The red scanning beam moved slowly across the sand, as cold and ruthless as a blade in the dark. I lay motionless in the sand, my heart pounding so hard I thought it would jump straight out of my chest. Every muscle in my body was tensed to the limit, ready to dodge or fight at any moment, even though I knew perfectly well that facing a fully functional mechanical patrol with only a rusted crowbar was basically no different from throwing myself into a death trap.
The buzzing of the machine grew louder, echoing in the dead silence around the Black Fort. Its metal treads crushed the gravel on the ground, making a crisp, harsh sound that felt like it was grinding directly on my nerves. I didn't even dare to blink, my eyes fixed on the sweeping red light, praying that my hasty camouflage would be enough to keep me hidden.
One second… two seconds…
The light swept past my head, my shoulders, and my legs.
For a moment, I even held my breath completely, as if I had turned into a lifeless rock buried in the sand.
Finally, the mechanical patrol turned slowly, its scanning beam shifting toward the other side of the ruins. The buzzing sound gradually faded as it moved away along the outer wall of the Black Fort, until it disappeared completely into the darkness.
I let out a long, silent breath, cold sweat soaking the inside of my tattered clothes. My limbs were stiff and numb, and the wound on my arm was throbbing again, as if protesting the extreme tension just now. I didn't dare to move immediately, lying quietly in the sand for several more minutes, confirming that there were no other patrols or hidden dangers nearby before slowly getting up.
This place was far more dangerous than I had imagined.
The so-called Black Fort Storm was clearly a cover-up. The fortress was not abandoned, but had been turned into a heavily guarded forbidden area, with sensors, mechanical patrols, and invisible traps spread all over the outer perimeter. Anyone who naively believed the rumors of abandoned supplies would only become a sacrifice buried under the sand.
I wiped the sand off my body, tightened my grip on the crowbar, and continued to move forward along the shadowed edge of the wall. The night wind blew across the broken concrete and rusted steel plates, letting out a low whine, as if whispering about the tragedies that had happened here. I stepped carefully, avoiding all obvious monitoring equipment, and relied on the experience I had accumulated from years of scavenging in the ruins to find the safest possible path.
After walking for nearly half an hour, a collapsed gap in the corner of the Black Fort finally came into view.
It was a break caused by the storm, half blocked by fallen steel beams and concrete blocks, barely enough for a single person to squeeze through. The edges were sharp and rough, covered with dust and rust, and there were no obvious traps or sensors around it—obviously, this was a blind spot that the defenders inside the fort had not fully taken control of.
This was my only chance.
I looked around again, making sure no patrols were nearby, then bent down and quickly slipped through the narrow gap. The sharp metal edges scratched my clothes and skin, but I didn't care at all. In just a few seconds, I successfully entered the interior of the Black Fort.
The moment I stepped inside, a thick, damp smell mixed with dust and rust rushed toward me. The inside of the fort was pitch black, with only a faint moonlight seeping through the broken walls, barely illuminating the chaotic scene around me. Collapsed ceilings, twisted steel bars, broken furniture, and scattered fragments of old-world supplies littered the ground, forming a complicated labyrinth of ruins.
It was indeed devastated by the storm, but it was far from being unoccupied.
I could vaguely see traces of recent activity on the ground—faint footprints, newly moved debris, and the faint glow of lights coming from the deeper levels of the fort. All the signs told me clearly: there were people living here, and they were definitely not friendly wanderers or ordinary scavengers.
I held my breath and stepped into the deeper darkness of the Black Fort, stepping carefully over the debris under my feet. The weak moonlight pulled my shadow long and thin on the ground, and every step forward brought me closer to the unknown secrets and deadly dangers hidden in the fortress.
The real exploration of the Black Fort had just begun, and the truth behind the storm was quietly unfolding in front of me.