On the vast, boundless sands, a fierce battle was unfolding. Three figures were locked in combat with a gigantic monster covered in terrifying tentacles.

One of the women was incredibly agile, wielding a crystal-clear ice spike, and raining down attacks on the monster like a storm. Each attack was precise, successfully pinning the monster firmly to the spot.

Another woman, wielding a powerful gun, stood a short distance away providing fire support. Her eyes were focused, her finger tightly gripping the trigger, continuously firing deadly bullets, inflicting massive damage on the monster.

Just then, the boy who had been waiting for an opportunity seized the chance and suddenly swung his right hand.

In an instant, dark clouds churned in the sky, accompanied by flashes of lightning and thunder. A thick, jet-black bolt of lightning, like a roaring dragon, descended from the sky, striking directly at the immobilized monster. With a deafening roar, the monster was instantly cleaved into a pile of charred remains, scattering in all directions.

Once the fighting subsided, Xu Liang looked closely and was overjoyed. It turned out that the two women who had fought were none other than Sister Lan and Xiao Hu, whom he knew well! He immediately opened his arms and shouted loudly towards them, "Sister Lan! Xiao Hu!"

Hearing the call, the two turned around. When their eyes met Xu Liang's joyful face, smiles also bloomed on their faces. Sister Lan and Hu Shuhan strode towards Xu Liang.

Sister Lan was overjoyed and shouted, "Great! I never expected to meet you here! Has Xiao Xu arrived yet?"

Xu Liang smiled and replied, "Not yet. She still needs to travel through two more worlds before she can join us. But it's really unexpected. How did you arrive in the advanced world so quickly?"

Sister Lan sighed deeply and said helplessly, "Sigh, don't even mention it. Ever since you left, that world has changed. We were all infected by a virus. This virus triggered the latent abilities within us, and then we came to this place. This is the second advanced world we've experienced."

Upon hearing this, Xu Liang's eyes widened in astonishment: "What? So you actually activated your superpowers directly in the original world! That's wonderful, I haven't even gained any superpowers yet." His eyes revealed a hint of envy and longing.

Xiao Hu, who was standing nearby, quickly patted Xu Liang on the shoulder and whispered to comfort him, "Don't worry, Brother Liang. You'll have superpowers sooner or later."

Just then, Uncle Li walked over and interjected, "In my opinion, the world you were in before must have directly jumped from a primary world to a higher world. That's why you were able to activate your special abilities and become higher-level passengers." Everyone turned to look at Uncle Li.

Seeing this, Xu Liang quickly introduced, "This is Uncle Li. For now, we're working together. We'll officially form a team after An Ran arrives." Just then, a clear, melodious voice, like jade, rang out: "An Ran?"

When Sister Lan saw the newcomer, she smiled and pulled him over to introduce him, saying, "This is Qi Ziqi. He is the boy that An Ran discovered in that virus world."

The boy smiled shyly and greeted them, "Hello, my name is Qi Ziqi, you can call me Xiao Qi." Then he asked curiously, "Do you know Xu Anran?"

Xu Liang nodded and said, "Yes, you're the boy who found us back then? I didn't expect you to survive, and you're so amazing!" He then gave a thumbs up.

The boy looked at Xu Liang and asked shyly, "Brother, Sister Anran gave me my train ticket back then, and I've been wanting to thank her. Can I get your contact information? Let me know when Sister Anran arrives, and I'd like to thank her in person!"

"No problem, this is my number, just add me later!" He said, telling Qi Ziqi his number.

The group happened to meet and decided to travel together to find out if there were any bases or shelters in this world, and to ask around for information.

After traveling for another four days, they finally spotted the base. Entering the base required paying an entrance fee, which consisted of the round beads from the brains of the monsters they had killed along the way. They had encountered quite a few and collected a few over the past few days.

After paying the entrance fee, they entered the base and saw rows of buildings standing side by side. They exchanged their beads for the base's currency, rented a house, and began to inquire about information.

Qi Ziqi was walking down the street when a woman sitting in a car saw him. She hadn't seen such a tall and handsome boy in a long time. The boy had a slender face with well-defined features, high-arched eyebrows, and a pair of clear, slightly upturned peach blossom eyes. His lips were rosy, and his appearance was simply perfect for her.

The woman ordered her bodyguards to grab the boy, and the two of them dragged Qi Ziqi into the car. Looking at him, the woman asked, "Do you know who I am?" He honestly shook his head, indicating he didn't know. The woman continued, "I'm the daughter of the base commander here. As long as you come with me and serve me well, I guarantee you won't have to do anything from now on, and you'll live a life of luxury. How about it?"

Qi Ziqi looked at the woman and said with a smile, "Okay, sister." The woman was completely captivated by his smile and said, "Let's go! To the Yuexin Hotel."

Half an hour later, Qi Ziqi climbed out of the window and returned to her rented room. The hotel bodyguards were still guarding the door, but unbeknownst to them, the room was empty. Only a pool of blood remained.

And the woman? Her flesh and blood were cut into pieces and thrown into the trash can; her skeleton was cleaned and placed in a large vase by the bedside; and her head, washed clean, its hair tied up, was placed in the sink. Only her expression was exaggerated—her eyes were wide open, as if they were about to pop out, and her mouth was sculpted into a bizarre and exaggerated smile…

Back at the rented apartment, Qi Ziqi saw that everyone had returned one after another. They sat around the table exchanging information, and he listened quietly to them. Xu Liang asked him what information he had gathered, and he smiled sheepishly and said that he hadn't found anything useful.

Uncle Li said he thought he saw Qi Ziqi near the hotel around noon, but he denied it, saying he hadn't gone there. Sister Lan, who was standing nearby, also said that Uncle Li must have been mistaken.

Afterwards, they talked about other things, and Xu Anran's situation was mentioned in between. When Qi Ziqi heard this name, her thoughts drifted away, wondering when they could meet again.

Yes, when can we meet? What is Xu Anran doing right now?

She was driving alone, heading towards a certain place. Her intuition told her to hurry; she had to get that thing, and she couldn't let anyone else take it.