Qi Yuan slowly opened his eyes. The huge black-toothed rat captured by the Spirit Fortress had disappeared. The black-toothed rat that had crawled out from the ground had also died. However, Qi Yuan's face did not show any joy.
The size of the black-toothed rat showed the power of the person who had controlled it. It was a fifth-tier Mystic.
The reason why the giant black-toothed rat formed by the opponent's mental power seemed so vulnerable was not because the opponent was too weak, but because he did not pour too much mental power into this black-toothed rat.
This also meant that the dissipation of this wisp of mental strength did not cause too much damage to the other party.
The enemy would not be like Wen Zhuo, who had been injured by the spirit fortress.
"What is it?" Fu Qingqing asked. She could tell something was wrong from Qi Yuan's expression.
"I killed a black-toothed rat that was controlled by an enemy. The person controlling it is not weak. He must be from a fifth-tier Mystic," Qi Yuan said.
In the Rank Five Mysterious Domain, Fu Qingqing frowned and quickly thought of Black Scorpion.
"Black Scorpion is a fifth-tier Mystic," Fu Qingqing said.
"If I'm not mistaken, the black-toothed rats and sandworm geno beasts were the work of Black Scorpion. He almost wiped out such a large fleet."
An expert from the Mysterious Domain who could control Insect Beasts to harass his enemies would definitely be able to display a powerful combat strength in the red zone. The Insect Beasts he controlled would only be a little troublesome to deal with, but if he attracted even more powerful Insect Beasts while dealing with these Insect Beasts, he would be in real danger.
"Black Scorpion dared to ambush a fleet of vehicles and cause so much damage. I'm afraid the shelter will send a high-tier elite for the next attack," Fu Qingqing said.
"By the time the shelter receives the news, the Black Scorpion Bandits will be long gone," Qi Yuan said.
"They did not hide the fact that they were in cahoots with the Mechanical King Court. If they attacked this fleet of vehicles, they probably wanted to leave right away. If we don't get rid of the Black Scorpion Bandits, the next time we see them, we'll be fighting the Mechanical King Court."
The two of them quickly made their way to the frontline base. Along the way, they witnessed a few more battles, but they were not the Black Scorpion Bandits. Instead, they were people who had encountered a wasteland Insectoid.
In addition to these battles, Qi Yuan discovered that the number of black-toothed rats increased as they got closer to the blue zone. The enemy didn't seem to want them to leave the red zone so easily. Even with the detection of the Spiritual Fortress, they couldn't completely avoid the black-toothed rats' search.
An adult black-toothed rat suddenly emerged from the ground. Just as it emerged from the ground, its head was pierced by a whistling stone, instantly killing it.
"Be prepared for battle. The enemy may appear at any time!" Qi Yuan said.
Killing the Black-toothed Rat before it discovered him could delay the enemy's discovery for a short period of time, but the death of the Black-toothed Rat was a signal.
Qi Yuan had a vague premonition that Black Scorpion's main target was not the convoy, but himself.
Fu Qingqing glanced at the map and said,
"We are fifty kilometers away from the blue zone. With our current speed, it will take us an hour and a half to leave the red zone."
Before Fu Qingqing finished speaking, Qi Yuan suddenly stopped running.
"He is here!"
Fu Qingqing's eyes froze. Death Dance appeared in her hands, and she readied herself for battle.
Boom!
The ground beneath his feet was suddenly lifted, and another huge black sandworm soared into the sky.
It arched its body, and its mouth was pointed at the two of them.
Stinky mucus dripped from the gaps between his teeth, emitting an incomparably tyrannical aura.
Its giant body was covered with a hard black shell, and it looked exactly like the sandworm Geno Battle Beast that had been killed by the convoy.
After seeing the battle of that Geno Battle Beast, Qi Yuan quickly realized that the two of them could beat the giant sandworm Geno Battle Beast, but it wouldn't be easy.
"Try to avoid fighting. Use your speed to get rid of it," Qi Yuan said.
The sandworm's mouthpart trembled slightly, then it swallowed Qi Yuan in one gulp.
The two of them sped up, and they ran from the left and right sides of the giant sandworm.
The sandworm's giant body twisted, and it looked like it was going to swallow Qi Yuan. Fu Qingqing's eyes turned cold, and she was ready to strike.
"Keep going! I can handle this!" Qi Yuan shouted.
Fu Qingqing turned her head to look at Qi Yuan, only to see him suddenly increase his speed and actually dodge the attack of the Insect Beast. Only then did she give up on attacking.
