The victims of the beast tide have arrived. The orcs are the children of Xia, don't...
"Is there new news from the mountain habitat?" Jiang Yunlan looked up from the documents on her desk and looked at Yan Dahe who had entered the room.
Iwata shook his head and handed her an unsealed letter, saying, "It's a letter from the Forest Lake habitat. The village chief there said that the habitat has taken in many orcs who have fled, and that their food reserves are running low and expected to run out in twenty-six days. They are requesting support from the main village."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yunlan quickly unfolded the letter she had received. After reading its contents, she stood up, grabbed 022 from beside her, and said as she walked out, "I'm going to discuss this with Grey Honey now."
She had only taken two steps when she turned back, picked up the documents on the table, ran into the room where Maple Sugar was, shoved the documents into Maple Sugar's hands, and quickly retreated to the central left room.
Maple Syrup heard footsteps approaching and looked up in confusion. She saw Lan's back flash before her eyes, and a stack of brand-new documents awaiting processing appeared beside her.
"What happened? How could Lan be so busy today that she doesn't have time to deal with paperwork?" She flipped through the documents she had recently given to Lan, her eyes filled with confusion as she looked at Iwata Kazuya, who appeared at the door.
"Orcs have appeared in the Forest Lake habitat due to the beast tide. Lan is probably worried about the orcs there, and the possible beast tide that might occur," Iwata said.
After being blessed by the spirits, the grassland and mountain habitats gradually became more and more habitable places, with new migrating wild animals appearing almost every season. Fortunately, there was a food chain between them, and no tragedy of any species becoming rampant occurred. The vibrant land was enough to support Xia and the wild animals to survive here.
The only thing that troubled the Xia beastmen was that the number of dangerous creatures around them was increasing day by day, and warriors often had to lead adventurers to clear out the dangers and prevent too many beast groups from forming a beast tide.
The grasslands and mountains developed earlier and had the strength to wipe out large wild beast groups, thus avoiding a second beast tide attack. However, the Forest Lake habitat is a newly established habitat, and the wild beasts present there were already more numerous than in the grasslands and mountains in the past. It is highly likely that it will be the second place in the Xia tribe to suffer a beast tide attack.
"Grey Honey, I'm worried about them over there. I'll lead the team to escort the supplies over this time." Jiang Yunlan reviewed the finalized supply list, making a final confirmation.
She hadn't planned to go to Forest Lake anytime soon, but the large number of new orcs and the beast tide that had arrived there were really worrying her.
Grey Honey, sitting next to her, responded without looking up, and continued, "We can't include too many orc warriors in the selection. Most of the orcs who can come with me need to stay there until the next flowering season to protect the Forest Lake habitat. We need to give the new orcs time to adapt to summer and develop Forest Lake."
Grey Honey understood her meaning and picked up her pen to write the announcement. The deadline for applying for this mission is the day the supplies are prepared, which is tomorrow night.
The newly released urgent mission notice was posted on the bulletin board, attracting the attention of all the Summer Beastmen.
Before long, news that Lan was leading a team to the Forest Lake habitat spread throughout the grassland habitat. Knowing that the guard mission required them to establish a new habitat, many orcs who met the application requirements still signed up.
In the tribe, missions are always obtained through scrambling. And since this mission is with Lan, the difficulty of getting a mission has instantly doubled.
The night the announcement was posted, the outing team was full.
The orcs who successfully secured the quests happily packed their bags. A few cheeky orcs, however, would smugly boast about their supplies for the Forest Lake to those who hadn't gotten the quests. Then, because they were too smug, the angry owner of the food stall refused to buy any food from them.
The stall owner blocked his way with his food and pointed to the road leading away from Baiwu Street, saying, "Go ahead."
The flexible orc realized that he couldn't buy the food he wanted from other vendors, so he immediately apologized and said that he really needed it. He then went to great lengths to buy the food from the angry vendor.
This mission is a long-term deployment, and he really needs the essential rations from the food stalls. He would be truly sad if he lost this food.
