Lao Xia's Dinner

Although their investigation team appears to consist of only six people, they actually have a lot of resources at their disposal and many people providing support for them.

The news about the big bird came from Ye Chong, who was in charge of logistics and information support, through his colleagues.

This news actually came from the internet. This morning, a tourist photographed a "large bird" in the forest not far from Wushu Mountain Scenic Area and then uploaded it to a social media platform.

The "Shenxing Technology" secret department's information collection mechanism analyzed the location, time, and content of the photos before sending them to Ye Chong.

The photo was actually quite blurry, only vaguely showing a large bird about to turn the hillside. However, there are detailed descriptions on social media that help with understanding. Just looking at the photo, you can't really see anything shocking or unusual. After all, it's far away, and the visual impact of the bird's size isn't apparent.

However, after seeing the picture, Fang Pingfang, Ye Chong, and others quickly determined, by comparing it with the surrounding objects, that the "big bird" in the photo had a wingspan of over 3 meters, which was indeed enormous.

A wingspan exceeding 3 meters might not seem like much to many people at first glance. After all, there are many birds in the Anseriformes and Falconiformes orders with wingspans of nearly two meters, and in the Procellariiformes and Albatrosidae families, there are many large birds with wingspans exceeding 3 meters, such as the Wandering Albatross, which has an average wingspan of over three meters, with the largest reaching 3.7 meters.

But this isn't the seaside, and normally the birds that inhabit and breed in the Wushu Mountain area wouldn't be that large. Since "Mr. Liang" has temporarily assembled this team to investigate this matter, that large bird is naturally the most "obvious" target that needs to be investigated.

On the way to the location where the tourists photographed the large bird, Mi Qiao praised Zhou Rui, "It's really amazing that you could notice the ants!" At least she wouldn't have thought of that at all.

Zhou Rui said somewhat embarrassedly, "I keep ants myself, so wherever I go, I pay special attention to the ants there."

Normally, he wouldn't have noticed the situation with Wushu Mountain's ants, since it's winter and ants are rarely outdoors. He only became suspicious after seeing the large worker ant of the species he'd been raising, prompting him to investigate further. But now, he has a big question: where did the ant he saw go? He even doubts whether he actually saw it at all. Otherwise, given its location, he couldn't possibly have missed it.

That's why he didn't tell Fang Pingfang, Mi Qiao, and the others about seeing the large worker ant.

"The ecology of Wushu Mountain has probably changed, causing the ant population to migrate. However, we have only inspected a small area and cannot make a judgment yet. We need to come back and conduct a more comprehensive investigation. The appearance of that large bird is probably also due to the environmental changes in Wushu Mountain, which may have caused some mutations, resulting in its large size," Fang Pingfang said while thinking.

Mi Qiao pondered for a moment, then suggested, "I think if we find that 'big bird' first, having a live specimen would be more beneficial for our subsequent investigation."

After she entered the secret department of "Shenxing Technology", she quickly discovered that most people in the secret department did not know about the existence of "Blood-feeding Creature". A few people, such as Fang Pingfang and Zhou Rui, only knew that they were investigating and researching some events or creatures with obvious abnormalities.

Therefore, even though Fang Pingfang, Zhou Rui, Li Shiping, and others were not on their first field investigation mission, their way of thinking was still relatively conservative, and they considered more angles, directions, and possibilities. Unlike her, who, as soon as she heard Ye Chong mention those "big birds" and "little birds" last night, immediately took a preconceived stance and regarded the creatures that appeared as "Blood-feeding Creature."

She felt that if the creature that caused the tourist's fall was not a "Blood-feeding Creature," then "Mr. Liang" would not have temporarily transferred her, who was studying in Qicheng City, nor would he have sent Dr. Fang, who was in Ironpeace Town, to lead the team.

Hearing her words, Fang Pingfang looked over and asked thoughtfully, "When you came, did 'Mr. Liang' give you any instructions?"

It was common knowledge that the short-haired girl was a confidante of "Mr. Liang." Fang Pingfang also deduced from their previous conversation that the girl should know a lot of information that Fang Pingfang did not know, at least she had a deeper or more comprehensive understanding of the things they were investigating, which "Mr. Liang" may have told her.

