"Wake up, wake up, kid!"
Peng Da groaned and forced his eyes open, only to see a bearded uncle patting his face with rough hands.
Peng Da was dazed for a moment before he could identify the person in front of him.
"Uncle Mo Li," he called out. "Wasn't I sleeping on the camel's back?"
Peng Da looked around and was stunned all over again.
Sand and gravel stretched in every direction. There was no trace of the merchant caravan — only he and Mo Li remained, both looking wretched.
"It hurts," Peng Da groaned, discovering wounds all over his body.
Uncle Mo Li looked at Peng Da and sighed: "Kid, I really don't know what to say about you. You're incredibly lucky! A lot of Gu Masters tried to flee and died. You survived while fast asleep. But if I hadn't detected your faint aura in time and dug you out, you'd have been buried alive."
"Uncle Mo Li, you've saved me again," Peng Da grasped Mo Li's hands, brimming with gratitude. "But what exactly happened?"
"This was a natural disaster — I've never seen anything like it," Uncle Mo Li let out a heavy sigh.
"Then... what about our caravan?"
"Sigh, now it's just the two of us left."
What?! Peng Da's eyes went wide, and he mentally screamed a curse: "How is this world so damn dangerous? Natural disasters strike at the drop of a hat! I just took a nap and nearly died again! Good heavens, what kind of world have I stumbled into? It's like people aren't even treated as people — the living conditions here are absolutely brutal!"
"At least we're still alive." Mo Li rapped Peng Da on the head. "Look at you — still not satisfied? Surviving that kind of disaster is the greatest fortune there is!"
"Look at me," Mo Li pointed at his own chest. "I spent most of my life working to build up this caravan. Now it's all gone! Just accept it — this is how things are. Sigh, if only I could become an Immortal!"
"Become an Immortal? Are there still Immortals in this world?"
Mo Li glanced at Peng Da. "You really have forgotten everything? Even the Immortals? Sigh, I'll explain later. Let's get out of here first."
Peng Da followed Mo Li as they set off toward the nearest oasis.
Walking behind Mo Li, Peng Da cautiously asked: "Are these disasters common?"
"Of course!" Mo Li said in a weathered tone. "Making a living in the desert isn't easy. Sandstorms are frequent killers. Sometimes there are even blade hurricanes — each gust of wind condenses into enormous wind blades that cut through everything in their path. Besides natural disasters, there are also vicious beasts. For instance, this is the Wolf Desert, where sand wolves are the most numerous."
Awoooo—!
As Mo Li was speaking, a pack of sand wolves suddenly burst out from beneath the desert sand.
"W-wolves!" Peng Da jumped in fright. "Heavens, they came up from under the sand! There are so many — what do we do, Uncle?!"
Mo Li's face turned grave, and he cursed: "Damn it! How did these sand wolves survive the natural disaster?"
But thinking about it, it wasn't strange.
The energy tide was a phenomenon formed by the interaction of Heaven and Earth qi, rooted in the Heavenly Dao. The Heavenly Dao never eliminates everything — it always leaves a thread of life. If Mo Li and Peng Da could survive, then naturally other living beings could as well.
Sand wolves emerged from all directions, but strangely, even though they had discovered Peng Da and Mo Li, they did not attack. Instead, they quickly gathered together, howling, their eyes fixed on the ground.
Shhh shhh shhh shhh...
A series of eerie sounds of shifting sand, and golden scorpions began emerging from underground. Each golden scorpion was as large as a millstone, sending chills down Peng Da's spine.
The golden scorpions and the sand wolves erupted into a brutal battle.
Whenever a sand wolf was stung by a golden scorpion's tail spine, it would immediately foam at the mouth, collapse to the ground, and die. But the golden scorpions were no match for the wolves' claws and fangs, often being torn apart by wolf claws.
The two groups of beasts fought savagely, their minds too simple to pay any heed to Mo Li and Peng Da who were standing right beside them.
Peng Da watched with his heart in his throat, his face draining of color. This world was far too dangerous. Whichever side won, they would surely come for him next.
"We have to break through!" Mo Li said through gritted teeth, his expression resolute.
"B-but Uncle, we're surrounded by golden scorpions and sand wolves everywhere!" Peng Da was on the verge of tears.
"Do you want to wait to be eaten?" Mo Li said, already preparing to move. "Kid, can you fight?"
"Huh? I — I can't. I've lost my memory."
"Those sand wolves and golden scorpions don't care whether you've lost your memory. Stay close to me and do your best to protect yourself. Breaking through still gives us hope." Mo Li paused here, then laughed. "If the breakout fails, you'll be filling a beast's belly. But don't worry — you won't be going alone. Uncle will be right there with you."
Peng Da rolled his eyes — he'd rather be buried alive than die like that!
Mo Li began to break through, and Peng Da shouted: "Uncle, wait for me!"
He could only desperately follow behind Mo Li.
The two of them were fine as long as they stayed still, but the moment they moved, they immediately alarmed both the scorpion and wolf packs.
Almost simultaneously, several golden scorpions and sand wolves charged at them from both sides.
Mo Li let out a low shout and activated his mortal Gu, but only managed to drive back two beasts before the two of them were hemmed in by the swarm.
"The breakout failed!" Mo Li sighed and gave up resistance.
Peng Da clutched his head in desperation, despair washing over him, his legs trembling. "Am... am I going to die?!"
Supreme Immortal Aperture.
At this moment, whether it was the Minor Five Regions or the Minor Nine Heavens, all was in chaos — turmoil everywhere.
In the Minor Southern Border, mountain ranges collapsed and the terrain shifted wildly. In the Minor Central Continent, rivers changed course, creating catastrophic floods. In the Minor Western Desert, sandstorms blanketed the sky, swallowing oases and cities alike...
Minor Northern Plains.
A violent blizzard raged, and wisps of pure white flame drifted through the wind and snow, clinging to wherever they touched, burning everything they landed on.
This was an exotic fire immortal material — the Frost Ice Flame.
In places where the Ice and Snow Dao Marks were dense, there was a certain probability of this wondrous flame appearing. The flame was composed mostly of Ice and Snow Dao Marks, but at its core burned concentrated Flame Dao Marks.