Fulai glanced at the sun in the sky, thinking that judging by the sky, even with Diyuan as a guide, the hunt would be completed too quickly.
"Elder, Yuedora also hunted an unusually ferocious poison bird, and it was precisely because of this that Aibo suggested investigating the surroundings and thus discovered the traces of the Lavasioth," Diyuan informed excitedly.
"To complete the hunt at such speed, is this the chief hunter of the Guild of Dragon Lore? Truly an exciting new generation of power," Fulai said in surprise.
The resident hunters of the previous four expeditions, even forming a four-person team, had the ability to hunt poison birds, but it not only came with a certain risk but was also definitely not this fast.
"It's alright. If Li Fan were here, it would probably be even faster," Yuedora replied.
"Li Fan... looking at it this way, he must possess absolute courage and ability to dare to travel to the new continent by airship," Fulai sighed.
Upon hearing that Yuedora and Aibo were going to hunt a great Jagras immediately, Fulai's first feeling was worry.
But when he heard that Li Fan, the leader of the fifth expedition, was going to travel by airship, he was terrified. This was because something similar had already happened once to the leader of the third expedition, and Fulai really didn't want to repeat the same mistake, yet he couldn't stop it at all. Now, seeing Yuedora, also a chief hunter of the Guild of Dragon Lore, possessing such formidable combat strength, his anxiety had somewhat eased.
At the top of the ancient great tree, a tent camp had already been set up. Li Fan began to divide the monsters into zones, implementing his wild ranching plan. The monsters were gathered before him, and Dilu held up a large wooden board, displaying the content carved on its surface.
"Gold Rathian, Deviljho, Brachydios. These three monsters will appear in any area at any time. They are relatively common powerful monsters. However, don't rush into a fight when you meet them. You can try to gauge their intentions first. We are newcomers, so it's better to prioritize peace," Li Fan explained, pointing to the monster illustrations on the board.
"Roar?" Kuku let out a questioning roar.
"Kuku asks well. What if the other party doesn't prioritize peace? That can also be summarized in four words: 'rule by virtue.' " Seeing the monsters' confusion, Li Fan explained, "The 'virtue' in 'rule by virtue' is morality. What is morality? It is order. And the monster ecosystem is also a kind of order. It's just that this order is a bit more savage and violent, but it is still the virtue of the monsters!"
The monsters twisted their necks and looked at each other, still not understanding.
"Alright, to put it simply, virtue in the monster ecosystem means whoever is stronger wins, until the opponent submits."
"Roar..." Kuku roared excitedly, clearly liking the concept of 'rule by virtue.'
"I have already told you the areas you should go to. Now, let's split up... Remember not to overexert yourselves. If you encounter danger, run away immediately and then come find me." Li Fan had already repeated this last instruction twice, but he couldn't help but say it again.
"Roar! Roar! Roar!..." Amidst numerous roars, the monsters dispersed.
"The concept of 'rule by virtue' is so difficult, meow. Do the monsters really understand it?" Dilu asked curiously, putting down the display board.
"It is indeed difficult to understand, but this is related to spiritual evolution, so we must make everyone understand the meaning of combat," Li Fan informed.
Evening, the first floor of the Star Base. Within the ecological research institute built around an ancient tree, a research report on the traces of Lavasioth was produced. It was a shell fragment from the vicinity of a heat-dissipating organ, and inside it, dust from a Rathalos and a Rathian, as well as an unknown dark red energy crystal powder, were detected. Its strength was not much different from smelted ore, and restraint rounds could penetrate deeply. Attribute absorption tests were not conducted because attacks on such a shell could not reach the Lavasioth's body surface, so there was no issue of attribute absorption.
"This is just the outermost shell. What a despair-inducing monster," Aibo sighed, looking at the research report on the stone slab dining table in the Lynx Den area.
"Mmm... so there's no possibility of killing it, right?" Yuedora asked, chewing on a steak.
"Yes, but the fifth expedition has brought a massive amount of supplies, and with the reserves that have been continuously transported, intercepting and investigating it should be possible... Oh? This dried meat seems to be made in the style of the original continent?" Aibo's interest was immediately piqued by the red dried meat on the plate.
"Yes, I brought it specifically. Would you like to try it?"
"Okay! Woo woo... this dried meat is so delicious! No, I must record it and see if I can replicate it with the seasonings and ingredients here." As Aibo spoke, she began writing in a large book spread out on the table.
