Gourmet Hunter - Chapter 388 (Patreon)

Chapter 388: The Abyssal Maw

Fine cracks spread across the ground like a spider web, spanning over ten meters, yet without causing the ground to collapse, indicating that this person's control over their strength had reached a very high level.

Geru silently watched Luo, thinking that if Luo understood how to use nen, his strength would increase rapidly.

Luo crushed the floor as a show of force to the Eagle Gang, then released Ali's arm.

Ali, like avoiding the plague, retreated to his companions before stopping.

"Now, can we talk properly?"

Luo glanced around at the Eagle Gang members, smiling slightly, making his face look extremely lewd.

Everyone around looked at Ali, who gritted his teeth and said, "We can."

An hour later, William and Buhara arrived at the Eagle Gang's house, only to see Luo drinking and chatting merrily with the Eagle Gang members.

Yaya and Geru sat on a one-story-high box, speechlessly watching Luo, who was partying with the Eagle Gang. Who would have thought that an hour ago, the two sides were on the verge of a fight?

"They're here."

Luo released Ali's shoulder and looked at William and Buhara standing at the door. Both wore human skin masks but maintained their aura, allowing Geru to see that they were nen users.

"Come sit."

Luo greeted the two, while the Eagle Gang members observed the two capable partners Luo had mentioned.

The Eagle Gang had 109 members, 105 of whom were preparing to go to the forbidden zone. The boxes and sand sleds in the house were the supplies they had painstakingly prepared, ready for departure today.

If they had met Luo two or three years earlier, they wouldn't have had to wait so long. However, the pile of gold beads Luo had brought this time could be used to upgrade their equipment.

Buhara and William sat on the boxes and soon blended into the Eagle Gang's group.

William, being a prince, had excellent social skills, while Buhara was content as long as there was food.

Thus, a partnership was sealed over a meal.

The original departure time was the day after tomorrow, but because Luo had sponsored a significant sum of money, the Eagle Gang needed a few more days to update their equipment.

Neither Luo nor William objected to this delay.

Most of the Eagle Gang members aimed to obtain enough wealth from the forbidden zone to live out their lives without worries. In their view, the forbidden zone lacked everything but money, so there was no fear of not having enough to share.

With at least five or six days before departure, Luo, having just arrived, had no place to stay and accepted Ali's invitation to stay on the Eagle Gang's turf without hesitation.

Buhara stayed with him, while William went to an old friend's place to look after Fatima.

Luo had already scoured the antique market and cleaned out his "inventory," so he had no intention of going back.

Two days later, he went to find Fatima to request twenty human skin masks.

"Why don't you just fly to the heavens?"

Fatima rolled her eyes at Luo's request.

"Is it that troublesome?" Luo asked.

"Of course, making such finely crafted human skin masks isn't something you can just whip up," Fatima said with a stern face, her mood like a stormy day due to being grounded.

"Forget it," Luo said regretfully.

Fatima thought Luo was about to give up, but then she heard him say, "How about just fifteen then? They don't need to be too good, just not as shabby as the one on my face."

"No way," Fatima turned her head away, firmly refusing.

"Then how about teaching me the technique?"

"Dream on."

"If you make the masks for me, I'll agree to one of your requests."

"Not interested."

"One billion for each mask."

"Don't need the money."

Seeing Fatima's stubborn attitude, Luo took a deep breath and said seriously, "If you help me make the masks, I'll teach you something fun."

As he finished speaking, Luo used his nen ability, God's Hand, to disassemble a table in the room into over a dozen pieces and then quickly assembled them into a makeshift transformer.

"Think about it."

Luo looked at the wide-eyed Fatima, his lewd smile reappearing.

...

Seven days later, a hundred-person team set off from Golo.

Golo often had caravans coming and going, usually with hundreds of armored bulls, so the Eagle Gang's formation didn't attract much attention.

The Eagle Gang had 105 people, plus Luo's three, making a total of 108, including Geru.

Luo knew Geru was a poison hunter and learned from the Eagle Gang that she came to the Kendia Desert every year to collect plant and animal toxins, having had many interactions with the Eagle Gang.

This time, Geru was crucial to the plan of entering the forbidden zone. To pass through the sandstorm area, they needed her, though the details were not disclosed. Perhaps they themselves didn't know and would figure it out once they reached the forbidden zone's perimeter.

Half of the hundred armored bulls were pulling sand sleds loaded with supplies for the journey.

Barring any accidents, it would take fifteen days to reach the forbidden zone in the center of the Kendia Desert from Golo. The Eagle Gang had prepared supplies for a whole month and were well-equipped, considering the potential threat of sand thieves in the desert.

After seven days of fast travel, avoiding many dangers, no one had fallen behind, which was good news.

Previously, in the Eagle Gang's house, Luo had caught crossbow arrows barehanded to "clear mines." The arrowheads were not stones but explosives wrapped in cloth.

The Eagle Gang used these crossbow arrows to trigger and explode the giant sandworms buried under the sand, showcasing various desert survival methods unique to desert dwellers.

The sun was still scorching that day.

The team split into two groups, moving side by side.

Luo made an umbrella for Buhara, and with plenty of water, he didn't have to lie down this time.

Although the journey was smooth, the Eagle Gang remained vigilant due to the many hidden dangers in the desert, dangers even armored bulls couldn't avoid.

As the team walked in order, suddenly, the leading group was cut off. A fifty-meter-diameter quicksand pit appeared out of nowhere on the desert ground.

Thirty armored bulls were sucked in, and four or five people far away jumped off the bulls' backs to avoid the quicksand, while the other twenty people weren't so lucky, clinging to the bulls' backs, unable to move.

Quicksand is one of the desert's hidden killers. Historically, two cities in the Kendia Desert had a third of their area buried forever in the sand after an earthquake.

Among those caught in the quicksand were Ali, Yaya, and Geru, who were at the forefront. The quicksand pit appeared suddenly, and the bulls were buried within two seconds, leaving only their backs and heads exposed.

"Ropes!"

Ali shouted to his companions outside the quicksand pit.

Those not caught in the quicksand pit drove the bulls back while throwing ropes into the pit.

As the quicksand quickly filled, nearly a hundred black, one-meter-high, half-meter-wide objects emerged from the sand, resembling the jaws of a stag beetle.

Several unlucky ones, due to the bulls' intense struggle, soon sank, and their lower bodies were sucked in, unable to move, waiting for the ropes.

However, before the ropes arrived, those seeing the sharp black objects sticking out of the quicksand showed despair and screamed, "It's the Abyssal Maw! Save me, save me! I don't want to die!"

The black objects stood tall, their sharp ends aimed at those sliding down.

The unlucky ones, along with the bulls, slid past the black jaws like planks under a saw, being cut in half. Their screams were abruptly cut off, and their blood and guts disappeared into the sand.

"The Abyssal Maw!"

Ali's face tightened, and the people around the quicksand pit showed fear but didn't run, speeding up their rope-throwing. However, due to the quicksand, the accuracy was poor, and only seven or eight people on the outer edge caught the ropes.

Those closer in, upon realizing this was no ordinary quicksand but the Abyssal Maw, were utterly desperate.

At this moment, a figure rushed over, grabbed one of the ropes, stepped on a wooden plank, and leapt into the quicksand.

Everyone was shocked to see the figure voluntarily jump into the quicksand pit. It was Luo, rushing from the middle of the team to rescue.

"You!"

Those at the edge of the quicksand pit were anxious.

Who would rescue people by jumping into the quicksand pit? Once your lower body was sucked in, it was nearly impossible to get out.

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