It was quite a troublesome matter. Since Li Chengzhi hadn't seen a Demigod with his own eyes, the argument couldn't conclude in the end. Professor Xu too, as a person of the academic faction, liked to debate with others very much.
Li Chengzhi said, "Whether you believe it or not, God exists. It's just that you can't perceive God."
Professor Xu asked him, "If a God exists in the ancient desert city, please tell me why that city got buried due to a sandstorm? Shouldn't it have thrived forever?"
Li Chengzhi was also stumped this time, "That…"
How could he allow a professor to one him over in eloquence? He pondered on it for a moment then said, "Maybe they migrated elsewhere or encountered invaders."
After hearing this, Jiang Xiu couldn't help but think over it as well. According to what Xie Sanxian told him, there were many enormous sculptures of Gods in the ancient city. It was feasible to withstand the natural climate of the desert from the accumulation of the divine blessing there. It didn't make sense to migrate elsewhere in that case. The only explanation for the loss of the divine blessing would be that they were invaded.
"It's God, do you think there are enemies God can't handle?" Professor Xu questioned him.
"Of course." Li Chengzhi replied.
"Hahaha…" Professor Xu laughed, "Master Li keeps joking around. Isn't God supposed to have control over the entire world? How can there be an enemy which the omnipotent God can't handle?"
"It's possible. For example, an even stronger God." Li Chengzhi suggested.
Professor Xu said, "Master Li, we are archaeologists, not novelists. We speak based on the proof left behind in history as well as relics. We can't speak baselessly."
Anyone could say whatever they wanted, but without any proof, it would lack persuasiveness.
On that night, everyone slept in sleeping bags inside their tents to resist the rapidly plummeting temperature of the desert, but Jiang Xiu alone didn't do that. He took out a thin cloth from his backpack and spread it on the ground then laid down on it.
The vilest thing in the desert which was the difference in temperature between day and night didn't affect Jiang Xiu much.
"Yinru, why haven't you slept yet…" One of the seniors, Xiao Yan, asked her when she noticed Qiu Yinru move within the tent, "Don't we have to hurry tomorrow?"
Qiu Yinru pulled the zip to the tent a little and peeked outside from the small gap. The bonfire was glowing brightly. She looked at Jiang Xiu who was lying down on the sand. Even if he were able to resist the sudden drop in temperature, he would still suffer as he would get buried under the sand by the morning.
"Look now, aren't you suffering because of getting isolated from the group?"
"Senior sister, will he be fine?"
Xiao Yan said, "Why are you worried? It serves him right. Who asked him to come with us? And since he did, why didn't he bring anything with him? He always acts as if he is some young master. Just ignore him and sleep quickly. If he can't endure, he'll surely bow his head to the professor or the boys."
"Little brother, are you going to sleep like that?" Leng Zhan came out from his tent and went towards the place Jiang Xiu was at. When he saw Jiang Xiu was lying on the ground, he suggested, "Why don't you come into my tent?"
"It's fine. You should sleep."
Leng Zhan looked towards Jiang Xiu profoundly. The temperature was already lower than 30 degrees Centigrade yet Jiang Xiu acted as if he completely fine. From the way he was using his hands as a pillow, it even seemed that he was resisting the chillness quite easily.
Leng Zhan nodded and returned back to his tent but speculated that it was possible Jiang Xiu was a martial artist.
The night was very long, and to Jiang Xiu, it was nevertheless a rare comfortable night. The desert was full of the great earth and gave a feeling as if he was fusing with the world. He held the Longevity Stone in his hand and entered a cultivation state.
The blood within his body started to rumble with a resonance. This was the sign of awakening. The membranes of the genes in the blood slowly began to rupture and released the power hidden inside.
Boom!
The membrane exploded suddenly. Jiang Xiu felt as if he had blown up. The energy gathered back together, and the divine force in his body grew another notch up.
The 63rd divine regalia appeared.
"Soon…"
From the style, it seemed like only a few strokes were remaining. The strokes at the lowest corner were the finishing ones, and once they appear, the divine regalia pattern would finally be completed. That was the sign of divinity, and Jiang Xiu would, at last, become a genuine God then.
