Chapter 62: Elimination and Ambush

“The civilization of human technology!”

Nangong Yuchen and Nangong Kexin felt their hearts tremble deeply. This legend and the origin of human civilization were something they had never heard of before; not even recorded in their history textbooks.

“How did Angel come to know this?”

Nangong Yuchen was full of questions but, out of respect for their friend, refrained from asking directly. Instead, Nangong Kexin quickly interjected, “And then? What about the relationship between humans and elves?”

“Well, later on...” Angel hesitated slightly, then turned to smile, “I’m not really sure, because I only heard about it too!”

Hearing this abrupt end, Nangong Kexin pursed her lips, feeling somewhat frustrated—Angel had clearly left them hanging.

“So by your account, the elven race really exists in this world?”

“Elves? Of course!” Angel sighed suddenly, then continued solemnly, “Nangong Yuchen, this world is not made up of just humans, beasts, and elves. There are even nobler races. You will come to understand this deeply in time. It’s just that right now, we’re only touching the surface.”

“Nobler races?” Nangong Yuchen was puzzled, especially by Angel’s words about understanding it deeply in the future. He had no idea what she truly meant.

At that moment, a vivid image flashed through his mind—last night’s sight of the dense, sinister runic tattoos on Angel’s back, like ancient seals. Instantly, his curiosity about the girl before him intensified.

“Who exactly is she? How does she know so many hidden secrets?”

After a moment, Angel suddenly retrieved the map device from her space-time ring. “The map device has finished cooling down. Let’s check it quickly, or else it will enter a one-hour cooldown regardless of whether we view it or not.”

With that, she unfurled the map before the three of them.

“60, 59...” the countdown began.

“There are 108 people on Illusion Island; now only 61 remain!” Nangong Kexin exclaimed, surprised by the number at the top.

“They’re eliminating so fast! Among all the first-year students competing, besides the three of us, only two remain. The rest are all from the second and third years!”

The three stared at the number readout in shock. In just one day, the entire first-year group had been wiped out.

“Look! Another first-year just got eliminated, and the number of contestants on Illusion Island is dropping rapidly!” Nangong Kexin pointed at the shrinking numbers on the map with disbelief.

“57, 56... 51!”

In merely a dozen seconds, ten more had been knocked out.

“This... this must be a deliberate sweep!” Nangong Yuchen and Angel exchanged glances, both seeing seriousness reflected in the other’s eyes.

They quickly used the remaining half-minute of the map device’s availability to scan the distribution of personnel.

“Xiao Quan, Tuoba Lin, five in total, are heading this way—and they aren’t far off!”

“Not just those five. There are three in the Northern Ice Plains region, and six from the Eastern Forest District, all moving toward us!” Nangong Yuchen’s heart tightened as he listened to the report. Fourteen in total—there was no chance of victory. Especially with Angel injured, the three of them could only run for their lives.

“It seems Xiao Quan and Tuoba Lin have allied, calling on the third-year students to clear the field, while dispatching some forces to encircle and kill us. They’re planning to isolate us first, aren’t they?” Nangong Yuchen’s gaze swept toward the southwestern desert region on the map. “Xiao Quan’s five are coming from the urban district; there are others from the Northern Ice Plains and the Eastern Forest. Looks like our only choice is to cross the western desert area and then enter the grassland region.”

With ten seconds left on the device’s timer, Angel put it away immediately.

“Let’s move!”

In this emergency, Nangong Yuchen didn’t hesitate. Without asking Angel’s consent, he scooped her up into his arms and sprinted southwest. Nangong Kexin, though bearing some minor wounds, was uninjured and followed closely behind as they rushed toward the desert.

“Thud, thud!”

The dense forest quickly fell behind them as they pushed their speed to the limit. Over an hour later, drenched in sweat, they stood at the forest’s edge, gazing out at the golden sea of sand ahead.

Before them stretched an endless expanse of yellow, countless grains of sand rising like frozen waves, extending all the way to the distant golden horizon.

Above, the azure sky held a scorching sun, its fierce heat radiating downward. Though they had not yet stepped into the desert, waves of heat rolled over their faces, causing Nangong Yuchen and the others to frown as they hesitated.

“Whew!” Nangong Kexin’s mouth was dry and parched. “Yuchen, are we really going to cross this?”

“We have no choice. We must escape for now. Maybe once Angel’s injuries heal a bit, we can fight back. But for now...” Nangong Yuchen, having witnessed the desert’s harsh reality, felt a rising unease.

The endless sand sea before them was likely larger than the forest they had just left. No matter how fast they ran, they might perish from thirst or heat before even encountering Xiao Quan and the others.

As he paused, deep in thought, Angel struggled in his arms.

“Cough, Nangong Yuchen, put me down!”

“Are you okay with your injuries?” Nangong Yuchen bent down to set her down gently.

Angel didn’t answer his question but instead analyzed with bright, gleaming eyes: “Judging by their speed and direction, the three from the Northern Ice Plains should have almost entered the forest area by now. Tuoba Lin’s group of five should be near the urban district’s northwest edge. As for the six from the Forest District, they likely need another half hour before entering the forest. So we can turn north, moving along the edge of the desert and forest, and wait for the map device to activate again. Then we can seek an opportunity to counterattack.”

“Heading north along the forest edge would mean running into those three from the Ice Plains, right? If they latch onto us, then with Xiao Quan’s five and the six from the Forest District closing in, we might...” Nangong Yuchen reasoned calmly.

“That’s exactly why we want to meet them! Don’t worry. I’ll quickly take out one, and the two left will be up to you to handle swiftly. Because only by doing this do we have a chance. Otherwise, if we’re surrounded, we’ll definitely lose.”

Angel’s tone was steady.

“Is that really okay? Especially with your injuries...” Nangong Kexin was worried.

“I’m fine. After this long of a rest, I can barely manage a fight!” Angel dismissed her concern.

Seeing Angel’s determination, Nangong Yuchen said no more. He turned the group northward along the forest’s edge.

He understood that Angel was taking a gamble. If, when the map device activated, those three were far off or moving to join Xiao Quan, their plan would be discovered and they’d be trapped in an even tighter siege.

But if the three were close, they could eliminate them quickly, breaking the enemy’s encirclement.

“Thud, thud!”

As the trio moved along the forest’s edge, half an hour slipped by quietly, signaling the map device was ready to activate again.

“Hiss!”

Nangong Yuchen and Angel simultaneously drew out their devices and anxiously scanned the opened map, searching for their own positions and those of the three approaching students.

“Please don’t be too far!”

“60, 59, 58...”

Only three seconds had passed before they found them.

“Northeast direction!”

“Distance: one thousand two hundred meters!”

Nangong Yuchen and Angel called out the data in turn, then exchanged excited glances.

“Let’s go!”

At once, they dashed forward, pushing their speed to the extreme, heading northeast.

“Wait for me!” Nangong Kexin, bewildered at how quickly the other two disappeared, hurried to catch up.