Lin Wanwan opened her climbing bag, inside was a full set of outdoor emergency supplies, among which the multifunctional axe-hammer, the 20-meter rescue rope, and the multifunctional Luoyang Shovel were currently the most useful tools. Lin Wanwan first tied one end of the rescue rope to a nearby tropical tree, and the other end to her waist, so she could jump down and give it a try. However, as she headed towards the swamp, she realized it was not feasible—the rope was still a bit short. "Alright, looks like I’ll have to use the clumsy method of digging." Lin Wanwan put away the rescue rope, walked to the edge of the swamp, took out the multifunctional Luoyang Shovel from her backpack, and prepared to dig. As long as she could dig the ground lower, the baby elephant could naturally come out, though it would be time-consuming and laborious. The sun hung high in the east, and the scorching sunlight pierced through the leaves and fell on the ground. Lin Wanwan wore a sun hat, donned non-slip work gloves, and gripped the multifunctional Luoyang Shovel tightly, digging straight down to the ground. The sharp shovel head quickly penetrated the soil, and with a little twist and pull, brought out a cylindrical chunk of dirt. Actually, the Luoyang Shovel is also called a probe shovel, originally invented by tomb robbers for grave robbing. Later, due to its excellent drilling capabilities, it was quickly favored by Huaxia’s archaeological community. For tomb robbers and archaeological experts, using the Luoyang Shovel to distinguish soil quality had become a basic skill. Developed into modern times, many well diggers also like to use the Luoyang Shovel. There are even specialized electric Luoyang Shovels used for digging soil and holes underground, much better than a spade. And for Lin Wanwan now, this tool was incredibly convenient, capable of cutting through soil and trenching effortlessly. As soon as she started, she knew it would work. Just like that, Lin Wanwan kept shoveling steadily, one scoop at a time. Typically, after twenty or more digs with a Luoyang Shovel, a strong young person will be panting from exhaustion. Whether for tomb robbing or archaeology, it’s indeed a laborious task. After all, for most cases, the deeper you dig, the more compact the soil becomes, naturally requiring more effort. Fortunately, Lin Wanwan’s body had been modified by the Space-Time Gate, making such intense digging relatively easy for her. After dozens of scoops, the ground had been dug down over a meter deep, allowing the baby elephant to lift its leg. Lin Wanwan gently pulled, bringing it into the newly dug deep pit. Then, standing in the pit, Lin Wanwan looked upward, using the Luoyang Shovel as a climbing pole, inserted it directly into the top of the pit wall, and with its support, jumped out. The baby elephant also had a strong will to survive, lifting its front hooves, trying to climb out on its own. From this height, given enough time, the baby elephant would manage to come out, but Lin Wanwan did not want to stay here any longer. The sun was rising higher and getting hotter, and she had already wasted a lot of time here and could not continue to wait. So Lin Wanwan reached out again, grabbed the baby elephant’s front hooves, and pulled it up with effort. Once out of the pit, the baby elephant excitedly circled Lin Wanwan, its long trunk gently touching her hand, as if expressing gratitude. Lin Wanwan tidied up the Luoyang Shovel, folded it, put it back in her climbing bag, patted the baby elephant’s head, took out a compass to check the direction, and prepared to leave. However, the baby elephant just followed her, unable to be driven away. "Don’t follow me, go find your herd, follow this elephant path, and you will soon reunite with your herd." Lin Wanwan urged the baby elephant forward, but whether it didn’t understand or had clung to her, it refused to leave. Lin Wanwan checked her mechanical watch (electronic watches easily break after passing through the Space-Time Gate; in fact, all electronic devices have this problem), and found that more than an hour had passed. Oh well, let the baby elephant follow if it wants, after all, elephants are herbivores, so she didn’t need to worry about encountering the farmer and snake problem. Thus, a person and an elephant began their journey, through lush green grass, misty white fog, abundant wild fruits, and herds of wild beasts. Lin Wanwan had no interest in observing mountains, water, or wild beasts; she just wanted to find civilization as soon as possible. After walking for about half an hour, Lin Wanwan and the baby elephant finally exited the forest and arrived at the edge of a brook. They saw young women from ancient ethnic minorities washing clothes beside the brook, with rows of bamboo houses on another side. The reason they could determine that these people were from ethnic minorities was because their clothing was quite distinctive. Han people from the Great Tang often exposed their arms or chests (which even led Li Zhi to issue a ban on exposure, though it hardly worked, especially as his wife loved it), but exposing the waist or legs was rare. Southern ethnic minorities were called Southern Barbarians by people from the Central Plains, partly due to their revealing clothing. There was no way around it; the places they lived only had the distinctions of hot and hotter year-round, wearing more clothes would lead to heatstroke or worse. This was a clothing custom dictated by geographical environment. After mutual observation, both sides started to tentatively communicate. As expected, it was like chickens and ducks talking; no one could understand each other’s speech. Fortunately, Lin Wanwan was tall, prominently standing out among the group of girls who were only 1.5 meters tall, appearing not easy to mess with. Additionally, with a small elephant by her side, the ethnic minority girls dared not challenge this woman dressed in peculiar clothes. The laundry girls shouted towards the bamboo house clusters across the brook, their voices melodious, yet Lin Wanwan couldn’t understand a thing. This time travel experience didn’t prompt Lin Wanwan to change into ancient clothing because she thought Huaxia culture wasn’t strong in Qiong State; everyone had their own ethnic clothing, and her modern outfit blended in without drawing much attention. For original chapters go to novel•fire.net Of course, the most important reason was that Han clothing wasn’t convenient for traveling; that was the real reason she wore modern outfits. Ethnic minorities were much more secluded compared to Han people. The Han were advanced from their perspective, and Lin Wanwan, more advanced than the Great Tang Han people, was hard for them to distinguish. At any rate, she seemed both advanced and wondrous. After the laundry girl finished shouting, many people of all ages emerged from beside the bamboo houses and froze upon seeing Lin Wanwan and her accompanying baby elephant. An old man stepped forward from the crowd and, speaking with a not-so-fluent Chang’an official dialect, said a bunch of things. Yet although Lin Wanwan could tell the language had changed, she still didn’t understand! She casually spoke a few lines of Yongcheng dialect with the old man, and unexpectedly, there was a surprising result. From the back of the crowd, suddenly an old woman’s voice came: "Are you from Weng Mountain or Mao County?" Lin Wanwan didn’t expect to hear her hometown dialect in Qiong State, and immediately replied, "I am from Mao County." The crowd observing Lin Wanwan made way, and the speaking old woman came forward, her expression excited as she looked at Lin Wanwan, truly fitting the saying "when hometown people meet, tears well up."