Chapter 544: Home Sweet Home!
The mountains and plains were covered in snow and looked out of this world. It was stunning.
The low temperature was deadly and could plunder any creature exposed in the wilderness.
Su Mo traveled for nearly 80 kilometers and came to two seemingly contradicting conclusions.
He transformed into a fast-running lizard and journeyed quickly for 30 kilometers after leaving the caravan.
Su Mo looked around and appreciated the greatness and beauty of nature while he ran through the wind.
After another 30 kilometers, he could feel the rapid drop in body temperature and the blade-like snow against his skin as he dashed through the snow.
Su Mo was mentally strong, but he could not help the feeling of numbness spreading through his scalp!
The human body had considerable resistance to the cold among various biological creatures.
Although it was not comparable to furry creatures, the body’s internal fats, muscles, organs, and the rush of adrenaline would be able to quickly stabilize the body’s temperature when it dropped to a certain level.
Humans could train their durability and resistance to lower temperatures through swimming and taking regular cold showers.
Hence, their durability and resistance to extreme cold temperatures were not the primary concern most of the time. Instead…
It was their mental state that was put to the challenge!
The brain would enter an early warning state and adjust the body’s internal temperature when it identified low-temperature conditions, allowing the body to resist low temperatures for a considerable period.
However, the mental state of an individual often deteriorated unnoticeably and it was extremely deadly.
It was similar to the a.n.a.logy of a frog in boiling water. It may seem like you could last for another thirty minutes, but you had less than ten minutes left to get out of the dangerous situation.
This was precisely the principle of the highly deadly hypothermia!
In the face of hypothermia, a person’s mind would be dulled to the point of not realizing that they might be on the brink of death!
Su Mo quickly arrived at the location marked on the map without the slightest thought of bravado.
He could feel the twitching of his muscles and he was in a bad mood. He quickly stopped and found a lower ground to start a fire.
On such a chilly night, a bonfire seemed insignificant but it was perfect for controlling the drop in body temperature.
He took out a small pot that had been prepared behind him, then added a few handfuls of snow and two slices of bacon into it.
The bonfire was able to help shake off the low body temperature, while the boiling water helped to recover his mental state.
The bacon in the small pot began to swirl around with the water waves created by the boiling water.
Su Mo quickly squatted beside the bonfire and happily picked it up to drink, regardless of whether the broth was hot.
The hot broth entered his mouth and burnt, but as soon as it was gulped down his throat, it quickly became a warmth that spread through his body.
He took a mouthful of the fatty bacon, and the chills in his body, which were visible to the naked eye, began to disperse.
From his feet to his thighs and upper body, Su Mo felt rejuvenated as the warmth spread through his body, creating a new cycle to fight against the cold external weather after he finished the small pot of salty broth.
“Ha… whew!
“It’s so good to have such a nice meal while out in the cold!”
After taking two slices of bacon, he grabbed another handful of snow and put it into the pot. Su Mo let out a warm breath and comfortably sat in the snow.
Before the water could boil, the long-awaited caravan appeared in his sight from the horizon.
Like the caravan that he boarded previously, the team of froggers that arrived was another caravan that traveled this route and also provided transportation services.
The caravan that was pulled by lizards quickly moved toward the destination. Su Mo stood up, gently patted the snow on his body, and greeted them.
“Lord Harl! You’ve arrived faster than expected. I’m sorry to have kept you waiting so long!”
“It’s okay. I just got here. I appreciate your service!” Su Mo waved his hands.
Unlike the bear-man Avar’s caravan, which had nine carriages, the froggers only had six, and their carriages were full of pa.s.sengers.
The frogger respectfully bowed and went to the carriage in the back.
After moments of waiting, Su Mo finally had his hands on the “goods” he wanted.
“Lord Harl, this is the human you’ve requested to be transported, and this is your invoice. Thank you for trusting the Master Frog Team.”
“We look forward to working with you again!”
The gentleman pushed the expressionless middle-aged man forward and handed him a note with written text. The frogger smiled and was extremely respectful.
“Everything’s good. The Master Frog’s efficiency is indeed reliable.
“I’ve already transferred the balance payment for this delivery. Please check the transaction!”
Su Mo grabbed the middle-aged man to his side with a smile and opened his mark to transfer 500 contribution points after checking the man.
Money could move mountains, and almost anything you could think of was possible in Freedom City.
Su Mo achieved the result he wanted with only 1,000 contribution points.
“Hahaha! Lord Harl, you have a trustworthy reputation. There’s no need for me to check.
“It’s insanely cold right now. Why don’t we give you a ride?”
The frogger, like Avar, was quick to understand Su Mo’s destination from the direction he was traveling.
The frogger did not miss the opportunity and gave a wave of compliments. When Su Mo refused the offer, he nodded without persisting further, quickly hopped onto the carriage, and left.
‘Let’s go, Grand Marshal. Are you waiting for me to invite you?”
Su Mo watched the froggers’ caravan disappear and turned toward the middle-aged man who had a bewildered expression.
