"Do you guys feel like the temperature around us is getting higher and higher? It's already around thirty degrees Celsius!" Shen Feng said to the three people beside him.
Yue Hengyi looked up at the sky, found the position of the sun, and said with a frown, "Isn't it noon? The sun is directly overhead, and the sunlight shines directly on the ground. It's normal for the temperature to be a bit high, isn't it?"
"It shouldn't be. Don't forget, it was still raining heavily yesterday. There's so much moisture in the mountains, and this moisture hasn't evaporated yet, so the temperature wouldn't have risen this much!" Shen Feng said seriously.
Yue Hengyi thought for a moment and said, "How about I scout ahead and see if there's anything in front of us? If there's no danger, we'll turn back immediately."
Shen Feng was about to agree to Yue Hengyi's suggestion. When facing unknown dangers, one must never act rashly. Otherwise, if danger strikes, no one will be able to escape!
However, Slotke suddenly said, "Bushfire, it's a bushfire, let's run!"
"Bushfire? How is that possible? The heavy rain just passed, and a bushfire broke out immediately. That's unreasonable!" Shen Feng didn't believe it was a bushfire.
Slotke quickly explained, "I've lived in Australia for over fifty years, and I know this best. Every winter, Australia experiences bushfires. Back in 2020, the Australian bushfires killed millions of kangaroos and koalas. Moreover, Australia has many eucalyptus forests, and the bark and leaves contain a lot of oil, making them highly flammable!"
Now that Slotke, a local, had spoken, his credibility was naturally unquestionable. Shen Feng also felt the temperature around him gradually rising. If they continued forward, they might encounter a bushfire.
"Go back! Retreat!" Shen Feng didn't hesitate and immediately issued the order.
"Brother Feng, if we retreat, the distance we covered today will be in vain, and we'll be back to square one!" Yue Hengyi was somewhat unwilling.
"Life is the most important thing. If we go back, we'll either find a car and cross through the central grasslands, or find a boat and sail to Melbourne. Walking through the forest, what if we encounter a real bushfire?" Shen Feng couldn't help but admonish Yue Hengyi. He always wanted to go back faster, but he had to do it while ensuring his safety.
Yue Hengyi had no choice but to obey Shen Feng's orders. He also knew that he could be very stubborn sometimes. It was because he didn't follow Shen Feng's advice on the island and ate poisonous wild fruits that he was incapacitated for half a month. Now was not the time to be stubborn.
Although Yue Hengyi didn't say it, he admitted in his heart that Shen Feng's considerations were more thorough than his, and following his advice was the most appropriate course of action.
Not long after the four of them retreated, a howling sound suddenly came from the forest. Looking in the direction of the sound, they could see wild boars, mice, and rabbits running frantically in the forest. Monkeys and squirrels were also moving in the trees. Numerous animals formed a stampede. Whether they were mutated or not, all the animals were running as if they were mad.
"It seems the bushfire is real, and it's on a large scale. These wild animals are all fleeing, so we can't delay!" Shen Feng said quickly.
The instincts of wild animals are sometimes more powerful than humans. After all, humans have survived in society for a long time, and many of their sensory organs have degenerated. Wild animals, however, need to maintain their survival in the wild, so their sensory organs are very sensitive. They are constantly observing their surroundings, and as soon as they detect unfavorable conditions, they immediately flee.
Now, seeing the surrounding stampede, Shen Feng knew that a bushfire must have occurred.
The four of them were also fortunate that they did not encounter a bushfire while advancing, and they would likely not encounter one on their way back.
However, after running along the road for two kilometers, the forests on both sides of the road had also caught fire. They had not seen any smoke or fire when they came, but as soon as they turned back, the bushfire had already ignited behind them.
"Damn it, which bastard is trying to frame us? They've even set our escape route on fire!" Shen Feng couldn't help but curse.
Originally, the four of them intended to return the same way. After all, the road they came on had no dangers, so the way back should also be safe. But now, their rear escape route had also been cut off by the bushfire.
Yue Hengyi also felt that it was impossible for the forest to catch fire for no reason, especially on their retreat path. Suddenly, a bushfire blocked their way. It was possible that enemies were secretly setting fires, intending to eliminate them in the forest.
"Mr. Shen, Mr. Yue, what do we do now? The mountains are all on fire. How about we dig a hole and hide underground?" Li Gui suggested to Shen Feng and Yue Hengyi.
At this time, they didn't know the extent of the fire in the forest. Li Gui could only offer a suggestion. Wasn't soil supposed to be an insulator? Wouldn't hiding underground be safe? Why bother fleeing frantically?
Shen Feng shook his head slightly and said, "Impossible. We don't have enough time to dig a hole. Besides, if we hide in a hole, the oxygen will be consumed, and we'll still suffocate. Have you heard of beggar's chicken? The method for making beggar's chicken is to wrap it in mud and roast it in charcoal fire!"
"Then what should we do? Our escape route is blocked, and we can't go back the way we came!" Li Gui was still very panicked.
Shen Feng pointed to the south and said, "Now, let's charge towards the sea. Based on my estimation, we are only a few kilometers away from the sea. As long as we get into the sea, the bushfire won't be able to do anything to us!"
After speaking, Shen Feng took the lead, and hundreds of wind blades shot out, instantly cutting a path through the forest. The four of them ran continuously towards the south.
As a result, the bushfire spread quickly. Just a moment ago, they had only seen a small flame, and the next moment, a huge fire dragon lunged out from the forest. Wherever the fire dragon passed, the surrounding trees instantly ignited. There were too many eucalyptus trees in Australia, and once a bushfire occurred, the forest would immediately be ignited. Although the ground was muddy, under the scorching flames, moisture was constantly evaporating. Black smoke mixed with white smoke continuously permeated the forest.
