The stars shift and the constellations change.
What had been a bright, bustling scene at the Universe Mercenary Alliance’s base, complete with sunshine and villas, transformed in the blink of an eye into pitch-black night!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Tie Nanhe, Luo Feng, Hong, Thunder God, and Ao Gu had barely entered the Thunder World when they plummeted downward at astonishing speed. They quickly tried to control the gravity around them by manipulating the micro-planets within their bodies, but it was too late! With five deep, dull thuds, all five crashed onto the ground below.
“That hurts,” Luo Feng quickly stood up.
“Is the ground covered with spikes?” Thunder God also rose.
The five of them stood up and surveyed the surroundings.
It was a pitch-black world, with only faint glimmers of light high in the distant sky preventing absolute darkness. Beneath their feet stretched an endless expanse of black… desert!
“Desert?” Hong crouched down in shock.
“Is this the so-called Death Desert mentioned in the books we purchased?” Thunder God exclaimed in disbelief. “We fell at such a high speed, yet we only made shallow craters. This is a desert?”
“It is a desert.”
Luo Feng picked up a handful of sand. The grains were deep blue, appearing black at first glance. Each grain was heavy, with a density over a hundred times greater than iron on Earth. Moreover, the grains exhibited a faint magnetism, causing them to stick together. Even after landing heavily, they had only left shallow dents.
“The Thunder World has a gravity approximately 3900 times that of Earth,” Hong explained solemnly. “This entire world was created by a World Lord using ‘Cosmic Origin Energy.’ The foundation of this world is Cosmic Crystal. The soil, sand, and rocks have all been influenced by Cosmic Origin Energy, making them far more unique than materials found outside.”
“It’s definitely different. Each grain of sand is extremely heavy,” Luo Feng nodded.
“Such extravagance! Building a world of this scale must have consumed an immense amount of Cosmic Origin Energy,” Thunder God couldn’t help but comment.
Cosmic Origin Energy was an enigmatic and formidable force, accessible solely to those who had attained the rank of World Lord. When this energy coalesced into solid form, it birthed the Cosmic Crystal—a currency revered and recognized across all stellar empires and celestial races. Unlike terrestrial currencies such as Silver-Blue Coins, Black Dragon Coins, or Qianwu Coins, Cosmic Crystals were forged directly from the primal essence of Cosmic Origin Energy itself.
“It’s so heavy that even my mental energy is affected,” Luo Feng frowned.
“How far can your mental energy spread?” Thunder God asked.
“Less than one-thousandth of what it was on Earth,” Luo Feng replied.
On Earth, a Level One Star Master could extend his mental energy up to one kilometer. A Level One Stellar Master could reach a hundred kilometers. However, even though Luo Feng was a Level Two Stellar Master, in this World Lord realm with 3900 times Earth’s gravity, his mental energy could barely extend beyond a hundred meters.
“My mental energy range is less than a kilometer,” the elder Ao Gu said.
“The Death Desert is one of the most dangerous areas in the Thunder World,” Hong continued urgently. “And right now, it’s nighttime. We can’t determine our exact direction. The longer we stay in the Death Desert, the more dangerous it becomes! We must leave immediately, choose a direction at random, and move forward at maximum speed.”
The Death Desert was one of the forbidden zones of the Thunder World, where even ferocious beasts dared not dwell.
“Right, let’s get moving,” Thunder God agreed.
“Then let’s go this way,” Luo Feng pointed in a random direction.
Instantly—
The five of them took flight into the air. Although the gravity was immense, it wasn’t enough to prevent Stellar Masters from flying. Of course, the incredible gravity significantly slowed their flying speed compared to before.
…
After flying for about five minutes.
Luo Feng and the others were still speeding over the Death Desert when Ao Gu, the strongest mental energy user among them, suddenly furrowed his brows.
“Master, something feels wrong.”
“Wrong?” Luo Feng looked at Ao Gu.
“Look behind us!” Thunder God shouted.
“Behind us?”
Luo Feng, Hong, Tie Nanhe, and Ao Gu all turned their heads. Behind them, a massive wave of black sand was rushing toward them at an astonishing speed, completely covering the sky. Within this storm of sand, a group of young men and women were desperately fleeing for their lives.
“The Death Storm!” Ao Gu’s face turned pale.
“It’s the Death Storm! Run!” Thunder God shouted.
“Hurry, hurry, hurry!” Hong urged anxiously.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
The five of them instantly accelerated to their maximum speed. In his urgency, Ao Gu grabbed hold of Hong and Thunder God, the two with the slowest flight speeds. Luo Feng, aided by his Void-Gliding Shuttle, matched Ao Gu’s speed while carrying two people.
The Death Storm was one of the many dangers described in the books Luo Feng and his companions had purchased. It was one of the top three dangers in the Death Desert. It appeared without warning, covering the sky and leaving no place to hide. Generations of predecessors had warned their descendants:
Fleeing underground in the face of a Death Storm meant certain death! Flying upward into the sky was also suicide!
The only way to survive was to outrun the Death Storm!
If the storm dissipated before catching up to you, you survived.
“Just entered the Thunder World and we run into a Death Storm? What the hell is this?” Thunder God cursed. “Look, those behind us seem to be one of the four teams from the Black Cloud Society who entered the Thunder World before us.”
