Embers Ad Infinitum

Before the roar subsided, similar roars were heard from different parts of the swamp, one after another, echoing endlessly.

Du Heng listened for a while, and the smile that always hung on his face disappeared unconsciously.

When the night in the Black Swamp Wilderness became quiet again, the middle-aged man who claimed to be an antiquities scholar and historical researcher looked back at Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao and others:

“The situation over there is a little more troublesome than I expected.

"Looks like I have to travel all night."

As he spoke, he stood up.

"Be careful." Jiang Baimian said politely without trying to stop him.

Du Heng laughed and did not respond directly. He casually said before saying goodbye:

"Little girl, your name always reminds me of the past. At that time, there were many cotton fields near my hometown. Whenever this season, or later, you can see countless small clouds falling to the ground. That scene so gorgeous."

Jiang Baimian stood up and said with a slight smile:

"My father is a biologist who studies cotton improvement, and the month I was born happened to be the cotton harvest season, so he gave me such a name."

At this point, she protested with a smile:

"Although you are indeed older than us, you probably can't use the title 'little girl' yet."

Du Heng laughed:

"I'm much older than I look, and I'm older than you think."

Without further delay, he smiled and waved:

"Hope to see you again."

"Hope to see you again." Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao and others responded politely.

Du Heng waved his hand again, turned around, walked around the earth bag, and walked towards the north step by step in the dark wilderness where the sun had set and the moon had not yet risen.

"Ms. Jialolan, what about you? Do you want to rush to the north of Yuelu Station?" Jiang Baimian sat down again and looked at the blond Taoist opposite.

Gallolan smiled and replied:

"No need to call me ma'am. There is no distinction between men and women on the way to find the 'Tao'.

“If you want to show respect, I don’t mind, you can call me Taoist Master.

"Of course, it doesn't matter if you want to call me Xiaoluo, Xiaolan, or Xiaojia. This is just for the different scenery on the road. There is no distinction between superiority and inferiority."

"It's quite, quite, down-to-earth." Jiang Baimian thought for a long time and finally came up with an appropriate adjective, "I can see that you have learned the Hui dialect quite well."

"This is not of my own free will." Jialolan's answer was completely beyond Bai Chen and others' expectations.

She then gave the explanation without changing her smile:

"The classics about 'Tao' are all written in gray vernacular. If they are translated into Honghe language, they will lose their charm and cannot be truly accurately described."

After saying that, she threw the rabbit bone to the ground, put two oily fingers into her mouth, sucked on it a few times, and then wiped it on her clothes nonchalantly.

Such casual behavior, combined with her pretty but somewhat noble temperament, made Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao and others a little dumbfounded.

Gallolan took out a water bag and took a few sips. Seeing the people across from him looking at him blankly, he chuckled and said:

"Sometimes, we can't even tell the difference between truth and falsehood, and can't even guarantee the most basic survival. Why do we still care about these insignificant details? It's better to do whatever we want and rely on nature."

Having said this, she cast her eyes towards the jumping bonfire and said with an unspeakable smile:

"Just like the nobles in the Senate of the 'First City', they were wanderers struggling to survive in the wilderness decades ago. When there was no clean water source, they even had to drink the urine of their companions, but now they have to be polite. Talking about superiority and inferiority, talking about all kinds of red tape that actually have no meaning.

"Haha, when there were still lower-class citizens in the city dying of cold and hunger, they stipulated that every banquet must include one dish and one tableware."

Shang Jianyao, Long Yuehong and Bai Chen have never been to the "Primary City". They have only heard some rumors and really can't take up the topic.

Jiang Baimian nodded thoughtfully:

"It seems that you are from the 'Primary City'."

Jialolan, the blond Taoist priest with blue eyes, smiled and did not answer in the affirmative or deny it.

Shang Jianyao saw that the scene was a little quiet for a while, so he changed the topic:

"Taoist Master Jia Luolan, what is a Taoist priest?"

Gallolan thought carefully:

"It's really difficult to explain...

"Haven't you ever met monks? Taoist priests can be regarded as another type of monks, monks who belong to another religion and have different beliefs."

When Jiang Baimian, Long Yuehong and others heard the word "Zhi Sui", the veins in their foreheads jumped.

Shang Jianyao took the initiative to ask:

"I wonder which Zhi Sui you believe in?"

Gallolan's expression became serious:

"Zhuang Sheng."

"..." All members of the "Old Tune Group" were a little speechless.

——After getting rid of Jingfa, Long Yuehong and Shang Jianyao shared the information told by this mechanical monk who did not lie to Jiang Baimian and Bai Chen.

Among these pieces of information, a very important one is:

The monastic order believes that this world is just a dream of the past Buddha, the Tathagata of the World, so it is full of all kinds of suffering, and the Tathagata represents the year of the year and the leap month. In the monastic order There is no other name.

That name is:

"Zhuang Sheng"!

Gallolan saw the slightly abnormal reactions of several people, but did not ask any questions.

