Chapter 747 - 46: Supplies Secured (2)
Glancing downward, about eight meters from the ground, and then looking at the branch beneath him, Chen Zhou hesitated whether to let go and wait on the ground or keep pulling.
The situation did not grant him much time to think.
The first challengers who set off did not hide their footsteps at all. Soon, Chen Zhou captured the sound of their heavy boots trampling on the hard ground.
"Come on!"
This sound made him resolve to use all his strength and retrieve the supplies in advance.
...
Adjusting his posture on the trunk, switching from lying down to kneeling, focusing his weight on the thin twig’s end, Chen Zhou stretched out both hands, gripping the black box tightly, gritting his teeth as he tugged it towards his embrace.
The sudden increase in force made the black box deviate from its path a bit faster, gradually escaping the invisible "quagmire" and moving towards an unexpected position.
Each centimeter the supplies moved brought an additional ounce of joy to Chen Zhou’s heart, but the fragile branch beneath him couldn’t bear this joy—
Chen Zhou himself was already not light; after exerting force, an even heavier burden was placed upon this jade-like branch.
Supported by a stone-like structure barely for a moment, the branch couldn’t withstand it anymore, breaking with a crisp crack.
With nothing beneath his knees, Chen Zhou was suddenly suspended in mid-air, his hands still not letting go, clutching the side of the black box tightly.
He had thought he would remain suspended until he released his grip before the black box slowly descended to the ground.
Unexpectedly, after hanging beneath the black box, the sluggish resistance suddenly lessened greatly; before he could react, he plummeted towards the ground at a rapid speed.
"Damn you!"
"Space-Time Administration Bureau!"
In that rush, Chen Zhou barely managed to let go and made a force-dissipating move.
With a weight of over three hundred pounds, falling straight from eight meters high, even with exceptional physical condition, he still felt a tremor in his internal organs, and a slight pain in the joints under force.
Moreover, when the branch broke and hit the ground, it scattered some sharp fragments of stone; when he rolled to dissipate force, the back of his hand accidentally touched one, leaving a shallow cut and some traces of blood.
Not until now did Chen Zhou realize that pulling the black box to the side and downward produced two different reactions, one cumbersome, the other smooth and easy.
"Damn Space-Time Administration Bureau..."
After wiping the blood on the back of his hand, Chen Zhou limped towards directly beneath the beacon—
During the fall, he took the opportunity to pull the black box downward for several meters, now it’s less than three meters from the ground, and a vertical jump by Chen Zhou could reach it.
Understanding various tricks, Chen Zhou mustered a jump from the spot, caught the black box, and pulled it directly close.
When the black box was less than two meters from the ground, the invisible force field suddenly disappeared, and grabbing its smooth sides, Chen Zhou could only feel its icy touch and weighty substantiality.
Got it, time to go.
After a lot of trouble, he finally got the supplies. Hearing the approaching footsteps, Chen Zhou dared not linger, clamping the black box tightly under his arm, enduring the joint pain, he quickly left the scene.
...
The distance wasn’t close, Chen Zhou could hear the footsteps of other challengers, yet those challengers couldn’t hear the noises of Chen Zhou leaving, they hadn’t even heard the sharp cracking of branches breaking and the sound of landing.
But there was a more evident guide in the Black Forest—
The beacon.
Though its light was dimming, its diminishing trend was traceable.
Yet just now, the beacon that was slowly descending in the air suddenly extinguished.
The challengers thought their eyes were playing tricks on them; some even stopped to watch for a while, finally determining that the beacon indeed had gone out and even disappeared.
"How did the beacon go out even though the supplies hadn’t landed yet?"
All six challengers had the same question in mind, a vague sense of unease emerging, and they hurriedly quickened their pace.
...
The three groups set off almost simultaneously, naturally arriving at the supply landing point concurrently.
When they arrived at the dim depths of the Black Forest, all they saw was an empty ground and scattered stone debris.
Everyone unanimously looked up overhead.
A sky full of stars shimmered dimly on the indigo sky.
Among this ancient starry river, not a single unique glow was found, and from the bottom to the top, to the end of their sight, no unusual object was detected.
"The supplies were taken in advance!"
The challengers instantly came to the same conclusion.
Soon after, they spotted the broken tree branch above, and from there speculate—
That despicable, shameful, hateful thief intercepted the supplies from there, breaking the branch and falling in the process.
From top to bottom was over eight meters high, even if the person didn’t suffer severe damage from the fall, they probably were not unscathed; if they start pursuing now, catching up might still be possible.
The two groups of challengers first discovered by Chen Zhou glanced around, realizing the ground was mostly rock, leaving no footprints, exchanged a look, and tacitly chose two different directions to pursue, leaving only the group with a woodsy scent behind.
Unlike the other two eager groups, this group of challengers seemed more meticulous.
They carefully examined the stones that had fallen to the ground, thereby determining from which direction Chen Zhou fell and where he rolled to dissipate the force.
Soon after, one of them found a stone stained with blood.
"Hiss~"
His voice was like the friction of dry wood intermixed with the rough texture of wind and sand.
Raising the stone, the two regrouped.
The other took out a small bottle from his pocket, unscrewed the cap, and released a lizard-like creature the length of a middle finger.
The blood-stained stone was brought to the lizard, and after licking it twice, as if memorizing the scent, it crawled restlessly up and down the owner’s hand.
Once placed on the ground, it immediately set off on all fours, racing frantically in the direction Chen Zhou had gone.
"Heh heh~"
A scent of wood permeated from the two as they burst into laughter, having caught the trail left by their prey.
Following closely behind the lizard, the two stepped into the Black Forest.
...
Naturally aware of the blood he left behind, Chen Zhou didn’t think anyone else had a nose as keen as his, nor did he believe anyone could track him through the bloodstains.
After being injured, his craving for nourishment was more intense; he emptied the water pouch, letting the remaining fat slowly melt in his mouth, holding the black box as he bolted forward.
Though he didn’t believe someone could find him, out of cautious consideration, Chen Zhou first proceeded in the opposite direction.
He planned to circle around in a big arc, exiting the Black Forest from the other side before heading straight for the Broken Cliff, misleading any potential pursuers into thinking he had climbed up the cliff and left the forest.
After completing this ruse, he would set off from the bottom of the cliff, heading straight to where Paul was, regroup, open the supply box, and take a good rest.
By then, even if pursuers were behind him, they would likely be far left behind.
Once he was well-rested, if the supplies held any medicine, he could heal Paul and Tiger Third, then linger in the Black Forest for a few days, gather some coal, and then proceed to climb the cliff, heading south.
...
Meeting a joyous event lifts the spirits, though the process of obtaining the supplies was steeped in struggles, the outcome was delightful.
His legs and feet were still not agile, yet Chen Zhou’s speed was a notch above ordinary people; circling within the forest, he pondered—
"It would be great if I could meet that pair of Rangers after climbing to the top of the cliff.
It would be even better if they happened to have already tamed the Great Horned Deer for me, and I coincidentally found a tree on the tundra that could be used to make a cart.
At that time, I’d haul back about a thousand or eight hundred pounds of coal, with the supplies, the winner of this challenge would be born!"
Clearly knowing he’s daydreaming, feeling the tangible touch of the supplies, the heavy weight, even with tiredness and body aches, Chen Zhou remains optimistic.