An hour later, Li Juxu met Shark.
He had expected someone as tall and muscular as Black Hornet, with a nickname like Shark. Instead, the man was only about 1.7 meters tall. But he was lean and tough, like forged steel—unbending.
"Black Hornet told me about you. Thanks for coming to help."
Shark seemed the quiet, serious type. He tried to smile warmly, but it still looked stiff.
"Don't mention it. I'm honored Black Hornet recommended me."
Li Juxu shook his hand. Shark's grip was hard and powerful. Li Juxu could tell that if Shark squeezed harder, he could crush his hand.
"Tell me what you need. I'll get it right away." Shark got straight to the point.
"12.3mm sniper rounds—as many as you think. And five boxes of chocolate."
Li Juxu wasn't just taking advantage. Desert nights were freezing. He needed high-energy food to keep up his strength. He'd never been to the desert, but he knew the basics.
Everything was ready in less than 20 minutes.
Along with the ammo and chocolate, Shark had also gotten a warm fur coat and a pair of gloves.
"When do we leave?"
Li Juxu felt a little more goodwill toward him. A fur coat wasn't cheap. He should have brought his own, but he hadn't thought about it. Shark didn't have to give him one—but he did, and Li Juxu would remember that.
"If you're ready, we can go now." Shark looked at him.
"I'm good to go anytime."
Li Juxu had wanted to say goodbye to Cao Gang, but he could tell Shark was anxious, even if he hid it well. He'd taken the job, so he had to prioritize it. He'd explain to Cao Gang later. With Black Hornet backing him, Cao Gang wouldn't mind.
Shark's team had 14 members—large for a small team.
They were clearly well-off: one armored truck, three motorcycles.
The truck was a modified pickup. Nothing compared to Pu Shaoyun's vehicles, but in the settlement, any team with a vehicle was a big shot to Li Juxu. His own group couldn't even afford a motorcycle.
The truck sped down the road. Li Juxu glanced at the speedometer: over 100 km/h. Crazy.
The road near the settlement was paved, but even so, that speed was reckless. The pickup's suspension was rough, and the ride felt like a rollercoaster.
Black Hornet hadn't come. Li Juxu didn't ask why, and Shark didn't explain.
Shark sat in the passenger seat. The team members in the back stared at Li Juxu curiously.
"Hey, kid. How old are you?"
One of the two women in the team spoke. She was the mature, curvy type. Tight leather clothes showed off her figure, her zipper only halfway up.
Li Juxu glanced at her, then quickly looked down, saying nothing.
"Aww, shy~ Do you have a girlfriend? Still got your first kiss?" She laughed, shaking with amusement.
"Lin Lu, cut it out! Don't scare him," a muscular man snapped.
He turned to Li Juxu. "Sorry about her. She's just like that. No harm done. Name's Stone."
"Night Owl."
Normally, Shark would have introduced Li Juxu properly. But hunters often kept their identities private. Since they barely knew each other, Shark only said Li Juxu was hired help. It was up to Li Juxu how much he wanted to share.
"I'm Lin Lu. As in dew, not exposed. Don't mix it up."
She held out a pale hand. Li Juxu hesitated, then shook it.
Lin Lu lightly scratched his palm with her nail. He quickly pulled his hand back, making her laugh even harder.
Stone shook his head helplessly. The others watched with amusement.
Shark ignored the commotion, studying a paper map intently.
The Beast Planet was enormous—dozens of times the size of the home planet.
Landscapes and climates varied wildly. Many areas had completely different weather every ten miles. It would be perfect for exploration and tourism… if not for the danger.
But its biggest flaw was transportation.
Large road-building machinery couldn't be brought from the home planet, and building roads by hand was impossible. No one bothered with such a thankless task—not the authorities, not corporations.
Beyond a few dozen kilometers from the settlement, there were no real roads.
The driver was named Wrench. He was a mechanic who loved modifying cars. This pickup was his work. It looked ugly, but performed perfectly—capable of reaching 160.88 km/h.
After 200 kilometers from the settlement, they slowed to 55 km/h. Any faster, and they'd flip.
Lin Lu teased Li Juxu at first, but after five or six hours, everyone was sore and exhausted. No one spoke. They tried to nap, but couldn't sleep. They had to hold on tight just to stay seated.
They only stopped for bathroom breaks; they ate on the move.
On the afternoon of the third day, they finally reached their destination.
Li Juxu saw the desert for the first time. Endless yellow sand. It was breathtaking.
Standing at the edge, he felt tiny—no more than a drop in the ocean.
The vehicles stopped. From here on, they had to go on foot.
Quicksand was a deadly threat in the desert. A person could be pulled out; a vehicle was lost forever.
Thankfully, Shark said the target wasn't far.
Three hours on foot, if nothing went wrong.
Li Juxu breathed a sigh of relief. Three hours was nothing. He'd walked seven or eight hours regularly with Cao Gang. A day or two was normal.
But once he stepped into the desert, he understood what those three hours really meant.
And why Shark had left most of the supplies behind.
Walking in the desert was like torture.