Chapter 102 Exploring the Forest, Leeks, Gossip
Lai left without looking back, and the seemingly obedient little elf still quietly followed.
Reaching the area where the ginkgo trees were located was already quite a distance. Lai didn't continue along yesterday's route; after walking for a while, he heard the sound of water and followed the direction of the sound.
Perhaps following the direction of the river would lead to the end of the forest. He guessed there must be a mountain there, and maybe a small waterfall, otherwise where would the river come from?
The journey was relatively safe; on the way, they encountered a small group of wild sheep with their young.
The lead ram had a pair of horns that looked quite fierce, so he deliberately walked around it so as not to disturb their rest.
Some of the early-maturing wild grasses in the woods have already blossomed, with tiny flowers the size of sesame seeds—white, blue, yellow, and purple—dotting the lush green grass, looking absolutely lovely.
Tiny flower buds have also sprouted on the tangled branches of the berry bushes, and by summer there will be delicious berries to eat. They can be dried or made into jam for storage, and then used to make delicious jam bread in the fall and winter.
A Gulu Beast, accompanied by a dozen or so smaller Gulu Beasts, was happily burrowing in the ground. When it saw someone approaching, it let out a warning whimper, and the smaller Gulu Beasts immediately scurried into the nearby low bushes.
The larger one pawed at the ground with its hind hooves, its intentions clearly hostile, and charged straight at Lei.
The Gulu beast had thick hide, fangs, and was aggressive. Moreover, it was a mother with cubs, so Lai didn't want a direct confrontation and tried to avoid it as much as possible.
Little did anyone know that this Gulu Beast seemed determined to see Lai as a dangerous individual who could harm itself and its cubs, and became increasingly reckless in its attacks, determined not to leave until it had hit someone.
The little elf anxiously watched the scene below, pacing back and forth, wanting to rush over and rescue the trapped Rae.
Just as they were about to act, they saw Lai condense an energy ball in his palm and face off against the Gulu Beast that was charging at them again.
Control the energy, and you can knock it out.
Lei thought to himself.
The wood element was spinning rapidly within the energy sphere. The Gulu Beast seemed to sense the danger before it and tried to slow down and stop its attack.
However, due to its excessive weight, the inertia of its body propelled it forward, making it impossible to stop.
The Gulu Beast stared in terror, its tense expression clearly visible on its face.
Just as the Gulu Beast was about to face Laiyi head-on, it suddenly turned around in a strange manner and fled from there as if its life depended on it.
It kept whimpering as it ran, as if something deadly was chasing it.
The little Gulu beast, hiding in the bushes, heard its mother's call and dashed off in a flash. Dust billowed up, leaving only a mess on the ground.
It's hard to imagine how this Gulu Beast, with its enormous body, could turn around so quickly; its agile movements, though seemingly incongruous, also reveal a touch of humor.
Lei couldn't help but laugh and slammed the energy ball into the ground.
With a bang, a shallow crater half a meter deep was blasted into the ground.
A glossy gray squirrel was tossed into the air, then slammed to the ground with a thud due to gravity, lying belly up, already unconscious.
"Sorry, it was an accident, an accident."
Lei apologized in a low, insincere voice.
The little sprite, eager to save the person, couldn't dodge in time, and Lei had already noticed it. He didn't chase it away, but pretended not to see it, ignoring its presence and continuing on his way.
The distance gradually shortened, and the sound of water became clearer. After walking for a while longer, they finally saw the source of the sound—a rushing stream.
The water slapped against the rocks, creating large white splashes and a splashing sound, making the whole river look very dangerous.
The fact that the silvery-white fish are not jumping on the surface of the water indicates that the water quality here is very good and there is a lot of algae and food.
Lai walked upstream against the current.
The river meanders and sometimes takes a longer route.
The sun hung high in the sky, baking the entire continent. The rushing water brought coolness to Lai, and he didn't know how far he had gone until he came to a thick tree lying across the river.
The tree is about 50 centimeters in diameter, and the bark on the side closest to the river has been washed away by the river.
It looks like it could support an adult to walk across without any problem, but there's water on the tree, making it look slippery and potentially dangerous.
After thinking it over, Lai decided to use the thick tree to cross the river to the other side, since he might not find anything further ahead.
He stepped onto the tree trunk and carefully made his way across, one step at a time. He slipped and stumbled a little, but quickly regained his balance.
The view on the other side is no different from this side, except that the plants look more lush.
