Chapter 153: Chance Encounter, Night Raid

Night was deepening.

A fierce wind was sweeping across the desert. The howling wind sounded like the roar of a wild beast.

Hua Piaowu and Su Li were shivering from the cold. They searched Liang Xingteng’s backpack thoroughly, finding all sorts of miscellaneous items—dry rations, tents, healing medicine—everything except anything to keep out the cold.

As night fell, the desert plunged into total darkness, devoid of even a sliver of light, so pitch black that one could not see their own hand in front of their face. Although the desert was free of obstacles and one wouldn't crash into things while walking, the landscape rose and fell in undulating sand dunes resembling mountain ranges.

Su Li missed her footing and almost slid down. Fortunately, Xu Han was quick-witted and grabbed her hand just in time, pulling her back up.

"It's too dark. Should we make camp and stay here for the night?" Hua Piaowu suggested.

Xu Han looked into the distance. The desert seemed to stretch on infinitely. Besides, traveling at night was terribly inefficient. Apart from him and Jiang Yuchen, no one else possessed night vision; moving forward would be equivalent to being completely blind. It would be much better to rest properly and recover their physical strength.

He nodded. "Let's pitch the tents and rest."

"I'll take the first watch," Jiang Yuchen volunteered.

"I'll take the second half of the night," Xu Han replied. Jiang Yuchen raised no objection.

Soon, the group began setting up their tents.

In front of the large screen, Secretary Ni furrowed his brow. "What are they doing? Pitching tents? Are they preparing to sleep?"

"They dare to sleep at a time like this?"

"What if they miss the opportunity to acquire the treasures?"

Liang Xingteng frowned as he said, "The appearance of the desert is an unexpected circumstance. Desert nights are not suitable for traveling; accidents happen easily, so resting for a bit is entirely reasonable."

Secretary Ni frowned, let out a cold snort, and said nothing more.

To conserve warmth, the group only set up two tents. The three girls crowded into one tent, while Zhu Junjie slept alone in the other. Xu Han sat quietly outside the tent, gnawing on dry rations.

A few hours later, Jiang Yuchen emerged from the tent and patted Xu Han on the shoulder, signaling him to go rest. Xu Han nodded, stood up, and was about to head back to the tent when his gaze caught something in the distance.

His body suddenly froze.

Jiang Yuchen immediately noticed Xu Han's abnormality and asked in a low voice, "What is it?"

Pointing toward the distant sand dunes, Xu Han spoke in a soft voice, "Did you see those figures over there?"

Jiang Yuchen looked in the direction Xu Han was pointing. It was pitch black, and there was nothing to be seen. She shook her head slightly.

A thought stirred in Xu Han's mind.

A dark purple magic circle lit up beside him. Instantly, the little hawk appeared at his side.

"Little hawk, fly up into the sky and scout for me," Xu Han instructed.

The little hawk nodded, spread its wings, and soared into the sky.

...

Deep within the pitch-black desert, five figures were walking.

Leading them was a hulking figure with the exact appearance of a crocodile.

"Captain, let's take a rest. We won't be able to cross this desert anytime soon anyway," one of them said.

The crocodile-man frowned and slowly nodded. "Then we'll make camp right here."

Delight flashed across the faces of the others. They immediately took out their tents and began assembling them. Soon, five tents were erected. They left a person with the head of a hound to keep watch outside, while everyone else crawled into their tents to rest.

All of this was witnessed by the little hawk. Upon returning, the hawk relayed everything it had seen to Xu Han.

Xu Han's eyes lit up.

There were other people inside the secret realm ruins?

That surely meant they were a team from another country! He just wondered which country's team they belonged to.

"Should we move in and deal with them?" Jiang Yuchen asked in a low voice. Now that the enemy was in the light while they were in the dark, it was an excellent opportunity to strike.

Xu Han nodded. If he didn't make a move at a time like this, he wouldn't be himself. However, launching a surprise attack meant only he and Jiang Yuchen could go; the others could not see in the dark and might not only fail to hit the enemy but also put themselves in grave danger.

The safest method was for him to go alone, leaving Jiang Yuchen behind to guard the others.

Xu Han shared his plan with Jiang Yuchen.

Jiang Yuchen's brows furrowed tightly. "Alone? That's too dangerous. If it's too risky, we should drop this idea."

Xu Han shook his head. "If we miss this opportunity, thinning out their numbers later won't be nearly as easy." He added, "Wait here for my news, and wake the others up just in case."

With that, Xu Han moved swiftly toward the location of the Annam national team.

Jiang Yuchen frowned slightly, sighed helplessly, and turned to wake the others inside the tent.

Although the audience in front of the screen couldn't hear the conversation, they watched as Xu Han walked off into the distance, filling them with confusion and doubt.

"Strange, what is that kid Xu Han up to?"

"There seem to be a few people over there. They must be a team from another country. Is Xu Han planning to deal with them all by himself?"

"Are you kidding me? Alone? That's too reckless!"

Liang Xingteng furrowed his brow. No matter how formidable Xu Han was, the members of other national teams were also the elite of the elite. Wanting to eliminate them all by oneself was simply impossible! If he were ambushed and surrounded by their five members, the Dragon Country team would be completely finished!

Yet, Ye Yuanzheng said with absolute confidence, "Don't worry, I believe this kid isn't brainless. If he dares to do this, he must have a plan."

Hearing Ye Yuanzheng say this, the others could only nod helplessly.

...

Outside the tents of the Annam national team, some firewood was piled on the ground. The wood burned, crackling rhythmically. The warm firelight illuminated the surroundings.

A humanoid figure with a hound's head sat quietly beside the campfire. Next to him rested a long staff made of special metal.

A dark shadow silently approached the perimeter of the camp. Cold eyes stared into the camp. It was none other than Xu Han!

Xu Han narrowed his eyes, carefully inspecting the perimeter of the tents. Confirming there were no alarm devices, he slowly walked toward the sentry.

The hound-headed man was feeling somewhat drowsy. Suddenly, he caught an unfamiliar scent!

"Who's there?!"

He snatched the iron staff beside him, sprang up abruptly, and scanned his surroundings, his eyes filled with vigilance. Darkness could not obstruct his vision; he could see his surroundings quite clearly.

An ice-blue dagger silently materialized behind him.

*Slash!*

The dagger instantly pierced the man's heart.

Fresh blood gushed out. The man widened his eyes in shock, slowly lowering his head to look at his own chest, disbelief written all over his face. His mouth moved as he tried to wake his companions, but no sound came out.

The dagger was withdrawn. The man collapsed limply to the ground. The spilled blood slowly seeped into the yellow sand.

Xu Han pulled out the Ice-Blue Blade and turned his gaze toward the surrounding tents. Stepping lightly, he cautiously approached the tents.

Just as he drew close to one of the tents, it was violently torn apart by a sudden gust of wind!

A crescent-shaped machete slashed fiercely toward Xu Han's head!

Fortunately, Xu Han's reaction time was swift enough. He quickly leaped back two steps. With a heavy *thud*, the crescent machete slammed into the sand before him, sending sand flying in all directions.