Chapter 838: Oasis and Plateau

He was so straightforward that He Chunhua was startled instead.

A general on the side immediately said: "Look at this sky, overcast with clouds; who knows when the sun will come out. Waiting in the desert isn't a solution. The urgent matter is to find a water source."

They had pursued the enemy in a hurry and hadn't brought much food or water. A night had passed, and both men and horses were extremely thirsty.

It didn't matter if there was no food, but people couldn't do without water.

Zhao Qinghe reminded: "Travelers who have come to the desert recently mentioned that there is an oasis near the Panlong ruins. Let's go there to get some water to drink."

He Chunhua nodded: "Head straight for the water source."

At his command, the Heishuicheng army headed toward the red light; most people had no objections, only grumbling a few times.

Anyway, everyone couldn't find their way in the desert, so it was better to head straight for where there was water.

This time, factions like the Tiangong traveled with the Heishuicheng army again.

Zhang Lianhai and the others were not very happy. They were going to the Panlong ruins to explore the truth; if there were any treasures appearing there, their side only had so many people, while the Heishuicheng army, although having split off troops along the way, still had three hundred people—it would be strange if they didn't rely on their numbers to seize them.

But the desert was so big that they couldn't stop others from passing.

The red light looked conspicuous, but it was actually unknown how far away it was. He Chunhua roughly estimated it was at least several dozen li.

Two hours later, the red light converged and dissipated into heaven and earth again.

At this time, the sky was bright, but the sun still hadn't come out. The disadvantage was that the whole army still couldn't find their way, but the advantage was that the weather wasn't so hot, and both men and horses could barely move forward.

They walked like this until the end of the un-hour (nearly 3 PM); men were tired and horses were exhausted, the soldiers' lips were cracked, and they didn't even have the strength to complain.

Everyone was dissatisfied in their hearts, but no one dared to leave the team on their own.

Walking alone in the unpredictable desert was a rhythm of courting death.

Even the Tiangong and Baling people didn't want to go out and scout the path themselves.

At this time, the hunting falcon flew down and reported a major piece of news: the oasis was just three li ahead!

Having received this heart-stirring good news, everyone suddenly had energy again, rushing forward anxiously.

Three li meant three li.

Climbing over the low mound, the smell of water vapor rushed toward them. Clumps of green grass appeared ahead, and even small shrubs had begun to sprout.

There were plants, although still sparse.

Then, they saw the oasis—an oasis in the vast yellow sand.

Its position was very low, just behind two huge semi-circular sand dunes. Even on a sunny day, it was only exposed to the sun at noon.

Its area was large, consisting of three small connected lakes; the water was extremely clear, the edges were lush with green, and birds were swimming leisurely in the lake.

This was a strange sight that most Heishuicheng people had never seen!

This was the Panlong Desert, a land of divine punishment where it was once difficult for rain to exist.

As soon as everyone walked over, they felt the temperature drop by at least ten degrees, and their whole bodies were surrounded by the long-lost coolness.

The soldiers didn't have time to marvel, cheering and rushing into the lake with their mounts.

But He Chunhua ordered them to stop: "What's the rush? Test it first!"

Even if there is an oasis in the desert, the water quality isn't necessarily suitable for human consumption.

He Chunhua's personal guards rushed to the water's edge first, took out a small bowl to scoop water, and then dropped a lotus seed into the bowl.

He Lingchuan also recognized this personal guard; he seemed to be called Hu Xuan. A year and a half ago in Xinhuang Town, Xiazhou, he had decisively used five years of his life to pull the Ghost Eye Bow for He Chunhua, wounding Dong Rui's Ghost Ape, and He Chunhua had taken him as a personal guard on the spot.

It seemed he was now He General's confidant.

That was right. If you do what the leader is unwilling to do, cannot do, or dares not do, you might rise to the top.

Hu Xuan had seized the opportunity.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, the seed sprouted, grew leaves, and bloomed; it was actually a tiny bowl lotus with twelve inner and outer petals.

The flower it bloomed was water-red, very fresh and tender.

Only then did the personal guard say to He Chunhua: "My lord, it can be consumed."

This plant was called the Drought-Heart Lotus; its seeds could be preserved for twenty years during a great drought and would sprout upon encountering water. Its flower color would change according to the water quality; if it was water-red, both humans and livestock could drink it; if it was blue or purple, it was best not to touch it; if it was black, tsk tsk, it proved there was poison in the water.

Drought-Heart Lotus seeds were best for testing water quality during long-distance marches and travel; He Lingchuan also had them on him.

Without waiting for He Chunhua's order, the Heishuicheng army rushed into the lake, and both men and horses drank their fill. The joy and satisfaction of a long drought meeting sweet rain—there was nothing like this. Qiu Hu and the others saw He Lingchuan nod, and only then went to the lakeside to drink water.

Which side had strict military discipline could be distinguished at a glance.

The rock sheep drank a few mouthfuls of water and started grazing on the green grass by the shore; He Lingchuan also scooped water to wash his face, let out a long sigh, and felt a bit dazed for a moment.

This oasis also existed in the Panlong world, with a more vast area; it was a standard lake wetland, with forests, post stations, and a small temple on the side.

He Lingchuan had scooped water to water his horses here many times, and had even caught a five-jin big fish, roasting it with a door plank and eating it.

Times had changed, and after 160 or 170 years, the small lake had returned.

