The white salt mundes are free of black spots, and the meandering river is like a world away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once again, there was a slight moistness in the dry air, but it was no longer the salty smell of the sea over the ocean. The sound of soft and delicate splashes echoed in front of not far away, bringing a feeling of embarrassment as if they were in a different world.

After an interesting encounter with the mirror snake, Xijie ran for dozens of minutes in a row, and finally came to the end of the salt land of the Nanyuan Continent when he was slightly dehydrated. Here, the layers of white salt crystals are becoming more and more sparse, gradually exposing the fertile soil beneath them, and when trees appear again in the field of vision, it means that the forest area of the Southern Yuan Continent is not far away.

Both Xinglan and Shioyu quickly recognized the trees not far away with colorful foliage beneath the green canopy...... That's right, the striated leaf tree.

"The striped leaf tree grows here as well......"

Xijie stopped, looked at the lush woods that could be clearly seen a few hundred meters in front of him, and sighed with emotion.

"It's a very tenacious tree species...... Crossing the strait appeared simultaneously on both sides of the Northern Yuan Continent and the Southern Yuan Continent, and it was not only that. After searching the memory bank a little, Xinglan found something quite unexpected, "The Leaf Tree is not a creature of the Sixth Age...... That's right, as early as the Fifth Age, I followed Mi Xin through the Fallen Tree Tunnel, and the first time I stepped on the Star Continent, I saw the Leaf Tree! ”

"So the striated leaf tree is still an ancient species, right?" Xijie muttered a little in surprise, and continued to walk forward on the land where the salt crystals were faintly visible.

"Okay...... After all, the evolution of plants is generally a little slower than the evolution of animals. Xinglan watched Xijie move forward from above, chuckling and reminded, "Be careful, there are a lot of small things a few meters in front of you, you shouldn't want to step into them, right?" ”

"Ah...... Huh? Startled, Xijie stopped again and looked at a small salt mound in front of him, "It's another grinder...... They're really dense and everywhere. ”

The fine white grains of salt had gathered into a small mound, but now they no longer looked white, but were mixed with countless small, fast-moving black dots.

These tiny insects are widely distributed throughout the salt fields, but they are generally not densely populated, but scattered over a wide area, and their body size is so small that Shiokyu is completely unaware of their presence at first.

As the journey approached the end of the salt field, and I don't know if it was due to the resurgence of moisture, these small insects began to appear in large numbers, gathering near some of the remaining small salt dunes, and even forming clearly visible clusters of black spots.

They look a lot like miniature scorpions, but they have no poison on their tail spines and seem to wield a bunch of large pincers ferociously, but they are actually small animals that are not aggressive at all.

Xinglan had used the signal pro to get a closer look at the details of their lives, and the little ones would gather in the area covered by the salt crystals, and use the pair of giant pincers, which looked exaggerated compared to their bodies, to clamp the tiny salt crystal particles and crush them into a fine powder...... That's right, that's why Xinglan named them Crusher.

In fact, there are many highly salt-tolerant bacteria who like to live in this environment, and they will use various natural minerals to grow and cover the surface and interior of white salt grains on a scale that is difficult to distinguish with the naked eye.

These bacteria are the food of the grinders, they crush the small salt crystals finely, grind them into a powder, and then stuff the powder into their mouths, whether it is distributed on the surface of the salt grains or the bacteria inside the inside will become their food...... The way these little ones eat is salty enough for even Xinglan to see it.

This was probably the last place of mass grinding before leaving the salt fields, and beyond that, the striated leaf trees, which could at least be called forests if not forests, became a clear dividing line, dividing the rich and the barren land.

The tide knot continues to move around the salt dunes where the worms gather, and the sound of small splashes echoes happily in the air, playing a crisp and melodious and energetic score, the music of the river ahead...... Yes, there is a river ahead.

The river, which was not very wide, rounded a large U-shaped bend, but it flowed in opposite directions to the depths of the woods, like a thread creeping out of a complicated sweater, unable to find the beginning and the end, and both ends extended into the unknown mist.

Even though some of the tributaries extend to the border between the salt fields and the woods, it is certain that the river is indeed a river with fresh water.

That's right, a freshwater river.

I don't know how long it has been...... Maybe it was the first time, Xinglan looked at Xijie in surprise and did not fear the sudden flow of water, but let out a cheer in a hearty way, and then directly accelerated and ran towards the river of life.

