Miss Witch doesn't want to be a diva!.

Chapter 653: Warm Firelight in the Snoring

The armored train roared forward as it shuttled through the mountains. When the swarm of insects it was looking for descended from the sky, intensive gunfire rang out on the train. Flames spread all over the train like a hedgehog's armor, smashing the attacking swarm of insects into pieces.

The remaining juice and blood fell on the leaves in the mountains. Along the way, the armored train encountered countless similar attacks. Fortunately, the scale was never large and could not stop the progress of the armored train.

In the afternoon, the black and gray troops marched across the land, and when they arrived at the signal transmission site in the evening, they saw piles of charred insect corpses. The land within a radius of several kilometers was stained black by rotting flesh and blood, and the smell of burning was overwhelming.

Walking among these insect corpses and black tar, the bad smell and traces make it hard to imagine what kind of tragic battle has taken place here.

Finally, the team passed through the debris and corpse fluid piled up into hills, climbed up the small hill in the inner circle, and saw the only relatively clean round land.

There were many damaged and burnt armored vehicles left here, and the rescue society's logo was covered with dried blood.

"Are we late?" The leading Iron Core couldn't help but speak when he saw this scene.

"No, they should have survived." A tall and thin officer looked around the room.

"Although there are a lot of remains here, the central part is almost empty and even relatively clean. And although the armored vehicles are quite damaged, they are not the only ones."

"So how did they win or persevere in the end?" a team member nearby asked.

"I don't know, but let's search around, maybe we can find something."

Afterwards, the officer in charge ordered his men to disperse and search.

About half an hour later, the search team returned and reported to the leading team.

"We found this." A member handed over an iron plate.

There was a line of words written on this iron plate using fire.

"We suffered heavy losses, but we are still alive. Thank you for your support. We will be recuperating for a long time in the future, and we may not be able to contact you in the short term."

After reading this line of words, the team leader handed the iron plate to someone else, then boarded an abandoned armored vehicle, looked out at the land from afar, and sighed at the devastated world.

"They are really tenacious... No wonder they are still alive today."

"Sir, what about us now?" asked the member next to him.

"It should be fine. There are so many corpses piled up here. Look, the bugs are no longer gathering here. What does this mean? It means that even such strong pheromones can't attract bugs. They can no longer pose a threat to this land."

"Let's make a good record and then return."

"Where is the Naheshan Rescue Society going?"

"This is not my responsibility. Please give them a way out." The team leader waved his hand.

"They are extremely weak now. Even if we had a good relationship in the past, I'm afraid we would be worried when we meet now."

"This world is full of dangers. Leave a good impression. We may also encounter difficulties one day."

"Go, go back."

Some people in the team still missed the technology passed down by the Heshan Rescue Association, but they didn't know where the other party was going. In addition, their boss didn't have any persistent ideas, so they could only return the same way with regret.

During the journey, several leading officers sat in the train to discuss.

"After this swarm of insects, we don't know when the next one will come. With the intensity of this swarm, even if we encounter it, we will suffer great losses."

"I heard that the main city has already started to set up watchtowers along the border mountains to monitor the eastern region where the insect swarm broke out."

"What a pity. In the past, the Heshan Rescue Association's base was so solid, and the guard posts were spread across the eastern mountains like stars. No one expected that they would be lost one after another in just a few months and destroyed by the insect swarm. It's great that 10% of them survived this time."

"According to scholars within the alliance, these bugs prefer warmer areas, so they are rarely seen in the north and are not very active in winter. The reason why the Heshan Rescue Association was able to successfully migrate was also due to the heavy snowfall in winter."

"Our Ford Alliance is located in the north, and there are mountains between us. It won't be easy for them to invade. As long as we are careful, the threat to us should not be great."

The train continued to roar, and many soldiers on board were leaning against the carriages to sleep and rest. They had been marching for several days in a row and were already exhausted. Although they did not catch up with the battle, it might not be a bad thing for ordinary soldiers. Now that the swarm of insects has dissipated, they have relaxed their spirits and can sleep peacefully even in a shaking and noisy car.

The sky darkened again, and then the train drove into the mountains and slowly disappeared into the night.

In the south of the wilderness, the small valley that used to be a peaceful grassland is now quite lively. The surviving members of the Heshan Rescue Association are stationed in the open space in the valley, and the armored vehicles at the entrance of the valley form a temporary wall to guard the interior.

The tall figure of the moose boss walked between the campfires, handing out prepared meals to the rescue members who were sitting by the fire treating their wounds and taking a nap. On the other side, Mimi of the cat-tail species was busy at the makeshift kitchen counter with a few companions. She held a spoon in her hand, skillfully stirring the food in the pot and adding some chopped ingredients from time to time.

