Chapter 195: Section 195: Because of You, I Started to Believe in Fairy Tales Again


    The scouting team members discovered the Flying Squirrel colony, and after deep consideration, the substitute decided to train archers to annihilate the colony, thus resolving the crisis of food shortage.


    “The entire team is once again at the brink of survival!”


    “We will only have hope if we’re victorious. The substitute’s prestige will greatly rise, the team can survive, and perhaps in the future, we may even find the Core.”


    Zi Di sacrificed her sleep and food, locking herself in her tent, hardly stepping outside.


    After several days, she finally developed the potions.


    This potion could deceive the Flying Squirrels’ sense of smell.


    ...


    She handed the potion to the substitute, who was extremely surprised and hugged Zi Di excitedly.


    Zi Di’s body stiffened; she had never been held so tightly in a man’s embrace.


    Her usually clear and rational mind seemed to melt under the substitute’s intense and charming scent.


    Then, she heard the substitute’s praise, “Zi Di, my fiancée, you always surprise me. Thank you for your support!”


    It was only after the substitute left that Zi Di’s thoughts gradually returned to normal.


    “You have been supporting me all along…” she watched his retreating figure and responded in her heart.


    When she was once again alone in the tent, Zi Di calmed down.


    She patted her still-flushed cheeks, reminding herself again, “Wake up, Zi Di. He is just a substitute.”


    “He has hidden the secret of his Beastification from you.”


    “If he finds out the truth in the future, how will he treat you then?”


    The substitute’s composed and persistent demeanor made Zi Di see him in a new light once again.


    “Clearly a step away from falling off the cliff, yet he was still able to keep his composure. I definitely couldn’t do this!”


    The hunt for the Flying Squirrel colony was filled with danger and many twists, but ultimately the Human Race team was victorious.


    The substitute performed exceptionally well, especially at the end; his arms thickened as he hurled a Dagger with great force, slaying the Black Iron Level leader of the Flying Squirrels in one decisive blow, with a display of formidable presence.


    Zi Di quietly admired the alchemy skill of the War Merchant, wondering, “Could the substitute already be able to actively control his body and completely control partial Beastification?”


    “I had previously found it strange how the substitute’s Beastification ability conflicted with his disguise mission.”


    “But now it seems that this partial Beastification ability can also be very covert. Especially combined with Fighting energy, making it hard for someone to notice.”


    The substitute’s second Beastification sowed further doubts, and that night, he summoned Zi Di, once again indirectly inquiring about the situation at the time.


    “What happened? Or does Lord Zhenjin feel that there is some kind of danger?” Zi Di asked.


    She very much hoped that the substitute would reveal the secret of his Beastification to her.


    To her disappointment, the substitute’s response was simply, “It’s nothing, I just wanted to know. It’s getting late, we’ll set off tomorrow. You should go back and rest well.”


    The transportation caught everyone off guard.


    The sandstorm was like the scythe of the Death God, wanting to reap the lives of the entire team.


    In the critical moment, Zi Di immediately used the potions, melding them into the sands to excavate a large pit, swiftly creating an underground shelter.


    “My substitute, where are you?”


    Zi Di spread her potions again, igniting a white flame in the ferocious winds and black night.


    The white fire, like a beacon, attracted the gathering of many people around.


    However, much to Zi Di’s disappointment, she never saw the substitute.


    “Get inside quickly, Lord Zhenjin will definitely come!”


    “Miss Zi Di, you’re in a dangerous spot, hurry and take shelter in the cellar.”


    As the people urged her, Zi Di could not hold on and retreated for the time being.


    The joy was short-lived; the temporary hole they had melted collapsed quickly but luckily, Zi Di had plenty of potions, and she began pouring them again, attempting to expand the space.


    Suddenly, the ground beneath everyone gave way, and they fell deeper.


    “Is there actually a natural cave here?”


    “We’re saved!”


    Everyone took deep breaths, having been severely short of oxygen before.


    Cang Xu had a grave look on his face, “This cave is not natural but is a traveling passage for beasts. The reason there is air should be that this passage leads directly to the surface.”


    Numerous beast tracks were quite evident in the cave.


    The people looked solemn.


    After a brief rest, the group cautiously began to explore.


    They encountered Green-Skinned Lizards.


    Cang Xu and the others were not unfamiliar with such beasts—they had encountered them before when they were stranded in the desert.


