TN –
Thanks to “Somebody” for the Ko-fi donation. This is the 1st extra upload out of 3.
The 0246 Special Operations Team has been away from the B City base for exactly three days. During these three days, with their collective efforts, they covered a considerable distance.
The scorched earth and ashes on the ground added considerable difficulty to their progress. Fortunately, the natural plant-based abilities of Tiancheng played a significant role. Starting from the second day, Wang An also learned Tiancheng’s methods, manipulating his earth-based abilities to help the convoy build bridges and roads, steadily moving forward.
Two ostriches ran alongside the convoy, occasionally picking up some larger energy pouches scattered on the roadside. Their beaks and sharp claws were tough, and with the assistance of power-based abilities, they encountered almost no resistance in this charred land.
What made them feel more at ease was that, after the wildfire, most of the larger animals had already fled. Those that could fly took to the sky for safety. The group encountered almost no dangers on their journey, but the only downside was the lack of game. Over these three days, their food supply noticeably declined.
Of course, the variety of vegetables and fruits on the vehicle was abundant. Unfortunately, the frozen and dried meats in the refrigerator couldn’t be indulged in freely at this time. Even Abu was forced to move towards a more vegetarian diet.
“Tomorrow, we’re expected to reach the reservoir. Regardless of how much land is burned, the reservoir itself shouldn’t be heavily affected,” Wang An explained.
They had planned their route based on satellite images. The wildfire had already moved away from the North Plain, and most creatures had fled due to the fire. Compared to the land, the water seemed like a good hiding place—provided they could avoid the fierce fish lurking in the water.
“Dad, Dad, look at all the little sprouts growing!” Tiancheng raised a small, pitch-black hand, pointing to the roadside where, in the charred soil, a patch of tender green shoots had emerged.
Mother Xu smiled, “In the past, people used to burn fields periodically to enrich the soil for farming. Although this wildfire is destructive, it’s not all bad. The land afterward will surely be more fertile!”
Everyone nodded in agreement. Blessings and misfortunes were intertwined, and some things were not necessarily all bad.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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“Let’s go here,” Yue Zheng pointed to a road on the map. “This area seems unaffected by the wildfire, probably because there’s a river. From the photos, it looks like we can check the situation nearby. The only issue is—it’s relatively close to the coastline.”
Xu Song rubbed his chin, and the adventurous spirit within him emerged, “How about going there? It’s still quite far from the real seashore, and for now, we don’t have anywhere else to go.”
Although Yue Zheng wanted to agree directly—after all, they couldn’t wait in one place until the earth fully recovered to study the so-called ecological environment—there were more members in the team now. They also had to be responsible for the safety of Wang An and others. Moreover, they escaped from the seaside initially, and they didn’t know if there would be psychological shadows related to places relatively close to the coast.
Unexpectedly, when Wang An and the others were consulted, they quickly nodded in agreement for a simple reason: “When we headed north, we passed through here. It’s not as terrifying as our place; there are no strange fish everywhere.”
The northern areas seemed to be less daunting than the initial S City, and the city ruins they were heading to were relatively close to the coast, not a coastal city. Wang An and the others were not the type of people who were extremely afraid of death; otherwise, they wouldn’t have left the base with Xu Song and the others.
After the discussion, Yue Zheng began to plan the route after leaving the reservoir. When he came to his senses, he saw two little guys plus a tree holding a pile of small plastic buckets filled with various-sized pouches.
“Mom, Dad, we also found this,” Tiancheng pulled out some brown-skinned fruits, “It says its fruits are edible, but we tried them, and they don’t taste good.”
“It’s sour, just like the vinegar Grandma poured when making dumplings!” Tianyou wrinkled his little nose, looking like he had been deceived.
Xu Song took one and bit into it. Indeed, a sour taste rushed to his head. “It really has a vinegar taste…”
Mother Xu also tried one, raising her eyebrows in surprise. “This thing is not bad. Just don’t know if it can replace vinegar. I’ll try it when cooking later.”
Soy sauce, vinegar, and other condiments require brewing, not to mention various other seasonings. Currently, the base uses only the most basic seasonings, such as salt, and nobody wants to use food to brew soy sauce, vinegar, or wine.
