Chapter 425: The Highest Level Expedition Team in the Country!

The convoy officially set off.

Ning Fei drove his own car, carrying expedition equipment, a large amount of mineral water, and a refrigerator stocked with fresh meat, milk, and other supplies.

He was fully prepared.

The convoy consisted of three cars. To balance the numbers, Lin Tao and Liu Wu shared one, two middle-aged men took another, and Ning Fei rode with Xue Fang.

Ning Fei turned on his live-stream, and his popularity rapidly surged.

With the drone filming from high above, the netizens could see the three cars driving in a staggered formation, heading off into the boundless stretch of yellow sand.

"It's the expedition team!"

"Who's the girl in the passenger seat? She's pretty!"

"Ahhh! A girl is sitting in Ning Guan master's passenger seat!"

"I'm so jealous, I want to sit there too."

"Go wash up and sleep, you'll have everything in your dreams."

"Where is Ning Guan master going?"

As soon as the netizens entered, they fired off a barrage of comments to greet Ning Fei.

"The expedition team is currently heading toward Lop Nur."

"Professor Lin is leading the expedition this time. This is Professor Lin's student, Xue Fang."

Ning Fei told the netizens.

Xue Fang waved at the camera and gave a shy smile. She was clearly unaccustomed to being watched by millions of people.

"Professor Lin? Which Professor Lin?"

"Don't tell me Ning Guan master means Professor Lin Tao!"

"It really is Lin Tao! I knew those two off-road vehicles looked familiar. They belong to Professor Lin's expedition team!"

"I just checked online! Professor Lin's student is the girl in the passenger seat!"

"My god, it's Lin Tao! The leader of Ning Guan master's expedition team is actually Lin Tao!"

"Can someone explain who Lin Tao is?"

"He's a god in the archaeology world! He discovered Qin Shi Huang's sacrificial altar to heaven and found murals from the Yanhuang era. He's been on the news so many times."

"He is the representative figure of Huaxia archaeology and exploration!"

"I can't believe Ning Guan master teamed up with the great god Lin."

"This expedition team absolutely represents the highest level of exploration in Huaxia. I'm starting to look forward to this."

In the live-stream room, many netizens grew incredibly excited the moment they heard Lin Tao's name.

No one expected that Ning Fei, an outdoor streamer, would actually join Huaxia's top archaeological research team!

This kind of treatment really wasn't something just anyone could achieve!

Everyone discussed it fervently.

Many people went to search for information on Lin Tao.

Upon searching, everyone discovered that this man was truly a formidable figure.

The other two middle-aged men had also achieved great merit many times and were core members of Lin Tao's expedition team.

"Ning Guan master plus the great god Lin? My god, what kind of immortal lineup is this!"

"What exactly is this expedition team going to explore? I'm so excited!"

"This expedition is definitely going to be thrilling!"

The netizens were buzzing with discussion.

In the other car.

Liu Wu drove while Lin Tao sat in the passenger seat, opening Ning Fei's Live-stream Room to watch the netizens' comments.

"Good heavens, Ning Fei has only been live for half an hour, and my Weibo has already gained over 400,000 fans."

"This kid really has a lot of charm!"

Lin Tao laughed heartily.

He was an archaeologist and a highly educated intellectual, but he wasn't pedantic. He used both Weibo and Douyin.

This was the 21st century, after all. What public figure didn't have a Weibo account these days?

Hearing Lin Tao's words, Liu Wu was immediately filled with envy.

"Ning Guan master is truly impressive. He's capable, handsome, and everyone loves him,"

Liu Wu muttered to himself.

Hearing Liu Wu's words, Lin Tao comforted him:

"Liu Wu, don't belittle yourself. You are the top doctoral student in the archaeology department."

"Even though you aren't as handsome as him, and you aren't as capable as him, you work harder than him!"

At that, a bitter smile surfaced on Liu Wu's face.

Was that supposed to be comforting?

But it was true. Compared to Ning Guan master, hard work was all he had left.

"Professor, do you think we can really find that underground city?"

Liu Wu asked again.

Lin Tao's expression turned serious. He looked out the window at the endless desert and nodded.

"The anthropoid ape hair has been confirmed without a doubt, and the black silhouette in the video is real too."

"There is definitely something in that area."

"Trust me. Our archaeological research this time will likely cause quite a sensation."

Hearing Lin Tao's words, Liu Wu nodded.

