Chapter 848: The 'Road' and the Night in Huitou Forest

Jier walked for a long time in the pitch-black night, and just when he thought this was one of those rare moonless nights, half a moon rose in the pitch-black sky.

As if remembering it was time to get to work, not long after the first half-moon rose, the other two moon ladies also appeared from the horizon, half-hidden and half-revealed.

With the moonlight from the sisters shining down, the pitch-black wilderness was finally not so indistinguishable. Jier raised his head and turned his torch behind him to shield it. In the pitch-black, dim night ahead, he could finally see the tall mountain range.

These towering mountains, which could not be seen before because of the darkness, were as tall and silent as prehistoric beasts lying down to rest, giving a strong spiritual shock to everyone who looked up to observe them at close range.

The mountain range was draped in a faint layer of moonlight. The higher parts were bare rock, and further down were meadow areas that appeared deep in color due to insufficient reflectivity. A little lower down, Jier could barely make out a dense, continuous forest, and this dense forest was also drifting with and wrapped in a faint White Mist. The forest and the White Mist extended all the way to a place not far ahead.

"Looks like we're almost there."

Jier said this to Tianxuecao, and his warhorse nodded, seemingly approving of its master's judgment.

Then, a large horse head nudged Jier from behind, urging him on.

"Let's go."

Tightening his weapons and equipment, Jier lowered the Faceplate of his Helmet and continued walking forward along the strange little river on his right.

Walking along the river for half the night, Jier clearly felt the terrain gradually rising, though not by much, far less undulating than the continuous great mountains he could barely make out ahead.

After walking for a while, as he got closer to the forest ahead, Jier suddenly felt something was wrong.

It wasn't that a feeling of danger had appeared, but that the sound his feet made while walking had become strange.

Before, when walking by the river, it was either slightly damp soil or a riverbank of scattered pebbles; when walking on the former, every step would stain the bottom of his Boots with a layer of damp soil, and the walking sound was not loud.

When stepping on the pebble ground, the footsteps would be louder, but they would also be accompanied by the friction and movement of the pebbles under the force of his feet, which was also a clear and unique sound, very easy to distinguish in such a quiet wilderness night.

But it was different now. Jier stomped his feet and realized that although there was a thin layer of soil on the ground, underneath it was a single, hard, and flat object. Moreover, unlike the scattered pebble ground by the river, the thing under his feet was a single piece, and it was quite large.

After all, when the horseshoes of Tianxuecao beside him stepped on the surface of this thing, it also produced the sound of stepping on something solid and flat.

Jier rubbed his war boots left and right on the ground, feeling that he was not walking on a desolate wilderness riverbank, but rather on a stone-paved ground like those found only in large towns.

Heh, stone-paved ground that even slightly smaller towns couldn't afford to lay.

Sensing something unusual, Jier naturally stopped. Tianxuecao looked at him in confusion, and Jier explained: "Watch closely, listen carefully, there is something wrong with the ground under our feet."

Lowering the Torch, Jier half-crouched down and reached out to wipe the ground left and right, easily clearing away the layer of loose soil covering it.

But the thing revealed underneath surprised him.

It was not the stone-paved road Jier had expected, nor was it a single piece of flat rock appearing under his feet.

In front of him was a neat "wavy" surface, with each "wave" only one centimeter high, and on the layers of "waves" extending from back to front, there were even smaller anti-slip serrations.

Jier raised his eyebrows. Although the thing before him appeared very bizarre, he recognized at a glance that this was a specially designed and manufactured anti-slip surface.

Thinking of this, Jier hurriedly used the Torch to brush away the loose soil on the ground around him. Sure enough, under his feet appeared a "Road" about four meters wide and of unknown length.

The "Road" extended straight ahead, and it seemed to be in the same direction as Jier's destination.

"This is not a coincidence, Tianxuecao, I believe this is not a coincidence."

Jier looked at his horse and said to it.

Tianxuecao nodded, seemingly agreeing with its master's opinion.

This made Jier feel amused, because no matter what he said, his horse would nod in agreement.

Standing up, Jier held the Torch high, staring at his feet and the unknown road that might continue to extend forward.

Who built this?

And why was it built?

And in the forest at the foot of the mountain ahead, what was waiting for him?

Jier steadied his mind, and with curiosity and caution, Yongqi and fear, he strode forward.

The first moon that appeared had now climbed to the top of his head, casting its silvery-white radiance over the entire world in the night sky.

Jier was currently staying in front of a forest. The forest was dense, and he estimated that there wouldn't be much light inside even during the day; at this time of night, it was naturally incomparably pitch-black.

This kind of pitch-black forest that could scare ordinary people to tears felt somewhat familiar to Jier; after all, in the Lady's dream, he was active in a similar place. It was also a pitch-black, dense, and endless forest. The difference was that the forest in the dream was covered with Glowing Moss that could emit a faint fluorescence, giving off an atmosphere that made one feel peaceful. But this forest in front of him had White Mist eerily falling from the mountain to the side, spreading all the way to the treetops of the forest in front of him, and dripping into the forest in wisps. What it brought to people was not a bit of quiet or peaceful feeling, but rather a suffocating, eerie silence.