The most significant superiority of a God from an Immortal was the body. Except for the dominant defense of the body, the other thing was the lifespan. A high-level race such as Gods had an almost unlimited lifespan, while Immortals had to surpass tribulations to increase their lifespan. In other words, once Jiang Xiu becomes a genuine God, he would have a very long lifespan which couldn't even compare to that of a human's.
Then he would have enough time to wait for the cultivation resources his apprentice had sent to him. He would increase his cultivation at rapid speed after that and return back to the Immortal Martial Continent.
On the next day, Qiu Yinru woke up first and she found that Jiang Xiu was already awake and stood atop the sand dune, looking at the sun rising at the horizon with his hands on his back. She was astonished that he was unaffected.
The other members of the exploration team came out of their tents one after another.
After washing up and eating breakfast, the resumed their journey again.
After five days…
The sun's hotness caused vapors to rise on the desert, making it seem as if the air was twisting. There was no moisture at all, and the team found it difficult to continue walking on the sand dunes.
They had already lost the relaxed mood they had when they had started the journey. Many of team members had haggard appearances with dry skin and split lips. Their eyes were blood-shot, and they found it quite challenging to make any movements, just like a patient struck with illness.
The body fatigue was one thing, the main thing was their mind. They were almost losing it now. Even after looking for a long time, they still weren't able to locate the place, Dragon Gathering Dunes, where the Ming Dynasty's army had lost their way back then.
"I'm so tired. Can't we rest for a while?"
The number of times people were requesting for breaks kept increasing, and even Professor Xu who liked to argue didn't have the strength left to do that this time. A few of the students directly sat down on the ground, but as the sand was too hot, they looked for a shady region. They finally took rest under the shadows of the camels.
Li Chengzhi and his two sons were relatively well, so they didn't go there though they licked their lips from time to time and were also tired. The two soldiers were in a better condition. One of them was leading, and the other was in the back. They were on high alert at all times with submachine guns on their backs even though they were so tired that they didn't even feel like moving their fingers.
Jiang Xiu alone appeared the same as the time when they had started the journey, unaffected by anything.
"What kind of monster is he? Does he not get tired?"
Chen Dewen and the rest couldn't understand this. Jiang Xiu's physical strength was stronger than those soldiers, and he seemed completely fine even after going through the desert's torment for so many days.
"Did you hear that?"
They suddenly felt the entire ground tremble. It seemed as if something was approaching them and there were also sounds of gunshots. Everyone was frightened and the sand dune zone immediately sunk into a state of panic. All those who were resting on the ground got up very fast.
"What happened?"
Du-Du-Du!!! The sounds of machine gunfire resounded from a distance.
"Are those g-gunshots?"
The expressions of Chen Dewen and the others turned uglier.
"Yes. Everyone lay down on the ground…" The two soldiers were familiar with regards to gunshots. They immediately took the submachine guns from their backs and shouted towards everyone.
The sounds kept nearing them. Jiang Xiu looked towards that direction and discovered two people, a man and a woman, were fleeing from a group of people chasing them.
It would've been fine if they fled towards another direction, but they were fleeing towards his location.
"It's Meng Fei's Gang!" Xiao Zhang shouted.
"Captain, what should we do?"
Leng Zhan's thoughts spun very quickly. Their mission was to ensure the safety of the exploration team, but they couldn't just ignore those two people being chased by the bandits.
Let alone, they were already exposed.
"Attack!"
Leng Zhan took a roundabout route to outflank them while Xiao Zhan did the same from the other side. The professor, the experts, and the students were scared shitless.
Du-Du-Du!!! The gunshots kept resounding in the air.
Bam! That man fell to the ground while bleeding from his stomach, "Quick, Young Lady, esca…" He died before he could even finish speaking.
"Fourth Uncle!"
The woman cried out with tears welling up at her eyes. She clenched her teeth, abandoned the body and made her escape with haste.
"It's her?!"
Jiang Xiu was stunned. This woman was only 16-17 years old and looked very pretty. Even such an extreme situation couldn't hide her alluring beauty. It was Xie Sanxian's daughter, Xie Ting.
"Why is she here?"