Chapter 48 New Discovery of Green Skin, Exploration
In just one day, by dusk the starch had almost dried.
Lai brought them into the house and ground them into a fine powder with a stone mortar and pestle, so that he could use them directly when making noodles.
If you do the math, he hasn't gone to the market to sell anything for four days since the harvest festival.
There are still some chestnuts left at home, and fearing they will spoil if left together, Lai takes them out to dry in the sun every day.
These chestnuts are definitely not enough to sell at the market, so Lai decided to go up the mountain tomorrow to "buy more" and see if he could find anything else besides chestnuts and pine nuts.
During the harvest festival, more and more people came to sell chestnuts. If it weren't for the sugar-roasted chestnuts and roasted pine nuts, Lai might not have been able to outsell them.
“Neil, your brother is going up the mountain tomorrow. Can you stay home?”
"Yes, brother, please be careful!"
"Okay, definitely."
On the day of the barbecue, Lai got a map of the mountain from Reese.
Although it's not very detailed, only marking the locations of some landmarks, it's exactly what Ray needs right now, making this map incredibly useful.
That evening, Iru was notified, and the next morning, Lai drove a mule cart carrying Iru, Kai, and the three people from the previous trip, setting off precisely at the same time.
Lai knew the way up the mountain like the back of his hand.
Because of their previous cooperation, the goblins were not as reserved as the first time, and Lai was able to chat with them briefly along the way.
How are you all doing now?
"Ray asked."
"Not bad. There are plenty of wild fruits and vegetables in the forest now, enough to ensure we can eat our fill every day."
The eldest of the three goblins answered, his voice still mumbled, his Common Tongue not as fluent as Iru's, but he could roughly express his meaning.
Do they know you're helping me with my work?
When Lai said "them," he meant the other goblins, and he wanted to get a sense of their attitude from them.
"I think they probably all know."
In fact, because Iru led them to work for Laiyi, he was already considered a traitor by some extreme goblins.
But they didn't care.
We'll each live our own lives; at worst, we'll cut ties. Only those who suffer when they have nothing to eat truly know the pain.
Considered a "traitor"?
What a joke! From the moment they left the forest, they never thought about going back.
Working for Rye not only means you can earn money, but you can also stockpile food for winter. Such a cushy job—only a fool wouldn't take it!
“Mr. Victor, we have a few goblins we know who also want to work for you. I wonder if you have any plans to increase the harvest recently.”
The goblin asked somewhat nervously.
Iru glanced at the three goblins sitting opposite him, but said nothing.
They asked him this question yesterday, but Iru wasn't sure and didn't reply.
"Nothing for now. If there are any other jobs later, I'll have Yiru contact you."
"Okay, okay, thank you, Mr. Victor."
When they reached the foot of the mountain, Lai parked the mule cart at the spot where the autumn hunting team had originally been stationed.
The wooden stakes used for tethering livestock and various traces of human activity remain here.
"I left two goblins and Kai to pick chestnuts in the chestnut grove this morning, while I took Iru and another goblin to explore the surrounding area and see if there were any other nuts."
"good."
The goblins responded in unison.
"You guys discuss who should go with us."
The three goblins discussed it and then sent out the strongest one.
"My name is Karu."
"..."
Lai discovered that the goblins of Iru's generation belonged to the "Fan Lu" generation.
"Hello, Karu."
With their tools and sacks in hand, the group headed up the mountain.
At a fork in the road, Lai, along with Iru and Karu, separated from the others.
Lai walked forward while looking at the map, occasionally making marks on the map to record the main plants and environment.
Iru and Karu made full use of the goblin's advantages, using their keen sense of smell and agile limbs to search everywhere.
Trees stand tall, and weeds grow rampant.
The surrounding area consisted of ordinary trees and various weeds, occasionally interspersed with wildflowers and various seeds that had not yet grown.
"Be careful, there are magical beasts on this mountain."
Lei gave her some words of advice, still worried.
As the strongest fighter here, he had to be constantly vigilant about his surroundings. This meant he couldn't look after his companions, so Ray didn't bring Neil with him on this expedition.
"Understood, Mr. Victor."
"OK."
The three continued walking, following the map for over an hour, and finally arrived at Rhys's first marker.
There is a large, iconic rock here, with thick hemp ropes and red cloths tied to it to help people find their way.
When Reese gave the map to Ray, he told him that he had seen walnuts about a few hundred meters away from the rock.
"There are walnut trees around, so pay close attention to whether there are any trees or the ground without green husks."
One person and two groups of elite soldiers split into three teams, exploring in different directions, and agreed to meet at the rock every half hour.
Few people travel through the woods; the weeds are thick and there are no paths. One must also watch out for annoying little insects and snakes that may be coiled up somewhere, sleeping. Progress is extremely difficult.
