Chapter 863 - 529: Sand Worm King
Chapter 863 -529: Sand Worm King
In the desert camp,
“Uncle Blais!”
Duke hurriedly ran to the campfire in the middle of the camp and shouted to Blais.
Blais was discussing things with other members of the merchant caravan. He frowned when he saw Duke.
Duke’s behavior was a bit reckless. Didn’t he see that he was busy?
Blais wanted to scold him a few words, but he held back, preparing to listen to what Duke had to say.
After all, Duke had always been sensible before, it shouldn’t be like this.
What happened?
“What’s wrong?”
Blais put down the wooden bowl in his hand and stood up.
“Just now, Lord Lis said that there are sand worms infiltrating, he told us to be cautious.”
“What, sand worms?!”
Blais’s face changed, he hurriedly confirmed:
“Was it Mr. Lis who said that?”
“Yes, I just went to see him, and he told me.”
Duke nodded quickly, affirming.
“This is troublesome.”
Blais frowned, and the people around him also looked quite grim.
Sand worms are not the most dangerous creatures in the desert, but they are certainly the thing travelers least want to encounter,
especially for merchant caravans like them.
Because sand worms usually act in groups, lurking under the dunes and slowly approaching their prey. They don’t pose much threat to strong Extraordinary Professionals, but they are a deadly threat to ordinary people and camels.
If the entire caravan’s supplies were destroyed, even Extraordinary Professionals would find it difficult to leave the desert alone.
Generally, merchant caravans that choose to cross the desert would prepare special magic items in advance to detect the approach of sand worms under the dunes.
But the magic items in Blais’s hand had no reaction.
After only a brief hesitation, Blais immediately instructed the others:
“Didn’t you hear?!”
“Get moving immediately!”
“Guard team, prepare according to our previous plan, and take defensive measures.”
“If there’s no time, use the prepared magic scrolls, don’t be stingy at this moment!”
“Everyone else, gather everyone immediately, unload the goods, and surround the camels in the center!”
…
The entire caravan quickly got into action under Blais’s command, collaborating smoothly and preparing as quickly as possible.
The unloaded goods were piled on the sand, anyway, the sand worms were not interested in these things, and there was no worry of them being destroyed.
The camels and the ordinary people of the caravan, who needed the most protection, were gathered in the center of the camp, nervously observing the surroundings.
Several mages in the caravan were muttering incantations, their magic wands glowing brightly, and earth-colored magic power flowed continuously into the desert below.
The originally loose sand particles under their feet, under the influence of magic power, seemed to be bound together by invisible chains, gradually solidifying into hard ground, firmly supporting the temporary camp.
At the same time, the other members of the team were not idle, taking out a kind of brown potion and pouring it around the perimeter of the camp.
As soon as the potion touched the dunes, it quickly seeped down, turning into foul-smelling fumes that spread in the air.
This potion was specially crafted to repel and kill insects, and the sand worms loathed this smell.
Although the smell was not pleasant, no one cared about that at the moment.
The other guards in the team also took out their weapons, watching the surroundings vigilantly.
Blais was also not idle. As the only Golden Rank in the entire caravan, he had already put on his full armor, ready to face any impending danger.
At this moment, the magic crystal stone in his breast pocket suddenly began to hum, and Blais’s expression turned grim as he warned the others to be more cautious.
Not long after, without any further reminder, the others in the team also began to feel the steady vibrations in the desert ground.
The camels in the center of the camp seemed to sense some danger and began to panic, their bells jingling incessantly.
These disturbances were quite significant!
Blais was a bit troubled, tensely watching the surrounding movements.
In a sense, sand worms are Extraordinary Monsters that specialize in lurking in the dunes and launching surprise attacks. As long as they are detected in advance and defensive measures are taken, they are not that dangerous.
Especially since Blais’s caravan was well prepared in all aspects, particularly with those special potions that most caravans couldn’t afford to use.
After sensing the smell, sand worms would usually leave directly.
But the current situation was a bit strange, making Blais feel puzzled.
There was no doubt that those sand worms had already arrived under the dunes near the camp, but they didn’t leave. Instead, they seemed to be waiting for something.
If the sand worms remained hidden under the dunes, even Blais as a Golden Rank warrior could do nothing about them.
The best way to deal with sand worms is various Earth Magic, but in the Western Deserts where mages are scarce, Blais’s caravan only had two Bronze Mages and three Mage Apprentices, who didn’t master higher-level Earth Magic.
The fact that they could solidify the sand dunes to slow down the sand worms’ approach was already quite an accomplishment.
“Duke, go invite Mr. Lis over.”
The atmosphere around the camp began to become inexplicably tense and anxious. Blais noticed Lis standing aside from the corner of his eye.
Lis was comfortably staying in the camp, slowly savoring his dinner, in stark contrast to the nervous members of the caravan around him.
Even the camel beside him didn’t seem to sense any danger, it reached out its head and grabbed the dry bread from Lis’s plate, chewing loudly.