1 minute

For a moment, Emma's brain was short-circuited. He replayed was just happened in his head and couldn't believe he would fall into the trap of the woman. The others were staring at Emma in apprehension. Time is going. They panicked. Their blood runs cold, sweating from the inside out.

After what looked Like forever, Emma woke up from his daze. "Let go?" he whispered. He sprinted forward at a breathtaking speed. His team member was finding it difficult to keep up with him.

[[Deploying eagles eyes to full power.]]

Suddenly, a dark green vine, big as adult harm sprouted out of the ground at an extreme speed. In a split of seconds, it was 3 meters high. Emma and his teammates saw the sudden emergence of the vine and their hearts missed a beat. Their muscle tensed.

Are those Shroja?

"Keep up, we need to find the nearest purple light." Emma's voice echoed from the comms.

Emma and his teammates ignored the sprouting Shroja. They were racing against time. Subsequently, more Shroja sprouted out from the ground. Fear gripped the heart of everyone. The bright sky dimmed and the fresh atmosphere turn gloomy.

'Is our luck so bad?' Emma thought. He shook his head. 'No impossible. I refuse.'

His heart continued to hammer. He steals his resolve rushing forward to oblivion. Suddenly, a Shroja sprouts out in front of Laka and attacks him at a breathtaking speed. Laka couldn't change the momentum of his speed under the sudden attack. But as a veteran soldier and the security measure on his suit.

He twisted his body, avoiding the sudden sneak attack from the Shroja. His sword flew out from its sheath. He held his sword and it glow reddish at the edges. He swings his sword leaving a trail of red light.

Whoosh!

The Shroja was cut in two and his sword returned to its sheath. He smirked, rushing toward his teammates. Emma watch the battle from his helmet and a deep frown appeared on his face.

"Have you found any purple light?" Emma asked hurriedly. They have only 30 seconds left.

[[Negative. Every purple light has an ongoing brutal battle.]]

[[Studying the Shroja behavior.]]

[[Need a couple of seconds to get the life signature of the species.]]

"We don't have a second— " Emma jumped forward, avoiding a dangerous attack from the Shroja. He swings his spear and decimated the Shroja into pieces. While he continued to rush forward. He looked at the timer in the corner of his helmet and he began to panic.

25 seconds remaining.

'Is my life going to end here without having the chance to fight back?' His emotion was in turmoil. He was conflicted. He was lost. He looked ahead, there was nothing but dry lands.

Goddamn dry lands.

Jojo and the others held their thought. But the panic spread through their faces. Deep fear hid in their pupil. Various emotion was rushing to their faces. Their faces look ashen. Should they blame their commander for leading them to their doom?

The journey seems hopeless, nothing could be seen on their horizon. Their chest was going up and down. Their eyes would be raised to the sky now and then. A ticking time bomb was hovering over their head.

More Shroja began to appear on their way. But it poses no threat to them. Every attack was full of power. No one has the time to waste. The fear conceal in their heart was now visible. Their legs and hands were trembling. They sighed frequently.

20 seconds.

What can they achieve in 20 seconds?

They wanted to vent their anger. But to whom? Their commander? Laka glanced at Jojo but she avoid his gaze and maintain her stoic expression. Yet, she clenched are left fist, gnashing her teeth. Every second waited was lost hope. Mata opened her mouth but looked at the people in front of her and closed her mouth slowly, sighing for the umpteenth time.

Mountains and rocky terrain filled their view. The dark sky makes it impossible to see in the distance. Why would a purple light appear in this forsaken land? They thought. Emma was in dilemma. Guilt was eating him inside out. He wanted to stop and apologized for his failure. Still, when he looked at the time. He got hope.

Hope for what?

15 seconds.

Suddenly, a bunch of Shroja rushed out from the rocky terrain from all sides, blocking their way. They halted their movement and looked at the Shroja. They were different from the previous ones. They are bigger and yellowish with many viper teeth.

Whoosh!

The Shroja attack them on both sides. They are extremely faster and their attack was targeting the vital spot on their body.

"Be careful. These are more dangerous than the previous one." Emma announced.

He didn't need to tell them twice. Everyone went all out. Emma rolled his spear in his and send a powerful attack toward the Shroja. Instead of colliding with the attack, the Shroja tried to maneuver the attack while striking back.

"Why would these fucking assholes delay us at this time," Laka grumbled, avoiding a dangerous attack and decimating the Shroja. But the Shroja sprouted out more from the ground.

10 seconds.

10 seconds to their doom.

[[Master! Purple light detected!]]