Inside the Desert Relic, Zhao Xuan's eyes burned with excitement as he locked onto the colossal Tier Four Desert Golem standing atop a distant dune. His face flushed red with intensity—
It was the look of a starving man gazing at a banquet after months of hunger, or perhaps a caged beast finally spotting its prey.
His eyes gleamed with wild anticipation, his expression filled with unrestrained thrill and hunger.
A single Tier Four Desert Golem—that was three million credits!
Three million might not be an astronomical figure anymore, but to Zhao Xuan, it was still a serious fortune.
However, the money wasn't what truly excited him.
What really made his blood boil was the chance to fight a Tier Four Desert Golem again.
Such an opportunity was rare beyond measure.
"Gotta do it. I have to take it down!"
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. His pulse quickened, his breathing deepened—his entire body thrummed with anticipation.
For a fleeting moment, he was even tempted to charge forward right that instant and brawl with the stone giant head-on.
But—
He restrained himself.
Because right now…
He was exhausted.
The night before, he'd only been mentally fatigued. But after an entire night spent clearing out Tier Three Desert Golems, his body was worn down too.
His stamina was running dangerously low.
"Sleep first," he muttered. "Once I'm rested, I'll come back and crush it."
After memorizing the exact location of the massive golem, Zhao Xuan turned and headed back toward his base.
On the way, as he passed through the dunes littered with broken golem corpses, an idea sparked in his mind.
He spent the next half hour dragging back seven or eight of the sturdier golem carcasses from nearby.
Using their dense stone bodies, combined with the reinforced blue bricks he'd salvaged from his old, destroyed hut, he began building again.
The result?
A new base.
It looked rougher than before—blocky and primitive—but it was far larger and sturdier, at least two to three times the size of his previous shelter.
"Perfect!" Zhao Xuan grinned proudly.
"With a pile of Tier Three golem corpses surrounding this place, I doubt any remaining stragglers will dare to come near."
Then his eyes glinted with inspiration.
"Once I deal with that Tier Four golem, I'll drag its body here too. Then I'll never have to worry about anything wrecking my house again!"
He stretched lazily, opened a pack of concentrated energy fluid, and gulped it down. Three Mind-Nurturing Fruits followed.
Moments later, Zhao Xuan fell into deep, peaceful sleep.
This time—
he slept well.
Really well.
He slept from morning till night, without interruption.
When he finally woke up, he stretched, grabbed another pouch of energy fluid, and chugged it like it was free. Then he ate a few more spirit fruits to fully restore his stamina and energy reserves.
Once recharged, Zhao Xuan wasted no time.
He dashed across the dunes—sand exploding beneath his feet as he raced back toward the location of the Tier Four Desert Golem.
Before long, he reached the familiar dune.
There it was—looming, immense, majestic.
He licked his lips, his expression twisting into a grin of excitement.
"Little treasure," he murmured. "I'm back. Missed me?"
Then—
"Tap-tap-tap!"
Zhao Xuan shot forward like lightning, launching himself straight toward the creature.
"ROOOOOOAAAAR!!!"
The golem's eyes snapped open, glowing ominously.
It let out an earth-shaking roar, its colossal stone arm swinging down toward Zhao Xuan with terrifying force.
"Too slow, you big idiot!"
Zhao Xuan twisted midair, using Moon Step to pivot gracefully out of harm's way.
In a blur, he passed the golem's flank and landed behind it—
right in front of a massive Spirit Cactus, far larger than the ones guarded by Tier Three golems.
Without hesitation, Zhao Xuan reached down, grabbed the cactus by its thick base, and ripped it from the sand in one swift motion.
Then—he bolted.
No words, no taunts. Just raw, explosive speed.
"ROOOOOAAAAR!!!"
The Tier Four Golem's fury echoed across the desert.
It bellowed and gave chase, its thunderous footsteps shaking the ground.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Sand erupted with every stride as the chase tore through the desert—one hunter, one hunted.
But this time, the "prey" was in control.
Zhao Xuan led the golem intentionally, guiding it step by step closer to his newly built base.
After a few minutes of pursuit, they were almost there.
Then—
Zhao Xuan suddenly accelerated.
Within seconds, he widened the gap between them.
He darted back to his base, dropped the massive Spirit Cactus safely behind it, and turned back toward the dune.
This was all part of his plan.
He wasn't running—he was luring.
Dragging a ten-ton monster across miles of desert by brute force wasn't realistic.
But baiting it with speed and cunning? That was his specialty.
By stealing its treasure and leading it across the desert, Zhao Xuan would bring the beast right where he wanted it—
to his base, where he could fight it on his own terms.
Once he killed it, he'd have both the crystal and the corpse ready for use.
"Work smarter, not harder," he muttered with a grin, turning back toward the sound of the golem's approaching roars.
His trap was set.
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