Within two days, they had crossed the long lake and arrived at the Torrent River. At this time, they could already see the lonely mountain looming in front of them. The current was very strong, and their speed was relatively slow. At the end of the third day, they docked at the west bank of the river and prepared to continue their journey. The horses also brought the necessary supplies to meet them there. They did their best to pack up the supplies and handed them to the horses to transport. As for the other excess supplies, they built a tent and carefully stored them. The humans in the town were not willing to stay for long in a place so close to the lone mountain.
"Before the song is realized, we won't dare!”They said. In such a desolate place, they still believed in the legend of the evil dragon. Sorin was not as convincing. In fact, they did not need anyone to guard their supplies because there was no one nearby. In the end, their followers left them by land and sea. Even the darkening night could not stop them from returning.
After a lonely and cold night, their morale dropped. The next day, they set off again, with Balin and Birbo at the back, each leading a pony responsible for carrying heavy luggage. The others were leading the way because there were no roads in this area. They moved northwest, leaving the Flowing River a little and getting closer to one of the branches of the mountain.
This trip was quite tiring, and they didn't dare to talk or act rashly. There was no laughter, no song. In this silence, the ambition aroused by the ancient songs slowly cooled down. They knew that the end of their journey was near, and it could be a very terrifying end. The land in front of them became more and more desolate. Thorin told them that this was once a place full of green and vitality. There was no vegetation here. No matter if it was shrubs or trees, they could not survive here. The only things left were broken and charred tree stumps, which described the beautiful scenery of a long time ago. They had already arrived at the wasteland created by the evil dragon, and it was the season when all things withered.
They arrived at the foot of the mountain without any hindrance. Other than the lifeless land caused by the evil dragon, there was no trace of it. The lone mountain stood gloomily, looking taller and more astonishing than ever. They camped on the west side of the southern branch. At the end of the branch was a place called Wuqiu. There was an ancient watchtower there, but no one dared to risk climbing it because it would expose their whereabouts.
Before they began their search for the secret door on the west side of the Lonely Mountain, Thorin sent out scouts to the south of the main door. He chose Balin, Kili, and Philip, and Birbo followed. They walked all the way to the bottom of the gray and silent Bird Hill, where the Rushing River made a big circle, passed through Riverdale, and continued to flow to the Long Lake. The river was very turbulent and noisy. The riverbank was bare, and there were only many towering steep rocks overlooking the river. Passing through the white-foamy torrent, they saw the valley under the shadow of the mountains. There were many ruins of ancient houses, tall buildings, and city walls.
" This is the ruins of Riverdale in the valley," Balin said."When the alarm rang, this place was filled with green mountains and plains. The town was very prosperous.”When he described everything, he looked very sad and solemn. Back then, he and Thorin had witnessed the tragedy of the arrival of the dragon.
They did not dare to continue along the river to the gate, but they had reached the edge of the southern branch. In the end, the group hid behind a rock and could clearly see the dark cave entrance between the two branches. The water of the Torrent River flowed out from it, and at the same time, steam and black smoke curled up and floated out. Other than steam and water, there was nothing moving. The only thing that interrupted this ominous scene was the crows flying back and forth. The only thing that broke the silence was the sound of water hitting rocks and the hoarse chirping of birds. Ba Lin shivered.
"Let's turn back quickly!" He said,"It's useless for us to stay here! I don't like these blackbirds, they look like evil spies.”
"Then, from the black smoke, the evil dragon seems to still be alive at the bottom of the mountain range.”said the Hobbit.
" This isn't hard evidence," Ba Lin said."However, I also think that you are right. It might have left temporarily, or it might have been hiding by the side of the mountain and peeping. No matter what, the black smoke and steam will definitely come out from its door. I think the hall inside must be filled with its stench.”
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In this gloomy situation, they were chased by the crows all the way back to the camp. In June, they were guests at Elrond's residence, but in late autumn, it seemed years ago. They were alone in the wilderness. Although this was their last journey, it seemed that they were so far away from the end. Everyone's morale immediately fell to the bottom.
