please feel free to ask if there is anything you need."
He could accept being called Mr. Victor, but what the heck is "Lord Victor"?
Lei was both amused and exasperated.
"Just call me Lei."
"Lord Rai."
"......"
"Don't worry about Hulu, he's used to calling everyone 'sir'."
Yilu tried to smooth things over.
They placed their luggage in the corner of the wagon bed, where the two goblins sat obediently, not daring to move.
"Relax, my friend, we'll need you to give us directions later."
Lei took the initiative to start a conversation to ease the awkward atmosphere.
"We'll be passing through some villages along the way, what should we do?"
Iru asked Laiyi.
"Do you see that canvas?"
Iru found a large, neatly folded canvas on top of the two animal hides.
"I saw it."
"If there are any people, unfold it and cover the truck bed. You can hide inside and no one will find you."
"well."
Lei is a reliable person; he has thought things through in advance.
The mule cart moved quietly along the bumpy dirt road, passing through two unfamiliar villages before heading into an endless wasteland.
After walking a distance and confirming that no one would come, Lai let the two goblins come out for some fresh air.
Is this the direction?
Lai asked Iru, who carefully observed the surrounding environment, somewhat unsure.
"I need to walk a little further. I made a mark on the road, but I can't see it now."
"good."
After driving the mule cart for a while longer, Iru finally determined the direction.
"You've come to the right place, this is it!"
Lai stopped the car, and Iru jumped out and walked to Lai's side to give him directions.
"I hammered a thick wooden peg made of branches under a tree along the riverbank. If you just follow the peg, you can hear the sound of water. Once you see a small river, you're not far from that place."
"good."
Lai wanted to speed up their journey and reach their destination before dark, so they skipped lunch. The three of them simply ate some dry rations to tide them over.
It wasn't until the afternoon that we saw the small river that Yilu had mentioned.
The river water is clear and cold; you can see fish and shrimp in it—it's fresh water.
Upon reaching this area, the number of stones gradually increased. The river was surrounded by stones, and there were no tall trees for hundreds of meters around.
"I found one of these scattered stones, and then I followed the river upstream and found the place."
Iru explained, blurring out terms like "energy stone."
He trusts Irulai, but he doesn't know if he can trust Hulu.
After all, this is an undiscovered mineral vein, and if Hulu informs on it, Lai will definitely be in danger.
During the conversation, Iru suddenly realized this, broke out in a cold sweat, and began to speak vaguely, playing cryptic games with Lai.
He met Hulu a month ago when they were digging a tunnel together. Hulu had just turned 18, but he had courage and boldness that was different from his peers.
Perhaps out of a father's instinct, Iru naturally took better care of him, and Huru gained Iru's trust in this way.
At this moment, Yiru wished he could slap himself for what he did that morning.
This is causing delays; he shouldn't have acted on his own!
"Let's go."
Lai drove the wagon again, while Iru and Huru sat back in the back of the wagon.
"Where to go next?"
"Go northeast along the river."
"Sure?"
Lai asked a question in return, and Iru immediately realized what he meant.
"Pah, pah, pah, what a terrible memory I have. I'm sorry, Mr. Leigh, I was wrong. It's a low hill in the northwest. All the nice stones you want are over there. You can take them home to pave the road."
"Okay, let's continue."
Lai was very fortunate that Iru was a clever goblin, which saved him a lot of trouble.
What's going on? Turns out they're going to dig for rocks.
Hu Lu felt a little disdainful.
He was the only goblin in the forest in decades to possess elemental magic. After awakening his magic, he naturally received all of his parents' love and affection.
Of course, he also used his only skill to provide a good life for his family. He was proud and disdained associating with any goblins except his parents.
However, things didn't go as planned, and some strange things happened in the forest. For self-preservation and other reasons, he became a goblin under Hru's command, responsible for finding food. Later, when Hru escaped, he followed him and settled in the desolate mountains.
He had no bad intentions; he just wanted to live a quiet life, so he tried his best to integrate into the circle of goblins like Iru.
But before he set off, Soru found him and promised to give him a beast's leg if he told him what Iru and the humans had done.
He didn't believe that Soru, who had lost an arm, was capable of obtaining a monster that even he himself couldn't catch.