The little elf didn't follow this time. It hesitated by the river for a while, looking pitifully at Lai who had already crossed the river.
"No!"
Ray didn't understand what He meant. Did He not want to abandon Him? Or did He not want to come this way?
He didn't delve any further; in any case, it was good that the small creature could remain in the forest. He turned around, chose a direction that looked pleasing to the eye, and strode into a place he had never been before.
The forest was deep and quiet, and because there were no roads, walking was somewhat difficult.
Logically speaking, one shouldn't venture into such a remote forest alone. But Ray didn't like troubling others, and with magic and weapons at his disposal, he boldly ventured out to explore on his own.
The plants were a mess, and there was no doubt that they might be hiding snakes, insects, or rodents. Even though he sensed a very strong wood element on the unfamiliar plants, Lai didn't dare to make any rash moves.
The further we walked, the more remote we became, and after walking for an hour or two, we still hadn't reached the end.
There's still one piece of bread left from the breakfast I brought this morning, and only half a bag of water left in my water bottle.
River water in the wild is often unclean, and drinking it raw can easily lead to parasitic infections. Since parasites cannot be removed surgically or with medication here, people are hesitant to use untreated outdoor water unless absolutely necessary.
With only a little food and water, Lai walked for over an hour. All he could see were tall trees and dense vegetation; the surrounding landscape seemed unchanged.
Ray began to doubt whether his decision to cross the river was the right one.
It wasn't entirely fruitless along the way.
Because of its unique smell, Ray discovered a patch of fennel in the woods, as well as several clumps of chives.
Chives are an annual plant that grows almost every season and has an extremely strong growth capacity. They can be used to make dumplings or stir-fries.
As the old saying goes, "Eat leeks in spring and ginger in summer." Lai doesn't have any dietary restrictions and doesn't mind the slightly pungent taste of leeks.
He hadn't seen any chives for sale in the market after arriving here, and he assumed they weren't available here. Little did he know that no one had yet discovered that chives were an edible vegetable.
There were only four or five clumps here, and Lai tried his best not to damage their root systems, digging them all out and putting them in his basket.
Fennel is quite common, used in dumplings or meat sauces, giving it a unique flavor. People either love it or hate it, finding its smell pungent.
Lai neither liked nor disliked fennel. He only grew a small patch at home, and when it grew, he would cut it, chop it up, and mix it into the meat filling to make dumplings for a couple of meals. Just to change things up a bit.
After harvesting the chives, Lai decided to head straight back.
Staying in the forest any longer wouldn't lead to any end. Besides, the sun was getting strong, and we hadn't taken much food with us in the rush this morning; this exploration was just a spur-of-the-moment decision.
Lai returned to the riverbank and this time followed the river's course, going wherever it led him. The village was downstream, and he was certain he could find his way back if he kept going in that direction.
Sure enough, after walking for several hours, the surrounding scenery gradually became familiar.
The familiar deep pit, the familiar warning ropes, and the familiar stone slabs.
It turned out that the woods in the village and this area outside the village were connected, and Lai couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.
He gazed intently at the familiar yet unfamiliar woodland, where unknown dangers lurked, like a Damocles' sword hovering high above the village.
This matter should be resolved, and it needs to be resolved; everyone knows that.
However, everyone's abilities are limited, and they are unable to solve the problem. The mages from the Rosen Town Mage Association came before, but they were also powerless to help.
Who can save them?
In those remote towns, the nobles who held wealth and power could...
But they wouldn't go to such great lengths to eliminate these mutated plants just because a few hundred people were saved, wasting their resources and sending high-ranking knights and mages.
High-ranking bounty hunters are also eligible.
However, the small village, which had just had a tunnel opened to the outside world, was still in poverty and could not afford their high commissions.
So what else can we do?
What can we do?
Unless they leave their homeland and the land they have lived on and deeply love for hundreds of years.
It's time to go back; it's already past noon.
Lei snapped out of his thoughts and started his journey home.
After the spring planting season ended, the village resumed having two meals a day.
Lai was used to having three meals a day, and he would prepare some food every day at noon no matter what. If word got out in the village, he would inevitably be said to be wasteful and extravagant.
But Rae never cared about any of that.
Some families in the village have planted low trees outside their yards to provide shade, and two- or three-meter-long logs are always placed under the trees for villagers to gather, rest, and chat.
