Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared-Chapter 107: Suspicious Blood Stains

Ouyang Jin went to the camels and after a while he returned, struggling with a large box. It seemed heavy, and he called for help from the others.

When everyone helped Ouyang Jin lift the box, Lu Yi couldn’t help but be curious: "What’s in this that can ensure our safety? Is it some sort of mysterious and powerful weapon?"

"You are half right, it’s mysterious but not powerful. However, this weapon is practical. I didn’t expect to use it so soon, it’s all due to the circumstances." As Ouyang Jin said this, he was laughing meaningfully and mysteriously, sparking everyone’s curiosity.

At the urging of the crowd, Ouyang Jin finally opened the box, saying, "Everyone, come and see the weapon I’ve prepared, specifically for ensuring we can sleep peacefully. Here it is."

Everyone looked and saw a box full of caltrops; no wonder it was so heavy. If these things were spread out, it would make it hard for a pack of wolves to approach - indeed, it was a very practical weapon. The question was why it was only being brought out now.

Under everyone’s questioning gaze, Ouyang Jin shrunk his neck and showed an apologetic expression, "I’m sorry everyone, I didn’t expect to encounter a wolf pack so soon and so I was careless."

According to Ouyang Jin, these caltrops were like water - used once and then decreased. After spreading the caltrops on the ground, when they were collected the next day, there would inevitably be some missing. Considering that they had around forty days journey ahead, with a few less each day, half might be lost in forty days. Thus, Ouyang Jin had initially decided to save them when the journey was relatively safe.

This time the danger passed without any harm and everyone stopped questioning. They all took out the caltrops and spread them around their tents. It turned out Ouyang Jin had brought a good number of caltrops, enough to lay several dense layers around their camp.

If the wolf pack wanted to launch another fierce attack, they wouldn’t be able to avoid the surrounding caltrops. Without a place to land, how could they attack? This way, everyone could sleep soundly.

The next day, everyone got up yawning. Due to the thrilling fight from the previous night, they weren’t in the best of spirits. However, the wolves didn’t visit again, and maybe it was thanks to Ouyang Jin’s caltrops, for which everyone thanked him. The guide had thought ahead. If only he had brought out the caltrops earlier, they wouldn’t have been so terrified.

They packed and were especially aware of the importance of the caltrops. They wanted to minimize the loss and ensure maximum recovery, hoping to sleep soundly for the whole forty-day journey.

Professor Luo checked their supplies, especially the water and food, and found the consumption a little alarming. Each of the fifteen camels carried a barrel of water and they had already consumed two barrels in just two days. They couldn’t continue like this; they needed to conserve water.

Although Ouyang Jin knew of some water sources, the problem was that these sources were greatly off their path. And as they went deeper into the wilderness, the environment would become more unfamiliar to him, making it even harder to find water.

Ouyang Jin was now looking at the map, estimating their location and calculating where they would be in the next few days. This would help him recall the nearest water source, but if they found that the water was running out in the following days, they would have to deviate from their course to replenish their supply.

No one objected, and they all agreed to follow the guide. Thus, under Ouyang Jin’s leadership, they began the third day of their journey.

Oddly, there was no one on the last four camels, but Ouyang Jin put several dummy figures on them, giving the appearance of a fifteen-person team moving forward.

Lu Yi, not understanding why, immediately asked: "Brother, do you think we eleven people are too lonely so you made some companions for us?"

Ouyang Jin shook his head: "The wolves suffered a setback last night and might watch us during the day, even follow us. By making it seem like there are more of us, the wolves might give up the idea of attacking again."

"So it’s like that, good thinking." Lu Yi couldn’t help but praise, while the others also agreed with Ouyang Jin. Having such a guide was reassuring, the only prerequisite being that he didn’t hold back useful things like caltrops.

At that moment, Lu Yi suddenly sighed, "The first night we met poachers, the second night we met a wolf pack, I wonder what we will encounter tonight?"

Upon hearing this, everyone felt uneasy. Gu Fan wished he could rush over and knock Lu Yi down with a swift kick. Please, for the love of God, let the doomsayer shut up!

Yes, the start of the journey hadn’t been smooth and a dark cloud was looming in everyone’s heart.

Gu Fan nudged his camel to run to the front to Ouyang Jin, and asked softly, "Brother, no offense, and you’ve done a good job so far, but I want to know, how far into the wilderness have you led tourists before?"