It seemed that once one stepped into this forest, there was no road back.

Perhaps this was the reason why the locals called this place Huitou Forest.

Unlike the sound of animals playing at night constantly coming from the scattered woods and bushes behind him, not a single sound came from the forest in front of him.

It was clearly a dense forest, and it should have had all kinds of animals, but it was as silent as a graveyard.

This made Jier hesitate.

He rubbed his soles, and the soles felt the same as the inexplicably appearing road surface before. Clearly, the "Road" that didn't know where it extended from had its final destination here.

No matter how ominous the forest in front of him looked, since a road had once extended here, this forest must be passable. One had to know that at the end of the forest was a wide Valley that could house many people. No matter what, it was passable here, and the people who entered this forest before mostly lived in the Valley on the other side of the forest.

To safely settle a Refugee Team of hundreds of people, there was no place that seemed safer than one with this forest blocking the outside world.

Shichui Village wouldn't work; it was located on the open north-south road within the county. As long as a group of Flesh Demon parasitic monsters went south, they would inevitably reach Shichui Village.

"Should we go in?"

Jier asked Tianxuecao, and the horse nodded, supporting its master's decision.

This made Jier give a wry smile and slap the horse's head, which was covered in metal Armor. Tianxuecao even moved its ears in grievance, not understanding why its master was disciplining it.

"Then let's go!"

Jier summoned his Yongqi, held the Jiansheng, and walked into the eerie forest.

The surroundings were extremely quiet, and the wisps of White Mist drifting down from the treetops made the already trapped line of sight even narrower and more limited.

The burning Torch made a small crackling sound, and the breathing sounds of the two living beings, Jier and Tianxuecao, became the limited sounds here.

Jier swallowed a mouthful of saliva. He felt he could hear the heartbeat in his chest, although he knew he had no heart and this was just a delusion, but he couldn't help but think so.

Tianxuecao was not a timid prairie horse, but at this time, it also had to subconsciously move closer to its master to find a sense of security.

It touched its long, thin horse face against its master's Helmet. Although it felt annoying, Jier also felt a little better under the warhorse's action. At least, in this somewhat eerie place, he was not alone.

Uh, although he was indeed alone, having his warhorse for company made him feel much better.

"I'm a little regretful, Tianxuecao."

Jier said this.

"It's not that I regret breaking in here, but, uh, I should have come during the day. I imagine it wouldn't be this terrifying during the day, right?"

One must know that Jier is already considered the type of person with great courage; if even he feels afraid at a time like this, then an average person would likely have already collapsed to the ground in fear or fainted from fright.

After walking for a while inside this eerie Forest, Jier wanted to retreat and come back during the day.

But when he wanted to turn around and head back, he realized he could no longer find the way he came.

"Damn it! I forgot to leave a mark on the tree trunks nearby when I came in! Careless, truly careless."

Jier felt somewhat annoyed; recently he had mostly been acting as part of a group, and he had almost forgotten the caution he used to have when adventuring alone. Only now did he remember these things, but it seemed a bit too late?

He turned around and immediately started walking back, but after walking for a while, Jier discovered he was lost.

All around were identical, gloomy trunks of towering trees, and the gradually thickening White Mist hid the surroundings, making his line of sight increasingly limited.

Even though Jier walked for quite a while in the direction he remembered coming from, he still failed to walk out of this forest.

He was completely lost.

Man and horse looked at each other, both at a loss.

"Ahem, I think we are lost, Tianxuecao."

Jier said so.

The warhorse nodded, agreeing with its master's words.

Jier pulled on the Jiansheng of the warhorse, found a spot beside the protruding roots of a large tree, and sat down unceremoniously. Afterward, he inserted his Torch into a natural groove in the ancient bark of a nearby trunk to provide illumination.

"But it's okay, although our timing for coming here was wrong, at least this isn't some particularly difficult trouble. Relax, I have several ways to solve these troubles. Just have to wait until daytime."

Jier stroked the horse's head, then unfastened the bit from the warhorse's Jiansheng to make his warhorse more comfortable.

"Wait until daytime to find the way out. When you are lost, you must not panic. You know, Tianxuecao, many people lose the possibility of self-rescue in dangerous environments precisely because they are flustered. As long as you calm down, observe the surrounding environment, and think of a way to break the situation, there is a high probability you can escape the predicament!"

As if speaking to his warhorse, but actually speaking to himself, Jier sat on the tree roots and relaxed while waiting, all the while flicking the warhorse's ears.

Waiting for dawn.

Having had a long period of experience adventuring alone, this allowed Jier to sit in place and wait for dawn with great patience.

He did not let out panicked shouts or make any other movements that might attract unknown things. He just sat there. After the Torch went out, he took out his Hunting Sword and stuck it upside down into the nearby trunk to provide an environment where he could visually observe his surroundings.

Otherwise, in this pitch-black forest, Jier did not know if things that liked to move in the darkness would be drawn in once it became completely dark.

