Chapter 100: The Exile Road, Part 42

"I'm afraid we can't get out now..." Ye Liuyun said in a low voice. "The Kloss worm monsters are creatures that move beneath the sand, hunting by sensing vibrations on the ground. Even a tiny mutant rat passing by would alert them, let alone our vehicles..."

Ye Liuyun felt deeply guilty. She had led the way; landing in such a predicament was entirely her fault.

Shi Xianyu could not help asking, "But we've been here for so long and haven't seen a single worm monster. Could they have gone somewhere else to feed? Maybe they aren't here?"

"Because there was a sandstorm when we came," Big Beard explained. "During a sandstorm, those monsters' senses aren't nearly as sharp."

"Then do we have to wait for the next sandstorm before we can leave?" Radish cried in alarm. "But who knows when the next one will come? Three days? Five? Half a month?!"

He used to hate sandstorms more than anything. Now he would have gladly welcomed one back at once.

"Even if we do get another sandstorm, that still doesn't guarantee we'll make it out of here," Ye Liuyun said grimly. "A sandstorm can make people lose their sense of direction, and the navigation instruments in the vehicles can fail too. In the end, we might still end up circling around near the stone formation. It's more practical to think about how to solve this right now."

Lin Yuan, who had remained silent all this time, finally spoke. "Abandon one vehicle and use it as bait?"

They all looked at one another. That method... seemed feasible?

"Which one do we abandon?" Big Beard asked.

Ye Liuyun gritted her teeth. "Mine. It's lighter, and fast enough."

Radish looked worried. "Boss, be careful."

"Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."

Ye Liuyun threw the things from her vehicle into Big Beard's, then started the engine in one breath, turned around, and accelerated. The off-road vehicle shot forward! At the same time, Ye Liuyun opened the door and jumped out!

She hit the ground, rolled once, then got to her feet and saw her off-road vehicle already speeding away into the distance, leaving two straight tracks behind it.

"Get in quickly!" Big Beard urged.

Without another word, Ye Liuyun leaped into Big Beard's off-road vehicle, and together they watched the armored vehicle in the distance with wary eyes.

The vehicle was getting farther and farther away.

Shi Xianyu also frowned and looked on. She had never seen the so-called worm monster herself, but judging from how wary Ye Liuyun and the others were, she knew it was not something easy to deal with.

Faintly, the ground began to tremble.

"It's here." Ye Liuyun's face had gone pale. Her eyes swept the surroundings, trying to determine where the monster was coming from.

Shi Xianyu felt the shaking grow stronger and stronger, like the trembling air before a subway train pulled into a station. Then, in the distance, a colossal creature suddenly burst up from the sand!

Shi Xianyu's eyes widened in shock.

Even though she had been prepared, she never imagined the monster could be so enormous. The shadow that suddenly sprang up was like a skyscraper rising out of the desert from nowhere.

That massive off-road vehicle looked as tiny as a candy pill before it.

"Go!" Ye Liuyun shouted at the top of her voice. "It's chasing the vehicle. Let's move now!"

Both vehicles started at once, not daring to stop for even a second.

In the rearview mirror, Shi Xianyu saw the off-road vehicle in the distance tip over and roll, then sink completely into the quicksand thrown up as the monster moved, vanishing in an instant.

Ye Liuyun's voice rang out beside them. "Head for the gap beneath that sandstone rock ahead! Hurry!!"

The off-road vehicle had already been swallowed up. Now, on this barren stretch of desert, only their vehicle remained, and the monster would notice the movement here very soon!

They charged toward the rock as fast as they could. The tremors beneath the ground grew stronger and stronger, as though something was closing in behind them, filling everyone with dread.

Shi Xianyu no longer even knew what fear was. Under such immense terror, her mind had already gone blank. She could only grip the steering wheel mechanically and keep accelerating. Faster! Faster! Faster!

Boom!

A dull impact sounded behind them, and a vast shadow covered the sky overhead. The entire motorhome was jolted up into the air, then slammed back down again. Just as it was about to be overturned by the monster, it smashed headfirst into the recessed gap beneath the sandstone rock. Crash! The front windshield shattered completely.

Lin Yuan shielded her from the flying glass. "Are you all right?"

Shi Xianyu looked up and turned back anxiously. "Little Pear!"

Lu Li had fallen from the sofa seat and was lying in the aisle at the center of the motorhome, looking dazed. No one knew whether the broken leg had been injured again.

Shi Xianyu left the driver's seat and hurried over to lift Lu Li into her arms.

Lin Yuan moved to the side window to see what was happening outside.

The monster had not left. Its enormous body moved slowly through the sand. It had no eyes and could only judge the position of its prey by the vibrations in the ground, while the great slabs of rock in the desert acted like insulators, temporarily blinding it in this area.

The monster lingered nearby for a while, then burrowed back into the sand.

"It can't get here," Ye Liuyun said after catching her breath. "This thing only knows how to burrow through sand. As long as we stay near the rocks, we're fairly safe."

"Safe, maybe, but that still leaves us unable to leave," Radish said mournfully. "I'm only seventeen..."

Big Beard was also beside himself. "Why don't we abandon another vehicle? We have to buy enough time if we're going to get out of here!"

The motorhome was too slow, while the off-road vehicle had limited space and could not fit six people. Which one were they supposed to give up?

Shi Xianyu looked at them in embarrassment. "The impact was too hard just now. My motorhome won't start anymore."

Everyone fell silent.

Well, that solved the problem of which vehicle to abandon. Now there was only one left that could still be used.

Ye Liuyun asked Radish, "Can you fix it?"

Radish looked grim. "The front's completely caved in. I'm afraid a lot of parts will have to be replaced."

If these were the standard issue combat vehicles of a squad, they would have spare parts and repair tools in the car. But Shi Xianyu was driving a motorhome, and many of its components were different. Radish was a brilliant cook with no ingredients to work with.

Everyone was at a loss.

Shi Xianyu thought of how little of her chili water remained. She did not know whether it would do any good against such a gigantic creature. She also had the white mushrooms given to her by Xiao Man, and the same problem applied. The monster was simply too enormous, making every weapon seem pitifully small.

Could there really be no way at all?

She turned her head and looked up at the sky. The setting sun was sinking in the west, yet the heat still hung heavily in the air. On this desolate earth, there was nothing but sand, only a few towering rock formations standing like giants between heaven and earth, silent and lonely.

What could be done to lure the monster away?

What could buy them more time?

Did she have any other weapons in her space?

Shi Xianyu thought of the hundreds of large barrels of water in her storage space, then looked at the sloping rock face like a slide. Slowly, an idea formed in her mind, though she was not yet certain...

She asked Ye Liuyun, "Does that monster eat anything?"

"Anything," Ye Liuyun said with a sigh. "You saw it yourself. It even swallowed my off-road vehicle."

Shi Xianyu said, "I have an idea. I don't know whether it will work, but I need to climb to the top of the rock first. Who can help me up there?"