Hello, Arknights

Chapter 358 Canyon

The words in the poem are confusing; when will the bird in the cage fly away?

The spear with fire burning at the tip spewed out tongues of fire like bird feathers in flight. Draco's scorching flames swept across a large area of enemies in a sweeping manner. The bloody enemies were suppressed for a while, but any enemies she did not kill intentionally could stand up again, and the strength required to defeat them the second time would increase.

Draco and the others did not go deep into the heart of the area where the blood-colored monsters were entrenched, but their previous rough understanding of the safe zone seemed no longer applicable. As a result, they encountered a "blood tide" today. After many days of avoidance, this was the first time for their team to engage in a head-on group battle.

She was warned by the "Colonel" not to engage in a fierce battle with a large-scale blood-colored monster - the Blood Tide - without sufficient logistics. She had indeed followed this caution before, and after experiencing it herself, the "Leader" knew for sure that he was right.

From the remaining features and clothes on these blood-colored monsters, one can vaguely identify that they were ordinary farmers before being infected. They used to till the land among the golden wheat waves, but now they no longer have any expressions of worry about the harvest. Instead, they have inhuman fanatical expressions, with low roars rolling in their throats, and they are constantly erupting with terrible power that they have never possessed before.

"Flesh...feed!" the blood-red monsters howled, one after another, and then a bright and blazing pillar of fire shot out, tearing a charred hole in the chest of the blood-red monster charging in the front. Its life force was undoubtedly gone, but this still made the caster frown. This blow should have burned the entire creature to ash, but this blood-red monster covered with burns was unexpectedly more resistant...

It's not that they are resistant to fire. These monsters that survived a round of baptism of fire find it easier to resist the swords and axes of the soldiers in front of them, and they present the most direct killing to the enemy.

This scattered team originally had more than 300 people, but after an hour of fierce fighting, nearly 100 people were killed. There was no corpse left, whether it was soldiers or monsters, these bloody evil creatures spared no one.

Blood and flesh flew everywhere, both those of their prey and their own; covered in wounds, they could not block the bridge of life and death, no matter whose hopes it connected; trying their best was a right that everyone had, no matter how small or great.

"Leader! The blood tide has receded..." After one comrade after another fell, the soldiers noticed the enemy's retreat, and their morale was greatly boosted. They retreated and camped with disturbing hisses. This canyon encounter finally ended with this tragic result.

Yes, for now.

"..." Draco was silent. She knew that there was another problem she had to face next. She had to deal with the "infected" in the team - at least separate the wounded with open wounds and isolate them.

"Leader..." But who among those who had fought so hard to survive was uninjured? A glaring red slowly emerged and expanded within the bandages. A flicker of pity flashed in Draco's eyes. He gathered himself, took back what he had been about to say, and changed his tone:

"Anything new?"

“Yes…” The wounded soldier seemed to know his fate, his face extremely pale, but at this moment he chose to continue to perform his duties loyally, “Those *Tara swears* monsters haven’t gone far. They…they’re blocking the road ahead…”

"Go back, we can't lose any more people." Long Zhong said without hesitation.

There were at least nearly a thousand monsters in this tide of blood. If they had continued to fight with them, the only ones who would be wiped out would be the "Deep Pool" troops. She herself might have survived, but the lives of the Tara people who followed her and were handed over to her by the true "leader" would undoubtedly be drowned by death.

Although it was a responsibility forced upon her, she could not help but feel sad when her companions, who were far weaker than herself, disappeared one after another before her eyes.

Even though she herself is so confused.

"But we're out of supplies. Retreating would just mean dying in another way, in a wasteland where only grass roots and the cries of feathered beasts can be heard..."

The silent silence threw the terrible truth in front of the dragon species. The wilderness may not have been so scarce and lacked the possibility of survival, but the invasion of the bloody monsters caused many creatures living here to flee and migrate away, leaving only more concerned humans to continue struggling in this quagmire.

"...You said this is the only way?" Ling Dengxian stood on the ridge at the entrance. He smelled the gradually familiar smell of blood in the oncoming wind, and he didn't know if it was an illusion, but he heard the sound of teeth grinding against bones.

"There's definitely a 100% chance of those things in here, and quite a lot of them..."