But the facts were right in front of them: Soru took out a dried monster leg from the house.
The temptation was simply too great; he needed to consume the flesh of these magical beasts to gain greater power. And it didn't really matter if he only occasionally told Soluiru about their actions, did it?
Lai drove the mule cart a long way before finally reaching the foot of the low hill. Instead of rushing up the hill to check the situation, he calmly set up the tent, lit a campfire, and started cooking dinner.
Yilu and Hulu returned with firewood, and sure enough, they could see many beautiful stones along the mountain path.
Iru had already searched the entire area, so he naturally knew some of the basic information about it.
The water in the pot boiled quickly. Lai first refilled several water sacs with clean water before adding vegetables and mixed flour to make dough balls.
Fortunately, the two goblins had developed the good habit of bringing their own bowls and chopsticks when they went to help in Silver Screen Village, so the three of them were able to have a hot dinner in the wilderness.
The goblins had never tasted such delicious food. After Lai said he was full, Iru and Huru shared all the remaining dough pieces.
"Let's stay here tonight and go up the mountain tomorrow to see the specific situation."
The two local spies followed Lai Yi's lead blindly, listening to whatever he said without offering any other opinions.
So the three continued chopping wood, as they needed to keep the campfire burning all night.
There's a river nearby, so we can boil some hot water to drink at night, which will keep things from getting too difficult.
The first night passed safely, and they climbed the low hill as planned to check the situation on the mountain.
The vegetation on this low hill is sparse, and the exposed part of the hill is made up of various kinds of rocks.
Huru's magic finally came in handy, but it was low-level, only able to probe downwards to a distance of about ten meters with his palm.
Lai and Iru, along with Huru, busied themselves with searching for the possible treasures inside the mountain.
"Found it! Something's different here!"
Lai and Iru exchanged glances, surprised to find something. However, such a thick stone wall was very difficult to carve out and clean, so Lai simply made a mark on it with a stone.
"Let's leave it at that for now, we'll come back to collect it when we have the chance. Let's move some stones back to the village first, I want to repave the yard."
"good."
Neither of the goblins had any objections.
He only picked out the pebbles that had become exceptionally smooth from being constantly washed by the river, and the natural glass with beautiful patterns. In just one morning, he had collected a whole cart full of them.
Lai packed his things and prepared to head home, but just as he was about to leave, the car stopped moving.
"What happened?"
Ray inspected the mule cart and found that a part on the wheel was stuck; he could simply hammer it back into place. But this was the middle of nowhere, with not a soul in sight. What could they do?
"What should we do?"
Lai frowned deeply, and Iru was also extremely anxious, pacing around the truck bed incessantly.
"Let's try smashing it with a rock."
The truck bed was newly made and specially reinforced, and since Ray didn't have any repair tools with him, he was immediately at a loss. He could only try to salvage the situation.
He found a suitable stone and began to smash it against the stuck spot.
The stuck spot was made of iron, and the stone was quickly shattered by the wheel. Hulu watched anxiously from the side.
“By the way, Silver Screen Village is nearby, and I remember the way! We can go to the village to borrow tools. However, humans have never been very friendly to goblins, so we might need Lai to come with me. Hulu, what’s your opinion?”
Lai and Iru turned their attention to Huru.
"You all go quickly. I'll keep an eye on the mule cart here. Nothing will be stolen. Besides, I have earth magic, so I can protect myself."
Lai and Iru exchanged glances, their goal achieved. Lai comforted Hulu for a few moments, then, feigning great urgency, hurried off towards the northeast, leaving Hulu sitting on the pile of pebbles waiting.
With limited time, Lai and Iru must make the most of it to find the real target mountain range.
"I'm sorry, Lei, I promise I won't make that mistake again."
"It's alright, it's just that I didn't explain things clearly beforehand. Our most important thing now is to find it as soon as possible."
In fact, the wheel getting stuck was a plan that Lai had come up with on the spot last night.
Having finally made it out, he was unwilling to return empty-handed. Iru cooperated well, and Huru didn't notice anything unusual.
The small hill, which was said to have energy stones, was not far from where they met. The two of them walked a kilometer to get there.
This small hill is quite different from the low hills where we rest. Eighty percent of the hill is covered by vegetation, which is not conducive to growing fruit trees, but it is a natural protective layer for the energy stones.
