With that pause, the Sand Worms behind him immediately surged forward. Lucifer Flowing Stream looked down at the earthy yellow cores of the mid-tier magical beasts on the ground with unconcealed delight. This time, they had finally turned the tables!

Before killing that man, they would seize his spoils first. “Stealing my things?” The sand beneath Qian Jin’s feet vibrated, blossoming into golden lotuses. His Furious Lotus Fighting Skill erupted to its full potential.

With a twist of his wrist, he pulled a handful of five or six arrows from his Battle Realm and, without even looking, nocked them all onto the bowstring at once. Hum! The bowstring vibrated, and six sharp arrows tore through the air, each spinning rapidly, rapidly, rapidly.

Some flew straight, others carved arcs through the sky, and yet others weren't aimed at Lucifer Flowing Stream at all. “Not good! Get up!” Lucifer Flowing Stream’s scalp suddenly tingled—it was the unmistakable sensation of being locked onto by an archer.

The Blood Bat, Lafale, beneath his feet flapped its wings and soared high, but it was still half a step too slow; the arrow grazed the skin of his heel. “That was close…” Lucifer Flowing Stream clutched his chest while airborne. Suddenly, he felt Lafale, usually the picture of stable flight, begin to wobble dangerously beneath him.

“Trying to leave?” Qian Jin sneered repeatedly without even looking up. “Stealing my things? Did you think those were ordinary arrows?” Being an Alchemist required not only mastering the formulation of potions that saved lives but also learning to brew poisons.

And for a Mysterious Alchemist, concocting lethal draughts was routine fare! Since Qian Jin was both an Alchemist and a Mysterious Alchemist, brewing poison? That was laughably simple!

The Blood Bat, Lafale, felt waves of dizziness wash over him. Abruptly, he twisted, flicking out five razor-sharp talons that sliced through his own left calf—the spot struck by the arrow—in a swift swish. Blood, red as pillars, erupted from the wound.

“Lafale… Princess, those arrows are poisoned!” Lafale sweated profusely from the excruciating pain. “Help me stop the bleeding and ease the pain, okay?” Her highness, Lucifer Flowing Stream, gritted her teeth, turned back to watch Qian Jin scoop up the magical core and sprint wildly across the desert. She pulled two magic scrolls from her Battle Realm, and a flash of light followed, momentarily staunching the blood flow from Lafale’s severed leg and slightly dulling the pain.

“Blood Sealing Magic?” Qian Jin frowned slightly. He hadn't expected Lucifer Flowing Stream to possess a Battle Realm, let alone a Blood Sealing Spell. While it couldn't stop the circulation indefinitely, it could prevent bleeding for about ten minutes—a specialized emergency healing spell.

Few Archmagi knew this magic; he hadn't thought this female demon possessed it. “Consider yourself lucky.” Qian Jin retrieved the arrows scattered on the ground as he fled, looking with some heartache at the corpse of the Sand Worm King, which had shrunk back to the size of an ordinary person. It was a pity he didn’t have time to stop and harvest the blood.

Having lost their King, the dune-dwelling beasts descended into chaos. They no longer pursued with the unified order they displayed before. Some separated from the main horde and turned their attention toward attacking Duanfeng Buer.

“It’s Qian Jin you’re after!” Duanfeng Buer thrust his spear, piercing the body of a dune creature, only to be immediately swarmed by more. These magical beasts were incredibly resilient; a saber would have been far more effective. His spear was proving miserably inefficient.

Several Sand Worms shifted toward Fen Tucanggge. Duanfeng Buer wrenched himself free from the writhing mass, leveraging his feet for speed and sprinting away. Qian Jin, still running, loosed several arrows that struck the worms, but he still couldn't halt their rapid advance.

“You court death!” Fen Tucanggge heard Chekfelit’s icy voice right behind his ear. A searing black flame shot past, nearly grazing his side. The foremost Sand Worm collided with the flame and instantly dissolved into a puddle of scorched flesh.

Fire! Truly intense fire, the greatest nemesis of the Sand Worms! The simple fireballs cast by mages were useless against them.

The unique atmospheric conditions of the Ancient Desolate Sand Sea granted the beasts extraordinary tenacity. But this tenacity proved fragile before the Demonic Eye of Destruction! One flame, one Sand Worm vanished.

The six worms surging toward Fen Tucanggge were in a moment transformed into six piles of foul-smelling, completely blackened, indistinguishable lumps of charcoal. The Demonic Eye of Destruction! Fen Tucanggge turned back, staring dumbfounded at Chekfelit.

This Fallen Angel bloodline warrior, who had only just awakened, had activated the Demonic Eye of Destruction without even transforming into his Fallen Angel Battle Form? How was this possible? Rumor held that the Demonic Eye of Destruction could only be used when the Fallen Angel Bloodline Battle Form was active.

It was inexplicable. Chekfelit’s body retained its human shape, yet the power of the Demonic Eye was undeniably unleashed, incinerating six Sand Worms with six consecutive bursts of intense black heat. Chekfelit blinked hard, wiping the few tears that tracked down his cheek from the right eye that had released the destructive ray.

