The Mirage of Forgotten Loyalties Chapter 6

The green lizard ran all the way with Jasper Caldwell on its back, the wind blew up the yellow sand, ravaging every inch of land behind it.

Jasper Caldwell lay tightly on the green lizard's back, not daring to relax at all. The sound of the wind was right beside his ears, and he was absolutely certain that if he let go, he would be buried in the yellow sand.

It wasn't just the green lizards that were running for their lives. They also encountered a few long-horned antelopes and a few gray-black rabbits along the way. Under normal circumstances, Jasper Caldwell would have jumped on them with his eyes shining and drained their blood, but now, considering that they were "fellow sufferers", it was more important to "coexist peacefully" and escape.

I don’t know how long it took, but the wind gradually died down and a sand slope appeared in front of us.

The green lizard continued to run up the sand slope at the same speed, almost tilting, and then slid down the other side at an even faster speed, leaving the yellow sand and strong wind behind.

When the green lizard stopped, Jasper Caldwell's whole body ached, especially his arms. He fell off the green lizard's back almost stiffly, and lay on his back on the yellow sand, gasping for breath with the joy of surviving a disaster.

"Thanks, bro."

Jasper Caldwell lay on the ground and waved to the green lizard. If it weren't for this buddy, he would have said goodbye to his twenty-four years of life today.

The green lizard walked up to Jasper Caldwell, bent down, and opened its mouth wide. The meaning was very clear: if you work hard, you must be rewarded.

Jasper Caldwell grinned, and a stream of clear water refracted colorful light in the air.

The appearance of the water flow attracted the animals that had escaped together before. Several long-horned antelopes were watching not far away, stepping on the ground with their front hooves and shaking their necks. They were aware of the danger on the opposite side and knew that running away quickly was the best option, but their desire for water made them hesitant.

Jasper Caldwell drank a few big gulps happily and wet his hair with water. He shook his head, and the water washed away traces of sand on his face. He hadn't washed his face or taken a shower for more than a month, so it was just a little dirty, but he didn't have lice, so he should be thankful.

More and more animals gathered nearby. The green lizard was still gulping down water. Jasper Caldwell looked around and found that in addition to the antelope and rabbit, there were actually two desert wolves and a big-eared fox.

Jasper Caldwell sat cross-legged on the sand and snapped his fingers. Two more streams of water appeared, but they were smaller than the previous ones. A small antelope walked over to drink a sip. There was no danger, and more animals swarmed over. It should be quite easy to catch it now.

Touching my stomach, forget it, I’m in a good mood today, so I’ll give up meat.

The sun was still scorching, but the green lizard provided a shade for Jasper Caldwell. Jasper Caldwell opened his five fingers and looked at the blue sky through them. His stomach was rumbling, but a smile appeared on his face.

The water flow lasted for a few minutes and gradually disappeared, leaving a small area of   sand wet. Upon closer inspection, a dozen crustaceans were busy working in the sand.

The animals that came to drink water left one after another. Jasper Caldwell stood up, put his right hand on his left shoulder, and shook his left arm up and down twice. It was no longer as sore as before.

"Keep going."

It was rare for him to be a good person. He let so much meat go when it was right in front of him. If Jasper Caldwell was given another chance, perhaps he would do the same thing again.

It's really stupid.

I shook my head. It was a rare opportunity for me to be stupid, but I was happy doing it.

He shook off the sand on his coat, wrapped it on his head, put one hand on his forehead, and identified the direction and position of the sun. Here, he couldn't tell east, south, west, or north. There were two moons, so who knew where the sun rose from? He could only identify one direction and walk forward.

"We need to find something to eat."

Forget about the meat, but at least we have to find some tree bark for the green lizard to chew on. It's so big, it has to eat.

After walking for a distance and climbing a sand slope, Jasper Caldwell was suddenly stunned.

A building complex half buried under the yellow sand appeared before his eyes. The khaki walls, the towering stone pillars, and the magnificent layout, even though it was dilapidated, the former prosperity could still be found in the ruins.

Why is there such a large complex of buildings in the deep desert, with no vegetation or water?

He was confused and unsure whether to go around it or go over to take a look, but there seemed to be a voice in his heart telling him to go over there, quickly.

His Adam's apple rolled up and down, and driven by curiosity, Jasper Caldwell finally took a step forward.

"Let's go over there and take a look."

The green lizard just followed Jasper Caldwell forward without responding or objecting.

From a distance, the buildings seemed very close, but when he walked down the sand slope, he found that they were still quite far away. Jasper Caldwell thought that everything in front of him was just a mirage, until he stepped on a collapsed earth wall, and then he was sure that everything he saw was real.

Towering city walls, ancient buildings, broken stone pillars, and streets paved with square stones under the yellow sand blown by the wind.

I squatted down and brushed away the sand on the surface of the stone. I found that there were patterns carved on it. The workmanship was a bit rough and the pattern was blurry. I could only vaguely make out that it was an animal.

Jasper Caldwell frowned and brushed away another piece of yellow sand. This time the pattern was clearer. The animal on it had a sturdy body, powerful hind legs, short forelimbs, and a big mouth, and it seemed to be breathing fire?

After watching silently for a while, Jasper Caldwell raised his head and looked at the green lizard, "Dude, can you breathe fire?"

