The Demon Dragon arrived, hovering over the battlefield! Yet, the previously chaotic scene was now hushed! Only wreckage littered the ground!

At last, Xingchen saw the colossal, tortoise-like Xuanwu beast, but it had been torn to shreds by the Fire Dragon Lizards, leaving only a massive shell behind! One could barely discern that this was the Xuanwu beast of the Daluo Tribe.

The overwhelming swarm of Fire Dragon Lizards was rapidly scattering towards the distance.

Lan Qi remained suspended within the cockpit of the Demon Dragon.

Meanwhile, Nia and Xingchen cautiously descended to the ground.

"Where are the bodies!" Despite the wreckage everywhere, most of it consisted of armor, swords, and similar items. Beyond that, not a single tangible body—human or Fire Dragon Lizard—could be found. Except for that giant tortoise shell.

Approaching closer, Xingchen could finally make out the state of the shell. Its sheer size resembled that of a thousand-ton medium-sized vessel. Inside, however, was a murky, blood-red mass, with faint traces of shredded flesh visible. Clearly, the pack of Fire Dragon Lizards had devoured the great tortoise entirely, leaving only this enormous shell they could not consume.

Though he had never seen the great tortoise alive, its astonishing volume and thick, hard shell suggested its defensive capabilities must have been formidable. Yet, even so, it could not escape the clutches of those Fire Dragon Lizards.

"None survived," Nia said, his face startlingly pale. "The bodies were eaten clean."

"...." Xingchen didn't know what to say and silently followed Nia back into the Demon Dragon's cockpit.

"....." Judging by their expressions alone, Lan Qi understood the situation. Looking down at the wreckage, she sighed sorrowfully, "In the end, we couldn't save them."

But just then!

A strange image suddenly flashed across the screen, accompanied by an unusual sound! It sounded human, yet utterly unrecognizable!

"Mo... Ka...." Xingchen vaguely caught a muddled sound.

The image vanished in an instant, too fleeting to register clearly!

"What was that just now?" Xingchen asked quickly.

"A distress signal," Nia exclaimed with sudden joy. "They are alive."

"Strange! Why is the signal gone!" Nia frantically adjusted the receiver, but he couldn't pick up the signal; instead, a buzzing hum echoed, and the screen distorted severely, making anything visible incomprehensible!

"It's strong magnetic interference," Lan Qi said anxiously. "Their signal is being jammed."

"Where are they?" Nia was almost maddened with frustration. "They should at least tell us their location."

"I think I heard Mocha," Xingchen murmured instinctively.

"Mocha." Nia and Lan Qi stared at Xingchen in disbelief. "It must be Moranka. Moranka is the closest defense zone to Daluo, and they have an extremely hidden underground fortification there," Nia was ecstatic. "It has to be that. Uncle Qiao used the Xuanwu to draw away the Fire Dragon Lizards, and they hid in the underground defenses."

"But their situation seems very dire now," Lan Qi added nervously. "Since the Xiangtian Department launched strong magnetic interference, it means their underground zone has been exposed."

"No time to waste, let's get to Moranka quickly!"

Moranka!

Located north of the vast, boundless Wolong Desert.

Although there were no obvious landmarks, Nia and the others possessed precise radar positioning and easily located its exact coordinates.

However, even upon arrival, Xingchen couldn't discern what secret was hidden here!

It wasn't until Nia pressed a small controller in his hand that a small sand dune split open, revealing a narrow passage.

This was the northern entrance to Moranka's underground tunnel.

As a precaution, Moranka had several spare escape routes constructed. These could also function as external gateways to Moranka, though they were still a considerable distance from the main base.

For safety, the injured Lan Qi did not accompany them; instead, Nia and Xingchen went in together, while Lan Qi and the Demon Dragon concealed themselves within the sand dune at the entrance!

Although the Demon Dragon was massive, hiding it in the endless desert was not difficult! Moreover, the creature seemed quite experienced in such matters. With its giant claws, it rapidly dug a large pit like a mole and burrowed in.

Xingchen felt a slight tremor beneath his feet. The Demon Dragon, having plunged into the pit, violently shook the surrounding sand loose. Soon, it buried itself completely. Only a mound of sand, resembling a small hill, showed above the surface—a sight countless in the boundless desert, giving away no hint of anything amiss.

But Lan Qi, still in the cockpit, was buried along with it!

"Wow! So powerful! (⊙﹏⊙b)"

"It managed that! It actually buried itself alive!"

Xingchen stared, utterly dumbfounded by the bizarre sight.

"Let's hurry inside," Nia urged anxiously.

Inside the passage! The two moved swiftly!

