"I'm not joking. I really may die during this trip to Sand City," said Lin Ke as he stared straight at Forbes.
Forbes also nodded hard. "I know. I'm following Boss there willingly." Of course, there was another half-sentence at the back that Forbes didn't say. I may not necessarily die if I go to Sand City, but I'll definitely be eaten up whole by the army ants if I stay here!
Since Forbes had made his decision, Lin Ke couldn't say much else. He turned around and said, "Pack your things and get ready to set off then!"
Forbes hurriedly began to pack their belongings.
At the same time, Lin Ke returned to the cave and started to leave some instructions for Silver Queen Ant. To put it simply, they had two jobs only.
The first was to guard Howling Ancient Castle well. The moment they discovered anyone trying to occupy the place, they were to drive the enemies away most firmly and resolutely. The second was to get the worker ants to go up and begin restoring Howling Ancient Castle.
After witnessing the army ants' strong construction abilities, Lin Ke realized that they were fully capable of repairing the castle with their capabilities.
He was going to Sand City with a mission this time, so he probably wouldn't be back in the near future. Hence, he gave the mission of rebuilding their home to the army ants. He believed that he would be able to see a brand new Howling Ancient Castle the next time he returned.
Silver Queen Ant's feelers quivered up and down as it kept its master's instructions firmly in mind.
"Forbes, bring me an empty box."
It didn't take long before Forbes trotted over with a palm-sized metal box in his hand.
The box had been inside the medical kit and the logistics trunk. Since they were convenient for storing things categorically, Forbes had completely taken them apart.
Their trip to Sand City this time was highly dangerous. The army ants had extremely strong capabilities and were suitable for use in various environments, so he had to bring some with him.
Lin Ke stored more than 1,000 worker ants, soldier ants, and flying ants each into the box. When he was done, the metal box was already stuffed to the brim.
When he replaced the lid on the metal box, dense and concentrated metallic collision sounds rang out from inside the box, causing goosebumps to break out all over Forbes's body; his body also felt numb and tingly.
Lin Ke knocked on the metal box a couple of times, and the inside instantly quietened. All the army ants went into hibernation mode and curled up into metal 'water droplet' shapes.
"There, you can keep it now."
Forbes stubbornly pinched the metal box with a few fingers. He still didn't quite dare to make full contact with the metal box filled with army ants. It was only after he had carefully stuffed it into the backpack that he let out a long sigh of relief.
When Lin Ke took a look at Forbes, the corners of his lips couldn't help but quirk upward slightly. Those that know what he was doing would be watching him place a box into a backpack, but those that didn't would've thought that he was a bomb dismantling expert. Those were just army ants, yet he is already so fearful. Who knows how scared he will be if he has to face other monsters with greater ferocity in the future?
"After I leave, get the worker ants to seal this entrance. I'll leave these mobile mechanical arms, medical kit, and logistics trunk on the ground for you as food." Lin Ke stretched out his index finger and tapped Silver Queen Ant's forehead lightly.
Silver Queen Ant brushed its feelers lightly against Lin Ke's finger, somewhat reluctant to part with him.
"Howling Ancient Castle is under your care now."
With these metal remains as nutrient provisions, he believed that another few thousand army ants would be born very soon.
Lin Ke and Forbes exited the cave. The army ants lined up into neat and tidy teams at the cave entrance and bade farewell to Lin Ke.
After Lin Ke turned around, the army ants immediately started to transport broken rock fragments and earth to seal the cave entrance.
Lin Ke had reaped an unprecedented amount of rewards during his temporary stay at Howling Ancient Castle this time. Even as he walked down the secret tunnel, he still felt as though he was in a dream.
As a veteran player, he knew very well what Wastelands Planet's hidden main scenario mission, as well as the A-Level entrusted mission, signified.
There were only four A-Level missions in the whole of Wastelands Planet. In addition, the other three were segmented missions split from one main scenario. Only the hidden main scenario's mission chain was a complete one.
Let's now take a look at the players that completed the A-level missions back then. The rich and bountiful rewards had straight-up propelled the few of them to the Top Player Combat Ranking's top few positions. Even when Version 6.0 was released six years later, those few players didn't drop out from the top ten. From this, one could tell just how far-reaching the influence of the newbie planets' main scenario missions was.
By obtaining the A-Level entrusted mission, it was as if Lin Ke had rediscovered the novelty and passion that he had felt when he had first entered the game in his past life.
"Boss, do we have any plans after we reach Sand City?" asked an out-of-breath Forbes, who was carrying the backpack on his back as he followed behind Lin Ke.
Plans…
Lin Ke had already drawn up a complete overall plan for Sand City after receiving the prince's A-Level entrusted mission. He had it all planned out nicely.
"My plan is that we'll get a change of clothes first, then have a feast after that."
Forbes's eyes lit up, and he clapped and cheered. "As expected of Boss to be able to think of such a perfect plan!"
Under Forbes's tanned skin was a mouth full of pearly white teeth. As he broke into a wide grin, Lin Ke felt that even the path in front of him had become a few notches brighter.
As the corridor wasn't high enough for flight, Sand Condor followed behind Forbes and waddled from side to side on its two legs. A lord of the skies had been reduced to a domestic bird in a split second.
Perhaps it was because walking was too tiring, but Sand Condor glanced at the underground river running in the same direction as the corridor, and a bold idea suddenly came to its mind…
Some time later, a shadow gradually slid past Lin Ke's peripheral vision. Sand Condor had actually taken a leaf out of a duck's books and was sitting in the water, paddling with its two claws.
