Lu Yuan hid in a corner, watching the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles in the distance, his eyes flickering.
There was no chance of winning in a head-on fight, so he could only outsmart them.
He looked over the surrounding terrain, thinking of a solution.
Before long, Lu Yuan looked up at the dim yellow sky, then at the top of the Gobi cliffs, and finally at the surroundings again. He narrowed his eyes slightly.
He had a bold idea.
He came to the stone wall, put away the Blacklight Alloy Sword in his hand, and began climbing upward with both hands and feet.
The stone wall was steep. If Lu Yuan had still been an ordinary person, there would have been no way he could climb it.
But Lu Yuan was, after all, a Gene Warrior. Every aspect of his body far surpassed that of an ordinary person. His hands and feet were powerful, the muscles throughout his body worked in coordination, and he was agile. In a short time, he climbed up the Gobi cliff, which was thirty to forty meters high.
The moment his head rose above the stone wall, howling winds slammed into his face. The gale, mixed with yellow sand, lashed his skin painfully. After all, his skin was not thick enough.
The enormous force even threw his head backward.
Caught off guard, his hands slipped from the stone wall, and his body fell backward.
Feeling his arms suddenly hanging in empty air, Lu Yuan's pupils contracted sharply, and his heart nearly stopped.
From a Gobi cliff thirty to forty meters high, even he would surely be smashed to pieces if he fell.
At the critical moment, the Blacklight Alloy Sword appeared in Lu Yuan's hand. He twisted his waist and drove the alloy sword into the stone wall.
Screech!!
The alloy sword plunged into the stone wall. Lu Yuan braced himself against it with his right hand and finally stabilized his body.
Lu Yuan took several deep breaths, lingering fear still visible in his eyes.
"Damn it, that scared me to death! I thought I was done for."
Once he had recovered, Lu Yuan supported himself and heaved his entire body up onto the Gobi cliff.
The winds and sand in this area had already been fierce, and now he was dozens of meters above the ground. The battering wind was truly brutal.
One careless move, and he might be blown away.
Lu Yuan drove the alloy sword into the ground and planted his feet firmly, barely managing to steady himself.
Even so, Lu Yuan did not dare open his eyes. The yellow sand stung his face like needles.
Fortunately, Lu Yuan had prepared in advance.
The corners of his mouth curled into a smile as Goggles appeared in his hand.
He had bought them earlier while reading newcomer guides.
After all, the starting cities in the Origin Land all had harsh environments. Stormwind City and Sandstone City were both constantly swept by fierce winds, so Goggles were essential if one appeared in either of those cities.
Everyone had only just awakened as apprentice Gene Warriors, after all. They were not yet at the point where sulfuric acid in their eyes would not matter.
As Lu Yuan put on the Goggles, he praised himself for his foresight and thorough preparation.
As expected of me!
After putting on the Goggles, Lu Yuan could open his eyes.
He surveyed his surroundings.
The wind here was too strong, so no Graystone Beetles came to such a place.
For Graystone Beetles, food was food wherever they ate it. Why come to this miserable place to suffer?
Lu Yuan swept his gaze over the area. It was completely empty, with uneven rises and dips in the ground, all bearing traces of erosion by the fierce winds.
Lu Yuan walked forward for a while and arrived above the U-shaped Gobi cliff that formed the dead end.
After reaching the top of the dead end, Lu Yuan carefully leaned over and looked below.
From above, Lu Yuan could see the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles below.
Because of the distance, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetles looked about the size of Lu Yuan's thumb, and the wooden treasure chest looked the same.
While Lu Yuan observed the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles from atop the Gobi cliff, neither beetle made the slightest movement. They continued happily enjoying the delicious rocks.
Clearly, even elite Black-Striped Graystone Beetles did not have a sensory range that could reach Lu Yuan's position.
That put Lu Yuan at ease.
If so, his next plan would become much simpler.
"Let's see if it's just as I thought."
Lu Yuan's lips curled into a faint smile.
He came to a stone pillar beside him, roughly thick enough for one person to wrap both arms around, and grabbed a protruding section. He easily snapped off a chunk of rock.
