Condes Mountains
There are three destinations from the snow slope through the silver fir forest, none of which are the way down the mountain.
One path goes northwest, which is a shortcut that bypasses the current mountain and reaches the nearby shorter snow-capped mountain.
The terrain over there is flat, and most climbers here choose to climb to the top of this peak first in order to adapt to climbing higher peaks.
The other one leads to the Stone Forest in the north direction, which has experienced avalanches and landslides, and many huge rocks have fallen from the top of the mountain.
The stones have been wrapped in soil and beaten by wind and snow for many years, and their shapes are no longer the same as they were originally. Instead, they have been eroded into a different shape, showing a unique natural landscape.
From a distance, it looks like a dense forest composed of many different trees.
In addition, the area is so large that if someone hides in it, it will be difficult to be discovered.
Even if they are discovered and pursued, they can easily escape by taking advantage of the terrain.
As for the remaining east side, it is the platform where the expedition team once saw the Golden Mountain in the Sunlight. Further ahead is a cliff and there is no way to go. The poachers who have left will not go there.
So the only possible places are northwest and due north.
Dasong hesitated about the first two options. "Do you think they have a camp on the nearby snowy mountain, or are they hiding in the complex rocky forest?"
They didn't have much time, so the skinned mink skins had to be placed somewhere, waiting to be transported to the town when enough were collected.
In order to prevent more upright-eared martens from being harmed, people must be found as soon as possible.
Ding Can reached into his coat pocket, took it out, and opened his palm to reveal a shiny coin inside. "Let's leave our fate to it. If it lands heads, we'll go northwest, and tails, we'll go due north."
"Will this work?" Dasong didn't expect that she would pin her hopes on a coin at this time.
"I can't choose based on the traces. It's just a guess. Maybe it would be better to let God decide."
This coin is the item she just exchanged in the system: the preferential coin.
There are two sides to a coin. When faced with a dilemma, you can use the coin's guidance to choose the side that is more beneficial to the user.
This so-called benefit to the user does not simply mean that the props will give the answer you want wherever you want.
For example, if Ding Can wanted to find the path the poachers took, he could say what he was thinking while tossing the coin.
The props will automatically identify the most suitable route for her current situation under the premise of protecting her personal safety and display it.
In fact, using props does not necessarily mean that you will choose the correct direction. Ding Can already has a rough guess and judgment about the result in his mind.
Once they meet the poachers, they have the mink fur in their hands, which means they have come across evidence of the crime. In order to avoid catching the poachers red-handed, there will inevitably be a fight and accidental shooting.
This means that the props can identify dangerous information.
The side of the coin that is flipped will point you in the direction that will not lead you to the poachers.
According to this basis, if they just go in the opposite direction, they will reach where they really want to go.
"Well, now we can only leave it to fate." Dasong had no other choice but to hope that the mountain god could protect the creatures on the snow-capped mountains at this time so that no more upright-eared martens would be harmed.
Ding Can bent his index finger, placed his thumb on the tip of his finger, and placed the coin on top of his thumb. He glanced at the person in front of him and said, "Then I'll start. Heads means I'm going north, and tails means I'm going northwest."
Dasong nodded, staring at the coin.
With the pressure of his fingertips, Ding Can flicked his thumb upwards, and the coin spun at high speed into the air and then fell down rapidly.
The two of them raised their heads and then lowered them again, staring intently, paying attention to the state of the coin falling on the snow.
But the result surprised them. The coin did not flip to any side. Instead, it stood upright on the ground, not tilting in any direction.
Dasong slowly squatted down: "What's going on?"
Ding Can was also confused. She couldn't choose the props, which meant that the two directions she had just silently recited in her mind had the same risk factor according to the system.
Could it be that poachers have no intention of harming anyone? But when Myron encountered the "Cheetah" people before, there was clearly an exchange of fire.
"It can't be that they split into two groups, with people going to both places." Dasong muttered softly.
But I felt so frustrated that even the gods were unwilling to grant such a small request.
Ding Can stared at the coin standing upright on the ground and felt that this should not be a bug in the system. There was no need for the "Cheetah" people to act separately, so there would not be poachers on both sides at the same time.
Maybe... it's not because both directions are equally dangerous, but because they are equally safe.
In addition to these two options, there is also an option that they all tacitly ignored at the beginning, which is to go to the cliff in the north direction.
She had a preconceived notion that since the mink fur had to be stored or transported down the mountain, it was impossible to go there, and the coin of choice was a disguised hint to her.
Ding Can quickly decided: "Let's go north."
"Is it reliable?" Dasong was actually already relieved in his heart. It was a one in ten million chance.
If the coin falls on the snow, the lower half will fall into the snow at the moment of falling, and there will be fluffy and thick snow accumulated on the front and back sides, which may cause it to stand upright.
But it happened that there was not much snow in this part of the forest. There were only fallen leaves and flat soil under their feet.
It is a fantasy to stand steadily on hard and flat ground without any support on the sides.
Isn't this another revelation from God?
