Chapter 91: Structures in the Desert


    The hatching of the Destruction Butterfly''s egg had resolved the immediate crisis for Han Ming and the other two survivors. It also brought Han Ming a renewed sense of hope.


    Although the egg hadn''t hatched into a butterfly as he had expected, but rather into a small red larva, the mere presence of this larva had been enough to scare off the swarm of fearless flying worms. This alone spoke volumes about the larva''s potential.


    After all, the aura of its species was enough to intimidate lower-level creatures, even in its infancy.


    Han Ming had never experienced such a peculiar sensation before.


    At this moment, he felt a new consciousness emerge within him, connected to his own mind. He could sense its presence and command it to follow his will.


    It was as if one of his arms had suddenly gained its own consciousness, becoming an independent life form, yet still belonging to him. He could feel it and control it.


    This feeling was incredibly strange.


    The moment the red larva connected with Han Ming''s consciousness, he understood—this was what a soul contract felt like. The larva''s soul was now bound to his. If he died, the larva would die as well. But if the larva died, Han Ming would remain unharmed.


    Because the larva''s soul was attached to his.


    Han Ming carefully observed the larva. He knew it was still in its fragile larval stage, and unless absolutely necessary, he wouldn''t risk letting it out. If it died accidentally, all the effort he had put into nurturing it over the past year would be wasted.


    Looking at the small larva sleeping peacefully in the pouch, Han Ming felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction.


    There were only four months left until the two-year mark.


    "Han Er, who exactly are you?" Chuck gasped, his eyes gleaming with suspicion. The last bit of his magic energy condensed into a wind blade, ready to be unleashed at any moment.


    Han Ming chuckled. "I''m just Han Er. What else could I be?"


    Chuck sneered. "You''ve been extraordinary this entire journey. Especially just now—a supposedly useless water-element mage, yet you fought off those worms without using magic, relying solely on physical combat. And that massive block of ice you conjured earlier? Only a third-tier water mage could do that, but I clearly sensed you''re only a first-tier mage. Hmph, you lied to me earlier, saying you were just a first-tier mage. How do you explain that?"


    Han Ming raised an eyebrow. "You didn''t tell us upfront that the five of you were a team, using the rest of us as cannon fodder, did you? We''re all smart people. Some things are better left unsaid. I didn''t expose you, so don''t go looking for trouble with me. We''re just using each other. Without me, neither of you would still be alive."


    Chuck nodded reluctantly. Of the four experts who had followed him, only one remained. Han Ming was indeed a valuable ally, even if his origins were mysterious. From the start, Han Er had never acted against the group and had even saved them from death multiple times.


    "I''ll trust you for now. What do you think we should do next? That black forest—no matter how far we walk, we can''t reach it. I''ve never heard of anything like this."


    Chuck rubbed his chin, deep in thought.


    Han Ming paused before speaking. "At first, I thought the black forest was just an illusion. I''m sure you thought the same. But now I''m not so sure. What kind of illusion could last for ten days? Whether the black forest is real or not, I can''t say for certain. For now, we''ll just have to take things one step at a time."


    He hesitated, then added, "Also, have you noticed something strange?"


    Chuck''s eyes widened. "What do you mean?"


    After spending so much time together, Chuck had come to value Han Ming''s insights. The young man rarely spoke, but when he did, his words were always prophetic, as if he had an innate sense for survival. So when Han Ming brought up something strange, Chuck couldn''t help but feel uneasy.


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    Han Ming rubbed his throbbing temples and said softly, "The small worms and the flying worms were terrifying, but in terms of strength, they were only low-tier, first-stage magical beasts. So far, in this Savage Desert, we haven''t encountered a single beast above the third stage. Those giant worms that fled the sinkhole were at most second-stage, high-tier beasts."


    Chuck''s hands trembled. "Don''t scare me like that. Those damn worms were bad enough. If we run into something even stronger, how are we supposed to handle it? We might as well just kill ourselves now." Chuck was genuinely frightened. The Savage Desert''s strangeness far exceeded his expectations.


    He couldn''t wait to leave this cursed place and reach the next zone, the Savage Ancient Forest. At least there, the Tree of Destruction was gone. The Savage Ancient Forest was Chuck''s ultimate destination. Without the Tree of Destruction, he could freely hunt fourth-stage magical beasts for wealth. As for the Savage Storm zone with its spatial storms and the even more terrifying Savage Inferno, he hadn''t even considered them.