At this time, five or six people gathered on the wooden plank outside the clan elder's house, chatting and laughing, observing the passing villagers, and occasionally inviting them to sit down and chat together.
"Lay's back from hunting in the woods."
An older woman who looked somewhat familiar asked with a smile as she saw Lai Yi returning from outside the village.
Lei nodded politely to her.
"We didn't hunt, we just dug up some wild vegetables."
"You're so diligent, unlike my son who just stays at home all day waiting to be served food. I should let him go out with you sometime and gain some experience."
“Okay, just have him come to my house. I’ll bring him along when I have time.”
Lei smiled and responded, without directly refusing.
After all, he still needs to live in the village, and maintaining a reasonably good relationship with the villagers is quite important.
"Auntie, I'm going back now. I left early this morning and haven't fed the livestock yet."
"Hey, let's hurry back, or we'll starve."
After saying goodbye, Lai went straight back. The villagers sitting on the log watched him leave, and only started talking again when he was far away and could no longer be heard, bringing up a new topic about Lai.
"Sigh, they say children without mothers mature early. Victor and his wife are gone, leaving an older child to raise a younger one. I don't know how they manage to get by."
The woman who had just spoken to Lei sighed.
"They're doing pretty well, aren't they? They even bought a Del Raston for transportation. I've heard it cost them so many gold coins."
The man gestured two with his hand.
"What, you want to buy one too? If your husband works outside for a few more years, he can afford not only that animal, but even a cow. Just go and buy one, it'll save him a lot of work and save him from having to get up before dawn every day to rush to town."
Someone chimed in.
“If we were rich, we would have bought it long ago, but our family’s financial situation is nowhere near that of Maggie’s. They can buy an adult Del Raston for a few gold coins without hesitation. It’s very convenient for hauling goods, doing chores, and going to town to buy groceries.”
Speaking of Maggie's family, the expressions of the women sitting and chatting were neither good nor bad.
The villagers all knew in private that her daughter had received a lot of gold coins when she got married.
He went to his married daughter to beg for money, and to find a wife for his runaway son. The family was in turmoil, with major arguments every three days and minor arguments every two days.
These are things that are out in the open, but everyone in the village knows them in private; they just don't talk about them openly.
If Maggie hadn't brought her niece over, I doubt any girl in the village would have wanted to marry into her family.
“A few days ago, I heard Maggie say that her niece was pregnant and had specifically consulted a shaman, who said that this pregnancy was guaranteed to be a boy.”
"Pregnant? Is it the eldest son's or the second son's?"
These words were spoken in a sarcastic and ambiguous tone, and the people around burst into laughter, their faces displaying knowing expressions.
Lai returned home and dug a few holes in a corner of the backyard where it wouldn't be in the way. He then planted the chives he had brought back, roots and all, in the ground.
Wild chives have a strong odor that attracts many small animals to mark their habitat, so it's best not to eat the first two harvests of chives, as they are difficult to clean properly.
Lai cut off the chive leaves about a fist's width from the ground and fed them to the red wildbird.
The red rockbirds wouldn't eat, and Lei shrugged.
This won't cause any problems; we can just remove it when cleaning the bird enclosure.
It's time to hatch eggs again.
Lai's family has both male and female birds, and most of the eggs they lay are breeding eggs. In addition, they are well-fed and large, so families in the village who want to incubate eggs are willing to buy them from him.
Lai sold some of the eggs cheaply to a well-regarded aunt in the village, and even gave her five eggs for free, on the condition that she would help Lai hatch twenty bird eggs.
The aunt readily agreed, and the Lai family's bird meat supply for the year was secured.
The puppies were whimpering in their den.
They have opened their eyes and can see things now.
However, its leg strength is still insufficient, and it often drags its two hind legs back and forth by the doghouse.
Big Yellow patiently took care of the two puppies. When the puppies ran too far, Big Yellow would gently pick them up by the scruff of their necks and bring them back to their den.
Dahuang has plenty of milk, so Lai doesn't have to worry about the puppies much.
I don't know if it's because taking care of the cubs is too exhausting, but although the food is good and I get to eat meat, Da Huang's energy has been very low lately.
Neil said it often sleeps for hours on end, and even the puppies vying for its milk can't wake it.
It must be tired, so Ray decided to get it two big bones to gnaw on. But things didn't go as he expected.
-----------------------
Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:58:44 on January 1, 2024 and 08:19:53 on January 3, 2024!
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: Fog Harp 2 bottles;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com