Then, what about Panlongcheng? He looked into the distance.

At this time, Zhang Lianhai was also looking into the distance, because a vast plateau appeared on the horizon at the end of his field of vision.

A high slope rising over a hundred zhang—even from so far away, it had a majestic and desolate momentum.

He muttered: "That is the Chipa Plateau."

On the Chipa Plateau was their destination for this trip: the ruins of Panlongcheng! The Tiangong had sent two emergency messages, asking them to find out the reason for the changes in the Panlong Desert as soon as possible, and had sent new assistance.

Nearly a year ago, the upheaval at Mount Xu caused the Tiangong and the gods' concern for the Panlong Desert to rise significantly.

During the previous few entries into the desert, Zhang Lianhai had circled countless times and couldn't find it. This time, following the Heishuicheng army, they were guided by the red light.

Why?

Was it because the light of the mirage had turned red a few days ago, indicating that the treasure was about to appear?

The water was drunk, and the horses started grazing on the green grass by the shore, but the people were so hungry their stomachs were growling. Most of the soldiers' dry rations had been eaten, and at this moment, watching others stuff cakes into their mouths, they were all swallowing their saliva hard.

The oasis was good, but the fish in the water were not even as long as a little finger, hiding as soon as they saw people, and couldn't fill their stomachs.

The Heishuicheng army pursued the Andong people and captured many horses along the way. Zhao Qinghe came to ask He Chunhua whether to slaughter the horses for meat.

A horse weighed over six hundred jin; slaughtering one was enough for so many people to have a meat meal.

He Chunhua waved his hand: "Why slaughter the horses?"

He asked He Lingchuan: "You still have the fragrant balls, right?"

How did the old man know he had them? He Lingchuan had no choice but to contribute some stock solution.

Afterward, He Chunhua ordered someone to slaughter an Andong captive, stuff a black jar into his clothes, pour stinky liquid over the corpse, and then dig a large pit in the sand to half-bury it.

He had led troops and managed logistics, knowing that at this time, a warhorse was worth more than a captive.

Soon, there was movement at the bottom of the sand.

Everyone heard a rustling sound from under their feet, and part of the sand sank.

Afterward, the captive's corpse was violently dragged by something into the sand.

The line tied to the captive suddenly pulled taut.

The thing at the bottom of the sand pulled again, and the finger-thick line broke.

"Bang," a loud explosion.

Something exploded under the yellow sand, throwing sand up more than half a zhang, and those standing nearby even felt their feet go numb.

He Chunhua waited for a few breaths, and seeing no new movement underground, he pointed to the sand and ordered everyone: "Dig it out!"

The soldiers moved one after another, and soon dug out a big guy from the bottom of the sand:

About four zhang long (thirteen meters), round and quite fat, like an eel or an earthworm, with segments on its torso.

It was too big for everyone to hang it up, so they had to dig away the sand around it.

Outsiders like Zhang Lianhai also came to watch: "What is this?"

It seemed they had seen this big guy when entering and leaving the desert.

"Earth Dragon, a specialty of the sand sea." He Lingchuan explained to them, "A few months ago, these things would attack travelers. Now they usually hide underground honestly and don't come out much."

Other deserts also had Earth Dragons, but they were usually not this big. The exotic species of the Panlong Desert were all influenced by the Great Fang Hu. Now that the Great Fang Hu had changed, their aggressiveness had disappeared along with the evil energy, and they had turned back into carrion-eating animals lurking underground.

This Earth Dragon had a big hole in its belly, obviously the power of that jar of explosives.

Everyone couldn't drag it, so they simply chopped off large pieces of skin and meat from it, pulled out the greasy fishy tendons, peeled and washed the meat, smeared it with salt, and roasted it on the fire.

The meat of the Earth Dragon was fat and delicate, very much like eel, and had always been a delicacy on the Heishuicheng people's table. Zhang Lianhai and the others were a bit disgusted at first, but after eating a few pieces of roast meat, they didn't mind anymore.

Such a behemoth was enough for the whole army to eat for many meals.

After resting in the oasis for about two quarters of an hour, these few adventure teams parted ways with the army and couldn't wait to head toward the Chipa Plateau.

They walked without looking back, because everyone knew very well that once they entered the Panlong ruins, everyone would be competitors, and the friendship of killing the enemy together earlier had long since vanished.

He Chunhua filled his water bag, pointed to the Chipa Plateau, and said to He Lingchuan: "Let's go over too."

"Ah?" He Lingchuan looked reluctant, "Still have to go?"

"Have you forgotten why Sun Fuping and Nian Songyu came last time?"

He Lingchuan said sullenly: "Didn't that black dragon say that the Great Fang Hu and Panlongcheng are connected as one and cannot be taken out at all?"

"Now there are variables, otherwise why would so many people rush toward it?" He Chunhua said solemnly, "Actually, Sun Fuping was not wrong about one thing: the Great Fang Hu can influence the battle situation. Dong Haoming's rebellion is endless; if we can obtain the Great Fang Hu, that would be the fortune of Great Yuan!"

If he could release the three-corpse insects to help, pacifying Dong Haoming's rebel troops would be a piece of cake! "Then the old man should go." Using righteousness to pressure people—what was the difference between this move and Sun Fuping's back then? He Lingchuan picked his ear, "I'll hold the line for you here."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 839 =====