Surprisingly, Mr. Baggins was in a much better mood than the others. He would often borrow the map from Thorin and ponder about the runes on it and the enigma recorded in the moon language that Elrond had mentioned. It was because of his insistence that the dwarves began to take the risk to search the western slope for the secret door. They had moved their camp to a narrow valley, which was much narrower than the valley in the south. The whole area was surrounded by mountains, and two branches extended from here to the west into the plain. The footprints of evil dragons were even rarer here, and there was even some grass for the horses to chew on. The camp was shrouded in the shadow of the cliff all day long. It was only illuminated by the sun when it set in the west. From here, they searched the mountainside again and again. If the map was correct, the secret door must be on the cliff at the exit of the valley. Day after day, they still returned empty-handed without any progress.
In the end, they unexpectedly found their target. Philip, Kili, and Bilbo had come back from the valley one day and were trying to get over a pile of rubble on the south side; Around noon, Birbo found a simple staircase as he walked around a huge rock that looked like a lone pillar. He and the dwarves walked up excitedly and found traces of another narrow path. Due to years of disrepair, they searched and stopped along the way. Finally, they arrived at the edge of the southern branch and turned to another narrower ridge. They looked down and found themselves at the top of the cliff at the mouth of the valley, overlooking their camp. They carefully leaned against the right side of the mountain wall and walked forward one by one. Finally, the mountain wall disappeared, and they came to a quiet valley covered in grass. As the entrance to this mountain valley was high up, it could not be seen from below. From a further distance, it would only look like a dark crack. This was not a cave, but an open space. On the other side of it was a mountain wall. It looked very flat and smooth near the ground, as if it had been crafted by a skilled craftsman, but there were no traces of other carvings on it. There were no doorposts, pinholes, keyholes, or handles, but they were sure that they had finally found the entrance.
They knocked on the wall, pushing and pulling, trying to move it, chanting fragments of the spell to open the door; Nothing had changed. In the end, they sat down on the grass to rest, exhausted, and had to go home when the sky was getting dark.
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That night, everyone was very excited. In the morning, everyone was ready to move again. Only Boffo and Pang Bo were left in the camp to watch over the pony and the supplies that everyone had brought. The others walked up the valley, following the newly discovered path to the narrow ridge. The terrain was extremely steep. On one side was a 150-foot cliff. They could not carry any backpacks on this ridge. However, they brought a long safety rope tied around their waists and finally arrived safely at the col.
They set up a third camp there and used ropes to pull up the supplies they needed. They could use the same method to send the stronger dwarves (like Kili) down to understand the situation below, or to share the guard work below. Boffo was pulled to the camp above. Whether it was using a rope or climbing the mountain, Pang Bo was unwilling to climb up. "I'm too fat to do this kind of work," he said."I'll get a headshot, and then I'll trip over my own beard, and then you'll be thirteen again. These ropes with many knots are too thin for me to use.”He's lucky, you'll see later, this can actually support his weight.
At the same time, some people had already started to explore the open space and found a path that led to higher mountains. However, they did not dare to go any higher. Even if they went there, it would not be of much use. On this highland, everything was silent, and the birds were also silent. Only the sound of the wind blowing through the mountain crevices could be heard. They spoke in low voices, not daring to speak loudly because danger seemed to lurk in every corner. The others who were busy checking the secret door did not make any progress. They were so anxious that they had completely forgotten about the runes or the records of the moon characters. They only kept pondering on the smooth mountain wall. They had brought all kinds of tools from Long Lake Town. At first, they tried to use these things, but the handles were either broken or the tips of the steel were twisted like lead. It was obvious that the mining tools were not enough to deal with the magic sealing the secret door. Moreover, they were beginning to worry about the echo here.
Birbo sat at the door, feeling very lonely and tired. Of course, there were no steps or doorsteps here, but they were used to calling the grass between the mountain wall and the entrance of the col. When they first visited Birbo, they remembered that he had told them to sit at the door before they came up with a good idea, so they had jokingly changed the name of the place. They had indeed been thinking for a long time or running around aimlessly. Everyone's mood was getting lower and lower.
