Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 504 - 68 The Mud Journey_1

Chapter 504: Chapter 68 The Mud Journey_1

Four members of the Sea Race, unidentifiable in their race, treading on a pathway made up of round pebbles, walked towards the massive boulder in the distance. Not far ahead of them were two patrol squads moving away from the boulder towards a corner. The Sea Race members displayed no emotions, their movements had a peculiar stiffness, yet their patrolling was diligent as if they would not let any enemy slip through their fingers. Within their line of sight, there were no signs of intelligent beings, everything seemed normal as before. They continued walking until they reached the boulder before making a thorough examination, then they turned around and began their return journey away from it. Behind the Sea Race members, the two patrol squads turned a corner, disappearing from sight.

Just as the Sea Race members turned to leave, the placid beach began to churn, like the ripples of a calm sea appearing all of a sudden. The yellow sand that seemingly covered the beach parted, revealing a layer of dark, sticky mud beneath it. From the mud emerged five bulging entities, from which semi-solid mud trickled down. After some of the mud slid off, you could make out five protruding heads, each equipped with goggles for underwater activities and a long breathing tube in the mouth. These mud-covered heads, only revealing parts above the eyes, resembled crocodiles in the water, quietly crawling through the rubble and mud. The sludge beneath the beach was extremely dense, which significantly intensified the task of crawling. The group could only inch forward at a slow pace.

While moving, someone signaled an alert under the mud, prompting the quintet to halt in unison. They lowered their heads, disappearing back into the mud, leaving only a few inconspicuous breathing tubes and some mud spots spilled from the hair on the sandy beach. But it wasn’t just the breathing tubes that were left. At one of the head positions, few centimeters of a slim metal pipe emerged from the sand. It was a periscope used for diving, providing an underwater view of the situation above the surface. The periscope moved slowly from side to side, enabling the beach patrol team’s conditions to be communicated in real-time to the pair of eyes hidden in the mud.

In the distance, the two patrolling squads on the right side returned from the corner; their line of sight once more covering the beach. But the sandy beach had regained its tranquility, making it impossible to notice the five individuals lurking beneath the muddy surface. The patrol team gradually returned to its original position in front of the boulder, standing there using their gaze to continue a routine search. Despite their line of sight sweeping across the ground concealing the hidden figures multiple times, the perfect camouflage provided by nature made the search futile. The pair of squads stationed in front of the boulder stood there for a minute before mechanically vacating the area and once again heading for the corner. However, the five individuals beneath the muddy surface didn’t move immediately. A few seconds later, the patrol squad returned from the left. Had anyone showed impatience and moved randomly earlier, they would have been easily detected.

Infiltration operations rely on a war of patience and mastery of timing. They can only move a suitable distance at the most suitable time, and at all other times, they need the tenacity to quietly wait for a safe entry into dangerous places. The five members of the adventure team were very patient, waiting for the enemy’s loophole to be revealed. As expected, with the left patrol team finishing their fixed route and once again leaving the boulder behind, another opportunity arose. The people in the mud re-emerged onto the beach, and without any hesitation, they rose directly from the beach. Although the lower half of their bodies was swallowed by the mud, the individuals sprinted forward as quick and quietly as possible.

When the last ’mud man’ left a puddle of muddy water on the pebbles outside the beach but had already hidden behind the large stone, the right pair of patrol squads returned. If they were up against normal enemies, they would definitely suspect the mud left laying on the ground and conduct a more thorough search. However, these manipulated Sea Race members, lacking their own will, didn’t even bat an additional eye at the mud on the ground. They stepped right through it, focusing solely on their routine duty.

Behind the boulder, several individuals collectively breathed a sigh of relief, wiping away the layer of mud that had covered their faces and blocked their noses. They spat out the breathing tubes from their mouths, inhaling the fresh air intensely. Before they had time to catch their breaths, one of ’mud men’ suddenly made a hand gesture. Everyone immediately crouched down again, brushing up against the massive boulder they climbed up a hidden path on the mountain, quickly exiting the danger zone near the patrol squad.

"Phew, this smell is really suffocating." It wasn’t until the five of them crawled into a relatively safe nook in the rocks, unseen by any patrolling gaze, that they completely relaxed, slumping down on the stones on either side of them. One mud-covered person vigorously wiped the grime from their face, revealing wheat-coloured skin and long black hair beneath the filth. Catherine spat out a mouthful of mud and sand, grimacing as she said, "But at least our sacrifices weren’t in vain, we’ve successfully infiltrated."

