Ling Cage: I am a spiritual master, devouring source matter to become a god.

“Yes.” Jing Yuan nodded. “So the Devouring Beasts actually sense our location by using the life essence. The more afraid you are, the stronger the scent of the life essence will be, and the Devouring Beasts will be able to detect your location.”

Apart from Jingyuan's three roommates, the other newcomers were also engrossed in the conversation.

"If the Devouring Beast is in front of us, and you are afraid while I am not, the Devouring Beast will eat you first!"

Jingyuan's words made the already frightened group even more afraid.

"Don't listen to his nonsense. It's true that Devouring Beasts absorb Life Essence, but to say you can smell it is absurd. What does Life Essence smell like?" An elderly hunter, disbelieving, began to mock Jing Yuan. He even sniffed at his opponent beside him and laughed, "His body stench is stronger than the smell of Life Essence!"

"You're the one who smells of sweat!" a teammate retorted.

Jeff listened to their laughter and said with a serious expression, "I don't know if the Devouring Beasts locate us by the scent of life essence. But there are two things that kid is right about."

"What two points?"

"First, although the Devouring Beasts have eyes, they seem to be able to find people without using their eyes. So it's also possible that they rely on scent. Second, according to our statistics over the years, people who are timid are more likely to be turned into flesh and dirt by the Devouring Beasts."

Jingyuan looked at Jeff with a puzzled expression, unsure whether he was joking or serious.

My speculation is based on the original plot I read in my previous life.

Charles once said that emotions give life its scent.

So-called emotions are not just about love and desire!

Joy, anger, worry, fear, love, hate, and desire are all emotions.

If love attracts beasts, then wouldn't anger, fear, and hatred do too?

Jeff's words sparked reflection among the newcomers, especially the last sentence: "Those who are timid are more likely to be turned into flesh and dirt by the Devouring Beasts."

Therefore, everyone began to adjust their mindset and avoid fear.

Soon, the convoy drove into a city ruin.

Looking out the car window at the ruins of the city, one can still vaguely sense the prosperity before the apocalypse.

The vehicle suddenly stopped.

The sudden stop without warning sent a chill down everyone's spine.

Jing Yuan heard a voice coming from the communication frequency in the driver's cab: "Attention all teams, there is an abnormal situation ahead."

Mark then said via radio frequency: "One team, go ahead and scout the situation. All other vehicle machine gunners, prepare to fire if danger is encountered."

"Yes!"

Each team responded, and a group of hunters disembarked from the vehicle at the front, armed with rifles, and cautiously approached the unusual location.

"Listen, can you hear someone's voice?" The team member walking in front suddenly stopped and talked to his teammates.

"No way! How could there be someone on the ground?!"

"Yes! It's been over twenty years since we've found any trace of people on the ground."

The three continued to approach when suddenly a faint sound came from the ruins ahead.

"help me!"

"help me!"

From a distance, it looked like a human hand in the ruins, and the person's body, except for the hand, was completely buried in the rubble.

The lead hunter team member immediately reported: "Captain, we've spotted survivors on the ground!"

"What?" Mark was shocked when he heard this. Since he joined the Wilderness Hunters, he had never seen any survivors on the ground.

Mark was only shocked for a moment, then cautiously said, "Stand still and wait for me!"

"Let's go!" Mark glanced at Ran Bing and Mo Cheng behind him, and the three of them got out of the car together and approached the team ahead.

Inside the car Jingyuan was in, Jeff, upon hearing the conversation on the communication frequency, exclaimed in shock, "What? There are survivors?"

Upon hearing Jeff's words, Jingyuan immediately thought of the ground people led by Bai Yuekui. Could it be that they had met here?

According to the original plot, the encounter with Mark and Bai Yuekui should have occurred during the mission on the abandoned spaceship, not now.

Jingyuan was very curious, so he took off his seatbelt and got out of the car.

