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墨書 Inktalez
Wandering, Bufon, Wei Wei, and Dina entered the Dawn Desert half a day late due to communication issues, which they did not consider a mistake. Their goal was to prevent the Prophet from establishing a magic circle. Although the Fire Cult was the greatest potential enemy, if the Mage escaped, perhaps in thirty-five years or three to five hundred years, the Mage would become humanity's greatest foe. Wandering was clear about the priorities.
However, after several days of searching, they had found no trace of the Prophet, which left Wandering feeling somewhat agitated. Fortunately, Bufon, an old friend, continuously encouraged and reassured him, preventing him from losing his composure.
Tracking prey was a specialty of Wandering and Wei Wei, so on the fifth day, Wandering decisively split into two groups to search for the Prophet within the vast expanse of the Non-Zhir Domain, covering over ten thousand square kilometers in search of both the Prophet and his companion, the Giant Bug.
Li Qing and Zhao Wei formed the logistics team. Li Qing set up camp at a central location in this area while Zhao Wei transported food and water. Wandering planned to resupply from their camp. He believed that the Prophet's activity area lay within five thousand square kilometers of desert west of Zhir Domain. Five thousand square kilometers was not large compared to the Dawn Desert's total area of nine million square kilometers. However, searching such an area with just four people was quite challenging, even with their Force.
Wandering and his companions carried a significant number of reconnaissance guards, placing them at high points. Normally, the owner of these guards could not stray too far from them; however, as a top expert, Wandering had his unique approach—while within the Eternal Sphere, his magical power would not deplete, allowing him to sense his created reconnaissance guards with great strength. He carried a massive indestructible scroll on his back that had been stored in his warehouse until now for this purpose. Every half hour, he would activate a reconnaissance guard using secret methods in hopes of increasing their chances of locating the Prophet.
On the third day after separating, they still had no leads. Wei Wei and Bufon were running low on food and water. Wei Wei headed back to camp to replenish supplies while Bufon continued setting up reconnaissance guards.
Li Qing rested at the camp located in a cave on a cliff in the desert—a natural shelter. He set up a hammock that appeared quite leisurely; however, he felt some dissatisfaction about being left to guard the camp alone. When someone approached, Li Qing activated his True Sight Guardian and spotted Wei Wei on a dune. Then… there was also a Giant Bug—the same one that had participated in the Competition Match and accompanied by the Prophet as a sacrifice for the magic circle.
The Giant Bug was about one hundred twenty meters away from Wei Wei and was burrowing through the sand. Due to the uneven terrain of the desert, Wei Wei occasionally looked back but failed to notice any disturbances in the sand. The sand layers concealed the energy emitted by the Giant Bug; unfortunately for it, it had not escaped Li Qing's True Sight Guardian. Was it alone? Was the Prophet nearby?
Li Qing felt uneasy; this indicated that the Prophet was already alert. It remained unclear whether he knew their entire plan or if it was merely a coincidence that Wei Wei had come to replenish supplies. Observing that the Giant Bug was not in an attacking stance but rather tracking mode suggested… Li Qing quickly crawled out of the cave and made his way to higher ground, hiding among rocks and sand layers.
Soon enough, Li Qing spotted Wei Wei as she leaped across a riverbed from an opposite cliff and landed in the cave without noticing him—much to her surprise—but as a hunter, she sensed something amiss. Beneath her hammock were clear footprints in the sand; given how strong the winds were here, those footprints indicated that Li Qing had temporarily left.
Wei Wei realized that Li Qing had his True Sight Guardian; when she arrived… there were two possibilities: either this man didn’t want to be alone with her or she might have been followed. With these thoughts in mind, she casually filled her containers with water and food before turning to leave.
One minute after Wei Wei departed, the Giant Bug jumped into the cave. Li Qing rolled down to block its path; before he could speak, the Giant Bug lunged at him and knocked him away. Li Qing twisted mid-air above a high riverbed and flew toward an opposite cliff while easily dodging the terrifying roar emitted by the Giant Bug. The Giant Bug also had an earth-shaking attack; however, before it could land any blows on him, Li Qing evaded its moves effortlessly.
As they fought, Li Qing skillfully countered every attack from the Giant Bug which cried out in distress repeatedly. Whenever it opened its mouth to unleash another fearsome roar, Li Qing would already be sprinting away with swift legs. If there was blame to be placed anywhere, it would be on how honest this Giant Bug was; if it were Cui Ming making noise instead, Li Qing wouldn’t dare approach so boldly. After three minutes of battle, the Giant Bug seemed utterly lost and disoriented.
Wei Wei was nearby, observing with Eagle Eye. The current situation was in their favor, and she had no intention of revealing herself, remaining cautious of the Prophet lurking in some dark corner.
Li Qing kicked the Giant Bug away, sending it crashing against the cliff. The weathered rock shattered, creating a large hole where the Giant Bug became embedded. Just as Li Qing was about to deliver another blow, a Void Energy vortex appeared on the Giant Bug's body, and then both the Giant Bug and the vortex vanished.
