Translated by XephiZ

Edited by Aelryinth

The endless howls of the sand filled the ears of the team, with occasional beastly cries that made their hearts skip a beat. They subconsciously tensed.

Not only were they up against the agitated demon creatures that were attracted by the device, there was a chance that they would have to face the Sandstorm Demon Locusts too! They were struggling to breathe properly under the overwhelming pressure.

"They are coming, at least two hundred of them. They are coming through the opening!" Zhang Xiaohou warned.

"What are they?" Mu Nujiao asked.

"Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards! There must be a den nearby. The whole den of the Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards is coming!" Zhang Xiaohou exclaimed.

"Those creatures are quite tricky to deal with. Their bodies are covered in aquamarine armor, and their tails are deadlier and more powerful than normal snakes and scorpions. They are of the Earth Element, too. They can control sand and rocks, and their strength surpasses most creatures!" Ge Ming said.

The Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards were an all-arounder species. They had no clear weaknesses. Demon creatures of this kind would usually pose a great threat to Mages. Once they broke the team's formation, everyone on the team would be in danger!

"Leader, it's not looking good!" another Hunter with the Wind Element returned with a grim look.

"There are demon creatures coming from your direction too?" Ge Ming asked.

"Not at the moment, but I discovered a huge den nearby. I believe once the energy ripples extend further away, the entire den is going to show up. We won't stand a chance against them!" the Hunter swore.

"How many?" Ge Ming asked.

"At least a thousand, Captain..."

"They haven't moved yet, right?" Ge Ming asked.

"Yeah, but they are starting to get restless."

"Lu Fang, I'm placing you in charge here. I'll find a way to stop the demon creatures of the bigger den! A thousand Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards will likely overrun us. We can't afford to attract them here!" Ge Ming said.

"Captain, how are we supposed to hold our ground if you aren't with us? We don't have much energy left!" Li Sichong protested.

Ge Ming did not waste any more time. The whole team had no chance of living if the demon creatures of the other den showed up too. He had to stop them at all costs!

Ge Ming was a Super Mage. He would not have any problem luring the den of demon creatures away. However, the team immediately felt uneasy after Ge Ming left. It was going to be difficult to fend off the creatures of the first den!

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Preceded by a few yowls and cries, a few creatures whose bodies glittered with aquamarine light showed up in the opening between the hills. They were not sprinting toward the team, but approaching slowly instead.

The creatures let out a few roars after they discovered the humans. They were summoning their comrades, telling them that they had found some delicious food!

Not long after, more creatures resembling leopards covered in aquamarine armor showed up at the opening, and atop the hills too. They were fully covered in armor, with spikes like sharp fangs on their backs. The starving creatures set their eyes on their prey greedily!

Their tails were long, like whips made of steel rings connected together. The tips of their tails were a half-meter long stinger, poised like a sharp blade!

"Aren't there a bit too many of them?" Wang Jiuming blurted out when he saw more demon creatures showing up in the distance.

"Those without energy, move to the back and protect yourselves now," Lu Fang ordered.

"Zheng Tong, it's all you now," Xu Pingdong said.

The only people with full energy on the team were Mo Fan, Zheng Tong, Tong Zhuang, and Yang Bao. They stood in front of the team.

They had to defend the entrance of the valley. They could not afford to let the Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards get too close to the team. Most of their members were running low on energy. Once they lost their formation, there would be lots of casualties!

"Yang Bao, take care of those on the hills. Tong Zhuang and I will watch the entrance. As for you, you better stay at the back of the team. I don't want Leader to blame us for not taking care of you," Zheng Tong said.

Zheng Tong and Tong Zhuang took a few steps forward before Mo Fan could say a word.

Zheng Tong's primary Element was Fire. Normally, a fighter would have either the Fire Element or the Lightning Element as their primary Element.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest. A green fire slowly rose and gradually split into huge fireballs.

It was like the green fireballs were able to lock onto their enemies. They autonomously targeted the nearby Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards without needing Zheng Tong's direction!

Tong Zhuang was a Curse Mage. He was already setting up traps using the Curse Element in their surroundings. The crimson red spiderwebs soon covered the entrance of the valley. A few Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards leading the way stumbled into the traps and died in an instant!

The souls of the demon creatures that the traps retrieved were converted into some energy collected by a necklace in Tong Zhuang's hand that resembled prayer beads. After Tong Zhuang let out a furious cry, the energy spread across the place, implanting fear into the hearts of the demon creatures. They fled as the mist fell across them!