“It’s in the mountains, I’ll take you there.”
Lai followed Iru up the hill.
Because no human had ever set foot here, they couldn't find a path up the mountain, so the two of them could only grope their way upwards.
Iru quickly discovered the mark he had left behind, and led Lai around most of the mountain to the other side, where a bare rock appeared in front of them.
"This is it, take a look."
Ray crouched down and used the hammer he had hidden in his back to knock a rock down.
Under the sunlight, half of the stone appears as an ordinary rock, while the other half reveals the unique color of an energy stone.
Lai Yi dared not draw any conclusions, but was 90 percent certain that this was an energy stone.
Is this the only place that has it?
Lai asked Iru.
"No, after I found it, I did a quick dig here during my break. Not counting the underground part, just the part above ground, I roughly estimate that the energy stone accounts for one-tenth of the weight of the small hill."
Don't let the small size of this hill fool you; it contains a significant amount of energy stones, about one-tenth of the size. Taking it now would definitely be a worthwhile investment.
Lai made up his mind and was ready to act immediately once he returned to examine the condition of the stone in his hand.
“Iru, thank you so much for your help. I will never forget your efforts. I can’t make too many promises, but please believe me, I will do my best to help your family, at least to ensure that you can live a life free from worries about food and clothing.”
This is the most substantial promise Ray can make at the moment, if things really develop as he envisions. Supporting Iru's family of seven will be absolutely no problem.
“No need for that, Ray. I only did some small things for you that were within my power. You could say you indirectly saved all the goblins on the barren mountain. This favor is something all of us goblins would give our lives for.”
You don't need to burden yourself with so much for such a small matter.
Iru never expected to receive such a promise from Laiyi. He also longed for a life free from financial worries, but he wanted that life to be earned through his own hard work.
"Okay, if you need any help in the future, be sure to come to me, and I will do my best to help you."
"Um!"
The two reached a preliminary agreement, and the next step was to deal with Hu Lu.
Lai and Yiru pretended that the hammer was bought from the villagers of Silver Screen Village, and quickly fixed the stuck wheel, and started to get back on the road.
The journey was long, and they had a truckload of pebbles, so the three of them had to find a safer spot to camp.
Fortunately, Lai had prepared enough food for three days for the adults, so the three of them managed to get by with one meal in the morning and one meal in the evening.
On the afternoon of the third day, Lai finally drove his mule cart back to his small home in the mountain village.
Upon meeting, Neil couldn't wait to give him a hug.
“Brother, you’re finally back! I thought… I thought…”
Neil didn't finish his sentence, but from his tearful eyes, Ray understood his underlying meaning.
"It's nothing, I just went on a long trip."
Wow, where did all these beautiful stones come from?
Lamb clung to the truck bed and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
"Brother, did you go with Iru?"
Neil frowned and asked, puzzled.
Ray almost forgot that Neil's nose had this talent of being able to identify all kinds of smells, so he had no choice but to tell the truth.
"yes."
"That goblin?"
Lamb joined in the fun and asked.
Two pairs of eyes stared straight at Lai, and seeing that the situation was about to get out of control, Lai immediately explained.
"Yes, he's the one who helped me find all these stones. You know, goblins are experts at digging. The paths in the yard were really bad, so I wanted to find some better stones to decorate them."
Ray's less-than-brilliant explanation ultimately fooled Neil and Lamb.
These stones are truly beautiful; you really can't find anything like them around the village.
"Brother, don't be so willful next time. Ordinary gravel roads are also beautiful and durable."
Neil put on a serious face and started lecturing Rye like a little adult. Rye had no choice but to agree repeatedly.
Lamb, who was watching the show from the sidelines, almost couldn't keep his expression in check; his face twitched, and he was just about to burst out laughing.
"Alright, alright, quickly help me unload these stones. I'll stew bird meat for you guys tonight."
Lai changed the subject, choosing to win over the two younger men with stewed bird meat.
It's truly pitiful for those swaggering red rockbirds in the shed; who knows which lucky one will become a victim of Ray's knife tonight.
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the lovely readers who voted for me or watered my plants between 2024-02-07 12:41:03 and 2024-02-07 20:24:26!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Raincoat and Mr. Green (3 bottles);
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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