This? Fen Tucanggge paused. Right!

Qian Jin had mentioned that Chekfelit’s right eye was not originally his. Therefore, while this eye could be used, it could not withstand frequent overuse in a short period, or it risked blinding him. “It’s nothing.” Chekfelit jumped off Fen Tucanggge’s back, raising a hand to touch his still faintly aching ribs.

Lucifer Flowing Stream’s palm strike had been heavy; he had nearly been killed outright. Now, recovering five or six-tenths of his strength, thanks to Qian Jin’s improved potion skills— “Are you bullying me because I use a spear?” Duanfeng Buer roared from within the encirclement of Sand Worms. The Sand Worm King was a peak mid-tier beast; these current worms barely qualified as mid-tier.

They were only troublesome due to their sheer numbers, making them difficult to dispatch. Nine-Headed Serpent Battle Form! He tossed his spear aside, his finger knuckles bulging, revealing long, blade-sharp nails that gleamed with a chilling light.

Duanfeng Buer stabbed a claw deep into a Sand Worm’s body, churning and gripping inside like a blender, then wrenched outward with force! The earthy yellow core, still attached to various blood vessels, was violently ripped from its abdomen. Stripped of its core, the worm lost its life, twitching a few times before collapsing.

Duanfeng Buer, drenched in the beast’s blue blood, turned and lunged at the next target. The tide of battle began to reverse with Chekfelit’s awakening. A smaller Sand Worm slammed its head into Fen Tucanggge’s chest with a solid thud, sending him flying back nearly two meters.

Fen Tucanggge climbed up, brushed the sand off his body, and gently shook his head as he watched the remaining worms writhe on the ground. The Great Pure Gold Dou Qi was not merely about lending an intensely hardened impact to one’s Dou Qi; it was intrinsically a specialized protective fighting skill that could render the body exceptionally sturdy. Another beam from the Demonic Eye of Destruction struck the largest Sand Worm in the horde.

It didn't even manage a scream before dissolving into a puddle of sludge. The eyeless Sand Worms were not brainless, however. They emitted strange cries and collectively dove beneath the sands of the Ancient Desolate Sand Sea, sinking rapidly, signaling a tactical retreat.

The massive battle ended without any bodies remaining. After the worms' blood sprayed out, their carcasses shrank to the size of a fingertip and were instantly swept away by the fierce wind. Qian Jin looked over the battlefield strewn only with blue blood stains and shook his head.

It was a good thing they secured a few magical cores, or it would have been a terrible loss! Duanfeng Buer let out a long breath. It was a blessing that Qian Jin had managed to ambush and kill the Sand Worm King right at the start; otherwise, this fight would have been exhausting!

Qian Jin approached Chekfelit. “How are you feeling?” “Much better.” Chekfelit touched his transplanted right eye and smiled. “My bone injuries have recovered by about sixty percent.” “Sixty percent?” Qian Jin looked at Chekfelit in surprise.

Lucifer Flowing Stream’s attack had been severe. Even with Su Cao’s assistance, they couldn't brew top-tier potions here. Theoretically, recovering thirty percent would have been lucky.

How did he reach sixty? This was problematic… Qian Jin looked up toward the cave in the mountain peak. Could it be because he used ingredients from the Mysterious Potions to formulate regular ones?

Was that causing the strange effect? Right! And Chekfelit’s eye—it could activate even without the Fallen Angel Battle Form?

Could this, too, be the result of using materials from Mysterious Potions to create ordinary ones? If so, were there any adverse side effects? Wouldn't the eye go blind soon?

“I feel excellent.” Chekfelit was in much higher spirits with the addition of the Demonic Eye of Destruction. “Truly, very good.” “That’s good then.” Qian Jin thought about it worriedly, resolving to give Chekfelit a full physical examination later. And then there was Lucifer Flowing Stream—why hadn’t she left the Ancient Desolate Sand Sea?

Why persist in adventuring here after being injured? There were no other caves nearby for shelter; the natural conditions in the wilderness were exceptionally harsh! Was it solely for revenge?

The possibility Qian Jin proposed was quickly dismissed by Chekfelit. Lucifer Flowing Stream was vicious, but extremely shrewd. She would never undertake such a reckless adventure today, unless there was some special reason compelling her to remain in this Ancient Desolate Sand Sea and continue her quest.

Adventure? Exactly! An adventure.

The Elf King bloodline warriors hadn't been entirely wiped out in the battle days ago; Qian Wutian had survived. If he returned to the Qian family and revealed Lucifer Flowing Stream’s identity, the Qian family would certainly risk sending in powerful experts, perhaps even organizing a hunting squad, to enter this Ancient Desolate Sand Sea. Capturing a Demon Princess alive!

That was an immense temptation! Especially since this Demon Princess possessed the third-level awakening of the Fallen Angel bloodline. If such a demoness were captured, bred, and used for procreation—Qian Jin forcefully shook his head.

The Qian family had a tradition of recruiting Mysterious Alchemists. Although, historically, apart from Chekfelit himself, no hybrid had ever succeeded, the existence of a Fallen Angel bloodline held enough magnetic pull to make the Qian family invest heavily in research.