Chapter 666: Chapter 594: The Decline of Soul Power
The scorching sun blazed down, and all one could see was an endless desert.
It stretched endlessly.
This location was at the western side of the defense circle, not more than ten kiloters from the frontline.
Behind lay lush forests and layered mountain peaks, with outposts built on treacherous lands.
Ahead,
The lush green grass beca increasingly sparse, as if divided by a line; one side green, the other yellow sand.
A troop of five hundred mbers from the Investigation Corps, clad in uniform combat uniforms, ford battle formations, advancing orderly and swiftly.
It wasn’t long before they delved deep into the desert, their figures engulfed by the swirling yellow sand.
“Chief Instructor, this desert spans nearly one hundred thousand square kiloters, about half the area of the forr Tiannan Province. How can we possibly find our target in such an expansive area?”
In the midst of the conversation, the sandy surface suddenly exploded, and a dark brown scorpion tail fiercely stabbed towards a team mber at the periphery of the battle formation.
It was a desert scorpion!
A common Mutant Beast in desert environnts, not very strong, but adept at hiding; even high-tier Awakeners could be caught off guard.
There was no panic. Once they realized what was happening, the few sneaking desert scorpions were quickly slain.
The elite mbers of the Investigation Corps, with the lowest being at the Ninth Layer Peak of Awakening, had abundant combat experience, so a few Mutant Beast ambushes weren’t much of a threat.
Yet, no one felt at ease.
The harsh environnt posed significant challenges.
Winds howled, and the fierce sand grains battered every team mber, who would have been injured if not for their combat uniforms and helts protecting their toughened bodies.
Advancing in such a sandstorm, with poor visibility and considerable physical strain — far more than usual, coupled with occasional attacks from Demonized Beasts and Mutant Beasts, made it impossible for them to search the entire desert.
However,
When the mbers looked towards the towering figure at the forefront, each felt an unwavering confidence in their hearts.
Chief Instructor Luo was their faith!
mbers of the Guardian Corps, Investigation Corps… Every recruit graduating from boot camp and joining the various corps had listened to the Chief Instructor’s teachings, not to ntion many instructors in the boot camp were personally trained by Chief Instructor Luo!
Lately, Chief Instructor Luo rarely took action personally.
This ti, had it not been for the Chief Instructor pursuing contemplation, they wouldn’t have had the fortune to undertake this mission under his command.
Amidst the howling sandstorm, five hundred mbers rapidly traversed the sandy surface.
Luo Zhe, clad in black heavy armor, his thick battle boots stepping on the sand, left no trace.
Part of the reason he took action this ti was due to being stuck at a breakthrough barrier, unable to find the right opportunity.
Fusing Eight Cores to breakthrough was, after all, exceedingly difficult for him.
But having this opportunity, how could he content himself with diocrity?
Another reason was this desert.
It should have been concealed within a spatial interlayer, like the Star Road, erging as the planet revived; now on Earth, scenarios like this were not uncommon.
Forests, deserts, lakes, and even glaciers appearing near the equator, or vast lakes in desert regions; the Earth had expanded several tis over, continuing to grow.
And this desert laid embedded within Tiannan Province.
It was as large as half of Tiannan Province, filled with dangers, attracting few adventurers to explore such places — more critically, it was too close to the Defense Circle!
Recently, a Transcendent Tier Mutant Beast erged from the desert, attacking an outpost, causing over twenty mbers of the Guardian Corps to fall in combat.
Ultimately, at a significant cost, the Transcendent Tier Digging Sand Worm was repelled.
In a forested environnt, Digging Sand Worms are a higher threat and equally adept at hiding, making them difficult to detect.
In the formation’s center, so mbers set up a large energy-level Detection Device, capable of detecting high-energy reactions within a certain range.
Team mbers from the Perception Series, or those with special detection skills, deployed various thods to survey the surrounding environnt.
Luo Zhe’s Perception diffused outward.
Distant cacti, Mutant Beasts hidden beneath the desert…
Scene after scene appeared in his mind.
He suppressed his Perception power, careful not to be too reckless, for fear of startling away that extraordinary Mutant Beast.
His mind flashed with information about the Digging Sand Worm.
These beasts usually inhabited deserts, occasionally found elsewhere.
Digging Sand Worms weren’t considered powerful among Mutant Beasts; during adulthood, they generally reached the Fourth or Fifth Layer, the elites in their groups might reach the Seventh or Eighth Layer. So large groups of Digging Sand Worms had leaders that might have broken through the high-tier barrier of the Tenth Layer of Awakening.
But that was about it.
Compared to Golden Winged Flying Eagles and Bright Moon Sky Wolves, which were Middle or High Tier upon reaching adulthood, the Digging Sand Worm’s talent wasn’t notable.
The sudden ergence of a Transcendent Tier leader made Luo Zhe contemplate the reason behind it.