To Xingchen's surprise, the tunnel was remarkably uniform, constructed with what looked like cement, complete with streetlights for illumination! The passage was straight and deep, seemingly without end!

The two ran for a solid ten minutes! At their speed, that meant they had covered at least ten li!

"How much further?" Xingchen asked.

"Almost there, about two thousand meters ahead."

Indeed, a short while later, the tunnel finally reached its terminus—a heavy iron door!

Nia strode forward, grabbed the door ring, twisted hard, and pulled the door open!

But the scene that greeted them stunned Xingchen speechless!

Corpses lay scattered everywhere; the air was thick with a pungent smell of blood, and some bodies were still slowly seeping blood. It was evident these people had been dead for some time! The area was a wreck, indicating a fierce battle had recently taken place!

"Damn it, are we too late again?" Nia's face changed drastically.

Nia flipped over two of the bodies—warriors clad in Fengtian Demon Armor. They were all pierced through the chest with a fist-sized hole! With Xingchen's eyesight, it was clear the holes were forcibly bored through by incredibly potent sword energy!

"It's Du Long and Du Men," Nia said, his expression filled with profound pain. "They were the strongest Fengtian Warriors of the Daluo Division."

"Search around for survivors," Xingchen instructed.

This area was a large hall. From the hall, four passages led off in different directions. Nia quickly made a judgment call and strode towards the passage on the left! Xingchen hastily followed.

The further they went inside, the more shocked Xingchen became! Countless glass containers lined the walls, some even holding human bodies suspended within, remarkably lifelike. This reminded Xingchen of the Umbrella Corporation factories from the Resident Evil movies of his past life! Could this really be the bio-chemical plant Nia had mentioned?

Previously, seeing such things in sci-fi movies had only sparked curiosity. But now, experiencing it firsthand, Xingchen felt a profound sense of helpless disgust and sorrow, mixed with overwhelming shock.

Some of these glass containers had been shattered, and the bodies they once held lay scattered on the floor. Some even twitched faintly, shuddering, emitting muddled sounds that sent chills down Xingchen’s spine. Clearly, these were incomplete half-products—the consumables Nia spoke of, specifically manufactured to serve the Inheritors! These bio-engineered beings only received the final process—the implantation of combat programs and the fitting of corresponding weaponry to turn them into tools of war—when they were needed.

The ones killed and eaten by the Fire Dragons must have been produced on these assembly lines! This was the true face of Wolong Manor? Human life displayed in such an ugly manner, treated just like an industrial product on an assembly line!

Xingchen’s stomach churned with the urge to vomit! He, who had slaughtered countless enemies on the battlefield, was now experiencing fear and dread—a sensation he hadn't felt in a long time.

"This is Moranka," Xingchen stated. "You said Moranka was a defense zone. Why does it look more like a biochemical factory?"

"Moranka is one of the most important biochemical factories of my Yingyue Department," Nia explained. "It was equipped with large numbers of bio-warriors specifically to protect the factory, thus it also served as the Daluo Division's final shelter during their evacuation! The passages here are cast with specialized steel-concrete, only allowing human passage, so massive creatures like Fire Dragon Lizards cannot enter. It seems Moranka successfully resisted the invasion of the Fire Dragon Lizards, but the Xiangtian Department must have dispatched Super Warriors to breach this place."

"Super Warriors?"

"Du Men and Du Long's strength was no less than mine or Lan Qi's," Nia continued, his expression solemn. "Anyone capable of killing them must be a Super Warrior."

"But didn't you say the Golden Warriors never leave the defense zones for combat?" Xingchen asked.

"The Super Warriors of the Xiangtian Department, besides the twelve Golden Warriors guarding the Zodiac Palaces, include seven other Fengtian Knights!" Nia’s face was grim. "If the Zodiac Palaces are the unbreakable shield protecting Wolong Manor, then the other seven Fengtian Knights are the sharp swords used for external conquest! Countless powerful figures from the Yingyue and Chenxing Departments have fallen by the hands of these seven Fengtian Knights."

"Fengtian Knights," Xingchen mumbled, stunned.

"Who is stronger, the Golden Warriors or the Fengtian Knights?" Xingchen asked instinctively.

"In terms of individual strength, they are evenly matched," Nia replied. "But the Fengtian Knights possess powerful divine beasts as mounts for aerial combat, so in a real fight, the Fengtian Knights are stronger than the Golden Warriors."

"What? Stronger?" Xingchen froze on the spot! Twelve Golden Warriors were frightening enough—the Taurus nearly destroyed him! Now, there were seven more terrifying entities appearing! My heavens, how many hidden aces does Wolong Manor still possess!