Soon after the black line on the horizon appeared, the ground changed from flat desert to rugged ground filled with strange rocks.
Bahram spent the whole day walking through the stones.
He has lived in the salt-alkali land below the hive since he was a child, and has never climbed higher.
These stones are very smooth. The strong wind that roars all day long has corroded small pits on the surface of the stones, and some water accumulates inside, like gems dotted with stones.
Ahead stood strange cliffs, with smooth surfaces at their lower parts and very jagged upper parts.
These cliffs marked his arrival in the foothills of Soames, literally away from home.
The towering mountains are like a group of silent giants, truly overlooking the earth.
Bahram took a moment to check his resources.
He still had half a bottle of water, half a bag of dry food, and a leather coat that didn't quite fit him.
For supplies, he began to search for springs in rock crevices.
If it were in the saline soil where he lived, he knew where to find water—the darker soil was often where groundwater seeped out.
But in the mountains, he could only trust his own intuition and judgment.
Bahram decided to start his search at the base of the cliff, where he speculated water could seep to the surface through cracks and faults, and where plants sometimes marked the source of water.
Don't doubt that a wild child from the bottom of the hive city knows so much.
In fact, Bahram's family used to be a member of the upper class of the hive city, but after a failed political speculation, his grandfather was deprived of all wealth and power and was reduced to the lower class of the hive city.
But this does not mean that they have fallen into decline.
In fact, relying on his knowledge and extraordinary insights, his father easily found a job as a salt mine supervisor. Bahram himself was educated at home by his grandfather until his grandfather passed away three years ago.
It was from his grandfather that he first learned about the existence of angels.
They are the incarnation of the God-Emperor's will, powerful, immortal, and invincible.
If there is anything that can be a young boy's ultimate dream, it is the Astartes.
This is also the purpose of his trip.
Bahram spent much of the morning searching for water, navigating a labyrinth of ravines that led into the mountains.
It was very cool here because it was surrounded by rocks, but because he was born in the plains, he felt slightly claustrophobic here.
Eventually he found a bowl-shaped basin.
Although it is surrounded by cliffs, there is still enough space for the sun to shine down.
He never thought he'd miss the sun so much, but after a day of walking in the shadows, he desperately wanted to see the sky.
A steep river channel extends from the bottom of the basin into the mountain. There is a thin waterfall here, thus collecting a small pool of water at the bottom of the basin.
The pool is surrounded by a cluster of water leaves. Their immature leaves cling to the prickly and tough stems. The mature leaves on the outside are consumable - they are full of water and have no sharp spines, and are used to attract animals. Eat them, spreading the seeds hanging from the tips of the leaves far away.
Bahram slid down the edge of the rock, plucked the seeds from the leaves, and began munching.
The water leaves tasted very bitter, but after three days of walking without water or food, they tasted like the nectar that angels should drink.
Afterwards, he bent down, picked up the water from the bottle, and in the process washed his face, which was as rough as frost, with clean water.
"Tsk, tsk, look what we found. There is a hive boy here who has polluted our water source."
Hearing the sound, Bahram turned around.
I saw two boys standing at the entrance of the basin.
They were skinny, wearing strange clothes, with various survival tools hung on their belts, and heavy square backpacks on their backs.
On their shoulders, they also carried brackets made of white metal.
Bahram dropped the bottle, stood up, assumed a defensive posture, and reached for his lower back, where there was an exquisite pistol left to him by his grandfather.
The two boys were older and taller than him, especially the one who was speaking.
The second man is a bald man, but he is very strong, has some tattoos on his arms, and looks like he is not easy to mess with.
Bahram tried to hide his alarm as he spoke.
"Hello."
"Who are you?"
asked the second boy.
But Bahram didn't answer, so the first boy could only make a helpless face, showing his black teeth, and then walked towards the basin.
"I'm so exhausted."
He put the backpack down, and the stand made a crisp sound when it came down.
After putting down the heavy burden, the boy stretched his waist beautifully.
"He doesn't have a very bright mind. I can see that you are about the same as him."
The first boy put on a big smile, and the second boy, the stocky-looking guy, pulled his face down at his companion.
"My brain is bright. At least I know how to survive here. At least I found this place first."
Bahram retorted.
"Also, if you are thirsty, take some yourself."
He tried his best to be friendly. Living in the lower levels of the hive, he naturally knew how to avoid trouble and conflicts.
But the other party didn't appreciate it very much.
"We don't need to ask for your permission."
The stocky boy said, deliberately bumping Bahram's shoulder as he walked over.
"Don't waste your time, we don't know much about him yet."
The first boy said, walking to a stone next to Bahram and squatting down.
"Where are you going, boy?"
Bahram chose to avoid his question.
"One of my cousins is sick. I want to see him. It will be much more convenient to go anywhere in Graycliff Town."
"Ah, Graycliff Town, where are you going next?"
The older boy caught on to what Bahram was saying.
"Do you want to catch the last train?"
He said cryptically, with an expression that said, "I've seen right through you."
"Want to take part in the angel's test?"
It turned out that as early as seven days ago, the chapter leader of the Astral Knights suddenly announced that the primary election would be postponed. At the same time, there would no longer be restrictions on identity. Any healthy teenager who meets the age limit can participate in the selection.
However, candidates who are not in the middle or upper class of the hive city can only go to several designated registration points, register there and then take a vehicle to Soames Noble Academy.
Graycliff Town, a small town located at the junction of the lower and middle levels of Soames Hive, is one of these registration points.
The most special thing about the town is that it is built on a cliff.
The original intention of this town was to collect the excrement of a rare bird, which is an important raw material for making a special perfume.
This perfume is not only extremely popular among the upper-class ladies of the hive, but is even sold to other planets.
In order to prevent disturbing these birds, Gray Cliff Town has not built any roads or track facilities. People entering and exiting the town can only climb nearly a kilometer of cliffs with bare hands.
So people can only go there during the guano collecting season, and most of the time there are very few residents in the town.
The Astral Knight clearly had a purpose in choosing where to sign up.
