Versatile Mage

 “It’s the mutated Sandstorm Demon Locusts… we saw how the Sandstorm Demon Locusts were diving at the Burning Mountains every night. They were doing it to select the mutated ones, so they could mass reproduce…” Mo Fan said numbly.

 The place fell silent, yet everyone felt like there was some sound echoing in their ears. It was the cries of the soldiers five kilometers away dying in a horrible way.

 A thousand soldiers had turned into bones in just a few minutes. The whole camp was having difficulty breathing under the immense pressure.

 Some time later, Advisor Shao took a deep breath and straightened herself. She saluted in the direction of the troop that was wiped out. She did not allow the tears that were rolling in her eyes to run down her cheeks.

 As the advisor, she had no right to cry. She had to organize her thoughts and remain calm at all times. The soldiers had sacrificed their lives in exchange for important information. She could not afford to put their sacrifices in vain.

 “Tell the General to evacuate all the other towns right now. The Sandstorm Demon Locusts are no longer afraid of fire. Once Anjiao Town has fallen, the other towns will be in danger too!” Advisor Shao said to her subordinates.

 “Affirmative!”

 Advisor Shao glanced at Mo Fan and Zhang Xiaohou and said coldly, “Thank you for providing us with such an important piece of information. You all should evacuate with the rest of the army. We’ll take care of things here.”

 Both Mo Fan and Zhang Xiaohou shook their heads. They could not just leave after witnessing what happened. There were still so many innocent lives in Anjiao Town.

 “My fire is very effective against the Sandstorm Demon Locusts, including those that have mutated. If you are trying to deliver supplies into the town still, leave it to me,” Mo Fan stated seriously.

 The Sandstorm Demon Locusts had mutated, meaning that the Tarim Basin Fortress was going to fall eventually. They had to evacuate right away.

 However, Advisor Shao was clearly not willing to abandon the people in the Anjiao Town. They would fight until the very last second. It was their obligations as soldiers.

 Mo Fan could tell that Advisor Shao was willing to die with the people of the Anjiao Town. However, Advisor Shao was struggling to come up with a better plan. The only possible outcome was that the people of this camp would all die too!

 Mo Fan was not a busybody, yet they were times he felt like he had to step forward bravely. Besides, the Ardent Sunset that could suppress the Sandstorm Demon Locusts was the only chance to save these people!

 “Mo Fan, they had just wiped out an entire troop, if you go…” Mu Nujiao said softly.

 “Did you forget? I used my fire to burn the Sandstorm Demon Locusts that were chasing after you. I believe they were mutated Sandstorm Demon Locusts, too,” Mo Fan assued her. He knew the girl was worried about his safety.

 “He’s right!”

 “I’m not the Sandstorm Demon Locusts’ nemesis, but Little Flame Belle is,” Mo Fan declared.

 “Little Flame Belle? Really!?”

 “But you won’t be able to bring much supplies in on your own. There are more than ten thousand people in the town that need to eat and drink!” Advisor Shao said.

 “I have the Space Element; I can bring a whole truckload of supplies with me. It’s only going to take a few runs,” Mo Fan said.

 Advisor Shao and the other Commanders found some hope again!

 They were now relieved that Li Man had brought these people along. Otherwise, they would be left clueless about what to do after losing a thousand soldiers. Their gaze toward Mo Fan, Zhang Xiaohou, and the others had changed too.

 It was rare to see young Mages willing to step forward and risk their lives. Most talented Mages preferred to stay in the cities and enjoy their prestige and power. Their talents were usually wasted as they aged and achieved higher status.

 “Brother Fan, I’ll go with you,” Zhang Xiaohou said.

 Zhang Xiaohou was extremely worried about letting Mo Fan go into the town alone. Mo Fan was his brother, he would rather go together with him. They were bold enough to jump into the Dark Abyss together. The Sandstorm Demon Locusts were nothing for them!

 “Alright, but you have to stay within ten meters of me at all times,” Mo Fan nodded.

 “How about us…”

 “I can only bring one person with me at most. You girls should be on standby here. You can join us once we find the way to drive the Sandstorm Demon Locusts away,” Mo Fan said.

 Mu Nujiao and Jiang Shaoxu nodded. They knew now was not the time to act on impulse. They should obey Advisor Shao’s arrangements instead.

 “Withdraw at once if something goes wrong. The west army will still be grateful toward you all,” Advisor Shao said.

 “We won’t force it, either!” Mo Fan treated his life more preciously than anyone else!

 —

 —

 It was the same path, but this time, it was only Mo Fan and Zhang Xiaohou walking it. However, the people at the camp were feeling several times the pressure than what they were before. They were scared that the two would turn into bones within seconds, just like the others. Both of them had the option to leave. The death of the people and the disaster taking place had nothing to do with them.

 “Brother Fan, are you scared?” Zhang Xiaohou could not help but ask as he walked alongside Mo Fan.

