Chapter 340: Carboniferous Period 12

When Perry Yates arrived, this was the scene that greeted her: a crowd had gathered outside a red barrier wall, staring at the raging flames within.

Between the crowd and the barrier stood a middle-aged man with glasses and a graying beard, fervently lecturing them about something.

Once she was close enough, Perry Yates could finally make out what he was saying. The man was trying to stop the others from destroying the barrier.

“Right now, this barrier is like a bomb that could go off at any moment. If you try to force it open, that bomb will detonate immediately, and the blast will be powerful enough to kill every last one of us.”

The middle-aged man shouted desperately, terrified someone might not believe him and would bypass him to attack the barrier.

Just then, a man and a woman who had just arrived overheard the middle-aged man. The man said impatiently, “Old man, who do you think you’re kidding? Just because you say it’ll explode, it’ll explode? It’s just a barrier. I bet you’re just trying to hog this card for yourself, so you’re spouting all this alarmist nonsense.”

The middle-aged man looked at the other man, gasping for breath, and said, “I don’t have any proof, but I swear everything I’m saying is true.”

Hearing this, the others in the crowd hesitated for a moment. Some were starting to believe him; after all, nothing was more important than their own lives.

In many cases, it was better to be safe than sorry.

Seeing the others hesitate, the man who had just spoken sneered. “You guys can’t seriously be falling for this old man’s crap, can you? Like I said, he’s just trying to keep the card for himself. Mark my words, the second we leave, this old coot will break the barrier himself and snatch up this high-grade Advanced Card of unknown rank.”

At his words, the others turned to look at the middle-aged man, the suspicion in their eyes obvious.

When the middle-aged man remained silent, a triumphant smile spread across the arrogant man’s face. “What’s the matter, cat got your tongue? Looks like I hit the nail on the head. Hmph, I despise people like you the most.”

With that, the man started walking directly toward the barrier. As he passed the middle-aged man, he deliberately slammed his shoulder into him, knocking him to the ground.

Hearing the middle-aged man cry out in pain, the arrogant man showed no remorse. Instead, he turned back and taunted, “Oops, my bad. Clumsy me. Anyway, I’m about to attack the barrier. You sure you don’t want to take this chance to run for your life?”

Faced with the man’s mockery, the middle-aged man’s eyes burned with fury. But for some reason, he didn’t say a single word, not even opening his mouth.

Perry Yates, who had witnessed the entire exchange, watched the man walk step by step toward the barrier.

‘In fact, the middle-aged man isn’t wrong. Right now, the barrier is like a bomb about to explode.’

‘Because of the continuous flames burning inside, an immense amount of heat and pressure has built up. The moment the barrier is broken from the outside, the heat and fire within will erupt outwards like a volcanic flare.’

‘The players closest to it will bear the brunt of the explosion.’

‘Then again, that’s all assuming anyone here is even capable of breaking the barrier.’

Perry Yates’s gaze swept over the crowd. ‘Honestly, I don’t think anyone here is strong enough to break my Flame Barrier.’

Just as the man was about to make his move, the woman beside him smiled and cheered him on. “Go for it, Archie! Rona believes in you! Show them what you’ve got.”

Hearing her encouragement, the man called Archie shot her a very greasy wink and said, “Just watch me!”

After speaking, the man rolled his shoulders. The next second, his seemingly normal arms began to swell rapidly. His body started to expand, and the sound of tearing fabric filled the air as his exposed skin turned green.

Have you ever seen the Hulk transform in the movies?

Right now, the man looked pretty much like the Hulk, with only a pair of pants still holding on for dear life.

“ROAR!!!”

With a furious roar following his transformation, the powerful sound waves even affected the barrier.

The once-calm surface of the barrier rippled, looking like a bubble about to pop.

The man clenched his fists, gathering all his strength, his eyes fixed and determined.

Just as he channeled all his power into his fists and was about to throw a punch, he suddenly swung at empty air.

The barrier was gone. The flames burning inside were gone. Even the burning trees and the very soil beneath them were gone. In their place was a deep pit, as if some mysterious force had simply scooped up the barrier and everything within it.

It all happened so suddenly that everyone stood frozen in place for several seconds. The man who had turned into a green giant looked especially ridiculous, still holding his punching pose.

“Who was it? Who the hell did this!”

The green giant glared at the others, his red eyes filled with rage and boundless killing intent, looking as if he was about to charge and tear everyone to shreds.

At this moment, the middle-aged man finally spoke again. His earlier hysteria was gone, and his voice was much calmer.

“To be able to take the card so stealthily without breaking the barrier… only the original owner of this card could do that.”

Hearing the middle-aged man’s words didn’t calm the green giant down; instead, it only made him more enraged.

Just then, the female player next to him, Rona, grabbed his arm.

“Archie, calm down. The card is gone. There’s no point in saying anything now.”

After calming the green giant’s temper, the female player turned to the crowd with a faint, apologetic smile. “I’m sorry, Archie didn’t mean any harm. He’s just affected by his ability. He’s not a bad person, really.”

No one in the crowd believed her. After all, they had all seen how the green giant had treated the middle-aged man just moments before.

But for some reason, no one spoke up to refute her apology. Instead, they found themselves feeling favorably toward her.

Even Perry Yates, who was already some distance away, felt the same. An inexplicable urge to go back and befriend the woman rose within her.

However, she quickly suppressed the thought.

She turned to look back at the woman’s now-blurry figure, her expression growing serious. ‘Is it a Talent… or a Card Ability?’