In the early morning, when there was no movement anywhere, Wu Gen and Sun Hong walked cautiously to the oasis.
Under the swaying poplar trees, weapons, clothes, and mutilated limbs were strewn all over the ground. The strong smell of blood was almost nauseating, and there was almost no complete corpse in the place.
Wu Gen carefully walked among them, looking for scattered waist cards. In the end, there were sixty-one. Adding the previous three, there were sixty-four.
Walking to the place where the old man and the golden-horned sandworm were fighting, Wu Gen was speechless for a long time. The battle between one man and one insect was beyond his knowledge. If he hadn't seen these weird spells and methods with his own eyes, he would probably never see them with his own eyes. Thinking others are bragging.
Squatting next to the body of the golden-horned sandworm, Wu Gen touched the golden horn lightly and did not feel any discomfort. The sharp corners were very hard and were not even damaged even under such a sharp attack from the old man.
Wu Gen took out the rusty broken knife, carefully avoiding the corpse of the sandworm, and started chopping with the knife. The broken knife looks dull, but it is very hard. No matter how you cut it, it cannot be damaged in the slightest.
It took a long time to cut off the one-foot-long sharp corner. It is said to be a sharp horn, but it is different from the ordinary horns of cows and sheep. Its shape is like a wat board, and there are arc-shaped textures on it. It is quite heavy in the hand, but I don't know what it is used for.
Wu Gen was obsessed with money, so he casually put it into his arms. This strange thing grown by the zerg is nothing like a bezoar dog treasure, it is a rare treasure. Wiping the blade of the broken knife with his fingers, Wu Gen was about to insert it into the sheath when he suddenly picked it up and took a closer look.
After picking up the broken knife, Wu Gen also tried every means to polish it, but the whetstone was worn off and the knife was still rusty. There seems to be less rust on the blade now, and it feels sharper to the touch.
Is it possible that this golden horn has the ability to be used to sharpen knives? Scratching his head, Wu Gen put the knife back and turned to look for Sun Hong. When he raised his feet, a green jade bottle caught his eye.
The jade bottle was half-hidden in the sand. There were several characters on it, but Wu Gen could only recognize the jade character. Taking the jade bottle back to the oasis, Sun Hong's eyes were dull and he was still standing motionless.
"What's wrong?" Wu Gen waved his hand in front of his eyes. Sun Hong had been like this since he entered the oasis.
"Human life is like a piece of grass. So many people died in just one trial. Brother Wu, I really want to quit." Sun Hong sighed quietly.
"Is it possible that you've been in the Xiang army for so long and you haven't been on the battlefield yet?"
"No, I assist in the military statistics of baggage and food."
Wu Gen gently stroked his back and comforted him, "Since he joined the Xiang army and became a warrior, it is not surprising that he will see such a scene in the future. It is said that one general's achievements will lead to thousands of bones. Think of how many famous generals have a lot of bones behind them. This It doesn’t matter. If you can’t get over this hurdle, you’d better get rid of your military status and go home to be your safe man.”
Sun Hong sighed, "I also know the truth. Fighting is not my strength. Now that I think about it, I would be more suitable in a military tent."
"Don't get upset first, help me see what this is." Wu Gen took out the green jade bottle.
"Well, this is the Jade Flower Pill. Just now those two people said that Captain Zhai used the pill to save people, so I guess this is it." Sun Hong looked at it and returned the jade bottle to Wu Gen.
"Oh." Wu Gen took the jade bottle, opened the stopper, and smelled it gently. A scent of fragrance overflowed, and his body was suddenly light and his qi and blood were smooth. Pour out a red pill the size of a soybean and throw it into your mouth.
As soon as the elixir entered his abdomen, a warm current surged throughout his body, his chest felt numb and itchy, and the pain suddenly subsided. However, Wu Gen soon became hot all over, his face flushed, and it was as if there was a volcano brewing in his body, which was unbearably hot. Yuhua Pill is a life-threatening thing. Considering Wu Gen's injury, taking one pill is indeed too much tonic.
Wu Gen felt so uncomfortable that he walked around the oasis, yelling wildly, and finally took off his clothes one by one. After struggling for an hour, he finally recovered.
Sun Hong stared at Wu Gen, who was shirtless and bare-chested, with red skin and steaming heat, and murmured: "As expected, you still have to listen to the doctor when taking medicine."
After resting for a while in the oasis and getting some water, the two continued on their way. On the way back, we didn’t encounter any major setbacks. However, they had run out of food and grass, and were hungry, so they roasted and ate all the cold-warming leather jackets issued by the army.
