So, the reason they hadn't seen any Burrowing Sand Locusts in the desert earlier was that the mutant summoned creatures had already eliminated them...
And even...
Wayne couldn't help but glance toward the depths of the forest.
From the very beginning, he had found it strange why Mr. Fang had transported so many combat shovels into the forest.
Now that he had seen Mr. Fang's summoned creatures, he finally understood.
Mr. Fang was using his summoned creatures to mine spirit crystal ore!
That explained why they needed so many combat shovels and how they had managed to earn so many contribution points!
Just as Wayne was marveling at Fang Heng's special ability, a group of players escorting another batch of combat shovels arrived at the forest.
The supply of combat shovels was still coming in continuously.
It seed that they still didn't have enough.
So, just how many summoned creatures did Mr. Fang have?
Wayne swallowed hard.
He had a premonition.
The number of Mr. Fang's summoned creatures must have been terrifyingly high.
Of course, this was still just his speculation.
How could he confirm it?
Got it!
Wayne took a deep breath, thinking carefully, and opened his surveying instrunt for a closer look.
If his guess was correct...
Indeed!
Seeing the energy fluctuation readings on the surveying instrunt, Wayne raised an eyebrow.
The intensity of the ore response fluctuations within the entire mining area had decreased significantly!
So, from the mont the mining area was discovered, in less than half a day, more than one-tenth of the mining had already been completed...
And judging by the trend, the mining speed was still increasing rapidly!
The more Wayne thought about it, the more shocked he felt.
At this rate, the entire mining area might be completely excavated before tomorrow?
Just then, a subordinate rushed over, interrupting Wayne's thoughts.
"Boss Wayne! Sothing's wrong over there."
Wayne looked up at his subordinate and asked, "What is it?"
"It's the infected worms! We've found infected worms!"
"Take there!"
Hearing this, Wayne's heart skipped a beat. He imdiately stopped sorting the ore and followed his subordinate to check the situation.
At the outskirts of the forest, near the supply route for the combat shovels, a commotion had broken out among the player team. A group of people had gathered in a circle.
In the center, one player stood with a pale face.
On the ground, a puddle of foul-slling green sli remained.
The mont Wayne saw the sticky substance, his expression changed drastically.
D*mn it!
Infected mutant worms!
"Quick! Go get Mr. Fang!"
Before anyone could run off to inform him, Zaka and Su Guantong saw the commotion outside and hurried over to check the situation.
"What happened?"
"It's an ancient infected worm," Wayne questioned the player. "When were you infected?"
"I don't know."
The infected player, terrified out of his wits, cald down and shook his head repeatedly.
"I swear, I've been with everyone this whole ti. I never went near any infected worms."
Seeing how tense everyone looked, Zaka found it odd and asked, "What exactly is an infected worm?"
Wayne took a deep breath and explained, "You two just entered the ga not long ago, so you might not fully understand how terrifying infected worms are. You can roughly think of them as an ancient mutant worm species in this ga world."
"A while ago, we were on a mission with the Federation team. While exploring so underground ruins, we discovered a cluster of ancient hibernating worm eggs."
"Once the eggs hatched, they released tiny mutant worms that could infect humans. As these larvae developed, they released massive amounts of pheromones, which in turn attracted hordes of mutant creatures."
Wayne said, "This place is very dangerous. Soon, a large number of mutant worm creatures will gather at the pheromone location. We still have so ti, but we need to imdiately report to Mr. Fang to execute an evacuation."
Zaka exchanged glances with Su Guantong.
Evacuate?
That serious?
Wayne didn't seem to be lying.
But sothing felt off.
Infected worms weren't exactly common.
And now they just happened to appear here?
Su Guantong asked, "Where is the infected worm now?"
"We killed it as soon as we found it, but it was too late. The pheromones have already leaked. This area has been locked onto by the mutant swarm, and they're already on their way."
"Mr. Fang is busy handling an urgent matter and told us not to disturb him," Zaka glanced at the others before pausing briefly and continuing, "I don't think this little issue is worth bothering Mr. Fang over. If a swarm does arrive, we can ask for his opinion then."
The other players' expressions changed instantly.
They had seen how terrifying the swarms could be.
Stay here?
Wasn't that just waiting for death?
Wayne grew anxious and turned to Arkley, "Arkley, say sothing! You were there, too. The mutant swarm isn't as easy to deal with as they think!"
"Well..."
Arkley thought for a mont.
Mutant swarms were indeed frightening.
It should be noted that the Federation ship is being attacked repeatedly by mutant worms, not only due to the invaders but also because of the residual pheromones left aboard the ship.
The Federation has scrubbed and cleaned the ship hundreds of tis in an attempt to remove the pheromone traces, but despite their efforts, a small amount remains, causing a continuous influx of mutant worms to assault the ship.
But...
Compared to the Old Ancestor?
These mutant swarms were nothing.
It shouldn't be a problem.
Arkley shook his head and said firmly, "Until Mr. Fang gives new orders, please continue with the ore-sorting work."
Huh?
Wayne was completely stunned after hearing Arkley's words.
What kind of "dicine" did Mr. Fang give Arkley that made him fearless, to the point of not even fearing death?
"Alright."
Zaka turned to Wayne and said, "Since you're so worried, why don't you join and form a small team to check out the desert periter? If we encounter trouble, we can always co back and show respect to Mr. Fang."
"But..."
Wayne thought to himself, if they actually encountered a mutant worm swarm, would they be able to co back in ti to warn everyone?
Is it too late by then?
"Alright! Let's head out imdiately."
Wayne didn't have ti to think further.
Having the chance to react was better than staying here and waiting to die. He quickly nodded in agreent.
Zaka and Su Guantong exchanged a glance, and swiftly picked a team of seven, setting off on their energy crystal hoverboards towards the desert's edge.
...
Ten minutes later, they approached the desert's periter.
Zaka narrowed his eyes.
Beyond the desert, in the distant forest, massive swarms of black and red shadows erged.
D*mn! They really ca!
Zaka cursed inwardly.
It was the sa species he had seen on the ship before—Bone-Eating Fungal Ants.
A huge swarm of dark red ants clustered together, covering the ground like a thick, rolling tide, rapidly advancing toward the desert. It looked as if the land had been draped in a black-and-red shroud.
Wayne's heart pounded wildly at the sight. He imdiately suggested, "The majority of the swarm is coming from the northwest. If we head back now and report, we can escape through another direction!"
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