There were forty to fifty of these wild horses. They ambled along, stopping occasionally to nibble on the greenery they saw along the way.

After spotting the humans, the lead stallion stood at the very front, its eyes wary.

It stomped its hooves irritably before leading the herd away to continue their migration.

Qin Ziwen didn’t make a move. This herd of wild horses looked ill-tempered, and they were large in both size and number.

The surrounding area was a wide-open plain. If they provoked the horses, they might not be able to escape.

However, not all wild horses traveled in such large herds.

As evening approached, a family of seven wild horses arrived from the west—four adults and three that appeared slightly smaller. 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

A Flesh-Splitting Beast was furtively closing in on the herd.

Facing the approaching Flesh-Splitting Beast, the herd formed a circle, protecting the foals in the center with the adults on the outside.

The Flesh-Splitting Beast saw its chance and lunged forward. One of the adult horses reacted instantly, its fan-sized hoof lashing out and striking the beast squarely on the forehead. A small, visible dent appeared on its head.

The direct hit stunned the Flesh-Splitting Beast, and it plopped dumbly onto its hindquarters.

Not to be outdone, a few of the other wild horses rushed forward and landed a couple more kicks.

Kicked back to its senses, the Flesh-Splitting Beast let out a mournful howl and instinctively staggered backward.

The Gobi Wild Horses didn’t give chase. They simply gathered around the foals, warily watching the Flesh-Splitting Beast’s retreating back, as well as... a sand dune not far away.

Just as the Flesh-Splitting Beast reached the bottom of the dune, a swift figure suddenly shot down from above. It leaped onto the beast’s back, its sharp claws sinking in like sickles, and then opened its massive jaws to bite down on its prey’s back.

The Flesh-Splitting Beast shrieked in agony.

Normally, it would have immediately dropped and rolled, trying to struggle free. But the kicks from the Gobi Wild Horses had left it still disoriented.

Lying on the ground, its cries grew weaker and weaker.

The Desert Raptor suddenly released its bite, looking warily at the group of people approaching in the distance.

"Our long wait wasn’t in vain. We finally meet again," Qin Ziwen remarked.

After noticing the large-scale animal migration in the afternoon, they had been using the Beaked Eagle to search for lone Desert Raptors.

But even when they spotted a target from the sky, it would often be gone by the time they managed to get there. This was especially true for a carnivore like the Desert Raptor, known for its mobility. Getting one to stay put was incredibly difficult.

So, in the end, they decided to lie in ambush.

They narrowed their search area.

Finally, just after five in the afternoon, they came across this "lovely" Desert Raptor.

The Desert Raptor was unwilling to abandon the food it had worked so hard to catch. It eyed the group warily, letting out a low, threatening growl.

Du Yu, who had been holding back and staying ready, slowly rode over from behind. He dismounted and advanced with his spear.

Seeing a human break away from the group and dare to charge forward alone, the Desert Raptor made its move.

In its eyes, this scrawny little human was nothing more than another item on its menu.

Why would it retreat when its food was charging right at it?

Eight minutes later, the Desert Raptor was a cold corpse.

"My lord, a card." Du Yu picked up the Micro-sized Blank Expansion Card it had dropped.

Cao Biansheng was envious. ’If I had Instructor Du’s strength, couldn’t I be ’farming cards’ too?’

At night, visibility dropped, and the clarity of the Beaked Eagle’s "camera" was severely affected. After lying in wait until seven o’clock, the group headed back to the Gated Community with their prey.

When they returned to the Gated Community, they saw a large crowd gathered at the base of Building 2.

Zou Jianghe was at the front of the crowd, saying something in a loud voice.

After a few glances, Qin Ziwen averted his gaze.

He led the group upstairs.

Nowadays, everyone spent their evenings inside the buildings, honing their skills. Other things might be fleeting, but one’s own strength was a permanent companion.

Qin Ziwen was naturally pleased to see this.

"My lord." Jia Liangcai knocked before entering.

"Where have you been?"

"Replying to my lord, this humble servant went to assess the current situation in the Gated Community," Jia Liangcai said.

Qin Ziwen nodded. "What areas for improvement do you see for us?"

