Chapter 568: Red Spring Gully (5)

The Toyota was dragged out, and including the time to retract the line, it took a total of thirty-five minutes. The man in white who had been rescued thanked Du Zhengyi and Majiang profusely and shyly for their help.

He had just taken out a stack of RMB, wanting to repay the kindness of being rescued in the wilderness. Du Zhengyi waved his hand to refuse; that was against the rules. He knew humans liked money, but he also knew that few humans would accept money at this time and in this place. Humans occasionally had some complex and illogical rules, and in some unnecessary moments, human nature would flash with a bit of brilliance. In the end, the man moved a box of canned goods out of his car and, without allowing for argument, shoved it into Du Zhengyi's car. Majiang was actually quite interested in the canned goods; he went over to take a look and sent half of them to the car behind.

Du Zhengyi invited the stranger to smoke a cigarette together, and the man did not refuse. They leaned against the Toyota and finished the cigarette. The man used a thin, low voice to tell Du Zhengyi a few jokes from the off-roading circle. Seeming not to know how to thank these saviors who had suddenly appeared, he also gifted Du Zhengyi a few pieces of advice for the road.

Du Zhengyi spoke very little, observing the man while listening. The man smoked with familiarity, but his posture was rare. His thick fingers were curled, his entire large hand loosely cupped, clumsily gripping the thin cigarette as if holding a stick. If a giant gorilla haunting the Democratic Republic of the Congo had a hobby of smoking, it would certainly use this crude posture.

The stranger fell into a moment of hesitation; shy and introverted men would always hesitate like this before speaking, fearing that what they said would be mocked. But Du Zhengyi happened to be well-suited for making introverted people open up; although he was serious, he did not look like someone skilled at arguing, and thus would not casually disparage or blame others' hobbies.

"Have you figured out how the road we're currently on came to be?"

Du Zhengyi glanced at the road under his feet. "To be honest, I don't know. I've never seen such thick tire tracks; they're more than four times wider than those of an off-road vehicle."

"I've seen them at a mine," the man said embarrassedly, as if knowing more than others made him feel particularly awkward. "But the ecological environment around here is very fragile; it's a nature reserve. The relevant departments don't even allow hunting, let alone mining here."

"Are there people mining illegally here?"

"They're fiercer than poachers. Judging by the situation, there are many of them. People who can drive heavy machinery out here must have eyes and ears everywhere. If you run into them, it's best not to stop and look around; you'd better leave quickly," he advised in a soft voice.

Du Zhengyi nodded. "If I run into them, I'll notify the relevant departments. One good deed a day, civic duty."

The man smiled. "Yes, civic duty."

The small talk ended just like that. Du Zhengyi put away the remaining cigarette butt and suddenly looked back. "Those idiots!"

"What's wrong?" the man asked.

Du Zhengyi frowned, looking gloomily at the commercial van parked a little further away. "Troublemaking idiots. They haven't been peaceful the whole way. I've been suspecting they're carrying guns. Don't—don't look too obviously, don't let them notice. Are they fiddling with guns in the back seat? What idiots, they've watched too many movies."

"Doesn't look like it." The man also seemed a bit nervous and glanced over twice. "They are indeed huddled together, but they should be using a knife to pry open a can."

Du Zhengyi let out a sigh of relief. "A bunch of idiots who haven't seen the world; sorry you had to see that. I really don't want to bring them along anymore. No amount of money is worth being a guide for idiots in a no-man's-land."

The man smiled shyly, as if he were too embarrassed to comment on such words. Du Zhengyi patted his shoulder. "Then I'm off. I want to reach a village with people to stay the night before it gets dark. May we meet again if fate allows."

"Okay," the man said with a slight smile. "If fate allows, we will definitely meet again."

Du Zhengyi nodded in a friendly manner and turned to walk slowly toward his car. He stopped in front of his car door, reached out to grab the handle, and then paused. He hesitated for two seconds and looked back at the man. The man was still standing in the same spot, and seeing him look back, he waved at him. Du Zhengyi nodded in response and this time pulled the door open and sat inside.

He started the engine, slowly accelerated, bypassed the Toyota, and drove back onto the dirt road crushed out by the giant tires. He looked back through the rearview mirror; the stranger in white was still standing in the same position, seemingly not having moved at all. Du Zhengyi's expression turned cold.

"What's wrong?" Xiang Qian, sitting in the back, suddenly asked. "Is something not right?"

Majiang raised his head in confusion. "Who? Du Zhengyi?"

"We ran into a Mage," Du Zhengyi said, gripping the steering wheel, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

"Who? The one just now was a Mage? How come I didn't sense it?" Majiang asked in surprise.

"Only a Mage could see exactly what two people in the back seat were doing from such a distance through tinted glass. Humans can't see clearly at all; Mages often don't realize how big the gap is between human vision and a Mage's," Du Zhengyi said in a low voice.

"Damn," Majiang said. "Then what kind of trick is he pulling? A Mage can't conjure up a car on his own? A low-level Mage? A Mage with a disability?"

"A low-level Mage would instead be unable to hide the Magic scent on them, but he didn't leak a trace just now." Du Zhengyi frowned. "He acts as if he were waiting here to see us; he makes me feel very dangerous."

Others might be fine, but Yan Hao, who had been paying special attention to Du Zhengyi, was now exceptionally nervous. "Du Mage, then how did you discover at the beginning that he might not be a Mage? How did you think to test him?"

Majiang turned his neck to look at him amusedly. "Is this a lab class today? Did you bring a notebook?"

Du Zhengyi ignored them. "Being controlled by others for an entire day—I don't like this feeling."

"I don't like him either; he looks like a pervert," Majiang immediately expressed his opinion as well.

"Why don't we take him down and see?" Yan Hao suggested actively, not caring that Du Zhengyi hadn't answered his question. "He's suspicious anyway, right?"

"No need," Du Zhengyi said. "This is a long game; to explode here without seeing what's behind it would be in very poor taste."

"Ah?" Yan Hao stared at the back of Du Zhengyi's head in astonishment, not knowing what to say for a moment. "But..."

"Stop talking nonsense; it's best if you don't make a sound at all," Du Zhengyi said impatiently. "I'm not answering questions. You'd better pretend you don't exist, or I'll kick you out of the car right now."

Yan Hao shrank back awkwardly. Fortunately, Xiang Qian gave him a comforting look and was relatively friendly to him, which made him feel a little better.

Just then, Du Zhengyi's expression sharpened; he suddenly looked at the right window and subconsciously steered the car to the left to avoid something. "I think I saw something?"

"What?" Majiang asked reflexively, his head immediately turning toward the right window.

"Shut up!" Du Zhengyi said, unable to bear it any longer. "I feel like I'm leading a tour group on a life-or-death mission. Damn, what did I do wrong to deserve this suffering?"

(End of chapter)