The little boy beside him shook his head hesitantly, and said haltingly, "There are indeed more ways to get to Xiaoqiu County than just this one, but the other roads are too far... But you said to find the shortest way..."

"It's been a contradiction from the beginning, okay? Even if there is a shortcut, you will be slowed down if you are carrying a child..." Mandela swallowed his words halfway and avoided the other person's gaze.

Naturally, they had been unable to avoid the roaming blood-red monsters these past few days, and the later they encountered the monsters, the harder they were to deal with. As a magician, she felt this very clearly, but the stranger who had threatened her only used two or three sword strikes. Compared to the disgust of white-haired Rupert and the difficulty of the Victorian soldier, his expression seemed to contain nothing but seriousness.

This was not the first time that Mandela spoke without restraint, but the experience of being warned by Bai Ge with her eyes changed a little each time. At first, she remained silent, but now she kept her mouth shut.

"Little Hanny is right. This road in the canyon is indeed not recorded on most maps. It's too winding. The nobles in charge of this land didn't invest the energy and money into it, even though opening it would save at least five days of travel." Triangle Iron followed and took a look at the surrounding environment, confirming the approximate location.

Lappland took the white sword that Ling Dengxian lent her and stood guard below, just in case.

A few days ago, Ling Dengxian and his companions, under Mandela's guidance, crossed an area infested with blood-red monsters and stumbled upon a child who had fainted and was covered in wounds. After treating the child, he woke up without crying and obediently told his name. He was at an age of understanding. After hearing their conversation and learning that Ling Dengxian and his companions' destination was Xiaoqiu County, he cautiously approached and said that he knew a shortcut.

So they arrived here.

Hanny told them that he was from Xiaoqiu County, his father was a blacksmith, and the area near his hometown was also attacked by the blood tide. He himself encountered a killing monster in the countryside because he was playing around, and fled from Xiaoqiu County in a panic. Now he hopes to go back and reunite with his family, and begs Ling Dengxian and others to take him with them.

After hearing Hanny say that he was being hunted and escaped, Ling Dengxian was actually mentally prepared to encounter the bloody monster, but...

"I can smell the blood from such a long distance... This is not a matter of just a few or three." Ling Dengxian frowned and fell into thought.

Taking a detour is undoubtedly safer, but every step later means less hope. But facing danger head-on... as the name suggests, it is dangerous, deadly danger, and it should not be an option to be considered.

But he knew that he was a little impulsive, and it was an impulse that he could not control. He had a terrible guess in his heart, and it was difficult to prove that it was wrong. The fact that he could still think calmly might be a manifestation of his growth.

"You guys stay on guard here and be ready to pick me up at any time. I'll go check out the situation alone and confirm if there are any traces left by the blood tide." Taking a deep breath, Ling Dengxian made the arrangements.

"Don't you want the sword?" Lappland raised the white sword and grinned at him. Ling Dengxian rolled his eyes at her and told her to be on guard in a bad mood.

"No, it's too dangerous!" Triangle Iron objected to his decision. "We've only encountered about twenty monsters before, but this time it might be a blood tide. Ling... White Dove, calm down."

Ling Dengxian could feel his muscles stirring and his blood roaring, but he was not afraid at all. The "decision" was like a falling snowball, which would only make his impulse grow bigger and bigger.

"Protect everyone, I'm leaving." He didn't argue, he just made the decision.

"Ling Dengxian!" Triangle called out his name anxiously.

Ling Dengxian thought that just saying a few more words would comfort his teammates, but he made another mistake.

Ling Ye grabbed his wrist, her eyes sparkling.

"..." Mandela glanced at Ling, who seemed to have recovered, and said reluctantly, "Okay, I'll go with him. I'll take care of him."

After saying that, she raised her hand, and the earth and rocks rose up in accordance with her thoughts, holding up Lappland so that she could reach the height where everyone was. Then she raised her palm upwards, and the rocks seemed to come alive and gathered together to form a defensive fortification that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

"Let's go, go quickly and come back quickly, so that you don't have to mess around." Mandela said unhappily, with a drop of sweat hanging on his smooth forehead.

"...Thank you." Ling Dengxian lowered his head. He just realized that he was too concerned.

Triangle didn't raise any more objections. With Mandela around, it shouldn't be difficult for the two of them to escape.

Along the top of the canyon, the two of them took off and flew away.