Chapter 520: Watch Guards.
A kilometer away from Thoren’s position, two figures hiding beneath a massive rock stood frozen.
They blended perfectly with their surroundings, their bodies almost indistinguishable from the enormous rock behind them.
Their camouflage was top-notch, making them nearly impossible for ordinary people to detect.
Even if a high-level Awakener appeared nearby, without sufficiently powerful perception, detecting them would still be extremely difficult.
"I can’t wait for our shift to be over. This is exhausting," one of them complained, his voice carrying barely restrained frustration.
"I feel the same. If we didn’t lack a way to complete our trial, do you think I would have joined this guild?" the second figure responded, his voice dripping with indignation.
"You’re right. Those bastards promised to help us with our trials, but instead, they have been using us like their dogs," the other responded, equally furious.
Joining the Slave Trade Guild had once seemed like the right decision.
Both of them had reached a high level in their respective professions and desperately needed to complete their trials as soon as possible so they could leave the second floor.
They had believed the Slave Trade Guild possessed enough influence and knowledge to help them.
They had been wrong.
The Slave Trade Guild merely used them to advance its own selfish agenda.
When they finally realized what was happening, it was already too late to regret their decision.
They had been trapped inside the organization, forced to perform dangerous tasks while receiving little of what they had originally been promised.
Just as the two watch guards were complaining about their misfortune, they failed to notice the figure staring directly toward their location from more than a kilometer away.
A couple of minutes later, one of the watch guards suddenly creased his brow.
"Did you sense something?" he asked.
"Sense what?" his partner asked, immediately becoming more attentive.
For a moment, the two did not speak.
They stood completely still beneath the massive rock while simultaneously pushing their detection skills to the limit.
Their expressions gradually changed.
The casual frustration they had displayed moments earlier disappeared, replaced by confusion and unease.
"T-This..." one of them muttered, his voice trembling slightly.
His partner did not speak, but his hand had subconsciously moved toward the short spear at his waist.
His fingers wrapped tightly around the weapon as his eyes narrowed toward the distant barren plain.
"How is this possible? How can he withstand the strange atmosphere without the robe’s protection?"
The question escaped his lips in disbelief.
They both knew how dangerous this region was.
The strange atmosphere surrounding the cursed ground was not something ordinary Awakeners could endure for long.
Even powerful individuals needed special protective robes to venture deep into the region without suffering serious consequences.
Yet the person approaching them appeared to be moving through the area without any protection whatsoever.
More importantly, he seemed completely unaffected.
"That’s not our concern right now. We need to plan how to deal with the intruder."
His partner’s voice became serious as he tightened his grip around his short spear.
They were not foolish.
For a person to venture this deep into the cursed ground, they knew he was far from being simple.
Anyone capable of ignoring the strange atmosphere and traveling this far without protection could not be an ordinary Awakener.
The two exchanged a nervous glance.
Neither of them wanted to become the person responsible for confronting such an unknown enemy.
"Let’s attack together. I don’t think we can defeat him with both our strength," one of them suggested, his eyes narrowing as he carefully observed the distant intruder.
"Very well. We strike together, and if we can’t defeat him, we can retreat immediately."
With the plan formed, the two moved in unison, blending perfectly with the surrounding rocky formations.
Their movement skills were extraordinary, allowing them to traverse the rocky terrain without making the slightest sound.
Their bodies moved like fleeting shadows between the massive rocks, their camouflage remaining nearly impossible to distinguish from the environment.
In a couple of seconds, they had covered half of the distance.
However, when they were only a few seconds away from their target, their expressions suddenly changed.
Previously, when they saw the intruder riding a Dune Scorpion, they had assumed it was a living creature.
But now, they knew they were wrong.
That was not a living Greater Dune Scorpion.
It was an undead Greater Dune Scorpion.
The same level as them.
Their pupils contracted sharply.
’How is this possible?’
Neither of them needed to say anything.
The moment they recognized the undead creature, they simultaneously abandoned every thought of killing the intruder.
They immediately prepared to flee.
But could it really be so easy to flee from the Grim Reaper?
Whoosh!
The two watch guards had just turned their backs when they heard a sharp whistling sound coming from behind.
’Danger!’
As Level 36 Assassins, their danger instincts were extremely sensitive.
At that moment, every instinct within their bodies screamed at them that death was approaching.
The hairs on their bodies stood on end.
Their hearts contracted violently.
’I can’t die now...’
One of them screamed desperately in his heart.
His heart pounded heavily against his chest like a war drum as his body instinctively accelerated.
He pushed his movement skill to its absolute limit.
Swiss!
A red bolt flashed before his eyes and disappeared almost instantly.
His brain could not register what it was.
There was simply no time.
His survival instinct was the only thing occupying his mind.
’Run!’
That was the only thought remaining inside his head.
Ah!
Suddenly, his body staggered.
A strange sensation spread through his chest as though something had violently torn through him.
He felt his strength rapidly leaving his body.
His legs became weak.
His breathing stopped for a brief moment.
He tried to push his body forward, desperately ordering his muscles to continue moving.
But they failed to respond.
Slowly, he came to a stop.
His eyes widened in confusion as he lowered his head.
And there he saw it.
A deep diagonal gash had been carved across his chest, beginning from his collarbone and extending all the way down toward his waist.
Blood poured from the enormous wound.
Half of his internal organs had been destroyed, leaving his chest drenched in crimson.
For a brief moment, he simply stared at the wound.
Thud!
His body finally collapsed onto the rocky ground with a wet, sickening impact. Blood continued spreading beneath his lifeless body.
His partner witnessed everything.
His face instantly became pale.
Cold sweat covered his forehead and streamed down his face as his survival instinct reached its absolute limit.
He pushed his movement skill even further, desperately trying to escape from the terrifying figure behind him.
Whoosh!
The familiar whistling sound came from behind once again and his pupils contracted violently.
His entire body trembled.
"P-Please... don’t kill me!"
"I surrender!"
He shouted at the top of his lungs as he threw away his weapon and immediately dropped to his knees.
His hands rose above his head.
For a brief moment, he remained frozen in that position.
His breathing was ragged, and his heart pounded so violently that he could hear the sound inside his own ears.
Unfortunately for him, his fate had already been decided the moment he joined the Slave Trade Guild.