Sand and gravel stored and dissipated heat quickly, and the temperature difference between day and night in the desert was huge. The temperature difference between noon and early morning could reach more than 30 degrees.
Not long ago, they were still exposed to the scorching sun, and when night fell, they would start to feel cold again.
To avoid the snakes and insects in the desert, Zhang Heng chose a relatively high terrain to start a fire. Besides, the fire could also prevent some carnivores near the top of the food chain from getting close.
However, danger didn't always come from the outside.
Zhang Heng, Jia Lai, and Bruno were all sitting around the campfire. Nighttime was supposed to be the best time to make up for the energy lost during the day, but none of them dared to close their eyes.
Because it was also the best time to make a move.
During the day, NASA's people were watching them from a few kilometers away, so it was difficult for them to do much. At night, not to mention whether NASA's people also needed to sleep, the visibility was reduced. Even if the observers were dedicated, it would be difficult for them to keep track of everything that was happening here from a distance.
The fire danced in the night, and the wood crackled in the firelight. Other than that, there was no other movement around them. After a long time, a voice spoke in a low voice.
"Do not go meekly into the night,
Old age should burn and roar at dusk;
Rebuke, rebuke.
Light fades.
Though wise men die knowing that darkness is right,
For their words do not burst forth with lightning,
Nor do they go meekly into the night … "
"Dylan Thomas. This is a poem he wrote to his critically ill father," Zhang Heng said.
"I always thought this poem was from the movie 'Interstellar'," Chen Ge said with a smile. Bruno yawned and rubbed his sleepy eyes. He had expended a lot of energy during the day, especially after dinner. Still, he didn't dare to close his eyes.
"I like that movie very much, and I like this poem very much. It's very close to our current situation, isn't it?" Jia Lai said. "Every time we participate in the game, we have to face the risk of being eliminated. I don't think I need to explain the consequences of losing the game. So, whether it's good or bad, we can't give up until the last moment. After all, we don't want to be forgotten by the whole world."
"Well, to be honest, I don't really care who remembers me," Bruno shrugged. "It's just that when I think about how I can no longer hold parties in my mansion in Australia, how I can no longer drive my Porsche 911 to date pretty girls in college, and how my brother will inherit my assets, I certainly don't want to lose … After all, I may not be as lucky in my next reincarnation."
"What about you? What is it that keeps you going through rounds and rounds of the game?" Jia Lai shifted his gaze to Zhang Heng. "Since no one plans to rest, why don't we have a chat? After all, we don't have much time left."
"I don't know. For now, I just want to figure out what's going on behind all this," Zhang Heng said as he adjusted the bonfire in front of him with a tree branch.
"Yeah, we all want to know who organized this game, what its purpose is, when it will stop, and how to win in the end. But sometimes, we don't always get the answers to our questions, do we?" Jia Lai's eyes flickered in the night, and no one knew what was going through his mind.
For a moment, Zhang Heng even thought that Jia Lai was about to make a move.
But the next moment, Bruno's nervous voice came from beside him. "Hey, look! What's that?!"
He had just gotten up and was about to go to the nearby bushes to relieve himself when he saw something flashing in the darkness in the distance.
Bruno couldn't be blamed for being so nervous. This was a moment of life and death. When he sensed the movement, he couldn't care less about emptying his stomach. He quickly pulled up his pants and ran back to the bushes.
Zhang Heng and Jia Lai stood up immediately when they heard Bruno. They looked at each other and saw the surprise in each other's eyes. In other words, this sudden situation had nothing to do with the three of them.
Zhang Heng picked up a lit wooden stick from the bonfire on the ground and shone it in the direction Bruno came from. Sure enough, he saw a few sneaky shadows on the sand dunes not far away.
"What is that?" Jia Lai squinted.
"It looks like a mountain coyote," Zhang Heng said after observing for a while. In the novice quest, he learned a lot of ways to identify animals from Bell, and it came in handy now. Information about mountain coyotes flashed in Zhang Heng's mind.
The mountain coyote is one of the subspecies of coyote and a native species of the North American continent. It is widely distributed in the United States, from the Cascades of Washington State and eastern Oregon, south through the Great Basin, the Sierra Nevada highlands, all the way to northern Mexico.
Most of the time, however, these mountain coyotes lived in forests, swamps, and grasslands, where food and water were abundant. It was rare to see one running into the desert like this. From the looks of it, they were starving. They hadn't harvested anything for several days in a row. Otherwise, they wouldn't have targeted the three people who were still leaning against the bonfire.
Zhang Heng didn't know if NASA's observers had noticed their situation, but even if they came, it would take some time. And the mountain coyotes were already charging at them.
This creature wasn't afraid of humans. There was often news of coyotes appearing in the suburbs of the United States, but they were generally more used to hunting alone.
Even Zhang Heng didn't want to deal with four or five coyotes alone. Of course, he could still turn around and run. Although he couldn't outrun the two coyotes, he had no problem outrun Jia Lai and Bruno. However, Zhang Heng seemed to think of something. Instead of leaving the bonfire, he kicked two pieces of burning wood the size of a forearm to Jia Lai and Bruno.
Jia Lai hesitated for a moment, but eventually picked up the wood on the ground. Bruno turned his head and tried to run, but because he was too anxious, he tripped and ate a mouthful of sand. When he looked up again, a coyote had already pounced on him.
Bruno was scared out of his wits, but he also knew that he couldn't count on anyone at this time. He was lucky that Zhang Heng and Jia Lai didn't do anything to him. Fortunately, Bruno was a veteran player who had experienced several rounds of the game. Although he didn't have any game items, he still had his skills. At the critical moment, he put his elbow against the coyote's neck, preventing it from biting him. After that, he turned over and pinned the coyote under his body.
On the other side, Jia Lai was much calmer in the face of the coyote's attack. He stood there and watched coldly until the coyote rushed over. Jia Lai slammed the ground with his hind legs and leaped into the air. Jia Lai then grabbed the coyote's neck with lightning speed.
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