It even turned to look at them, its line of vision sweeping across Forbes, Treasure Hunter Rat, and Lin Ke, respectively. Its eyes seemed to be saying, "Look at how free and relaxed walking is for Lord Condor here."
Only Lin Ke knew what was really going on.
Although Sand Condor looked very good swimming in the water, its two claws paddling in the water underneath its body certainly made for a very pathetic sight.
"Boss, are you familiar with Sand City? It's my first time going to Sand City despite my age. Back then, I heard from my family that Sand City is a big city. Back then, my father had been determined to expand our pallbearer business all the way to Sand City, saying that we could earn a lot that way! For that purpose, we had even gotten our suits, sunglasses, and leather shoes ready. It was just a shame that later on…"
Lin Ke understood that this wasn't Forbes thinking about things that saddened him again. Rather, this was his longing for the city that he had heard of countless times in the past. The nearer Forbes got to Sand City, the more he looked forward to it.
It was just that… How was Lin Ke supposed to say this…
Considering what they were going to face in the future, the real Sand City and the Sand City that Forbes was looking forward to were probably as different as night and day.
"You hadn't left the desert before when you lived with the desert tribe in the past, right?"
Forbes nodded repeatedly. Everything that he had heard about the outside world had been from others in the tribe.
The tribesmen themselves had also heard about the outside world from traveling merchants that had passed by, rather than seeing it with their own eyes. Thus, they had conjured up fantasies and a sense of longing for the city.
Lin Ke decided to use this opportunity to fill Forbes in about Wastelands Planet's history and the current political situation. "You know the reason why our planet is known as Wastelands, right?"
Forbes knew about this part of history, so he hastily nodded and replied, "Yes! It's because two superpowers launched innumerable nuclear bombs on the Day of Reckoning, resulting in the whole planet's eco-environment suffering lethal destruction. To bear the effects of the great war in mind, the survivors called this day the Day of Reckoning. They even started using a new calendar system. Our planet's name was also changed to Wastelands Planet."
"What else do you know?"
"I also know that when nuclear radiation destroyed the eco-environment, it also caused changes to take place in some people's bodies at the same time, allowing them to possess incredible powers. That was how the supernatural powers system was born. Aside from that, I also know about the Wastelands Gang—which is a union and combination of military groups—and the Machinery Holy Cult, which captures people to use them as batteries. I don't know about the rest."
Lin Ke continued Forbes's conversation thread and said, "After the Day of Reckoning, all the old rules and regulations were broken. A person's capabilities were what decided their power and authority, while resources helped establish their statuses. Hereby, each military group in the desert became independent and declared themselves as kings. Additionally, they constantly fought among themselves.
"In the north, the countries that were originally there dissolved during the disaster. By relying on the underground shelters built during the Cold War, they took in a large number of survivors. Underground ecological systems with cities as their cores were rebuilt. After the nuclear disaster's smoke clouds dispersed, people gradually walked out of the shelters, rebuilt the cities, and returned to living aboveground. Communications were also restored between cities. In order to stand against new challenges, old political powers and new influential forces formed a new union consisting of three main cities and innumerable supporting small satellite cities—the Freedom Federation.
"The three main cities in the Freedom Federation are Dragon City, Fae City, and the final destination of our journey this time—Sand City."
Forbes—who was listening with rapt attention—couldn't help but ask, "Boss, what are these 'new challenges' you mentioned?"
"You already know about the Wastelands Gang and the Machinery Holy Cult. After the Freedom Federation was formed, the military groups engaging in chaotic warfare in the desert sensed incoming danger, so they also followed suit and founded the Wastelands Gang. With their great increase in power, they sought even bigger profits.
"The Machinery Holy Cult is a mad concept a group of crazy scientists came up with when they were in the shelters. They believed that the outside world was no longer suitable for humans to live in, so they thought of various ways to modify their own bodies into machinery. Among them was a genius, Professor Zhao. He succeeded in changing every part of his body, with the exception of his brain, into machinery. He also discovered that the brain could create an unending stream of bio-energy when in a dreaming state.
"Subsequently, Professor Zhao was exiled from the shelter because he had carried out inhumane modification experiments on other people against their will during his research. After that, he spread his ideologies via wireless communications and received acknowledgment from a lot of people. He gradually built a force of his own in the Gobi, and that is the Machinery Holy Cult."
Lin Ke paused for a moment before he continued and said, "There are a lot of other extremist ideologies like this, too. One example is the Mutants of Brothers Union—who profess to be neo-humans and are out to kill all ordinary humans.
"The Crucifix Army believes that God caused the Day of Reckoning to punish humans. They also believe technology would lead to the destruction of the world. They revere the ancient times and abide by traditional customs. Then there is the mysterious Academy, which produces and studies mutants. There are also several mysterious creatures that we used to think existed only in fantasies…"
Forbes's mouth had already become so gaping wide that one could stuff a fist inside. After hearing all these horrifying stories, he held his Boss in even higher esteem. Boss is really impressive. He knows everything, and everything he says is so clear and logical.
Sand Condor—who had swum along the underground river and slipped to the front in advance—let out a cry with its husky voice. The sound traveled through the tunnel to Lin Ke.
They had reached Sand City.
Sand Condor swam along the underground river and caught sight of the end. There was a tightly-shut metal door there.
Two minutes later, Lin Ke and Forbes also reached the metal door.
The metal door was spotted with rust and featured a spinning wheel—which was as large as a bicycle handle—in the center.
The groundwater branched out from here and flowed out through the big hole on the wall outside. From the gurgling, it sounded like the water was converging at some unknown place.
Lin Ke turned back and glanced at Forbes. Then, he suddenly said, "Take off your trousers!"