1240 The Desert Fox (1/2)

In the desert that seems to be a killer of life, there's quite a lot of animals that live here. But, most of them are nocturnal animals, avoiding the high heat and direct burn of the sunlight in the morning, and coming out only at night when the temperatures are gentler.

Before fully understanding the situation, Zhang Zian doesn't want to disturb anyone -- they had all used a lot of energy in the day, and it's rare for them to be able to rest. There's no reason to wake everyone up for something this minor when there's an even longer way to go tomorrow.

But in the desert, it's really difficult to keep your footsteps light. Every step you take, half your feet sink into the sand, and they rustle of sand as they fall off sound exceptionally loud at night.

Instead, Fina seems to be completely at ease, and its footsteps barely made any sound at all.

The padding on the base of a cat's paw can decrease the sound of its footsteps not only on flat ground, but also in the desert. Besides, the exceptional balance of a cat works well for them in the desert too. When they walk, their weight is balanced amongst three legs, while humans have their weight balanced on one, so they sink into the sand easily.

Cats are naturally lighter, even if Fina did gain some weight after coming to the pet shop...

Fina walked in front, suddenly turning back, glaring at Zhang Zian sharply, ”Are you cursing me?”

”No! I'm wondering about what animal Famous might have smelled...”

Zhang Zian quickly waved his hands, trying to clear up the misunderstanding.

It's the cooling midnight, but his back is drenched with sweat, thinking about whether Fina has any mind reading abilities, or a eye on the back of its head.

”Hngh! Hngh!”

Fina clearly doesn't believe in his explanation, but due to its pride, it can't do anything about Zhang Zian without any evidence, and can only huff. No matter what he's contemplating internally, he didn't say it out loud. If it keeps harping on it, it will only seem petty.

Famous swept its head left and right, focusing on looking for the source of the smell.

”It seems to be behind that sand dune,” He started at a nearby low sand dune.

Zhang Zian took the chance to change the topic, ”okay, let's go and take a look.”

Fina suddenly stopped, ”You walk in front so you won't put your eyes where you shouldn't.”

Zhang Zian has no choice, and made a hand signal at Famous. He squat down to take a handful of sand, letting it go to confirm the wind's direction. In order to prevent alerting the animals behind the sand dune, he bent down as he walked, walking against the wind towards the sand dune, so the wind can take away as much of their scent and sound as possible.

He took a look back at their camp, and the camping lights were still shining brightly, shining comfortingly, just like a candlelight in the middle of a never ending darkness.

The small sand dune is not as steep as others, and it's not hard to climb. When they were reaching the top, he got on all fours to finish the distance.

He carefully poked his head over the spine, showing only his eyes to see what's on the other side.

What is that?

With the stars not providing much visibility, he could barely see anything at first. After his eyes had gotten used to the light and distance, he could vaguely see a few pairs of eyes lighting up in the night.

He regretted not taking his binoculars when he had left his tent, his brain still half asleep and not sharp yet. He can barely see anything in the dimness of the night.