At first, Ma Lu thought he was seeing things, or perhaps he had encountered a mirage, but as the sand dune drew closer, its outline became increasingly clear, stirring up billowing dust—it was obviously no illusion.
This rare and astonishing sight made Ma Lu marvel and he couldn't help but stop to watch it closely. However, as he watched, his expression gradually changed.
Because he noticed that the direction the sand dune was moving in seemed to be right toward him.
This gave Ma Lu a bad feeling.
Without hesitation, he immediately started running towards the side of the sand dune, channeling the form he used when running the 1000 meters in college, shooting off like an arrow.
Just as he was about to run out of the sand dune's path, the latter picked up speed and, taking a turn, closed in on him again.
Ma Lu was forced to change direction once more, but then the same scene played out again—the dune was still doggedly following him.
By now, Ma Lu was certain that the sand dune was targeting him, and the likelihood was that it bore no good intent.
The distance between them kept shrinking in this cat-and-mouse chase, leaving less than a hundred meters.
Seeing that there was no escape, Ma Lu gritted his teeth and came to a stop, standing his ground right there.
He then reached into his pocket with his right hand and quickly pulled out a chip.
Unlike ordinary casino chips, the back of this chip featured a mysterious eye that was half open and half closed, while the spot where the denomination should have been was blank.
Ma Lu placed the chip horizontally between the first and second joints of his index finger, his thumb slightly bent, then briskly stroked it across the pad of his index finger, flicking the chip upward.
Accompanied by a buzzing sound, the blank chip shot straight into the air, tumbling end over end as it soared up to its zenith.
It paused for a moment at the high point, then accelerated in its descent.
Timing it perfectly, Ma Lu stretched out his right hand as it fell to chest level and slapped the chip onto the back of his left hand.
When he lifted his palm, the previously blank area now bore a number.
—29
Huh? Ma Lu felt his own body but didn't sense any changes, and a glance around revealed that everything was the same as before.
When Old Wang had given him the chip, he said it was called [Destiny's Aegis], one of the most powerful divine artifacts in the multiverse that could have an unexpected effect at a crucial moment.
However, Old Wang couldn't remember what its specific function was.
Now, with Ma Lu backed into a corner by the pursuing sand dune, he could only pin his hopes on this divine artifact.
Yet, aside from a number with unclear meaning, he had gained nothing.
At the same time, the sand dune had already arrived in front of him.
Because there were two suns in the sky, Ma Lu wasn't engulfed by the massive shadow it cast, but even a cursory estimate made it clear how huge the sand dune was.
It stood nearly thirty meters tall and spanned over a hundred meters across.
But just as the sand dune was about to hit Ma Lu, it stopped in its tracks and began to "tremble," with countless grains of sand rolling down its ridge and the dust raised nearly obscuring the sky.
The true form beneath the sand dune finally revealed itself: a large and ugly head, somewhat reminiscent of a toadfish but sorrier in appearance.
The enormous mouth below took up almost two-thirds of the head, and as it opened, Ma Lu saw teeth inside.
Compared to its gigantic mouth, those teeth were quite diminutive, each being less than half a meter long, but what they lacked in size, they made up for in number, amounting to nearly a thousand.
To avoid being pierced like a sieve, Ma Lu was considering whether to use the Chef's Knife in his hand to end it all beforehand.
Just then, a series of beeping sounds buzzed in his ears, and Ma Lu thought that [Destiny's Aegis] had finally come online, but when he looked down, he saw that the [Traveler's Bracelet] had timely popped up a notification.
——Ding! Congratulations on discovering a 3-star ingredient, [Thousand-Tooth Sand Grouper], [Thousand-Tooth Sand Grouper] entry has been unlocked.
???
Ma Lu was stunned for half a second before he remembered that the detection mode had been activated since last time and hadn't been turned off, and now it was alerting him again.
He couldn't see the humor in this little device; compared to the behemoth opposite him, he was clearly the one closer to being an ingredient.
That creature, known as the Thousand-Tooth Sand Bream, seemed to share this view and was ready to start its meal.
But in the next moment, a mechanical spear enveloped in electric light took the lead and flew into its massive mouth.
Ma Lu turned his head and saw a strangely designed motorcycle speeding down from the neighboring dune.
This motorcycle was at least twice as big as a regular one in size, longer in body, with an iron shell covered in strange pits and patches of repair marks, looking as though it could fall apart at any moment.
But the most eye-catching part was beneath the vehicle's body; instead of wheels, it had a full track, a modification that made this motorcycle more suited for traversing sand.
The rider taming this steel beast wasn't even 1.7 meters tall, wrapped up tight all over, with even his face covered in a scarf and his eyes shielded behind black goggles. As he approached, he shouted to Ma Lu in a husky voice.
"What are you doing standing there like an idiot? Run, I'll draw its attention!"
"Which way?"
Ma Lu's question caused the rider to pause, "Where's your motorcycle?"
But without waiting for Ma Lu to answer, he continued, "Get on! The Thousand-Tooth Sand Bream is too big, the electric spear can only distract it, it won't have a paralyzing effect."
As if proving his point, the lips of the Thousand-Tooth Sand Bream, zapped by the electricity, became not sluggish but even more irate, swinging its entire head over.
The motorcycle rider didn't apply the brakes but instead twisted the throttle to the max, speeding past Ma Lu's body.
Ma Lu took the cue, attempted a suave leap to the side, and then… missed completely.
Fortunately, at the critical moment, the motorcycle rider freed one hand and timely grabbed Ma Lu's collar, hoisting him into the air.
The motorcycle's engine output reached its peak in that instant, carrying the two of them away from certain doom at the last second.
The head of the Thousand-Tooth Sand Bream crashed into the sand with a massive thud, while a sand rain also started to fall from the sky.
This actually created an excellent opportunity for their escape; however, after covering some distance, the motorcycle reduced its speed and the rider kept looking back.
By this time, Ma Lu was seated properly in the back, one arm around the shorter rider, his other hand covering his mouth and nose. Seeing the motorcycle slowing down, he asked in confusion.
"Why aren't we moving?"
The short rider didn't reply but simply brought the motorcycle to a stop.
Then Ma Lu saw six more motorcycles appear one after another on the nearby dunes, rapidly closing in on them.
"Don't say anything when they come," the short rider instructed.