The Spider Queen

Sophie grimaced in pain as the memories of being burnt alive and then blowing up into tiny pieces of bloody flesh flowed into her mind.

The intense memory was so strong that she unconsciously glanced at her arms to make sure that her skin wasn't charred.

"Damn… those sadistic bitches could have definitely activated the bomb sooner," Sophie growled darkly.

Perhaps this was a fatal flaw of the 'Rsychosis' technique because while it was true that the clones created from this technique would gain a significant portion of her strength…

Evidentially they would also inherit her nasty personality quirks as well.

The enormous red sun hung high above the sky as the temperature on the desert planet rose to an uncomfortable degree.

Sophie was forced to constantly wipe the sweat that was forming on her brow due to the intense heat.

Lily was sleeping quite comfortable in her arms since the little girl was wrapped tightly in a temperature-regulating cloak that constantly cooled her down.

Unfortunately, there was only one in her storage bag, so Sophie was forced to experience the sweltering heat without any cover.

But it was important to note that she was cultivator in the qi tide stage, so it was more of a nuisance than an actual problem.

A day had already passed since escaping from the campsite of the Hyperion knights and the pair had already made tremendous progress in their journey back to the gathering point.

Sophie frequently checked the tablet device given to the mercenaries after they had left the ship to see exactly where their location was on the planet

The hologram projection of the familiar plant was also displayed every time she checked the tablet but frankly….

Sophie couldn't care less.

She already knew that basically all of the flowers on this wretched planet seemed to be some kind of death trap or worse.

The psychological scars from having her arm, an eye and ear ripped off by one of these creatures lurking beneath the seemingly boring scenery was not something that could easily be forgotten.

Sophie was on constant alert as they travelled through the desert with her golden eyes sweeping the surrounding sand dunes for any threats or anomalies.

Her pointed ears flickered up and down while searching for any noises.

However, the only sound that could be heard in the quiet desert was the thunderous roar of the hoverbike as it sped through at a breakneck pace.

Sophie planned on placing the hoverbike back in her storage bag and moving to the gathering point on foot once they got within walking distance.

There were two major reasons for this with the first being that it would seem quite strange for a mercenary to own such a high-class vehicle when the majority of the warriors travelling to the frontier region were either poor or desperate.

And the second reason was that Sophie couldn't risk the chance that someone recognised the symbols painted on the sides of the hoverbike.

She had no way of knowing if the knights had met other mercenaries before discovering her injured body.

Well, it was not a big deal.

Compared to the dangerous situations Sophie had faced in the trial, this was more of a minor challenge.

The hybrid girl wiped her forehead for what seemed like that hundredth time and shook off the tiny droplets of sweat that clung to her palm.

SCREECH!!!!!

A loud cry suddenly echoed through the desert and snapped Sophie out of her relaxed state.

Sophie quickly tilted her head towards the direction of the noise and saw a sand cloud rising up from the ground.

Why hadn't she heard anything beforehand?

Sophie frowned slightly as she gauged the distance between the hoverbike and the sand cloud.

Fortunately, this anomaly was still a significant distance away, but the sand cloud kept getting larger and larger with every passing second.

This enormous body of sand floated in the air under the influence of some mysterious power and begun to rotate with motions that were similar to a tornado.

Sophie gripped the handles of the hoverbike and immediately accelerated to move away from this unexpected roar.

The cries only got louder and louder and Sophie's enhanced hearing could now begin to make out the sounds of fighting coming from within the sandstorm.

There were definitely the distinct noises of a plasma rifle firing non-stop as well as the panicked cries for help in a language that sounded like a dialect of the standard Unovan language.

Bleep! Bleep!

A ringing noise came from the tablet given to the mercenaries and Sophie saw a message appear on the screen.

[Team G Has Requested For Backup]

The projectile of the plant was replaced with a virtual map of the planet that had a cluster of red dots appear in the same location as the sandstorm.

Sophie frowned as she remembered what this feature was.

All of the tablets came equipped with an option to broadcast your current location to send out a message for help.

The assumption was that any mercenaries nearby would be able to immediately come to aid of the group in danger.

The reason why Sophie had largely tossed this feature to the back of her mind was that there was no guaranteed reward for helping and besides…

Who could trust a group of warriors that they didn't even know?

SCREECH!

Another harsh cry came from the creature hidden inside the sandstorm along with a soft painful whimper of pain that was almost undetectable.

"Big sister… where…. what was that noise?" Lily yawned sleepily and opened her eyes.

"Nothing baby," Sophie smiled lovingly and silently clicked a button to close the projectile of the world map.

A good person would probably accept the distress signal and rush in to rescue whoever was trapped inside the sandstorm.

Sophie only cared about the little girl sitting peacefully in her lap.

Saving anyone else would have to be left up to fate.

"Do you want something to eat?" Sophie asked as she poked Lily's tummy causing the little girl to giggle.

"Yeah… I'm hungry," Lily pouted and glanced at her big sister with tears in her eyes.

"Alright don't look at me like that. You know I can't resist your silly puppy eyes!" Sophie scolded playfully.

The sounds of fighting slowly faded away as Sophie skillfully drove the hoverbike away from the scene.

She reached into her storage bag and pulled out four vials of nutrient solutions. Truthfully, Sophie was also beginning to feel a bit peckish.

"Here you go baby," Sophie whispered softly as she handed a vial to Lily. She made sure to unscrew the top and hand the vial opened already.

This wasn't really a necessary step, but Sophie had already fallen into the habit of pampering Lily like a princess.

"Thank you big sister!"