However, Fu Qingqing was still a little worried. Although the sandworm was only Class 4, its huge body gave it a boost in strength. Its attacks were no weaker than any Class 5 sandworm.
Qi Yuan was a tier four Geno Battle Beast, but his core ability was Sense Area. It would be difficult for him to withstand the sandworm's attacks.
But slowly, Fu Qingqing realized that something was wrong.
After Qi Yuan dodged the Sandworm's attack, he actually maintained his charging speed without any signs of slowing down as he madly dashed forward.
How could he be so fast?!
Fu Qingqing looked at Qi Yuan's back in shock. In that short moment of shock, Qi Yuan had overtaken her.
Fu Qingqing originally thought that Qi Yuan had used some kind of secret technique or medicine to increase his speed for a short period of time. However, as time passed, Qi Yuan's speed did not slow down at all. Instead, it showed signs of increasing, steadily leaving the sandworms behind.
Could it be that Qi Yuan had the ability to increase his speed?
This ability didn't seem to be compatible with his core Sense Area.
Could it be that Qi Yuan's speed didn't decrease at all? Fu Qingqing, who was still doubtful, relaxed and started running at full speed.
The sandworm shuttled through the ground, chasing after the two of them. Everywhere it passed, mud and rocks were sent flying. It was as if the ground was being torn apart.
Just as the two of them were about to shake off the sandworm's pursuit, Ye Xiwen's Area Detection suddenly sensed a dangerous energy hidden in the path ahead.
"Careful, there's a trap ahead!"
Qi Yuan shouted.
Fu Qingqing, who had been deliberately lagging behind Qi Yuan, suddenly dashed forward and arrived in front of Qi Yuan.
She raised Death Dance without hesitation. Dazzling lightning surrounded the weapon, and the violent energy was like the flames of fury burning in her heart.
Fu Qingqing shouted, and the Dance of Death, which was wrapped in lightning, suddenly slashed forward with her saber.
A violent bolt of lightning shot out from the Brontosaurus.
The Brontosaurus stuck close to the ground as it charged forward. Suddenly, a violent bolt of lightning soared into the sky, instantly illuminating the dark void.
The aftermath of the explosion spread out, and the ground rippled like water. The soil in the entire area was instantly sent flying.
Visible ripples spread out in the air, and the destructive energy mercilessly destroyed everything in the surroundings.
Fu Qingqing's scalp went numb. This explosive trap was powerful enough to kill a Tier 5 expert. If she accidentally got caught in the center of the explosion, she would probably be annihilated instantly.
"Go around!" Qi Yuan's voice suddenly sounded.
Fu Qingqing nodded subconsciously. With a turn of her body, she drew an arc in the air, bypassing the area of the explosion and sprinting forward.
However, she quickly realized that something was amiss. Facing the spreading destructive energy, Qi Yuan didn't dodge at all. Instead, he charged straight into the explosion without any intention of taking a detour.
What was Qi Yuan trying to do?
Was he trying to kill himself?
The aftermath of the explosion was still filled with destructive energy, and it was enough to severely injure a Tier 4 perceptive ability user.
Using the explosion as a distraction, the sandworm geno beasts were able to catch up. If Qi Yuan was injured, the sandworm would catch up with him.
Just as Fu Qingqing gritted her teeth and was about to turn around and stop the sandworm from killing Qi Yuan, she suddenly saw Qi Yuan reach out his right hand toward the aftermath of the explosion.
And then, Fu Qingqing's mouth dropped open.
She saw the terrifying energy spread out like a ring of clouds. It was enough to injure Qi Yuan, but when Qi Yuan reached out his right hand, it suddenly flowed into Qi Yuan's palm.
In just a short two seconds, all of the remaining energy surged into Qi Yuan's palm, condensing into a terrifying energy ball that sizzled.
Controlling such a violent energy and condensing it into a ball was something only an Elemental Area elite could do.
How did he do it?
Did Qi Yuan have a Tier 4 Elemental Area ability?
In this escape, Qi Yuan used his perceptive ability, combat ability, and Elemental Area abilities.
Where did he get these abilities from?
Didn't he just reach Tier 4?
And why was his ability combination so messy?
Did he not consider the synergy between the abilities?
Qi Yuan suddenly turned around in the air and threw the scary energy ball at the sandworm beast that was chasing after him.
The energy ball was full of destructive power, and it was swallowed by the ground. In the next second, there was another scary explosion.
Boom!
A mushroom cloud of lightning rose up.