Li Qing stood still as Wei Wei approached and said, "Void Gate. The Prophet's Void Gate and the Giant Bug's Void Gate can now connect." Previously, the Void Gate released Void Energy to harm opponents rather than serve as a means of transportation. But now it seemed they could teleport to each other's side.
Li Qing nodded. "This is a serious problem." The Prophet and the Giant Bug were definitely acting separately; even if they found the Prophet, it wouldn't matter. If they could defeat him, they would; if not, he could simply escape to the Giant Bug's side.
Wei Wei disagreed. "Don't be so pessimistic. The Prophet will have to set up a magic circle sooner or later; they will definitely come together. Conversely, as long as we find one of them, we can quietly track them down and catch them all."
Li Qing replied, "But you're not good at tracking in the wilderness."
Wei Wei said, "I'll head back to Bufon. Among us, only Dina has top-tier tracking skills."
Li Qing thought for a moment. "Wei Wei, if you and Bufon get close to the edge of the area, consider entering it to inform Cui Ming about our situation through our friend."
Wei Wei hesitated. "Wandering has repeatedly instructed us not to enter the area; otherwise, we might be attacked indiscriminately."
Li Qing responded, "If it's truly Cui Ming's friend, even if they're bad news, they won't attack without reason. Cui Ming needs to know our progress just as much as we need to know what's happening on his side."
Wei Wei nodded. "Alright, I'll write a letter and throw it into the area... Don't look down on me; Wandering is our leader. Even if what he insists on is wrong, we must comply. If all hunters acted like you—thinking they know better—then hunters would be scattered like sand."
Li Qing asked, "Are you planning to lecture me?"
Wei Wei chuckled lightly. "What’s there to discuss with you? You're just an irresponsible man. I'm leaving now."
"Hey, we're discussing business here! Why attack me personally?"
The prophet seemed to sense that something was amiss, but would not abandon his plans. It was now a game of cat and mouse. It was essential to establish contact with Cui Ming to at least determine how long it would take the prophet to set up a magic circle.
The stars filled the sky, and because the desert could not retain heat, the nights were extremely cold, creating a stark contrast with the daytime. It was an uncomfortable place; after spending several years in the desert, Cui Ming had mostly stayed in the oasis, where there was shelter to cool off during the day and warmth at night. Outside the oasis, even with Force, the desert felt unbearable, as if living under a glass dome with no time to breathe, leading to a sense of suffocation.
However, the stars brought a sense of calm to Cui Ming. Lying on the rooftop and gazing at the starry sky and the nebulae, he suddenly felt a smallness in humanity's thoughts. The planets were but a drop in the ocean of the galaxy, and he too was just a drop on his planet—essentially no different from an ant. The nebulae were beautiful, something rarely seen in the city but clearly visible here.
The wind stood five meters away from Cui Ming, beside a protective magic circle set up by Sadin that covered an area of two hundred square meters. Activating it was simple; one just needed to shatter a Magic Stone with Force.
Cui Ming said, "Every time I lie back and look at the nebulae, I feel transcendent. It makes me think that all the struggles in life are meaningless. I admire those scientists who managed to create telescopes that reveal just how small we truly are."
The wind surprisingly refrained from banter, leaning against a Magic Pillar while gazing at the starry sky. "So, the temptation of becoming a god is something no one can resist."
Gods were not divine beings in the traditional sense but rather creatures endowed with immense power and immeasurable lifespans. Those who had not become gods did not know how to achieve it, and those who had would not share their secrets. Cui Ming recalled Ding Ze's encounter with the Wanderer—a standard god who was an exceptionally powerful practitioner. Through insight, opportunity, and personal effort, he had finally ascended to godhood. However, the Wanderer told Ding Ze that life was too long and loneliness always accompanied him. Thus, he traveled across planets to enhance his enjoyment of life. As for the struggles of Intelligent Beings and planetary destruction, they seemed trivial to him; he possessed a transcendent mindset and had witnessed many planets' demise. Some were destroyed by their own Intelligent Beings; others fell victim to various external factors.
The Wanderer had witnessed the process of a beautiful planet with seven billion inhabitants meeting its end. The Intelligent Beings relied on technology, endlessly demanding from nature while their small voices advocating for planetary protection fell silent before humanity's selfishness. They burned through all of the planet's oil and mined its coal until it warmed up, glaciers melted, extreme weather became frequent, and ultimately the planet turned into an ocean.
This planet was fortunate; it eliminated the species that destroyed it and over time would slowly give rise to new forms of life. Some planets were tragic; their Intelligent Beings worked hard to protect their world and build their homes while developing advanced civilizations but could not withstand Void Power. As the Void approached their planet, it was drawn in like soup into a pot, crushed into dust.
PS: On June 6th, 2016, just before publication, I suddenly realized! (To be continued.)
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