Chapter 741 - 354: Searching for the Stone in the Mountains!
The Mercedes G-Class was driving on the county road from Ping County to West Forest Mountain.
After having lunch at He Jing’s house at noon, Jiang Tao asked Jia Guolin to come and pick him up.
Returning to Ping County and meeting He Jing and the unexpected development of their relationship were things outside his plan.
The real task was to find that meteorite worth 12 million yuan in West Forest Mountain.
Even though the tender moments were pleasant, he couldn’t let them delay the real task.
The afternoon sunlight carried a hint of laziness, shining through the car window, illuminating Jiang Tao’s slightly content face.
About twenty minutes later, the Mercedes G-Class arrived at the foot of West Forest Mountain.
West Forest Mountain’s altitude is just over 900 meters, not even 1000 meters, merely one of the hundreds of wild mountains within Ping County.
However, over the decades, villagers from nearby villages have trodden a small path up the mountain.
Occasionally, residents from Ping County’s town also come to climb, mostly just for a bit of novelty.
Currently, there are three cars parked at the foot of the mountain. Looking up, one can see a few indistinct figures on the mountain path.
"Old Jia, watch the car here at the mountain base, I’ll go up and have a look around."
Jiang Tao stretched lazily after opening the car door and turned his head to instruct Jia Guolin who had also gotten out of the car.
"Alright, President Jiang, be careful,"
Jia Guolin nodded in agreement, always complying with Jiang Tao’s words.
"I’m off, call me if anything comes up,"
Jiang Tao lastly instructed Old Jia, then turned to head up the small path leading to the mountain.
His goal on this trip was very clear—to find the meteorite valued at 12 million yuan as indicated by the Intelligence System!
He ascended about a hundred meters along a small, bumpy dirt road until the dirt road disappeared.
Further up was a small mountain path assembled randomly using various stones of different sizes and shapes.
This irregular path, it is said, was laid by a production team leader and the members of the small village at the mountain’s base five or six decades ago.
It was only back then that there would be such selfless people.
Nowadays, trying to find free labor to pave a path up the mountain? Nobody would do that for you.
Just going to a construction site for a day of brick carrying would earn over a hundred yuan.
Who would come to the mountain to move stones for free?
Jiang Tao continuously climbed along this "budget version" small mountain path.
With his current constitution, this level of intensity was not worth mentioning, barely even a warm-up.
He also had the leisure to enjoy the scenery along the way.
The scenery on both sides of the mountain path gradually came into view.
Familiar pines and cypresses, unknown wildflowers, occasionally startled flying birds...
All of this evoked hidden childhood memories in Jiang Tao.
His pace unconsciously slowed down, and images from over a decade ago appeared in his mind.
Back then, he was just a young boy, and every weekend or holiday, he would always run to West Forest Mountain like a runaway horse to "explore" with a few close friends from the village.
They would compete to see who could reach the top first, look for wild fruit in the bushes, use slingshots to shoot birds, although they never hit any...
They would also play by the mountain spring, getting soaked all over and then being scolded by their families...
Those carefree, laughter-filled times seemed as if they happened just yesterday.
The mountain was still the same mountain, and the path was still the same path.
However, the companions who once climbed the mountain together had long gone their separate ways, rushing for life in different cities.
And he himself had experiences and a life that ordinary people couldn’t imagine.
"Time flies quickly, in the blink of an eye, my daughter is almost to first grade,"
Jiang Tao sighed lightly in his heart, yet the corners of his mouth involuntarily lifted into a warm smile.
These beautiful memories were precious treasures in his life.
Putting away his thoughts, he quickened his pace.
With his current constitution far exceeding that of ordinary people, climbing such a small mountain was like walking on flat ground.
It took him just over twenty minutes to effortlessly reach an area with relatively open views on the hillside.
Here was a boulder that was "out of place" among the surrounding rocks.
Reaching here meant he was halfway up the mountain.
Standing on top of the boulder, Jiang Tao looked toward the direction of the hillside on his right-hand side.
This slope was not particularly steep, but it was densely filled with thorny bushes.
Amidst it grew various shrubs and jagged stray rocks.
"Damn, if I go down there, this outfit might end up looking like a beggar’s,"
Looking at the thickets on the hillside, Jiang Tao frowned slightly, feeling the task was a bit tricky.
"First, let’s see if I can spot it, roughly determine the location, it might be nearby, and I can directly use the ’Acquire’ function to get it."
As he thought this, Jiang Tao’s gaze began to roam around the hillside, searching.
For items with triggered intelligence, the system would provide a clear glowing hint.
This functionality greatly reduced the difficulty of the search.
Soon, about a hundred meters away from where Jiang Tao stood on the mountain road, near a relatively flat pile of rocks, Jiang Tao spotted a beam of dark golden light.
This light beam is used by the Intelligence System to mark special items!
Furthermore, only Jiang Tao himself could see this light beam; others couldn’t.
"Found it!"
Upon discovering the target, Jiang Tao cheered inwardly, his mood became slightly jubilant.
[Target item is beyond range, acquisition failed...]
Jiang Tao tried to use the system’s included [Acquire] function to obtain the meteorite.
Indeed, he failed!
Looking at the densely packed thickets on the hillside, Jiang Tao suddenly felt a bit of a headache.