"No, I'm just offering my thoughts; the final decision rests with you," Mi Qiao said.

She didn't know why "Mr. Liang" wouldn't let core researchers and investigators like Fang Pingfang know about the "Blood-feeding Creature," or what they were investigating and pursuing. But she knew that "Mr. Liang" must have his reasons for doing this. Perhaps Dr. Fang and Researcher Zhou could find more information from different angles, such as the reasons for the mutation of the "Blood-feeding Creature." So she didn't want to express her thoughts too bluntly.

Fang Pingfang pondered for a moment and then said, "Then let's check where that 'giant raptor' appeared first, and then make a plan."

Whether on the way to Jianzhou City, last night at the villa, or today at Wushu Mountain Scenic Area, when discussing the giant raptor, the strange little bird, and the ants, Fang Pingfang's mind would frequently conjure up images related to the Rabbit Woodcarving, the cave in the Qinling Uninhabited Zone, and the anomalies that occurred in "Lab Nine".

Just as Mi Qiao felt that "Mr. Liang" must have asked her to join the investigation team to Wushu Mountain because there was a possibility of "Blood-feeding Creature" appearing, Fang Pingfang also believed that "Mr. Liang" asked her to lead this investigation team because what happened here must be related to the Rabbit Woodcarving and the creatures in the Qinling Uninhabited Zone.

"Dr. Fang, if we're looking for that 'big bird,' should we apply for a drone team?" Li Shiping asked.

"We'll talk about it later," Fang Pingfang said.

Under normal circumstances, the personnel and equipment they used when they entered the Qinling Uninhabited Zone last time were standard equipment, the configuration of a formal survey team.

These six people, while seemingly part of an initial information gathering and verification team, all seemed too formally appointed. Yet, their overall setup and technical support appeared rather haphazard. It felt like this team was something "Mr. Liang" had just whipped up on a whim.

Xiang Kun and his friends spent the entire day at the scenic area, visiting various famous attractions. They even had lunch in a nearby village, driven an extra 30 minutes by You Meng.

They didn't get back to Tongshi Town until after 5 p. m.

"Old Ji, how much does Brother Chu pay you a month now? I'm coming to Tongshi Town to develop my business later, how about you come and drive for me?" Xiang Kun asked jokingly before saying goodbye to Ji Hang and Xu Kai.

Although these two people clearly had other tasks to perform as drivers, it must be said that they were quite competent as drivers. At least they drove very steadily, rarely making sudden stops or accelerations, and their road predictions were excellent, making the ride very comfortable for them. Moreover, when handling matters, they were very considerate and appropriate in both their words and actions.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Xiang. Xiang, but President Chu has been very good to me, and I'm currently working with him. If you return to the province to develop your career in the future, we might have other opportunities to cooperate." Before parting, Ji Hang used a rather tactful and subtle way to directly reveal his true situation, so as to avoid Xiang Kun becoming suspicious or displeased if he knew that he was not Chu Xiuwen's hired driver when they met again in the future.

Today is their last day in Tongshi Town. Tonight's dinner is the same as the first day they arrived, prepared by Xiang Kun and You Meng, and is still at the "Youlong Restaurant".

All the necessary ingredients were prepared in the morning, so we can just take them now.

Inspired by his conversation with Lao Xia this morning, Xiang Kun dinner tonight. Instead of cooking according to the proportions to suit most people's tastes, he made all the dishes specifically for Xia Libing's taste.

Such adjustments would go unnoticed by most people. Even You Meng, a fellow chef who was busy in the kitchen following Xiang Kun's You Meng, only noticed that Xiang Kun's dishes tonight tasted and had a slightly different flavor. Perhaps he wanted to try different cooking methods and styles. After all, most of the ingredients tonight were different from those when they first arrived in Tongshi Town on the night of the 17th; there wasn't a single piece of rabbit meat.

Even Yang Zhen'er and Tang Baona, who were familiar with Xia Libing, only thought that the crispy pork knuckle was specially made for Lao Xia when they saw the dishes being served.

Although all the dishes were adjusted to suit Lao Xia's taste, it doesn't mean they won't taste good to others. Overall, they are still very delicious, and for some people, they may even be much better than the first night's meal.

The only one who might have noticed is Xia Libing.

