After leaving the town, a stretch of rolling shallow yellow sand dunes appeared, known as the Singing Sand Mountains. These mountains are located on the eastern border of the ancient Loulan Kingdom; a few hundred miles further east lies the territory of the Ling Tian Empire.
At this moment, many players were training on the dunes, teaming up to hunt Level 1 monsters, the armored beetles, and were deeply engaged in their battles.
Ye Hen didn't linger here for long; after a quick glance around, he swiftly headed towards the outskirts.
The Singing Sand Mountains are referred to as mountains instead of dunes because, despite being formed by shifting sands, they exceed the typical height of sand dunes found in deserts. They rise and fall, undulating like waves, with the smallest hills standing over a hundred meters tall and the tallest reaching over three hundred meters.
Ye Hen aimed for the peak of the tallest hill, where the distinctive sound of the sands could be heard.
Drawing on his experience from his previous life, Ye Hen moved swiftly through the desert, stepping lightly on the fine yellow sand as he walked toward the distance.
After about ten minutes, he reached the foot of the hill, where a clear and deep spring named Crescent Spring lay. The spring water was transparent and drinkable, providing a refreshing respite in the dry and hot desert, a welcome find in such an arid environment.
Ye Hen glanced at Crescent Spring but didn't stay long, heading straight up the hill. Having already quenched his thirst at the spring in his previous life, he wasn't particularly curious about it now.
As soon as he stepped onto the dune, the sand beneath his feet began to emit a faint sound, reminiscent of the music produced by silk and bamboo instruments, which is how the name "Singing Sand" originated. Legend has it that this area was once lush with greenery and flowing water. A Loulan general was tasked with guarding this mountain and set up camp here. One night, the enemy army launched a surprise attack, forcing the soldiers to fight barehanded, resulting in a battlefield littered with corpses and rivers of blood, with thousands of bodies piled up.
As the two armies clashed, a sudden black wind arose, stirring up an overwhelming storm of yellow sand. The sand fell like torrential rain, quickly burying both armies and their corpses, forming massive sand dunes. Thus, it came to be known as the Singing Sand Mountains. After the incident, the general's new wife, upon hearing the tragic news, traveled a great distance to the Singing Sand Mountains and cried for seven days and nights before taking her own life at the foot of the hill. Crescent Spring is said to have formed from the tears of the general's bride.
Ye Hen had also heard this story from the elders in town, but it was merely a legend; there were no records of it in the Loulan Library. Whether it was true or not remained uncertain.
In addition to the singing sands, another peculiar aspect of this dune is that no footprints are left when a person walks over it. This phenomenon occurs because the sand grains are constantly shifting, flowing upward, which also explains why Crescent Spring, situated at the foot of the shifting sands, isn't buried by the yellow sand.
As he reached the mid-point of the hill, Ye Hen began to slow down; desert red scorpions had started to respawn in this area. These Level 10 monsters possess extremely high attack power, and at this moment, Ye Hen wouldn't last long against even a few hits from them.
Ye Hen cautiously continued his ascent when suddenly a desert red scorpion to his left seemed to sense something and turned to charge at him.
Stealth!
Ye Hen was prepared and immediately activated his stealth ability, making his figure vanish on the dune. The desert red scorpion, confused by his disappearance, reluctantly returned to its original spot.
Ye Hen let out a sigh of relief. The stealth state can easily be detected by monsters and players with high perception. However, this also depends on the player's skill in hiding; after playing for over half a year, Ye Hen had become quite adept at using a rogue's basic skills.
Seeing the desert red scorpion return to its spot, Ye Hen resumed his movements. Fortunately, the desert red scorpions didn't have sharp hearing; otherwise, the faint sounds made by the shifting sands beneath Ye Hen's feet would have given him away.
He continuously altered his climbing route to avoid areas densely populated with desert red scorpions. Generally speaking, these creatures can detect enemies from ten meters away, and when in stealth, they can sense anyone within two meters.
Ten minutes later, Ye Hen stealthily climbed to the top of the Singing Sand Mountains. The summit was an open sandy area, approximately 20 meters by 20 meters in size. In the center of this space stood a golden treasure chest, its radiant glow illuminating the surrounding yellow sand.
This golden treasure chest was the goal of Ye Hen's journey. In the game, treasure chests are categorized into bronze, silver, gold, dark gold, and legendary types, with some locked and others unlocked. If a treasure chest is locked, the key is usually found on nearby monsters. The golden treasure chest in front of Ye Hen was unlocked and was the only one of its kind within the vicinity of the Singing Sand Town.
Ye Hen crawled on the sand, observing the situation ahead. Dozens of desert red scorpions were wandering around the open area. Among them, a yellow-bodied desert golden scorpion was closest to the treasure chest; it was a leader-type monster responsible for guarding the chest.
In Sword of Dominion, monsters are categorized as common, leader, elite, king, lord, and spirit levels. At this stage, even large studios and guilds only dare to engage with relatively weaker elite-level monsters; facing king-level monsters is a task they would avoid. Furthermore, leader-level monsters, just one rank below elite-level, are difficult to defeat without the cooperation of four or five players of the same level.
After observing for a while, Ye Hen quickly made a decision; with just over two minutes left in his stealth, he had to act.
Equipping the novice dagger he received from Adili, Ye Hen stealthily approached the perimeter of the open space.
As he moved forward, Ye Hen's heart raced; he couldn't afford to breathe too heavily. He had to maintain a distance of at least two meters from all the desert red scorpions. If he crossed that boundary and was surrounded by dozens of Level 10 monsters, he wouldn't stand a chance of survival.
Ye Hen twisted and turned as he advanced, his steps appearing somewhat erratic; to an untrained eye, it looked as if a madman was dancing. However, upon closer inspection, one would see that despite his chaotic movements, he managed to keep a safe distance of over two meters from all the desert red scorpions. After all, with six months of practice, Ye Hen's foundational skills were solid.
It took him a full minute to get within seven meters of the treasure chest. He took a deep breath of the hot air, his forehead glistening with sweat. He had now entered the encirclement of the desert red scorpions; if anything went wrong, he was doomed.
Ye Hen steadied himself, not even pausing to wipe the sweat from his brow, and continued weaving his way forward.
As he ventured deeper, the desert red scorpions became increasingly dense; now, three were digging in the sand just ahead, each within three meters of the others. To reach the center position, Ye Hen would have to pass between them, but no matter how he moved, one of the desert red scorpions would surely notice him.
Ye Hen steadied his nerves and suddenly halted his advance, fixing his gaze on the three red scorpions, watching their movements.
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