Chapter 159: Chapter 157: Edge of the Oasis

A few days later, Li Luo and Block finally arrived at the edge of Oasis City, just as the map indicated.

For a while now, Li Luo had been staring intently ahead, as if she had seen something utterly shocking.

It wasn’t until they drew closer that Mo Ling understood why she was so surprised.

It was a lake—a deep, azure lake that appeared abruptly amidst the sand dunes.

This was no mere puddle. Mo Ling’s vision extended downward, but he couldn’t even see the bottom of the lake.

The lake water seeped into the surrounding dunes, moisturizing the soil and turning the sand into damp silt.

Patches of tough weeds even grew along the shore, their roots digging deep into the silt. These interlocking root systems played a significant role in stabilizing the sand.

’How did this lake get here?’

Li Luo walked forward, observed the lake’s surface, then cautiously approached the edge and cupped a handful of water.

"It’s a saltwater lake," she said, frowning slightly.

’A saltwater lake?’

There are two main reasons for the formation of saltwater lakes.

One is the remnants of an ancient ocean.

The other is the terminus of an inland river where high evaporation rates concentrate the minerals brought by the river, turning it into a saltwater lake.

Mo Ling didn’t know the origin of the lake either. He only knew that its appearance was jarringly out of place in the Chaotic Sand Dunes.

Li Luo walked along the shore for some distance before finally finding a path.

A man-made metal bridge stretched into the distance.

The bridge was magnificent—wide, clean, and fully equipped with lanes for vehicles and pedestrians. It didn’t look like some temporary structure.

Just as they reached the head of the bridge, Li Luo was stopped by a robot sentry.

"Please present your nameplate," a mechanical voice emanated from the sentry.

Li Luo took out her nameplate. The camera on the sentry’s head focused on the plate, then on Li Luo, and quickly completed its verification.

"Welcome to the Oasis."

It opened the gate and made a welcoming gesture, which was surprisingly human-like.

Even though he knew it was all pre-programmed, Mo Ling was still shocked. Oasis City seemed to be incredibly advanced.

Li Luo stepped onto the bridge. A few cleaning robots were moving back and forth, tidying the bridge. They even "enthusiastically" greeted Li Luo when they saw her.

But the entire bridge was empty. Not a single person was in sight.

There were only machines. It was clearly a modern bridge, yet no people were crossing it.

They finally saw some transport trucks and other vehicles, but they were all self-driving. There was no one inside them either.

The bridge wasn’t very long. It wasn’t until they reached the end that Mo Ling realized the lake they had just crossed was more like a ring-shaped river, encircling an entire oasis.

Beyond the bridge, a straight road led forward, surrounded by lush green plants. It was a completely different world from the dunes before, like stepping into a dense forest.

Li Luo pulled up a detailed map of the Oasis on her electronic screen.

Oasis City was just a small area within the Oasis, situated right in its center.

The entire Oasis was a huge, well-connected forest surrounded by the ring of water.

The bridge had been built by the people of Oasis City for convenience, and the same was true for this road leading straight to the center. As long as they followed it, they would reach Oasis City.

’How convenient.’

Mo Ling felt like he had returned to modern society.

’But where did all the people go?’

Just as he was thinking that, a figure appeared up ahead.

It was a young woman with a low ponytail. Sticking out from her back were several wooden rods, like those of a stage actor, wound with threads of different colors. Her clothes also seemed to be a haphazard mix of multicolored threads, giving her a very trendy look.

She was standing by the side of the road, a confused look on her face.

"What is she doing?"

The young woman looked left and right as if searching for something. When she saw Li Luo, her face lit up with delight, and she shot forward, nearly crashing into her.

"Can I help you?" Li Luo asked, stunned.

Because she had run so fast, the young woman’s nameplate had swung out and was now glinting.

"Second-level Hunter, Weaver Girl Li Xiangyi."

She fumbled for a moment before tucking her nameplate back inside her clothes.

"Oh, it’s nothing important. I just wanted to ask, are you heading to Oasis City?" She seemed a bit embarrassed.

"Yes," Li Luo replied.

Hearing this, the young woman said excitedly, "Can I go with you? I’m lost."

"Lost?" Li Luo looked at the perfectly straight road behind her, a little confused.

"Yes." The young woman, whose name was Li Xiangyi, looked even more embarrassed. She scratched her head and smiled wryly. "Because of the cost of my Relic, I’ve lost my sense of direction."

To dispel Li Luo’s doubt, she even took out her electronic screen, which displayed the information about her Relic:

[Relic: Rainbow Shuttle]

[Cost: The user permanently loses their sense of direction]

[Ability: Can create and control special threads of different colors and functions]

[Place of Discovery: 1st Floor of the Abyss]

[Discoverer: Li Xiangyi]

...

’So that’s how it is.’ Li Luo did a quick search herself and got the same results.

"You can follow me, then," Li Luo said helplessly.

"Thank you so much!" Li Xiangyi bowed and thanked her repeatedly, making Li Luo feel quite awkward.

Along the way, Li Xiangyi chattered on nonstop.

The young woman was very talkative. From the dangers she’d encountered in the Abyss to all sorts of strange creatures, it seemed she had an endless supply of things to say.

"Ever since I arrived on the 2nd Floor of the Abyss, I haven’t met a single person. You’re the first one I’ve seen."

"I couldn’t find a monitoring station, so I could only wander aimlessly through the Chaotic Sand Dunes. The 2nd Floor is so dangerous..."

Hearing this, Li Luo asked curiously, "How did you find Oasis City, then?"

Li Xiangyi gave a helpless smile. "I just wandered. There are so many monitoring stations, I figured I’d find one eventually. And look, didn’t I find this place?"

Li Xiangyi’s answer made Li Luo pause. "After losing your sense of direction, can’t you even read a map?"

"Of course not."

Li Xiangyi’s face fell. "If I had known the cost was so high back then, I never would have used this Relic."

"I originally thought a ’sense of direction’ just meant not being able to tell which way to go. But in reality, it’s more than just the sense of north, south, east, west, front, back, up, and down."

"Did you know? I don’t know which way gravity is pulling anymore. Sometimes I even wonder why I’m standing on the ground instead of flying up into the sky."

"When I’m attacked, I can’t tell which direction the attacker is coming from. I can sense the attack, but I have no idea where it’s coming from, so I can only defend in all directions."

"It’s the same with maps. I can read them, but I can’t match them to reality. I can’t even tell what ’forward’ is..."

The more Li Xiangyi spoke, the more dejected she became, even beginning to doubt whether she was qualified to be a Hunter anymore.