Although this forest seemed relatively safe, and there were no signs of large wild beasts active on the trunks or the thick humus layer on the ground, Jier still remained vigilant, keeping himself within the light.

He also did not rest with his back against an ancient tree trunk; come on, he had seen an ancient tree that could move freely once, and he did not believe that the trees in the forest were safe. The last time he encountered that thing, it left a vivid memory for Jier.

He even lost a horse because of it! That brave partner.

The mist in the forest became even heavier in the early morning. Originally, his line of sight could reach a distance of ten meters or so, but as the mist swirled and rose, gradually spreading to every corner of this forest, Jier's line of sight gradually became no more than two meters.

Sitting in place, he couldn't even see the hind legs of Tianxuecao, let alone the situation around him.

"This reminds me of that Magic Beast; it also had a mass of mist and turned that thing into a difficult weapon."

Jier was currently taking out a piece of fine cloth the size of a palm, carefully wiping himself and the Armor of Tianxuecao. After the mist became dense, the large amount of water vapor contained within naturally wetted Jier and his warhorse.

Although these small water droplets hanging on the outer layer of the armor were not a hindrance, Jier had to dry himself off and dry the warhorse as well.

Because even though these small water droplets were tiny, if the entire suit of armor was covered in this dew, the body's temperature would be lost rapidly. Even though Jier currently had the support of Life Energy within his body, which made him gradually less afraid of the cold.

But heat loss is heat loss; this is a different matter from not being afraid of the cold. Not being afraid of the cold allows Jier to move outdoors in winter without wearing thick clothing, while heat loss will cause the body's organs and tissues to gradually lose function and necrose, which is life-threatening.

Especially in this place.

The Huitou Forest was extremely quiet, but the light gradually brightening overhead still made him realize that it was dawn.

Tianxuecao, which hadn't rested much all night, shook its large, long horse head; it clearly also realized that it was already daytime outside the forest.

The obstruction of mountain ranges and dense forests, as well as the extremely quiet environment, made it very easy for people in this forest to lose their sense of time. Jier didn't feel like much time had passed before it was dawn.

However, the mist in the forest felt like it was at its strongest at this time. Jier couldn't even see the Muan and Weapon Rack on the horse's back very clearly, but it didn't matter; he just needed to get to a place without mist.

He tied the Jiansheng to the protruding tree root where he had sat all night and was just about to climb the nearby large tree when he felt it wasn't secure, so Jier untied the bound Jiansheng.

He said seriously to his warhorse: "Tianxuecao, I am going to climb the tree next to us to scout around now. You don't move around here, can you?"

The warhorse nodded, indicating it understood.

Still worried, Jier repeated it again: "You must not move around! If there is danger while I am up there, you circle around this tree, or use your hooves to give whatever is threatening you a hard kick! How about that? Remember, you must not run away; I'm afraid we'll get separated."

Tianxuecao nodded heavily, and it even raised its front hooves to show it understood.

Seeing that this smart horse really understood his meaning, Jier smiled. He didn't bring the Hunting Sword used for lighting; he quickly returned to the lady's dream to retrieve two Daggers he had used before and a captured Dagger, then changed into clothing convenient for climbing and came before the large tree nearby.

This left Tianxuecao staring blankly, somewhat puzzled; how did its master suddenly change from a suit of Metal Armor into ordinary clothing?

But it was only a horse and couldn't figure out these difficult problems.

So it watched as its master muttered a sentence in a low voice, then used the Daggers in both hands to dig small grooves into the surface of the large tree, convenient for climbing and stepping.

These grooves were neither deep nor large, only about half the size of a horseshoe, but they were clearly suitable for a Human with a physique like the master to stick a palm or half a foot into for climbing.

Climbing, this was truly a magical activity for a horse.

Just like that, the loyal warhorse watched its master dig out grooves on the surface of the large tree bit by bit, and soon he climbed into the White Mist that it couldn't see even when it looked up.

The mist-rich forest meant that the bark on the surface of every large tree here was thick enough and soft enough.

Digging out grooves for him to climb and step on with a Dagger wasn't as difficult as Jier had imagined. The steel Dagger could create a suitable hole after fiddling with it a few times, and although this thing was dug quickly, it was enough to bear his weight.

Because Jier had changed his equipment, he was currently wearing light Scale Armor obtained from the Bandit lair, and elsewhere he was simply wearing ordinary fine linen clothes.

On his feet, he chose a pair of soft and sturdy rabbit-skin Boots. Although this thing had no defensive power, it was enough to provide his feet with sufficient friction when climbing.

Soon, because of the sufficient strength and energy in Jier's body, as well as the convenience of the climbing action, he quickly climbed along the surface of this large tree's trunk to the treetop of this towering tree.

His whole body swayed back and forth on the treetop, with milky-white mist spread out several meters below him, and these mists all came from the huge mountain range next to this forest.

The view became open and clear here. Jier looked around, and this made him furious.

Because he discovered that his own position was right at the edge of the forest; yes, this was not even fifty meters away from where he had entered the forest last night.

"Was I too cautious?"

Jier gritted his teeth, scratched his head helplessly, and muttered.