Chapter 197 Chapter 195 Breath of the Wilderness
If everything goes well, each location can be searched in about two days. The biggest factor affecting whether it is "smooth" is the weather. The semi-desert wilderness has its own breathing rhythm. After a clear sky during the day, it becomes humid wind at night, and fog and rain fall the next day.
This kind of rain has very fine raindrops, which diffuse as they fall, forming thick fog. Zhuang Xuteng's field of vision was compressed to only 20 meters. After starting the low-light mode of the telescope, he could see a little farther, about 25 meters. Under this visibility, the search efficiency is too low, and it is very easy to get lost. They dare not drive back to the city. So Zhuang Xuteng and Morgana had to sit in the car and wait for the weather to improve.
The only good news is that they can make a fire to cook, make some hot food for themselves, and comfort their stomachs.
It rained for half a day, and the fog began to dissipate after noon. Although the weather is still very gloomy and the visibility is far worse than yesterday under the clear sky, there is a low-light telescope to make up for it, and reconnaissance can be carried out.
The two of them set out in a hurry and returned before nightfall, and they could still visit many places!
During this operation, Morgana found that Zhuang Xuteng had a very good memory. He would not make mistakes in finding any place he had been to. Whether returning to the last checkpoint yesterday or returning to the camp in the dark, Zhuang Xuteng would go straight ahead and find the correct location directly.
Most people remember places by landmarks, from landmark A to landmark B to C... one point at a time, but Zhuang Xuteng was not like that at all. Morgana believed that Zhuang Xuteng had memorized everything along the way, and the entire area was a landmark for him. As long as he determined the destination, he could go directly there.
This skill is amazing, but doesn't he think it takes a lot of brainpower? The human brain doesn't seem to work that way, right? Morgana guessed that Zhuang Xuteng might have some ability to control memory, or a spell, or a bloodline ability.
The possibility of a spell is very low. Unless he also has the advanced ability of silent casting, Morgana will definitely notice his casting behavior. If you think about it carefully, you can rule out this possibility: if he could learn to cast spells silently, Nike would have been hired by the company with a high salary. It is impossible for him to be a mercenary, and he would not choose to be a mercenary.
Bloodline ability is even rarer now. After the gods left, the "bloodline" also faded rapidly, and even intermarriage within the tribe could not save its decline, so it gradually became rare. Until now, there have been occasional cases of bloodline re-stimulation, but that was also concentrated in the appearance and some aspects related to flesh and blood, and organ functions. Bloodline that strengthens the brain was extremely rare in ancient times, and it is even more impossible now.
If the bloodline strengthens the brain, then he should at least have other appearances, right? For example, a big head? Morgana thought secretly.
Compared with bloodline, the possibility of shadow follower implants is greater, but shadow follower implanted in the brain has always been the most expensive type, and each one needs to be specially customized, and only specialized intelligence analysts or information control personnel will use it.
After thinking about it, it is possible that "Nike is very smart" is closest to the truth.
Morgana likes smart people, especially when he knows how to take care of people. Since she didn't have an endurance implant installed, and didn't have the ability to transfer damage like dormant martial arts, how could long-distance walking and reconnaissance not make Morgana tired? Every time she showed that she couldn't keep up with the pace, Zhuang Xuteng would take the initiative to rest and help her carry heavy objects.
And he never said "you are tired" or "you can't do it".
Morgana hated to hear the three words "you can't do it" the most. When she wanted to become a witch, "you can't do it"; when she wanted to go to PCPD, "you can't do it"; when she wanted to trace the origin of the purple-skinned people, it was still "you can't do it". She has heard these three words since she was a child, and has formed a stress response, which always makes her anger rise.
Zhuang Xuteng would only say "to maximize the efficiency of the mission" or "I didn't do special exercise these two days, so I just did some weight-bearing." These are obviously white lies, and Morgana can be happy as long as she accepts the good part.
The mood is good enough, and the physical exertion is within an acceptable range, but the results of the search work are not optimistic. Not only did they spend one day longer than originally planned, but they also did not find any clues. The one of the four locations that best matched the environmental data was ruled out, so they could only pack up and head to the next location.
To go from the northwest of the city to the northeast, they must pass through Peicheng. After returning from the wasteland to the area covered by the phone signal, both of their phones made a beeping sound. Zhuang Xuteng looked down and saw that various advertisers had sent him meticulous care, and there were also several unfamiliar numbers that had only been dialed once and were not worth calling back.
Morgana had more calls than Zhuang Xuteng, and she frowned when she looked at the missed call list. "I have to call my boss, it seems that something happened in PCPD. Naike, don't talk."
Zhuang Xuteng nodded, then listened attentively.
"Where have you been? You have to be able to answer the phone even on vacation! Where are you now? What, not in Peicheng, just walked out of the mountains? What are you doing in that broken place?" The voice in the mobile phone receiver could not escape Zhuang Xuteng's enhanced hearing, and the anxiety and anger contained in it were also clearly expressed.