    After eliminating several Green-Skinned Lizards along the way, the people unexpectedly arrived at a unique cave. Sear?h the Novel?ire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.


    Upon identification, they discovered it was the nursery chamber of the lizard colony, with a large number of lizard eggs stored. In addition, several mother lizards were guarding the eggs, also responsible for incubation.


    A fierce battle unfolded, Zi Di kept throwing potions, finally helping her companions achieve victory.


    They had wiped out all the female lizards, but their situation became even more dangerous as the commotion of the fight had drawn in an endless stream of robust male lizards.


    These lizards continued to assault the nursery, and the humans could only struggle to hold on through the narrow entrance of the nursery.


    Zi Di didn’t have enough potions to melt another passage.


    Cang Xu, through dissection and other means, deduced that the lizard population was very large.


    There was no escape; to persist any longer would ultimately mean death.


    Zi Di was not willing to give up.


    Before this, her team had eradicated a group of Flying Squirrels, resolved the food crisis, and reinforced their authority with the substitute. Yet, within one night, they had fallen into this desperate situation.


    She tried to boost everyone’s spirits, but to little effect.


    She then had a stroke of genius and scattered pink potions on the bodies of the lizards, “If these injured lizards retreat and people on the surface see them, we might be able to get support!”


    This plan finally gave everyone a glimmer of hope as their morale steadied.


    “Zi Di, you can’t give up! There’s still a chance.”


    Zi Di silently encouraged herself while actively looking for other ways out.


    After experimenting, she discovered that the lizard eggs were excellent ingredients for potions. With these, she concocted Acid Fog Potions that even the lizards struggled to withstand.


    Cang Xu surmised that the green-skinned lizards would go out to forage at dawn.


    Using these potions, Zi Di helped everyone break through, and after a harrowing escape, they made it back to the surface.


    However, they hadn’t anticipated that the lizard group, having been heavily struck by a scorpion swarm while hunting, had returned to their den ahead of schedule.


    Zi Di and the others were encircled and chased, only managing to hold out on the top of a sand dune.


    Reliant on the Acid Fog Potions, they could barely keep up their defense.


    The lizards had them completely surrounded, waiting for Zi Di’s potions to run out.


    Everyone was in despair, including Zi Di.


    Bai Ya said, “Lord Zhenjin will surely appear and save us in time, leading us to escape. Just because he is a Holy Temple Knight.”


    Zi Di could only offer a bitter smile in her heart, especially missing the substitute since the start of the sandstorm.


    Now, she couldn’t detect any scent of the substitute, and it was very possible that he had already perished in the storm of sand.


    Bai Ya’s naive idea made her recall the fairy tales of her childhood.


    The tale of the princess, the demon, and the knight.


    The demon captured the princess, coercing her to marry him.


    But the little princess shook her head, “I don’t want to marry you, you bad demon. My daddy and mommy will send a knight to rescue me.”


    Zi Di had long ceased to believe in such fairy tales.


    “Fairy tales are just fairy tales, after all.”


    “I’m afraid this will be my final resting place.”


    “Until now, I don’t even know where the central hub is.”


    “Damn it, my father’s vengeance, and the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce…”


    However, at that moment, Zi Di heard someone shouting, “Come quick, look, is that a person over there?”


    That single voice immediately grabbed everyone’s attention.


    “There is someone.”


    “Who is it?”


    “Can’t see clearly.”


    “He’s running towards us!”


    Zi Di froze, then began to stare intently.


    Cang Xu narrowed his eyes, “There are green-skinned lizards all at the foot of the sand dune, yet this person keeps fighting his way over, clearly a man of great valor and audacity.”


    “It’s Lord Zhenjin, it has to be him,” Bai Ya shouted excitedly.


    As the distance closed, they were finally able to recognize the newcomer’s face.


    Cheers erupted.


    “It’s him, indeed Lord Zhenjin!”


    In an instant, Zi Di’s heart began to pound rapidly, intense emotion nearly bursting from her eyes as tears of excitement.


    She recalled her mother’s words, “My little princess, don’t worry, you will have your knight, and he will protect you for your entire life.”


    “My knight?” young Zi Di’s eyes sparkled, “Where is he?”


    “Um… Mommy isn’t quite sure either. But one thing is for certain, he will appear in your life.”


    Now.


    He had appeared.