 “I’m fine, perhaps I’m slowly getting used to it,” Mo Fan answered. He still remembered how a bunch of high school students were assigned to be the vanguard during the Calamity of Bo City, clearing the path for the entire school. Even though the danger they were facing back then was nowhere close to the current danger, they were extremely weak back then. It had been his first time putting his life at risk. His whole body had been trembling in fear.

 However, they still had to move forward, even if they were scared. It was the same most of the time.

 “I think I would be quite scared if I was alone, but I realize we can always overcome the situation whenever I’m with Brother Fan,” Zhang Xiaohou said optimistically.

 Mo Fan knew Zhang Xiaohou trusted him.

 Everyone had someone they could trust completely in their hearts. They would feel calm and collected even if they were heading toward the unknown or death as long as they were with the person they trusted. It seemed like he was the person that Zhang Xiaohou trusted in his heart.

 Unfortunately, Mo Fan did not have one. It was the reason he kept trying so hard to become stronger!

 —

 Mo Fan felt like his brain was about to explode from the noise in his ears. He could barely cast a few Basic Spells and Intermediate Spells under the circumstances. There was no chance he could cast an Advanced Spell.

 Luckily, Little Flame Belle had a ring of fire around her. She was escorting Mo Fan and Zhang Xiaohou after Mo Fan Summoned her.

 The Sandstorm Demon Locusts were afraid of the fire of the Ardent Sunset. After all, they had mutated from the flames surrounding the Ardent Sunset, which were inferior to the flames of the Ardent Sunset. They did not dare challenge the much stronger Ardent Sunset. As a matter of fact, the Ardent Sunset was deadlier to them than any other kind of fire. Even the slightest touch would set the Fire Seed in their bodies aflame.

 Little Flame Belle stood on Mo Fan’s shoulder. She did not need to release any energy. Her Domain alone was enough to keep the Sandstorm Demon Locusts ten meters away from them.

 Mo Fan and Zhang Xiaohou eventually reached the territory of the Sandstorm Demon Locusts. The soldiers at the camp were utterly relieved when they saw Zhang Xiaohou and Mo Fan were fine in the ‘tornado’ of the Sandstorm Demon Locusts!

 —

 “Well done!”

 “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

 The faint ring of fire in the cloud of Sandstorm Demon Locusts was the last wisp of hope among the soldiers. They were utterly impressed by the two figures that were gradually moving into the distance!

 —

 The light was fully blocked off. It felt like they had entered a nest of demon creatures when so many Sandstorm Demon Locusts were circling and flying in the sky around them. Even an entire army would be devoured by the Sandstorm Demon Locusts once they came in here.

 Humans were still too weak compared to demon creatures!

 Mo Fan and Zhang Xiaohou slowly entered Anjiao Town. Even the ground was covered in a layer of the Sandstorm Demon Locusts. Their secretions were like a layer of wax above the ground in the town. It stank.

 As the ring of the Ardent Sunset passed by, the Sandstorm Demon Locusts nearby quickly fled into the sky in a panic.

 Mo Fan looked around and saw the remains of a Summoned Beast. It was likely that a Battlemage had sent their Summoned Beast out to investigate the situation outside, but it ended up as food that the Sandstorm Demon Locusts competed over.

 The Sandstorm Demon Locusts were unwilling to give up. They could smell the living humans under the ground. They would not leave until they had eaten them all.

 “It must be somewhere here, the building…holy crap, where did the building go?” Zhang Xiaohou was initially looking at the map, but he realized the place ahead was completely empty when he lifted his gaze.

 There were supposed to be four buildings here, according to the map!

 “What are these demon locusts up to? Why didn’t they eat the buildings in the first place? I remember seeing these buildings back at the camp…” Mo Fan said.

 “Yeah, maybe it’s because they need time to digest their food?” Zhang Xiaohou said.

 “Digest… right!” Mo Fan realized something.

 Mo Fan had stayed with the mutated Sandstorm Demon Locust on the Burning Mountains for some days. He gave the creature jerky at first, and the creature gladly ate the jerky. However, after it finished eating the jerky, it began to eat other things. It started with the burned weeds between the gaps of the rocks, the sand, and eventually the rocks. However, when Mo Fan gave the remaining jerky to the creature, it still ate it gladly…

 It implied that the Sandstorm Demon Locusts had preferences for their food!

 “These Sandstorm Demon Locusts will eat living things first. They will then eat fresh plants before eating metal, rocks, and finally…” Mo Fan glanced ahead as he was speaking.

 Some Sandstorm Demon Locusts that were unable to find food were sniffing the soil on the surface, before they started chewing away at it.

 “Crap, they are starting to eat the ground!” Zhang Xiaohou yelled.

 “The soil and sand must be the most difficult thing for them to digest, so they won’t eat it unless they have no other choice. However, there’s nothing else to eat here, but there are living things under the ground!” Mo Fan shivered in fear as soon as he said the words.

 If the Sandstorm Demon Locusts ate the ground, the people underground would have no way to escape!

 “Why is there such a terrifying species in the world!?” Zhang Xiaohou swore.