The other newcomers also wanted to get off the bus, but Jeff stopped them.

"How could he go down there?" the newcomer said indignantly.

Jeff retorted, "He's killed Devouring Beasts. Have you? When you're able to kill Devouring Beasts at will, I'll let you roam freely on the ground too."

After that, the other person fell silent.

After getting out of the car, Jingyuan quickly ran forward. His vehicle was at the back, so he was still some distance from Mark.

Before Mark even arrived at the scene, the opposing team heard the shouts and felt a pang of sympathy.

"Help me!" The voice was very weak, as if the person was about to breathe their last.

The person standing at the front, out of good intentions, disobeyed Mark's order to stay put and went forward to pull the person buried in the rubble out.

The team member put away his gun and grasped the hand in the ruins.

Jing Yuan happened to witness this scene and immediately shouted, "Stop! That's a Devouring Beast! Run!"

Chapter 31 Fighting the Devouring Beast

Jingyuan originally thought they had encountered humans from the ground and even hoped they were Bai Yuekui's people.

However, after getting off the car, he scanned the area with his mental energy and discovered a life force ahead, but it was clearly not a human aura.

So he rushed over, but it was too late.

The team member only realized something was wrong when he grabbed the hand, but it was too late.

After the team member was grabbed by the "human hand" and was unable to break free, the "human hand" then raised an unusually long arm from the ruins.

At this point, he finally realized that this thing was not a person, but a Devouring Beast!

It's a pity it's too late.

Bang bang bang!

Jingyuan was the first to react and fired a pistol from a distance.

Jingyuan's bullets all hit that arm, but unfortunately, they were useless.

Wow!

The rubble began to crumble, and a beast covered in rashes emerged from it.

That arm was actually just a tail of the Devouring Beast.

"It's a new form of Devouring Beast!"

Mark immediately drew his pistol and began firing, while simultaneously coordinating the operation via the communication frequency: "Ran Bing, Fei Xue, snipe the tail of the Devouring Beast, save the people first!"

"Yes!"

Ran Bing immediately took aim with her sniper rifle. Fei Xue also got out of the car and set up her heavy sniper rifle.

However, the Devouring Beast's tail moves extremely fast, making it impossible to aim accurately.

"too fast!"

Ran Bing, who was nearby, was impossible to aim at, let alone Fei Xue, who was far away.

Bang bang bang!

Through the scope, Ran Bing saw someone shooting at the tail of the Devouring Beast, and every bullet hit the tail precisely.

It hit, but caused no damage. This is due to insufficient firepower and kinetic energy!

Ran Bing turned around and saw that it was Jing Yuan shooting!

He was shooting with only a pistol, yet he was able to aim at such a long distance.

Jing Yuan also realized that small-caliber bullets could not harm the Devouring Beast, so he threw a small black throwing knife.

The black throwing knife transformed into a blur and flew straight towards the Devouring Beast.

The Devouring Beast's tail dodged nimbly, but Jingyuan's throwing knife was no ordinary throwing knife; it was controlled by telekinesis and could still change direction flexibly.

The throwing knife flew rapidly and pierced deeply into the tail of the Devouring Beast.

However, the throwing knife stopped at the surface of the Devouring Beast and remained stuck in its tail.

Jing Yuan hadn't expected that the kinetic energy of the small flying knife controlled by his telekinesis would be so weak, only able to pierce the skin of the Devouring Beast.

Right now, he only has a half-meter-long throwing knife to use.

Although Mark and his team were right there, they couldn't think about anything else in order to save lives.

But it was too late.

A fleshy mass shot out from the Devouring Beast's body and landed on the team member's face. In just a moment, the team member's life essence was drained, and he was turned into flesh and dirt.

Everyone present was stunned by this scene and stood there dumbfounded.

However, the Devouring Beast did not stop. Two more fleshy sacs shot out from its body, landing on the two fleeing team members like cannonballs.

One team member dodged, while the other did not.