Survival of the Nation: My luck was a tiny bit worse.

As night deepened, the campfire was relit.

The members of the expedition sat around the fire, with the desert lord in the very center, appearing as a mysterious guest completely out of place with the surrounding atmosphere.

Ou Yun followed Marcus's example and brewed a new pot of insect blood coffee—this time not to feed the coffee worms, but to entertain his new teammates.

"Would you like some coffee?" He handed the cup to the desert lord.

The desert lord took the cup, held it to his nose, and smelled it.

It has no nose, or rather, it doesn't have a distinct nasal bridge like humans, but it clearly possesses some ability to sense smells.

Then those pupil-less, silvery-white eyes lit up slightly.

"I smelled coffee grass and sandworm blood."

It said, "Human creativity is indeed the most unpredictable thing. In my memory, no creature has ever tried to cook these two things together."

"The taste really isn't very good."

Ou Yun frankly admitted, "But coffee enthusiasts like it."

The desert lord picked up his cup and took a small sip.

Then its eyes suddenly lit up—it was as if two small light bulbs had lit up in its eye sockets, making the surrounding sand shimmer with a faint silver light.

"This taste."

It took another sip, and its eyes shone even brighter.

"What's with this taste?"

After the third bite, an expression that could be interpreted as "enlightenment" appeared on his face.

"I see. The bitter alkaloids of coffee grass and the residual abyssal energy in the blood of sandworms create a subtle balance. The former inhibits the corrosiveness of the latter, while the latter amplifies the energizing effect of the former. When combined, they not only attract desert burrowing worms but also those with core energy bodies—"

"It's started memorizing." Ou Yun whispered to Leng Ruolan.

"Don't make a sound, it's having an epiphany." Leng Ruolan patted him on the shoulder.

The desert lord downed the entire cup of coffee in one gulp.

Then it stretched out its hand and said to Ou Yun with utmost solemnity, "Another cup, please."

So Ou Yun poured the last half pot of coffee into the desert lord's cup.

After drinking three cups, the desert lord finally put down his cup.

Its eyes were shining like two LED lights.

"I feel great right now."

It said that for the first time, its voice carried a clear emotional fluctuation, "So good that I want to go and challenge the Mother right now."

"You should calm down first."

Leng Ruolan pressed down on its shoulder, "Didn't you just say that a crushing victory was possible, but you'd be scared during the process?"

"That was before I drank coffee; now it's after I drink coffee. Before coffee, I was a different person; now, I'm fearless!"

"The effects of caffeine are temporary."

Ou Yun casually reminded him, "It will probably only last a few hours."

"Then let's drink some more."

The desert lord turned to look at him, his eyes gleaming with a silvery light. "How many coffee grass seeds do you have left?"

"That should be enough to boil about two more pots."

"I'll take you to find more tomorrow. I know where all the coffee grass grows in this desert. And the nests of sandworms—I've been avoiding them before, but if you need sandworm blood, I can take you to a place where the sandworm blood is most concentrated."

"..."

Wait a moment.

"A sandworm nest?!"

Ou Yun was shocked. "You mean there's a sand worm nest nearby?"

"Yes, right beneath your feet."

The desert lord pointed to the ground. "Underneath this group of giant stone pillars lies a vast system of interconnected cavities. Sandworms love to nest in these cavities. The sandworms you encountered earlier all came from this nest—and of course, their king."

"Wait a minute."

Ou Yun raised his hand. "You're saying those sandworms and their king live right under our feet?"

"Yes. About three hundred meters underground. It has been sleeping there for hundreds of years, occasionally waking up to devour sand worms in its nest to replenish its energy, and then continuing to sleep. The sand worms you have killed in the past two days are just some worker ants on the outermost layer of its nest. The real core of the nest is guarded by tens of thousands of sand worms."

"Tens of thousands..."

Ou Yun thought to himself that even one of them was not something that could be dealt with so easily, but he didn't expect there to be so many.

Alexander swallowed hard. "There are only six of us."

"However, it's not like there's no way to deal with it."

The desert lord corrected, "My energy suppression ability, this human woman's extraordinary combat skills, and this man named Ou Yun's area-of-effect attacks—"

"When did I become a generalist?"

"To me, your sword is a map-wide attack. It can attack multiple targets, absorb energy, and unleash shockwaves. What else could it be but a map-wide attack?"

"It can also transform—never mind, that feature isn't unlocked yet."

So,

The desert lord stood up, his long, silvery-white hair gleaming softly in the firelight.

"You are the strongest challenger team I have ever seen. Stronger than the team from three hundred years ago—not because of your individual strength, but because your teamwork is more diverse and your tactical thinking is more flexible. More importantly—"

It looked around.

This group of coffee worms drinking worm blood coffee, Nanbei snoring on a stretcher, Hongdou feeding Nanbei roasted meat, Douglas engrossed in taking notes, Marcus drawing structural diagrams on steel plates, Alexander wiping a heavy hammer—

And Leng Ruolan, who was looking at it with a "Can you please shut up for a minute" gaze.

"There is a bond between you. It's not a temporary alliance based on mutual interests, but a genuine trust that allows you to entrust your backs to each other. In this treacherous land of Starfall, this bond is more precious than any weapon."

The campfire crackled.

Ou Yun (sighs): It's such a pity Chen Ge didn't come...

Leng Ruolan (facepalm): That's enough for you.

*

"Everyone needs a reason to fight."

The desert lord explained that at daybreak, it led them into the sandworm's lair.

"Get some rest tonight. The battle in the lair will be tougher than any you've faced in the forest."

the next day.

The desert lord, who never sleeps, has been waiting for a long time: "Is your sword fully charged?"

Ou Yun glanced at the panel.

Current charge: 83%

Last night's battle consumed 17% of our energy.

"Opening a door should be more than enough!"

"Then touch the sand with the tip of your sword and inject a small amount of energy. Not too much—too much will cause the entire group of stone pillars to collapse."

Ou Yun nodded and walked to the sandy area.

The coffee worms all turned a wary pale purple, and their straws pointed in unison downwards into the sand—indicating that there was indeed a dense surge of abyssal energy surging beneath.

Nanbei and Hongdou squatted side by side behind him. Nanbei's wound had completely healed, and he was in much better condition than yesterday.

Ou Yun pressed the tip of his sword against the sand and, following the desert lord's instructions, slowly infused a small amount of energy into it.

The red light on the sword seeped into the sand along the tip.

The sand surface began to tremble slightly, and then ripples spread outwards from the tip of the sword. The ripples grew larger and faster, until finally the entire sandy area began to collapse.

It wasn't a catastrophic collapse, but rather a gradual, layer-by-layer sinking—like a giant spiral staircase hidden beneath the sand, slowly unfurling.