Mother Xu tried making soy sauce because they didn’t lack salt, and Tiancheng could grow soybeans, so the results were quite good. However, vinegar had always been challenging to brew—Mother Xu didn’t know how to make the fermentation starter. If this fruit could replace vinegar, it would solve a significant problem for Mother Xu when cooking—bottled vinegar collected in the car had an expiration date and was running out.
The two excited little guys sat on the stairs of the car door, carrying small buckets, allowing the Xiao Shu to pour water. After washing their hands, cleaning the soles of their shoes, and drying them, they climbed back into the car, placing their spoils in a large glass jar.
After a night of camping, the convoy arrived near a certain reservoir.
Sure enough, in the midst of the charred surroundings, only the area near the reservoir was unaffected. Many nearby animals had taken refuge here!
Water birds swam leisurely on the water, and various mutant animals, large and small, temporarily resided in the vicinity.
Abu happily ran a few steps, and leaped into the water, and its fur, originally yellow and white, was now entirely black underneath and on its paws. Even its nose tip was shiny black. Although Xiao Shu could bring water to wash it, every move would make its fur dirtier. The large dog, who liked cleanliness, had long wanted to take a good bath.
The two ostriches also strolled leisurely by the water, using their long legs to imitate water birds, standing in the shallow water, shaking their feathers to start bathing.
Some foolish fish came over, attempting to take a bite, but were picked up with sharp beaks. The long neck swung, and the huge mutant fish was thrown beside the RV, flopping on the ground.
“Are we going hunting?!” Luo Wen’an rolled up his sleeves, eyes gleaming as he looked at the various mutant animals near the reservoir.
“Let Abu catch one casually later. Let’s catch more fish, dry them, and take them on the road.” Yue Zheng surveyed the area and explained, “We don’t know how many animals were burned by the wildfire. Let’s try to catch fewer for now, and focus on fish.”
Luo Wen’an paused for a moment, then laughed, patting Yue Zheng on the shoulder, “Okay, boss, that’s environmentally friendly enough.”
Is this called environmental protection? This is clearly called caring for the ecological environment!
Xu Song held two digital cameras and handed one to Luo Wen’an, saying, “Try to take several photos of each type of animal. We need to create a field guide.” Although these mutant animals were common, everything had to be accumulated step by step. Even if they were common, it was essential to record them as thoroughly as possible for a more comprehensive understanding when encountering special species later.
As for plants? Haven’t you seen Tiancheng and Tianyou each carrying a small camera around their necks?
The ostriches were astonishingly fast at catching fish, and there was no need for Xu Song and the others to intervene. By the time they finished bathing, there was a pile of fish in front of the RV.
Mother Xu, along with Liu Shishi, He Nian, and Wang An, was happily catching fish all over the ground, laughter echoing far.
Yue Zheng and Xu Song checked the situation by the lake. When they turned around, they saw Abu, who had just finished bathing, diving into the water. Soon, splashes appeared, and Abu swam back to the shore carrying something in its mouth.
“Good heavens! Isn’t this fish easily two or three hundred pounds?!” Seeing the huge fish Abu brought up, everyone’s eyeballs almost popped out.
After putting down the completely lifeless big fish, Abu shook off the water, leaped a few times, and ran towards a nearby spot—its desire for rabbits had been there for quite some time!!
Tiancheng and Tianyou, accompanied by Xiao Shu, with Achi and Grasshopper on the side, and even a Jade Bee as a guardian, were running around recklessly. By dinner time, Achi’s back was covered with various fruits, and Xiao Shu’s small bamboo basket was already full. It contained various fruits, branches, and other plant materials.
Although the current plants had just sprouted and hadn’t had a chance to bloom and bear fruit, after communicating with Tiancheng, and with the plants’ permission, he used his abilities to help them grow. This kind of growth was not like the plants entirely grown by Tiancheng, which wouldn’t live for long. It was just assisting them in growing and wouldn’t have negative effects. At the same time, Tiancheng could harvest their fruits and branches as a reward.
This mutually beneficial assistance allowed Tiancheng to easily obtain these items and deliver them to Xu Song.
“You’re really good.” These branches and other items could be used with the instruments in the car. This included the vinegar-flavored fruits they discovered yesterday. After researching these items and transmitting the data back to the base, their usefulness was undoubtedly significant! Especially those non-toxic plants that could replace primary and secondary food.
Very eco-friendly. 👍. Thank you