Forge a path to success.

Chapter 159 Newly Developed Knightly Skills
A cold wind swept across the desert, the white sand flowing with the wind, forming ripples that echoed back and forth between the dunes. Night had passed, but the dark moon still hung high in the sky. The only difference between day and night was that the darkness of the sky had faded slightly, and the temperature in the desert was a little higher, preventing people from freezing to death.

A blue, frozen track stretched across the sand, carrying four crystal-clear snow deer that galloped like the wind, trailing a string of clay wagons behind them. They were heading to the "Underwater Valley" on the other side of the desert, the entrance to the safe zone and a wondrous place where resources were exchanged for stories.

"This is the first time I've known you can do handicrafts," Chu Hengkong said.

“When I was little, Youyou made me a lot of educational toys,” Ji Huaisu said, brandishing her snow whip. “But I don’t know the way. This is the direction to the secluded valley, right?”

"Yeah, yeah, just keep charging forward like that." "Wow, that newbie's water elemental skills are amazing!" "Of course, they're at level 3, way stronger than all of us combined!"

The researchers in the rear carriage were dancing and having a great time in the clay carriage. They were all small fish and shrimp with mass points 1 and 2, not much of a threat even in the outside world. Now that they were people in the fog, they couldn't make any contribution at all, and were just cheering and shouting encouragement from the back.

"These guys have a pretty good attitude," Vande said listlessly. "Speaking of which, who built the safe zone in this godforsaken place? How did they get such great power to block the corruption of evil gods?"

“Of course, it’s the Allied forces that participated in the great war back then.” The frog-faced man grinned and leaned closer. “The era of the great war produced many talented people. There were evil gods among the heretics, and our Allied forces naturally had their pillars. Back then, a group of knights left behind ‘Holy Pillars’ in the Wilderness of Despair. The places protected by these pillars are immune to evil spirits. In the past, we were able to fight against the army of Vansalar entirely because of the protection of the Holy Pillars.”

Both men were intrigued by this revelation. Ji Huaisu, hearing them mention knights, became curious about the achievements of her ancestors, while Chu Hengkong was more concerned with the "Holy Pillar." This was because, upon arriving in the Despair Wilderness, the dying old soldier had personally told them that the knights' Holy Pillar had been extinguished.

If even the foundation for their survival is gone, how can the safe zone be safe? And if the safe zone is still there, why are these people deliberately operating in the dangerous desert?

Before he could ask a question, the impatient Ji Huaisu spoke first: "You know about knights?"

“Miss, you seriously underestimate the professional level of our research institute.” The burly man with the mohawk tossed his head and began to recite in a melodious tone, “The Discipline Knights are a path created by the righteous god ‘Discipline Emperor,’ warriors who fight under the heavens. In times of war, the entire nation of Knights threw themselves into the battlefield, making them the undisputed spiritual symbol of the Allied forces, leaving behind countless moving legends on the battlefield!”

The hooded woman's eyes were full of longing: "They are the embodiment of strength and beauty, the symbol of noble character. In those days, every Allied soldier wanted to be a comrade-in-arms of the knights."

"That's enough, that's enough, stop it already! Someone's getting too cocky," Vande said.

The knight tilted her head back, grinned foolishly, and wiped her nose: "It's not that amazing~"

The frog-faced man laughed too: "This girl is really interesting, quack. Why are you so happy when we're praising the knight?"

Ji Huaisu pointed to himself with his thumb and said excitedly, "I didn't expect you guys still hadn't figured it out. I am Ji Huaisu, the legendary Knight of Discipline!"

The researchers' mouths were so wide open they could fit three van der Rohe.

"What did you say?!"

"Who is the knight? You?"

"This...doesn't look like it..."

"You lot, keep your voices down!" Chongming shouted at the top of his lungs. "Loud noise will attract sandworms!!"

"You're the loudest one here, Mr. Chongming," Chu Hengkong said expressionlessly.

Chongming raised his hand to shade his eyes: "Ah, sandworms."

"What the hell? You did this on purpose, didn't you?"

