Published: February 13, 2025
The sulfur smell in the air made Ye Zhongming, a person with keen senses, feel particularly uncomfortable.
“This place is what we call the Desert Secret Realm. From the first time we entered, to the subsequent twelve exploratory attempts, our team has never managed to leave the desert's range. So we decided to name it before formally advancing,” Zhao Xingmei explained.
The Desert Secret Realm was under the responsibility of Zhao Xingmei's team, and the situation here was even more severe compared to Bai Feng’s area.
Regarding the development of the secret realms, Cloud Summit maintained an open attitude, but was also very cautious. After all, there could be powerful entities within the secret realms, and if Cloud Summit couldn't withstand their invasion into Earth, it would be a disaster.
Thus, after officially starting the exploration, only two secret realms were chosen, and at least three hundred thousand troops were allocated to each realm at once.
Zhao Xingmei's team did not have enough personnel, but some affiliated groups also participated.
“At the beginning, our progress was smooth. Although this desert is desolate like those on Earth, the number of parasites is acceptable, and there are some underground mineral resources. We even found beautiful crystals among the weathered boulders that can serve many functions,” Zhao Xingmei continued.
Ye Zhongming nodded, “Stone Core Crystal, I know.”
This item could be said to be one of the best gains obtained after the development of the Desert Secret Realm. When ground into powder, it serves as an enhancer for medical potions and can also be added to alchemy recipes to slightly increase the success rate.
The current abundance of medical supplies at Cloud Summit and the massive output from the alchemy profession, led by candy production, are directly related to these Stone Core Crystals.
“What is the crystal yield rate?” Ye Zhongming asked.
“It varies by region, but overall, the probability is around ten percent,” Zhao Xingmei replied.
Ye Zhongming looked at the area within his sight, where there were over ten weathered boulders that had been chiseled open, and he knew that this probability was already quite high.
“However, we recently discovered a new area that we call the Fine Sand Zone, which is distinct from the current Coarse Sand Zone,” Zhao Xingmei's expression changed slightly as she spoke.
“In the Fine Sand Zone, we not only found an oasis with abundant water and food but also discovered the native inhabitants and other life forms. We even encountered numerous traces of high-level parasites, which can be said to be resources we have long dreamed of.”
“Moreover, the Desert Secret Realm isn’t a collapsing space like the Blue Secret Realm. We still have a vast area that remains unexplored, so we estimate that the benefits here could continuously support Cloud Summit for decades or even longer.”
“However…” Zhao Xingmei sighed lightly and continued, “when we attempted to advance further, we encountered setbacks.”
“All these oasis areas are shrouded by a layer of transparent substance. Initially, we didn’t know; upon entering, we were attacked by energy, the force of which was enough to instantly kill even six-star evolvers.”
“Transparent, energy shield?” Ye Zhongming frowned.
“Yes, or rather… a boundary?” Shasha quietly answered from the side.
“This boundary is one-sided, automatically attacking those from the outside, while the life forms inside can come and go freely. The reason for this is unclear to us.”
Zhao Xingmei quickly led everyone to an area where Ye Zhongming noticed that the sand was indeed extremely fine, nearly powder-like, though it still felt slightly hard to the touch.
“Although the Fine Sand Zone isn’t filled with oases everywhere, there are still quite a few, some of which are very large. The largest in the explored areas exceeds the size of a medium-sized province, while the smallest is about the size of a village. They are irregularly distributed throughout the Fine Sand Zone, forming a deadly area that blocks our path. Even if our main force wanted to abandon this place and move forward, it would be impossible, as they continuously attack us. Smaller teams can slip through the gaps between the oases, but a march of over five thousand people would definitely be detected and subsequently attacked.”