Gradually, there were more dead grass and trees on the ground, and it should have reached the edge of the desert. Going further, we reached a grassland and saw living creatures.
These beasts probably rarely see people intruding, so they gathered around them out of curiosity. Looking at the looming shadows of beasts in the wormwood bushes, Wu Gen and Sun Hong burst into tears, finally seeing something edible. Those are not wild beasts, they are walking barbecues and braised pork.
But since they are wild animals, there are naturally some big and small, good birds and fierce beasts. After eating a few full meals, the two of them were finally spotted by the beasts on the grassland. Packs of wolves as big as calves, and giant eagles with wings as big as a room, came one after another.
Wu Gen was once chased by a large bald-tailed bird more than two feet tall for a whole day. When he was finally exhausted, the big bird trampled it under his feet, arrogantly pooped on it, and walked away. It turned out that the bird did not eat meat, but was angry that Wu Gen coveted its eggs, so he punished it.
Between eating and being eaten, the two escaped to a riverside.
Once here, there are fewer beasts. After resting for a night, Wu Gen was sharpening his knife with the sandworm's golden horn. Yes, Wu Gen tried several times in the past two days and found that this horn could really be used as a whetstone, and the broken knife's edge became sharper and sharper.
Sun Hong ran over shouting, "Brother Wu, come to the river quickly."
"Why are you so panicked? Young people should be cautious." Amidst Wu Gen's muttering, the two of them arrived at the river.
Looking up into the river, Wu Gen was also dumbfounded.
I saw the mist on the broad river, and stone platforms as big as millstones floating in the air, patrolling back and forth on the river. The stone platforms are far apart from each other. Sometimes they fly upward, sometimes they are submerged in the water, and they only occasionally come closer. They look chaotic.
In the river, giant crocodiles with big mouths were swimming slowly. If you want to cross the river, you may have to step on these stone platforms and jump over step by step to reach the other side.
However, the stone platform is erratic. If you cannot find the route accurately, these giant crocodiles may not treat you well and send you away after the stone platform falls into the water.
"What are you doing?" Wu Gen scratched his head. The waist card had been displayed two days ago. Wuhua Stone was in front, but the river was absolutely impossible. After walking along the river bank for a long time, there was only a stone platform here to cross the river. It seemed that this was also part of the trial.
After staring at the stone platform for a long time, Wu Gen was dazzled and fell to the ground in frustration, "I don't want to play anymore. It's so complicated and I can't see any clues. I can't get over it. I just fell in love."
Sun Hong held his chin with one hand and stared at the floating stone platforms one by one. "Brother Wu, I think this is a test of our arithmetic talents. These stone platforms look chaotic, but they are actually orderly. It's just difficult to calculate." , one miscalculated step may lead to a dead end.”
Wu Gen's eyes lit up, "What did you see?"
Sun Hong rubbed his sore eyes, "I have been quite interested in these things since I was a child. In the Xiang army, most of them are calculating military achievements and transporting food and grass, so I can give it a try."
"Okay, brother, please think about it slowly, I will take care of the rest." Seeing the hope of crossing the river, Wu Gen took the initiative to take on other chores.
For three days in a row, Sun Hong sat by the river and thought hard, with his plans scattered on the branches beside his feet.
After deducing over and over again, denying over and over again, Sun Hong looked pale and haggard due to excessive mental exertion.
Finally, on the fourth day, Sun Hong jumped up and shouted, "I know." But as soon as he stood up, he fell to the ground and passed out again, with blood pouring out of his nose and eyes like a fountain. This is a sign of excessive mental exertion and exhaustion of energy.
After Wu Gen rescued him, Sun Hong excitedly revealed his discovery. These stone platforms are not placed randomly, but coincide with the movement of the stars in the sky.
The four black stone platforms closest to the river symbolize the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter. Stepping onto the first stone platform also means which season of astrology has been chosen.
The second row of red stone platforms coincides with the four elephants of Qinglong, White Tiger, Suzaku and Xuanwu. Whichever stone platform you choose means you will enter the corresponding star field.
Next, the person’s computing power will be truly tested. Because when you take the next step, it coincides with geography, and the star charts in different regions are naturally different. But the terrible thing is that you don't know where you will step into, and it can be said that the organizer has no control.
If that's all, that's it. The key is that there are variables in every step after that. Every step needs to be carefully calculated. If you are not careful, you will fall short.
The path of heaven is long and long, with ups and downs at its own time. How many people watch the sky at night and immerse themselves in it all their lives, but they still cannot understand the entire mystery of the starry sky.