A whooshing sound, like a draft, echoed through the sand, causing the ice deer pulling the cart to halt in unison. There was no need for binoculars; the signs of the approaching monster were clear to the naked eye. A magnificent column of wind ripped through the sand, like a giant whale spewing steam from the bottom of a sand sea. Within the column, a worm-like creature emerged—the very same Sky-Piercing Sand Worm that Shaks and Gulibo had encountered a day earlier, possessing an extreme sensitivity to sound!

"A level 3 alien beast, corresponding to the Path of Unity point 3, Xu Lie Xin, is probably the result of being nurtured in this awful environment," Vande concluded first. "How long do you plan to take?"

Ji Huaisu rubbed his hands together, eager to try: "Start the timer from the moment you make your move... one second, I'll say."

The sandworms roared to the sky, their noise sweeping across the sand and causing several columns of wind to rise in succession. All seven sandworms burst from the ground, their petal-like mouths opening as they attacked the noisy group!

"Now?" Van der squinted.

"No difference."

Ji Huaisu leaped nimbly from the deer-drawn cart, her leap sending up a massive tidal wave of sand that swept across the desert. The knight stood atop the wave, the unique environment allowing the steel-armored warrior to reach her peak speed. In an instant, she met the sand worm's gaping maw. Her punches were as swift as a bee's, a faint chill swirling around her knuckles. The punch grazed the giant sand worm's skin, the cold seeping into her body, which she then concentrated with her inner strength and unleashed.

The icy air bursting out of their bodies formed a transparent ring, freezing the seven sandworms into ice sculptures at the same time!

Ji Huaisu's fist pierced straight through the frozen insect's body, and she confidently shouted, "Invincible Ice Fist!"

The ice-melting sandworms exploded simultaneously, sending massive amounts of ice shards flying like stardust drifting in the sand. Chu Hengkong and Fan De both covered their faces in unison, the sound of their slaps being extremely loud.

The knight lady passed by just a second as she slid back to the deer cart, a smug look on her face: "How about that!"

"Could you explain why our knights, who pride themselves on justice, would come up with such a vicious name for a move?" Van der said.

"I developed this move myself," Ji Huaisu said. "And how is it vicious! It's all about being simple yet powerful!"

"You are not allowed to name yourself from now on." Chu Hengkong said expressionlessly, "Your ultimate skill will make the souls of the defeated writhe in hell."

"Why?"

Being killed by the Infinite Sword is understandable, and being imprisoned by the Holy Trinity Array can also be attributed to the enemy's superior skills. However, if the sandworms that just died had spirits beneath the sand, they would probably scream that they could not accept the humiliation of being blown up by the invincible Ice Fist.

At this moment, Chu Hengkong actually felt a little fortunate for the Demon of Misfortune. Olek's luck was actually quite good. If the final move to defeat its split spirit had been something like a "Super Fire Sword"...

That great demon would probably have to throw away all shame and chase him to the desolate wilderness to avenge his humiliation...

"Hmph, those guys have no aesthetic sense." Ji Huaisu tossed her ponytail and stood in front of the researchers. "Well? Do you believe me now?" The researchers exchanged views thoroughly and deeply. They nodded in unison and said:

“You have absolutely nothing to do with knights.”

"What's the point of you guys not believing this?! I'm the last knight personally certified by the old devil!"

The hooded woman stretched out her hands and stroked the fur in the air, trying to calm the person who was in a bad mood: "We all understand your longing for the seniors, but we must also admit the objective reality... Miss Ji, you only have two legs, how can you be a knight?"

"What does this have to do with the number of legs?!"

The hooded woman said matter-of-factly, "Knights have four legs; that's common knowledge."

The researchers nodded in agreement, but Ji Huaisu couldn't hold back any longer: "Four legs? What exactly do you think a knight looks like?!"

"The knight was strong and robust, and his height was at least four meters or more."

"The very first sentence is inhuman."

"The knight's fighting style is quite valiant; he can bite off a sandworm's head in one bite," the frog-faced man said seriously.

"Where did this terrifying beast come from?!"

Mohican nodded in agreement: "Knights laugh horribly as they run, and the sounds of battle can make a child faint."

