Tob's pupils constricted, and he suddenly slapped the counter hard, saying coldly, "You actually used my students as bait?"
Chris shrugged slightly. "I don't have that much power. Besides, we've known each other for a long time, and I know your temper. This arrangement was decided by those above. We can only obey."
Tob said angrily, "But you can't use a group of children as bait! Knowing that there are alchemists lurking here and still sending a group of children to lure them. Is this the behavior of the Holy See of Light?!"
Chris's face changed slightly, and she said in a low voice, "Privately criticizing the Holy See of Light is a serious crime. Don't be foolish! Besides, if we can capture the alchemists, it will also be a merit for these children. In the future, whether they are eliminated and join the guards' establishment or pass and become Scavengers, this merit will be a precious asset to them. It's not so easy to establish merit usually!"
"Hmph, so I should be grateful to them?" Tob sneered.
Chris said helplessly, "Whether you're grateful or not, this is the truth. Besides, if we change the assessment site this year, it will alert the enemy. These alchemists have a wide range of connections. There might even be their informants hidden in our army. Although these children are still a bit young, after graduating in three years, whether they join the guards or become Scavengers, they might face alchemists. At that time, they will be the front-line soldiers, and no one can protect them. This is also a precious experience for them!"
Tob frowned slightly and snorted. He handed the wooden mug to the old man behind the counter and said, "Old Luo, another cup."
"Seeing how angry you are, I'll give you more ice," the old man behind the counter smiled.
Tob was stunned and remained silent with his head lowered.
...
...
Night fell.
As the sun set, the temperature in the desert dropped immediately. The heat preservation effect of the sand was extremely poor, and the heat dissipated quickly. At this time, Dudian and Shamu had set up a fire pit with several stones, and there was a fire burning with withered plants inside.
And the way to start the fire was, of course, the most primitive way of drilling wood to make fire.
"I'm so hungry..." Zach touched his stomach and looked at Dudian.
Dudian leaned against the fire, closed his eyes, and said, "Endure it. Ten days will pass soon. Also, talking will make you feel hungry faster."
Zach smiled bitterly and closed his eyes too.
Mekin sat by the fire and smiled. "Go to sleep. You won't feel hungry when you're asleep."
"It's so cold and hungry. It's so hard to live," Shamu tightened his clothes and moved closer to the fire.
Mekin smiled slightly and picked up firewood from time to time and threw it into the fire pit, remembering Dudian's instructions to always keep the fire burning to prevent wild animals from approaching.
Late at night, the temperature dropped even lower. From time to time, a gust of wind blew. Even sitting by the fire, Mekin felt cold and shivered. He shook his legs slightly to generate heat in his body. However, the frequent shaking suddenly made him feel a strong urge to urinate.
He looked at Dudian and the other two who had already fallen asleep, got up, and came to the sandy ground beside him. He unzipped his pants. Just as he was about to urinate, suddenly, a withered hand stretched out from the darkness and pinched his throat.
Mekin's pupils contracted, and his heart beat violently. Fear almost made his eyes pop out. He saw a wrinkled face emerging from the darkness, looking at him sinisterly. In a very soft and hoarse voice, the person said, "Be good and don't make a sound."
Mekin's whole body's hair stood on end. His first thought was to call for help, but his mouth was open, and his throat was almost crushed by the pinch. He couldn't make a sound even if he wanted to. He could only make a "gurgling" sound like torn cloth. In this intense fear, Dudian's always calm face suddenly appeared in his mind. His eyes suddenly opened wide, and he kicked backward with all his might.
The heel of his foot kicked the soft sand under his feet, and the sand splashed towards the fire.
Not enough!
The distance is still not enough!!
Mekin felt a bit desperate.
At this time, the owner of the withered hand also noticed Mekin's call for help. A cold glint flashed in his cold eyes, and his other hand lifted. In the darkness, Mekin could see clearly by the faint firelight. It was a dagger!
Swish!
It stabbed straight towards him!
With a bang, at the moment when Mekin's mind went completely blank, suddenly a stone flew over and hit the dagger. At the same time, Dudian's loud roar sounded, "There are enemies. Wake up!"
At his shout, Zach and Shamu immediately woke up, grabbed the stones used as pillows, and looked extremely nervous.
Dudian stared fixedly at the thin and hunched figure in the darkness. He had always been a light sleeper, especially in such a dangerous environment. He wasn't completely at ease with Mekin's watch. Just now, he suddenly felt a few grains of sand splashing on his face and immediately woke up. The first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was that Mekin wasn't in the place where he was sitting. When he turned his head to look, he happened to see the thrilling scene just now. Without thinking, he immediately picked up a stone by the fire and threw it. Unexpectedly, he hit it right.
"Damn it!" This hunched figure was an old man. He was wearing a black robe all over his body, and the dagger in his right hand fell to the ground. His wrist was trembling slightly. The intense pain made anger well up in his heart. He pushed away Mekin, who was struggling constantly, took out a green bottle from his chest, opened the bottle mouth, and green smoke wafted out from the bottle. He aimed at the direction of Dudian and the others and blew hard.
The green smoke immediately floated over.
Dudian's face changed. He quickly covered his nose and wanted to remind Zach and Shamu, but the green mist had already floated close, and he couldn't speak.
With a thud, Mekin, who was closest to the hunched old man, was directly enveloped by the green mist and immediately fell down.
Dudian's pupils constricted, and he quickly fell down and pretended to be dead.
There were two more thuds. Dudian didn't need to look to know that most likely Zach and Shamu had also inhaled this green mist. He just didn't know if they had passed out or died from poisoning.
His heart was pounding wildly, and he was full of tension and confusion. Could this be part of the assessment too? If so, he believed that except for those large groups, other small groups would all be eliminated!
Could the purpose of this assessment be to make everyone unite?
Dudian's mind was spinning quickly. He couldn't help but feel a bit regretful. Perhaps the intention above wasn't to make them survive for ten days at all but to see if they could unite?
"Damn brat!" Just then, Dudian heard the footsteps of the hunched old man walking towards him. He immediately knew that the old man wanted to take revenge for his stone-throwing attack. He secretly groaned in his heart.
"Wasting me a bottle of Soul-Losing Potion. Damn it!" Just from the voice, Dudian could tell that the old man was gritting his teeth as he spoke. Immediately, his heart tightened, and his palm quietly grabbed a handful of sand, ready to act at any time.
Just then, Dudian felt his foot being grabbed by a withered hand. There was hardly any flesh on this hand, and it pinched his ankle painfully. He secretly gritted his teeth, waiting for the other person to bend down to kill him so that he could throw the sand in his hand. However, the hunched old man didn't seem to want to kill him. He just grabbed his ankle and dragged him forward.
Dudian's heart sank. He knew that the old man was going to take him to his lair to deal with him.
Should he attack?
Or continue to wait for an opportunity?