Valley Desert

"Going in circles? How is that possible!"

Lin Chen was somewhat incredulous, and not only him, Mu Nujiao and Wang Min also found it hard to understand.

If it's about getting lost or going in the wrong direction, that's understandable. After all, when you're moving forward, you'll be looking at those special symbols and patterns, so it's normal to have a slight deviation in direction.

But if they were going in circles, the direction of travel should have a very obvious arc, and they didn't notice this anomaly at all during their journey.

Moreover, they killed many demons along the way. If they were really going in circles, they should have seen the corpses of demons along the way.

After listening to the questions raised by Lin Chen and the others, Lingling did not answer them. Instead, she went to the Tyrannosaurus Rex's side and patted its leg: "Tyrannosaurus Rex, run a lap in the direction you are looking at as fast as you can."

Upon hearing this, Tyrannosaurus turned to look at Lin Chen. After receiving Lin Chen's affirmative answer, it immediately returned to its normal size, broke free, and dashed forward, disappearing from everyone's sight in no time.

"Lin Chen, Lingling, aren't you being a bit too reckless? What if the Tyrannosaurus Beast also gets lost in the valley?" Mu Nujiao complained.

"I have faith in Lingling, and I have a way to summon Tyrannosaurus Rex back," Lin Chen replied.

More than ten minutes later, Lin Chen was idly drawing circles on the ground when suddenly a series of heavy footsteps approached from afar, growing louder and louder, and quickly came toward him and the others.

Lin Chen turned around and saw that the Tyrannosaurus Rex's enormous body had indeed appeared behind them.

"This?!" Lin Chen was momentarily stunned and looked at Lingling with a questioning gaze.

"When I was comparing those special patterns, I discovered repeating patterns, and they were repeating in a certain regularity," Lingling explained.

"Everyone, search the area for any traces of demons, find them, and kill them," Lingling instructed.

Although they didn't know Lingling's purpose, Lin Chen and the others still followed Lingling's instructions.

Not long after, Gabumon found a lizard in a secluded corner of the forest, killed it, and brought it to Lingling.

"What's the next step?" Lin Chen asked.

"Wait!" Lingling said succinctly.

So, Lin Chen, his two companions, and their three beasts, just like Lingling, stood beside the lizard corpse, their eyes fixed on it.

Ten minutes later, Lin Chen, whose eyes were starting to ache from staring at the screen, rubbed them when he heard Lingling's exclamation.

"It's starting to move!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Chen immediately opened his eyes and looked at the lizard's corpse. In his vision, the lizard's corpse was slowly melting into the ground at a speed visible to the naked eye.

That's right, it melted, not sank in. Just like fallen leaves returning to their roots, the essence of the lizard's flesh and blood was completely absorbed by the earth.

"No wonder we didn't find any corpses along the way; they were all absorbed," Lin Chen exclaimed.

Having gotten the answer she wanted, Lingling went to a large tree with special symbols carved on it, pointed to the base of the tree, and said to Wang Min, "Brother Wang, clear out the base of this tree for me, but don't damage the root system."

Wang Min nodded and immediately released his magic, trying to move the soil around the base of the tree to one side. However, he soon discovered that his magic could not move the soil around the base of the tree at all. It was as if the soil was a whole and could not be controlled at all.

Having no other choice, Lin Chen had to arrange for three Digimon to use their claws to dig open the base of the tree.

As the soil around the tree roots gradually decreased, the area around the tree roots was completely exposed to Lin Chen and the others.

The tree has a very developed root system that extends deep into the soil. From time to time, a yellowish-brown energy emanates from the earth and flows along the roots to the tree.

"Go check out the others," Lingling continued to instruct.

Half an hour later, the roots of many large trees in the vicinity had been pried open.

Lin Chen and the others were surprised to find that all the large trees with special patterns on their trunks had a mysterious energy flowing into their base, and the corpses of demons that died nearby would eventually turn into a strange energy that flowed to the roots of the large tree.

"Attack its roots," Lingling said, pointing to a large tree with a special pattern.

Guilmon and Gabumon opened their mouths and unleashed a burst of flame at it, but just as it was about to touch the roots of the tree, an earthen-yellow light shield appeared, intercepting their attack.

"Try it, Tyrannomon." Seeing that it was ineffective, Lin Chen patted Tyrannomon's toes.

A massive burst of flame erupted from Tyrannosaurus's mouth, hurtling towards the roots of the tree with tremendous force. Sure enough, just as it was about to touch the roots, the yellowish-brown light barrier reappeared, but this time it failed to stop Tyrannosaurus's attack and was breached directly.

Just as the flames were about to hit the roots of the tree, a huge, earthy-yellow sandstorm appeared out of nowhere, instantly engulfing Lin Chen and his group.

The fierce sandstorm grew stronger and stronger, blowing Lingling up into the air. If Lin Chen hadn't caught her, she would have been blown into the sky.

"Tyrannomon, protect us! Munujiao uses magic to bind us to Tyrannomon!"

Lin Chen shouted loudly, and Tyrannosaurus and Mu Nujiao quickly did as Lin Chen instructed.

Thanks to the Tyrannosaurus's massive body, Lin Chen and his group were not swept away by the sandstorm, but the huge sandstorm completely blocked their vision, making it impossible for them to see the outside world.

At this moment, the ground beneath their feet, shrouded in sandstorm, was moving silently, carrying them toward an unknown place.

……

When Lin Chen and his group regained their vision, a look of shock appeared on their faces.

At this moment, they were in a vast, golden desert. Above them was a clear blue sky, with a blazing golden sun hanging in the sky. Under the scorching sun, waves of heat rose from the desert, making it unbearably hot.

"We've been blown into the desert?" Wang Min asked in disbelief.

"It shouldn't be. The sandstorm didn't last long from its appearance to its end, and the nearest desert is thousands of kilometers away from us." Mu Nujiao shook her head.

"We must have been teleported here by the array in the valley. Like the previous dense forest, this place is also within the Chaotic Valley." Lingling's tone was very certain. Then, she gritted her teeth, her expression turning somewhat grim: "Judging from the current situation, the information we obtained from the Hunter's Alliance was definitely concealed, and might even be false. Even high-level mages might not be able to get out of this place alive!"

"I've dragged you all down. I shouldn't have brought you along," Lin Chen said suddenly, feeling a pang of guilt.

"We did it voluntarily, so we don't blame you." Mu Nujiao showed no resentment whatsoever.

Lingling kicked Lin Chen and said irritably, "Bringing me here means you're in a life-or-death situation, not bringing me means you're doomed. I'm your only chance of survival."

Just then, Tyrannomon, who had been observing its surroundings since arriving in the desert, suddenly shouted.

"Lin Chen has connections!"