Tomb Raider: I Am Hu Bayi's Cousin

Chapter 167

The hosts were extremely hospitable, and dinner that evening was exceptionally lavish.

Cold yak meat salad, braised pork with cordyceps, Tibetan buns, stuffed lungs, stuffed sausage, rice with milk, braised lamb chops, and ginseng lamb tendons.

And of course, we can't forget the specialty highland barley wine.

Hu Ming ate with great relish. These things, thirty or forty years from now, would cost at least thirty to fifty thousand yuan!
With everything prepared, the group didn't delay any longer and set off early the next morning.

Along the way, the group passed through a vast uninhabited area and had a good look at the many creatures living there.

However, halfway there, the group encountered a lake at the foot of the mountain pass, where many black-necked waterbirds lived.

Strangely, without being disturbed, they flew south in groups.

"This is troublesome. These black-necked waterbirds are not migratory birds with a migration habit."

"This unusual situation could mean either an avalanche has occurred in the Karamir Mountains, or... a cold wave is coming."

Hu Ming picked up his binoculars and looked at the spectacular scene from afar, his brows furrowing deeply.

From a distance, there was nothing unusual about the Karamir Mountains; there was no avalanche.

So, a cold wave is coming soon...

"Brother, you know a lot about the plateau. Indeed, it's the time of year when cold waves are blowing."

"You've come at a really bad time. Judging from the current situation, a cold wave is probably brewing. It won't be long before the cold wave arrives, and then the Karamir Mountains will become extremely dangerous."

The guide glanced at Hu Ming with surprise, seemingly not expecting that Hu Ming could discover the problem based on these subtle details.

As he spoke, Chu Yi picked up the sheepskin wine jug at his waist, took a big gulp of barley wine, and casually tossed the jug to Hu Ming.

Hu Ming didn't stand on ceremony and took a big gulp. On the plateau, in the icy and snowy landscape, alcohol is a precious thing.

It can be a lifesaver in a critical moment.

"Good! Brother, you're definitely a man of honor, so generous!"

Seeing this, Chu Yi couldn't help but burst into laughter. Men from the Western Frontier love this kind of forthright person the most.

"Don't worry, I've been following monks into the mountains to collect herbs since I was a child, and I'm very familiar with the conditions inside. I know some shortcuts to the places you're going, which will save you a lot of time."

"Even if a cold wave hits, I'm confident I can get you all back safely!"

"Let's take a short break and head to Zanggugou in twenty minutes. It's safe to pass through there."

Seeing the worried expressions on the faces of the group, Chu Yi couldn't help but reassure them.

"Hidden Bone Valley? There are human bones there?" Upon hearing this, Lei Xianming was taken aback and asked.

"There are no human bones in Zanggugou. It is called that because it is the place where all the animals commit suicide."

“Every year, large numbers of gazelles, wild oxen, Tibetan horses, and bears would run there and jump down to commit suicide, leaving behind the bones of wild animals at the bottom of the ravine.”

“Whenever the crescent moon appears like an eyebrow, the wild beasts in the mountains will look at the moon and jump from the heights into the ravines to their deaths, thus appeasing the anger of the gods.”

According to legend, any animal that jumps into a deep ditch and dies can escape the animal realm and be reborn as a human.

Chu Yi glanced at Lei Xianming and said indifferently.

Hu Ming found it strange, as he didn't know Lei Xianming before the first year of junior high school.

But strangely enough, it was as if the two of them were born to be incompatible.

Chu Yi never gave Lei Xianming a kind look after meeting him... which is quite interesting.

"But you don't need to worry too much."

“Even the oldest man in our tribe with the longest beard has never seen this scene before. They say it’s been almost a hundred years since they last saw such a magical sight.”

Seeing the surprised expressions on Hu Bayi and Fatty's faces, Chu Yi smiled and explained.

Hu Ming and his group's destination was Shenluogou.

However, if you want to get there, Zanggugou is indeed the safest and fastest route.

There's no reason to avoid that place and take a longer route.

Moreover, since this phenomenon hasn't occurred for nearly a hundred years, it's unlikely that it happened on this trip by sheer coincidence.

Hu Bayi and Fatty thought to themselves, and seeing the relief on the newcomer's face, Hu Ming couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

Could it be such a coincidence? Oh! They probably don't know how lucky they are.

Just like Murphy's Law, they worried that this situation might occur.

But it was already destined that they would witness a once-in-a-century scene of a herd of beasts jumping off a cliff to commit suicide.

Twenty minutes later, the group set off again.

Chu Yi placed the hunting rifle and Tibetan knife in the most convenient position at his waist, then took out the barley wine and gulped down a few mouthfuls.

The mountains, especially the remote Karamir Mountains, are extremely dangerous.

A slight mishap could lead to an accident.

After doing all this, Chu Yi, holding a prayer wheel and a leather whip in one hand, led the way into the mountains.

Hu Ming and the others followed behind him, winding their way through the mountains for quite some time. As darkness fell, they finally arrived at Gaqingpo.

Gaqingpo is a necessary stop on the way to Zanggugou, and the altitude here is already very high.

Although Han Shuna and A Xiang are quite thin, they have adapted to the high-altitude climate and only experience shortness of breath here.

But Lei Xianming was not doing well; he seemed to be unable to hold on any longer and was holding onto the oxygen tube, breathing heavily.

Hu Ming shook his head. Altitude sickness can be fatal. If you can't adapt to this climate and stay on the plateau for more than thirty days, you will definitely die.

The most frightening thing is that the air pressure drops due to the high altitude.

If you stay here for a long time, your heart will gradually enlarge, and even if you survive, you will suffer irreversible damage.

Even if Lei Xianming manages to return from this trip, he'll be ruined.

At this moment, Hu Ming and the others were walking along the mountainside, looking diagonally forward and down.

The clouds and mist there were blown away by the mountain wind, and a narrow, deep ravine was cracked in the ground.

The terrain here is treacherous; let alone jumping down from here, even just looking down is enough to send chills down one's spine.

Fortunately, the fat man had kept his eyes closed the whole way, letting the yak carry him forward.

Otherwise, the fat man would have peed his pants in fear.

(End of this chapter)