68: Chapter 68 Entering the Mother Nest

Dense swarms of ice spikes shot out from the void in front of a young Wizard Apprentice's palm, firing toward the rushing Worm Race on the Desert.

"Puchi—" As muffled sounds rang out, those ice spikes easily pierced through the bodies of the Worm Race, splashing up flowers of flesh and blood.

The Worm Race whose lives had been reaped, having just halted their charge, were crushed beneath the surging army of the Worm Race behind them.

Under the constant trampling, the corpses were completely reduced to pools of meat paste sticking to the sand.

Scenes like this were playing out constantly all over the Basin.

At the very moment the ice spikes shot out, the other Wizard Apprentices simultaneously unleashed their own sorcery.

Incredibly scorching fireballs descending from the sky, giants composed of sand, a cloud of ink-green smoke, dense swarms of insects...

All kinds of sorcery bloomed from the hands of those Wizard Apprentices, constantly reaping the lives of the Worm Race rushing toward them.

Among these Wizard Apprentices, Ivan was the most eye-catching.

Not only did he occupy a platform alone without any assistance, but he also killed far more Worm Race than the other three platforms combined.

This was not only because he was a Limit Wizard Apprentice, but also because of the unique nature of the Wizard path he followed.

Ivan followed the path of the Mechanical Wizard.

The moment the Worm Race began their charge, he had converted the platform he occupied into a war platform.

Dense swarms of alchemical guns and cannons occupied the platform's space; their combined weight even forcibly pressed the platform down by a fraction.

Under Ivan's control, a dense barrage of alchemical bullets and shells occupied a vast area around him, constantly reaping the lives of the Worm Race.

The corpses of the Worm Race even began to form high walls under the barrage of bullets.

No matter how the Worm Race charged, they could not advance even a fraction of an inch against that torrent of steel.

Yet even so, Ivan's expression remained deeply solemn.

Even with him and the other Wizard Apprentices reaping the Worm Race on such a large scale, it was undoubtedly a drop in the ocean compared to the entire Basin's worth of Worm Race, hardly worth mentioning.

Not to mention the other Worm Race converging on the Basin from all corners of the Desert under the Mother Worm's summons.

For now, they could easily withstand the charge of the Basin's Worm Race by following their designated plan: one resting, one assisting, and one attacking.

This ensured they could maintain their peak condition at all times to guard against any accidents.

But once the Worm Race from outside the Basin arrived, even they might collapse in an instant under the sheer numbers of the incoming Worm Race.

Faced with enough Worm Race to fill the entire Basin, their Mental Energy was simply not enough.

By that time, even if Dylan was still inside the Brood Nest, he would have no choice but to order a retreat...

So, Dylan, you must hurry. Whether you succeed or fail...

...

On the other side of the Basin, beneath a remote sand dune, when Dylan and Blake heard that massive roar, both of their eyes suddenly lit up.

Dylan lowered his voice and smiled, "Ivan has started his move over there, drawing those annoying Worm Race away for us. We need to hurry; they won't be able to hold out for long."

With that, Dylan turned to look at Blake, "I'll have to trouble you from here on out."

Blake nodded, "I've long been prepared. But before that, I'll need to trouble you, President, to help me catch a Worm Race."

Fearing that Dylan might misunderstand, he specifically added, "An ordinary Worm Race will do; no need for those variants."

Dylan didn't say anything more; he simply nodded and fell silent.

Seeing this, Blake understood that the President was using his Mental Energy to track the Worm Race, so he did not speak to disturb him.

The next second, Dylan's figure blurred. Immediately following a faint boom, the sand on the Desert suddenly shot into the sky.

'No matter how many times I see it, this scene is shocking. Is this the strength of a Limit Wizard Apprentice?!'

Watching this, deep shock and longing welled up in Blake's eyes.

Yet just then, before he could recover from his shock, Dylan reappeared in his line of sight.

But unlike before, a massive Worm Race was now struggling incessantly within the grip of his palm.

The area where his palm gripped the Worm Race was insignificant compared to the creature's sheer size.

Yet even so, no matter how the Worm Race struggled, it could not break free from Dylan's hold.

Dylan: "I've got the Worm Race. Hurry."

Startled by Dylan's words, Blake snapped back to reality and nodded hurriedly.

Without further delay, Blake stepped forward, a faint gleam appearing on his fingertip as he tapped it against the forehead of the still-struggling Worm Race.

The moment the gleam touched the Worm Race, its twisted body instantly stiffened, and it ceased all movement.

Seeing this, a smile immediately appeared on Dylan's face.

He knew that Blake had succeeded.

Sure enough, the next moment, Blake looked up at Dylan, "President, you can put it down now. It will be able to take us through the sand layer and into the Brood Nest."

Dylan didn't hesitate, "Alright, let's begin."

Blake: "Understood. Please bear with it for a moment, President."

Just as Blake said this, the Worm Race that Dylan had dropped onto the sand stood back up.

Its massive mouthparts were lunging toward where Dylan was standing.

Facing this, Dylan made no move and simply allowed himself to be swallowed into the Worm Race's belly.

After swallowing Dylan, the creature also swallowed Blake.

Now, beneath the sand dune, only this Worm Race with its unusually distended belly remained.

After identifying the direction, the Worm Race dove straight into the sand and began digging deeper.

Inside the Worm Race's belly, Dylan looked at Blake—who was face-to-face with him, their features almost touching—and his expression darkened.

Dylan said testily, "Blake, couldn't you have oriented yourself better when you came in? You're making things very awkward for me right now!"

Blake gave an awkward laugh, "President, these are the conditions we have to work with. My apologies, President."

Hearing this, Dylan said nothing more.

Face-to-face it was. That was still better than having him turn his back; that would be even weirder.

With that, the Worm Race's belly fell into silence.

I don't know how much time passed, but the two suddenly felt a jolt. The next moment, a pale blue light flickered within the pitch-black belly.

Seeing this, Dylan and Blake did not hesitate and climbed out from the Worm Race's belly together.

As for the Worm Race that had brought them here, it lay collapsed on the ground, motionless, looking as if it were on the verge of death.