Securing slots for adventure books is always a struggle. If you genuinely feel this one is worth keeping, please consider adding it to your collection. A single bookshelf space can save an author; seeing how hard Little Juan works at typing, please take me in!

Yadan landform is a geological term. In Xinjiang, these wind-eroded rock formations are generally called "Devil's Cities" because the rocks look incredibly bizarre, resembling a maze inside where people easily get lost. When the wind picks up, it howls through them with a terrifying sound, like ghosts crying.

However, the wind tonight wasn't very strong, and we set up camp in a leeward spot, so the surroundings were completely silent.

In a place like this, silence is absolute, as even insects are scarce.

Those Singaporean scientists have already retreated to their tents to eat the instant food we brought, perhaps to organize their data, leaving us completely alone nearby.

I leaned against a strange rock, smoking a cigarette while gazing at the distant lights of the camp. Above me stretched the Milky Way, a continuous ribbon of stars, and a bright moon hung low in the western sky. Beneath me, the moonlight cast distorted, sprawling shadows.

Halfway through my cigarette, I asked Big Xiong beside me, "Fatty, tell me, what exactly is the background of that *? Why do you trust him so much? Do you realize he was colluding with those international thieves in Heizhugou to kidnap me?"

Big Xiong flicked ash from his cigarette with a plump finger and chuckled, "* is the kind of person I know perfectly well. I heard everything from * about what happened in Heizhugou. He wasn't kidnapping you; on the contrary, he saved you several times, only you didn't know it."

"Saved me? Every time we scouted ahead, he made me go first—how is that saving me? If I hadn't been lucky, I’d have been swallowed by a zongzi long ago." I looked at Big Xiong, my expression growing somewhat angry.

Big Xiong paused, took a deep drag of smoke, and said, "Let me put it this way: First, * and those international thieves are not on the same side. You must have noticed that those guys don't exactly take orders from *. But as their guide and temporary squad leader, * has to maintain appearances. I'm guessing he sent you to scout only when he was certain there was no danger."

I reflected for a moment and realized Big Xiong had a point, so my attitude softened.

Big Xiong patted my shoulder and continued, "Do you remember when we were in King Wei's tomb chamber? We were all asleep then, but I woke up first with Xie Yuting to check for an exit in the corridor, leaving you to rest alone. That was when those international thieves captured you. If * hadn't protected you, they would have killed you immediately."

I recalled that, given Old Huang's usual methods, that was entirely possible. It seemed I had indeed misunderstood *.

I was about to ask him about his relationship with * when, in the utter stillness of the night, an extremely clear pop sound echoed from not far behind us.

We both instantly fell silent, feeling bewildered.

After a moment, Big Xiong whispered to me, "Who just farted behind us?"

I snapped back, "You're the one farting! That sound was more like a hippo surfacing from the water at the zoo, letting out a breath."

Big Xiong rubbed the back of his head. "Hippo? What kind of hippo is in this desert?"

I said I had no idea, but we should climb to a higher spot to look.

So, we circled around and found a relatively tall Yadan formation to ascend.

Because of the layered structure formed by wind erosion, climbing this thing required no effort at all.

Standing on top of the Yadan, we looked out in all directions. The sky was clear with sparse stars, the light was abundant, and the distant sand dunes rolled endlessly, reflecting a pale grayish-white color under the moonlight.

Looking down at the Yadan cluster beneath our feet, the dense arrangement of massive stones formed a complex maze. The strange rock formations, grotesque at night, looked like monsters lurking in the desert, and the passages between the stones resembled the intricate, deeply terrifying neural pathways of a brain.

I thought to myself, no wonder the Xinjiang people call this terrain the Devil's City. Who knows what hides in those rugged, narrow passages—perhaps the restless ghosts of those who died tragically on the Silk Road, or the souls lost during centuries of desert exploration wander these Devil's Cities.