Then Lu Yuan clenched his hand. Without much effort, the rock crumbled into fine gravel.
Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow and let out a whistle.
Weathering.
Under winds this fierce, even hard rock could not withstand the power of nature.
Even water could wear through stone, let alone raging winds.
Lu Yuan's plan became a little more complete.
"Let's test these two fellows' reactions."
Lu Yuan looked at the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles below. He raised an eyebrow, and a trace of seriousness appeared in his eyes.
The next moment, he found a rock that had not yet weathered away. It was about the size of a basketball.
Lu Yuan moved to a point atop the Gobi cliff some distance from the Black-Striped Graystone Beetles. Then, after taking a deep breath, he exerted force with his right hand and hurled the rock at the ground around two hundred meters away from them.
Bang!
The rock struck the ground with a tremendous crash.
The sound was so loud that the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles in the distance raised their heads at the same time and looked toward its source.
They exchanged a glance, their antennae twitching.
After only a brief moment, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle on the right charged toward the source of the sound.
The other Black-Striped Graystone Beetle remained motionless where it was.
Seeing this from above the Gobi cliff, Lu Yuan could not help frowning slightly.
There were two bad news.
The first was that such a disturbance could only lure away one Black-Striped Graystone Beetle. Even with only one left behind, he still could not get close to the wooden treasure chest.
The second was that these Black-Striped Graystone Beetles were way too fast?!
Lu Yuan compared their speed. This one was forty to fifty percent faster than an ordinary Graystone Beetle.
At that speed, if Lu Yuan was discovered, he might as well close his eyes and wait for death. Not even an immortal could save him.
They both grew by eating rocks, so why was the difference so huge?
No matter how hard Lu Yuan thought, he could not understand it.
Lu Yuan still had a way to solve the second problem, but the first one was rather difficult for him.
While Lu Yuan was thinking, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle that had run off had already reached the area where the rock had landed.
Upon seeing the broken stones on the ground, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle let out a shrill chitter. It looked around, its antennae trembling as it examined the surroundings.
After a moment, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle found no sign of an enemy, and its tiny eyes were filled with enormous confusion.
After chittering a few more times, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle jogged back.
After it returned, Lu Yuan looked at the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles that had begun eating again. He thought for a moment, then smiled.
"Let's begin the second experiment."
This time, Lu Yuan found two basketball-sized rocks.
Holding one in each hand, he threw them toward the left and right sides of the two passages.
Boom! Boom!!
Two more loud crashes rang out.
The Black-Striped Graystone Beetles, which had only just resumed eating, raised their heads again and let out agitated shrieks.
Having been disturbed twice in a row, they were clearly unhappy.
Their sharp claws scraped across the ground, carving marks into the hard earth.
The two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles looked at each other again, their antennae twitching.
Then, this time, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle on the left charged out, while the one on the right remained behind.
Before long, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle that had rushed out reached the first landing point.
Like the previous Black-Striped Graystone Beetle, it first looked around. After finding no enemy, it shrieked a few times before running to inspect the second location. When it found no sign of an enemy there either, the Black-Striped Graystone Beetle let out an agitated shriek.
Chitter, chitter, chitter!!
As it shrieked, its claws raked over the broken stones on the ground, while its sharp mouthparts bit into them with loud cracking sounds.
Only after it had eaten all the broken stones did it jog back in satisfaction.
Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow and began the third experiment.
This time, Lu Yuan directly found three rocks and threw them in three different directions.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
Dull impacts rang out once more.
The two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles, which had been about to enjoy a fine meal, raised their heads immediately.
This time, the two Black-Striped Graystone Beetles did not communicate. Both of them shrieked and charged toward the sources of the sounds.
Lu Yuan's eyes lit up, and he smiled.
The first problem was solved.
As for the second problem—the Black-Striped Graystone Beetles' incredible speed—
After luring the Black-Striped Graystone Beetles away, how could he quickly open the wooden treasure chest and escape?
Lu Yuan already had a plan for that.
Before you continue