nucmednet Chapter 257: Poisonous Mist in the Forest
Chapter 257: Poisonous Mist in the Forest
The dark forest was filled with a damp and rotten smell. Not long after entering, a cold wind blew.
Xia Qingyue understood why Han Zhibai suddenly took out a long-sleeved shirt and asked her to wear it. The treetops in the forest blocked out the sun and the temperature was lower than outside. It would be difficult to withstand it with just one piece of clothing.
Along the way, Han Zhibai remained vigilant at all times. He seldom took out the map to look at it on previous journeys. After entering the Beiyuan Forest, he took it out from time to time to look at it, and strictly followed the route marked on it.
Along the way, she saw many exotic flowers and plants, as well as unknown birds and reptiles that she had never seen before. Although they were strange, she remembered what he said and just took a look or two.
They walked one-third slower than usual because the light here was poor, there was a lot of slippery moss on the ground, and there were not only roadblocks but also the terrain was tortuous and undulating. They walked and stopped frequently and even talked less because they focused on getting on with their journey.
They didn't know how long they had been walking. Their stomachs were growling with hunger, so they stopped to cook some simple food that didn't taste very good.
In the afternoon, they continued walking. After walking for more than an hour, the light became dimmer and dimmer. They found a relatively flat place near a stream and set up their tent.
After setting up the tent, Han Zhibai took three packets of medicine powder and sprinkled it in three layers inside and outside. The openings on each side of the tent were pressed tightly. He asked her to tie up all four openings of her clothes and pants, as there were many insects in the forest and they would get into clothes if you were not careful.
In the evening, I just cooked some light-tasting vermicelli as usual, and ate some dried meat and dried fruits.
After eating, they extinguished the fire and took Heihei and Xiaobai into the tent. They tied the sheep and cattle to the nearest trees.
After lying down, the surroundings fell into deathly silence. Such an environment was very suitable for her to sleep. Just when she was about to fall asleep, bursts of strange ethereal noises suddenly came from outside, like laughter or the crying of a ghost. She could not find out the source, and it came from all directions.
She was suddenly awakened by the shock and her scalp went numb.
"Qingyue, I'm here, don't be afraid."
With a low and gentle voice, Han Zhibai gently embraced her in his arms.
Leaning against the warm and familiar body, her tense mind and body slowly relaxed, and she felt safe. After a while, sleepiness came over her again, and she fell into a deep sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, strange noises could be heard in the forest, and she was startled awake several times.
She couldn't fall asleep for a long time after waking up. She finally felt sleepy. When she was very sleepy, she seemed to hear a strange noise outside the tent. Han Zhibai beside her went out and came back soon. She ignored it and fell asleep.
While sleeping soundly, Xia Qingyue dreamed that she was fishing in Weihai. She saw a big blue crab under the sea water. Just as she was about to catch it, a familiar voice came: "Qingyue, Qingyue, it's time to get up and go."
"Crab, big crab." She muttered and opened her eyes. Her vision became blurry, and Han Zhibai's face gradually appeared. The expression on his face was a little solemn, as if he was facing a great enemy.
"Qingyue, it's almost dawn. There was poisonous fog in the morning. We have to set off."
"Oh oh!" She sat up with a jerk, her mind still not very clear. She didn't sleep well last night, so she didn't have much energy, and her actions were a little behind her brain.
Han Zhibai found a slightly thicker duck down coat for her to wear, and then brought in a cup of warm water and some steamed sorghum cakes.
She had no appetite and the food tasted like wax, but she had to hurry on her way and had to eat, so she forced herself to eat three pancakes.
"Take this medicine, and you will be able to stay awake and detoxify when you encounter poisonous fog." Han Zhibai handed her a black pill, and then fed one to each of the two little ones.
The pill smelled strongly of medicine, which was not pleasant, and it tasted extremely bitter when she took it in her mouth. Her eyebrows were frowned together as if they were about to fight.
They went outside back and forth.