The sandstorm enveloped them, dimming the light.
The Investigation Corps’ team had been advancing through the desert for several hours and had not encountered a Digging Sand Worm, but they had destroyed several desert scorpion nests.
It seed this desert was abundant with desert scorpions, sand mice, and other such Mutant Beasts.
Hidden in the sandstorm, they occasionally attacked the Investigation Corps’ team. The mbers’ will was firm, but their physical strength inevitably had significantly dwindled — potions could not fully replenish this kind of exhaustion.
Suddenly,
Luo Zhe’s brows raised, hand resting on the hilt of his sword.
“Be on guard,” he said in a deep voice, continuing to suppress his aura.
His team mbers concentrated.
In an instant, the energy-level detection device in the center of the formation lit up with red light, flashing as a “beep beep beep” sound started, growing more rapid.
“They’re, they’re coming!”
The sand beneath their feet churned like waves, forming a huge gravel whirlpool that threatened to devour everyone.
The prepared mbers of the Investigation Corps leapt to the outer side of the gravel whirlpool—soone even carried the cumberso detection device out of the whirlpool’s range in a few steps, avoiding the splashing sand.
The gravel spun faster, and the whirlpool sank like a gaping mouth.
Boom!
In a storm of wind and sand, the soil splashed tens of ters high.
From beneath the sand, a huge Mutant Beast sprang up, standing tall like a skyscraper.
It looked like an insect magnified countless tis, with rough yellow-brown skin, its mandibles opening and closing and antennae flailing, appearing extrely fierce and ugly.
But it was not a Demonized Beast.
It was a native Mutant Beast.
The erging sand worm roared, sending layers of sound waves rippling out, releasing a terrifying presence.
It recognized these two-legged creatures—days ago, when it first left the desert, it had been inadvertently hurt by their weapons.
But now, this was the desert.
And here, it was the sovereign!
All two-legged creatures must die!
The Digging Sand Worm King roared, a massive column of fire spewed forth, simultaneously shaking the sand, sending wave-like layers toward the front.
“Blood—Slash—”
A blood-red light burst forth, splitting the giant pillar of fire with a blood-red Sword Qi, dispersing flickering specks of fire.
The blood-red sword light continued upwards, though already considerably dimr than before.
The Digging Sand Worm King panicked, twisting its long body swiftly to descend and avoid so of the blow, yet still was slashed with a gash several ters long, gushing blood plunderingly.
How could these two-legged creatures be so strong!
To it, Luo Zhe, who looked similar to everyone else, raised his sword again, stepping into the air.
“Sky Breaking Slash”!
An even larger white sword light slashed out, streaking past like a beam of light.
The upper half of the Digging Sand Worm King’s body bore a bloody line and with a bang, its entire head was split open and fell heavily, spilling blood and green organs.
The enormous body of the Sand Worm King struggled, stirring up clouds of sand.
Boom boom.
The sand split like water, and the Digging Sand Worm King’s large body burrowed back beneath the surface.
It was not dead yet!
Despite not reaching the Second Tier, the traits and vitality of the Digging Sand Worm King allowed it to survive even after losing its head!
Waves of invisible fluctuations spread.
The sand surface surged, with countless smaller Digging Sand Worms erging from underneath, converging on Luo Zhe and his companions from all directions.
From afar, as if startled by the noise, more and more Demonized Beasts gathered, a dark tide of Demon Tide approaching.
Humans, sand worms, and Demonized Beasts battled each other.
Boom!
Finally, Luo Zhe released his aura without reserve, stomping down hard, leaving a deep pit in the sand and blasting gravel.
He followed the essence of the Sand Worm King, slashing one sword stroke after another.
Sand dunes collapsed, turning into sand valleys.
Countless pieces of gravel covered the Sand Worm King’s fragnted body.
Luo Zhe leapt up, blasting the sand away, and with a scoop and a slice, he opened the abdon of the Sand Worm King, searched inside for a while, and ca out still looking pristine, holding a dirt-yellow spherical pearl the size of a goose egg.
He inspected it carefully, then put it away.
Returning to the original spot, the battle was nearing its end, the raging Demon Tide slain entirely, and the Digging Sand Worms began to scatter and flee the mont the Sand Worm King was definitively killed.
The enormous head of the Sand Worm King lay not far away, with a few team mbers already advancing to extract Source Crystals, others collecting valuable materials from the bodies of Demonized Beasts and Digging Sand Worms, while nearly half of the team mbers still held their weapons at the ready.
In the wilderness, no matter the situation, vigilance must never be relaxed.
Luo Zhe inquired briefly and learned that only a few had sustained minor injuries in the recent fight.
At that mont,
a team leader stepped forward, hesitated a mont, then finally spoke,
“Chief Instructor, I feel sothing odd— it seems the soul power absorbed just now has decreased.”
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