The Terrifying River Crossing

The White Sand Demon Soldiers towered three meters tall, sculpted from pale clay and sand. They had arranged themselves into four or five rows, sealing off every avenue of escape for the pair of Hunter-mages who had stumbled into the Shamang River.

Then the white sand blades began to fall — rank after rank of them, relentless. Unlike ordinary edged weapons, these blades were flat and blunt; they didn't cut so much as pulverize, hammering the Hunter-mages into ruin.

Blood and flesh flew in every direction.

Moonlight cast the world in blue-white. The Shamang River shimmered in pale cream. Against that backdrop, the vivid crimson smearing across the ground stood out all the more starkly — all the more horrifying.

Mo Fan stared wide-eyed. He had never had any intention of saving them — but even so, the speed of their deaths was staggering. Their magical defenses hadn't been weak, yet they crumbled instantly under the coordinated assault of so many White Sand Demon Soldiers.

The shields shattered in moments. Screams still echoed across the silent wasteland, piercing and wretched.

"Good God." From behind Mo Fan came Zhao Manyan's stunned gasp.

Mo Fan turned to find everyone had woken and spilled out from the tents.

Xinxia and Chenying both had their hands clamped over their mouths, eyes stretched wide with horror — they had seen everything.

The terror of the Shamang River far exceeded anything they had imagined. It was like watching ordinary people plunge into a river teeming with savage sharks, torn apart in seconds with no chance of fighting back.

"What if we just... call this a sightseeing trip to Dunhuang and head home?" Zhao Manyan said, his voice coming out thin, his scalp prickling, legs gone weak beneath him.

From the Secret Intelligence Scroll, he had already learned that the Shamang River was the most feared forbidden zone in all of Dunhuang — a place where countless hunters had met their end. But seeing it with his own eyes was something else entirely. A tremor had settled deep in his soul. If those Hunter-mages hadn't been driven into the river by a pack of Sand Howl Tigers for reasons no one could fathom, it would have been his group taking a one-way trip through that sand-blade formation tomorrow.

"But... but we have Xinxia with us, don't we? It shouldn't... it shouldn't be as bad as what happened to them, right?" Even Zhang Xiaohou, normally as bold as anyone, was stumbling over his own words.

Chenying and Xinxia were both silent for a long time. A scene that raw and bloody needed time to absorb. Eventually, Chenying turned to Xinxia, eyes searching. "Can your Mind Element magic really pacify those demon soldiers? One wrong move and we'd all end up exactly like them."

Xinxia thought for a moment, then gave a slow, deliberate nod. "The White Sand Demon Soldiers in the area where blood was just spilled are agitated," she said softly. "If we try to pass through that section, the odds would be heavily against us. But as long as we move through areas that haven't been tainted with the scent of blood, I can guarantee they won't attack us."

"Even so, a chill runs through me just thinking about it," Zhao Manyan muttered darkly. "One slip and we're all done for."

Lingling glanced at the two of them with undisguised contempt, her expression perfectly unruffled. "Those idiots brought it on themselves. It's one thing to stir up six or seven Sand Howl Tigers — all right, mistakes happen. But then they charged headlong into the Shamang River on top of it. Fighting the tigers to the death might have given them some chance to run. Barging into the Shamang River with all that commotion is no different from hurling yourself into hell. As long as we're careful, and Xinxia's Mind Element magic is watching over us, crossing this place will feel no different from walking across a dry riverbed."

Xinxia had steadied herself by now. She spoke quietly but with certainty. "If we follow the plan we drew up, nothing will go wrong. But everyone has to remember: until I give you explicit permission, no one uses a single spell inside the Shamang River. The moment any trace of destructive magical energy begins to pulse, these White Sand Demon Soldiers will instinctively turn on us — and once that happens, there'll be no pulling the situation back under control."

Zhao Manyan and Chenying both nodded. They understood. Matching their strength against the demon soldiers of the Shamang River was hopeless — but with a Mind Element Mage holding the peace, everything could stay calm.

They returned to their tents in a state of frayed nerves and spent a restless night.

The terrifying Shamang River was less than twenty meters away. Who could say whether those monstrous White Sand Demon Soldiers might clamber up the bank and come for them?

They endured in that unease until dawn. The rising sun in the east cast a sweep of brilliant red light across the Shamang River. The blood from the night before had dried, but under that crimson morning glow it remained starkly visible — a silent reminder that this vast pale river was not remotely as peaceful as it looked. It was a place where nine died for every one who walked out.

"What if one of us goes in first to test it?" Zhao Manyan suggested weakly. "Better than charging in all at once and getting wiped out completely."

"I think that's a solid idea — gives everyone some peace of mind." Mo Fan's gaze slid toward Zhao Manyan with unmistakable intent. "The question is who goes."

Zhang Xiaohou wisely declined to volunteer, leaving that act of heroism graciously to Zhao Manyan.

Zhao Manyan deeply regretted ever opening his mouth.

Still clinging to one last thread of hope, he turned to Zhang Xiaohou with a strained grin. "You're military — nerves of steel, top-tier courage. And you've got two displacement skills. If things go sideways, you can clear out faster than anyone. This one seems tailor-made for you."

Zhang Xiaohou waved both hands emphatically, face dead serious. "Brother Fan told me your defenses are like a thousand-year-old tortoise shell. Even if those White Sand Demon Soldiers show up, with all that protection layered around you, there's no way you wouldn't hold out long enough for us to come rescue you."

Zhao Manyan looked at Mo Fan with barely concealed desperation.

Mo Fan shrugged, expression perfectly straight. "I'm the DPS of this team. This sort of thing suits you two far better."

Zhao Manyan turned to Xinxia as a last resort.

"Go ahead," she said gently. "It'll be fine. Just remember — don't use any magic until I give you a clear signal. That's the one thing that would actually put you in danger."

Zhao Manyan braced himself and forced his feet toward the Shamang River. His state of mind was so far beyond "nervous" that the word didn't even begin to cover it.

He crept forward one step at a time. With each footfall on the white sand, his heart lurched violently in his chest.

The mournful wail of the wind swept toward him from somewhere ahead. In his mind, this was no dried-up ancient river. It was the road to the underworld.

**BOOM—**

He had barely taken a few steps when the sand all around him erupted in wave upon wave of white!

Dozens of White Sand Demon Soldiers surged up from the ground right beside him!

They stood tall and imposing — massive figures like warriors clad in white armor!