That evening,

Zhou Yi was engrossed in "China National Geographic," savoring things that were once a common sight but now could only be reminisced through magazines.

There was a knock on the door outside.

He opened the door to find A Feng.

"Chairman, I've managed to breed the insect king into an Armored Mite!"

The youth, with his face smeared in mud, was excitedly dancing and grinning from ear to ear.

Zhou Yi was startled.

So soon?

He followed A Feng outside to a container-like room, where they were immediately greeted by the smell of decay. Inside lay heaps of dry straw and branches, with a large, black bug nestled among them. Gong Zheng had already been waiting there.

A Feng pointed inside and said, "Chairman, this is the Armored Mite."

Zhou Yi examined the creature before him.

Unlike the soft, worm-like Mao Valley Worms, the Armored Mite had shrunk in length to an oval shape, looking more robust, somewhat like an oversized silkworm.

Its body was covered with a layer of black chitin. This layered shell acted as a full-bodied armor, protecting the Armored Mite all over.

The Armored Mite leisurely chewed on dry mushrooms and leaves, seemingly very content with its life, expressing no dissatisfaction with its current existence.

A Feng picked up a curled-up piece of black, flaky material from the ground, "Chairman, this is its shell."

Zhou Yi took it and observed it closely.

Its hardness was somewhere between plastic and metal, with fairly good flexibility, allowing significant bending.

Then, on the spot, A Feng attempted to smash it with a hammer and chop it with a knife, but neither action managed to damage the natural shell.

"Chairman, I didn't deceive you, this material is both hard and flexible."

Gong Zheng then added, "Insect Armor is a widely used natural material that can be reshaped at high temperatures. Alchemists use it to make special containers, or as outer casing and protective layers for high-end devices. It's also an excellent choice of material for shields and armor."

Zhou Yi commended A Feng, encouraging him to continue breeding more Armored Mites to boost the company's reserves of Insect Armor material.

"Chairman, with so many mushrooms we can't finish, we'll definitely be able to breed many Armored Mites. Although they molt slowly, as long as we breed enough, we'll get a lot of shells. I'll make sure their numbers keep increasing!"

A Feng was full of confidence.

Although still unsure how to utilize this material, high-quality raw materials were always beneficial.

It was best to stock up for now.

...

Another day passed.

With Ye Zhao as his deputy, Zhou Yi led 30 Black Samurai, 77 regular samurai crabs, totaling 108 soldiers. They marched past the Oasis Side and officially approached Death Dune.

On the dunes, the humans and creatures disguised by the antlions continued to roam under the sun.

Zhou Yi employed the same tactics he had used against the antlions before, directly ordering squads of samurai crabs to shoot poisoned throwing knives.

These desert creatures were protected by tough armor, but their spike-like antennae were connected directly to their flesh. The wounds invaded by the poison of the Jumping Snakes accelerated the spread of the toxin within their bodies.

With this simple yet effective method, the Samurai Crab Army advanced, consecutively killing 43 antlions hidden beneath the sands, tearing an opening in Death Dune.

However, as they ventured deeper into the dune, the situation changed.

The peripheral dunes were divided among the antlions, with their baits visible everywhere. Towards the interior, however, these things were absent, and an unsettling quiet prevailed.

Zhou Yi immediately ordered his army to stop.

Unfortunately, the Red Kestrel was not present to provide details of this strange dune from the air.

Should they continue to advance, or play it safe and retreat?

Zhou Yi surveyed the surroundings.

Glassified areas remained on the nearby dunes, and one could find scorch marks of burned black.

Zhou Yi asked Ye Zhao, who accompanied him, "Could there have been meteorite falls inside Death Dune?"

"Master, what is a meteorite?"

The clawed pig looked utterly puzzled.

Zhou Yi briefly explained the phenomenon and mechanism of meteorites.

"Ah, so that's called a meteorite, those fiery lumps of iron that fall from the sky, yes, but they're extremely rare."

Ye Zhao said, "They don't really fall here much; most of those meteorites end up in the Dead Sea."

Death Dune was not an area prone to meteorite impacts.

