Chapter 12 5. The Enemy in the Darkness

The hundred-member expedition team led by Dr. Fries disappeared without a trace overnight.The news reached Tunisia, where it was published on the front page of the only newspaper in the city.That night, the news was released to the world by Agence France-Presse, and it immediately became a commotion that shocked the world, and even the European crisis could only take a backseat. Various newspapers geared up and immediately hired experts and scholars to publish articles in newspapers to comment on it.Here, we cite an article published in the Manchester Guardian, written by Egyptologist Professor Joseph Souplim.

Today in the twentieth century, we have reason to doubt whether there are really species called "carnivorous rocks" that can devour humans in this world. However, according to the data, the place where the expedition team disappeared had neither cracks nor caves, and was surrounded by steep, thousand-foot-high mountain walls.In such a place like the bottom of a pot, an expedition team composed of a hundred people disappeared without a sound.This can't help but make people wonder if they were really swallowed by rocks. "Darkness" has been a no-man's land since ancient times.According to the ancient Greek geography records, this place is called "Byras Sarcophagi/Carnivorous Rock Peak".The name indicates the character of the place.On Arabic maps of the fifteenth century, it is called "Karat el Yesdi", which means "Evil Rock City".In addition, there is also a legend of "red head man".But I think the red-headed man is nothing more than the image of the fear brought by the "Dark Darkness" and the anthropomorphic flesh-eating rock.

In 1789, the expedition organized by the Tunisian prince Ivan Ogoumed disappeared here, and this time Dr. Fries made the same mistake again.This may be the punishment of no man's land for intruders, the gods' mockery of science, and a warning to human beings not to be too arrogant. The "Dark Darkness" is a mysterious black spot on Earth. A few days after this article was published, an anonymous person wrote a letter to fight back.The letter may be an expert in meteorology, and he believes that the disappearance of the expedition is related to the "thermal vacuum".

Soprim is old.I think he is too old to believe what meat-eating rocks say.There is only one truth about the sudden disappearance of the Friesian expedition, and that is the "thermal vacuum" phenomenon in the desert caused by thermal radiation.The air temperature above the desert is very high, and the air is thin, and a huge vacuum zone often appears.In this way, the height of the updraft reaches four to five kilometers, and the thermal vacuum often forms a giant tornado that runs through the sky and the earth. This giant tornado is actually the flying carpet in "The Arabian Nights".There are records in modern times that a troop of army horses in northern Arabia encountered a tornado while marching in the desert. As a result, they were blown into the sky and floated for nearly a hundred miles until the Howland Gansha River.From this point of view, perhaps the Fles expedition team encountered a tornado, and the large crack they were in was a downwardly concave terrain, and the sky above this place is most likely to form a tornado.

According to this person's theory, Fries and Osden had already flown thousands of kilometers away, and now they have probably turned into a pile of bones in the Sahara Desert.Even if you are lucky, you can fly over the grassland, but if you fall from midair, you will either die or be disabled.I asked several explorers who had been to the desert, and they said that the whirlwind did not appear so easily.After talking for a long time, whether it is "carnivorous rock" or "thermal vacuum", it is nothing but the imagination of scholars. As a result, news about the "Dark Darkness" has become a century-old mystery, and the expedition to find Atlantis has become empty talk.But there is one more person we should not forget.

Where is the sick Yamazuo now?At this time, he was lying in the home of a village head in the "Land with Coconuts" for treatment.Robin II, who is full of wit and strategy, is seriously ill and hasn't gotten better after a few days.Hearing the sad news, he stood up resolutely, intending to rush to the "Underground of Shadows" immediately to save Fles and others.But he suffered from "sand fly fever" and became very ill.Vertigo and palpitations made Yamazao unable to move at all. "Miss Stella," Shanzao called tremblingly. The autumn dusk in the Sahara is very beautiful, and the vines hang on the coconut trees like strings of colorful ornaments.Curved sand dunes can be seen through the silver leaves of olives, and the night sky is connected with the shadows of the sand dunes.Several stars twinkle in the night sky.

