As this spiral underground river continued to deepen, the people in the team could feel the temperature in the cave corridors just by feeling it.
When the temperature rose to about 15 degrees Celsius, a fork in the road began to appear ahead.
Because Lin Shuo led the way, these fork roads did not confuse everyone, as long as they followed Lin Shuo.
Unknowingly, during this day, everyone has walked for ten hours in this strange and intricate underground channel, with a distance of nearly 30 kilometers.
At seven o'clock in the evening, a faint light finally appeared ahead.
It was a dark red light, like a mysterious invitation.
Seeing the light ahead, everyone was refreshed, and their steps quickened.
Unexpectedly, Lin Shuo stopped walking and waved his hands: "Everyone will rest here tonight."
"It's only two or three steps to the entrance of the cave, why don't you go and have a look first?" Wei Xingshan asked a little puzzled.
"Of course I'm going to see it." Lin Shuo replied, "But it's not like dragging a large group of people along. Currently, the cave itself is a good refuge. Let's rest for a night before we talk about it."
"Okay, I'll listen to you." Wei Xingshan quickly agreed.
Everyone stopped five or six hundred meters away from the entrance of the cave and began to rest on the spot.
After walking 30 kilometers a day, not to mention the two scholars He Zihong and Yang Tuo, even the mercenaries felt very tired.
Before entering the unfamiliar environment, everyone was highly nervous, and their physical fatigue was more or less ignored. When they stopped, everyone realized that all the strength in their bodies had been exhausted.
"I didn't expect this underground river to be so long." He Zihong sat down, rubbed his calf with his hands and sighed, "The announcement of our discovery today is enough to shock the whole world."
"But obviously, such an underground river, with the size of the Black Water Dragon King or the hooked snake, cannot pass through here to enter the Black Water Dragon's Nest." Yang Tuo said while laying a sleeping bag for He Zihong, "There must be another one that is wider. channel."
"Before, I let Russia's GLONASS satellite system scan the area around here." He Zihong said, "At least on the ground, I didn't find a similar hole. It seems that this other secret passage is well hidden. It's very secretive. Fortunately, Miss Anne has special skills, otherwise we really wouldn't be able to find this place."
"I'm just scratching the surface." Anne shook her head, "If it weren't for Dr. Yang's use of Chinese resources, we wouldn't be able to get to this point."
"So, solidarity and cooperation are very important." He Zihong said, "Although our actions may have slightly different final goals, the cooperation is still very pleasant."
Speaking of this, He Zihong looked at Yang Tuo and asked, "Xiao Yang, have you decided on your future development path? Should you continue to be a scholar, or..."
"Teacher, I have always been a scientific research worker." Yang Tuo said, "This incident is of a special nature, and it is inconvenient for the Chinese side to send someone directly, so they can only entrust me temporarily."
"Okay, just make it clear." He Zihong nodded, "This is the best."
"Teacher, I'm sorry." Yang Tuo lowered his head slightly, "I made you worry."
"It's okay. I was too confused before, and it was too simple to think about things." He Zihong waved his hand, and then said to Lin Shuo, "Mr. Lin, starting tomorrow, I want to divide the army into two groups."
Lin Shuo was slightly taken aback, and asked, "Why?"
"Because the nature of this matter has changed in terms of scientific research and investigation." He Zihong explained, "Before, the target of our investigation was the hooked snake. Now, what we are facing is a completely new ecological environment." System. This meaning is actually no smaller than a hooked snake.
Once I get out of the cave and enter this ecosystem, I need a certain amount of time to conduct an on-site investigation, which will definitely cause serious delays to your itinerary.
So I think we have to divide our troops into two groups.
Yang Tuo follows you to investigate the hooked snake and the whereabouts of the missing loggers.
And I stayed near the entrance of this cave to conduct investigation and research.
What do you think of this? "
Before Lin Shuo could speak, Wei Xingshan shook his head like a rattle: "Professor He, what are you going to sing again? Our security forces are already stretched thin. Isn't it more dangerous if you divide the troops?" ? Your research can be carried out next time you come!"
"Heh." He Zihong smiled, "I am already sixty-nine years old this year, I know my body well, there will be no next time."
Wei Xingshan frowned when he heard this, and he looked at Lin Shuo: "Old Lin, please persuade him."
"It's possible." Unexpectedly, Lin Shuo nodded to He Zihong, "Professor He, you can stay near the entrance of the cave, and Captain Liu will lead other mercenaries to protect you."
"I also think it is feasible." Anne said, "In fact, this river is safer than continuing to go deep into the Blackwater Dragon's Nest. If there is any danger, you can hide in the cave and block the entrance with firepower, and there are still people behind." retreat.
