Chapter 282: Highway Survival 14

Perry Yates arrived near Stonereach and circled it. Other than its massive size, the rock didn’t seem particularly special.

After one lap, Perry Yates stopped her vehicle and looked up.

’The higher you climb, the farther you can see. Maybe I should go up and take a look.’

With that in mind, Perry Yates stored her electric scooter and brought her small dolls to the top of the rock.

"Wow, it’s so high up here."

"Yeah, the view has really opened up," said Little Tiger.

Perry Yates’s gaze fixed on a particular spot. Faintly, she thought she saw a dark figure there.

Looking closer, the dark figure seemed to be waving at her.

Perry Yates’s vision was already greatly enhanced, but the dark figure was so far away that even she could only make out a blurry silhouette.

The silhouette looked human, but Perry Yates was certain it wasn’t.

The thought sent a shiver down Perry Yates’s spine.

Just then, she heard a noise from close behind. She turned to see a swarm of fist-sized hornets speeding toward her.

Seeing this, Perry Yates didn’t hesitate for a second. She grabbed her dolls and ran.

Her own two feet—or even her scooter—couldn’t possibly outrun flying hornets, so Perry Yates used the Any Door.

Fortunately, she had been worried about getting lost or being unable to find her way back when she left the road, so she had left a Space Grass behind.

Once back on the road, Perry Yates took out her vehicle, hurried inside with her dolls, and then activated the Flame Barrier.

By the time she finished, the swarm of hornets had reached her.

Listening to the chilling BUZZ from outside, Perry Yates couldn’t help but sigh in relief.

’She had no idea where such a huge swarm of hornets could have come from.’

"Little Tiger, did you see where that swarm of hornets outside came from?" Perry Yates asked.

"I know, I know!" Little Lion chimed in before Little Tiger could speak. "They were sent over by a giant hand."

"A giant hand?"

Little Lion nodded. "Right, a black claw."

Thanks to the Flame Barrier, the hornets outside didn’t linger long before leaving. But Perry Yates was unsettled by Little Lion’s words.

She got goosebumps just thinking about the dark, human-like figure from before. It probably creeped her out because the silhouette looked so much like a person, yet she was absolutely certain it wasn’t.

’Oh well, I’ll just have to take things one step at a time.’

To drive away her fear, Perry Yates let all her dolls out. The inside of the vehicle instantly filled with life, and her recent fear faded away.

That night, because of what had happened during the day, Perry Yates chose not to rest outside. Instead, she stayed in the vehicle with her dolls.

After all, the game’s rules stated that a vehicle was a player’s only shelter.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to Perry Yates, a dark, human-like figure was silently approaching the vehicle from outside.

Just as it neared the vehicle, it was blocked by a red barrier.

The instant the barrier was triggered, Perry Yates’s eyes snapped open inside the vehicle. Immediately, countless thorny vines erupted from the ground, followed by sharp, rising stone pillars. In the blink of an eye, they formed a sturdy cage, trapping the approaching dark figure.

Seeing this, a flash of anger crossed the dark figure’s eyes. The next moment, it slammed its black palm against a stone pillar.

Instantly, the dark figure dissipated, and the stone pillars shattered.

At the same time, Perry Yates shot up inside the vehicle, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Faint golden lights began to appear all around her.

The lights slowly converged in front of Perry Yates, gradually forming a card.

This was none other than the Stone Record card Perry Yates had previously fused.

Perry Yates reached out to touch the card, but the instant her finger made contact, numerous cracks appeared on its golden surface. A second later, the card shattered, dissolving into specks of starlight that vanished into the air.

Her five-star card was gone.

Perry Yates couldn’t believe her eyes. That was a five-star card, and a fused one at that.

She had never heard of a fused card being able to shatter and disappear before.

In fact, she’d never seen a Skill Card disappear for any reason other than fusion. Only item cards disappeared after being damaged.

But now, her card had vanished—and a five-star one, no less.

Even though Perry Yates had plenty of Advanced Cards—one could even say she had no shortage of five-star cards—she was still heartbroken to see one vanish right before her eyes. ’What in the world is going on?’

Perry Yates carefully recalled what had just happened.

The approaching dark figure had triggered the Flame Barrier, then she had blocked it with vines and trapped it in the thorny prison that rose from the ground.

Since Perry Yates hadn’t been looking outside, she wasn’t aware of the anger and resentment in the dark figure’s eyes. All she knew was that it had struck the surface of the thorny prison, and a moment later, both the figure and the prison had vanished.

It was at that exact moment that Perry Yates felt her connection to the card sever.

From this, she could conclude that the dark figure was the culprit.

Perry Yates’s brow furrowed at this conclusion. If it was true, she had no idea how to deal with the dark figure.

’Fight it with cards? What if that thing destroys another card with a single blow?’

’All her cards were five-star cards; losing even one would be devastating.’

’Sigh, I guess fusing nothing but Advanced Cards isn’t always a good thing.’

’Losing just one of them is a massive blow.’

’She couldn’t afford to lose her five-star cards.’ Perry Yates closed her eyes and began to mentally take stock of the cards she was carrying.

Since she had already fused so many cards, most of the cards she brought into the game were item cards; Skill Cards made up only a small portion.

Perry Yates took out the cards. They were all three-star cards, without exception.

The Knowledge Crystal had advised her to keep these on hand. It was partly for good luck, like carrying emergency cash, but also as a precaution against unexpected events.

Perry Yates hadn’t thought much of it at the time. After all, her average Card Level was four. ’If I run into a problem a four-star card can’t handle,’ she’d thought, ’what good would a three-star card be?’

She never expected to be proven wrong so quickly. It looked like these cards were going to come in handy after all.