Hearing that her lover was in distress, Stella is also depressed these days.She often stands by the man-made inclined well that collects spring water, looking at the mountains in the direction of "Dark Darkness".Yamazao also sensed why Stella was so sad. Unsurprisingly, in the evening, Stella revealed her plan to Shan Zuo. "Mr. Yamaza, I remember that they didn't take away one sand boot. Do you know where it is?" "I can't remember where I put it. What do you want it for?" Yamaza looked into Stella's eyes, and he suddenly asked loudly: "Stella! Where are you going?"

Stella lowered her head, a little agitated.After a while, she forced a smile on her face and said: "Where to? Where else can I go but here?" "You lie. Stella, why are you lying to me? I know you plan to go to the 'Dark Dark' to find Fries." Stella was speechless.The bright moon outside the house was like a scimitar, and a group of nomad cavalry dressed in white galloped under the moon. They rode their horses through the shadow of the dunes and disappeared on the road to "Nefta".Cavalry has been coming and going frequently in recent days.A major change is taking place outside the oasis, and Shanzuo has not received news from the outside world for a long time.

Yamaza had someone close the window.His bedside table is full of Atlantis materials, as well as a diary of the expedition written by Fleiss and brought back by survivors. "I understand that the life and death of the man you love is unknown, and you won't let it go. I understand your feelings, but are you going to go alone like this?" "I have no intention of coming back." Stella didn't intend to continue to hide it, so she said categorically: "What can I do as a woman, but as long as I don't fall down, I will go to the 'Dark Darkness'. I also want to taste what Fries experienced. Even one step is fine, as long as I can die close to him, I will be satisfied."

What a nice girl.Shanzao envied Fryes a little, no girl could love herself like Stella loves Fryce. "I don't care whether you go to the 'Dark Dark' to find someone or follow Fries to your death, but with your physical strength, you probably died on the road before reaching the center of the salt lake 'El Mansur'." "Sir, you are not in good health now. Even if you are well, I have no intention of relying on your strength to find him." "Listen to my plan first." Shan Zuo shouted loudly. "As long as the time is right, I will get up whenever the time is right. Before that, we can only wait. Even if Fries is dead, I will also find out the secrets of the 'Dark Darkness'. But before that, we have to hide those secrets." We need to find out the enemies one by one.”