Since the interior of the Devil's City was too dark, we couldn't see anything, and the desert was wide open, revealing no abnormalities, which only deepened our confusion.

We watched for a while when a voice speaking standard Mandarin suddenly called out from the direction of the camp below: "Bosses, what are you looking at, climbing up so high?"

I turned to see Old Ni, our guide, approaching.

Just as I was about to explain, that pop sound sounded again, distinctly clear.

Ni’gati heard it, and his face instantly changed. He shouted urgently, "Get down, both of you! That is the sigh of the devil. If you keep watching, you will... you will be taken by the devil!"

Old Ni was flustered and his words grew even more nonsensical. I was amused; the sigh of the devil—that sounded like the title of some cheap knock-off movie.

We told him we didn't believe in devils and intended to keep watching. Old Ni grew frantic, shouting and trying to climb up to pull us both down.

Just then, Big Xiong tugged my sleeve and pointed in a direction, saying, "Hey? Comrade Xiao Chuan, look over there, what is that!"

I followed his gaze and saw six or seven dark figures moving among the sand dunes in the distant wilderness.

The moment I saw the silhouettes, I knew they weren't human, because even from that distance, I could see they were significantly larger than human size.

I rubbed my eyes and looked again—it was a group of four-legged running animals!

As a biologist, I instantly became excited and shouted, "Camera! Get the camera, quick!"

Because I knew that any animal running in the desert wasn't going to be some escaped water buffalo; it had to be a rare species like wild horses or wild camels. These animals, almost extinct, were incredibly rare sightings. Capturing even one or two photos would surely hold immense research value.

We fumbled around, pulling out two phones to start taking pictures.

Using the zoom function on the phones, I finally saw clearly: it was indeed a herd of wild camels.

These wild camels looked incredibly robust, much larger than ordinary camels, with clearly defined muscle on their shins and agile builds. As they ran, the long hair on their flanks streamed out, radiating untamed power.

Because the desert temperature was low at night, the wild camels were exhaling visible white vapor from their nostrils as they ran, appearing quite exhausted.

Big Xiong watched and remarked curiously, "Huh? These wild camels look like they’re being chased by something; they're running so fast. Is it maybe wolves or something?"

I nodded, shifting my lens toward the back of the camel herd. I searched for a long time but found nothing.

By this time, Old Ni had climbed up. The moment he saw the scene in the distance, he froze, his mouth forming a perfect 'O' shape. He gasped, "Heavens!" and immediately dropped to his knees, murmuring a prayer specific to Islam.

I knew that many Xinjiang people revered wild camels almost as deities, and numerous legends described wild camels helping lost travelers escape predicaments in the desert. That’s why Old Ni was so agitated.

"Oh, great Allah..." Old Ni almost tearfully stood up and said to us, "You two bosses are truly blessed people. Seeing wild camels in the desert—it truly is... it is an omen of great fortune. I thank you bosses for this blessing, allowing me to witness them in my lifetime; my children and grandchildren will also be blessed..."

I urged him to calm down, saying, "Don't celebrate yet. I think this herd of wild camels is being pursued by something."

Old Ni took a drink from his water bag, his expression growing much calmer. Recalling the earlier devil's sigh, his brow furrowed again. Just as he was about to persuade us to stop watching, he suddenly saw the herd of wild camels stop moving.

The camels stood still, and looking closely, they appeared to be warily staring at a patch of sand in front of them.

Since the camel herd was much closer now than before, I could clearly see their huge, bell-like eyes, the corners of which were wet with sticky fluid.

Saliva was also dripping from the corners of their mouths, clearly a sign of extreme physical exertion—a very rare sight for camels, renowned for their endurance. Nothing short of a threat to their very lives would make them push this hard.

Old Ni observed the scene and wondered aloud, "That's strange. Wolves in this desert disappeared decades ago, and there are no other carnivores here. What are these camels afraid of?"

He thought for a moment, his face changed, and he mumbled, "Could it be... could it be the devil?"