Black smoke billowed, indicating that branches containing moisture were burning. Dense white smoke was the evaporation of a lot of water vapor.
Shen Feng no longer dared to look back, focusing all his attention on clearing a path and heading south. The surrounding branches were constantly being cut down, regardless of whether there were poisonous snakes in the dead leaves and branches on the ground. Escaping was the priority now, as the bushfire had already spread behind them.
Once a bushfire occurs, it takes immense effort to extinguish it, especially in a forest where there are trees and combustible materials everywhere. A single spark can lead to a sea of fire.
The trees in the forest have no shortage of oxygen. Once they ignite, the flames shoot straight into the sky, reaching a height of twenty meters. Helicopters flying overhead would have to worry about being burned by the flames.
The scorching heat was already burning the backs of the four people, and they could only continue to flee. In the face of natural forces, even superhumans could only flee. Only those with fire-controlling abilities could survive in such a situation. For example, Xiao Sheng and Ke Yiming, the two of them could be in the sea of fire without any issues. Of course, if they ran out of oxygen, they would still die.
After running for half an hour, the four of them finally broke out of the forest. Outside the forest was a shallow beach with many reefs. However, the soil had been washed away by the sea, so there were no conditions for plants to grow. The shallow beach was barren, and the waves were still crashing against the shore.
"Phew, we finally escaped. If I find out who set the fire, I'll never forgive them!" Shen Feng said fiercely.
Yue Hengyi was equally indignant and said, "Forest fire prevention awareness abroad needs to be improved. If this were in China, daring to set a fire in the mountains would mean preparing to spend years in prison! Seeing a wisp of smoke on the mountain means spending decades in prison; that's not an exaggeration!"
Having escaped the forest, the four of them found some rocks and sat by the sea to rest. Looking at the flames in the forest, they realized they were safe as the fire could not spread to the seaside.
Li Gui found a pile of firewood, started a fire, and began to roast the smoked meat from his backpack. After a morning of travel, their energy was greatly depleted, and he was already hungry.
At this moment, Slotke grabbed Shen Feng's arm and pointed to the sky with his other finger, saying, "Look quickly, we've found the ones who set the fire."
Shen Feng didn't understand English, but he still looked in the direction Slotke was pointing. He was shocked by what he saw. There was a flock of birds in the sky, holding flames in their mouths and throwing them into the forest. Wherever the fire seeds landed, flames immediately spread.
"Damn it, what kind of birds are these? They can even start fires! Aren't humans the only animals that can use fire?" Shen Feng couldn't help but exclaim.
Yue Hengyi also looked at the birds in the sky and finally solved the mystery. No wonder their escape route was also blocked by the bushfire. It turned out that birds were dropping fire seeds from the sky. Damn it.
"These beasts are hateful. Setting fires at this time, aren't they blocking our way forward?" Yue Hengyi also cursed.
At this time, Slotke explained the reason, and Li Gui, while gnawing on the smoked meat in his hand, acted as a translator.
It turned out that on Earth, it wasn't just humans who could use fire. Besides humans, birds in Australia, called whistling kites, could also use fire. Of course, these birds couldn't start fires by rubbing sticks together. They could only throw burning branches into the forest. When bushfires broke out, the animals in the forest would naturally be burned to death, and then the whistling kites would appear to pick up the animals to eat.
The whistling kites were now setting fires everywhere, likely because they were starving during the past month and a half of the stormy season. So, after the rain stopped, they collectively set out to start fires, creating a large number of bushfires.
The red clouds that everyone had seen earlier were actually clouds dyed red by the light of the flames. With a large area of forest on fire, the entire surrounding sky would be blood-red.
"Alas, heaven is truly blind. We had to encounter something like this. Now that the road to Melbourne is blocked, and we might encounter bushfires at any moment, what should we do now?" Yue Hengyi was very speechless. Australia was truly a strange place. The animals were so unique, and they even learned to start fires. They were truly cunning.
"You said earlier that auspicious energy was coming from the east, but now you're saying heaven is blind? How are you more like someone from Sichuan than me? Your skill in changing faces is so amazing!" Shen Feng couldn't help but tease.
"Nonsense, auspicious energy from the east is something only I can encounter. I'm encountering a disaster, and the two cannot be compared!" Yue Hengyi shrugged.
Shen Feng looked at the map and thought for a moment, "Since we can't go east for now, let's change direction and head to the western cities. There are port cities in southwestern Australia, Perth and Fremantle. Although they are not as good as Canberra and Sydney, since they are big cities, they won't be too bad."
Yue Hengyi leaned over and looked at the map in Shen Feng's hand. Seeing the locations of the two cities, he couldn't help but frown, "To return to China from here, it's across half of the Australian continent. Isn't that too far?"
"There's no other way, we have to take a detour. However, as a great man once said, to defend is to attack, to retreat is to advance; to advance sideways is to move forward; to take a detour is to go straight. Things in the world do not change according to your will. You want it this way, but it just doesn't happen. When you turn around and come back, things will have been accomplished!" Shen Feng said helplessly.
"After all that talk, it still means taking a detour. Fine, a detour it is. One day, I will kill these whistling kites." Yue Hengyi was also very frustrated. The shortest route back to their country was blocked by a flock of birds, forcing them to take a detour. It was annoying.
After resting by the sea for a while, the group proceeded westward along the coastline.