On the platform on the mountain wall, Sura, Fran and several members of the Heshan Rescue Association were discussing the resettlement plan.

"I've taken a look at the black oil stored in the cave. If it's filtered, it can be added to armored vehicles for use. It just needs to be cleaned and repaired every once in a while." A member of the rescue association held a handwritten cardboard with many material reserves marked on it.

"There is definitely not enough food now. If we want to survive, we must find a way to get food as soon as possible." Fran glanced at the data on the cardboard.

"Heshia said that she is working on a way to deal with the problem of water and soil pollution, but it will take some time to prepare." Although Sura didn't know how to do it, the girl had done so many incredible things. Even if she said that she was the reincarnation of the Holy Sun, Sura felt it was very likely.

"If the water and soil pollution problem can be solved, then this vast grassland will indeed be a promising fertile land for reclamation." Fran looked at the scribbled hand-drawn map on the side.

"There are currently more than 1600 people in the camp, including the original population of the settlement and the members of the relief association. The daily food consumption is a huge amount."

"When we migrated before, we used weapons to exchange food with the many settlements we passed by along the way. Now I'm afraid we can't do the same as before." A member of the rescue association shook his head.

Just when they were at a loss, a nimble figure descended from the night sky and landed in the middle of them. "Good evening, everyone. This is Loloria, who has just recharged and is full of energy~" With a little air spraying from her heels and palms, this cute mechanical girl greeted them.

"Uh... hello." Several people present responded to her hesitantly.

Although they all knew that this mechanical girl was not a war machine that only knew how to kill, the traditional impressions and memories of thousands of years still made it difficult for them to adapt all of a sudden.

"You are looking for food, right? Heshia told me so this morning." Loloria answered in a slightly brisk voice.

As creations of the Mechanical Council, being able to help native humans brings them a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment, which is reflected in the emotional level of the code as happiness.

"Lololia flew at a speed faster than the speed of sound and circled the land within a radius of one hundred miles. Ding ding ~ this is the map." After saying that, her emerald eyes blinked and a three-dimensional map image was projected, showing the situation of the grassland and the surrounding land.

The grassland has an irregular shape, with the eastern and northern parts covered by barren Gobi. As it extends to the north and increases in altitude, vegetation and trees begin to appear, leading to the Shilin Mountain Fort.

To the west is still endless grassland. It is said that there is a big river there. There are many barbaric settlements living along the river. The leaders of the settlements are wolf-blooded people. To the south is the jungle where Heshia and Sura met. It seems to be fertile and rich in soil and water, but there are a lot of mosquitoes, snakes and ants. If you are not careful, you will be infected with various diseases. In the era of scarce antibiotics, no one would live there.

"The Shilin Mountain Fortress was just destroyed by an insect plague. Although most of the insect swarms have been eliminated now, insect eggs are still dormant in the local soil and many hidden corners. If we go there, these insects will erupt at any time. According to past records, such an environment will take at least several years for the local insects to hatch and then run out of food before they spontaneously die out slowly." A technical member of the Heshan Rescue Association analyzed.

"It's best not to go back in the direction we came from. The situation there is even worse. My suggestion now is to head west and look for the settlements on the grassland to trade. Even if one settlement is not enough, as long as we go to enough settlements, we can always gather enough food for a quarter."

"That might be a little difficult." Sura replied, resting his head on his head.

"Food on the grasslands is actually always in a delicate balance, and they often clash over food. If it's just a small trade, it's fine, but large-scale operations will definitely attract the attention of the local settlements, especially the wolfbloods there. They all obey the orders of the Wolfblood Queen. Given the queen's temperament, after discovering this, she will definitely think about how to annex you and obtain all the technologies and equipment she desires."

"I went there with my companions a few years ago. I didn't have a good impression of them then. Compared to the settlements managed by the Gray Feathers, they are quite barbaric. Even caravans may be robbed, and killing a few passers-by without background is a common phenomenon."

In this world, robbing a caravan is a very serious matter. Due to the scarcity of supplies, many settlements rely on caravans to bring invaluable medicines, daily necessities, and information from the outside world from afar. Once a caravan disappears in a certain place, other caravans will also avoid those places, and the local settlements will have a hard time in the future.

"For these reasons, although there are many settlements on the grassland, few caravans dare to go there to do business. Even if they do go, the prices for selling or buying goods are much higher than in other places. For example, originally 10 kilograms of meat could be exchanged for a can of rice, but over there it takes almost 20 kilograms."