Jia Liangcai mused, "My lord, if you wish to unite the Gated Community, winning the hearts of the people is essential. You could start by opening a clinic to build up public support."

"You mean, follow the example of Renhe Hall?"

Jia Liangcai said, "Yes. Currently, the Gated Community has many residents but few doctors. It is a time of medical scarcity."

Qin Ziwen thought for a moment and agreed with the decision.

"Alright. But, just like Renhe Hall, we must charge a fee for treatment. Things that are obtained for free are rarely cherished."

"Understood."

Qin Ziwen was curious. "By the way, what’s going on over there? Why are so many people gathered downstairs at that building?"

Jia Liangcai explained that in the afternoon, the mass animal migration had prompted many residents of the Gated Community to form hunting parties.

During one such hunt, an accident occurred while a party was hunting a herd of wild horses. Someone mistakenly provoked the herd, resulting in two deaths and three injuries within the team.

But ironically, the person who angered the horses didn’t die. In fact, he ran so fast he didn’t even get injured.

The families of the deceased now hoped to see him severely punished.

The man who had angered the horses refused to admit fault. He claimed he was just carrying out his duty normally and couldn’t control it when the animals suddenly went crazy.

And so, the two sides started arguing, causing a huge commotion.

’It’s a difficult situation to judge.’

Qin Ziwen was suddenly curious. He asked Jia Liangcai, "If it were you, how would you handle it?"

Jia Liangcai already had a plan worked out. He replied immediately, "Stop the chaos, assign blame pragmatically, and stabilize the people’s morale. At this point, investigating the mistake is meaningless; we should only look at the consequences. Assign labor as punishment and order him to compensate the families of the deceased. At the same time, the Alliance should hold a funeral for the dead, and I would ask you, my lord, to personally preside over the ceremony to win over the people.

"How the two parties are dealt with isn’t the most important thing. What matters is how we quell this incident, calm the people, and establish your authority."

Qin Ziwen remained noncommittal.

「The next day.」

Qin Ziwen led the team to continue searching for a suitable target for Du Yu, with the hunting party providing protection.

On the second day, Du Yu successfully hunted two more.

「On the third day, the animal migration reached its peak.」

One could even see numerous small animals on the road, crawling toward the Gated Community.

Some scorpions and poisonous snakes crawled into the Gated Community’s underground garage, hiding in the corners.

Also on this day, Du Yu successfully hunted two more of his mission targets. He had now killed eight for his limit-breakthrough mission, putting him on the verge of completion.

That very afternoon, Qin Ziwen finally understood why the animals were migrating in such massive numbers.

On the distant horizon, where the dim yellow earth should have met the sky, a layer of light brown haze was now rising.

The Beaked Eagle let out a sharp cry, and Red Hare stomped its feet restlessly. It had rarely been this agitated since being fitted with horseshoes.

The wind blowing from the distance carried fine grains of sand.

"That’s... a sandstorm," Qin Ziwu muttered to himself.

Back at the Home, many people were witnessing a sandstorm for the first time in their lives.

Billowing clouds of dust, like giant waves churning in the deep sea, rolled across the land.

The sky grew dim. A thick wall of sand stretching to the horizon advanced like a tsunami.

"Close the windows!"

"There’s a sandstorm!"

"Seal the doors and windows tight!"

Shouts from residents echoed through the Gated Community.

Those who were still outside scrambled to get back home.

Some people brought their potted plants in from their balconies.

The Gated Community’s perimeter wall acted like a natural barrier. Some of the approaching animals, upon reaching it, actually walked right into the community, stopped behind the courtyard walls, and went still.

「Half an hour later, the sandstorm closed in.」

The sky outside the balcony was instantly shrouded in a faint layer of gray, and visibility dropped sharply.

Furthermore, the visibility continued to plummet at a rate visible to the naked eye.

The air took on a hazy yellow tint, the color of sand and earth.

Soon, the color deepened into a murky yellow. The wind speed increased until, finally, the world outside plunged from day into night, and all visibility was lost.

All that could be heard was the howling of the sandy wind as it tore between the buildings and the dense patter of grit striking the walls and windows.

The wailing outside the windows didn’t begin to fade until nine o’clock at night.

...

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