He shrugged and was not polite at all to the middle-aged man.
His behavior of betraying information about his people to survive after falling into the hands of a foreign territory was not considered a heinous crime.
After all, he had only stayed in the so-called large human gathering place for only five days. It would be a lie to say he was attached or had feelings toward it.
Su Mo’s condescending behavior was because he understood that the man’s fate was not due to being unlucky enough to get caught by the Demon clan.
Instead, it was because he dug his own grave!
According to the information from s.h.i.+ Ren’s interrogation, the man had made first contact with the Demon clan. He had the intention to use the news of the gathering place in exchange for weapons and supplies from the very beginning.
Unfortunately, Marshal w.a.n.g did not take into consideration the difference in strength between the two territories.
His sky-high asking price in their territory was naturally not taken well by the Demon clan, so he was tied up and sold into the city as a commodity.
At first, most of the demon souls had a slight interest in the gathering place and had offered good prices for the information.
Then the information became widely spread, and soon almost everyone was aware that the human gathering place was in the mountains, thousands of miles away. This caused a 99% decrease in inquiries.
He was lucky that Hao Qiang had coincidentally b.u.mped into him, or else he would have been dead due to the tense atmosphere within the Demon clan these past two days.
Seeing that Su Mo walked ahead without being worried that he would escape, Marshal w.a.n.g bit his chapped lips and suppressed the idea of escaping.
They traveled for a hundred meters till they arrived where the bonfire was lit.
Marshal w.a.n.g watched Su Mo sit down naturally and pick up the small pot to drink the soup and feast on the meat happily. He licked his lips, and desire flashed in his eyes.
“Harl, could you give me some?”
s.h.i.+ Ren had already explained a few things before sending him as a gift to Su Mo.
He was briefed about the Fire Exchange, Harl, Turner, the master behind the two, Su Mo, and even the possibility that Harl was offering goods that were not his to Su Mo.
s.h.i.+ Ren had put a lot into training him to win over Su Mo.
Marshal w.a.n.g was already familiar with a lot of the details.
He predicted his destination would likely be Su Mo’s territory before he was sent out of the city and was excited about it for several hours.
He also knew how important he was to Harl, which gave him the courage to speak to Harl with a commanding tone, and there was no hint of pleading that a hostage would have toward his captor.
“Hmm? Dwarf Harl, I said, could you give me some to drink?
“It would be hard for you to explain to the strongest human, Su Mo, if I were to die, right?”
Marshal w.a.n.g was taken aback upon seeing Su Mo’s indifference as he continued to sip the soup with a satisfied expression.
His expression darkened, and his tone became increasingly demanding.
He knew he would die if faced with three of five demon souls about the same size as himself and he was definitely not their match. Even if he were only to fight one, it would be a big disadvantage.
However, his confidence surged subconsciously in the face of a short dwarf about the height of his waist who carried no weapons on him.
He was confident that even if Harl did not take his importance into account, he would still be able to subdue his opponent and escape instantly!
“Are you sure you’re talking to me?”
Su Mo finally put down the soup bowl and turned around with a confused expression.
Marshal w.a.n.g unconsciously changed his sitting position to a squat and arched his body, ready to pounce at any given time.
The freezing cold would bring out an animal’s natural instincts!
Animals would become lazy, and their urge to hunt was low in warm temperatures, but their desire to hunt would increase significantly in cold temperatures. Even though humans were advanced animals, they could not escape the law of nature.
Especially considering Marshal w.a.n.g had just gotten off a comfortable, warm carriage and was triggered by the icy cold weather.
His current behavior was extremely reasonable.
Seeing that the dwarf was still sitting on the ground and glancing at him indifferently, Marshal w.a.n.g was infuriated and pounced at Su Mo with a growl.
His suppressed anger from being treated like a zoo animal in the Demon clan surfaced instantly.
At that moment, he clenched his hand in anger, and his knuckles cracked as his feet dug into the ground.
He firmly believed that even if the dwarf had incredible defense and withstood his solid punch, he would not be able to survive the follow-up attacks.
He would become an unrestrained free man if he could seize the opportunity today!
Bang!
Countless thoughts flashed through his mind, and his punch landed as hard as he had expected.
‘Got him’”
Regardless of where the punch landed, Marshall w.a.n.g was thrilled. He tried to pull back his arm and twist his body for better momentum for his next attack.
However, he could not withdraw the fist that he threw at Harl.
Whoos.h.!.+
Suddenly, a fist flew toward him with great momentum.
Marshal w.a.n.g was sent flying before he could even react. His body flew through the air and smashed into the snow in a beautiful arc.
‘???’
He did not get to drink the hot broth and was now on the ground with snow in his mouth.
For a while, Marshal w.a.n.g’s mind was in a daze.
The ground was not hard and there was relatively soft snow, but it took him three to five minutes to catch his breath.
Su Mo was still sitting by the bonfire and drinking the last sip of soup from the pot with satisfaction when he opened his eyes again.
“Hey! You rotten thief!”
