Chapter 86: Infinite Desert

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Despite her reluctance, Ling Yan couldn't change Tang San's mind. She could only follow him with a sullen face, but she mostly hid in the shadows, not joining the group of Tang San, Xiao Wu, and Guang Ling.

To go to the Infinite Desert, they couldn't go empty-handed. Tang San took Xiao Wu and Guang Ling to buy a large amount of dry food, water, and a change of clothes.

Water was the most important thing, the more the better.

Xiao Wu asked, "Aren't we buying sunscreen clothing?"

"That kind of thing is not available in Nuoding City. Only towns near the desert sell it." Tang San put the dry food and water bottles he had bought into his storage bracer and explained to Xiao Wu, "After all, even in the hottest summer, Nuoding City is not too hot. Even the most delicate girls among the nobles only carry a sunshade fan."

After packing their luggage, Tang San took the two girls to the post station on the outskirts of Nuoding City and hired a carriage to go to the Infinite Desert.

Half a month later.

Tang San and the others finally arrived at the outskirts of the Infinite Desert.

This was not the real Infinite Desert, but just the outer desert.

The coachman wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "I can only take you here. It's too dangerous inside. It's not a place for ordinary people like me to go."

"Thank you, old man." Tang San paid the money and got off the carriage with Xiao Wu and Guang Ling. They watched as the coachman drove the carriage away, kicking up thick dust like smoke.

"It's so hot." Xiao Wu immediately took out a water bottle from her white jade belt and took a sip. Then she looked up and covered her forehead with her hand. "The sun here is so dazzling. I don't like it at all."

"Apart from the locals who live here all year round, no one would like to live here. Even the locals, if they had a choice, probably wouldn't live nearby." Tang San saw Guang Ling take out a fan and fan herself, so he released his Blue Silver Grass martial soul and wove her a sun hat.

"I want one too." Xiao Wu saw the Blue Silver Grass sun hat and reached out to Tang San.

"Here."

Tang San also made one for Xiao Wu, "However, my Blue Silver Grass can only last for about an hour without its roots connected to the ground. It will dissipate after an hour. But the good news is that my Endless Recovery skill can still be used in this area. The desert is also the earth."

The three of them walked and stopped, and finally arrived at a town at nightfall.

Sha Shuo Town.

This was the name of the small town.

Compared to the square houses of Nuoding City, the buildings here were relatively low, and most of the roofs were round.

Tang San found a grocery store and bought three windbreakers and three pairs of goggles.

Next, Tang San bought three sets of quilts, three tents, a guidebook to the Infinite Desert, and headed towards the Infinite Desert.

"Third Brother, why are we buying quilts?" Guang Ling asked curiously, "The desert is so hot, do we still need to cover ourselves with quilts?"

"The temperature difference in the desert is very large. During the day, it's so hot that people sweat, and at night, it's so cold that people shiver." Tang San grabbed a handful of sand and let it fall through his fingers. "The sand is very fine, and it can't hold together at all. It doesn't have the ability to store heat, or rather, it's very poor. It will be very cold at night."

"Is it really that mysterious?" Xiao Wu didn't believe it.

"Haven't you noticed that it's much cooler now than before? If it were in Nuoding City, even in summer, it would be very hot at night. But in this desert, it's getting colder." Tang San couldn't help but speed up his pace, letting the two of them follow. They had to find a place to stay, set up their tents, and conserve their energy before nightfall.

Although his first soul skill, Endless Recovery, could also restore physical strength, energy was conserved. The energy converted from the power of the earth could not completely replace food.

Finally, as the moon rose, Tang San finally saw the outpost not far away. He took Xiao Wu and Guang Ling and ran over quickly. He took out the tent and started to set it up.

The three of them were setting up a tent for the first time, so they wasted a lot of time. But they still managed to light a campfire before nightfall.

"This outpost is too simple, right?" Xiao Wu looked at the huge rock behind the tent, which was more than twenty meters high, and couldn't believe that this was the so-called outpost.

She had thought that there would be buildings like an inn in this place.

"In the desert, water resources are scarce, so there can't be so many inns." Tang San took out the guidebook to the Infinite Desert and pointed to the arrow mark on the big rock. "When you go deep into the desert, remember not to lose your way. Even with a compass, it's easy to get lost. These big rocks are landmarks, which are convenient for lost people to find their way back."

"Ah choo~ Where does this arrow point?" Xiao Wu sneezed and wrapped herself in her quilt. "With just one mark, can you tell which is which?"

"It's just a rough indication of a direction. As long as you follow the direction of the arrow, you will definitely find a similar outpost. It's better than having someone who doesn't know what they're doing wandering around in the desert."

Tang San looked at the guidebook and found that the drawing of this kind of big rock was a bit abstract, but he could roughly tell. "Next, I'll tell you about the situation in the Infinite Desert."

"The Infinite Desert is divided into four areas. The first area is the town we passed by before. There are many such towns on the edge, which is called the Sand People's Area. It's a gathering place for humans near the desert. The Spirit Hall doesn't count this area as part of the Infinite Desert, but the locals consider it to be part of the Infinite Desert."

"The second area is the outer area, which is the area we've entered. There are thousands of such large stone markers and outposts in the entire outer area. They were left behind by previous Soul Masters to help later generations determine their direction. There are arrows on all four sides, but the largest arrow is the one that marks the way into the Infinite Desert. So if you want to leave the Infinite Desert, just find this kind of outpost, find the largest arrow, and walk in the opposite direction."

Xiao Wu asked in confusion, "But there's only one arrow on this rock?"

Tang San was speechless. "A rock is not a signboard. It's a three-dimensional shape. The outpost markers in the outer area, although they look bumpy and uneven now, can be roughly seen as a cube. Most of the markers and outposts of this kind in the desert are polygonal cubes."

Guang Ling asked, "Then why not just set up directional signs?"

"It's very simple. There are often sandstorms in the desert. Setting up signs is not as stable as these giant rocks." Tang San explained, "And the second area is the inner area. There are often ten thousand year old soul beasts there, and their bodies are relatively large. There are almost no outposts like the ones in the outer area. If you want to find your way, you can only remember the direction you entered and pray to heaven that the compass you're carrying doesn't break."

"And the last area is the core area. There are many rumors about it: oases, deserts, hiding places for ten thousand year old soul beasts, and so on. But no one has ever really entered it."

(End of Chapter)