Wu Gen covered his head with a look of pain on his face, waved his hands and said: "Okay. Stop talking, my brain hurts. The person who chose the road to death is the Xiang Army, not the Taishi Order. Fighting, killing, riding and shooting tests Forget it, why do you still have to embarrass people like this?"
Sun Hong was serious and rarely retorted: "That's not true. A general must know astronomy from above and geography from below, so that he can strategize and use troops at the right time. Not only that, in the war, the strength of the enemy's and our own troops, consumption of supplies, and layout and planning are all important. The requirements for a general's arithmetic skills are quite high.
Going back to the novel, personally, cultivation is just about fighting and killing, and just sitting and breathing. I don’t think that’s okay.
In the small world of the human body, how does the blood and Qi operate optimally in it? Different methods require different routes of operation. In addition, talismans, divination, talisman arrays, etc. all require practitioners to have strong calculation ability in order to achieve half the results. Double the work.
I don’t know who set up this place, but a lot of thought was put into it, so it can be used by both generals and soldiers. "
Wu Gen looked at Sun Hong blankly, as if he didn't recognize him, "Why do you know so much and cover such a wide range of topics?" This young man who had been following him since Liushuji and seemed a bit cowardly made him look at him with admiration today.
Sun Hong blushed and said shyly: "There are many books at home, but I just like these side sects and strange scriptures. Therefore, I am not good at being serious and can't take the imperial examination, so I have to join the Xiang army."
"Talent." Wu Gen gave a thumbs up.
Sun Hong thought hard for a long time, and finally stood up confidently, "That's it."
Wu Gen tied a rope around his and Sun Hong's waists and walked to the river.
"Which one to choose?" Sun Hong said, looking at the four black stone platforms in front of him.
"Choose spring for a good omen." Wu Gen did not hesitate.
"Okay, the purple and red place is the beauty of spring." Sun Hong said loudly.
"Why do I only know that a moment of spring night is worth a thousand pieces of gold?" Wu Gen muttered and jumped onto a stone platform.
As soon as the two of them landed, the stone platform swayed forward. When the giant crocodiles in the river saw someone passing by, they all raised their huge heads out of the water, opened their bloody mouths, and waited for the heavenly food.
"Qinglong." Seeing the red stone platform approaching, Wu Gen spoke without waiting for Sun Hong to ask.
Sun Hong pointed at a place where a moving red stone platform was five or six feet away from him. While waiting for the two stone platforms to be closest, the two jumped to the second stone platform.
"Which one to choose next?"
"Farther away, I'm afraid of hidden traps nearby."
"good."
Wu Gen took a deep breath, looked into the distance, bowed his waist, leaned down, and stamped his feet, all in one go. His body drew a perfect arc and landed steadily on a stone platform ten feet away. This was already his own The limit that can be jumped out of.
In this way, the two of them moved forward slowly, one stone platform after another. The further back, the more variables there are, and the longer Sun Hong needs to think.
The stone platform suddenly went up and down, sometimes getting higher and sometimes lower. Without any danger, I saw that I had already crossed most of the river.
Wu Gen's body was tense and he was sweating profusely. These stone platforms were flickering, flying sideways, upwards, or low. If they were not careful, they might fall into the river.
Needless to say, Sun Hong looked pale and had blood oozing from his mouth and nose. Such a terrifying calculation took a huge toll on his mind.
The hundred meters are finally sparse, and when they approached the other side, the two of them were already leaping high in the air, flying towards a stone platform. Sun Hong's eyes suddenly widened, "Wrong, that's where it is." He pointed to another small round platform a few feet away, hidden behind the stone platform in front.
Wu Gen's expression changed drastically. At this time, he could no longer change direction in the air. In desperation, he drew out his broken knife and slashed it hard on a nearby stone platform. With the force of the blow, his body turned around and landed on the small round platform.
But at this moment, due to Wu Gen's blow, the stone platforms behind him began to move in a disorderly manner, hitting each other, making constant banging sounds, and from time to time, stone platforms fell into the water.
"Hurry up, the stars are in chaos, and the entire trial formation is about to collapse." Sun Hong shouted anxiously behind him.
Wu Gen groaned, stepped on the remaining stone platform in front, jumped up, and ran towards the river bank. As a result, the formation was in chaos, and when they were still more than ten feet away from the river bank, there was no place to stay. At this time, Wu Gen was also exhausted and could no longer jump such a long distance.
Looking at the open mouth of the giant crocodile in the river, Wu Gen shouted loudly, cut off the knife in his hand, and cut off the nose of a giant crocodile. Under the pain, the giant crocodile instinctively shut up, and took this opportunity to step on its back. Using the last bit of strength, his body crossed the bloody mouths and landed heavily on the river bank.