"Hmm... if the research is successful, I'll call it Star Dried Meat." Even though no action had been taken yet, Aibo had already thought of a name for the dried meat.
The next day, an urgent contract marked with a red symbol was posted on the bulletin board at the entrance. However, despite the large crowd of onlookers, no team stepped forward to claim it. This was a rare escort contract, issued by the Commander-in-Chief Fulai. The mission was to escort three Dragonborn scholars from the ecological research institute to the Great Deserted Dunes to collect more traces related to Lavasioth. Many of the resident hunters had no idea where the Great Deserted Dunes were, let alone the new members of the fifth expedition. Even if some teams were willing to take the risk, the extremely high conditions excluded most of them.
"We can try it," Aiden said to his partner, the compiler, and discussed with the competitive team member Martha.
"Sigh... you should go find the Wingdrake you applied for yesterday first," Martha said helplessly, holding her forehead. Tamed Wingdrakes were not something that could be applied for casually. She and Aiden had only successfully obtained them by virtue of being recommended team members. Who would have thought that Aiden's Wingdrake would disappear in just one day yesterday?
"Uh... hahaha, that's true. But I believe Fia won't run far," Aiden remained optimistic.
At this time, Aibo, having collected the contract, had already arrived in front of the issuer, Commander-in-Chief Fulai, with Yuedora. As the initiator of the contract, Fulai had to verify the team's qualifications and provide more detailed information, so he naturally had to receive them. He was pleased with Yuedora and Aibo's arrival and proceeded to inform them of the specific situation. Yesterday, as a large number of hunters went to the ancient great tree forest, more traces of Lavasioth were discovered. Judging by the distribution of these traces, the Lavasioth, without stopping, was approaching the Great Deserted Dunes. Traces shed from the Lavasioth's body would gradually lose their activity as the temperature decreased. Therefore, the ecological research institute planned to rush to the Great Deserted Dunes to conduct on-site investigations. The three Dragonborn scholars to be escorted were all elderly. Due to the severe shrinkage of their bodies in old age, they were very inconvenient to move. They would get breathless even if they walked quickly, let alone control Wingdrakes. In addition, a large amount of research equipment also needed to be transported together, so traveling by cargo vehicle became the only option.
Yuedora and Aibo, diligently taking notes of these conditions, immediately went to the ecological research institute under the ancient great tree. At this time, the three elderly Dragonborn scholars had already loaded the necessary items onto a large four-wheeled vehicle, completing their preparations for departure. The two parties introduced themselves. The three Dragonborn were named Skrili, Colbert, and Zhuo Ran. Yuedora had a brief exchange and familiarized herself, then curiously asked, "Grandpas, where are the monsters responsible for pulling the cart?"
"Uh? Pulling monsters?" Skrili, wearing goggles, asked curiously.
"Grandpa, aren't we going to travel to the Great Deserted Dunes in this four-wheeled cargo vehicle?" Yuedora tried to ask.
Colbert, with pointed ears exposed, thought for a moment and then realized, "Little girl, you're not talking about monsters that can tow cargo vehicles, are you?"
"Yes?" Zhuo Ran, with a headscarf covering his head and only his eyes exposed, sighed, "That kind of thing won't work. After leaving the base and traveling in the ancient great tree forest for less than an hour, the monsters towing the cargo vehicle would become a meal for other monsters with higher ecological positions, and we would also be implicated."
Yuedora suddenly understood. Not only were there no safe air routes on the new continent, but even the land transportation system was completely non-existent. While monsters capable of towing cargo vehicles might be trainable, without a safe environment to support them, it would be equivalent to feeding the carnivorous monsters along the way. Moreover, the people accompanying the cargo vehicle would also be affected. How would the cargo vehicle be driven then?
Just as Yuedora was curious, the three elderly Dragonborn, who were only half a person's height, simultaneously played rock-paper-scissors.
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
"You lost, Skrili. Push the cart," Colbert said, and he and Zhuo Ran climbed up the ladder on the side of the cargo vehicle.
Skrili muttered helplessly, "What bad luck."
"I'll help too!" Aibo said, placing her hands on the back of the cargo vehicle and pushing forward with Skrili.
Creak... creak... Yuedora stared at the slowly moving four-wheeled cargo vehicle for a long time before quickly running up. Five hours later, Yuedora looked back in the direction they came from and realized she could still see the Starship at the top of the canyon by the coast, and a sense of despair washed over her. She finally understood the reason for leaving early.
