Chapter 833 Ancient Road

Egypt, with a history of thousands of years, is located in the north of Africa, with the Sahara Desert as the boundary, and belongs to North Africa on the African continent.

Geopolitically, it is also the easternmost part of the "Middle East". Among the seven continents in the world, Africa is the second largest continent in the world in terms of area and population, second only to Asia.

Such a large piece of land has become a forgotten place in international geopolitics.

Whenever people talk about the international situation, they focus on Europe, America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and other places.

When it comes to Africa, the first impression is poverty, war, hunger, AIDS, and Ebola.

Historically, most African countries have become colonies of European and American powers. After African countries gained independence in the 20th century, they fell into an endless environment of poverty and war.

To this day, Africa is still the most economically backward and war-torn continent among the seven continents in the world.

One of the reasons why Bifang never approaches human cities is to avoid these disputes as much as possible. Once involved in them, no matter how powerful he is, it will be useless.

However, no matter how inconspicuous it is, from the current data, Egypt is also an existence in human society that entered the advanced social organization form of the state early.

In 4000 BC, two independent kingdoms of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt were formed here, and the Yellow Emperor in the record did not appear until 1000 years later.

Of course, the truth or falsehood is another matter.

There are too few records about this aspect.

Moreover, early is not necessarily good, everything will develop, even if it is true, the ancient Egyptian civilization has long disappeared, and among the four ancient civilizations, only China has come to this day.

In the desert, Bifang riding a camel walks on the ancient trade road.

This is a strange desert. Although it is part of the Sahara, it is completely different.

The desert here is black in one place and white in another. The black desert is like the surface of Mars, and the white desert is as white as snow.

It looks strange and abnormal.

[What's going on? Why is the desert here this color?]

[It's black and white. Is the white one snow? ]

[What is this dividing line! ]

The audience in the live broadcast room looked at the landforms that looked like an alien planet and was stunned.

"It's amazing, isn't it? This is the black and white desert in Egypt, which is different from the yellow desert anywhere in the world."

Bifang jumped off the camel, half squatted on the ground, and reached out to grab a handful of black and white sand.

He was at the junction of black sand and white sand. The two were mixed together, but each grain was distinct.

"The black desert on the left is located in the submarine volcanic zone in ancient times, so it is covered by a layer of black volcanic material, showing a black and yellow scene."

"The black material erupted by the volcano is as coarse as stone and as fine as sand, thus forming the current black desert."

"As for the white desert, do you see the huge rocks over there?"

Bifang pointed to the white rocks not far away.

The white rocks of all sizes scattered in the desert are very peculiar in shape. They can make people think of many animals, as if they were at a giant sculpture exhibition.

"Here, you can see the strange-shaped chalk rocks formed by millions of years of wind erosion, some of which are shaped like camels and some like lions."

"This is the source of the white desert, a metamorphic rock."

"Over thousands of years, under the violent Sahara Desert storms, the sand on the nearby sand dunes has been gnawing at these 'gray' rocks for years, leaving only piles of white rocks and black stones."

"This 'white stone' that is everywhere is not a real rock, but a metamorphic rock formed by the continuous accumulation of the remains of marine organisms tens of thousands of years ago."

"This vast and dead desert under our feet was actually an ocean in prehistoric times, and then it was covered by forests."

"Until 6,000 to 8,000 years ago, this vast depression west of the Nile River became a large grassland, and the ancients at that time could move freely here."

"Now, it has become one of the driest areas on earth."

The white fine sand stretches to the horizon, as far as the eye can see.

"No matter what era, the desert is a hostile existence for Egyptians."

"In the cognition of ancient Egyptians, there have always been various evil spirits in the depths of the Sahara. They stir up trouble in the desert and do all kinds of evil."

"The situation is similar today. If there is no invitation for a large sum of money, Egyptian guides and tour guides will never take the initiative to take tourists to the great desert in the west for adventure travel."

"Although the Bedouins, who are mainly nomadic, are usually tough and fearless, once they enter the desert, they are still cautious, giving people the feeling of a novice driver who has just got a driver's license and is on the road."

"In fact, the locals also have an inexplicable fear of staying away from the road and entering the wilderness."