"The caravan has its reasons too. What kind of place is this? I wouldn't dare to come here without a group of bodyguards. Don't these bodyguards eat or spend money?" Sura imitated the caravan owners' confident tone.

After saying this, several people at the scene laughed and walked out of the heavy atmosphere of that period.

After dinner, in an environment lacking entertainment, many people went to bed early, while a few continued to chat around the campfire, pouring out the many emotions that had accumulated during this period.

In the room in the cave, Heshia looked at the glowing 'Rhythm Crystal' on the table and breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally I made it. I didn't expect it would be so troublesome to make it by hand. Every parameter needs to be adjusted, unlike the gray dust crystal where there are many instruments and equipment to assist.

With this crystal, the extraordinary impurities in the polluted soil and air can be precipitated, and the remaining chemical pollution or gas particles can be solved in a simpler way.

Holding the crystal, Heshia walked out of the room and came out of the cave.

At this time, Fran, Guy and others were still sitting by the campfire. Fran held a pen in his hand and wrote down the interesting rumors and experiences he heard at night like a bard.

"Miss Heshia." Seeing the girl walking past the fire, the rescue members along the way stood up and saluted, and then slowly sat down again at the girl's wave and nod.

Coming to the campfire where the core members were gathered, Tilan threw the rhythmic crystal with a flick of her finger, and it floated above the campfire. The ripples of its flickering light gave people a sense of novelty and mystery.

"This is the solution to pollution. It can be used to extract extraordinary toxic impurities in the air, water and soil. Then it can be filtered again using traditional methods and it can become a safe living environment," she said about its efficacy.

"Such a bomb like this can purify land that is 500 meters long and wide. It should be enough to keep the crop environment safe and clean in the early stages." After saying that, she turned her eyes to the members of the rescue association beside her and asked them to test it themselves.

After listening to Heshia's explanation, Fran and a group of rescue members gathered around curiously, while Heshia sat down. Mimi brought her a bowl of prepared milk stew, which was also accompanied by green vegetables and tomatoes, which looked very tempting.

"It tastes great," Heshia praised, nodding after taking a small bite.

After listening, Mimi smiled happily, and her tail couldn't help but wag back and forth. Then Guy on the side told Heshia about what they discussed during the day.

"In other words, in the short term, we can only try to go to the western part of the grassland to find food?"

"Yes, when we came here with the rescue organization, we had already bought out all the food in several nearby settlements. They had to eat the rest by themselves, especially in the Lake Wind settlement. They probably only have breeding stock now. The goat milk that Heshia had for dinner just now was obtained from them."

"Is that so..." Tilan thought about it.

"Although we will definitely encounter many problems along the way, we still have to go. In fact, I also want to see what the situation is like over there. As for safety, it shouldn't be a problem with me here." She didn't know the strength of the Wolf Blood Queen, but even if the other party was a terrifying existence of Sequence 8, she had the ability to protect herself. She had already been promoted to Sequence 7, and now she could try many secret techniques and skills that she couldn't use in the past.

"With Loloria and the mechanical bodies she controls in the camp, there shouldn't be any danger."

In fact, today Loloria has already measured and mapped the land within a radius of 1600 miles. Because there is almost no cover on the grassland and there are not many living creatures, let alone any forces that can threaten the camp of more than people. This is because Heshia has a high sense of self-morality. If she commands these people to plunder, they can directly capture and rob all the settlements within a radius of miles.

"No, I don't agree. I also want to go out and play with Heshia. I can have a mechanical friend to watch over the house." The mechanical girl's hearing was extremely developed, and the processor she was equipped with could analyze the simultaneous conversations of thousands of people. She heard Heshia's words from afar, and then ran over to complain.

"I also want to go out with Heshia~" She came to the girl, grabbed Heshia's sleeve, and begged coquettishly. She didn't know who gave her such a behavioral template, but it really worked well with her petite and cute appearance.

In response, Heshia had no choice but to touch Loloria's head lovingly and agree to her request.

"You can go together, but you have to conceal your identity on the way and not reveal that you are a machine."

"Yes, I will. I am an intelligent and smart high-level mechanical life. I am not that stupid." After the request was approved, Loloria happily circled around Heshia, laughing happily.

Seeing such a humane and lively machine, the members who were originally full of fear and worry relaxed a little. At least she could communicate, right, instead of being a rigid machine that only knew how to follow codes.

Under the night sky and the campfire, cheerful laughter and snoring intertwined, and the depressing and heavy memories of the past were slowly soothed by the warm firelight, becoming peaceful and gentle.

(End of this chapter)