"Understood, Professor."

"We will definitely find that mysterious city."

Meanwhile, in Ning Fei's car.

"I've already turned off the mic and set the drone to follow the car for the broadcast. You can relax; the netizens won't hear what you say."

Noticing Xue Fang was a bit reserved, Ning Fei said this with a smile.

Xue Fang breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back against the seat.

"Ning Guan master, every time you go exploring, you bring that domineering big bird with you."

"Why don't I see your big bird this time?"

Xue Fang asked softly.

"My big bird?"

Ning Fei was slightly taken aback before quickly realizing that Xue Fang was talking about Little falcon.

"The desert is too hot. There's nowhere for shade, and no food like wild hares or fish."

"Little falcon has always lived in the forest. It isn't afraid of the cold, but I know it can't handle extreme heat."

"I was worried it would suffer here, so I didn't let it follow this time."

Ning Fei replied.

He was genuinely worried that Little falcon would be uncomfortable in the desert.

During summer, Lop Nur could reach temperatures of 40 to 70 degrees, a terrifying level of heat.

Although Little falcon strongly demanded to follow him this time, Ning Fei still ordered Little falcon to stay at Bai Yuanche's house to keep Little Fox and the others company instead of coming along.

Hearing Ning Fei's words, Xue Fang nodded gently.

Ning Fei treated his animals very well.

This point truly commanded admiration.

They hurried all the way toward their destination.

In Lop Nur, there wasn't just an endless expanse of desert; there were also many sand dunes, layers of sand, and other terrain features.

Many thrill-seekers would choose to explore by crossing straight through Lop Nur.

Therefore, there was a main road here that cut right through Lop Nur.

However, on both sides of the main road lay boundless yellow sand.

For hundreds of years, there had been no sign of human life in these yellow sands.

After all, outdoor off-roading enthusiasts who challenged crossing Lop Nur usually stuck to the main road. They wouldn't trek into the deep sand layers on either side.

That would be no different from seeking death.

"We have now entered Lop Nur."

"This place used to be very fertile and was Huaxia's second-largest saltwater lake. The Tarim River, the Peacock River, and many other rivers converged here. Later, due to the development of the Tarim River basin, no more water flowed into Lop Nur, and it slowly dried up."

"However, in recent years, reservoirs have reappeared in many parts of Lop Nur."

"The reason is very simple. Lop Nur contains 250 million tons of potash reserves, and there are massive potash factories here. The factories discharge a huge amount of water from the salt-drying process, which slowly pools in the low-lying areas of Lop Nur, thus forming a few reservoirs."

"Of course, even though the reservoirs exist, the vast majority of the area is still a desert."

Ning Fei explained the science to the netizens from the car, gazing off into the distance.

Xue Fang looked at him from the side, nodding repeatedly.

"Following Ning Guan master means learning a new piece of trivia every day."

"I haven't listened to many proper classes, but I've learned so many weird and wonderful things like this."

"Yeah, if I didn't watch Ning Guan master's live-stream, I really wouldn't know Huaxia had a place like this."

"It's so desolate there. It's all desert, completely unfit for any living creatures to survive."

"I remember there was a locust plague in Lop Nur before. Where do you think those locusts came from? I heard the desert was densely packed with them back then, flying straight into people's faces!"

"Just talking about it is making me drool."

"No way, even deserts have locust plagues?"

Ning Fei took a moment to glance at the comments. Seeing that everyone was very interested in the desert, he added:

"This place is indeed full of mystery. Many areas haven't been explored by humanity at all."

"There are many legends about Lop Nur. For example, during a solar eclipse, a rare mirage once appeared in the sky above Lop Nur. It was a picture of Jiangnan's water towns."

"Furthermore, the Women's Kingdom from history should be roughly located here in Lop Nur."

"Women's Kingdom?"

"Good heavens, just hearing that is tempting me!"

Right as everyone was fiercely debating, Lin Tao's voice rang out from the walkie-talkie in the passenger seat.

"All teams, attention. All teams, attention. We have arrived at the destination."

"Find a place and prepare to park. It's getting late today. We will set up camp and rest first."

Hearing Lin Tao's voice, the members of the expedition team focused all their attention.

Ning Fei also looked to both sides. Not far away, he spotted the tall sand dune from the video.

That was exactly where the two humanoid creatures had appeared.

"We're finally here."

"I wonder what exactly is behind this sand dune."