[I am afraid when I come here]

[Such a large desert, no one can be seen, anyone would be panicked]

[It feels the same, even if I know the direction is absolutely correct, but walking in such a place will still make me feel guilty and afraid]

[Has Fang Shen never been afraid? ]

"I was afraid before."

Bifang admitted this without hesitation.

The implication is that he is not afraid now.

"As social animals, humans naturally have a certain degree of fear of behaviors that stray from the group. However, for many things, if you do them more, you will be less afraid of them. And the more skills you have, the more confident you will be."

"Like someone just said, in the vast desert, even if you are an expert in identifying directions and are 100% sure that your direction is correct, but after walking for an hour, two hours, or even a day or two, the surrounding environment has not changed at all, no matter how determined you are, you will slowly begin to doubt yourself."

"But when you are not only an expert in identifying directions, but also an expert in finding water sources, hunting, and survival, then the panic will be greatly reduced."

"After you have enough ability and rich experience, you will gradually stop feeling panic."

[I understand, you have become a god, right?]

[Is Lao Fang bragging?]

[You are getting more and more shameless, I like it]

"This is the fact, okay."

Bifang scratched his hair. He hadn't had a good haircut for more than two months, and his hair is a little long now.

"There are five oasis areas in the desert area bordering Egypt, Chad and Libya where humans can survive, namely, Bahariya Oasis, Farafila Oasis, Dakar Oasis, Karaga Oasis and Siura Oasis."

"Our route this time is to pass through the edge of Siura Oasis, which is located in the west, and then pass through the other four oasis areas from north to south to ensure sufficient supplies."

The mission is just to cross the Sahara, and no specific route is given. For this reason, Bifang must of course choose the safest way.

At the same time, the oasis is also a treasure in the desert, and I always want to see it.

"Whether in ancient or modern times, this area connected by oases has always been the key life link for human survival in the desert."

"Nowadays, the Nile River runs through the entire desert area and flows into the Mediterranean Sea from south to north throughout Egypt. As long as people want, they can take a boat along the Nile River all the way to Cairo."

"Thousands of years ago, the Nile River was not the only way to connect Upper and Lower Egypt. Hundreds of kilometers west of the Nile River, there is an ancient desert road parallel to the river."

"On the ancient road, ivory, ebony, frankincense, rhino horns, leopard skins, and even giraffe tails from Sudan and Chad were transported to the Mediterranean coast through this ancient desert road, and then exported to European countries."

"This ancient desert trade road is the one under our feet. It is said that it takes about 40 days to walk the entire way."

The camera moved to the bottom of Bifang. Unfortunately, perhaps because of the long time, there is no trace of the road.

Only when the drone rises to a high altitude can some outlines be vaguely seen, but they are not clear.

This road has been abandoned for more than a hundred years, and it is remarkable that some traces can still be seen now.

"In the 19th century, large caravans often used this ancient road to transport goods."

"Wilkinson, an Egyptologist from Central China, once encountered a caravan carrying 600 African slaves here in January 1825. It is said that this caravan can travel about 900 kilometers of the ancient desert trade road in 35 days."

"It sounds slow, only 30 kilometers a day, but it is a caravan, not a lone ranger like me, so the speed must be slower."

"French naturalist Frederick Kyriad also mentioned in his works that in 1817, a caravan of 16,000 people appeared on this desert trade road, of which more than 6,000 were slaves."

"This scale is not a caravan at all, it is simply a veritable army."

"If people at that time had to take the risk of taking this trade road to cross the desert, they would generally make a will before leaving and entrust their souls to Allah."

[I don't know what Allah is, but I know pearls]

[Pony Pearls, right]

[Bold! You can also comment on this! ? ]

[Allah is the name of the supreme and only reality in the universe and the one who should be worshipped in the classic Quran. ]

[He is the only master worshipped by the world's MSL. He is considered to be the creator of all things in the universe and the one who nurtures the world. He has sent many prophets to convey the truth to mankind in this world and to conduct fair settlement in the afterlife. His status is almost the same as God]

[Say thank you Karl with me]

In the Agabat Valley not far from the Black and White Desert, Bifang stopped Alpha and found a large piece of crystal stone in the process of formation.

