Wilderness Realm, Day Two, 10:30 AM.

Location: Original Wheat Field Boundary.

The RV came to a stop on the barren plain.

The tires kicked up a cloud of dust.

In the driver's seat, Wang Meng looked at the endless desolate plain ahead, stepping on the brake with a face full of confusion.

"Strange... no road?"

"Just a few kilometers back, I could see this area was a sea of golden wheat. How did it vanish when we got closer?"

Inside the vehicle, Jiang Nan was still asleep.

Liu Yuqing pulled Yu Shishi to the window, pointing at the barren land outside.

"Shishi, are you sure this is the place? Could you have remembered the direction wrong?"

"Impossible! This is definitely it!"

Yu Shishi was equally shocked by the scene before her.

But she pointed at a dead old tree a few dozen meters away, her tone unwavering.

"Look at that tree! The branch on the left is broken!"

"That's where Bai Lianhua, that bitch, tricked me last night, deliberately breaking it to trip me!"

"Even if it turned to ash, I wouldn't mistake it!"

Liu Yuqing pushed up her glasses, her expression turning serious.

The landmarks matched, but the scene had changed.

The dozens of acres of golden wheat field that should have been there had vanished into thin air, leaving only barren land.

"Could it be... this area is related to time?"

Wang Meng rubbed his chin, analyzing, "Like a mirage? Or is this wheat field alive?"

"Does it only appear at night? Or maybe... you need to meet certain conditions to enter?"

"Very possible."

Liu Yuqing nodded, "Should we wake the boss and ask?"

"No!"

Wang Meng immediately waved his hand to stop her, lowering his voice.

"Let's wait a bit longer; the boss has only rested for less than two hours."

"Even though I drove slowly on purpose to be safe, it's still too early."

Wang Meng's eyes sparkled with the desire to prove himself.

"We can't rely on the boss for everything."

"As trusted subordinates, we need to show our worth!"

"If we can't even handle a small task like scouting, how can we stay by the boss's side in the future?"

"You're right."

Liu Yuqing agreed wholeheartedly.

She turned to Yu Shishi and said, "Shishi, stay in the car and don't go anywhere."

"Wang Meng and I will go down to investigate."

"Okay... be careful, both of you."

Yu Shishi nodded obediently, not daring to leave the vehicle.

The car door slid open quietly.

Wang Meng and Liu Yuqing stepped out cautiously, beginning their investigation at the mysterious disappearing wheat field boundary.

...

Meanwhile, deep within the wheat field.

Unlike the barren land Wang Meng and the others saw, this place was still a golden ocean.

Yang Wei and Guo Shuai, drenched in sweat and with cracked lips, trudged through the wheat rows.

They had been walking for three hours straight.

Yet no matter how far they walked, the scenery around them was like a copy-paste, always endless fields of wheat.

"Old Guo... huff... let's rest for a bit, I can't go on."

Yang Wei panted heavily, plopping down onto the ground.

Guo Shuai wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his face pale as he nodded.

"Alright... let's hope those white-eyed wolves can hold off the monster a bit longer."

Yang Wei angrily stomped down the surrounding wheat stalks, clearing a patch of ground:

"Thank goodness for your Danger Sense! That idiot Wu Hao doesn't understand the value of this ability at all!"

"This isn't just danger sense; it's practically an 'inside traitor radar'!"

Yang Wei was still shaken.

Guo Shuai sat down as well, letting out a bitter laugh, "Yeah."

Ever since he awakened his ability, the radar with only a 20-meter range had been faintly alerting him.

At first, he thought it was an imposter that sneaked in when they left the bus.

But now, he had a terrifying premonition.

The monster hiding in their group wasn't one that escaped with them from the bus.

Instead...

It belonged to this wheat field from the start!

"Old Yang, I haven't dared to say this."

Guo Shuai's voice trembled.

"If that monster is truly a local, then it explains why those crows don't dare to come in..."

"This isn't a safe zone! This is the monster's hunting ground! The boss's lair!!"

Hearing this, Yang Wei shivered violently.

"Damn! We can't rest anymore! We have to get out of here quickly! As long as we leave this wheat field, we'll be safe!"

The two struggled to get up.

However, at that moment, they both froze.

The light around them seemed to dim, the once golden waves of wheat now tinged with a blood-red hue.

"Old Guo..."

Yang Wei's voice wavered, "What time is it now?"

Guo Shuai raised his wrist, glancing at the mechanical stopwatch that hadn't stopped.

"10:31 AM, Old Yang."

"10:30..."

Yang Wei held the compass in his hand, looking at the rapidly descending sun in the sky, his face ashen.

"Then why... is it in the west?"

"Is the sun... rising from the west?"

A deathly silence.

Guo Shuai stared blankly at the blood-red setting sun touching the horizon.

10:30 AM.

It should have been a time of bright sunshine.

But here, it was already dusk.

"Old Yang, is it possible... it's not rising, but setting?"

Guo Shuai's expression had stiffened into a mask.

"Confirmed... all confirmed."

"The time flow here is wrong! It's too fast! Daytime passes too quickly!"