So, during the midday break, a signal flare exploded in the sky above their temporary resting spot.
"Mmm... a seven-colored cat-paw signal flare. Yuedora, are you seeking support?" Aibo, with her cheeks bulging, asked while chewing.
"Yes, this is a special signal flare for communication between me and Li Fan," Yuedora confirmed.
Before lunch was finished, there was a commotion in the jungle, and a large number of wild Wingdrakes flew out from the woods. A trail of black smoke cut across the sky, and the Flame Fire, with its four thrusters at full power, rushed over.
"It's only been a day. Your progress is quite fast." Li Fan descended to the ground using a cable. Seeing the three Dragonborn scholars and the four-wheeled cargo vehicle, he knew they were going to the Great Deserted Dunes for investigation.
"We've already been walking for a whole morning. Is this fast?" Yuedora asked in surprise.
"A whole morning... that's a bit slow. Grandpas, how about I give you a ride?" Li Fan suggested, pointing to the airship above.
"That's great, young man." Skrili, who had been pushing the cargo vehicle all morning, immediately jumped up.
Zhuo Ran looked up and asked in confusion, "Flying in the sky of the new continent by airship and heading to the unknown Great Deserted Dunes, it feels unsafe."
"In my opinion, it's fine. The leader of the fifth expedition is also traveling in one," Colbert offered a different opinion.
"Alright then. To be honest, this cargo vehicle is very bumpy, and the steeper it gets closer to there, the steeper the terrain becomes, and crossing many terrains is also a problem," Zhuo Ran finally agreed.
More cables were lowered, and the four-wheeled cargo vehicle was secured. The airship's journey officially began.
"Roar! Roar! Roar!..." Angry monster roars sounded one after another. Leaving early was to reserve more time. The airship was much faster than pushing a cart on land. Since there was no urgency, Li Fan turned off the thrusters. The three elderly Dragonborn were very happy to be able to observe the scenery of the ancient great tree forest from the舷墙 (bulwark/gunwale). They were old and would probably live out their lives on the new continent, but due to their aged bodies, they had never had the opportunity to overlook from a high place the land they had been diligently researching.
Three days later, in the early morning, the dense jungle gradually became desolate. The originally moist and soft black soil on the surface was replaced by hard, earthy yellow rock. Jagged mountains leaning in different directions were layered and repeated on the surface, giving a sense of messy, rugged beauty. Since the ancient great tree forest near the Star Base had not been surveyed and marked, other areas were even less so. Therefore, in terms of definition, where the Great Deserted Dunes were located could only be determined by visual inspection at this time. Soon, a shallow water area appeared below, and several desert jungles also emerged. The three scholars decided to go down and investigate, and at the same time, establish a temporary camp. Thus, the Flame Fire descended, the four-wheeled cargo vehicle was untied, and the team landed on the ground. Although there was still a long time before the Lavasioth arrived, ecological surveys of the area could still be conducted. After all, such a survey environment with protection and ample time was truly rare. The three scholars were immediately full of enthusiasm. Since it was an area they had never set foot in before, Yuedora might also encounter threats. Therefore, Li Fan sent out Yeye, who could turn invisible, to follow and protect them, and then he continued to advance deeper. While surveying the area, he continued to divide the monsters into more suitable habitats.
In the evening, the night sky of the Great Deserted Dunes was particularly bright. The team gathered at a camp on a high rocky area, and Aibo, along with the chef team, was busy preparing dinner. The three scholars began to summarize and analyze the ecological discoveries of the day. Under the lamplight, Colbert, holding a magnifying glass, consulted the records in his ecological notebook and asked, "Skrili, are you getting senile? You wrote the wrong length for this broken thorn mark." Skrili, who was still writing with a feather pen, leaned over to check.
"Is it the thorn found in the water? Is it long or short?"
"It's short, and it's short by a full five centimeters. Is it a problem with the measuring tool?" Colbert also muttered. Although the three old men couldn't compare to the younger generation in many aspects, they were sufficiently focused and diligent in the research and analysis of traces. Such a large error was indeed unusual.
"Wait, if my measurement is correct, could it be caused by thorn proliferation?" Skrili suddenly thought of a possibility.
"Could it be him?" Zhuo Ran's face showed horror.