This is Crystal Mountain.

Egypt is a famous crystal producing area in the world, and Crystal Mountain is one of the crystal producing areas. Large pieces of natural crystal are exposed to the air and shine in the sun.

Bifang picked up several pieces of good crystal on the ground and stuffed them into his backpack, also as decorations.

He also saw the underground caves. The crystals spread and grew in the dark like moss. The white and bright ones formed in the rock formations, and there were also huge crystal columns exposed on the surface, like red corals in the sea.

After leaving Crystal Mountain, Bifang arrived at the first oasis after riding for several days.

The area is not large, and the water area is just a small lake, but there are many plants around. Even with only a little water, life blooms tenaciously here.

What's more gratifying is that Bifang also found several cacti here!

I think it was caused by species invasion.

In today's globalized world, this phenomenon is not uncommon.

"I believe everyone has heard this saying, that is, when walking in the desert, you can eat cactus meat to quench your thirst."

"Many cacti are edible, but not all of them are. There are more than a thousand species of cacti, and some are poisonous."

"With so many species, most of them look similar. Even I can't recognize them all. I need to be careful, so I need to do some herbivorous tests."

There are two main ways to get food in the wild. One is to hunt wild animals, and the other is to collect wild plants.

To hunt wild animals, you must first know the habitat of the animals and understand their living habits, and then use methods such as pressure capture, trapping, trapping cards, and shooting to hunt.

This requires a long period of training and practice under the guidance of experts to truly master it.

In comparison, collecting plants is much simpler.

Although collection is simple, how to collect correctly becomes much more difficult, which also requires a certain period of training under the guidance of experts to master this knowledge.

"I will introduce the simplest method to identify whether wild plants are poisonous or not, for use in emergency situations."

"Usually, a small cut is made on the collected plants, a pinch of salt is put in, and then careful observation is made to see if the original color changes. Usually, plants that change color cannot be eaten."

Bifang cut off a piece of cactus flesh and sprinkled a thin layer of salt on it.

Salt is actually easy to obtain in the Sahara. Most oases are saltwater lakes. In addition, there are many minerals that will precipitate crystallized salt. They cannot be eaten directly, but can be processed slightly.

"Of course, this is the most urgent moment. If you don't eat it, you will die. Then you can use the method I just mentioned to identify it. If not, then learn from me to do the test step by step."

The test has six steps: look, smell, touch, apply, chew, and taste.

"It changes color, feels old, and has bright colors. If it has these characteristics, please look for your dinner elsewhere."

"Does it smell rotten? Does it smell like almonds or pears? This is a warning sign in nature because it indicates the presence of hydrocyanic acid. Avoid anything that smells like this, unless it is almonds or pears, of course."

"This cactus in front of us looks normal and has passed the first two tests."

"Next is a skin contact test. Crush the part of the plant you want to eat and rub the plant juice on the sensitive parts of your skin, such as your palms, wrists, or the bends of your arms and armpits."

"Leave it for a few hours and see if your body reacts."

Bifang cut off a piece of cactus and applied the cut to his arm to wait for a reaction.

"If your skin becomes red and swollen, think about what the plant might do to your insides."

"The test is a long time, but we have enough time. Alpha has lost a lot of weight during this time. I will stay here for a day and set off tomorrow."

In the evening, Bifang, who did not feel anything unusual, began to apply it on his lips, and there was no tingling or swelling.

"If there is any emergency, rinse your mouth with clean water first."

Then Bifang cut off a thumb-sized piece, put it in his mouth, chewed it, and then spit it out.

No adverse reactions.

Finally, eat a small piece.

"Wait four to six hours and see what happens."

"Don't drink any water during this period, because it may dilute the toxic effects of the plant and give you a false negative reaction."

"Of course, don't eat any other food during this period."

"If it's a team, let one person do it, and the rest of the people wait and see to ensure safety."

"The whole process takes more than half a day, which is why the method of sprinkling salt just now is necessary."

"When a person is extremely hungry, it is impossible to spend several hours to ensure safety."

Until the moon rose, Bifang was sure that the cactus in front of him was edible.

Cut off most of it for today's dinner, and no longer prevented Alpha from approaching the cactus.