When Yu Hanjiang woke up, he found himself surrounded by an endless desert. A gust of wind blew by, and the sand and gravel stung his face like knives. Yu Hanjiang immediately covered his mouth and nose with his sleeve.
He looked around and saw his teammates were all around him—this time, the 12-man team hadn't been broken up, and because of this, they were about to face what was likely the most difficult crisis in history.
Xiao Lou lay flat on the ground beside him. His forehead had healed and there were no visible signs of injury. He was covered in sand, and half of his face was buried in sand.
Yu Hanjiang hurriedly went over and helped Xiao Lou up, wiping the sand off his face, and whispered, " Xiao Lou, wake up."
Xiao Lou opened his eyes, looked at the endless desert around him, and was stunned for a moment: "Is this survival mode?"
Yu Hanjiang nodded: "It's very likely desert survival."
Just then, the other teammates also woke up.
Just as Ye Qi was about to speak, a gust of sandstorm swept in, filling his mouth with sand. Ye Qi's eyes widened, and he spat out the sand several times, complaining, "They actually teleported us to the desert? This is what they call... the final challenge?"
Tang Ci calmly brushed the sand off his body: "As expected."
Ye Qi turned to look at him: "Mr. Tang already guessed it was a desert instance?"
Tang Ci said, "We've all been through pretty much all sorts of harsh environments on our journey so far, but we've never seen a desert before. Arranging an endless desert for this trip actually suits the Guardians ' penchant for torturing people."
Lu Jiuchuan crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, saying, "These two kings are really annoying. After the relay mission, we have to do another team desert survival... Didn't Hanjiang and I do a desert island survival mission before? Isn't that a spade- like experience?"
Xiao Lou finally understood where the bloodstains on Yu Hanjiang and Lu Jiuchuan came from. He looked at Yu Hanjiang, who calmly said, "Our desert island survival was at most an A-level in terms of difficulty. This desert survival, which involved everyone, is the real SS-level."
Old Mo looked around and sighed, "In this vast desert, it's easy to lose our way. We don't have a compass, and we're completely unfamiliar with the surroundings. Do you think we can make it out?"
Liu Qiao asked, " Even Uncle Mo can't tell which way to go here?"
Old Mo smiled wryly, "You need a reference point to determine direction. Here, the sand is exactly the same in front, behind, left, and right. With the sun hanging overhead, I still can't tell which way is which. I can't just stay in one place and wait for the sun to set, can I?"
Xiao Lou gazed thoughtfully into the distance.
The desert stretched as far as the eye could see, vast, desolate, and barren. In this immense world, it seemed as if only the twelve of them remained. Such a scene was incredibly awe-inspiring and the most spectacular sight Xiao Lou had ever witnessed.
Unfortunately, they didn't come here for tourism; they came here to survive.
Under the blazing sun, the intense heat baked the earth. They had only stood on the desert for less than two minutes when they felt their feet being scalded by the burning sand. This was truly the legendary desert where "an egg placed on the ground would be cooked in no time!"
The heat from beneath their feet made everyone sweat profusely. How could they possibly walk on foot in such an environment?
They lacked food, water, compasses to navigate, and any means of transportation... Leaving twelve unprepared people in the middle of the desert would surely lead to their deaths.
Seeing Xiao Lou's serious expression, everyone realized the perilous nature of the situation.
Yu Hanjiang and Lu Jiuchuan were the most experienced in wilderness survival. Xiao Lou looked at the two of them and asked in a low voice, " Hanjiang, Ninth Brother, do you have any good ideas?"
Yu Hanjiang said, "Let's discuss this further inside Peach Blossom Spring. Otherwise, we'll get heatstroke if we don't reach a conclusion while standing here in the sun."
Xiao Lou's shirt was almost soaked with sweat, and he hurriedly called Tao Yuanming.
However, just as he was about to use the skill, a prompt suddenly popped up in the floating window—
Welcome to the final level of Twin Kings Secret Room: Desert Survival Game!
[Completion Requirements: Survive in the desert for 3 days]
[Special Note: All card skills have been refreshed, and all cards have become limited-time cards, destroyed immediately after use.]
[PS: Since you don't want to stay in Card World anyway, and you can't take these cards with you, each one you use will become useless. You figure it out.]
Xiao Lou: "..."
He almost laughed out of exasperation at the continuous stream of pop-up notifications.
The rule that cards can only be used once is a double blow to everyone. Originally, Tao Yuanming's Peach Blossom Spring could be used once a day and could be teleported multiple times; Ye Qi's musical instrument cards had control skills that could refresh in just over ten seconds... Now all cards have become limited cards, and once you use one, there's one less left.
If they use too many cards at the beginning, they will become lambs to the slaughter when they run into trouble later in the game.
Xiao Lou reluctantly put away Tao Yuanming; he didn't want such a crucial skill as Peach Blossom Spring to become something everyone could just use to "cool off."