If the large army really wanted to enter the Blackwater Dragon's Nest, Mr. Lin would have to take care of too many people.
Instead of this, we might as well not put all our eggs in one basket. "
Wei Xingshan was not a stubborn person, and he really felt it made sense when he heard it, so he couldn't help nodding his head repeatedly.
"Captain Wei." He Zihong suddenly stretched out his hand and patted the back of the strong man's hand, "Mr. Lin has to deal with the hooked snake, and Ms. Anne has to assist Mr. Lin. I will entrust you with the safety of my student Yang Tuo. Please You believe me, his life is priceless."
"Teacher..." Yang Tuo was so moved that his lips trembled and he couldn't speak.
At this time, Yang Tuo had already realized that He Zihong had completely entrusted the project of hooking the snake to himself.
This so-called brand-new ecosystem has great research value, but because its application prospects are unclear, it cannot be compared with the hooked snake at all.
At the same time, the old man also saw clearly that both himself and the mercenaries were actually Lin Shuo's burden when facing a strange creature like the hooked snake.
So he chose to leave most of the burden at the entrance of the cave, and let the most elite forces of this trip go deep into the black water dragon's lair.
These remarks of his have taken care of almost everyone's psychological feelings and are extremely wise.
Yang Tuo was deeply moved by his trust and attention to Yang Tuo.
Wei Xingshan nodded emphatically: "Professor He, with your words, I can't guarantee anything else, but even if Dr. Yang dies, he will die after me."
He Zihong smiled, took out a special mobile phone from his arms, and handed it to Anne: "In order to reassure Mr. Lin, I will leave this satellite phone to Ms. Anne for safekeeping. give me back."
Anne glanced at Lin Shuo, then took the phone.
…
That night, Lin Shuo didn't rest with the rest of the army, but sat down at the end of the river, leaning against the cave wall.
Walking here with him are Anne and Wei Xingshan.
Beyond the entrance of the cave was a completely unfamiliar scene.
It's a vast space, vast enough to hold a mountain range.
The entrance of the cave where the three are located is in the valley of this mountain range. Looking outside, it is a huge mountain, and looking up, it is a dome made of rocks.
The summit of this mountain range, connected to the dome, forms a giant hourglass shape with each other.
The entire space is filled with a kind of red light, and the light source is on the back of the mountain and cannot be seen directly.
Below the cave, at the lowest point of the terrain, there is a river, very clear, almost transparent, about two or three meters deep.
This underground mountain is not barren, and there are various plants growing on the mountain.
These plants are oddly shaped, with shrub-like short ones and arbor-like tall ones. None of their leaves are green. Mainly purple, with occasional cyan and red.
Based on the knowledge of Anne's Ph.D. in biology, it can only be roughly judged that these should be relatively primitive ferns.
These plants grow very densely, just like the tropical rain forest on the ground. If it is under the sun, it must be very beautiful, but at the moment under the red light, it looks a bit weird besides being spectacular.
Lin Shuo and the others stared blankly at the world outside the cave, feeling as if they were on another planet.
"Do you think these plants are poisonous?" Wei Xingshan murmured.
"You can cook a pot tomorrow." Lin Shuo suggested.
"Am I crazy hungry or what?" Wei Xingshan curled his lips.
"These should be ferns. Ferns reproduce by spores. The spores are dispersed in the air and enter the human body through the respiratory tract." Anne said, "If these plants were poisonous, we would have reacted by now."
"Look, Ms. Anne is still professional in explaining." Wei Xingshan said with a smile, "Old Lin, you hunter, you don't have professional knowledge."
"I'm not a hunter of the Cao family, why do I know so many things?" Lin Shuo gave Wei Xingshan a white look, "We hunters of the Lin family only need to be able to beat the prey."
"Hey, I'm talking about Lao Lin, there's no outsiders here now, so you have to get to the bottom of it with your brother." Wei Xingshan asked, "If you were to face the hooked snake head-on, how sure are you?"
Lin Shuo said, "You just remembered to ask this now, isn't it a bit late?"
"Hey, isn't this the end of the road? If you're not sure, I'll run away and protect Yang Tuo." Wei Xingshan said carelessly, "Right, Miss Anne."
Anne shook her head: "Captain Wei, maybe it's not what you imagined?"
"Huh? What should that look like?"
"If you really encounter a hooked snake, life and death will be an instant." Anne said softly.
"That's right." Lin Shuo said, "The Hooked Snake is the strongest alien species among the strange creatures, and its speed can also be ranked among the top five. To deal with this kind of beast, it's life and death, that's a face-to-face."
Seeing Wei Xingshan's paler face, Lin Shuo comforted him, "Don't worry, if I miss, you don't have to worry about anything. It's just a light touch, and you're dead. The death may be miserable, but in fact No pain."