"To be honest, I wouldn’t want to relive this nightmare again," Lina said. Her fair skin and lustrous silver hair were entirely obscured, her whole body now a murky mess. Lina herself was helpless against this outcome; unless there was enough water to immerse herself in, any chance of regaining her cleanliness could be completely disregarded. Realising this, Lina frustratedly shook her head, sending mud splattering everywhere from her hair, until Catherine firmly patted her thigh to stop the mischief. "I really want to take a bath. This feeling of being smeared with filth is awful," she grumbled.

"There’s not much we can do about it." Pannis didn’t bother cleaning himself; instead, he lay at the edge of the rock crevice, carefully observing the surrounding terrain, enemy positions, and their lines of sight, casually responding, "This method full of courage and self-sacrifice was suggested by you. Also, you may not be aware of this, but mud wrestling, this particular sports, originated between humans and pigs."

"Damn it, the books never mentioned how awful it feels to be covered in grime," groaned Lina, "They also never mentioned how foul this mud would smell, it’s like enduring torture."

"Stop complaining, dummy," Aurally disconnected due to her face being coated in mud, Vivian couldn’t make any expression. For the first time, she felt fortunate for her ailment – her numb body spared her from the agony of the mud-caked condition. Vivian cleaned her ears as best she could, removing as much of the stealthy mud as possible and teasing Lina, "You should consider yourself fortunate, compared to Freya, you’re a lucky one."

Freya sat slumped on the ground, her gaze vacant, exhibiting a state of complete mental collapse. Since birth, she had been raised as the daughter of the city lord and was adored by everyone in the City of Knowledge. Despite her upbringing, she lacked the arrogance and deceit of most noble young ladies and even their sheltered delicacy. But it was undeniable that compared to the other girls, Freya had never really tasted hardship. Since childhood, she had maintained her cleanliness and dignity even during their adventures, if you could consider her cumbersome decorum as dignity.

Therefore, when Lina suggested this infiltration method, the others were most worried about Freya – unsure if she could accept such an unconventional approach. But surprisingly she accepted without hesitation, as decisively as if the matter had nothing to do with her. Her sacrifice, prioritising the mission above all, earned the admiration of everyone, reaching its peak when she emerged from the mud, her mental state having crumbled.

"Woo woo woo, so dirty, so dirty, I’ve been defiled." Freya sat there blankly, unresponsive to the outside world, only muttering quietly to herself, "My purity has been stolen by the mud, woo woo, I’m no longer pure, woo woo woo, Mr. Pannis, you must hate me for this, I’m going to lose your love, woo woo woo."

"Don’t worry, it won’t happen," Pannis said, shaking his head with a stern face. "You can’t lose something that never existed."

"You guys," Catherine complained, "even in times like this, you don’t forget to mess around."

"Otherwise, I’d really fall apart," Freya said, her eyes regaining their sparkle, and complained, "From the day I was born to now, I’ve never been this dirty for all these years. Thinking about the slime feeling of the mud, I feel like throwing up. It’s really depressing and sad. Uhm, give me a biscuit, I feel so sad."

"It must be tough for you," Catherine comforted, patting Freya on the back. "Hang in there a little longer. As a reward for today, I’ll let you have three pieces of honey cake with cream after dinner."

"Really?" Freya’s eyes illuminated with anticipation, "You promise?"

"Of course, it’s a knight’s promise," Catherine said solemnly, "With the spiritual sacrifice you bravely made, you definitely deserve a reward."

"That’s delightful," Freya exclaimed excitedly. "How about I crawl around in there again, and you reward me with six pieces?"

"Don’t even think about it," Catherine said, rolling her eyes. She slapped Freya’s mud-covered stomach, making it jiggle, "If you carry on like this, I might take back the reward."

"Please don’t," Freya whimpered quietly, "I’ve learned my lesson, I won’t dare do that again. Huh, why does this sound so familiar, like I’ve heard it often, Mr. Pannis, do you know why?"

"Just carry on with your fun and leave me out of it," Pannis complained, glancing at them before waving his hand. "Come and see, we’ll circle around from the left in a bit, then climb up. See that opening at the top?"

"Yes, I see it," Catherine nodded. "Based on our past experience, there should be a decent amount of space inside for the five of us to rest."

"Exactly," Pannis confirmed. "When we climb up later, we need to carry some medium-sized rocks with us. After we go in, we’ll block the entrance with them so the patrol team can’t discover us even if they pass by."

"No problem, there’s no shortage of stones here," Catherine said. "Let’s get to work, hurry up and move some stones. We’ll spend the night in that cave opening tonight." (To be continued. If you like this book, please support it by voting at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. If you’re using a mobile device, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)