Su Yao tightened her pack, her eyes filled with unwavering determination. The howling wind, like a demon's roar, swept across the land, scorching sand pelting her ability shield with a crackling sound. "We must get back to the safe house as soon as possible; Mom and Dad are waiting for me," Su Yao said to her equally exhausted but resolute companions behind her.
The road beneath her feet was warped beyond recognition by the intense heat; deep cracks from which molten lava slowly seeped, like the earth's flowing blood. Guided by the system's navigation, Su Yao carefully chose her path. Suddenly, the system issued a rapid alarm: "High energy reaction ahead! A powerful horde of mutated beasts is suspected!"
Before the words were even finished, a group of colossal rock beasts, each as large as a mountain, slowly emerged from the swirling sandstorm. With each step they took, the ground trembled violently, their rocky scales gleaming with an eerie red light under the intense heat, and their enormous fangs resembling sharp stone pillars.
"Prepare for battle!" Su Yao commanded, her hands swiftly forming hand seals. The power of the crystal cluster surged forth at her summons. She gathered earth elemental power beneath her feet, allowing herself to stand firmly on the turbulent ground, while simultaneously manipulating water elemental power to transform into countless ice arrows, which she fired at the horde of giant beasts. The ice arrows struck the beasts' bodies, splashing up sprays of water, but only slightly slowing their advance.
The companions also unleashed their special abilities. Those skilled in wind used the wind to whip up sand and gravel, creating massive sandstorm vortexes in an attempt to disrupt the behemoth's vision; while those wielding fire sprayed flames onto ice arrows, giving them a greater impact when they struck the behemoth, causing cracks to appear on its surface.
However, the behemoths' defenses were extremely strong, and they quickly broke through the attack, continuing their surging charge towards Su Yao and the others. Su Yao knew that if this continued, they would eventually be overwhelmed by the horde. She made a decisive move, activating the system's special skill—Elemental Insight. Instantly, she saw the energy flow patterns within the behemoths' bodies, discovering that their core energy source was located within a crystal on their heads.
"Attack their head crystals!" Su Yao shouted. She used her spatial powers to instantly appear above the head of a giant beast, conjuring a lightsaber of light element and crystal cluster power in her hand, and stabbed it fiercely at the beast's head crystal. Sensing the threat, the beast frantically shook its head, trying to throw Su Yao off. Su Yao gripped the lightsaber tightly, gritting her teeth and persevering, finally shattering the crystal. The beast's massive body crashed to the ground.
Under Su Yao's leadership, the companions worked together and, after a hard-fought battle, finally repelled the horde of rock behemoths. However, they paid a heavy price; many companions were injured, and their powers and stamina were exhausted.
Su Yao took out healing medicines and recovery supplies from her spatial storage and distributed them to everyone. "Everyone, take a rest first, and we'll continue our journey after we've regained some strength." Looking at her exhausted companions, she felt a mix of guilt and gratitude.
After a short rest, they resumed their journey home. As they drew closer to the safe house, the surrounding environment became increasingly harsh. Scalding acid rain poured down from the sky, corroding everything in its path with a hissing sound. Su Yao had to reinforce her ability shield again, while simultaneously releasing water elements to form a thin curtain of water outside the shield, neutralizing the corrosiveness of the acid rain.
Finally, the familiar safe house came into view. Su Yao rushed inside, and seeing her parents sitting safely in the living room, her eyes welled up with tears. Seeing Su Yao return, her parents excitedly stood up, and the family embraced tightly.
"Yao'er, you're finally back. We were so worried about you." The mother's voice was choked with tears.
"Mom and Dad, I'm back. I'm here, and I won't let you get hurt," Su Yao said firmly.
Su Yao settled her companions in the guest rooms of the safe house to rest, then sat in the living room with her parents to discuss their next strategy. "This high-temperature apocalypse is getting worse. We can't just rely on the safe house's defenses; we need to find a solution," Su Yao said, frowning.
She opened the system interface to check the safe house's various data. The safe house's energy reserves were still relatively sufficient, but food and water resources were being continuously consumed. If she couldn't find new sources of supply, they would eventually run out. Moreover, although the safe house's defense system was powerful, it was still at risk of being breached by some more powerful mutated creatures and severe natural disasters.
"Yao'er, what are your plans?" her father asked, looking at Su Yao.
After pondering for a moment, Su Yao said, "I want to use the resources in the safe house to improve everyone's ability level first, and then go out to explore and see if we can find any clues about this high-temperature apocalypse, or find new resource points."
Although her parents were worried, they knew that in this apocalyptic world, only by actively responding could they have a chance of survival. They expressed their support for Su Yao's decision and their willingness to face the challenges of the future together with her.
Looking into her parents' determined eyes, Su Yao felt a surge of strength. She knew that no matter how many difficulties and obstacles lay ahead, for her family and her friends, she had to bravely move forward and protect this small patch of peace and hope in this apocalyptic world of extreme heat.
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