Yellow sand covered the road. The wind swept up dusty spirals along both sides. Clang... clang... clang... A weary gong sounded in the distance as a caravan trudged into view. Even in the Immortal Realm, transporting goods in bulk still depended on caravans like this one. At its head walked a sturdy immortal horse. Though large and strong, the long journey had left it exhausted. Its head drooped, and the red flag beside its saddle was caked with yellow dust. Now and then, the wind unfurled it, revealing the caravan's name: the Eastern Trade Caravan. It was a renowned merchant house whose business spanned the Nine Immortal Realms.
The caravan's guards were listless too. Their destination was close, and this stretch of road had always been peaceful—another journey so quiet it had grown dull.
A sharp crack suddenly rang out from the yellow sand. As if by magic, a band of men in yellow robes and Jin face coverings sprang from the ground. Blinding streaks of light shot through the dust, and Magical Artifacts flew everywhere. Caught off guard, the caravan lost more than half its people in an instant. Nearly every guard on the outer edge fell in the first exchange. They were all skilled fighters who could have held out for a few moves even without warning. For them to die in a single strike, their attackers had to be stronger still.
Screams rose through the blowing sand. Blood stained the ground red. The slaughter ended in less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea. The caravan's dead lay scattered across the road, while its red flag, blasted in two, stuck upside down in the sand.
The killers scrambled to open the cargo chests. Each chest held compartments linked to different Storage Spaces. The