Super Gene Hunting Ground

Yang Xiao's Flame Horse was right at the entrance of the canyon.

The Flame Horse, upon seeing Yang Xiao, neighed loudly and immediately ran over, nuzzling against Yang Xiao with great affection.

Yang Xiao patted the neck of the Flame Horse, jumped onto its back, and prepared to leave.

Monk Ben Yin glanced at Xie Lei from the Kongtong Sect and others before saying,

"Brother Xie, how are you feeling?"

Xie Lei coldly replied,

"I won't die. I can walk."

While saying this, Xie Lei gave Yang Xiao a fierce glance.

Xie Lei believed that the Black Jinkang and the lion were Yang Xiao's brothers. Since he was injured by the lion and Black Jinkang, he naturally blamed Yang Xiao.

Xie Lei also felt that Monk Ben Yin and others were unkind for not warning him in time or helping him against Black Jinkang, thus harboring resentment against everyone.

Yang Xiao chuckled and said,

"Master Ben Yin, let's go. No need to bother with him."

With that, he galloped away.

Lan Xin, Zhi Ruo, Zhang Hai, and others immediately followed closely using Qinggong.

Ben Yin glanced at Xie Lei, shook his head, and also led Ben Guo and others to run ahead.

Monk Ben Yin, being a monk, was compassionate and always kept a certain distance from Xie Lei and others, not letting it grow too large. He worried they might encounter monsters and get attacked since they were unable to fight after losing a hand.

By evening, Yang Xiao and the others had returned to the vicinity of the Genetic Store.

At night, everyone gathered around a bonfire, chatting and drinking.

This time, the girls including Lan Xin and Zhi Ruo also sat together with Yang Xiao, Monk Ben Yin, Zhang Hai, and others.

Xie Lei, still upset with Yang Xiao, stubbornly set up his own bonfire nearby and didn't join in the merry-making.

The meat roasted by the bonfire was a Desert Giant Wolf caught near the Genetic Store.

Monk Ben Yin brought out two bottles of wine Yang Xiao had given him the day before, and Yang Xiao took out some spicy dried tofu and dried fish from his backpack to share with everyone.

Everyone also brought out some chili sauce to eat with the roasted meat, which was especially delicious.

As there was too little wine, everyone could only have a sip. Even Lan Xin and Zhi Ruo, who usually didn't drink, took a small sip and immediately flushed red.

"Friends, tomorrow I must temporarily return to Nanmu City and might stay for a few days. Thank you all for caring about me and considering me a friend. I, Yang Xiao, definitely consider all of you as good friends too. You're welcome to visit me in Nanmu City anytime. After I return, I will open teleportation pathways to Shaolin, Wudang, Divine Mountain, and Emei. After you all return, just open the same pathways to Nanmu City, and we can visit each other freely in the future."

"Sure, Brother Yang Xiao, we will immediately set up the pathway to Nanmu City after we return," Monk Ben Yin said.

Zhi Ruo said softly,

"Mr. Yang, do visit us at Emei Mountain when you're free."

"Mmm, definitely."

Lan Xin sat beside Yang Xiao, her face flushed red from the drink, appearing even more radiant under the firelight.

"When are you returning to the desert?"

"Hmm, pretty soon, maybe in three to five days, I have some matters to handle in Nanmu City."

"It's perfect as we also need to return to Divine Mountain for some rest. Once back, I'll set up the teleportation pathway to Nanmu City. Feel free to visit me when you have the time."

Lan Xin looked at the bonfire, her heartbeat quickened, feeling her cheeks warmth; she had never felt this fond of any man before.

Yang Xiao glanced at Lan Xin, not daring to linger his gaze, looked at the blazing bonfire, nodded, and said with a smile:

"Some other time when I'm free, we'll invite all of you to Nanmu City for a grand gathering, how about that? In Nanmu City, we've got good wine, good meat, and various snacks to keep you well-fed."

"Good, that's a great idea."

"I agree."

"Yang Xiao, we've been waiting for this day."

...

Zhang Hai, Lan Xin, Zhi Ruo, and others are confined to living within the Martial Arts Circle. For them, Yang Xiao now represents a new external world, a representative of advanced forces in the post-apocalyptic world. They also deeply desire to step out into the external world through Yang Xiao.

Moreover, the social influence and resources that Yang Xiao possesses are something these reclusive martial artists do not have. For example, Yang Xiao can provide Lan Xin, Zhi Ruo, and others with numerous tissues, which they cannot obtain themselves.

Yang Xiao can provide Zhang Hai, Monk Ben Yin, and others with some liquor, salt, and spices. These things are effortless for Yang Xiao to acquire, but Monk Ben Yin and others currently find it difficult to even locate a bottle of alcohol.

The next morning, Yang Xiao left through the teleportation station.

However, Yang Xiao didn't return to Nanmu City, but instead went to a Genetic Store in the middle of the desert. After coming out, he rode the Flame Horse, heading straight for the canyon deep in the desert according to the map.

Yang Xiao did this to avoid Monk Ben Yin and others, not wanting them to know that he went to the Desert Canyon again.

Yang Xiao wanted to find out if the Holy Spring can enhance human genetic evolution? And what exactly is that metallic object buried in the sandy soil of the crater?

After Yang Xiao left, Lan Xin took a few junior sisters back to Divine Mountain, planning to rest for a few days before returning here, as living in the desert was quite inconvenient.

Monk Ben Yin, Zhang Hai, and Zhi Ruo continued to lead their disciples to stay and hunt.

Xie Lei and others had to temporarily return to the Kongtong Sect due to injuries and it would probably take three to five days before they could come back to hunt in the desert.

Yang Xiao rode the Flame Horse at full speed, bypassing several mutant monsters he encountered along the way without bothering to deal with them.

At one point, a Desert Vulture chased Yang Xiao for dozens of kilometers before giving up. Yang Xiao was nearly hit by the vulture's Fiery Flame Arrow.

At noon, Yang Xiao finally got to the Desert Canyon and went straight into the canyon with the Flame Horse.

As he passed by the chimpanzee's cave, Yang Xiao even called out twice,

"Black Jinkang, Black Jinkang."

There was no response, presumably, the chimpanzee and lion were at the Holy Spring.

...

Yesterday afternoon, the chimpanzee and the lion were discussing who should be the leader and who should be the second in command, but in the end, neither could persuade the other.

The lion said:

"We are both leaders, no need to argue anymore."

The chimpanzee thought about it and seemed to have no better solution, and could only reluctantly agree, although it really wanted to be the leader.

However, they soon faced a new problem.

The chimpanzee said it was thirsty and wanted to drink the water from the Holy Spring.

The lion said:

"Now this Holy Spring is half yours and half mine, you can only drink from your half."

"Fine, no problem, then you can only drink from your own half too."

The lion and the chimpanzee then marked the spring, dividing it into two halves, with each keeping to their own territory to drink water.

As the chimpanzee bent down to drink, the lion said:

"Wait!"

"What's wrong now?"

The chimpanzee looked at the lion.

"The water is flowing; when you drink, the water from my side also flows into your mouth. That's not acceptable."

Splash!

The chimpanzee fell right at the edge of the spring.

"Is drinking water really this troublesome? Can I even drink it?"

(I'll post another update, it's quite late.)