She was a little thirsty and had never gone so long without water since she was born...... Myxin does not have the ability to filter the salt in seawater. Since the Northern Yuan Continent began to go to sea until now, the vast sea is full of water, but it is obvious that they can't drink it. The island in the middle of the strait is a volcanic island that has not been formed long ago, and it is still in a geologically active period, and perhaps in tens of thousands of years the island will continue to grow enough to produce freshwater lakes, but now there is no drinking water in this wasteland covered with dark basalt and baptized by magma from time to time.

Even after the successful crossing of the Nanyuan Continent, the wide salt land also eliminated the possibility of freshwater, and even if a freshwater lake was poured on it, it would not last long before it would become saltwater.

As a result, Xijie hasn't drunk water for a few days, and perhaps for some animals a few days without water is nothing, but they obviously don't include the lively and active Mystery.

However, even when she was thirsty, Shiokyu remained vigilant at the most basic level, the crystal array on her forehead was constantly sensing the faint electrical signals generated by the brainwaves of nearby animals, and at the same time, her ears were pricked up to catch the subtle movements in the air.

"Next to the river...... There are quite a few animals. Xijie quietly slowed down, and through the analysis of the electrical signal diffusing in the air, he concluded, "However...... It shouldn't be a big problem. ”

There are a lot of animals next to the river...... This is completely expected, the water source in the forest will inevitably attract a lot of animals to drink here, if you feel that there is no animal activity near the river, it is an abnormal phenomenon, but you need to worry about whether there will be any problems in the water of the river.

Mystery Xin's eyesight is very good...... Not to mention Xinglan's eyesight, they saw the animals gathered next to the river from a distance of a few hundred meters away, naturally they were not the same animal, but a mixture of many different species, sharing the habitat.

Xinglan quickly identified several of them, which made Shiojie feel even more reassured, if these docile herbivores were resting quietly, there should be no dangerous predators among the nearby animals...... Or at least a predator who has filled its stomach and has nothing to do with aggression for the time being.

In order to survive in nature, it is necessary to maintain the most basic vigilance at all times, so even if the two sides are still a few hundred meters apart, the arrival of the tide knot quickly attracted the attention of many animals, but after looking at this side for a while, they stopped their vigilance and returned to a leisurely life.

Have you ever seen Mystery Xin and think that this creature is too small to be a threat? Or have you seen it before, but I also think that Mi Xin will not choose herself as a target?

Regardless of the state of mind, in short, there is no obvious resistance to the arrival of the tide, and no animal is ready to turn around and flee at any time.

This is actually a very interesting phenomenon, animals are always firmly resistant to living in the same area, often of the same kind...... Almost all of them are homogeneous creatures of the same sex, and when confronted with other species that do not have a direct predatory relationship, they are able to calmly accept to share a habitat with each other.

Xinglan quietly followed the tide knot, and in order to prevent any variables from startling the natives, they also temporarily stopped communicating with each other in words, and instead moved slowly in silence.

The animals beside the river did not make a sound, which seemed to be a tacit understanding, and the aborigines here were invariably silent, and only the faint sound of the wind, the crisp splash of water, and the dull sound of drinking water could be heard in the whole space.

Soon, as if they had drunk enough water and rested, some animals of various shapes began to turn away silently, either running directly into the striated leaf forest, or climbing up the tree in place and jumping into the invisible canopy...... There are even animals that jump directly into the river and swim all the way down the river.

Except for the occasional Sunburst that was still lazily grazing, there was soon only another group of animals that Xinglan had never seen before, the size of a bison, standing by the river one after the other, as motionless as a frozen sculpture.

"They're ...... Asleep? Xijie finally couldn't help but mutter, and continued to walk towards the beasts at an unhurried pace, "But why are they all facing away from the river?" Ahh......h

"Shhh......h And don't mention that kind of curious topic! Xinglan keenly caught a glimpse of the obvious movement of the ears of several animals, and couldn't help but marvel at the sharpness of their evolved hearing, "You can see it when you walk next to the river...... Pay attention to their tails. ”

"Tail?" Shioyu blinked suspiciously, and when she finally walked to the side of the river and looked at the group of strange animals up close, there were about seven or eight of them, and she was startled, "This...... This action, could it be said that they are actually ......"

(Ah, it's the New Year, I wish you all a happy New Year~)