After eating and drinking for a while, the sky was completely dark. The two ladies did not eat much, so Lu Feng and the rest put away the food and blankets.
Ding Meng and Lan Cheng both had a sulky look on their faces. They had smelled the aroma for a while, but they had not eaten anything. Su Xia had at least eaten a biscuit, but her stomach was not satisfied, so she was listless.
However, no matter how dissatisfied Lan Cheng was, he still had to lead the way. After moving forward for a while, the group arrived at a rocky mountain. The terrain of this area was very strange. There were rocky mountains of various sizes all around. However, between the rocky mountains, there were densely packed caves. The caves were all about one to three meters in diameter. A person could just barely enter through them.
Carefully observing the marks on the walls, Ding Meng felt that these were not man-made because the folds on the walls were very dense and messy, and they were very irregular. Tunnels dug by intelligent machines were often very smooth.
Su Xia sighed softly. "This should be the spawning ground of the new moles."
"Oh?" Ding Meng was curious. "Spawning ground?"
The moles of Rain Forest Planet were mutated creatures. They were very afraid of humidity, but their eggs needed to be in a humid environment to survive. Therefore, the eggs had to be on the surface to be preserved. After the young moles broke out of their shells, they would naturally burrow underground and no longer stay on the surface. Therefore, these large and small tunnels were formed.
Ding Meng was shocked. "These tunnels were all dug by the larvae?"
Su Xia nodded. "It's good that you understand!"
The diameter of each tunnel was three meters. If even a larva was so big, how big would an adult moles be? No wonder Lan Cheng said that moles were the biggest obstacle to human exploration.
"Moles like heat and are usually not afraid of toxins, but some species rely on various kinds of energy to survive after mutating," Su Xia continued to explain. "Actually, these are the characteristics of the Devourer World and the Steel Mane Race …"
Ding Meng realized that among these large and small tunnels, there must be one or two that went directly underground. If they followed the tracks of the moles, they might be able to find something.
However, insect eggs were not easy to find. Even if they were found, the risk was high. Who knew what kind of monsters were hiding underground?
At this time, Lu Feng and the others accompanied the two young ladies to check the caves one by one. Ding Meng asked curiously, "Could it be that these two girls can identify the types of moles that have drilled into the passage through the traces on the cave walls?"
He saw that Qin Yu was constantly reaching out and stroking the walls of the cave, seemingly identifying the composition of the soil. Sometimes he would place the soil in his palm and carefully examine it, and sometimes he would lower his head and carefully smell the soil.
"The soil at this entrance is still very moist. It should have been opened two days ago."
Qin Yu held a handful of mud and said to Lin Qing, "The composition of the mud contains a lot of toxins. There are even antibiotics and brown powder liquid water. What do you think?"
Lin Qing's expression remained cold and indifferent. "No!"
"No?" Qin Yu was stunned.
Lin Qing said, "Two days ago, it was not enough to make a larva produce antibiotics. There must be a defect in the eggs. The rain broke the eggshell before, and the larva inside was harmed. To be able to break the eggshell, it proves that there should have been extremely bad weather two days ago."
The last sentence was not a conclusion, but a question. Lan Cheng immediately stepped forward and said, "Yes, two days ago, there was a hailstorm in this area. It just so happened that we were retreating at that time."
With his report, there was no doubt that Lin Qing's judgment was completely correct.
"Okay!
Then let's look at the next one! "
Qin Yu threw away the mud, and Lu Feng beside her brought her a bottle of pure water. The young lady's behavior was indeed full of extravagance. On the Rain Forest Planet, where resources were scarce, pure water was quite rare. In the end, it was used by Qin Yu to wash her hands.
Ding Meng stared blankly. He did not admire the young lady's extravagance, but only now did he realize that this Qin Yu was most likely a statistician, and Lin Qing should be an authoritative biological expert. No wonder they were invited to the Rain Forest Planet. It turned out that these two people were specifically here to identify the cave entrances.
But which cave were they actually looking for?
Following that, the group of people inspected each of the large cave entrances one by one. In reality, it was Qin Yu who was inspecting the walls of the cave, and then analyzing the structure. In the end, it was Lin Qing who came up with the judgment. It had to be said that these two young ladies were truly talented. Their analysis of professional terms was clear and logical, and the judgment they gave was also quite accurate. Of course, Ding Meng did not understand these professional terms, but Lan Cheng had some understanding. After all, they had been active in the North District for many years, and they more or less knew the characteristics of the mole race. It could be seen that Lin Qing was not spouting nonsense.
The two young ladies analyzed more than fifty caves in succession, but they still could not find a suitable one.
Su Xia suddenly pointed at a small, inconspicuous cave in the distance and said, "Then what about this?"
Following her gesture, they saw that at the bottom of a stone mountain, an extremely narrow cave appeared in front of them. There was even a sticky pus on the walls of the cave.
Qin Yu wore a pair of metal gloves and carefully fiddled with the pus. "This should be left behind by a mole with missing teeth. The concentration is very high, and it seems to be different from the normal missing teeth mole."
