CHAPTER 231: REST

Truthfully, some of the later sandworms had already begun retreating.

Though their intelligence was low, even they could tell the battle was lost.

But some Stonewall mercenary members thought, how could this be allowed?

While others had successfully killed the sandworms they encountered, their own group had fought for so long only to let the sandworms escape—where would their pride be?

Thus, with deliberate or unintentional interference from the mercenaries, not a single sandworm managed to flee in the end.

Though it took a bit more effort, Beyond had no objections to this and tacitly allowed it.

In a place like the Dark Continent, caution was essential, and every ounce of stamina mattered.

This was undoubtedly true, but it also depended on the situation.

These sandworms were strong, but their team was fully capable of taking them down—it was only a matter of time.

As it turned out, Beyond’s judgment was correct.

If they could kill the enemy while still conserving some strength, then they should choose to attack with the goal of eliminating them.

Rather than preserving more stamina.

There were three reasons for this.

First, killing the enemy meant greater rewards—the bodies of these creatures were also valuable.

If they let them escape, they would gain nothing.

Second, they had just landed and this was the team’s first true battle on the Dark Continent.

If they could completely annihilate the enemy, it would significantly boost morale.

Moreover, these were just the lowest-tier enemies of the Dark Continent.

The further they ventured, the more terrifying their foes would become.

By then, there would be no chance for such "ease."

Finally, there was Beyond’s unique perspective as someone who had been to the Dark Continent before.

Though it was called a unique insight, many were actually aware of it.

And that was—to eradicate the root of the problem!

This phrase was usually applied to conflicts between people—showing no mercy to enemies and ensuring complete annihilation.

Beyond’s version of "eradicating the root" was directed at the creatures of the Dark Continent.

Because something had happened in a previous expedition he had joined to the Dark Continent.

It was precisely this incident that engraved the principle of "eradicating the root" into his mind.

Back then, he and other soldiers had entered a jungle and encountered some hyena-like creatures.

These creatures were extremely bloodthirsty and Beyond still remembered their crimson, predatory eyes.

At first contact, the hyenas attacked them.

After a fierce battle, they emerged victorious, but due to carelessness, someone accidentally let two hyenas escape.

This didn’t draw much attention from the others, as their focus was more on the spoils—the hyena corpses.

No one commented on the two that got away—only Beyond felt a vague unease in his heart.

Sure enough, after some time had passed and they had traveled a fair distance...

They were still tracked down by the keen-nosed hyenas.

This time, it wasn’t just one or two hyenas—it was a pack larger than the one they had faced before!

The two escaped hyenas had brought back more of their kind!

In the end, they had no choice but to resort to large-scale weaponry, sacrificing some soldiers before barely managing to escape.

Fortunately, using such weapons didn’t attract too many other creatures.

This was also why, despite carrying many high-tech weapons, they dared not use them frequently.

Because the commotion was usually too great!

Ordinary firearms and explosives were hardly effective against these creatures—only large-scale weapons could do the job.

Therefore, the team had a rule that large-scale destructive weapons were only allowed in critical situations.

In the end, many lives were lost, the jackal packs were completely wiped out, and it attracted attacks from other creatures.

During the escape, even some of the spoils they had seized had to be abandoned.

Overall, the losses were quite severe.

And all these losses were caused by accidentally letting two jackals escape back then.

Since then, Beyond had learned yet another bloody lesson.

When facing pack creatures, if the team had enough strength, they must strive to eradicate them completely!

Not a single one could be allowed to escape!

After all, no one could know or guarantee whether the escaped creatures would bring back more of their kind to besiege them.

A momentary oversight could lead to irreversible consequences!

Seeing the battlefield settled, Akira gave a slight nod and then a shadowy figure suddenly appeared behind him.

In the blink of an eye, spatial portals of varying sizes emerged across the battlefield, all appearing near the sandworm corpses.

Witnessing this, everyone held their breath, watching Akira’s actions intently, not daring to make any unnecessary movements.

All the sandworms—whether severed in two, riddled with holes, or scorched by fire—were collected into the spatial portals for storage.

It had taken some time to fight the sandworms, but gathering them all took only moments.

The efficiency was remarkably high.

Clap clap

"Take a half-hour break, then we’ll move forward."

Beyond clapped his hands, signaling everyone to rest here and recover their energy before continuing.

By his estimate, half an hour would be enough for everyone to replenish most of their expended aura.

Creatures all had territorial instincts.

Clearly, this area belonged to the sandworm swarm.

Now that the original owners had been eliminated, this was the most suitable place to rest.

Hearing this, the team members responded in agreement, some standing, others sitting cross-legged.

Though their postures varied, they all shared one thing in common—they were all making the most of the time to restore their aura.

...

Everyone had their own tasks—some were processing and dismantling the creatures for use as ingredients, while others were responsible for cooking these ingredients into meals for everyone, with the chef Sammy playing the main role.

Time passed quickly.

They had arrived on the Dark Continent in the morning, and after some time advancing, it was already evening.

Given that nighttime was more prone to danger and sufficient rest was necessary, everyone entered the digital world opened by Porygon-Z to rest, setting off again the next morning.

With Porygon-Z, they could have an absolutely safe shelter anytime, anywhere.

This was also crucial for exploring the Dark Continent.

After all, the wilderness at night was usually far more perilous.

"The first day... we made it through without too much trouble."

Pariston glanced at the busy team members and murmured to the others beside him.

Overall, he was fairly satisfied with their encounters on the first day.

"Indeed. Though we only faced the sandworm swarm today, it was just the right amount of challenge."

"If the first day had been overwhelming, everyone’s morale would’ve quickly deteriorated."

"And thanks to Akira’s spatial abilities—otherwise, no one would dare rest properly even at night."

Ging held an oval-shaped fruit in his hands, examining it while responding to the conversation.

They had now arrived on the Dark Continent, where dangers lurked at every turn.

At the very least, since they were members of the same team, the tone between Pariston and Ging had softened considerably.

The fruit in his hand was entirely green, covered in short spines.

Calling them spines wasn’t entirely accurate, as they were incredibly soft—almost like fine hairs.

Given that it grew in the desert, the name of this fruit was practically obvious.

Clearly, it was a cactus fruit.

Not only did its appearance differ from the cactus found on the Six Continents, but when split open, it was filled with an unusually large amount of moisture.

One could even call it a green water pouch.

This unique cactus had caught Ging’s attention.

At the same time, he could roughly deduce that this cactus was one of the sources of hydration for desert creatures.

--------------------------------

Read 50 Chapters ahead and support me on patreon.

patreon (.)com/Newbietranslator