Sapphire was enslaved by Shao Xuan so its aura was similar to Shao Xuan's. After all, its power came from Shao Xuan and it was Sapphire's power that attracted the beetles. Others might not be able to tell the difference but the little beetles could. They would not harm Shao Xuan. In fact, Shao Xuan could even order them to do certain things.
These slightly larger beetles had led the swarm of beetles to hunt for food while Sapphire was asleep. Compared to the other beetles, they were not only different in size but also stronger and smarter.
However, no matter how smart they were, they were only similar to regular beasts. Even Sapphire could not make them carry out complicated orders. However, simple orders were still possible. For example, luring the guards away or leading the other beetles to dig a hole in the sand.
Shao Xuan and the rest had followed Sapphire all the way to this small town because most of the land around the town was flat and there was nowhere to hide. Their goal was to save people, not to fight the desert bandits. Even if they had to fight, they had to save the people first.
Hence, they came up with another plan.
Sapphire brought Shao Xuan underground. Due to Sapphire's large size, it would easily alert the desert bandits. That was why Sapphire only brought Shao Xuan underground for a short while and left the rest of the task to the other beetles.
They had the experience of walking under a quagmire. It was more difficult to walk under sand but it was not impossible. Plus, they had the help of the beetles underground. There were more beetles underground that had yet to emerge.
Sapphire could determine the approximate location of the five Gongjia family members. Shao Xuan only came out to sense their exact location. He had a beetle lure a guard away before emerging from the sand. There was a guard on each side of the house. The guard on this side had been lured away.
It was no wonder the beetles liked to be underground. During the day, the temperature was much lower under the sand and they did not need to be exposed to the sun.
This was a courtyard structure. There were some scattered bones in the corner of the courtyard. Shao Xuan could tell from the shape of the bones that they belonged to humans, both adults and children.
The house and courtyard walls were relatively short so if Shao Xuan walked outside, the people in the courtyard could see half of his head. Similarly, if Shao Xuan stood up straight in the courtyard, he would be seen by the people outside.
There were about ten people sitting outside the courtyard, leaning against the wall. They were all gathered in the shade.
Shao Xuan did not fully emerge from the sand, only exposing his upper body. He carefully sensed his surroundings to understand where the guards were and search for his target. The five Gongjia family members' auras were different from the other captives. Shao was certain where they were locked up.
Unfortunately, they were not on this side but it was fine.
The beetles that crawled out from the ground gathered again and burrowed into the sand. Shao Xuan took a deep breath and sank into the sand.
Not long after Shao Xuan sank, the guard who left returned. He did not manage to catch the thing underground so he walked over, cursing as he sat down and continued to nap.
On the other side, in a mud hut, the five Gongjia family members were tied up tightly using the sturdy vines of the desert. These vines may look shriveled and thin, but they were very sturdy. Other than injuries, the five of them were thirsty and hungry. They were weak and had no energy to struggle. They laid on the ground, surrounded by mud walls and sand. Their eyes were either open or closed but they were not asleep. No one knew what they were thinking.
That day, they did not manage to find Gongjia Ren. Not long after, they encountered a group of desert bandits, one of whom was their former comrade. Their comrade led the desert bandits to capture them and only gave them some water so they would not die immediately.
The Vipers wanted them to forge weapons for the Vipers, but they refused and were locked up here. Yesterday, they had witnessed the desert bandits eating humans. They knew that the desert bandits had done it on purpose for them to see, but they also knew that the desert bandits were real. They had long heard that tribesmen ate humans and that the people here were barbaric. However, seeing it with their own eyes was still a huge shock. Even now, they were still traumatized.
If they agreed to forge weapons for the desert bandits, they would be able to live like slaves. Judging by the Vipers' behaviour, it did not seem like they would treat them kindly. However, if they did not agree, they would become food for the desert bandits.
What should they do?
Should they choose to live or die?
"I really want to kill myself," mumbled the younger man leaning against the wall with his head lowered.
"That's a good idea but I can't accept it!" Another older man looked up at the leaking roof and sighed helplessly.
Yes, they had all thought of suicide but they still had some hope. Perhaps there would be a turning point?
At the end of the day, they just could not accept it.
No one would be willing to die in the desert just like that before they could create a masterpiece. If not, how could they have persevered until now?
"If we didn't choose to come here …" One of them smiled bitterly and fell silent.
There were no 'ifs' in this world. They had chosen this path so they had to bear the consequences.