Green Lizard: ...

Jasper Caldwell: "I understand."

He stood up and brushed the sand off his hands. This was either some kind of nature worship or he was a "relative" of the guy next to him. He could make water out of thin air, and a lizard that could breathe fire was not uncommon.

Walking along the relatively intact street, I didn't see any creatures along the way. Perhaps the creatures in the desert are good at camouflage and hiding. The green lizard did find a few pieces of broken wood, which were already rotten and probably used when the house was built.

If you don't control your diet, you won't be able to eat this kind of food.

Jasper Caldwell continued to walk forward, passing by houses one after another along the way. The walls and roofs made of sand and wood seemed to be telling stories from hundreds of years ago. As his mind turned back, he seemed to hear distant and ancient music. The desolation in front of him turned into the prosperity of the past. The houses on the street were painted with bright colors, and merchants with camels passed by. In the crowd, graceful dancers danced enchantingly to the strange melody, with tassels swinging around their waists, gems sparkling on their foreheads, and light veils flying, beautiful as a dream.

The vendors were hawking fruits, the aroma of the food was so tempting, three or four men were arguing, it seemed that they were not satisfied with the transaction price of camels...

A few children ran past and suddenly bumped into Jasper Caldwell. The touch was too real, and it startled him. He came to his senses instantly, and the prosperous scene quickly faded away, leaving only ruins in front of him.

what happened?

He pinched himself hard, it hurt. A layer of cold sweat broke out on the back of his neck. Was he dreaming just now? He was hit on the back, and when he turned around, the green lizard was looking at him with confusion.

Jasper Caldwell was shocked. This place was a bit weird. Just as he was about to retreat the same way, the green lizard that had been quietly following him suddenly raised its head, stuck out its tongue, and ran forward.

"Hello!"

Without caring about being stunned or thinking whether it was weird or not, Jasper Caldwell ran after the green lizard. Although they had not been together for a long time, he knew a little about the green lizard. The only thing that could make this person so excited was eating.

The green lizard was running so fast that it disappeared in a moment. Jasper Caldwell could only follow the "smoke and dust", turning left and right among the ancient buildings and almost got lost.

After passing a collapsed wall, the view suddenly opens up. Tall stone pillars support a conical roof. A circular pool is surrounded by the stone pillars. The white bricks and stones are very different from the surrounding building materials.

A somewhat strange sculpture stood in the pool. It looked like a person in a robe, holding a round plate in his hand, but the facial features were blurred and unrecognizable.

The green lizard stood by the pond, biting a piece of gray-green vine in its mouth. The vine had palm-sized leaves and a few thumb-sized fruits under the leaves. The green color looked very tempting.

Jasper Caldwell walked forward and found that the water in the pool was not completely dry. A trickle of water was gushing out from the bottom of the statue. Because of this, vines and mosses grew around the pool. The temperature around the pool seemed to be "very low", and the area surrounded by the columns seemed to be a world of its own.

The green lizard tore the vines hard and chewed them in big mouthfuls. Jasper Caldwell plucked a fruit from the vine. It was oval and hard, and should have a crispy texture.

Jasper Caldwell didn't know what kind of plant this was. He didn't know whether it should grow in the desert. He just looked at the fruit and couldn't help swallowing his saliva. It's okay for the green lizard to eat it, so it should be non-toxic, right?

If scorpions eat it raw, what is a piece of fruit?

Even though I thought so, I only took a small bite of half of it on the first bite. I didn't bite into the core, and the flesh was exceptionally crispy and sweet.

After swallowing it, he waited for a while and found that there was no abnormality in his body. Jasper Caldwell sat on the ground and ate one by one. After living in the desert for a long time, it was a luxury to have enough food, let alone enjoy the fruit. Later, he simply put the leaves into his mouth and chewed them. He unexpectedly found that the taste was also good. The juice flowed to the dry wound on his lips, which was actually refreshing.

Touch your lips, could this be medicine?

Jasper Caldwell fell into deep thought, while the green lizard was still eating heartily. Later on, it simply used its claws to dig the roots of the vines, and if it couldn't dig them out, it just pulled them out.

"Stop!" Jasper Caldwell hurriedly stopped the green lizard. It was really reckless when it came to food. If the roots were dug out, there would be nothing to eat in the future.

After a lot of facts and reasoning, the green lizard finally stopped wanting to kill it. The key point was that it was full and lay motionless by the pool. Jasper Caldwell patted it with a smile, sat cross-legged on the ground, and supported his chin with one hand. It was not easy to find such a place in the depths of the desert. Since he had decided to find a long-term place to stay, such a place was indeed hard to come by.

There is water, food, and a ready-made house. It's better to clean up than to live in the wild, right?

Or just stay first?

It's weird, but maybe it's just an illusion caused by hunger? Isn't it said that when people are not conscious, they tend to "think nonsense"?

As he was thinking, Jasper Caldwell felt a little sleepy. He looked around and didn't find any danger. He leaned on the green lizard, closed his eyes, and planned to rest for a while.

As he fell asleep, the trickle in the pool suddenly increased, and soon, half of the pool was filled with water. The dust on the outside of the statue in the pool began to peel off, and inside was actually a silver scepter as long as a forearm. The black gem on the top reflected Jasper Caldwell's sleeping face, and a flash of light flashed.