Luo Feng controlled his Void-Gliding Shuttle with his mental energy, maintaining maximum speed.
“Hmm?” Luo Feng glanced behind.
Indeed, there was a team of young men and women being relentlessly pursued by the massive wave of sand. Judging by their uniforms, they were indeed one of the four teams from the Black Cloud Society who had entered the Thunder World slightly earlier than Luo Feng’s group. This desperate team consisted of six people—four men and two women.
Run! Run for their lives!
The Death Storm was rapidly closing in on the Black Cloud Society team. At the rear, a muscular man with a single horn on his head roared in anger and despair.
“Whoosh!” The Death Storm finally reached the man and engulfed him.
The sand grains, infused with Cosmic Origin Energy, tore through him like a meat grinder. His battle armor was instantly shredded, and blood, flesh, and bone fragments were flung into the air.
“Ahh!”
“Run faster!”
“Hurry!”
The other five members of the Black Cloud Society team wore grim expressions, pushing themselves to their limits in the face of death.
…
A few kilometers ahead, Luo Feng’s team was terrified and ran even faster.
“Faster! Faster! We must escape!”
“Don’t let the Death Storm catch us!”
“Damn, this Death Storm is terrifying. I’m sure even the ground beneath the desert would be torn apart by its force. No wonder the books say hiding underground is certain death.” Thunder God, though nervous, had nothing else to do since he and Hong were being carried by Ao Gu, the mental energy master.
Ao Gu carried two people, Luo Feng rode his Void-Gliding Shuttle, and Tie Nanhe flew alone.
Their speed was indeed impressive.
…
Behind them, the Black Cloud Society team lost two more members who couldn’t keep up. Then the Death Storm began to slow down, and its terrifying momentum started to wane. It was clear that this deadly storm was finally subsiding.
“Phew, finally escaped,” Luo Feng exhaled in relief.
“Look, only three members of the Black Cloud Society team remain. One is a Level Nine Stellar Master with mental energy, and the other two are Level Two and Three Stellar Masters,” Thunder God observed the three rapidly approaching figures. Among them, a Level Nine Stellar Master man rode a disc and carried a young couple.
“That’s normal,” Luo Feng also watched the distant trio. “The Black Cloud Society’s teams each include a Level Nine Stellar Master. Those Level Nine members are like babysitters, while the real test and training are for the younger members—Level Two and Three Stellar Masters. These are the elite of the Black Cloud Society’s next generation.”
The three deliberately kept their distance from Luo Feng’s group and flew off in another direction.
This sudden Death Storm had inflicted heavy losses on the Black Cloud Society team. Although Luo Feng’s team had suffered no casualties, none of them dared to relax.
…
After flying for about half an hour more.
“Master, there’s a range of mountains ahead,” Tie Nanhe, with his sunken eyes, spotted the distant, unremarkable mountains.
“A mountain range?”
Luo Feng and the others immediately accelerated. Sure enough, a vast range of mountains stretched to the horizon ahead. The mountains were covered with numerous trees and plants, a stark contrast to the Death Desert. The mountains were clearly full of life.
“It really is a mountain range,” Hong looked down at the screen of his smart light brain and said, “Brother Two and Three, according to the map, I think we have arrived at the ‘Longsuo Mountains.'”
“Longsuo Mountains?” Thunder God soared upward, flying to a higher altitude to observe the mountain’s outline and some distinctive features. Then he looked down at his auxiliary light brain screen. “Yes, this should be the central area where the Longsuo Mountains meet the Death Desert. We are 16,000 kilometers away from one of our destinations—the Yaoyue Lake.”
Yaoyue Lake was located deep within the Longsuo Mountains.
It was a lake over a hundred kilometers wide. Because of the abundant water sources here, several packs of ferocious beasts gathered around the lake, including the ‘Unicorn Iron Rhinos.’
The horn of the Unicorn Iron Rhinos was one of the items required to pass the test.
“Brother One and Brother Two, the Longsuo Mountains are even more dangerous than the Death Desert. The Death Desert is usually a natural threat, but in the Longsuo Mountains, with its dense forests and grasslands, ferocious beasts dwell here. Many humans participating in the test will also be inside! There are many battles between humans and beasts, and even among humans themselves,” Luo Feng reminded them.
“We understand,” Hong and Thunder God nodded.
In terms of danger, the Longsuo Mountains were truly perilous.
Of course…
In the Thunder World, Unicorn Iron Rhinos were not only found around Yaoyue Lake but also in several other locations. However, Yaoyue Lake was the closest to Luo Feng’s current position.
“Be careful of humans, be careful of the natural threats in this World Lord realm, especially lightning! If there are signs of thunder, immediately move away from places likely to be struck by lightning,” Luo Feng recalled the experiences described in the books he had purchased. The most terrifying natural threat in the entire Thunder World was—lightning!
This world was named the ‘Thunder World.’
It was because the lightning in this world was terrifyingly powerful, far exceeding other natural threats! If struck, even a slightly weaker Domain Lord would be instantly reduced to ashes. A Stellar Master? There would be absolutely no chance of survival.
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