Chapter 29: Walnut Boat

A wooden boat of this size couldn't be called a giant vessel, but it could easily fit seventy or eighty people. With three such boats, there was enough space for everyone in the group.

Everyone looked up, letting out a long 'wow'.

Even though they already knew Sun Fuping was the Imperial Advisor and possessed extraordinary methods, witnessing this scene still left them deeply shaken.

He Lingchuan, however, overheard Zeng Feixiong murmur, "So that's Profound Crystal? First time seeing it." His voice was filled with surprise.

"It's green, just a low-grade Profound Crystal," He Lingchuan said dismissively.

This remark was overheard by Nian Songyu, who immediately turned and asked, "Do you have any mid- or high-grade ones?"

"No, of course not!" He Lingchuan chuckled awkwardly. If he admitted it, wouldn't it just be confiscated?

Too bad he actually did.

At that moment, a Profound Crystal lay in He Lingchuan's storage bag, a deep green one, of a slightly better grade than the one Imperial Advisor Sun had fed to the Walnut Boats.

Profound Crystals are solidified forms of spiritual energy from heaven and earth, usually only appearing during periods of spiritual energy bursts. After humans collect them, they can be purified, refined, or combined with various materials to create different types and grades of Profound Crystals.

These items have numerous uses: they can replenish the true essence of mages and monsters, power mechanical puppets, or drive array formations, among other things. Though these three Walnut Boats appeared unassuming, the cost of powering them was not low.

It had been a long time since the last major spiritual energy burst, so Profound Crystals were becoming scarcer and more expensive. Imperial Advisor Sun casually used them to power the Walnut Boats, while He Lingchuan only possessed one, which had been given to him as a grand gift by an envoy from the former Northern Demon Kingdom in exchange for a favor.

One person used a luxury item, while the other hoarded it, immediately revealing the vast difference in their status and wealth.

While He Lingchuan was observing carefully, Nian Songyu was asking the sand bandits, "Do you have any other tricks that could help?"

Situ Han, who was also admiring the Walnut Boats, shook his head repeatedly upon hearing the question. "There are too many people. Our crude methods probably won't be much use."

Nian Songyu had asked merely out of curiosity and didn't truly expect them to have a good solution. He Lingchuan, however, chuckled and asked, "Didn't you bring your fragrant pellets this time?"

"Yes, we do," Situ Han mused briefly, glancing at Sun Fuping with a hint of embarrassment. "It's just not... very refined!"

"Saving lives is paramount. Whether it's refined or not isn't important."

Nian Songyu asked Situ Han, "Is it useful? Effective?"

"Usually, it works well," Situ Han said, patting the boat's hull. "How do these treasures move?"

Nian Songyu didn't hide it from him. "Profound Crystals."

Every second of operation meant burning money. Situ Han thought for a moment. "If we're lucky, perhaps the two sirs won't have to use Profound Crystals."

Even Sun Fuping became interested. "Oh?"

Profound Crystals were rare, so it was best to conserve them whenever possible. They were priceless and could not be bought with money by ordinary people.

Situ Han humbly emphasized again, "If we're lucky!"

"Go ahead and try it," Nian Songyu said blandly. "If it's not effective, you'll be delaying official business, and I'll throw you off the boat to the monsters."

What a big mouth! Situ Han wanted to slap himself several times. "Then please cover your noses, everyone."

Cover...?

He Chunhua saw his eldest son and the bandits raise their scarves to cover their mouths and noses, and he followed suit.

Situ Han then gave a command to the back, and the sand bandits brought out a box. Upon opening it, they saw it was lined with soft padding, and in the center lay a bulging, bubble-like object.

Nian Songyu looked at it repeatedly but couldn't understand what it was. "What is this?"

"Commander Nian, have you never seen a pig slaughtered?" He Lingchuan chuckled. "This is a pig's bladder. You can inflate it by blowing into it. It's far from fully inflated now."

Seeing him so smug, He Chunhua couldn't help but inwardly grumble. This fellow had always enjoyed the best of everything in Blackwater City since childhood—a true second-generation rich kid, a young master. By rights, he shouldn't have seen a pig's bladder. But he was just too mischievous. He used to love filling pig bladders with water, hanging them from old trees on the main street, and if he took a disliking to someone, he'd send an iron skewer flying when they walked beneath the tree...

Nian Songyu was accustomed to a life of luxury; how could he have seen such a thing? He rarely even ate pork, considering it a low-grade meat. Hearing this, he frowned in disgust. "What's it for?"

"It's well-sealed, otherwise you'd first harm yourself," He Lingchuan explained. As he spoke, the sand bandits took out a large piece of cured meat, tied it with thick rope, then untied the opening of the pig's bladder and poured its contents onto the cured meat.

It was a viscous, dark green liquid, not only bubbling but also occasionally emitting wisps of white smoke.

The moment it saw daylight, everyone's sense of smell was instantly assaulted.

The stench was like severe athlete's foot festering in airtight boots for a month, mixed with the accumulated body odor of half a year without bathing, with the finishing touch being the unique aroma brewed from years of rotting fish and shrimp piled up in obscure corners of a smuggling dock.

It was a grand synthesis of foul, rank, and gamy odors, so putrid it achieved a new level of artistry.

Soldiers who didn't cover their noses in time immediately retched.

The most terrifying thing about this smell was that once inhaled, your body would remember it vividly, making it unforgettable.

Infected by this, those who had been holding back could no longer endure, clutching their stomachs and vomiting in unison.

Fortunately, the sand bandits quickly threw the cured meat into the sand and covered it with a few handfuls of sand. Combined with the strong desert winds, the stench was soon dispersed.

Everyone gasped for air, never having appreciated the simple act of breathing so much.

Nian Songyu's face changed color. "Outrageous! What on earth is this stuff for?"

He too felt nauseous and chest-tight, barely holding back his vomit. But then he turned and saw He Lingchuan's delighted expression, making him genuinely suspect that the little scoundrel was seizing the opportunity to mess with him!

With such a stench, who could avoid being affected?

"Just watch," He Lingchuan said calmly, casually pointing at the sandy pit where the meat was buried.

Everyone looked and saw that, using the sandy pit as a center, countless ripples, of varying depths, were appearing on the sand, rapidly extending outwards. Clearly, many creatures had been hidden beneath the sand, and upon being smoked by the cured meat, they fled in utter panic.

Not only did the substance affect humans, but it also had a powerful deterrent effect on mutated monsters and demons.

In fact, because their sense of smell was more acute than humans', the monsters and demons suffered even more severe physical and spiritual trauma.

"Being able to drive away even exotic beasts is impressive. What else can it do?" This trick still somewhat surprised Sun Fuping. He had never considered a gas attack when making his plans, but it seemed that the crude methods of country folk could sometimes be quite effective.

"That alone is far from enough!" Nian Songyu cracked his knuckles. These sand bandits knew He family father and son; were they conspiring against him?

Situ Han saw Nian Songyu's expression turn sour and, not understanding why, said, "Wait, just wait a bit longer. The key to crossing the desert is coming!"

Coming? What was coming?