He happily handed over the copper coins and took away the dry rations, unaware that the stall owner of the food stall had packed up and left the street of all things after he left.
The stall owner pushed her cart outside the central building, took out the dry rations she had just retrieved from home, and turned to look. Besides her, other food stall owners and other orcs had come here.
They were also holding homemade rations or ingredients, which they were stuffing into the hands of Jiang Yunlan and the other orcs, including Huimi.
"This is food I'm giving to the Forest Lake Orcs," they said.
Jiang Yunlan did not refuse their donation, accepting the food while writing down their names. Soon, the orc standing in front of Jiang Yunlan became the owner of the food stall.
"You've come to deliver food too?" Jiang Yunlan asked with a smile.
She laughed heartily, put down a large bag of dry food, and said matter-of-factly, "I heard from the diners that this mission could donate food to the food-scarce Senhu Habitat, so I brought all the dry food from the stall."
“Hunger is unbearable. I know how it feels, so I wanted to bring some food over so that the orcs who have just lost their habitat wouldn’t have to go hungry for long,” she said with a smile, her eyes filled with concern.
It was as if she felt sorry for the new people she had never met, and also as if she felt sorry for herself before she came to Xia.
The orcs who came to donate food agreed, saying, "Yes, hunger is too painful. We hope that those who have lost their habitat can all have enough to eat in our Xia tribe."
Scattered rations and wild animal meat piled up, gradually filling the two supply wagons.
Regardless of whether the orcs who donated food were purely motivated by contribution points, Jiang Yunlan was happy. This was a good start. She wanted all the orcs in Xia to understand that mutual help was the best way to overcome difficulties.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and Jiang Yunlan set off with the food donated by the beastmen and various supplies prepared by the grassland for Senhu.
The orcs in the grasslands knew that the caravan was setting off today, and they spontaneously stood on both sides of the road leading out of their habitat, eagerly anticipating the caravan's arrival.
As the convoy carrying several vehicles of supplies approached, the orcs on either side of the convoy bid farewell to their families and friends once again.
“I know you have a fiery temper. When you go, try not to get into conflicts with the new people. Otherwise, you'll get punished and won't be able to sleep at night because you'll be so angry.”
"Be careful on the road, watch out for wild beasts and the orcs of Apocalypse. You have a gentle nature, so if anyone bullies you, be sure to tell your captain. If all else fails, go tell Lan; Lan won't let you suffer in vain."
"Once the hot season ends, it will be fruit season. Go there and farm well, hunt a lot of game, and remember to listen to Lan..."
"..."
Concern and encouragement from different voices resounded across the sky.
Jiang Yunlan sat atop the feathered horse, hearing the orcs calling her name. Holding the reins, she smiled and responded, riding away amidst the orcs' deafening farewell.
On her first journey to the Forest Lake habitat, she was accompanied only by two elves: Freya and Agni.
She is now an orc blessed by the ice spirit Freya, the wood spirit Sveta, the wind spirit Sylph, the fire spirit Agni, and the water spirit Belial who remained on the grasslands. It can be said that her strength has already surpassed that of newly born elves, approaching that of older elves.
“Lan, although your elemental reserves are not as good as mine, I will soon be no match for you either,” Agni said, sitting in Jiang Yunlan’s pocket. “Your progress is beyond my imagination. I remember you have only obtained the power of nature for a few snow seasons.”
It's a spirit that emerged at the end of the Age of Calamity, less than half the time Sveta was born. But its strength is two-thirds that of Sveta. If Lan can defeat it, after a few more snow seasons, it should be able to defeat both Sveta and Sylph.
Jiang Yunlan was a little embarrassed by the praise. She looked into the distance and smiled, saying, "One day before, I suddenly learned to absorb natural elements in my dreams. Because my body was always full of energy, I tried to develop various ways to use the power of nature, and gradually I was able to use several powers in combination."
"And then you trained to develop those skills that I can't defend against? As expected of you, the orc known as the wise one," Agni remarked.
