Chapter 1278 Desert
In a corner of the world, the blond boy slowly opened his black and white eyes, as if piercing through the barriers of space, and gazed into the distance at the two cities that were originally troubled by the strange Herrschers.
"Two more weak and deformed Herrscher powers have manifested. Too scattered, too mixed, they are worthless to me..."
He raised his hand, gazing at the jet-black energy that flowed slowly through his palm, an energy that seemed capable of swallowing all light—the power of the Herrscher of Earth, the power to create black holes. However, his brow furrowed slightly, as if he was not satisfied with the progress or state of this power.
But in the next second, his heterochromatic pupils suddenly contracted, and a clear displeasure flashed across his cold face.
"Tsk." He made a short, annoyed sound.
I chose my own path in the future, but that guy ended up getting the better deal.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the Earth.
Zijing's figure rose and fell like a ghost among the skyscrapers, closely following the nimble, twin-tailed girl in front of him—Chuxia. The other girl seemed to be fully aware of his pursuit, but showed no intention of shaking him off. Instead, it was as if she was deliberately guiding him, her speed varying, always maintaining a distance that was neither easy to shake off nor immediately close to him.
The two of them traveled one after the other across mountains, rivers, lakes and seas at an extraordinary speed. Eventually, the landscape before them changed from lush green to withered yellow, and finally transformed into an endless expanse of golden yellow.
The heart of the Sahara Desert.
The scorching sun baked the sandy sea, and the burning air distorted the view. The sandstorm, whipped up by a sudden gust of wind, formed a series of dim yellow curtains, making the figures of the two pursuers and fleeers appear hazy and indistinct.
This is a desolate, uninhabited wilderness, seemingly devoid of anything except for the eternal sandstorms and solitude. Yet, fate is always full of surprises.
Near an area barely shaded by several weathered rock pillars, a small team was surprisingly stationed, with several off-road vehicles and a large amount of camera equipment standing out incongruously—this was a team filming an "extreme wilderness survival" program.
Early summer lightly descended on the sand dunes, and a smile, seemingly unsmiling, curved her lips as she casually glanced at the crew members who were "striving to survive" for the sake of the filming effect.
The production team was also dumbfounded. In the depths of this desolate desert, a cute little girl in an exquisite Lolita dress with pigtails suddenly appeared out of nowhere (or rather, emerged from behind the sand dunes)? This scene was more bizarre than any of the program segments they had designed.
"Where did this little girl come from? Is she a family member of one of the staff members who got separated?" the director frowned and shouted into the walkie-talkie.
Zijing landed right after him, and was also stunned for a moment when he saw the scene before him, then frowned slightly. He hadn't expected to encounter ordinary people here.
Chu Xia calmly patted non-existent grains of sand off her skirt, looking like she was watching a good show.
After hesitating for a moment, Zijing took the initiative to walk towards the direction of the production crew.
"Hey! You over there, buddy! And you, young lady! It's too dangerous here! What are you doing here?" A muscular, dark-skinned survival expert ran over first, his face filled with anxiety and reproach. "Come quick! The sandstorm could get much bigger at any moment!"
Other staff members also gathered around, asking questions all at once, their tone mostly concerned. They assumed that Zijing and Chuxia were tourists or adventurers who had accidentally wandered into the dangerous area.
Looking at these well-meaning people whose faces clearly said, "How could you be so inconsiderate?" Zijing felt a little helpless. He softened his tone and tried to explain, "We have some urgent business to attend to and will be leaving soon. You'd better not..."
"Nonsense!" the director interrupted him sternly. "What could be more important than life? You're all quite young, don't be reckless! Mohart, you drive and take them to the nearest supply depot!" He pointed to a young driver beside him.
Zijing knew that conventional explanations wouldn't work, and that what was about to happen here was something that ordinary people should never witness or be involved in.
He sighed softly, a faint glimmer of light, imperceptible to most, flickering in his eyes.
“Thank you for your kindness,” Zijing’s voice seemed to carry a peculiar rhythm, gentle yet undeniably reaching the ears of every member of the production team, “but you need to leave this area immediately and safely. Go back the way you came. Nothing special happened today; it was just an ordinary location shoot that didn’t go very smoothly.”
Powerful psychological suggestion is subtly implanted, accompanied by subtle mental fluctuations.
The anxious and concerned expressions on the faces of the program crew members gradually turned into blankness and dazedness, before returning to "normal".
The director blinked, looking around in confusion. "Huh? Did the wind pick up just now? Oh well... we've almost finished shooting the footage, and this awful weather looks like it's going to get worse. Let's call it a day! Everyone pack up and head back the way we came!"
The survival expert scratched his head and said, "Yeah, something feels off. Let's get out of here."
They stopped paying attention to Zijing and Chuxia, quickly packed up their equipment, got into their vehicles, and with the roar of engines, the convoy turned around and headed back the way they came, soon disappearing into the rolling yellow sand.
After seeing off the ordinary people who had been unexpectedly caught up in the incident, Zijing turned around and calmly looked at the twin-tailed girl with a mocking smile on the sand dune.
"Now, can you speak, Miss Chuxia?" Zijing's voice remained clear amidst the sandstorm. "What exactly do you want from bringing me here?"
The wind and sand continued to howl, swirling up layers of sand that blurred the figures of the two in the shadows. In response to Zijing's question, Chuxia simply placed a slender finger to her lips in a shushing gesture, a mischievous glint in her bright eyes.
She didn't answer, but gracefully smoothed her skirt and sat down on a rock beside her, its surface smoothed by wind and sand. She rested her chin on her hands, gazing into the depths of the desert, as if waiting for something, or simply appreciating the scenery of this desolate land.
Zijing frowned slightly. The other party's silence and deliberate steer to this point undoubtedly deepened his suspicions. But he remained calm; having experienced so much, he had long since learned to maintain necessary patience and observation in the face of the unknown.
He also chose a rock that was neither too close nor too far away, allowing him to maintain a safe distance while still being able to clearly observe the other person. This distance was enough for him to react in case of an emergency, and also avoided the direct conflict that might result from getting too close.
Time slipped away slowly amidst the howling of the wind and sand. The blazing sun gradually slanted westward, casting long, thin shadows of the two figures onto the scorching sand. Apart from the sound of the wind, there was almost no sign of life in this sea of death, only boundless silence and burning heat.
Zijing's gaze never left Chuxia. He observed her carefully. She seemed to be simply sitting there quietly, occasionally squinting slightly because of the strong wind and sand, or twirling the ends of her wind-blown pigtails with her fingers. Her posture was relaxed, even with a childlike boredom, forming an eerie contrast with this perilous and desperate situation.