    "Let''s not worry about that for now. We need to deal with your earth-element comrade''s body. I suspect it''s about to undergo some kind of transformation. Leaving it here would be dangerous. Once we''re done, we''ll rest and recover our strength, then continue westward. The sooner we reach the Savage Ancient Forest, the better. Overthinking won''t help."


    With that, Han Ming sat down cross-legged to recover his strength. As for the magic crystals, he decided not to absorb any more for now. He felt he had reached his limit today, and any more could risk overloading his body.


    Chuck was on the verge of tears. Not only had he lost three of his comrades, but the fourth-stage water-element magical beast core had also been lost when the wood-element warrior was swallowed by the sinkhole. After all this time and so many sacrifices, all he had to show for it was a hundred or so magic crystals. No one would feel good about that.


    "Burn him," Chuck said wearily, waving his hand in resignation.


    The fire-element sixth-tier warrior nodded and, with great effort, released a small burst of fire-element combat energy, preparing to set the earth-element warrior''s body ablaze.


    "Uh..."


    Just as the flames were about to touch the body, the earth-element warrior''s corpse twitched, and a strange sound came from its mouth. It sounded almost human but distorted, like a parrot mimicking speech.


    "Wait! Something''s wrong! Don''t burn him yet!"


    Hearing the noise, Han Ming quickly opened his eyes and stopped the fire-element warrior. At first, he thought the eggs inside the earth-element warrior''s body had hatched and were about to explode, but upon closer consideration, this seemed different from the earlier incident. So he intervened.


    The earth-element warrior''s body swayed unsteadily as it stood up, turned in a circle, and began walking in a specific direction, completely ignoring Han Ming and the others.


    "What''s happening to him?" the fire-element warrior asked, bewildered.


    "Follow him!" Han Ming frowned and stood up, ready to pursue.


    "Are you trying to add to our troubles? Let''s just go. Don''t bother with him," Chuck urged, desperate to leave this place behind.


    Han Ming turned and gave Chuck a cold look. Although Chuck had been using others, he hadn''t done anything too egregious.


    Han Ming took four of the six water bags from his waist and tossed them to Chuck and the fire-element warrior. "I have more water. Take four bags; I''ll keep two. If you don''t want to follow, keep going on your own." With that, he strode after the corpse.


    "What should we do?" the fire-element warrior asked.


    "Follow him! Continuing forward might not get us to the Savage Ancient Forest. This might be our only way out," Chuck said through gritted teeth, deciding to trust Han Ming. He had a feeling that sticking with this young man would at least minimize their losses.


    The corpse''s pupils were fully dilated, showing no signs of life. Han Ming guessed that the flying worms inside the body were controlling it, likely heading back to their nest. But Han Ming had no other options.


    The desert was like a vast maze. No matter how far they walked, it felt like they were going in circles, making no progress. They had no choice but to follow the corpse, hoping it might lead them to some clue.


    The corpse staggered through the desert for two days, with Han Ming and the others trailing behind.


    To Han Ming''s relief, his guess seemed correct. The worms controlling the body were able to navigate the desert''s maze. In the distance, he could now see something different from the endless sand.


    It was a cluster of strange structures, seemingly made of solidified sand. But these structures were unusually tall.


    After another day of walking, the structures grew closer, and to their delight, they finally encountered their first oasis in the desert. It was a large, emerald-green lake surrounded by lush grass and a few towering, unknown plants.


    The three of them cheered like children and rushed into the water, washing away the sand and grime.


    "Finally, some green! Damn it, not only is the sand in this Savage Desert yellowish-brown, but even the sky is the same color. If I had to stay in that environment any longer, I''d go mad," Chuck said, stripping off his clothes and swimming like a fish. This usually calculating man was showing his true self for the first time, a testament to how much the desert had worn him down.


    Han Ming dove into the water, letting the coolness wash away his fatigue and frustration. The oasis offered more than just water. Only those who had faced death multiple times in the desert could understand the significance of this patch of green.


    Since the corpse was still moving, the three didn''t linger too long. After a refreshing bath and refilling their water bags, they hurried to catch up.


    The fire-element warrior kept looking back longingly at the oasis as they walked, occasionally letting out a watery burp.


    When they were a few hundred meters from the structures, they stopped and hid behind a sand dune to observe.


    The corpse wobbled up to one of the structures and stopped. Two figures emerged from the building, examined the corpse, and nodded in satisfaction before leading it inside.


    "What are those things? Why do they look so strange? Human bodies... with snake heads?" Chuck exclaimed, astonished by what he saw.