Chapter 514

Boom boom boom~

The moment the words ended, the entire dune instantly “boiled”! Countless crimson insects, densely packed and numbering in the thousands, were jolted awake by the explosion, surging forth like a torrent of dark red tide from beneath the sand! At the same time, the distant crimson storm intensified abruptly; within the twisted wind columns, several towering human-like figures—identical to the one just seen—flickered in and out of view! Even more terrifying, the thick crimson cloud layer enveloping the Noah was ripped apart, and several massive dark red tentacles, each over ten meters in diameter and covered in suction cups and crimson eyes, descended like serpents from the abyss, crashing down upon the team’s position with crushing, apocalyptic pressure!

Li Site immediately retracted his sniper rifle and, alongside Song Wei, sprinted toward the motorcycle. Kiki snatched up Long’s severed right arm, then unleashed a burst of invisible psychic force that exploded outward, instantly reducing the insect swarm within a hundred-meter radius to a mist of blood.

But it was useless—the crimson blood mist only attracted more horrors, and she did it merely to create a smokescreen, temporarily depriving the distant attackers of their target.

“Don’t engage! We’ve definitely alerted an S-class! Fall back now!”

The team shot forward like arrows loosed from a bow, fleeing desperately under the dual assault of the crimson insect tide and the colossal shadows above.

Kiki flew ahead, her psychic force forming an invisible battering ram that smashed and shoved aside the blocking insect swarms. The other four mounted their flying motorcycles and raced forward. Lei Meng’s magnetic oscillations continuously created quicksand traps and shockwaves behind them. Song Wei darted nimbly between the dunes, using life resonance to avoid energy concentrations. Li Site rode while precisely sniping the closest large crimson creatures. From Long’s severed arm, coolant and blood continuously leaked; to mask the scent, he smeared handfuls of yellow sand over the wound, gritting his teeth the whole way, his left shotgun roaring as it blasted open monsters blocking their path.

One hour later.

Beneath the rusted, mountainous hull of the Noah, inside a sea-eroded cave, the team activated a frequency oscillator. A pale purple energy barrier sealed off the raging sandstorms and the crimson insects’ surveillance outside. On the ground lay three corpses clad in black powered armor—members of the Shengcheng Organization who had attacked them.

“It’s them again.”

“Looks like they’re after the same thing we are.”

“The Commander warned us about the importance of the Swordbearer—even…” Lei Meng paused mid-sentence, then fell silent.

Whether for research into mechanical psionics or for psychological warfare against human survivors, if the corpse of the Swordbearer—who had become legendary in the Battle of Shuguang City—fell into the hands of the Descent Faction, it would be an absolute catastrophe.

That’s why the Nightwalkers had deployed numerous reconnaissance teams to tirelessly scour this nine-deaths-one-life crimson abyss.

Li Site kicked aside one of the Shengcheng members’ corpses, crouched down, and stared at the claw marks pierced through by crimson corrosion. His gaze turned icy. “I thought the Descent Faction didn’t fear monsters. Why do they get devoured even after switching sides?”

“Who knows? Could the Dark Civilization somehow command those insects to avoid attacking them?” Song Wei crossed her arms, coldly replying. “It’s just the delusion of cowards.”

“Enough!”

Lei Meng finished bandaging Long’s arm, then turned to Kiki. “This area is now compromised. We have little time left. Kiki—do we shift to another zone for search, or retreat to the safehouse for safety?”

“No. This area isn’t finished. We can’t miss a single corner.”

Kiki stared at the still churning crimson outside the cave, her violet eyes filled with urgency. “We have to find him quickly!”

"Before you woke up, our division’s dozens of teams had already searched this area multiple times," Lei Meng said calmly, his gaze thoughtful. "If the Descent Faction took him away, that could, in a way, be good news—but they’re still here..."

Silence fell. Everyone understood what Lei Meng meant: Kiki should not cling to hope that Lin Xian was still alive. Their current mission was far more likely to be recovering the Swordbearer’s corpse.

After all, a stasis pod crashed onto a crimson battlefield, with no protection, no crimson-shielding device, surrounded by swarms of crimson insects—it was nearly impossible to imagine a living human surviving in stasis here.

Kiki’s body trembled imperceptibly at these words. She stood frozen, silent for a long while.

Song Wei and the other team members exchanged silent glances, about to offer comfort, when Kiki’s voice rang out in the air.

“He won’t die.”

The voice was quiet, yet fiercely resolute.

“He survived Yubei City, Xilan City, Shuguang City. His goal was to lead us onto the Infinite Train, soaring into the clouds, heading toward the Far Star. How could he possibly just… die in a stasis pod because of crystalline evolution?”

Her tone carried a mock-lightness, then she turned to face them. “Believe me—he’s still alive.”

Lei Meng froze. Even he, hardened by countless deaths, felt a pang. He exhaled slowly, then turned to the team.

“Our mission is to find the Swordbearer at all costs. That is our duty—even if we must give our lives to accomplish it!”

He checked the time. “We have less than an hour before the Sky Colossus arrives. Let’s move fast—scour this entire area!”

“Understood!” Li Site and Song Wei replied in unison.

“No problem!” Bandaged and standing, Long slapped his chest. “I’m ready!”

“Then we change tactics,” Lei Meng said immediately. “Time’s short. Since stealth’s impossible now, we go all-out. No sacrificial pawns left. Let’s just pray we don’t run into a Special-Class Hunter.”

“The S-class from earlier didn’t get tagged—that’s lucky,” Song Wei nodded. “Kiki and I will search every ship. You three handle cover. That’ll speed things up!”

“Good!”

“Agreed.”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Crimson, like congealed blood, hung overhead. Sand was blasted skyward by psychic force and explosions, then mixed with thick, dark red dust, falling softly back down.

The entire Hakan Coast boiled like a pot of sand. Fireballs erupted one after another, accompanied by the muffled thunder of Gauss sniper rifles and the shrill screech of pulse weapons. Lei Meng, Li Site, and Long formed a triangular formation, relentlessly killing monsters emerging from the sand.

Besides crimson insects, there were strange creatures spewing glowing filamentous tentacles. These beings didn’t rely on dark markers—they were drawn solely by sound and the scent of blood mist, steadily converging. Without the large-scale dark energy fluctuations previously created by Shengcheng, the attacks hadn’t escalated further, but the team’s firepower was already growing increasingly strained.

“Hurry! Hurry!”

Kiki hovered low, her long purple hair whipping wildly in the crimson storm, her eyes glowing with starlike dark violet light. Her psychic force formed an invisible giant hand, violently ripping another half-buried transport ship from beneath the sand!

The sound of twisted metal was deafening. A cascade of sand erupted, revealing the ship’s rusted skeleton and scattered, desiccated corpses inside.

Song Wei followed closely. Her life resonance waves acted like precise probes, rapidly scanning through dust and wreckage, while her agile form darted between tilted decks and broken hulls. Her powered armor’s sensors operated at full power, searching alongside Kiki.

“Nothing! Next ship!” Song Wei’s voice crackled over the comms, laced with urgency.

“Three o’clock—Red Demon! Watch out!”

"Boss, visibility’s getting worse!" Li Site blasted apart a rapidly approaching eerie spider with a single shot; the exploding blood mist turned the entire area even more crimson.