Chapter 538 (1/2)

The Hidden Village in the Mountain

The middle-aged man staring at the map suddenly looked up and glared at the team that had just returned. The members of the team who saw him looking quickly looked away. They didn’t dare to look him in the eye.

The middle-aged man with the parchment in his hand was full of expectations. Seeing that they didn’t have what he wanted, the light that flashed from excitement dimmed, and what followed after was his rapidly rising anger.

“You still can’t find it?! How is this possible?! Why can’t we find it?!”

The middle-aged man’s eyes turned red due to anger.

He moved his arms and was ready to throw the parchment down to the ground, but before he did, he stopped. Instead, he kicked the ground harshly.

The parchment mustn’t be thrown away. It was their only sense of direction and guide. Even if he was mad and unhappy, he could only kick the grass below him.

The weeds that grew above their knees were crushed one after another by his steps.

“Why vent your anger on the grass when you can’t find the green-faced fanged beast?” a lazy voice said.

The middle-aged man who was holding the parchment heard this voice and glared from the corner of his eye. He didn’t even bother to turn his head, and turned to the slave who was standing next to him and shouted, “Keep on searching until you find it! If we can’t find it, none of you are going back!”

When they heard that they couldn't go back, the slaves grieved in their hearts but didn't dare to disobey. Those who just came back hurriedly ate something and set off to hunt again. The slaves who were polishing the horns and bones worked faster.

To many people, the desert was a deadly place. In the dry and windy weather, it was rare for them to see even a spot of green. The desolate desert made people want to run away just from hearing it.

But for this group of slaves, even though the desert had less food than these forests that were full of trees and beasts, they were already used to life in the desert. Many of the people in the team belonged to a family that had been slaves for generations, and their slavery nature had been carved deep into their bones. They didn’t know what else to do besides being a slave. In their hearts, the desert of Rock Hill City was their home, their master, and their religion. Not being able to return was equivalent to killing them.

Now that Rock Hill City became the king of the desert, the slaves felt an even stronger sense of pride and became more loyal than before. These slaves who were dispatched were all willing to die for Rock Hill City, so their loyalty was never doubted.

The five hundred people who had been dispatched encountered many dangers in the forest, and along the way, their total casualties were already beyond a hundred, dead and wounded included. Fortunately, they already found their final destination marked on the map. The problem was they had been searching for their target for days and yet they still couldn’t find it.

The middle-aged man returned and sat on the rock beside the fire again. He was sulking from unhappiness. He was embarrassed to go back without finding the green-faced fanged beast, yet he had no choice. There was no way he could turn the mountains upside-down to look for it.

After taking a few deep breaths, the middle-aged man couldn’t help but ask, “Robber Four, how’s the situation on your side?”

“We didn’t find it.” Those lightly expressed words were similar to this person’s attitude. He was completely indifferent and without hurry. He looked so comfortable like he was playing a game. He seemed to be enjoying his time here.

“Then why aren’t you looking for it?!” It was like the middle-aged man said through gritted teeth. He really didn’t understand why Shi Shu asked the robbers to help them. What else could these people do besides stealing? Eat?

Robber Four walked slowly to the fire and sat down. He picked up the cooked ribs that were resting atop the fire and began to eat in spite of the heat. While chewing, he said unclearly, “If it was that easy to find, Rock Hill City wouldn’t have only found three for the past few hundred years.”