Especially those burrs, they will inevitably get stuck on any person or animal that passes by.
After searching for more than half an hour, Lai still couldn't find the walnuts and returned empty-handed.
Returning to the stone, Iru and Karu still couldn't find it. This time, they changed direction and continued their search.
Another half hour passed, and Karu showed Laiyi two fruits whose outer skin was already wrinkled and somewhat blackened.
Lai used a knife to make a cross-shaped cut on the fruit, then easily pried open the outer skin with his hands, revealing the walnut inside.
"It's this one."
The atmosphere immediately lightened when the walnuts were finally found.
"Let's go take a look."
Karu led the way, with Lai and Iru following behind him.
Ray soon spotted a tall walnut tree. The tree was as thick as a thigh, at least twenty years old, and covered in fallen green husks, indicating it wasn't in good condition.
It's late in the walnut season now, so they can still pick some. If it's any later, they'll only be able to collect the ones on the ground.
Lai picked one up from the ground, cracked it open, and found that the walnut inside wasn't the common, round and plump kind; it was more like the kind that people who collect antiques often handle and play with.
The exterior is bumpy and rough, and some parts are sharp.
wrong.
The walnuts Karu just brought are the kind where you can eat the kernels; there must be other walnut trees around.
Ray began searching around and finally found some shorter walnut trees with green fruit around the big walnut tree.
He cut one open and saw that it was indeed the one Ray wanted. Only then did the expression on his face relax.
"Pick the walnuts from the lower walnut trees, but don't pick or collect them from that tree."
Lai pointed to the ornamental walnut tree.
The three of them started picking walnuts.
There aren't many walnut trees here, only a dozen or so. Adding the ones that fell to the ground and were still relatively intact, I managed to fill three large and half bags.
Seeing that there were no more walnuts to pick, Lai filled a small bag with ornamental walnuts and put it in a burlap sack.
The three men, carrying sacks, circled the animal traps they had set before leaving and returned to the mule cart.
The three bags of walnuts were poured together, filling two bags to the brim.
Walnut trees contain mild toxins, so the green husks should not be eaten directly.
It's so bitter and easily stains things dark, so I doubt anyone would be so foolish as to eat it right away.
After tying the two bags of walnuts together and loading them into the car, Lai led them to the chestnut grove.
The three goblins had finished picking three bags of chestnuts and it was almost time for a break. A few more minutes wouldn't make a difference, so Ray let them rest.
The two adult goblins ate a few raw chestnuts and then started picking their own portions from the bag.
Karu wasn't idle either. Even though Lai promised him an extra twenty pounds of chestnuts because he took him to find other mountain products and delayed his rest time, Karu still joined the picking team.
Nobody ever thinks they have too much grain reserves, right?
In the afternoon, the goblins continued picking chestnuts.
Lai wandered around with the map, trying to complete the lower half of the map—from the foot of the mountain to the mountainside—as soon as possible. He also wanted to find some new mountain produce.
The map was improved somewhat in one afternoon, but the mountain goods, Laiyi, were never found again.
It was almost time, so the group headed back home.
Wages were settled at the tunnel entrance that day, and Lai gave Kai a silver coin as well, since the little goblin hadn't been idle all day.
The moon was bright and the stars were few. They agreed to continue climbing the mountain three days later, and Lai hurried home by bus.
Besides doing business tomorrow, I also need to pay Neil's tuition for the second half of the year, so time is very tight.
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The author's note: Scalding lava and rocks were ejected, instantly destroying the island's ecosystem.
The lava flowed along the mountainside, spreading outwards for several days and nights. The surrounding seas were affected, resulting in the deaths of countless marine creatures and causing significant pollution.
The giant dragon, who lived far away on Dragon Island, flew for several days after hearing the booming explosion and finally arrived at the giant volcano.
Thick smoke billowed, making it impossible to open one's eyes, and the smell of sulfur lingered in the murky air.
The dragon ignored all of this.
His hard scales are his best armor, able to withstand all harm.
The dragon flew to the crater and saw what looked like a white egg in the gushing lava. Unsure what it was, it moved closer to examine it.
With a crack, the white egg shattered. A small, fiery red figure flew out of the lava.
His hair was like a burning flame.
"Who are you?" the dragon asked.
"Ah!..." The little thing rattled off a bunch of things, but the dragon didn't understand a word.
He tried to grab the little thing with his claws in frustration, but it dodged away in an instant.
The dragon had no choice but to patiently explain to it, and the little creature finally obeyed and flew back to Dragon Island with it.
Upon arriving at Dragon Island, the little creature was immediately surrounded by the dragons. After some discussion, the clan chief, who was the longest-lived, was summoned, and the chief recognized the little creature at a glance.
"He is a fire elementalist."
"That's what the clan chief said."
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