That is to say, these traces were man-made.

Zhou Yi's gaze sharpened.

Under the assistance of the [Alert] ability, he tracked the energy flow around him.

It was daytime, visibility was high, and there were no obstructions, so after a careful search, Zhou Yi found some unusual tracks.

Beneath those vitrified areas, there were faint white energy dissipation signs left over.

Zhou Yi ordered the samurai crabs to dig through the sand layer, and underneath they found severely damaged wreckage. Ye Zhao identified it by smell as the body of an Antlion. However, all valuable parts of the Antlion, such as the shell, leg spines, and antennae, were gone, showing signs of having been cut away.

Someone else had been hunting here.

Following the trail of the monster's remnants, Zhou Yi meticulously tracked down six sites of monster carcasses, as well as some oiled paper buried in the sand that seemed to have been used to wrap something.

Soon afterward, he heard the loud noise of an explosion.

Behind a sand dune, he found the source of the sound.

There was an extraordinarily large Antlion there.

Its body, covered in spike-like tentacles, spread open with two broad and long pale yellow wings extending from its oval-conical torso. It looked much larger and more oppressive than any Antlion Zhou Yi had encountered before.

However, as the giant Antlion opened its pincer-like jaws, apparently trying to intimidate its enemy, it didn't move, as if it was pinned to the dune for some reason.

About fifteen meters away from it stood a slender girl of short stature, wearing a white sun hat and short-sleeved gray clothes.

The girl wore narrow-rimmed round glasses that reflected a faint red glow.

Her hair was tied back, with bangs parted to both sides. She was squinting with her right eye, holding an open black umbrella in both hands, aiming at the monster in front of her.

The girl slightly bent her knees and pulled back the umbrella handle.

Bang!

Geometric light patterns lit up on the black umbrella, instantly emitting a powerful white light that blew the Antlion's massive jaws and head to pieces.

The large monster swayed and slowly fell.

The girl with the black umbrella walked over to the headless Antlion and examined the body.

Then she slowly turned her face to look toward the sand dune where Zhou Yi was, retracting her umbrella to wave and smile.

Zhou Yi also boldly went straight over.

As he got closer, he realized that the girl's arms were completely made of metal prosthetics.

Yet the way she held the umbrella and moved her fingers was both agile and swift.

Noticing his gaze, the girl openly spread her unbrellaless left hand, flexing the silver symmetrical fingers, "Pretty agile, right? It's also very strong. This is the second generation 'Old Veteran Steel Arm,' compatible with and capable of using most of the mainstream weapons on the market today. Whether it's melee combat with bladed weaponry or long-range firearms, it will ensure stability and precision when you use them."

"Would you like to own one, sir?"

"We're having a promotional event right now. Such a hand is only 699 Light Seeds, and it comes with a free bottle of maintenance oil, plus a year of free maintenance and repairs."

Zhou Yi was stunned for a moment.

What's going on here?

Was she doing sales out in this place?

"Otherwise, you can consider this one, which is the 'Hand of Dexterity' currently in internal testing. Although it's not as strong as the Old Veteran Steel Arm, it's more than sufficient for everyday life. Whether it's holding or using tools, it's more than up to the task." The girl took the umbrella handle with her left hand and opened her right hand to show him.

Her right hand was fitted with a black glove that covered the entire forearm, secured with two straps, revealing a wooden and metal composite mechanical structure that appeared to be more supple and slender than the other hand.

"'Hand of Dexterity' offers an excellent cost-performance ratio. You can take one home for just 399 Light Seeds. How about it?"

Zhou Yi spread his hands to show, "I don't have that kind of need."

"It's good to be prepared, right? In this world, who knows if one's hands will still be there tomorrow? You see, even just as a collector's item, they're quite good-looking, aren't they?"

The girl eagerly recommended her own arms.

Zhou Yi's cheek twitched, "Who are you?"

"I forgot to introduce myself."

With a professional smile on her face, the girl said, "My name is Qian Su. I'm a weapon supplier. Also, I'm a citizen of the Heavenly Kingdom, and an Honorary Knight of the Dead Sea Knights."