"Do you need me to go back now? I can't go back for the time being." Morgana frowned and asked, "Is there an emergency?"
"The gangs started fighting, and some mercenaries were disobedient and mixed in. There have been many shooting incidents recently, and the riot squad has to be dispatched every night. The bureau is short of manpower, so come back quickly."
"I really want to go back, but..." Morgana shook her head and said, "I'll think of a way now. If I have a chance, I'll take the earliest flight back. Boss, my vacation... Okay, count me in work overtime……"
After picking up the phone, Morgana snorted and shook her head slowly. She looked out the car window. The buildings in Peicheng were coming towards her, and the streets were receding. She didn't say she wanted to go back to PCPD, so Zhuang Xuteng didn't change direction and continued driving to the next wilderness.
The second location is more desolate and is a rolling hilly area, making it much more troublesome to walk. If there is vegetation, you will have something to hold on to when going up and down the mountain, and your feet will be stable. But the semi-desert hills are full of loose rocks and clods of soil, which will collapse if you don't pay attention, making you often unstable.
The two held each other's hands, Zhuang Xuteng in front and Morgana behind, supporting them up and down the mountain. You can see farther from the top of the mountain, but you can't see the valley clearly. In order not to miss clues, they could not just look from the top of the mountain, but also had to step into the valley.
Fortunately, the weather was kind, and there was just a shower, and no fog rose to affect their vision. Counting one night of reconnaissance with night vision equipment, the two men finally completed the search of this area in two days. Unfortunately, there are still no clues.
"Go to the next one!" Morgana was not discouraged and just returned to the cell phone signal coverage. She was frowned by the messages that kept ringing.
From the wrinkles between her brows and the slightly trembling cheeks, Zhuang Xuteng noticed her uneasiness, and he asked: "Is your boss at PCPD urging you to go back again? Morgana, let me help you ask how the situation is in the city. ?”
"Thank you, I thought of that too."
"Just say it when you think of it, don't be embarrassed, I'm your informant!" Zhuang Xuteng dialed Lucy's phone, turned it on speakerphone, and put it on the dashboard.
"Sister Lucy, this is Naike, I just entered the Peicheng area, and the hands-free is currently on." Zhuang Xuteng slowed down and pulled over, and asked: "What happened in the city? I heard there was a fight?"
"It's not bad. Gangs are fighting for territory and outsiders are causing trouble here. The whole situation is chaotic but not very intense. Are you turning on the speakerphone? Who is still around?"
Morgana said: "I'm still using Nike, and there are only two of us in the car."
"Just use it, use it hard. Mercenaries don't get involved in gang wars, unless there is an opportunity to add insult to injury and eliminate the root cause. It's not the time yet, just let Naike work for you with peace of mind. By the way, wait a moment. ..." There was the sound of rummaging through files from Lucy's side, and after a while she said: "Morgana, our mercenaries are fine, but the PCPD's side is a little injured. Someone was bombed in the third bureau in the hub area. Driving a car full of explosives and crashing directly into the police station..."
"Oh my God! Many people died?"
"Fortunately, only three people died and twenty-seven were injured. The timer of the explosive was broken during the impact, so it did not detonate. The equipment on a PCPD officer exploded, and the death and injury were all caused by this. Because It was also an explosion, and everyone thinks it was probably the work of the Gardener Organization. The Gardener Organization has not announced responsibility for this incident, but there is nothing else. I just think you must want to know this."
"Thank you. I learned about it from you. I will remember this favor."
"This is not a favor, it's just relaying the news. Okay, I have other things to do, hang up!"
After the call ended, Zhuang Xuteng asked Morgana to ask about the specific situation. Morgana was scolded again by her superiors, but decided to return to work immediately without further delay.
"He only gave me overtime pay instead of making up vacation time... What do I need overtime pay for?"
Zhuang Xuteng smiled and said: "When I worked in the factory, I just wanted to be paid enough for overtime, and never thought about having to take a vacation - almost all the workers around me were like this. Maybe your boss just doesn't understand you, and doesn't care about you. not good."
"Maybe you're right, at least it makes me feel better."
"You are very kind in nature. It would be better if you could look at the problem from more angles." Zhuang Xuteng said, "You go back to the PCPD, and I will investigate the remaining two places myself."
"No, don't go to that place in the wild. You can't contact me on your phone and no one can support you. You wait until I finish what I'm doing before we go together." Morgana thought for a while and said, "You can't always Rely on this, so you can go to the place on the edge of town where there is signal and the conditions are better, and you can buy supplies.”
"Okay, then I'll go to location four first. I'll wait for your news about the wild exploration. Don't go back to the PCPD directly. Change your clothes first. Where do you need me to send you?"
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