Yu Hanjiang frowned and said, "The sun is very strong, everyone please bear with it for now."
After saying that, he took out a [two-person tent]. This was a reward card issued by the Weekly Secret Chamber; almost everyone had one, and it wasn't a big deal if it was used up and then discarded. After the tent was taken out, Yu Hanjiang and Lu Jiuchuan quickly set to work, disassembling and folding the entire tent to make it into a tent.
A giant "umbrella" to shield from the scorching sun overhead.
Although the desert heat couldn't be blocked by umbrellas, at least the scorching sun was shielded, and everyone felt much better because their skin was no longer directly exposed to the blazing sun. If they had continued to be exposed to the sun like that, they probably would have all gotten sunburned and their skin would have been peeling.
Yu Hanjiang walked under the "sunshade" and said in a low voice, "Let's take stock of the food resources."
Everyone gathered together and took out all the cards they had to do a tally.
Lu Jiuchuan frowned: "Each person gets a [ supply card ], which gives them a bottle of milk, a chocolate bar, a bottle of mineral water, and a pack of instant noodles. In a forest or desert island, this food might be enough, since they can find wild fruits and game on the spot. But in this desert environment..."
Everyone looked at each other and fell silent.
You can't exactly eat sand, can you?!
Yu Hanjiang said, "Moreover, the desert has long hours of sunshine and high temperatures, so water resources are extremely scarce. Once people become dehydrated, it will be even more difficult to manage."
Lu Jiuchuan pondered for a moment: "Judging from the situation, we may not be able to find an oasis. If we have to survive in the desert environment for three days from beginning to end... people can survive for three days without food or water. The usual survival mode is at least seven days, but this time we are required to survive for three days. I have a bad feeling about this."
Tang Ci said, "Your hunch is always very accurate. The shorter the survival time requirement, the greater the survival pressure."
Yu Hanjiang nodded: "Yes, the crisis has been condensed into three days, so it's not just a food shortage problem. There's also the possibility of attacks from desert beasts, or... Hunters."
The more they listened, the more terrified they became.
Surviving in this desert for three days sounds like a short time, but who knows what might happen in those three days?
Xiao Lou looked at everyone helplessly and said, "Don't be too discouraged. We've overcome so many difficulties, and we're just one step away from the end. No matter what, everyone must persevere."
Yu Hanjiang suggested, "We don't have any transportation, so let's not move blindly for now. My idea is to rest during the day and travel at night. First, the temperature is lower at night, and without the scorching sun, it will be much easier for everyone to move around; second, there will be stars in the sky at night, which can be used to locate directions and avoid getting lost."
Old Mo said, "That's right. The stars in the desert are much brighter than those in the city. You won't go wrong if you use the north star to find your way. In ancient times, many caravans that went to the Western Regions relied on the stars to find their way."
Gui Yuanzhang suddenly interjected, "Besides the various beast attacks and Hunters, everyone has overlooked one thing."
Everyone turned to look at him.
Senior Gui calmly said, "The malice comes from nature—for example, sandstorms."
Upon hearing this, everyone felt a chill run down their spines.
How could I forget that!
A sandstorm is a hazardous weather phenomenon in which strong winds lift large amounts of sand and soil particles from the ground, making the air turbid and greatly reducing visibility.
You know, in cities in Northwest China, the occasional sandstorm is enough to give you a headache. When the wind blows, dust flies everywhere, visibility is reduced drastically, and plastic bags, newspapers, and scraps from the trash cans on the street are blown into the air and fly everywhere, it's like the end of the world.
When a sandstorm hits the desert, it's more than just an "apocalypse."
That was a natural disaster powerful enough to destroy everything.
A terrifying sandstorm swept in, covering everything. Let alone people, a sandstorm in the desert can instantly bury a building.
Hearing this, Chu Huaying couldn't help but raise an eyebrow: " Old Gui, can you stop jinxing me?"
Gui Yuanzhang calmly said, "I'm just reminding everyone not to ignore this possibility. It's always better to take precautions in advance than to be caught off guard and panic when the time comes."
Xiao Lou agreed, "Senior Gui is right. This mission gives us three days to survive. With such a short time, it's bound to be fraught with danger. We can't let our guard down for a moment. What if a sandstorm really does occur..."
Yu Hanjiang said with a stern face, "There's no 'what if'. Look over there."
Everyone turned around following his gaze.
In the distance, a seemingly endless column of sand, tens of meters high, swept towards them like a stampede of thousands of horses!
The sandstorm whipped up by the gale blotted out the sun, making the entire desert look as if it had been uprooted and turned upside down. Rolling yellow sand surged wildly, almost swallowing everything in the world!
The teammates were so shocked by the horrific sight that they were speechless.
Ye Qi said in a trembling voice, "The sandstorm...it's really here..."
Lu Jiuchuan couldn't help but curse: "Damn it, this is the 'greeting gift' that the two kings gave us?"