Marshal w.a.n.g let out a loud roar. He reflexively wanted to bounce back and attack again, but he slipped, and his body froze, falling to the ground again.
“Hmm? I couldn’t tell that you’re not a coward. You seem to be very energetic right now.
“That body of yours seems to have been doing well after surviving so many days in the wasteland. You sure are weird. Why are you so desperate to die if you’ve been doing so well until now?”
Su Mo filled the small pot with snow and boiled the water again. He rubbed his hands together and glanced at Marshal w.a.n.g, who was lying on the ground with a face of despair.
He judged his opponent’s strength and physical fitness when they exchanged fists a few moments ago.
It was not as low as he had expected and was even slightly higher than predicted.
Compared with the people in the basin, only 4% of the population had a physical fitness of over 70 points when fed well.
Marshall w.a.n.g, who barely had anything to eat in Freedom City, still maintained a physical fitness of above 70 points. It was enough to prove how strong he was before being captured. It was absolutely impossible to maintain his current physical condition without years of disciplined exercise and a good diet.
It was hard to understand why such a strong person that stood out in an ordinary group of people would sell the information about the human’s gathering place in exchange for some resources.
“Earth? A dwarf like you knows about the Earth?”
Marshal w.a.n.g raised his head with a face of disbelief.
He noticed the surprise and reverie on Su Mo’s face and immediately grasped the situation.
“No, you’re not a dwarf! No way! You’re not from the Demon clan either! Who are you?”
“Does it matter who I am?”
Su Mo’s curiosity grew stronger as he exchanged looks with Marshal w.a.n.g. He was surprised that the latter could quickly understand the situation without the slightest bit of doubt.
It was the same as mastering a skill in modern civilization and becoming an expert on a very deep level.
In a post-apocalyptic world, those who had a good physical condition and a quick mind were the ones that would survive!
If luck was on his side, with his current abilities Marshal w.a.n.g would have likely lived decently in a gathering place of 10,000 people.
“Tell me. Why did you choose to betray your territory?”
After a moment of silence, Marshal w.a.n.g’s eyes dimmed.
Sumo poured the boiled water into his water bag and repeated the same procedure by boiling another pot of water.
“Please… please give me some hot water. I… I’m freezing!”
“Sure. This pot of water is yours if you answer my question!”
In most cases, not denying equaled affirmation.
Unlike his previous arrogance, Marshal w.a.n.g stuttered while speaking. His head unconsciously lowered after realizing that the dwarf in front of him was not a demon soul but was still able to climb to such a high position in the Demon clan.
Marshal w.a.n.g licked his lips after Su Mo accepted his request. “I want them dead!”
“Hmm? Why?”
“They’re not humans! They don’t deserve to be called humans! They killed my wife, my children and… ate… I want them dead! I have to make sure they’re all dead!”
There was an undisguised hatred in Marshal w.a.n.g’s eyes as he replied incoherently.
Although he did not complete his sentence, Su Mo could piece the words together and was at a loss for words.
Four or five minutes later, the water in the small pot was gurgling and broke the silence in the snowy night.
“Drink up!
“We’ll continue our journey after you’re done! Don’t blame me if you get cold while traveling!”
Su Mo picked up the pot and poured the water into another water bag. He silently tidied up the fire after he watched Marshal w.a.n.g instantly shoot up to drink the water and jump around after burning himself.
More than four months had pa.s.sed in the doomsday wasteland, and humans had survived for more than 100 days.
Su Mo knew that this day would come sooner or later, but did not expect it to arrive so soon.
This time, it would not be a collapse of order.
It would be the fall of human nature, replaced by b.e.s.t.i.a.l survival instincts!
Ten minutes later, Su Mo finished cleaning up the fire and, with Marshal w.a.n.g, started their long journey back to the basin.
The distance to the basin’s border was less than 20 kilometers, but from the border to the foot of Iron Rock Mountain it was nearly 100 kilometers.
Fortunately, as the morning gradually approached, the chilly wind and snow in the sky finally stopped. The temperature rose slightly, signifying that the seven-day warning period had officially ended.
Su Mo traveled with ease in his swift road lizard form throughout the journey.
Meanwhile, Marshal w.a.n.g was not stupid to walk the whole journey. He found a small tree and made himself a sled with ease.
They rested and quenched their thirst whenever necessary.
When it was six o’clock in the morning and the sky was clear, two familiar mountains appeared in Su Mo’s field of vision.
Moments later, Oreo ran toward them as he barked in excitement, with a dozen or so people following behind him who did not have time to dress appropriately.
The uneasiness in Su Mo’s heart throughout the whole journey was finally gone.
“Harl… I mean Lord Harl, who… who are these people?”
Seeing his own kind again and the people’s enthusiasm, Marshal w.a.n.g was uncertain and took a step back, his face filled with loneliness.
Seconds later, he turned to the “Lord Harl” beside him, and his jaw dropped before he could even close his mouth after speaking.
His face was full of panic, and disbelief flashed in his eyes!
“You…You’re…
“Su Mo!”