Ye Ningze walked step by step through the world of red sand, as if he could feel something constantly wriggling within the sandy ground.
Ye Ningze did not know if it was his imagination or if there were truly monsters constantly wriggling in the sand.
But he knew that if these monsters launched an attack, it would be a terrifying affair.
What Ye Ningze had to do was to tread carefully, step by step, through the red ocean.
Suddenly, Ye Ningze leaned back, and a giant sandworm burst from the ground beneath his feet.
It opened its gaping maw, intending to attack Ye Ningze, but Ye Ningze suddenly turned and dodged the attack.
Then, Ye Ningze fiercely plunged his sword into its body. Bright red blood immediately gushed out from its body, like a massive fountain.
Ye Ningze then violently pulled his sword upwards, and a huge gash immediately appeared before him.
The surging blood further stained the area where Ye Ningze stood a deep red.
Only then did Ye Ningze see the creature's stats:
Giant Sandworm: Bloodline Talent A-rank.
Strength Talent: B-rank.
Hidden Talent: C-rank.
To prevent the blood from being wasted, Ye Ningze used his Blood Red Flowing Sand to absorb all of it.
After absorbing the blood, the Blood Red Flowing Sand immediately transformed into a black metal.
Ye Ningze knew this was only its first form; there would be a second, third, and even a fourth form.
This first form already possessed considerable lethality, and Ye Ningze was quite curious about the terrifying destructive power of the subsequent forms.
Although the Blood Red Flowing Sand was like a bottomless pit, madly absorbing the surrounding blood, Ye Ningze knew it was absolutely worth it. Moreover, he could not take all this blood with him.
It was better to let the Blood Red Flowing Sand absorb it completely. Perhaps it could even help him achieve unexpected results in the ruins.
Ye Ningze continued to move forward. The demonic beasts ahead were increasingly powerful, and the blood Ye Ningze collected grew in quantity.
It could even be said without exaggeration that if Ye Ningze did not possess exceptional strength, he might have already died here.
Ye Ningze defeated the demonic beasts time and again, then continuously infused their blood into the Blood Red Flowing Sand.
The Blood Red Flowing Sand kept changing, from its initial earthy yellow to black, then finally to dark gold, and eventually to golden yellow.
Ye Ningze certainly understood what this meant. It meant that even if he encountered an S-rank expert, he could deliver a fatal blow before they could notice his attack.
This surprise attack, even if it couldn't defeat the opponent, would leave them with no ability to retaliate.
As Ye Ningze was hunting monsters, he suddenly heard the sound of a fight ahead.
Ye Ningze immediately followed the sounds of combat and eventually saw two groups of people locked in a fierce struggle.
The source of their conflict was clearly something they had obtained within the secret realm; otherwise, they would not be fighting to the death.
Anyone could see that the strength of these two groups was evenly matched, meaning neither side had a guaranteed victory. Therefore, they would not have acted this way without absolute benefit.
Both sides had sustained casualties, and they were indeed evenly matched. If, at this moment, someone intervened in their battle,
it would immediately shift the entire dynamic of the fight. It was precisely because of this that Ye Ningze had no intention of acting.
Only when they were both severely weakened would Ye Ningze's intervention yield the greatest benefit.
Ye Ningze observed from the side for at least half an hour. After half an hour, both groups had become extremely fatigued.
It could even be said without exaggeration that they could no longer sustain the current fight and could collapse from exhaustion at any moment.
Seeing this, Ye Ningze knew it was time to act, so he decisively chose to strike.
His body transformed into a bolt of lightning, instantly appearing and then vanishing. When he reappeared,
everyone had fallen at his feet. It all happened too quickly, in the blink of an eye, so no one could react. There was still someone observing from the side.
Only after they had all fallen to the ground did they finally realize they were the mantises, and the true cicada was behind them all along.
"Who are you? How long have you been watching here? To endure until now before making a move, I must say you have quite the patience."
A burly man among them, even after being defeated, did not show any signs of panic. Instead, he calmly said to Ye Ningze.
Ye Ningze knew that someone who could remain so composed and speak such words at this moment was definitely extraordinary.
So Ye Ningze spoke to the man before him:
"You, leading this team, your strength is actually inferior to the opponent's, yet you fought to a draw. This indicates you are quite capable. At the very least, you have experienced far more battles than they have."
The other party did not understand what Ye Ningze meant by these words.
However, Ye Ningze was very clear in his heart. Although he was unwilling to join some teams,
it did not mean he was unwilling to recruit some people under his command. Although these two things seemed similar, there was a fundamental difference.
If Ye Ningze joined a team, everyone would at best be equals. But if he could subdue some people, then everything would be decided by him.
Therefore, Ye Ningze would choose the latter, not the former option.
"My name is Li Mingbo, and I lead the Icebird Squad."
Ye Ningze had indeed heard of Li Mingbo's name. In fact, Li Mingbo was quite famous.
This man was known throughout the Sun Base for his extreme diligence and meticulousness. Most importantly, no matter what predicament he faced, this man named Li Mingbo would not easily give up.
It was precisely for this reason that the people at the Sun Base liked to call Li Mingbo "the desperate sabre."
In reality, besides his desperation, he was also extremely rigid and held his own sense of justice and ideals.
It was not common to find such a person in the apocalypse. In the apocalypse, more people believed in immediate gain and did not adhere to so-called morals.
They were more willing to harm the interests of others to satisfy themselves.