"It's here!" Lin Qing suddenly said.
"Here?" Qin Yu was surprised.
Lin Qing nodded affirmatively. "The excessive amount of pus secreted by the missing teeth mole is sometimes not stimulated by the external environment. We have done simulation experiments in the corporation before. The mole race in the Fertile Chalk Star System is actually a small society. Individuals have to serve the whole, and when their companions need help, the other group will provide help and guidance. The environment here is too simple, so I think it shouldn't be stimulated by the environment."
Qin Yu was curious. "Then what should it be?"
Lin Qing smiled slightly. "If my guess is correct, this missing teeth mole secreted a high concentration of body fluid to help its own kind behind it."
Qin Yu pondered and said, "The high concentration is nothing more than making it easier for its own kind to find it. However, for a young mouse to be able to find its own kind, it must have an extremely sensitive sense of touch. I understand now. This missing teeth mole is leading the way, and there should be a star-nosed mouse following behind it."
Lin Qing nodded slightly. "If I'm not wrong, that should be the case."
With her confirmation, Lan Cheng and the others' faces lit up. Although Ding Meng was confused, looking at these people's faces, he understood that they must have found the entrance.
Sure enough, Lu Feng stepped forward and bowed. "Miss Lin, Miss Qin, your mission has been completed. If there is nothing else, I should escort you back to the shelter now. The rest will be handled by the blue team."
Lin Qing said, "Uncle Feng, it was not easy for me to come to the Fertile Chalk Star System. Of course, I hope to collect a sample of the mole race's mother. If I go back like this, wouldn't it be a waste of the corporation's opportunity?"
"No!"
Lu Feng's face darkened. "Miss Lin, I don't care what you are going to do. Your safety comes first. Our duty does not allow you to enter the underground world."
Lin Qing sighed. She also knew that it was unrealistic to persuade the group's security captain, so she could only turn her head to look at Qin Yu. Qin Yu understood and immediately said, "Uncle Lu, actually, our mission was not completed."
Lu Feng was stunned. "Didn't we find the entrance?
Not yet? "
Qin Yu said seriously, "Uncle Lu, you haven't studied alien creatures in outer space, so you don't understand. Don't be fooled by the fact that there are so many holes here. Each hole means that at least one or more moles have entered. They are constantly drilling underground, and in the process of drilling, as the temperature rises and the environment changes, they are also growing. As long as they grow, their bodies will continue to grow. The tunnels below must be very complicated, and sooner or later, they will gather together to form a new cave. At that time, we will need Sister Qin to identify the new entrance …"
"Is that so …" Lu Feng had a headache. "Okay then, but I have to say this first. If the situation is not right, you must immediately come out with me."
"No problem!" Qin Yu smiled proudly.
Ding Meng still did not make a fuss. He could already tell that Qin Yu was not lying. Although he did not understand the biological field, he had telekinetic vision. Currently, his telekinetic vision could perceive things up to five kilometers away under the premise that there was no signal interference.
Starting from the entrance of the cave, they still needed to crawl forward for some distance, but slowly, the tunnel became bigger and people could squat down. As they went deeper, the temperature of the tunnel began to rise, and the walls became dry. After five kilometers, the diameter of the tunnel was eight meters thick.
Ding Meng could not imagine what kind of behemoth the eight-meter-thick mole was.
The situation was just as Qin Yu said. After going down the tunnel for twenty kilometers, they really entered a super-large cave. This cave was almost the size of a starship, and the environment was exactly the same as the mining area. The only difference was that it was particularly stuffy inside.
The cave had a total of twelve cave entrances with a diameter of ten meters. They were evenly distributed around the cave. This situation was a bit like the teleportation portal of Shenguang Biotechnology under Thorn Planet. It was time to choose again.
Unfortunately, Lin Qing and Qin Yu could not choose this time because the twelve cave entrances were the same in terms of size, wall marks, and material composition. There was no way to tell which one the star-nosed mole had entered.
It was also at this moment that Ding Meng's expression changed. He had obviously noticed something.
This change did not escape Su Xia's eyes. She knew that Ding Meng must have noticed something wrong, but it was not appropriate for her to ask about it in this situation.
At the same time, Lu Feng's expression also changed. He suddenly raised his head and stared at the other entrance. It was obvious that they were not the only ones who had found this place. There were others who had come in from other tunnels as well.
But no matter who it was, if they could find this place, they were definitely not weaklings. Lu Feng quickly turned his head and said with a serious expression, "Miss Lin, Miss Qin, I think this mission is about done, right?"
He was still very experienced. Under such circumstances, it was definitely not a good sign for people to come in. The closer they got to the treasure mountain, the more trouble there would be.
However, the young mistress' way of thinking was clearly different from ordinary people. Lin Qing answered calmly, "I don't think there's a need. It's better if more people come. With one more person, we'll be able to find the right passage."
When they heard this, everyone's eyelids drooped. Everyone had the same thought. With one more person, it would not be an additional force, but an additional danger.