The Real Heiress Rules the World (Sloane Rivers) novel Chapter 431

A few team members‘ eyes lit up as they whispered among themselves. Hart was the first to step forward. “I’m going with you! After seeing what Dr. Rivers can do, I’d say our odds are pretty good!”

In the end, including Marcus, eight members decided to continue the mission. Lucas checked their gear. “We leave at dawn. Sloane, do you need any special ingredients?”

Sloane had already opened her medical kit and started mixing. “I’ll need some desert wormwood and cactus juice… Oh, right,” she turned to Marcus, “is there an oasis near the Black Desert?”

Marcus shook his head. “No. But…” He hesitated for a moment. “There’s a legend about a ‘Ghost Oasis‘ deep in the desert. It’s said to move around, and no one’s ever really found it.”

Shawn’s eyes brightened. “Could that be their secret base? Maybe they’ve found a way to hide it?”

Lucas nodded thoughtfully. “It’s possible. Sloane, how long will your powder last?”

“Three days,” Sloane said with a frown. “That’s all the time we’ve got.”

“Three days is enough.” Lucas rolled up the map, his gaze firm. “Before dawn, everyone gets ready. Marcus, check the weapons and ammo. Hart, handle the water and food. Shawn, you’re with me–we’ll recalibrate the comms.”

Sloane divided the prepared medicine into small pouches. “Three packets of anti–serpent powder per person, two of coagulant. If a sandstorm hits, dissolve one Clear Mind Pill under your tongue.” She added with special emphasis, “The sand in the Black Desert contains a rare mineral. Inhale too much of it, and you’ll start hallucinating.”

By dawn, the team was packed and ready. Marcus made one last attempt to dissuade them. “It’s not too late to change your minds. That desert has swallowed entire expeditions…”

Lucas adjusted the satellite tracker. “That’s exactly why it’s the best place for them to hide.” He looked toward the pale horizon. “Let’s move,”

As the sun climbed higher, the desert heat surged. Sloane scattered her powder across the sand, leaving behind a faint yellow trail that kept scorpions and sand vipers at bay.

“Unbelievable…” Hart murmured in awe. “It’s like Moses parting the Red Sea.”

By noon, a strange black shimmer appeared on the horizon. Marcus’s expression turned grim. “The Black Desert! Stay alert. From here on, all electronic devices will fail!”

Sure enough, Lucas’s tracker shrieked with static as its screen warped. He switched it off immediately. “We’ll go old–school.” He pulled a worn compass from his pack. “Magnetic bearings.”

The moment they crossed into the Black Desert, the temperature dropped by nearly twenty degrees. The black sand crunched beneath their boots with an eerie sound, as if chewing on bones.

“Keep formation!” Lucas shouted. “No one more than two meters apart!”

Suddenly, a scream tore through the air. One of the men at the edge of the group was sinking fast, both legs swallowed by quicksand.

“Don’t move!” Sloane threw out a rope and tossed a handful of golden powder. The moment it touched the sand, it hardened–just

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Chapter 431 The Black Desert

long enough to buy precious seconds.

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Hart and Shawn pulled together, dragging the man out. He collapsed on the ground, pale and trembling. “Th–there was something down there… pulling me…”

Lucas crouched to inspect his ankle. Several dark purple marks stood out against the skin. Everyone felt a chill crawl up their spine.

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