Chapter 46 Winter

"Haah——"

On the swamp, Levi stretched out another small stronghold and patted the tattered linen cloak that was stained with blood.

As the sword edge passed through the throat of the Oak at his feet, the blue light above gradually extinguished.

Boom——

The fire ignited on the corpse dispelled some of the fog in the morning. Levi stretched out his hand to bake it and felt a touch of warmth.

It's getting colder.

A long time has passed since he separated from Gandalf.

At first, Levi would still count the rising and setting of the sun, what time it was, and how many days had passed.

But as the fog on the map gradually dissipated, the distance traveled by his feet became longer and longer, and more and more Orcs were chopped down by the sword in his hand, Levi gradually felt a little numb.

Every day I was either rushing to open a map or searching for traces of Oaks and refugees. Day after day, there was no change.

I vaguely remember meeting scattered refugees a month ago, talking to them a few words, and guiding them to safe places.

But maybe it's because the residents in this area have finally evacuated, or maybe for some other reason, Levi hasn't seen a human being for a long time.

Even animals are rare.

It seems that apart from the Orcs, the only ones that move and make noises around here are wargs.

Of course, they won't move now.

After sitting there in a daze for a while, Levi took out two pieces of bread and ate them. Then he opened the map and looked at the topography of the area.

At this moment, most of the fog in the area known as the Anduin Valley has been dispersed, and the terrain is recorded on the map.

Among them, there are batches of Oaks stationed there, and all those who can be killed have been killed by Li Wei.

Those who were not killed either ran too fast, or hundreds of Orcs gathered together in a pile. In a relatively open area, an army of this size cannot be dealt with by Levi for the time being. When there are too many, it will always happen in tactics. Some changes make it difficult to get out once you are trapped.

Levi shook his head.

The rest of the Orc army is basically a hard nut that they have forced to unite, and they are not easy to chew.

It's time to stop for now.

After being out for so long, even Li Wei would have some difficulties in stocking up on supplies.

The ready-made food had been consumed long ago, and for a long time, Levi relied on several groups of hay blocks stored in his backpack to make bread.

The bread is almost gone now.

Levi stood up and was about to walk around to see if he could find any wild animals when a familiar voice suddenly came from the distance:

"Finally found you, Levi, phew - it's not easy."

I saw an old man in gray robe crossing the grass all the way, avoiding the swamp, and quickly ran to Li Wei.

"I've been looking for you for almost half a month. If I hadn't still seen some burned corpses of Orcs and Wargs, I would have suspected that you had gone back."

"The Oaks in this area haven't been cleaned up yet. How could I go back so early." Levi shook his head.

hiss--

Hearing this, Gandalf took a breath and said quickly: "Oh, my God, Levi, that's enough. You've done enough. I've been here for half a month, and I haven't even seen half a living Oak." I can't even see it. To be honest, this is cleaner than the dwarf army. I wonder if you have any deep grudge against these Oaks."

"A deep hatred?"

Levi glanced at the reputation column.

[Misty Mountain Orcs: -1523 (Old Enemy)]

"It should be there now."

At this point, Levi estimates that the Oaks in this area hate him no less than the dwarf royal family.

To give a specific example, if Levi and Thorin are chased by Oaks and they run away separately, the Oaks might have to chase Levi first, assuming they can beat them.

"Well, no matter what, our goal has been achieved. The humans in the valley have moved north and gathered. When they are truly united, the invasion of Orcs will no longer threaten them."

"Maybe they can coalesce into a new group."

"Without your help, I'm afraid they would have experienced more setbacks."

As Gandalf spoke, he found a piece of broken wood and sat on it, took out his cigarette and lit a fire.

As a smoke ring blew out, the wizard's tense expression relaxed a lot.

Gandalf just smoked, and Levi didn't say anything, as if he was in a daze.

There was silence over the swamp, except for a thin line of smoke floating lonely.

Gandalf glanced at the silent Levi, thoughtfully.

After a while, maybe it was time to rest.

He put away his pipe and suddenly slapped his knee: "Oh, look at my mind, I almost forgot..."

"What?"

"New Year!"

"new year?"

Li Wei was a little confused. What does it mean? Is there anything special about the New Year?

"Yes, the new year is coming soon. I once told the children of Shire that I would bring fireworks when the new year comes."

"Has it been so long..."

Levi felt a little dazed. This trip was definitely the longest he had ever been out, longer than going to hell.

"It's time for us to end this trip, Levi."

Gandalf patted Levi on the shoulder, announcing the end of the adventure.

A cool breeze blew through.

There were small white particles floating on Levi's face, ice cold and a little moist.

It's snowing.

"The Orcs have temporarily stopped moving. For some reason, they have shrunk near the mountains and stopped expanding outward."

As they walked along, Gandalf talked about the information he had learned.

When he mentioned "some reasons", he glanced at Levi.

"To be honest, this is one of the few times when I feel that things are going well. All the adventures in the past were always full of obstacles."

There are still too few things a person can do. Not everyone can be as strong as Levi.

"Levi?" Gandalf suddenly called out.

"Ah, I'm here."

"I always feel like you're in a daze."

"No, I just feel a little, um..."

"A little tired?"

"No, you should understand, I won't feel tired."

"I think you're tired."

Gandalf looked like an experienced person and said slowly: "Do you know, Levi, the elves have an endless lifespan, are naturally close to nature and magic, are strong, and will never get sick or age."

"But they will die of sadness."

"Spirit is the best nourishment for life and soul. You need to pay attention to this, Levi."

"Whether it's you, me, or anyone else, we all need to rest. I never wake up when it's time to sleep."

"For you and me, the body has never been the most important, but the soul needs to be maintained at all times."

This can't be said any more directly, and there's no way to go on.

Levi listened silently and nodded.

Is that so?

Thinking about it, it seems that I haven't slept for several months.

Because I'm not tired at all, my body doesn't feel tired.

Maybe it is true, as Gandalf said, that the soul also needs occasional maintenance, after all, it cannot be repaired by experience.

In the blink of an eye, many days passed, and the two returned along the same route and left the Misty Mountains.

The journey was quite smooth, and there were almost no traces of Orcs. Even when passing through the path at the pass of the Misty Mountains, there were no Orcs to harass.

At this time, after going down the mountain and entering the wilderness, Gandalf asked again:

"As I said before, I plan to go to the Shire for a stroll. What about you, Levi?"

"Me?"

Levi gently raised his hand and caught a grain of snow.

"I won't go. There are still some things waiting for me to do."

"While it's winter now."

Thank you Lei Ni Yidian for the 100-point reward, thank you Shushan Youdaoyou for the 500-point reward, thank you friends who voted for recommendation and monthly tickets, thank you for your support!