Lan is truly talented in using the power of nature, and she works very hard.
Hearing the familiar address, Jiang Yunlan was momentarily dazed. The Wise One? She remembered that when she first came into this world, the maple trees living in the forest called her that, but at that time she didn't understand that they called her "The Wise One."
Why did they initially call her a wise woman? She tried to recall.
The distant past is like a yellowed scroll, and she can hardly make out the memories of what once was. She can't remember, and she's willingly given up on recalling it. That's not important. What's important is that this time when she left, Maple Syrup and the others specifically asked her if she could return during the snow season.
They rarely asked that question, but she readily agreed to return to the grasslands during the snow season.
We need to work even harder; the goal is to get the Senhu habitat ready before the snow season.
Jiang Yunlan looked up and saw a roadside inn in her field of vision. This was the first inn they had encountered on their journey, and she was delighted. She led the group, who had slept outdoors for several nights, forward at full speed.
The orc, who was staying in the farmland near the inn, heard the noise and turned to look in the direction from which it came. He saw the summer banners fluttering in the caravan and immediately ran out of the farmland to wave to them with joy.
“Welcome to the highway hotel!” he shouted.
Jiang Yunlan stopped not far from him and jumped to the ground. Holding the reins of the feathered horse in her left hand, she extended her right hand to greet him, "Thank you for your welcome. Do you have any rooms left for us at the inn?"
The innkeeper, seeing the convoy escorting over a dozen supply trucks, nodded decisively. "You're the only guests today, so there will be plenty of rooms!"
During the brief conversation, the other orcs stationed at the inn also came out. Jiang Yunlan glanced suspiciously at Shui Luo, who was carrying a fan-eared rabbit, and the more she looked at it, the more familiar the gray rabbit seemed.
"Little Grey?"
Upon hearing the familiar voice, Little Gray's fan-like ears perked up as if confirming something, then it looked up at Lan a beat later. Its lazy demeanor was exactly the same as when it was still in the forest.
"So you chose Shui Luo as your partner." Jiang Yunlan said, then looked at the long-eared rabbit beastman she had rescued from the bear beastman clan. She remembered that back in Baihe, this beastman often walked with A Bai. She never expected that he would choose to stay at the highway inn instead of staying in the grassland habitat.
"Whoosh~" Little Gray made a sound it only made when it was happy, as if to say that it was very satisfied with its partner.
After Shui Luo was chosen by Xiao Hui, Yan Dahe told him about Xiao Hui. He knew that Xiao Hui was a small beast that Lan brought from the forest to the grassland.
“Little Grey usually seems a bit listless, but it actually really enjoys wandering around outside. That’s why it chose me and wanted me to take it out,” Shui Luo said with a smile, proudly lifting Little Grey up. “It’s very good at leading the way and has a keen sense of danger, helping us avoid danger several times. We take it with us whenever we go out.”
"Woo!" Little Grey agreed.
It would never do something as stupid as stepping into a concealed pit trap and getting caught by orcs again.
“Little Gray also said it’s very powerful.” Shui Luo’s expression was exactly the same as that of all beastmen who doted on their pets.
Jiang Yunlan was hearing about Xiao Hui's abilities from the orcs for the first time and found it somewhat amazing. She praised it as indeed impressive, and instead of continuing to chat with the master and pet, she turned around and arranged for the orcs in the group to check into the inn.
The roadside lodge is far from its habitat, and although it receives supplies from supply teams every season, it still needs to be self-sufficient most of the time. Therefore, there are farmlands and livestock sheds outside the main lodge building, and the main building is also equipped with a textile room, a treatment room, a kitchen, and so on.
On the night they checked into the hotel, Jiang Yunlan and her group enjoyed fresh food prepared by the hotel's orcs and received a warm welcome.
The roadside inn rarely has guests, but the orcs there treat each guest with utmost hospitality. They don't often return to their habitat, but they often miss it and love to hear guests talk about what happens there.