When they had discovered the path, their morale had indeed risen, but now it had fallen to rock bottom. However, they still refused to give up easily. The hobbit was no longer in high spirits. He often did nothing but lean against the mountain wall, overlooking Gloomy Jungle and the distant sky. Sometimes, he felt that he could see the distant Misty Mountains. If the dwarves asked him what he was doing, he would answer,"
"You said that it was my job to sit at the door and think of a way to enter the cave, so I'm sitting here and thinking of a way!”However, he was not thinking about the work in front of him, but the Western Continent on the other side of the horizon, as well as the hill and the cave below it.
There was a large black rock in the middle of the meadow, and he would stare sullenly at it, or at the large snail crawling around. These giant snails seemed to like this three-sided mountain valley and the cold rocks. Just in this place, there were many giant snails crawling around slowly.
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" Tomorrow is the last week of autumn," Thorin said one day.
"Winter comes after autumn," said Beaver.
" Then it's next year," Dwarin said."Our beards will grow longer and longer. Before anything changes here, they will probably grow to the bottom of the mountain. Has our Snitch been of any help? Since he had that invisible ring on his hand, it should be useful now. I think he should go in through the front door and help us find out the situation!”
Birbo heard it, and the dwarves were discussing it by the rock above him. "Good heavens!" He thought, So this is what these people are thinking? Ever since the wizard left, I've been the only one who can solve problems. What can I do? I think I might meet the most tragic ending in the end. I don't think I can stand seeing this old Riverdale again, let alone that steaming gnats."
That night, he felt very unhappy and tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. The next day, the dwarves scattered to pass the time. Some people went down to walk their horses, while others wandered around. Bilbo sat there all day looking gloomily at the stones on the grass, or at the western entrance. "Maybe the wizard will show up today," he thought.
If he raised his head, he would see the forest in the distance. When the sun set, the top of the forest would glow with golden light, as if the sun was shining on the golden leaves of the forest. Soon, he could see the orange fireball falling towards the horizon. He walked to the entrance of the col. He could see a new moon on the ground.
At that moment, he heard a clicking sound behind him. There was a huge black bird standing on a big rock in the grass. Its yellow chest was dotted with a few black spots. Kada! It caught a snail and was trying to break its shell on the rock. Kada! Kada!
Birbo suddenly understood. He had forgotten all the dangers. He stood on the ridge, shouting and waving desperately, telling the dwarves to come back quickly. The people closest to them immediately ran carefully along the narrow ridge, suspecting that something important had happened. The others shouted for the rope to be pulled up. (The only exception was Pombo, who had fallen asleep.）
Birbo quickly explained to the crowd, and they watched without saying a word. The hobbits stood quietly beside the limestone, the dwarves 'beards swaying as they continued to watch impatiently. As the sun set lower and lower, their hope was extinguished. In the end, it turned into a fiery red glow and disappeared. The dwarf began to complain, but Birbo still stood motionless. The new moon had just left the horizon and night was about to fall when suddenly, just when they were most discouraged, the last ray of sunlight pierced through the clouds and fell like a finger on the limestone. The black bird, which had been perching on the side and observing, also let out a shrill cry. They all heard a very clear crack. A thin layer of rock fell from the mountain wall, and a small hole suddenly appeared three feet above the ground.
The dwarves were worried that this opportunity would be fleeting, so they rushed forward to push the door, but it was useless.
"The key! The key!" "Where's Thorin?" shouted Birbo.”Thorin hurriedly ran over.
"The key!" "The key that came with the map!" roared Birbo. Hurry up and try!"
Thorin stepped forward, took out the key from his neck, and inserted it into the hole. The key worked flawlessly and started to turn! Kada! The light disappeared, the sun set, and the moon disappeared. Darkness enveloped the land.
At this moment, everyone pushed the door together. A part of the rock wall loosened, and a narrow gap appeared and gradually expanded. It was obvious that there was a door that was five feet tall and three feet wide. It opened slowly and silently. The darkness seemed to be flowing out of the black hole on the mountain wall like steam. In front of them was a pitch-black cave that led straight into the depths of the lone mountain.
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。