"This wheat field... doesn't give us a chance to travel during the day!"

"This is the hunting ground! It's trying to force us to stay in the night!!"

...

On the other side of the wheat field, Wu Hao's camp.

At this moment, Wu Hao sat like a local tyrant on a pile of flattened wheat stalks.

He held a bag of scavenged chips, munching away.

"Hurry up, damn it! Didn't you eat?"

"Bend all the wheat in this area! Clear a flat space! Otherwise, no one will sleep tonight!"

Wu Hao barked orders at the students laboring hard, acting high and mighty.

"What's he so smug about... just because he got lucky and awakened some lightning power..."

A male student muttered under his breath.

"Zzzap!"

The next second, a purple arc of electricity struck him instantly!

"Ah!!"

The boy screamed, collapsing to the ground, convulsing wildly, foaming at the mouth.

"Anyone else have an opinion?"

Wu Hao's hand crackled with electricity as he coldly scanned the crowd.

Everyone was silent, heads down, hastening their work, not daring to resist.

Bai Lianhua, watching this scene, felt not fear but excitement in her eyes.

So strong!

This is the kind of man the apocalypse needs!

As long as she could win over Wu Hao and become his woman, she could do as she pleased in this world, never having to look at others' faces again!

With this thought, she adjusted her slightly disheveled collar and sashayed over to Wu Hao.

"Slap!"

Suddenly, a loud slap landed hard on her face!

Bai Lianhua spun around, clutching her face in disbelief at the woman before her.

It was Liang Rui, Wu Hao's girlfriend, the woman who had awakened the Fireball Technique.

"You little slut, where are your eyes looking?"

Liang Rui crossed her arms, a ball of flame igniting in her palm, glaring venomously at Bai Lianhua.

"Wu Hao is my boyfriend! Put away your slutty thoughts!"

"Or I'll burn that place of yours to a crisp! So you'll never seduce another man again, understand?!"

Bai Lianhua instantly sobered up.

This was a world where people judged others by their status.

Terrified, she backed away, head lowered, her voice trembling.

"Sister Liang... I wouldn't dare! I absolutely wouldn't dare! How could I have any thoughts about your boyfriend!"

"Hmph."

Liang Rui sneered, "Then why were you staring at Wu Hao?"

Bai Lianhua's mind raced, her eyes darting to "Wang Jinsheng" working nearby.

"I... I have my eyes on Wang Jinsheng!"

Bai Lianhua blurted out, "I think he's honest and hardworking, I want... I want to be with him!"

"Wang Jinsheng?"

Liang Rui paused, then turned to look at the simpleton with a playful smile.

"Alright."

Liang Rui clapped her hands, "Since you have the heart, I'll help you matchmake."

"Let's aim... to have you two in the bridal chamber tonight."

Though Liang Rui was also C-Class, she was self-aware.

She wasn't as seductive as Bai Lianhua, nor as good at enticing men.

Throwing this potential rival to the big oaf Wang Jinsheng would eliminate a threat and gain an ally.

Two birds with one stone!

Find the original at "pawread dot com".

Bai Lianhua's heart sank at these words.

She had just said it offhand!

With her standards, how could she be interested in someone like Wang Jinsheng, that simp?

He was just a backup plan!

But under the threat of Liang Rui's flaming palm, she could only force a smile more painful than crying.

"Thank... thank you, Sister Liang."

Liang Rui acted swiftly, going straight to Wu Hao to discuss it.

Wu Hao was initially reluctant to part with Bai Lianhua's figure.

But under Liang Rui's fiery gaze, he weighed the pros and cons and agreed.

After all, Wang Jinsheng might seem foolish, but his Straw Bind skill was powerful in control, making him a good enforcer.

Trading a woman for a loyal dog was a good deal.

So, Wu Hao announced to everyone.

"To celebrate the formation of our team, we've prepared a special resting area for Wang Jinsheng and Bai Lianhua tonight!"

"Everyone, congratulations!"

The crowd clapped with forced smiles.

Wang Jinsheng stood among them, still wearing that simple, honest smile.

Bai Lianhua suppressed her disgust and anger, taking Wang Jinsheng's arm.

She silently vowed, "Liang Rui! Just you wait! Tonight, I'll let this stupid simp have his way, but when I get the chance..."

She raised her head, whispering sweetly into the "honest man's" ear.

"Jinsheng, be gentle with me tonight~"

"It's my first time being with a man~"

"But... I accidentally broke that membrane during high school sports, you won't mind, right?"

It was her usual trick, meant to deceive honest men.

The real number, if told, would need two more zeros at the end to be close.

Wang Jinsheng turned his head, his lifeless eyes fixated on Bai Lianhua's slender neck.

He grinned, revealing a stiff smile.

"Hehe..."

"I don't mind... I don't mind..."

"As long as it's you."

"I... want you."

Bai Lianhua scorned him in her heart, "What a foolish simp."

However, she had no idea.

What this monster meant by "want you."

Wasn't to win her heart, nor to claim her body.

But rather...

In the literal sense.

To have her whole being.

Skin, bones, and all, leaving nothing behind.