Chapter 156: Chapter 154: Center of the Sandstorm

Ultimately, Li Luo was unable to change Bai Zhou’s mind.

He was determined to leave, stubbornly wanting to return to his "home."

"Don’t be so down. Once you get to the 3rd Floor of the Abyss, we might even see each other again!" Bai Zhou said encouragingly.

Li Luo could only nod helplessly.

She couldn’t change Bai Zhou’s decision, so she could only advise him, "After you get to the 3rd Floor of the Abyss, remember to find a human island base to update your information. And try to stick to the known routes as much as possible."

This was the most she could do.

"Don’t worry, humans will always be my best friends," Bai Zhou said, patting his chest.

"Let’s get out of here first."

Afterward, the two fumbled their way through Black Tower City and found a Stone Gate to leave.

Unexpectedly, there wasn’t just one Stone Gate, but many. These gates led to various places in the Black Tower, like magical teleportation doors.

"How convenient."

After some navigating, the two returned to the base of the Black Tower.

Bai Zhou stared at the monitoring station, its grounds littered with corpses, and was silent for a long time.

Finally, he turned his back and said faintly:

"Goodbye."

...

Their paths diverged. After bidding farewell to Bai Zhou, Li Luo headed toward Oasis City with the Block.

The seal on the Black Tower had been completely lifted. Not long after setting off, Li Luo happened upon the body of the Hunter who had fled earlier.

He was leaning against a large, conspicuous rock. He had taken all the eye-catching items from his backpack and tied them to an iron rod stuck upright next to the rock.

A trail of dried blood ran from his neck all the way to the ground. A sharp knife, covered in filth, was clutched in his hand.

It was a suicide.

Li Luo walked over and silently regarded the pioneer.

He held that tattered piece of white paper in his hand.

He had wrapped the paper tightly in a plastic capsule used for collecting biological samples, then used tape to secure it firmly to his hand.

He had preserved the paper very well.

"Run."

...

"Do me a favor and dig a hole," Li Luo said to the Block, requesting its help.

After carefully stowing the Hunter’s dog tag, Li Luo bowed before his grave, then turned and walked toward Oasis City without looking back...

She hadn’t gone far when Mo Ling sensed the surrounding temperature begin to plummet. The wind grew fierce, and gusts of swirling dust kept assailing them.

"It’s a sandstorm," Li Luo said.

This was a common phenomenon in the Chaotic Sand Dunes—the unavoidable sandstorms.

The very reason humans built monitoring stations in solid, sturdy locations on the 2nd Floor of the Abyss was because of these sandstorms.

Sandstorms on the 2nd Floor of the Abyss often came with many unknown, bizarre phenomena.

Some Hunters who entered sandstorms reported seeing giant sand-and-gravel creatures. They looked like agglomerations of sand, moving ceaselessly with the storm and devouring everything in their path.

Even if these creatures were destroyed, they would reappear after a while.

Some researchers speculated that these agglomerations weren’t creatures at all; rather, the entire sandstorm was the true organism, and these bizarre constructs were merely some of its organs.

That would explain why they exhibited biological traits but could also regenerate so quickly.

But this was only speculation.

There were also Hunters who found themselves suddenly transported to unknown ruins after surviving a sandstorm.

Many of the ruins on the 2nd Floor of the Abyss were discovered by chance in this way.

No one had ever figured out the principle behind this sandstorm teleportation.

The official advice simply warned all Hunters not to try running from a sandstorm, because it was impossible to escape.

"When a sandstorm approaches, keep your body as low as possible and move in a crouch to avoid being knocked over or even swept away by the powerful winds."

"Scan your surroundings and find shelter as quickly as possible, such as a rock pile, large plant, or ruins. Take cover on the leeward side and be wary of being buried by sand."

"If you encounter sand-and-gravel creatures, observe their path of travel and move to a new position ahead of time."

"..."

Li Luo’s electronic screen displayed numerous ways to survive a sandstorm—all lessons learned by those who came before.

But she looked around and saw nothing but emptiness. There were no sturdy objects to use for shelter.

So she looked at the Block.

Mo Ling understood her meaning. He controlled the Block, lowering it to the ground to face the direction the sand and gravel were blowing from.

The change in the surrounding temperature became more and more pronounced, and the sky slowly darkened. Li Luo gazed into the distance, her expression growing increasingly grim.

"Here it comes."

The incoming sand and grit flew faster and faster, the high-speed grains striking the metal wall with a sharp TAK-TAK sound.

Li Luo ducked down behind the Block and took out some extra clothes to wrap tightly around her head.

Before they knew it, the sandstorm had reached their position.

Long, drawn-out sounds echoed from within the storm, making it impossible to distinguish the howl of the wind from the cries of wild beasts.

The sounds grew stranger. As the sandstorm advanced, they began to take on a rhythm, like a song.

The sound of colliding grains of sand was mixed in, making the rhythm of this "song" even stronger.

Accompanied by the granular sound of sand striking the metal wall, Mo Ling felt as if he were listening to an old song with unintelligible lyrics from an old videotape.

Melodious and eerie.

The sound of the wind was like someone’s sobbing, mournful and plaintive.

’How strange.’

Visibility became extremely poor, but fortunately, Mo Ling’s vision was unaffected. He could still see clearly what was happening inside the sandstorm.

Li Luo was already huddled behind the Block, head in her arms, pressing herself tightly against it.

Just as Mo Ling was listening to the strange song, a swaying, sheet-like figure flashed through the swirling sandstorm.

’What was that?’

Mo Ling thought of the sand-and-gravel creatures mentioned in the records and immediately became alert.

He didn’t know what these sand-and-gravel creatures looked like, but he knew they were extremely dangerous.

Sure enough, a moment later, the sheet-like body began to swim slowly toward him. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Mo Ling watched in shock as the creature revealed its full form.

It was a whale!

The strange sound—indistinguishable from the wind or a sob—was emanating from its body, as if it were calling to its kin.

In the distance, within the sandstorm, similar sounds echoed in response.

’Just how many are there?’

This whale’s body was dark, like damp sand, held together in some incomprehensible way.

Mo Ling couldn’t see anything different inside it; it seemed to be composed entirely of sand.

The whale swam up to the Block. Mo Ling was about to attack, but he saw that it only gave the Block a curious glance before moving to a nearby cactus. It then opened its mouth and took a small bite.

Then, it brought its mouth close again and began to suck up the cactus juice.

This method of feeding, so unlike a whale’s, left Mo Ling stunned.

After taking a few sips, the whale spat out a bit of sticky sand and coated the cactus’s wound, as if to protect it. Then, it slowly swam away.

’They’re just looking for water?’

Such a strange thought suddenly occurred to Mo Ling.