Chapter 19: The Giant Sandworm (With Gratitude to Leader cklyt!)

“Huff, huff~~”

The three elite mutated camels each had their hatred alert lights flicker on their heads simultaneously. Then, with all four hooves pounding, they charged directly forward, shaking their heads and swishing their tails.

I immediately lowered my center of gravity, adopting a standard shooting stance. The green Roarer in my hands erupted with a series of rapid bursts—*bang, bang, bang*—and damage numbers began to stack above the mutated camels’ heads—

“59!”

“62!”

“69!”

“61!”

With each burst from the submachine gun, the health bars of the mutated camels steadily dwindled. Instinctively, I distributed my damage evenly, whittling each camel’s health down to about a quarter. Just as I finished this, the camels were already upon me, launching their attack!

Their front hooves lifted and stomped down in furious rage!

Quick as lightning, I drew the Vanguard’s Bee Sting sword and struck the head of the left camel, dealing a solid 248 points of damage. At the same time, I decisively activated my skill—Step Slash!

“Vuum~~”

Sword intent flickered around me as my body instantly shifted sideways to the camel’s right flank. A faint silver aura enveloped me—a protective energy that automatically formed after Step Slash was triggered.

“Thud, thud, thud—”

The simultaneous stomping attacks of the three mutated camels sent shockwaves through the air. The Step Slash aura thinned but ultimately absorbed the full brunt of their assault!

“Awesome!”

I was ecstatic. The defensive layer spawned by a level 10 Step Slash was far sturdier than that of a lower level skill—it could withstand the damage without a scratch. This made things much easier.

Sword light flashed violently downward; the second strike cut down the wounded left camel. Twisting my body, the blade then surged toward the second camel’s throat, trailing streaks of flowing light that coalesced into a dragon-shaped energy before striking with brutal force.

This was the universal technique of Starry Sky’s super weaponry—the Dragon Blade!

“538!”

The large damage number soared, filling me with delight.

No wonder the level 10 Dragon Blade’s damage had fully doubled as advertised. This kill efficiency was exceptional!

“Huff~~”

The third mutated camel, watching its two comrades fall, flared with burning fury. Lowering its head, it charged at me.

I quickly retreated, and within half a second my body blurred into afterimages as I reappeared behind the beast, protected by the fresh Step Slash aura. Two swift sword strikes ended its life.

In the blink of an eye, all three mutated camels lay dead at my feet—no harm done to me!

Allowing the enemies to get close with reduced health was purely to conserve bullets and to hone my close combat skills. As a melee class player, adaptability in close quarters combat was crucial—something not fixed by simple skill upgrades but requiring patient practice and refinement.

With that, I cleared enemies rapidly, accumulated experience, and the durability of the Vanguard’s Bee Sting was not a concern. In Star Abyss’s design, melee players had a huge advantage: their weapons wore down very slowly. Each weapon was practically legendary for its ultra-high durability!

Pressing forward, I cradled the submachine gun and stepped deeper into the dungeon map. Ahead, countless camels still awaited. According to the dungeon’s rules, maximizing rewards meant exterminating every monster inside—none could be spared.

“Rustle, rustle…”

Each step on the gravel attracted three to four mutated camels, allowing my combined firepower and melee damage to keep them under control. Otherwise, the situation would have been much more troublesome.

Thus, wave after wave of mutated camels fell, transforming into experience points. Time slipped away unnoticed as I shot through batch after batch, expending many bullets but gaining vast amounts of experience.

Further ahead, amid the ruins, figures clad in combat suits clutching firearms emerged. Approaching them, their attributes appeared—

[Raider Rebel] (Elite)

Level: 15

Attack: 20–55

Defense: 15

HP: 1800

Skills: [Basic Shooting lv3] [Basic Fighting lv3]

Description: Soldiers who followed the sergeant’s defection, now fallen into lawlessness, having long abandoned any semblance of honor.

...

I frowned; they had guns, so conserving bullets was impossible.

I kept a distance of about 150 meters, vaulted onto the top of a half-buried war vehicle covered in yellow sand, switched my main weapon to the Whisperer, chambered a round, and began firing a continuous burst at the distant rebels. Each deafening shot caused damage numbers to erupt above several of their heads.

“424!”

“402!”

“609!”

“663!”

“411!”

The Whisperer’s strength lay in its damage, several times higher than the submachine gun, plus a blessing skill that granted a 25% chance to deal an extra 50% explosive damage. It wasn’t uncommon to see damage exceeding 600 points—terrifying for NPCs with only 1800 HP.

Two rebels soon collapsed in pools of blood. The remaining three roared with rage, their eyes burning with murderous intent. “Sniper! Charge out and kill that damn bastard!”