Ouyang Jin then took out the map, and drew a winding line on it. This was the path from the starting village to the tourist attractions, the most popular and standard tourism route at present.

Ouyang Jin then drew a circle near this line, symbolizing the largest area for his group’s activities. There were also many interesting places within this scope, although some were off the beaten path.

Gu Fan looked at it, slightly worried, and asked once more, "So where do you suppose we are now?"

Ouyang Jin then marked a spot on the map. This spot still fell within the area Ouyang Jin had taken groups before, meaning their current vicinity was still familiar territory to Ouyang Jin.

However, based on their current pace, they would probably step outside this circle on the fifth day. By then, they would encounter many sights unfamiliar to Ouyang Jin. ƒreewebɳovel.com

Ouyang Jin reassured Gu Fan not to worry so much. Even though he usually operated within a fixed area, it didn’t mean he would be useless once they left it. He had been accompanying his father to different foreign regions since childhood. Though he might only have visited certain places one or two times, the sights and experiences from those trips might just come in handy.

At this, Gu Fan said he was now entirely dependent on Ouyang Jin, and he praised Ouyang Jin, stating that the travel agency boss had no discerning eyes for firing such a talent. Gu Fan also felt grateful that the travel agency boss had the wisdom to dismiss Ouyang Jin; otherwise, they might still have been clueless about how to set out on this journey. It’s always two sides to a coin.

Ouyang Jin appreciated Gu Fan’s words, then sighed repeatedly, "This tour is more difficult than I thought. I underestimated it... I regret so much..."

On hearing this, Gu Fan made a contemptuous face: "Brother, with your deep sentiments, are you thinking about increasing the price?"

"Really? Is it still possible to renegotiate the price now?"Ouyang Jin made a hopeful face, to which Gu Fan immediately wagged his finger: "We already agreed on thirty thousand. Du Jun said, if you bring all of us back safe and sound, an extra five thousand would be added. Now you want to raise the price?"

"A bit more earnings wouldn’t hurt if you need to make a living," Ouyang Jin said with a grin. Seeing him turn into a slick talker, Gu Fan felt an unease creeping up. A mature, steady guide gave people a sense of security.

Suddenly, Professor Luo became particularly excited: "I’ve got it! If we can find something that is present on both the ancient map and the modern one, then we can overlay the two maps. That way, we can locate the ancient country Qian Ye."

"That indeed sounds like a good idea." Gu Fan agreed. The challenge lay in that there weren’t many features represented the same way on the two maps, probably due to different mindsets of ancient and modern people when drawing maps.

As the sun set and darkness gradually fell, they again set up camp, lit a campfire, and prepared meals, just like the previous two nights. However, the beauty of the night sky, coupled with a reduction in laughter, left an uncanny silence.

Everyone was worried about whether there would be peace tonight. They questioned whether the wolf pack had silently followed them, or if there would be another attack. Everyone was too afraid to sleep, fearing they might have nightmares.

After setting up triangular spikes everywhere for precautionary measures, they all prayed repeatedly for a peaceful third night.

In fact, everyone was worried, scared, and sleepless. But as the night grew deeper and weariness took hold, they gradually fell asleep one by one.

Gu Fan was the last to fall asleep. He could only trust the triangular spikes spread on the ground to keep them safe. At the same time, he hoped that their luck wouldn’t be so bad to have incidents on three consecutive nights.

Luckily, everyone slept until dawn on the third night with no incidents. It seemed like the heavens had blessed them and decided not to test their wills further. Lu Yi almost cheered with joy, believing that they would have restful nights for the rest of the journey.

However, reality was not so kind. When packing up, Gu Fan collected the triangular spikes and found blood stains on some of them, signaling something had stepped over them and left. As for what it was, it was unknown, but it was highly likely to be wolves.

Gu Fan shared the findings with everyone, reminding them once again of the importance of these spikes. Everyone was extremely careful in collecting them, ensuring they retrieved all the spikes.

Becoming the more remote the destination, the more dangerous the journey. Ouyang Jin knew this better than anyone. In his spare time, he would flip through the notes left by his father and see several unthinkable records.

Sometimes Ouyang Jin would ponder whether they needed to set the route strictly according to his father’s notes. What if those were the wrong routes?

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