This Is Bad

The dust-induced explosion only lasted five or six seconds, but Zhang Xuezhou felt those five or six seconds were as long as a year.

He could see Zhang Manqian immediately duck to avoid the shockwave of the explosion, he could see Ren Anran scream as Wang Haoran pushed her against a not-so-large stalagmite, and he could see Wang Haoran being thrown away by the shockwave.

The shockwave from the explosion swept past wildly, and as countless rocks fell, Zhang Xuezhou could no longer see the stalagmite, and Zhang Manqian was buried by many falling rocks.

When it comes to the keenness of danger perception, Zhang Xuezhou believes that he may even have a stronger perception than Ren Wuyang at close range.

This involves not only visual perception, but also judgment based on thinking ability and bodily reactions.

If he had been even a fraction of a second later, Zhang Xuezhou felt that Turkalando's head would have been blown off.

He pulled on Turkalando, who had the slowest reaction time, but Zhang Xuezhou had difficulty taking care of the others.

Rocks rained down, but some were blocked by the boulder they were sheltering from. Zhang Xuezhou was hit and felt pain, but it did not pose a fatal risk.

Unless directly in the impact of an explosion causing flying rocks to pierce through like arrows, the kinetic energy of a normal rock falling from the cave ceiling is limited.

"I'll get 10...120,000... ah~"

"You took one extra box, which adds 40,000 to my account... Ugh~"

After the explosion came the sound of rocks falling, mixed with the loud screams of giant moths mimicking human voices.

Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

He survived by sheer luck, and the giant moth at the center of the explosion also survived, avoiding death.

If it weren't for the falling rocks blocking the road, Zhang Xuezhou felt the situation would have been much worse.

The explosion was unfortunate, but the scene without it might have been even more unspeakable.

He tugged at Turkalando, only to find him covered in dust, with countless red dots emerging from his bare skin.

"It's poison on the scales!"

Amidst the billowing dust and burned by the explosion, the giant moth's scales were undoubtedly diluted significantly.

Even so, this dust still caused a stinging sensation when it got on the skin.

If they hadn't been wearing breathing masks, the problems caused by inhaling the scales would have been even greater.

"Disperse!"

Zhang Xuezhou rarely uses the Dust-Avoiding Technique, which is an evasion technique to avoid being buried by sand and soil. It has some similarity to the Earth Escape Technique, but it also has the ability to counter earth-based Technique Method and may even enhance the power of earth-based Technique Method.

Zhang Xuezhou's talent in fossil techniques is related to the Dust-Avoiding Technique, and his lingering interest in the various sand-related techniques of the Yellow Sand Sect is also due to this.

At this moment, a ray of Law Power light flashed across his body, and with a sweep of the Dust-Avoiding Technique, the dust and debris fell down in a whoosh.

But there is countless dust particles in the air. Zhang Xuezhou can clean off his own scales and debris, but he cannot protect Turkalando.

He could only forcefully push the stones, and for those stones that were difficult to move, he used the petrification technique in reverse.

After some effort, the two finally managed to crawl out from the pile of boulders more than two meters thick.

After glancing at the giant moth screaming behind him, Zhang Xuezhou quickly shoved it away as well.

Before he could dig Zhang Manqian out, Zhang Xuezhou saw the rocks rolling in the pile, and Zhang Manqian, with a solemn expression, emerged from among the rocks.

This was not Zhang Manqian's normal expression. Faced with an insurmountable risk, Huang had clearly possessed Zhang Manqian's body, thus saving her life in this cave where the mountain was almost collapsing.

"An unpleasant odor!"

The cave was filled with the lingering smells of explosion, dust, and drifting scales, a scene that Huang found extremely distasteful.

He resided within the Soul Jade, yet he was still aware of the situation outside.

The appearance of giant moths and various strange insects made Huang realize a sense of crisis for the first time.

This crisis is not directed at him, but rather concerns the people of Tur.

He recalled the vast empire that had collapsed decades ago, and felt that the situation of the Qinmeng Empire back then must have been much the same.

This time, however, the matter seems to have landed in the Tuer region of the Thousand Islands Alliance.