After a few seconds, Jiang Baimian asked tentatively:

"Did you join the current sect in the 'Primary City'?"

Gallolan nodded:

"Yes, the Eternal Years Sect."

A smile gradually appeared on her face:

"At that time, my mother had just passed away, and I didn't get along well with other people in the family..."

Suddenly, Shang Jianyao interrupted the Taoist priest's memory:

"When it comes to your mother's death, why are you not only not sad, but also smiling?"

Gallolan laughed, and said in a smooth dialect:

"Birth, old age, illness and death are the natural laws of this world, just like spring, summer, autumn and winter, they always alternate and reincarnate. Although my mother is dead, she still sleeps peacefully between heaven and earth, and is still a part of nature. Maybe one day, she will be there again It will start again in another form, just like winter ends and spring comes.

“Now that you understand this, why do you still cry in sorrow?

"If you have this energy, it's better to miss it more."

Shang Jianyao wanted to refute, but couldn't find the loopholes in the other party's theory, so he could only keep his mouth shut.

Vaguely, he even felt that what Gallolan said made sense, but it was too extreme.

Just as Gallolan was about to continue the previous topic, another desolate roar sounded from the north of Yuelu Station:

"Ouch!"

This time, the roar became louder and rougher, and there was an obvious change.

Jialolan turned his head to listen and smiled slightly:

"It seems that I have to go to that place too."

She slowly stood up, hugged her right hand with her left hand, and saluted:

"No one has himself, and a new world is just around the corner."

Then, she patted her Taoist robe and followed the trend towards the north.

"Zhiren is another name for Zhi Sui..." Watching the Taoist priest Jialolan go away, Shang Jianyao simply explained.

Jiang Baimian had already stood up and looked at the direction where Jialolan and Du Heng left. Suddenly, she laughed:

“Really, why didn’t they prepare a car and had to walk?

"With their abilities, this shouldn't be too difficult..."

Who dares to trek in the wilderness shrouded in darkness without any support?

And there is no need for such people to deliberately delay and wait for the first batch of ruin hunters to trigger most of the dangers.

"Maybe it happened suddenly." Bai Chen judged from his own perspective.

"Maybe it's to maintain image." Shang Jianyao said from a direction that normal people would not think about.

"...I feel that what you said makes sense." Jiang Baimian almost laughed, "I am referring to the historical researcher named Du Heng. As for Jia Luolan, she said it herself. It is natural to see all kinds of scenery during the journey. It’s better to walk.”

Before the team members could speak, Jiang Baimian pretended to be serious and said:

"What puzzles me the most is another question."

"What?" Long Yuehong, who was responsible for guarding the surrounding area, asked nervously.

The smile on Jiang Baimian's face could no longer be hidden:

"Shang Jianyao, why didn't you participate in the 'Chorus' like before?"

She was referring to the first time she heard something unusual in the depths of the swamp, Shang Jian Yao followed him and roared.

Shang Jianyao glanced at the team leader and said seriously:

"You're so childish."

"..." Bai Chen and Long Yuehong almost laughed out loud. Jiang Baimian was speechless and could only touch his ears and said, "Hey, what did you say? Really, can't you be louder? Forget it, let’s eat and eat.”

After taking the lead in munching on compressed biscuits and energy bars and replenishing his water bladder, Jiang Baimian reminded him seriously:

“Be a little more careful tonight.

"You also heard what happened just now."

When Bai Chen, Shang Jianyao and Long Yuehong all responded, Jiang Baimian turned to smile and said:

“However, you should rest well when you rest, because you have to continue running tomorrow.

"Moreover, we need to start training your ability to find food. This not only refers to hunting and searching, but also to distinguish which leaves and roots are edible, which parts of aberrant animals can be used for emergencies, and how long after eating something must be injected Genetic medicine, which soil can temporarily serve as food, once or twice... Don’t think that the past few days were just an adventure on the dirt. If the food is sufficient, this can only be called an armed march!"

This made Long Yuehong fearful, but Shang Jianyao was eager to give it a try.

Jiang Baimian thought for a moment and added:

"Also, don't be confused by those strange religious theories. Although this can indeed provide some spiritual comfort, in an environment like dust, it is actually equivalent to escaping reality and has great hidden dangers."

Long Yuehong nodded and asked curiously:

"Team leader, are there many strange religions like this?"

This is something rarely mentioned in the "Pangaea Biology" textbook.

"A lot of people turn to religion easily when they are in pain and despair." Jiang Baimian said, "As far as I know, there are underground religions in the main city of 'First City' that can cause a lot of harm." Probably more than I can count on both hands.”

After the reminder, Jiang Baimian took over Long Yuehong's task, patrolled the surrounding area, and ordered the team members to review all the encounters today.

That night, they encountered no surprises. Not long after daybreak, the jeep began to drive north.

Seeing that the destination was not far away, Jiang Baimian, who was in the passenger seat, began to introduce the team members:

"The residents of Black Rat Town are, in fact, a group of subhuman beings."

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