Not only was there no regret in Sheyan's eyes, his lips curled into a confident smirk. He couldn't help muttering to himself.
"Don't tell me you believe that by doing so, you can conceal the truth???"
"Truly.... naive!!"
Sheyan then continued studying the contents of the diary.
"The legend..... seems to be true."
"Momore, who was shot by those damned aborigines, actually, actually crawled out from his tomb!!"
"...."
Previously, Sheyan had chosen the wrong path. That was to attempt a frontal assault in this' A 'difficulty world to achieve his objective. Although his train of thought was clear, and strictly speaking, if he could continue walking down this path, he would definitely achieve his objective. Yet, his excessive self-confidence led Party Ace to suffer tremendous losses upon entering the core region of the Kijuju Marshland, and had no choice but to abandon their advancement.
Precisely because of his clear train of thought, Sheyan felt as though he had overlooked something important. Yet, he couldn't recall it, because most of his attention was placed on the path he had chosen.
Thus, at present, when Sheyan began to devote all his attention to it, he instantly discovered many useful things from the diary. (Please refer to the previous entry – Bernard Fokke's Nautical Manual.)
Firstly, from the existence of Momore, Bernard Fokke's method was exceedingly unique. Even a horse could be protected into the core region of the Kijuju Marshland, and even an ordinary pony could consume the 'Stairway of the Sun'. This basically eliminated the scope of alchemy and black magic, because those two abilities obviously didn't include livestock. Evidently, they were only discovered after they succeeded and fled. Before that, they had even safely arrived at the side of the altar of the Ndipaya aborigines!
Sheyan took note of the mention of an iconic structure – 'Gigantic Bonfire'. Of course, Sheyan swiftly memorized this crucial point.
Apart from that, the diary mentioned that Travice should've transformed into the 'Plaga Host' he encountered previously. After obtaining the power of immortality, he lost his original nature and succumbed to his instincts.
Furthermore, the cause of death of the 2 year old African horse, Momore, was shot to death by the aborigines' javelin …... this coincidentally conformed with Sheyan's previous conjecture. The Ndipaya aborigines probably possessed formidable long range enemies, and were thus adept at evading long range attacks!
This discovery was even more important! The enemy of my enemy may not be my friend. Nevertheless, Sheyan could at least confirm that there was a possibility of intense internal strife within the Kijuju Marshland. Moreover, such strife had a long history, and their hatred should've been deeply rooted and irreconcilable. Therefore, Sheyan could at least borrow the strength of others to muddy the waters!
At present, Sheyan had completely given up on the idea of returning. To him, after discovering that one path had been blocked and he was on the brink of despair, yet another golden path suddenly appeared. This feeling was truly like the feeling of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and finding a village at the end of the tunnel!
Although Little Lord Fokke had destroyed the most crucial part of Bernard Fokke's' Voyage Manual ', to Sheyan, that wasn't an insurmountable chasm. What laid before him wasn't some clueless case. Although the process of entering the hinterland of the Ndipaya Marshland had been artificially sabotaged and concealed within the dense fog, Sheyan was aware of the cause and conclusion of this journey!
This was akin to a bundle of disordered silk threads, where the head and tail of the thread had already appeared before him. Therefore, all Sheyan had to do now was to follow the head and tail of the thread, slowly unravelling the silk from the cocoon. Of course, he had ample confidence in his ability to completely reconstruct the entire incident!
*****
The night of the primitive forest was exceptionally sultry. Over a blazing bonfire, half a skinned lemur and a python were being roasted. An alluring aroma wafted out. Mbenga was currently carefully observing the temperature of the fire. Occasionally, he sprinkled some salt and powder, with an exceedingly focused expression. Indeed, in such a harsh and primitive environment, food and reproduction were two major factors that required sufficient attention and reverence.
Seated beside the bonfire, Sheyan remained motionless. His brows were tightly knitted, as perspiration trickled down from his forehead, drenching his hair and causing it to stick to his forehead. The dampness was extremely uncomfortable. The intense odour of perspiration had attracted hordes of bugs, little biters, sandflies and black gadflies. They congregated above Sheyan's head and buzzed like a cloud of fog. Fortunately, the insect-repelling medicines of the natives were exceedingly effective. Thus, these bugs could only thirst and greedily circle around helplessly, not daring to pounce towards their prey!
"I got it!"