A cold wind blew in her face, causing her bangs to fly up and down. She hooked her hair behind her ear with her index finger and packed up her things with Han Zhibai.
Using a small fire as a guide, they quickly put everything away.
She looked around. The forest was already shrouded in white fog. Visibility was very low. She could vaguely see the trees one meter away. They stood there one by one, like black figures standing there.
If you look at it for too long, you will feel panic as if you are falling into the abyss. She looked away, looked at Han Zhibai and said:
"By the way, I seemed to hear some noise outside the tent last night?"
"Some insects and snakes came outside the tent and died."
The absence of the body suggests that he got up early and disposed of it.
According to him, the poisonous fog mostly appears in the morning or at night, and the poisonous fog will dissipate in some places, but not for long.
The route marked on the map connects the places where the poisonous fog will dissipate in time, forming a safe route that can be taken.
"Come, put on another mask." He picked up a piece of brown cloth and covered her face, leaving only her eyes exposed. He did not spare her eyes and applied a dark green ointment on her eyelids.
As she breathed, she could smell the scent of medicine on the fabric, which was clear and pungent, and made her wake up instantly.
He covered the faces of the two little ones and the poultry with masks and wiped their eyelids.
Everything was done, the fire was extinguished, and a torch was stuck in the corner of the cart, with the outer side covered by an iron sheet, leaving only the upper side exposed.
Han Zhibai had made the torches back in the valley.
She didn't know what the torch was made of. There was wind on the road and it was blown out several times. She thought it was going out, but in fact it didn't. Suddenly, the flame became strong again.
A cluster of firelight was like a bright lamp in the darkness, guiding them forward.
After walking for a while, Han Zhibai suddenly stopped, staring straight ahead with a serious look in his eyes.
I saw that the fog not far ahead was of a significantly different color, a bright green.
He quickly looked around and caught a glimpse of an irregularly shaped stone wall diagonally below that was concave inwards.
"Qingyue, the poisonous fog is coming, let's go hide down there!"
"Okay!" She hurriedly pulled the poultry in the direction he pointed.
The two men pulled the poultry into the sunken stone wall and squeezed close to each other.
"Qingyue, the poisonous fog is coming, close your eyes and mouth, it will be fine in a while!"
After he finished speaking, Xia Qingyue continued to do as he was told and did not see the wisps of green poisonous mist drifting towards them.
Soon, she felt dizzy and weak all over, which were somewhat similar to the symptoms of a cold and fever. She felt a burning pain in her chest, throat, eyes and other parts, and she felt chest tightness, shortness of breath, and difficulty breathing.
She smelled the medicine on the mask and felt better.
Noticing her strangeness, Han Zhibai hugged her tightly.
The two little ones and the cattle and sheep also felt unwell and cried out softly.
In less than a quarter of an hour, the discomfort disappeared. Han Zhibai said that the poisonous fog had dissipated and they had to hurry to the next safe place where they could avoid the poisonous fog.
They didn't have time to say anything more and hurried on.
In this way, they rushed around to avoid the poisonous fog for a whole morning, and finally endured until after noon, when the poisonous fog dissipated in some places and they were able to stop and rest.
Exhausted, they did not make lunch and simply ate some steamed sorghum cakes, dried meat and dried fruits from the morning.
Han Zhibai found edible wild grass for the cattle and sheep to eat.
After resting for more than half an hour, we continued on our journey.
In the afternoon, we avoided five places with poisonous fog one after another. The deeper we went into the forest, the more poisonous snakes and strange insects we saw on the road. We encountered several snakes as thick as a human arm.
She was afraid of snakes, so she stayed close to Han Zhibai, otherwise her legs would be so weak and trembling that she couldn't even stand steadily.
Heihei, Xiaobai and the sheep were equally scared and hid beside them. The cow had clear eyes and was calm and composed.
Every time they encountered snakes or insects, they stayed where they were, and the smell of the powder on their bodies spread, causing the snakes to consciously avoid them.
Before dark, they sped up and arrived at the camp marked on the map.