The sandworm that was tunneling underground let out a shrill shriek. Although the power of the explosion had been reduced by a lot this time, the power of the explosion still caused severe damage to it. If it were not for its huge size, this attack would have been enough to kill a peak Class 4 insect beast.
Sandworm Geno Battle Beast emerged from the ground. Its giant body was raised high, and the front part of its body was scorched. Its sharp teeth had been torn apart, and a stinky liquid was spilling out of it.
The two consecutive explosions finally attracted the attention of the bug beasts nearby. A low growl could be heard from afar.
Qi Yuan's face changed. From the sound, he could tell it was a big creature.
A huge black shadow soared into the sky from afar. It stretched its body in mid-air, and its appearance looked like an incomparably huge toad.
After a few leaps, the giant toad landed in front of the sandworm.
Boom!
Under the huge impact, the earth trembled. The bloodthirsty aura mixed with the rolling dust spread out. The giant toad, which was close to the height of a three-story building, seemed to be inlaid with pieces of blood-red rocks. As it breathed, a faint scarlet light could be seen flowing at the bottom of these rocks.
The giant toad stared at the prey in front of it with a pair of large green eyes that were like copper bells. Stinky mucus dripped from the corner of its mouth.
The giant sandworm looked at the enemy with caution. Its mouth moved, as if it was trying to warn its foe.
It was a Tier 5 Bug Beast, Blood Rock Toad.
Just looking at its body was enough to make people feel pressured.
A real tier-5 elite bug had appeared, and it made Fu Qingqing nervous. The toad's leaping speed was much faster than the sandworm's. If it targeted her, there was no way she could outrun it.
Moreover, the Bloody Rock Toad was very powerful. Among the Rank 5 Elite Insectoids, it was considered a powerful existence. Its huge size would always give Insectoids an unfathomable boost in strength.
"Don't look back. Keep going. Its target is the sandworm," Qi Yuan said.
Although this kind of huge Elite Insect Beast was powerful and dangerous, it was not all bad news. At least, for this Blood Rock Toad, the huge Genetic Sandworm Beast was obviously more suitable for filling its stomach.
Two skinny humans, even if they ate it, would only be enough to fill the gaps between its teeth.
After a few seconds of staring at each other, the sandworm decided to retreat. Against an enemy that was just as big, but one level higher than itself, it didn't stand much of a chance.
The sandworm Geno Battle Beast's giant body started to sink into the ground, trying to escape. The ability to travel underground was its greatest advantage in the red zone.
But the toad didn't want to give up on its prey. It opened its mouth, and a red tongue pierced the sandworm's body like a javelin. Then, it straightened its tongue, trying to drag the sandworm out of the ground.
The sandworm was in pain, and it roared in pain.
After realizing that there was no way to escape, the two huge behemoths immediately started a fierce battle.
Qi Yuan and Fu Qingqing didn't want to watch the fight, so they quickly left the battlefield.
Qi Yuan looked back at the two beasts, and he knew the sandworm wasn't going to make it.
It was a shame, though, that the rock behind the toad was a fifth-tier material. It was as valuable as Asterite.
If Han Sen and Fu Qingqing were in the blue zone, they might be able to kill the toad.
After getting rid of the sandworm, the rest of the journey was peaceful. Aside from a few black-toothed rats, there were no more sandworm geno beasts chasing after them.
After losing two sandworm geno beasts, whoever was behind the scenes seemed to have run out of options.
Along the way, the two of them encountered two Class 5 bug beasts, but they did not engage in a fierce battle. One of the slower Class 5 bug beasts was left behind by the two of them, while the other one chose to escape after being injured by the two of them together. It did not pursue the two of them.
After a while, the two of them saw a heavy truck in the middle of the wilderness. The driver was gone, and there were no signs of fighting.
Fu Qingqing looked at the clouds and said,
"The blue zone is up ahead."
Qi Yuan nodded.
"It's time for them to show themselves."
At this time, the road in front of them broke, and a giant sandworm geno beast emerged from the ground. It arched its body, and its mouth was pointed at the two of them.
On its body, there was a man with a scorpion tattoo on his face. He was wrapped in animal skin.
"It's a black scorpion," Fu Qingqing said, looking serious.
"Are you sure you can do it?" Qi Yuan asked.
"Leave it to me."
Fu Qingqing summoned Death Dance and ran towards the black scorpion without hesitation.
Qi Yuan did not look at Fu Qingqing's battle. Instead, his gaze shifted to the truck that was blocking the path ahead. Beside the truck stood a familiar figure.