Huang didn't know exactly how many alien insects were in the caves, how they reproduced, or whether they were capable of rapid reproduction. However, if one-tenth of the caves in the Tuer region harbored alien insects, and these insects could reproduce quickly, the land inhabited by the Tuer people might very well be handed over to others.

He pointed in the direction of the giant moth, took two steps reluctantly, but ultimately had to retreat because the time to Body Control had expired.

Huang is no longer the same person he once was. Zhang Xuezhou's team was almost wiped out just by encountering the giant moth. This is not something he can subdue by controlling Zhang Manqian's body.

The giant moths continued to scream in agony on the other side of the area blocked by boulders, but they no longer had the chance to beat a drowning dog.

The rocky passage, blocked by a hundred meters of rocks, prevented the giant moths from chasing Zhang Xuezhou Zhang Xuezhou his companions, and also prevented them from launching a counterattack.

"That was close!"

Zhang Manqian swayed her somewhat weak body, looked at the cuts and injuries she had sustained from the falling rocks, and glanced around with lingering fear.

After regaining her senses, she quickly pointed out the place where Ren Anran might be buried.

For Zhang Xuezhou, who is skilled in fossilization, the unfriendly terrain of the cave is somewhat like his home turf.

Digging through the lava cave was extremely difficult for him, but breaking through some piles of rubble wasn't too difficult.

After some digging and searching, Ren Anran, who had been unconscious, was also pulled out.

"I wonder where Uncle Wang was swept away to?"

Ren Anran survived thanks to a push from Wang Haoran.

The injuries and excruciating pain from being hit by boulders would be fatal for a normal team in this kind of place, but such injuries posed little problem for Zhang Xuezhou and his group.

As long as it's not a fatal injury, any surviving skin, flesh, bone pain, or even internal organ damage can be healed by a person capable of casting spells normally.

Even the study of Supreme Purity True Technique is common in their group. As long as one person can cast spells, a normal cycle will be formed after healing others, which is what is commonly known as a 'jack-of-all-trades' team in some games.

In just one minute, Ren Anran's injuries had been stabilized. Apart from the weakness caused by the rapid healing effect of the Supreme Purity True Technique, which greatly depleted her physical strength, Ren Anran was in good physical condition.

"Uncle Wang should be going in that direction!"

Perhaps hearing Zhang Xuezhou's voice, Ren Anran woke up very quickly. She barely pointed in a direction, and Zhang Manqian, relying on Huang's guidance, searched around.

"That Professor Wang is Fifth Sequence individual; he shouldn't die so easily!"

Turkalando murmured to himself.

She patted her neck and other exposed skin from time to time, looking at Zhang Xuezhou and the others in disbelief.

Among the many people, she was the only one whose skin was poisoned. Not only did Zhang Xuezhou show no symptoms, but even Ren Anran, who had severe bleeding, was not affected by the scale powder.

She was itchy and uncomfortable, but dared not scratch her skin.

The scene was terrible, but it's a good thing no one died.

If they can find Wang Haoran alive, they will have escaped a calamity.

There's no experience to draw upon in these kinds of encounters, nor is it necessary to do so. Just like when they encountered ferocious beasts in the Qin-Meng region, these kinds of events are uncontrollable accidents, and no matter how they deal with them, they are always powerless.

Fortunately, the poison-repelling techniques practiced by everyone had some effect.

Turkalando is suffering from severe poisoning and cannot be helped immediately, but Ren Anran and Zhang Manqian still have the capacity to help.

However, the area affected by the explosion was quite large, making it difficult for everyone to search for where Wang Haoran was buried.

Zhang Xuezhou had no choice but to proceed with the search step by step.

They dug haphazardly for nearly fifteen minutes, until a sound came from the darkness. They saw Wang Haoran, covered in blood, running back from a distance, cursing and swearing.

I'm adjusting my work schedule and catching up on the manuscript I missed during the Lunar New Year. Without at least seven or eight chapters of draft material, it's easy to make mistakes. I'm trying to finish it quickly and return to updating three times a week next week or early March.