Mo Fan glanced at the Curse Mage in astonishment. It turned out that the man was the strongest Mage on the team, apart from the leader, Ge Ming. The man had been rather quiet along the journey, which once again proved that the hounds that bit rarely barked… ugh, the analogy was not really appropriate under the circumstances...

Zheng Tong's fireballs soon made some contributions. The flames burned two Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards to death, while forming a wall of fire to stop the demon creatures from coming closer.

The Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards sent out as vanguards realized the humans were not easy prey. They roared into the sky.

The roars of the demon creatures echoed across the hills. The team heard more cries coming from the distance as the ground began to shake vigorously.

"Another den is coming!" Zhang Xiaohou, who was scouting from the air, warned the team.

"We'll kill every single one of them! Humph, that's all these Scorpion Leopards have!" Zheng Tong declared.

Zheng Tong had managed to kill the demon creatures before he even cast an Advanced Spell, implying that the creatures were not as strong as they initially thought. It was likely that the information they had was not accurate!

More Scorpion Leopards soon showed up in front of the team. Mo Fan immediately noticed that these demon creatures were different than the ones that showed up previously. Not only was their armor more reflective, each of them had three tails too!

One of the Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards with three tails set its eyes on Zheng Tong. The cunning creature attacked while Zheng Tong was focused on attacking a bunch of Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards. The man was taken by surprise when a sharp, green light slashed in his direction.

Luckily, Zheng Tong was an experienced Hunter. He immediately used his secondary Element to summon a Water Barrier in front of him.

The defense of the Water Barrier was not too impressive. Zheng Tong still ended up being knocked flying for ten meters!

He quickly rose to his feet and glared at the Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard with three tails.

"Son of a b**ch, I'll kill you!" Zheng Tong yelled. He lifted two spouts of flames in his hands and sent them into the sky.

The flames turned into a rain of fire pouring down rapidly across the place. It immediately turned the area into an ocean of fire.

The Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard with three tails had nowhere to run to. Its armor began to crack open in the flames.

"Humph, how weak!" Zheng Tong sneered.

The Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard with three tails soon turned into a scorched corpse on the ground. Zheng Tong turned around to the team and said, "I've taken out their leader, we shouldn't have any problem cleaning up the rest."

"What leader?" Jiang Shaoxu said.

"Zheng Tong, watch out!" Lu Fang yelled.

Zheng Tong was startled. He quickly turned around and saw more than ten Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards with three tails making their way toward him. Their tails swung wildly and produced sharp clanks as they collided with one another!

They all had three tails!

These Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards seemed a lot stronger than the ones before, especially with how the creatures could swing their tails as they pleased. The tails would follow up every attack that the creatures executed by stabbing at their enemy quickly. The tails were so fast that it was extremely difficult to see them clearly, let alone dodge them!

Zheng Tong had a blank face. Could it be that these creatures were the real Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards?

The ones that he killed with such ease previously were only their children!?

Zheng Tong had to use an Advanced Spell just to kill a single Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard with three tails. How was he supposed to handle fifteen of them on his own?

Yang Bao, who was at the higher ground, suddenly screamed, "Help, help me!"

Zheng Tong was already in a pinch himself. He did not have time to look after Yang Bao.

Tong Zhuang frowned when he saw Yang Bao fending off thirty Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopards on his own. He quickly moved toward Yang Bao to lend him a hand.

A black lightning bolt suddenly descended from the sky and struck an Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard trying to ambush Tong Zhuang. The Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard with three tails died instantly. Its armor and flesh were shredded beyond recognition!

Tong Zhuang halted in his tracks. He was so eager to lend Yang Bao a hand that he had been totally unaware of the cunning creature hidden in the sand dune behind him.

However, he was actually surprised that the lightning bolt had managed to kill the Aquamarine Armor Scorpion Leopard instantly! Zheng Tong had to use an Advanced Spell to kill the same creature just then!

"Thanks!" Tong Zhuang said to Mo Fan.

"You and Yang Bao will defend the hills, leave the entrance to me," Mo Fan said.

"Not a problem," Tong Zhuang nodded. His thoughts were still occupied by the lightning bolt...

Wasn't that Thunderbolt a little too strong to be true? Why did he feel like it was almost as strong as an Advanced Spell?