Previously, they had thought of digging their way out of the sand, but later they realized that it was too difficult. With their current physical strength, it was impossible to dig their way out of the sand, not to mention that their hands and feet were tied up. The desert bandits were also aware of their situation, which was why they were at ease tying them up and leaving them here.
Rustle rustle rustle —
There was the sound of tiny grains of sand rubbing against each other.
"Xiao Ye, stop playing with sand. It's annoying!" complained a man with his eyes closed in the corner.
The young man leaning against the wall looked up blankly. "I'm not playing with sand." After saying that, he shifted his gaze to the place where the sound came from. He saw that the sand on the ground moved, and a black beetle crawled out.
"There's a bug!" cried Gongjia Ye loudly.
The man standing guard outside heard it too but he did not care. He continued to nap. There were plenty of bugs in the desert. Scorpions and lizards were common too. A small bug was nothing!
Inside the house, ten palm-sized beetles crawled out but did not approach the people inside. Instead, they waited by the side.
A hand reached out from the sand.
Seeing this scene, the five people sucked in a breath of cold air and almost cried out. They looked at the spot where the beetles crawled out and saw a person slowly crawling out from the sand.
The five of them stared blankly at this strange stranger. When they snapped back to reality, their first thought was, could they be saved?
Shao Xuan looked at the five people in the house and was satisfied. They were not stupid enough to not scream.
One of them asked in a low voice, "Who are you? Are you here to save us? "
Shao Xuan did not answer. Instead, he asked, "Gongjia Ye, Shi, Rong, Shen, Kan?" These were their names, told to him by Gongjia Ren.
At Shao Xuan's words, the five people's eyes lit up. They were about to say something when Shao Xuan raised his hand and gestured for them to keep their voices down.
The five of them nodded quickly, their eyes shining even brighter.
Shao Xuan took out a piece of cloth and opened it under the light. There were words written by Gongjia Ren on it. The purpose was to tell the five people that Shao Xuan was here to save them, to make them believe in Shao Xuan.
With the light from above, the five of them could read the words on the cloth clearly. They were so excited they wanted to cry.
This person could get out from under the sand. Could he get them out from under the sand too?
At this thought, the five of them suddenly felt that this person was reliable. They looked forward to Shao Xuan's next move. This was not the time to talk too much. The more they spoke, the higher the chance of them being discovered. That was why they just had to believe in Shao Xuan. With Gongjia Ren's cloth, they did not have to suspect anything.
Shao Xuan walked towards the nearest person and cut off his vines. He waved at the others, gesturing for them to come closer.
The five of them were overjoyed, but soon, they felt that the development of the situation was different from what they had imagined. Wait, I understand the logic, but brother, why did you untie us and tie us up?!
Yes, after Shao Xuan untied the vines, he connected the vines together to tie them up. Not only that, he used his own rope to reinforce the vines so that none of them would fall off easily.
The five of them looked at Shao Xuan in confusion, not understanding Shao Xuan's intentions.
Shao Xuan wanted to ask the beetles to help transport the five of them out. However, the beetles would not eat Shao Xuan but the same could not be said for the others. Sapphire had been in hibernation for a long time and had just encountered a swarm of beetles. He did not know if it could control these insects accurately. That was why there was no need to take such a risk when there was another way. Shao Xuan did not want the five of them to be reduced to skeletons when they were dragged out from under the sand.
After tying them up, Shao Xuan gave Sapphire, who was underground outside the small town, an order to execute the next step.
A hundred metres away from the small town, a gush of sand suddenly shot out. The sand shot up high like a water column, then fell back down.
That was a signal.
Shao Xuan looked at the sky through the gap in the roof. When he saw the figure high in the sky, he sank back into the sand, leaving the five tied up people in the house looking at each other.
Not long after, there was a sudden scream from somewhere outside. It seemed that something had happened there. The guards rushed over.
Shao Xuan appeared in the house again. He lifted the five tied up people and cut open the place where they were tied up on the door made of thorny plants. In order to make it easier for the desert bandits to enter and exit the house, the door was wide enough for Shao Xuan to drag the five of them out.
The guards were attracted by the shouts, and even the guards outside the courtyard turned their attention over there. Therefore, there was no one else at the door of the house.
The five of them still did not understand what Shao Xuan was trying to do until Shao Xuan lifted them up and threw them into the air like a ball …
The ground quickly moved away and the small courtyard where the captives were held shrank in their vision. The five of them felt as if their heartbeats had stopped and their minds were blank for a moment.
Above them, a figure whizzed past and the five tied up people were carried away into the distance.
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