Time Travel: The Survival of Li Zhi

Chapter 368 Desert Accident

In an airtight and dim room, the thick darkness was like thick ink, almost swallowing up everything.

The only source of light was a flickering oil lamp. The bean-sized flame danced weakly in the wind, and the light and shadows it cast danced eerily on the wall.

A tall man was sitting cross-legged quietly in the middle of the room.

He was wearing a black cloak, and the wide hood hid his face deeply in the shadows, leaving only a pair of eyes gleaming with a faint light, like a ferocious beast waiting in the night sky.

In front of him, there were two creepy objects.

A heart that is so red that it is almost black, emitting a faint smell of blood.

Next to it was a human-shaped snake skin spread out, the scales on the skin gleaming with a strange luster under the dim light.

This person is none other than Mr. Chen’s master, the mysterious figure from Tianxian Sect.

The series of events that occurred in Leizhou caused quite a stir because Mr. Chen's methods were indeed high-profile and radical.

Fortunately, he showed up in time and took Master Chen away, which prevented Master Chen from being caught red-handed and prevented Master Chen's father from being found guilty and criticized by others.

Because of this, Mr. Chen's father was very grateful to him, and it also made it more convenient for him to travel in Yongguo.

And everything that happened in Leizhou came to a temporary end with the intervention of Mr. Chen's father.

As for those who disappeared inexplicably, they were destined to have no further news. In his eyes, these people were just victims of fate, and they could only blame themselves for their bad luck, appearing in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The two children he had demanded from Master Chen had already had their hearts dug out and their skin peeled off.

Although half-demon humans are quite rare and peculiar, they are of little use to him.

All he wanted was the most valuable thing in them.

His gaze lingered on the heart and snake skin in front of him for a moment, then slowly moved to the two ghost coins in his hand.

He had picked up these two ghost coins by chance in Qinghe Village, Mingzhou. He had obtained them a long time ago, and at first he thought they were just two ordinary ghost coins, but later he discovered that there seemed to be some connection between the two ghost coins.

However, no matter how hard he tried, he could not decipher the meaning of this connection.

This made him realize that these two ghost coins must not be ordinary ghost coins, and they might contain some big secret.

He narrowed his eyes slightly, his eyes flashing with greed and expectation, and muttered to himself: "These two ghost coins must contain extraordinary wonders. When I unlock the secrets in them and present them to the Immortal Sect, I will definitely be able to exchange them for a seat as an outer disciple!"

After saying this, he slowly stretched out his slender and pale fingers and gently picked up the two ghost coins.

Then, he closed his eyes, focused all his attention on the two ghost coins, and began to examine them carefully, trying to uncover the secrets contained within.

 …

The Great Wei was located northwest of the Yong Kingdom. If Li Zhi and his party wanted to go to the Great Wei to pay tribute, they had to cross the vast desert in the west.

This desert is covered with endless yellow sand. As far as the eye can see, it is a desolate and lonely scene with few human traces.

Because of this, compared to other dangerous roads, Li Zhi and his team did not need to worry about threats such as bandits and wild animals. After all, in this dead land, the biggest threat did not come from malicious attacks from the outside world, but the survival crisis caused by lack of water and food.

However, the mission was well prepared, with dedicated personnel responsible for the dispatch of supplies.

Before setting off, they prepared enough food and water to support the entire team through the desert. In this way, Li Zhi and his party stepped into this yellow sand world and moved steadily towards the northwest.

However, just when Li Zhi and his companions were confident that they would have a smooth journey and get out of the desert safely, an accident struck without warning.

In addition to the six members of the Night Patrol including Li Zhi, and a hundred elite warriors from the Qiongqi Camp, this group also included several officials from the Ministry of Rites who were in charge of diplomatic affairs.

On this day, when the team set up camp for the night and everyone was deep in sleep, something unexpected happened.

One of the officials from the Ministry of Rites fell into a state of madness as if he was suddenly possessed by an evil spirit. He rushed frantically towards the water source, trying to destroy the water reserves on which they depended for survival.

Fortunately, Captain Yang was strict in military discipline, always maintained a high level of vigilance, and arranged soldiers to take turns on duty.

The soldiers on duty responded quickly and subdued the man in time, thus avoiding the disaster of water source destruction.

But it didn't end there.

The next day, when Li Zhi and others interrogated the official from the Ministry of Rites, the diplomat seemed to have completely lost his memory. His eyes were full of confusion, and he knew nothing about his crazy behavior last night.

No matter how Li Zhi and others interrogated him, he knew nothing.

Li Zhi and his team had been interrogating him for a whole day and night, but he still had a confused look on his face, and was not at all as crazy as he was when he was first captured.

If many people hadn't seen it with their own eyes, Li Zhi would almost have thought it was a mistake.

Duan Heng saw that the interrogation had not made any progress. He frowned, a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes, and he said in a deep voice: "No matter whether he remembers it or not, he will die if he does such a thing! Just chop him off and set an example for others!"

His words were full of murderous intent, causing the faces of the other officials from the Ministry of Rites around him to turn pale and tremble with fear.

Zhang Wenchu shook his head slowly and said solemnly: "Killing him is easy, but if we don't find out the reason behind it, similar things will inevitably happen again. Do we have to solve every problem by killing?"

Li Zhishen agreed and nodded, "What Wen Chu said is absolutely right. The most urgent task is to find out who is behind this. Only by solving the root cause can we ensure the safety of the subsequent journey."

Jia Zhen frowned, looking troubled, and asked, "That's the truth, but where should we start to find out the truth?"

Li Zhi narrowed his eyes slightly, a gleam of thought flashed in his eyes, and said: "I have an idea..."

Hearing this, everyone looked at Li Zhi.

 …

Hu Zheng was slumped on the ground, his body hunched over, completely disfigured. His eyes were empty and confused, filled with endless fear and despair.

He could never have imagined that after just a nap, he would find himself in such a desperate situation when he woke up, tied up tightly with ropes and unable to move.

Under the vigilant gaze of the surrounding soldiers and the interrogation of the Night Patrol people, he gradually learned the whole picture and found out that he had done something terrible last night that was enough to bring everyone to eternal damnation.

Recalling the hardships along the way, they had been trudging for more than ten days since they set out from Yongguo and stepped into this uninhabited desert. In this vast sea of sand, every drop of water seemed extremely precious, and it was their hope to maintain their lives.

And he almost destroyed this extremely rare reserve water with his own hands.

Once the water source is really destroyed by themselves, they will be caught in a dilemma.

Looking ahead, there was endless yellow sand, and the lack of water and food made it impossible for them to continue moving forward.

Later on, there was still a shortage of water during the long journey, and the supply point we had come from was already far away, making it difficult to return.

By that time, the only thing waiting for this team is a tragic end of total annihilation.

Just imagining such a consequence in his mind, Hu Zheng felt a deep chill rising from the bottom of his heart, and the blood in his body seemed to solidify at this moment. He clearly understood that the severity of this consequence was beyond imagination and was enough to kill everyone.

However, his heart was filled with grievance and unwillingness.

His memory came to an abrupt end last night, and he had no idea why he suddenly did such a crazy thing. He shook his head vigorously, trying to pull out even the slightest clue from his mind, but it was all in vain.

Hu Zheng knew very well that after something like this happened, it didn't matter whether he was willing or not, or whether it was his original intention or not.

According to military rules and regulations, he has committed an unforgivable crime, and the only thing waiting for him is death.

Thinking of this, a strong sadness surged into his heart like a tide, his eyes instantly became moist, and tears flowed out uncontrollably.

His body trembled slightly, and his heart was filled with helplessness and lament about his fate.