During the meal, Xiang Kun's attention was entirely focused on Xia Libing. Although the Black Circle Graffiti and the lyrics in calligraphy were in her backpack, placed in her hotel room, making it impossible to sense them in real time through those two "Emotional Injection" items, at this distance, he could still judge Xia Libing's emotional changes through direct sensory information.

As Xia Libing ate each bite, her eyes narrowed slightly. Xiang Kun was quite certain that she was experiencing a noticeable change in emotion, though he couldn't quite place whether it was happiness, satisfaction, or some other emotion.

In fact, he had noticed this subtle change in Lao Xia Libing's emotions many times before when they ate together, but he didn't find it strange at the time, because the emotions of Yang Zhen'er, Tang Baona and others who ate together were much more volatile, while Lao Xia remained as calm as she always was.

But he later realized that the emotional changes Xia Libing experienced during the meal were actually quite unusual for her.

It's worth noting that whether Xia Libing had a straight flush in Texas Hold'em, a bomb hand in Dou Dizhu, or a physical altercation with human traffickers, her physical reactions and emotions didn't change that much.

This morning, Xia Libing told him that he had only ever dreamed about food, which further illustrates that eating is an emotional "switch" that can be triggered for Lao Xia.

At the dinner table, while eating the dishes that had been specially prepared and cooked to suit her tastes and preferences, Xia Libing did indeed exhibit emotional changes that Xiang Kun could clearly discern.

Xiang Kun planned to make a pair of chopsticks and send them to Xia Libing before the next blood-drinking period after he returned.

As for the type of Emotional Injection chopsticks, he will choose the anticipation and enjoyment of eating that he "transformed" from the Little Chubby Girl, and then try to use this to arouse and trigger Xia Libing's dream.

Once he can successfully induce a dream, enter her dream, see what she sees, and feel what she feels, it should help Xiang Kun understand what that extremely rational and indifferent feeling he sensed through Lao Xia was all about.

After dinner, Tang Baona suggested playing Werewolf, while Zhang Qian wanted to continue with 5v5 Honor of Kings. However Xiang Kun said that Liu Caifu needed to see him and had to go out. So, Honor of Kings couldn't be played. Although Liang Yulong could fill in for Xiang Kun, without Xiang Kun, You Meng wasn't confident he could lead four newbies against Zhang Qian and the others. Therefore, the ten of them stayed to play Werewolf.

Xiang Kun said that Liu Caifu was looking for him, but that was just an excuse. His main purpose was to explore the place where the "big bird" had appeared before leaving Tongshi Town.

However, before going to Wushu Mountain, he met with Liu Caifu at a tea shop in town. Director Liu really wanted to see him to discuss the specific cooperation plan they had discussed in Chongyun Village.

Xiang Kun simply explained the situation to him and told him to just wait and see the results, and not to worry about anything else. As for the development of Chongyun Village, he had a follow-up investment plan.

Around 10 o'clock, Xiang Kun said goodbye to Liu Caifu and drove out of Tongshi Town towards Wushu Mountain.

When Mi Qiao and Fang Pingfang learned from Ye Chong about the location where "Big Bird" was photographed, Xiang Kun, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation, naturally also learned the location.

According to Xiang Kun's speculation, the "mutated bird" was probably hunting down the "mutated ants" of Wushu Mountain. If it had successfully hunted them down, it should have left this area with a lot of human activity after a short period of dormancy and mutation.

But it didn't leave. Two days later, it reappeared in human sight and was even photographed. According to Xiang Kun's judgment, it probably didn't succeed. The "mutated ant" escaped successfully, but it was not giving up and was still searching everywhere.

Just like the night before, Xiang Kun didn't drive directly to Wushu Mountain Scenic Area. He parked his car far away and then walked in.

The area where the tourists who encountered the large bird and took photos today were located is still some distance from the main peak of Wushu Mountain, where the accident occurred on the 18th.

After quickly traversing a distance through the Xiang Kun noticed something amiss before even arriving.

In infrared thermal imaging vision mode, in the distant mountains and forests, an object composed of blue dots stands quietly among the trees.

Without a doubt, it was a Mutated Creature.

Xiang Kun did not approach immediately because he had discovered something else.

--

I recommend a martial arts novel with excellent writing: <The Story of the Swordsman>.