The harvest this time was, as expected, quite plentiful, another bountiful yield. However, hunting held little allure for Chen Lan and Xu Mingxuan, a couple who were seasoned hunters themselves. For Xiang Xi, this was his first time hunting alone, and it was incredibly exciting for him!
With his crossbow in hand, Xiang Xi called out to Er Zhuang, and the two were ready to scout the nearby woods.
Chen Lan stopped them, putting a large woven basket in each of their hands. She then said, "Er Zhuang, Little Watermelon, there are wild boars here, which are dangerous. You two must not go too far, understand?"
The two readily agreed, and each grabbing a crossbow, they ran towards the mountain opposite. In the blink of an eye, they were gone. Chen Lan looked at Xu Mingxuan and said, "Mingxuan Ge, let's go chop firewood!"
Saying this, she took out two machetes from the system's storage and handed one to Xu Mingxuan. Still somewhat worried, the couple followed behind Xiang Xi and Er Zhuang up the opposite mountain.
As they chopped wood and stored it in the system's warehouse, they kept a close watch on the movements of Xiang Xi and Er Zhuang, fearing they might encounter a wild boar and get into trouble.
Chen Lan used her mind to activate the system's search function, scanning the surroundings. She found nothing unusual. Seeing that Er Zhuang and Xiang Xi hadn't gone far and were still milling about nearby, she relaxed her guard. She then chatted with Xu Mingxuan while they worked.
Suddenly, they heard Er Zhuang shout, "Xiang Xi Ge, don't chase! It's dangerous ahead!"
Immediately after, they heard Xiang Xi let out a startled cry. The couple exchanged a look and took off running, one after the other, in pursuit. When they caught up, they saw that Xiang Xi, in his pursuit of prey, had accidentally fallen into a steep ravine. Fortunately, the ravine wasn't too deep, or he would have been seriously injured!
Seeing Xiang Xi sitting on the ground, grimacing in pain, Chen Lan quickly asked, "Little Watermelon, are you alright? Where did you fall? Can you still move your legs?"
Xiang Xi replied through gritted teeth, "Little Lanzi, don't worry! I just slid down. My legs are fine, but my backside feels like it's split into eight pieces. It hurts so much!"
Chen Lan chided him good-naturedly, "Serves you right for hurting yourself! I told you not to run around recklessly, but you wouldn't listen. Now you've fallen! Wait patiently, I'll have Er Zhuang and Mingxuan Ge cut some vines to pull you up."
As she spoke, she noticed a rather small stone about three meters to Xiang Xi's left. As the sunlight hit it, it reflected a golden glow. Chen Lan's heart skipped a beat. A stone that emitted a golden light... could it be the legendary dog-head gold?
Earlier, the temperature of the pool had made her suspect that this area might have been a volcano in ancient times. Now, the idea seemed increasingly plausible. Besides, the Northeast was known for its gold production, so finding dog-head gold in the mountains wasn't impossible.
Chen Lan concentrated, examining the stone intently. The more she looked, the more it resembled dog-head gold, but being so far away, she couldn't be entirely sure. She then called out, "Little Watermelon, try moving. See if you can stand up?"
Xiang Xi attempted to stand up. Chen Lan then shouted, "Little Watermelon, look to your left, about three meters away. There's a shiny yellow stone, do you see it?" Su Dan Xiao Shuo Wang
Xiang Xi walked over, still rubbing his backside. He prepared to pick up the deep yellow stone with one hand, but to his surprise, he couldn't lift it. He exclaimed, "What kind of stone is this? It's so heavy!"
Now Chen Lan was even more certain that this stone was likely dog-head gold. She said, "Wait patiently down there. I'll come down myself."
Er Zhuang and Xu Mingxuan, who were cutting vines, looked up in surprise when they heard Chen Lan. Xu Mingxuan asked, "Lan'er, we can just pull Xiang Xi up with the vines. Why are you going down?"
Chen Lan smiled mysteriously and whispered, "Mingxuan Ge, I've found something good and want to go down to confirm it."
Once the vines were woven, Chen Lan tied one end securely around her waist, and Xu Mingxuan held the other end as he lowered her down. In a short while, Chen Lan reached the bottom of the ravine. She quickly walked over and, with both hands, lifted the glowing deep yellow stone. It felt very heavy in her hands. She held it up to the sunlight and examined it closely. It was even more dazzling than it had appeared from above. Just as she suspected, it was a piece of dog-head gold with a high gold content.
As Chen Lan looked at it, she couldn't help but giggle foolishly. Xiang Xi, now realizing the stone was unusual, quietly asked, "Little Lanzi, this stone contains gold, right?"
Chen Lan nodded and asked, "Little Watermelon, you see it shining with golden light, don't you have any thoughts about it?"
Xiang Xi replied, "I've already had bad luck! I fell while chasing a rabbit. How could I believe that pie would fall from the sky? I never expected that pie would actually fall from the sky."
Chen Lan replied with a smile, "Yes, that's right, it's pie falling from the sky. This is the legendary dog-head gold. It's called dog-head gold because its shape slightly resembles a dog's head."
Chen Lan paused, then said, "Little Watermelon, let's try our luck again around here. Let's search carefully and see if there are any more such stones."
Xiang Xi replied dismissively, "Lanzi, don't be too greedy. It's great enough that you encountered such a thing once. How could you possibly encounter it a second time?"
Chen Lan retorted, "Little Watermelon, you don't understand. Dog-head gold, also known as native gold, is formed in natural environments. Where there is dog-head gold, there's unlikely to be just one piece appearing out of nowhere. Generally, where dog-head gold appears, there will be a gold mine nearby."
Xiang Xi remained unenthusiastic, thinking the chances were very slim and that finding another piece was practically impossible.
Chen Lan continued to persuade him, "Little Watermelon, have you forgotten that the pool water is warm? This place is very likely to have been a volcano in ancient times. And dog-head gold usually appears in river valleys near gold mines. These conditions all meet the requirements for the formation of a gold ore vein. Therefore, I am very confident. Let's search carefully, and perhaps we'll discover a gold mine and be able to contribute to the country!"
At this moment, Xu Mingxuan's voice came from behind, "Xiang Xi, Lan'er, what are you two doing? You haven't sent up a signal for so long. What do you mean by 'gold mine'? Have you found a gold mine? Where?"
Chen Lan, smiling, handed the dog-head gold in her hand to Xu Mingxuan. She said triumphantly, "Mingxuan Ge, look what I have here!"