"Does the enemy refer to Polune? That old man is greedy for treasure, and put his men in the expedition team, trying to find out where Atlantis is." "Porune? That guy is not worth mentioning. I know who he is. Don't look at me lying on the bed, but my head doesn't stop working. Rather, it's when a man like me is as immobile as a mountain." The most terrible. I tell you Stella, there are two survivors in Fles' expedition, the two men who guarded the rope on the cliff. One of the Arabs is Polune's men, and his name is Jia Fa Harou. Do you know why I gave him a lot of money to go to France? Someday you will understand." Shan Zuo sighed suddenly, this is not like his style. "There is a person, that guy lives in a dark place that you don't understand. He is an enemy ten times, a hundred times stronger than Polune. In short, I hope you can stay calm. When the time is right, I will Come forward immediately. At that time, it will not be too late for you to follow Fries to the 'Dark Darkness'." Who is so powerful that Shan Zuo regards him as a strong enemy?Stella couldn't guess the identity of this person even after thinking hard. Although Shan Zuo was sick and lying in bed, he did not lose his fighting spirit. He was trying to make plans for a comeback.He bribed one of Polune's men, the Arab Jafar Harou, to go to France.Yamaza did this because he didn't want Haru to tell Polune the details of the expedition.But in this way, I am afraid that there will be more serious consequences. Another survivor who returned with Harou was Abu Ahmad, a member of the Soufis tribe in Algeria.The man is staying by Shan Zuo's side now, and Shan Zuo looks at him very closely.If you want to go to the "Underground of Shadows" for the second time, this person is indispensable.Haru was bribed, and Napolune was bound to attack Ahmad.At that time, it will be necessary to confront Polune head-on. Thinking of these, Stella made preparations in her heart. The money-greedy, lustful, and cruel doctor Polune unfortunately became the enemy of Yamazao.He found conspicuous red spots on his brother's neck, and found that his shoulder blades resembled the legendary "winged man", so he identified his brother as a "red-headed man" living in Atlantis.So he hijacked me and my brother, trying to rely on us to find the treasure of Atlantis.It's a pity that Shanzao rescued us.I think Polune will never forget that night that made him tremble with fear. Both brother and Fries are missing, Polune must do something, he must come to capture Abu Ahmad. Oh, what should I do?Only me and Yamaza on the hospital bed were left. The matter is urgent, and Shan Zuo must recover as soon as possible.But there is only one Arab doctor here... After thinking about it, I have to go to the terminal "Metlaoui" and ask someone to bring a message to find a white doctor. "What are you thinking, Stella?" Yamazata asked with a smile. "Don't think about death any more. I won't allow you to die. Osden and Frys must still be alive. You will see your lover and brother." "But..." Stella hesitated to speak. "Maybe I'm overthinking. I'm afraid it's because my brother has done something bad, and Mr. Fries will suffer. When you fell ill, sir, I felt uneasy. At that time, I had a premonition that something would happen to them." Accident……" "Don't be kidding." Shanzao told Stella not to think about it. "If it's what you think, then only the two of them should be missing, not more than a hundred people disappearing at the same time. It must be that, and I know that's what caused it." Which one?Shan Zuo spoke vaguely, but no matter how Stella asked, Shan Zuo refused to explain.Stella still cared very much. If Fries suffered misfortune because of herself, then she would regret it for the rest of her life.Clouds hang over Stella's heart, and it won't go away for a long time.When she heard that Shan Zuo fell asleep, she turned her gaze to the diary brought back by the survivors. There are piles of salt piled up with salt powder everywhere.The ice sticks used for mountaineering work well on the mountain wall, but they are useless when they touch the salt layer.After all, this is not a glacier, and the salt powder flew around like snow when it was hit with an axe.We lost two porters within two hours of the salt avalanche.The spectacular scenery here is no less than the Eiger and Mont Blanc in Germany.Now in front of me is a large conical peak similar to Fletcher Horn, and I am thinking about how to get to the big salt seam on the opposite side. The crack was more than three meters wide and seventy or eighty meters deep, with a human blue light floating at the bottom.A strong wind blew through, and one end of the crack was blown down, causing a big avalanche.It would be okay if it was snow, but when I encountered salt that I couldn't use my strength, I really didn't know how to get over it... I found it incredible that I finally got here.It seemed a long way, but it was actually only three or four miles.Along the way twists and turns, so little way to go for three days. It would be a waste of time to walk from places with shallow salt layers or places with rich mineral veins.I don't know when and what month we will be able to reach the big crack where the people and horses disappear. I am afraid that the team members will not be able to support that day.Constantly inhaling salt powder, everyone felt a strong sense of hunger and thirst, and the surrounding temperature was so high that it was as uncomfortable as being roasted by fire.All were emaciated under the influence of the powdered salt, with sunken cheeks and dark circles around their eyes. Ogoumed said that things like maps are useless here.Why?Because there is no issue value at all.Once the salt wind season is over, the location of salt accumulation will change.Every year from October to March of the following year, the strong north wind will blow away the dry salt powder on the salt lake, just like the name here, "Darkness", and the salt fog hell makes people unable to see their own shadow.What may be the top of the mountain this year will become a plain next year, and there is no way to do it again. The "big darkness" is guarded by gods, and ordinary people don't want to get close to it.Perhaps it was just their luck that Oldham and the others were able to walk to the big crack last time. Seeing this, Abu Ahmad came in from the door.