Sheyan abruptly straightened his body, as he clenched his fists and declared loudly! His brows instantly relaxed, and because of this, he crashed headfirst into the cloud of blood sucking bugs above his head. Instantly, Sheyan couldn't help but sink into an exceedingly wretched state, as he frantically wiped his face with his hands.
Upon witnessing this, Mbenga hastily hoisted up a burning tree branch, as he waved it incessantly in the air. Instantly, those blood sucking bugs fell to the ground one after another, as crackling sounds resounded from the burning flames. Waves of unbearable charred stench wafted out.
After chasing away those large clumps of blood sucking bugs, Sheyan casually tossed a bottle of rum to Mbenga. Then, he sat back down on the ground, sweeping away the withered branches and withered leaves to reveal a flat surface. Following that, he broke off a tree branch and started rapidly scribbling on it.
"Firstly, let's consider a question. If I'm afflicted with a fatal illness, without any special abilities, and lead a bunch of murderers, swindlers and pirates, crossing the ocean to this desolate land in search of a legendary life-saving medicine, then what would be the first thing I do …..."
"Yes, a camp!! A stable camp that can provide reliable protection and a peaceful night's sleep. Even explorers with a clear map would leave a camp before embarking on an expedition. This way, they can place excess supplies there, allowing them to travel with light equipment. At the same time, they wouldn't run out of food when they return. Besides, the nearest camp, Port Qom, is dozens of kilometres away. To ordinary people like them, this distance is sufficient for them to trek through the jungle for several days …... "
"Let me reconsider. This camp definitely shouldn't be too close to the Kijuju Marshland. If not, that damnable stench and pervasive disease would directly cause their party to collapse. This camp definitely shouldn't be too far away from the Kijuju Marshland. For those who wish to explore this treacherous marshland, trekking through a primitive tropical forest and wasting too much stamina isn't a good idea. Therefore, a distance of 2-3 kilometres would be a rather good choice. "
Sheyan's tree branch continued scribbling on the muddy ground. After traversing through hundreds of years of time, it was as though the events of the past were vividly sketched out in his mind.
"Oh! That's right, their voyage spanned nearly half the globe to reach this place. They definitely wouldn't be able to prepare sufficient fresh water. As for the Kijuju Marshland, there's plenty of fresh water. However, to drink that stuff requires sufficient courage and vitality. Therefore, the camp should add another characteristic – abundant fresh water resources. At least, it can support 10 individuals and a horse. Considering the tropical rainforest climate and the lack of large rivers in the vicinity, the chances of landslides, landslides, mudslides, floods and other natural disasters that alter the topography of this place are minuscule. Therefore, the fresh water resources should still exist! "
"Then, what am I waiting for? Every second spent in this world, is an exceedingly costly waste! "
Sheyan decided. "Alright, Mbenga, are you full? Oh, you aren't right? Therefore, I don't mind you bringing along our roasted meat. You should know of the rivers around the Kijuju Marshland that can be used for drinking right? Of course, spring water counts as well. You only know of three places? Don't worry, let's head to the place you know first. "
*****
Four hours later, Mbenga was already panting like an ox and was utterly exhausted.
No matter who it was, after trekking hundreds of kilometres through the tropical jungle in this 35 degree hot night, their performance definitely wouldn't be any better than his. Within this short span of time, he had already accompanied Sheyan to 3 streams and 2 springs.
At present, ahead, a southern Venomous Viper was limping as it fled. Not only was this pitiful animal drained of its blood, it was even forced to swallow a considerable amount of salt. Presently, it was dying from thirst.
Indeed, Mbenga might not know of the nearby fresh water resources, but these animals definitely knew! Because if they didn't, they wouldn't have survived till now.
Relying on such a cruel method, Sheyan was currently heading towards a fresh water resource point in an unknown region. At present, he displayed an exceedingly patient attitude. The blistering hot weather didn't incite his anger, but instead made him even calmer. He rather enjoyed this process, where he didn't use muscles or blood, but only relied on his brain. Slowly, bit by bit, he peeled away the dust and obscurity of time, and restored the truth of history to his own eyes!
Ahead was a small river. That southern Venomous Viper had completely ignored its pursuers. Its extreme thirst had caused it to disregard everything else, as though it had entered a berserk state! (To be continued.) If you like this work, I welcome you to vote for it on qidian.com. Your support, is my greatest motivation.)
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