Ding Can looked at the endless snow-capped mountains in the distance. A large amount of clouds lingered on the top of the mountain. No matter how strong the wind was at the highest point, it could only make the clouds move slowly, and the white mist formed a fairyland-like scene.
"I believe in God's plan."
Da Song took a big step forward first: "Then let's not delay any longer."
The two men walked north along the silver fir forest. After walking for a few hundred meters, they came across a muddy field caused by melted snow. They found half a footprint on the edge, which further confirmed the correctness of this decision.
They were always on the road, and the severe coldness on the snow-capped mountains had dissipated a lot. Ding Can no longer felt cold, but his body became heavier.
"Are you okay? Do you want to rest?" Dasong's throat was a little dry and sore, and he swallowed a few times.
Ding Can waved his hand: "No, finding the person is more important."
After they came out of the woods, they saw two footprints in the snow again, one deep and one shallow.
Now the field of vision is wide, and in order not to alert the enemy, the two of them not only have to follow the trail forward, but also have to lower their bodies and pay attention to the movements in the distance.
The sound of the wind in my ears was much louder than before. I could see that the distance to the cliff was getting closer and closer, less than ten meters away. It was a hurricane swirling up from the mountain stream at the bottom of the cliff.
"The footprints stop here. Could it be that he fell to the bottom of the cliff?"
The snow was slippery and the two men were not familiar with the terrain, so they didn't dare to get too close. They stopped one meter away and saw the last footprints disappearing in front of them.
Dasong leaned forward and looked forward. The cliff was bottomless. The side of the cliff near them was covered with broken rocks with smooth cut surfaces. Even if they stepped on it, there was no place to put their feet.
There were a few plants growing, but their roots were very thin and didn't look like they could be grasped or climbed on.
It looked like humans were completely unable to walk or move on it, but the footprints disappeared right here, and there was no way to deny it.
Dasong lowered his eyes and took a closer look. "Could it be that they did it on purpose and are actually going back and heading somewhere else?"
"This possibility cannot be ruled out." Ding Can squatted down and touched a footprint next to him with a few fingers. It was pressed very firmly and covered with a thin layer of snow that had just fallen.
However, she did not have the professional knowledge in this area and did not know how to determine whether the force was applied forward or backward, so she had no way of knowing whether this guess was true.
"It's still unlikely," Dasong frowned. "Carrying so many mink skins would be quite heavy. They wouldn't be able to take such a rugged route."
The two men were staring at the bottom of the cliff in a daze when they heard a very obvious sound of a trigger being pulled from behind them.
Ding Can suddenly turned around and saw that it was a burly man with a hunting rifle resting on his shoulder. He was squinting his eyes and looking at him mischievously.
Dasong reacted immediately and was about to take off the gun on his back when he heard rapid gunshots. The gunshots flew past his toes, leaving small marks of gunpowder burns on the snow.
"Don't move, or I might miss with the next shot." As the man spoke, he raised the tip of the gun slightly and looked at the direction, aiming it at Ding Can's heart.
No one would think that he had accidentally shot it just now. He was probably aiming intentionally to give a warning.
Dasong was worried that he would really shoot Ding Can regardless of the consequences, so he slowly raised his hand and said, "Don't be impulsive."
"Who are you?" Ding Can took a short breath. Because of walking continuously, there was a fragile red on his cheeks, and he looked very non-aggressive.
The man raised the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were like the abyss: "Little guys, you should have heard what old Myron said."
Dasong recalled the miserable state of the mink group and spoke through gritted teeth, "You are from Cheetah. Where did you hide those skinned mink skins?"
"I can't tell you for nothing. You have to pay something if you want to accomplish anything." The man's words meant to acknowledge his identity.
Ding Can's eyes moved slightly downwards and he saw a small tattoo sticking out from the edge of his collar, but he couldn't make out the pattern clearly.
But she remembered that Myron had said that Dave, the man he had first fought, had a leopard head tattoo on the left side of his neck.
Her appearance was very similar to what he described, with single eyelids, narrow eyes, thin lips, and slightly sparse teeth when she smiled, like some ferocious beast waiting to hunt.
He is so vicious that you wouldn't dare approach him if you met him on the road.
She reached for her hunting rifle, but before she even touched it, Dasong started to get anxious: "What are you doing?"
I didn't see anyone pointing a gun at her, so how could she dare to attack her now?
"Don't worry, nothing will happen." Ding Can spoke to him in a low voice, but his eyes were looking straight in Dave's direction. He slowly took the gun and threw it directly on the snow.
Then, showing the attitude of a weak person, he took a step forward.
"Ding Can!" Although Dasong didn't know what she wanted to do, he subconsciously thought that this was an act that was extremely disregarding of personal safety. He wanted to pull her back, but he didn't have time to grab the corner of her clothes.
Those are poachers who have just killed wild animals. What else can't they do?
"Mr. Dave, we've heard about your deeds a long time ago."
Ding Can put his hands behind his waist and shook them imperceptibly, signaling Dasong to stay put for the time being.
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