"The child is unconscious! What is this knight protecting?! You must be talking about the enemy's centaur demons!"

Vande was struggling to suppress his laughter. He patted Chu Hengkong's arm and said, "That sounds familiar."

Chu Hengkong's expression was strange: "Even when she's not here, she can still challenge the limits of my understanding..."

“Dude, you can’t reason with an egg,” Vande said sincerely. “Besides, this place has been fucking crazy for a while now. We can’t survive if it doesn’t go crazy sooner or later. We should all go crazy together.”

"Hey you guys in the back, buckle up and hold on tight!" Chongming whipped the ice deer. "We're almost there!"

While they were rambling on, the ice sleds were still speeding across the desert. No one ordered them to change course, so the sleds continued forward, entering the area where the sandworms had leaped out.

After the giant sandworms died, their supporting bodies crumbled, and the already unstable structure caused by the sandworms' movements collapsed. The white sand swirled and collapsed into the hollow earth, like a thousand times larger antlion's burrow. The sand cave at the center of the vortex drew closer and closer to the group, so close that they could hear the terrifying wind howling from underground.

"Commander Chongming, shouldn't we consider taking a detour?" Fan De said timidly.

"I summoned the sandworms to take a shortcut." Chongming placed one foot on the carriage railing and pointed forcefully at the sand cave. "Let's go, men!"

"Oh, oh," everyone politely agreed.

"Oh my god! So this whole trip was basically suicide!!"

The ice-covered chariot plunged into the sand pit, and in an instant, the world was plunged into darkness!
Sand. Sand. Sand. As far as the eye could see, there was only sand and gravel, the tightly packed white sand forming the cave walls, leading from the top of the desert straight down to an unknown depth underground. The sounds of sandworms moving in the distance traveled through the layers of sand and gravel, the sound waves sending shivers down one's spine, as if they were the breath of a giant creature from the earth. By the dark moonlight cast behind him, Vande could vaguely make out the strange object in the sea of ​​sand.

Those are corpses, weapons, and the remains of ancient buildings. Countless people once roamed the desert, and countless others perished in the sea of ​​sand. The traces they left behind were buried by the wind and sand, layer upon layer sinking into the ground, like being framed in a cruel picture.

Pressure emanated from all around, and Vande trembled at the thought; it wanted to scream, to flee, to get out of this damned place immediately. Suddenly, a shockwave struck, and they crashed into the hard ground.

"Oh, damn it! Damn it! Ah!"

Vande tumbled off the sled, bouncing several times on the ground, his curses growing louder and louder. The ice deer had completed their task, turning into streams of cold water. Ji Huaisu leaned on her partner's shoulder, her face also looking rather pale.

"Ah Kong, I'm feeling a bit carsick..."

Chu Hengkong gently patted her back: "Don't throw up on me."

"I really will beat you up."

“You’ve regained your energy; this is speech therapy.”

"The landing method is so hardcore..." "I think my head fell off." "Holy crap, the gears in my stomach are stuck." The researchers screamed in the carriage, each sounding as if all their ribs were broken.

Chu Hengkong surveyed this strange space. There was a white ceiling, which was the sand sea they had been in not long ago. Occasionally, black light would fall from the holes in the sand. Looking back along the light, one could see a full black moon on the sea.

The underground space was filled with mist, reminding him of Yingluo Mountain. Faintly, he could hear panting coming from the mist, and a man lying prone on the ground walked up to Vande, his face ashen and his demeanor ethereal.

"A newcomer? A newcomer?"

"Ah, you're the unlucky newbie here..." Vande said irritably, then immediately rolled away as he looked up. "And what are you?!"

The man could only crawl on the ground, because his lower body was that of a dog, a ferocious and terrifying black dog! Its canine teeth were deeply embedded in his waist, blood mixed with saliva dripping from between them. The man's original half of his body had long been devoured; he seemed to have grown out of the vicious dog's mouth, dragging the dog's body across the ground with his own hands.

The dog-bodied man scanned the new faces, laughing as if howling.

"Did you bring any stories?" it asked. "What stories did you bring?"

(End of this chapter)