A burst of bullets exploded in midair, rattling against the war vehicle’s surface beneath me.

Two stray bullets even grazed me, a sensation like mosquito bites, barely painful. Damage numbers flickered above my head.

“51!”

“52!”

But this damage was negligible against my robust 4100 HP. The SS-grade Yuan Power Furnace was formidable: level 8 furnace granted me 24 stamina points, and super warriors had excellent stamina growth, with one stamina point equaling 100 HP. So just the furnace added 2400 HP!

Additionally, the Randall Shield boosted my HP by 500, leaving me with health far beyond that of ordinary players.

I rolled swiftly off the vehicle, switched back to the Roarer, slammed the Randall Shield into the sand with a “thud,” and dodged sharply to the right, unleashing a burst that pinned down one rebel.

“You bastards!”

The two remaining rebels fired frantically, but their bullets barely scratched the Randall Shield. My health regenerated rapidly, and I was back to full in no time.

“Who taught you to shoot? Only good at tracing edges?”

I darted out from the shield’s left side, unleashing another burst that nearly emptied the health bars of the two rebels.

Fear finally crept in; a “fear” icon appeared above them. They turned to flee with their submachine guns—only to be cut down by my Roarer’s precise bursts.

“Swish, swish, swish~~”

The rebels’ bodies, like the camels before them, vanished quickly after death within the dungeon space. No looting, no gear, no supplies.

This was unlike the Death Mine dungeon, which was an actual territory and map merely designated as a dungeon by the system. This place, however, was a map generated by the dungeon crystal, a fundamentally different concept.

Of course, this was reasonable. Otherwise, farming a dungeon would yield an excessive haul of guns and bullets, upsetting the game’s economic balance drastically.

“Quick, rush forward, kill the invaders!”

At that moment, more rebels charged.

Simultaneously, from deep underground came a “crackling” sound, as if something burrowed beneath the earth.

Blue text flickered repeatedly in the lower right corner of the combat interface:

[Warning: The Giant Sandworm is about to enter the battlefield!]

[Warning: Sandstorm incoming; seek shelter immediately!]

[Hint: Nearby abandoned vehicles can serve as cover!]

...

“Clatter~~~”

Without warning, a sandstorm struck, instantly blinding everyone.

I hastily retreated, yanked open the door of an abandoned war vehicle, climbed in, and locked the door. Outside, the sandstorm swept everything into a blur. This was a sudden event within the dungeon.

Over a dozen rebels ahead were forced to crouch low, powerless against the storm, soon to be buried beneath the shifting sands.

“...”

I frowned, squinting as I observed the chaos outside and grasped an important truth.

Dungeon prompts in Star Abyss must be read carefully—they can save lives. Had I not boarded the vehicle in time, things would have gone badly.

[Sandstorm ending soon! Giant Sandworm attack countdown initiated!]

A countdown timer appeared before me.

The sandstorm quickly subsided, the air settling as sand settled to the ground. The sky cleared to an endless blue, while the rebels struggled to rise from the sand’s grasp.

With a thunderous roar, a massive creature burst from the earth. A glowing BOSS ring circled its head.

[Giant Sandworm] (Green BOSS)

Level: 15

Attack: 125–150

Defense: 50

HP: 5000

Skills: [Burrow lv4] [Bite lv4] [Devour lv4]

Description: A giant sandworm lurking underground, feeding on humans and camels alike, a truly malevolent creature.

...

“That damned sandworm!”

The rebels gasped in terror.

At the same time, the dungeon displayed another message:

[In previous battles, the Giant Sandworm stole STC fragments from the rebels. Defeating the Giant Sandworm will reclaim these crucial STC fragments!]

Outside, the enormous sandworm twisted its colossal body and charged. Its swirling, tooth-filled maw opened wide, swallowing a rebel whole with a “chomp”!

I dashed from the vehicle, climbed atop it again, and raised the Whisperer, shouting loudly:

“Quick, everyone—kill this Giant Sandworm! None of us will survive if we don’t! Move!”

Gunfire erupted relentlessly; damage numbers flickered above the worm’s head.

“He’s right! Take down the sandworm fast!”

The rebels scattered, firing in unison.

Unfortunately, the sandworm’s thick shell blocked much of the damage. Even my Whisperer only dealt around 200 damage per shot, heavily reduced.

However, as the sandworm’s health dropped steadily and it relentlessly slaughtered rebels, my objective was clear: let the rebels draw the BOSS’s attention—that worked in my favor.

Soon, all the rebels lay dead, and the sandworm’s health dwindled to about 20%, roughly 1000 HP remaining.

It turned its massive head toward me, its forehead covered with a cluster of dark, lifeless compound eyes, staring me down.

The sensation was chilling...