The same goes for this time.
"So you came out this time to help the Senhu habitat?" Shui Luo and the other beastmen were surprised.
They chatted with the orcs in the group about the orcs who had lost their habitat, and about their own past experiences of migrating due to the beast tides. Their voices were filled with emotion, and they couldn't help but empathize with the plight of the new people.
That night, the exhausted group slept upstairs, while the orcs in the inn quietly gathered in the kitchen to take stock of the food inventory.
the next day.
Jiang Yunlan went downstairs to finish breakfast, and just as she got up, she saw Shui Luo and the others carrying two sacks of grain over.
They looked at her and said, "Lan, this is food donated by our hotel."
"There are still seven weekend days until the fruit season supplies arrive, almost half of the hot season. Are you really going to donate food?" she asked worriedly.
The arrival of the group had already consumed a lot of the food in the inn, but they just laughed and quickly had two orcs carry the food into the supply wagon.
“It’s alright, we’ve already calculated it. This is extra food, and donating it to the orcs in the Forest Lake habitat won’t affect our daily lives. I heard that Forest Lake has taken in seven or eight orc clans this time, and many of the orcs are injured and probably won’t be able to farm, gather, or hunt,” they said.
Hearing their answers, Jiang Yunlan felt a warmth in her heart. She happily took out a pen and paper from her backpack and wrote down their names and the name of the hotel.
The group set off again, passing the second roadside inn.
This time, Jiang Yunlan received not grain grown in the fields, but fresh wild animal meat. The orcs at this inn weren't very good at farming, but surprisingly skilled at hunting and making traps.
“Lan, freeze them and take them to Forest Lake,” they said.
The group checked into the third roadside lodge.
Jiang Yunlan also received a donation. The food was limited, less than the other two hotels, but it was the most they could offer.
“Your location isn’t good, so it’s hard to get food by gathering and hunting. If you send these away, you won’t have any midnight snacks left,” Jiang Yunlan said casually, trying to stuff the food back into their hands.
However, she was defeated by their few words.
They said, "It's alright, it's just that we don't have midnight snacks. It's much better than the starving orcs. Lan, didn't you always tell us that the orcs of Xia should help each other? When one is in trouble, all lend a hand, and we can overcome all disasters together!"
That's what she said. But this is food, it's food for the beastmen, their most treasured food, food they used to value more than their own lives.
"And we know that with Lan around, even if we donate our stored food, the supply trucks will deliver the food to us on time when the fruit season arrives," they said with a smile.
The aura was their source of strength. They believed that the aura would not let them go hungry. If one day they truly could not find food, it would be because the continent had lost its vitality, and the situation had deteriorated to the point that even the aura could not find food.
Jiang Yunlan couldn't speak, she could only blink and nod, quietly memorizing their names.
Just as she mounted her feathered horse and was about to set off, her voice finally returned. Looking back at the beastmen standing at the inn's entrance, she shouted, "Don't worry, the supplies for the harvest season will definitely reach you before the season begins!"
We understand—
They responded to Lan in unison. It was understanding, it was conviction, as certain as the conviction that the sun would rise from the land of the rising sun, without a doubt.
After several more days of traveling at full speed, Jiang Yunlan arrived at the Senhu habitat on the sixteenth day after leaving the grassland.
At this point, the Senhu habitat had only eight days' worth of food left.
She dismounted her feathered horse and led it into the Forest Lake. The Forest Lake habitat was in poor condition; it was deathly still, and there was barely any semblance of order.
When she discovered that the number of victims pouring into Forest Lake was almost equal to the number of orcs in Forest Lake, she guessed that the situation before her would occur.
The existence of order is not so bad; at least the worst-case scenario of needing to use force to suppress it has not occurred.
The convoy carrying supplies slowly came into the view of the Forest Lake Orcs, attracting their full attention. They were stunned by the endless cartloads of supplies.
A beastman suddenly noticed Jiang Yunlan above his head and shouted, "It's Lan! Lan has brought supplies!"
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