The bonfire that had burned all night gradually extinguished, leaving behind piles of faintly red ashes, still emitting their last heat.

Tony, who was on the last watch, quietly walked back from outside the camp and sat down next to a pile of ashes in the middle, casually covering Arthur, who was sound asleep, with the cloak that had slipped off.

The residual warmth from the pile of ashes quickly made one feel sleepy, and Tony couldn't help but yawn, struggling not to let his eyelids close completely.

"Don't sleep, you mustn't sleep. The boss will kill you if he finds out!"

"Just close your eyes for a moment, just a moment. It's almost dawn, there won't be any danger."

These two thoughts constantly fought in Tony's mind, but his eyelids gradually closed amidst the struggle.

As if in a state between sleep and wakefulness, a sudden scream rang out. Tony jumped up from the ground with a start.

This scream in the night was so abrupt that not only did Tony wake up, but Keynes, Adeline, and the others also stood up almost at the same time, and all the mercenaries got up.

"Where did that sound come from?" Keynes asked Tony anxiously.

"It seems to be from outside the camp." Now fully awake, Tony tried to recall the direction from which the scream had come. "Not good, it's our perimeter guard!" Tony's face changed as he rushed out of the camp first.

"Everyone on guard, protect the goods!" Keynes ordered and then rushed out after Tony.

Arthur also got up from the ground, hesitated for a moment, and then followed out of the camp.

Tony and Keynes stopped in front of a low bush about seventy or eighty meters outside the camp. At their feet was a small, slightly sunken pit, with a steel crossbow lying on the ground next to it, but the mercenary responsible for the guard was nowhere to be seen.

"It was Nathaniel, he was on the last watch at this post." Tony said with a frown.

"Was it a beast or a demon beast?"

"It should be a demon beast. The attack came from underground, seemingly swallowing the whole person in one gulp." Angus crouched down, touching the soft broken stones at the edge of the pit, pondering.

"Move aside!" Keynes shouted and then leaped into the air, his giant sword rotating as it plunged towards the ground.

The rapid rotation of the sword, driven by the fighting spirit, spiraled like a dragon entering the sea, drilling towards the pit on the ground.

The full-force strike of a level eight battle school expert was naturally extraordinary. Accompanied by a loud boom, debris and soil flew everywhere.

When the dust settled, a two-meter-deep hole was blasted into the ground, revealing a dark, bucket-thick hole that seemed bottomless.

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"What kind of demon beast left this, a rock python or a mountain burrower?" Keynes asked, pointing at the hole.

"Neither." Angus shook his head slightly.

Just then, a series of exclamations suddenly came from inside the camp.

"Not good, a diversion!" Almost everyone had the same thought and turned back towards the camp.

Inside the camp, dozens of mercenaries were gathered in a circle, with several of them in the inner circle desperately striking the ground with their swords.

"What's going on?"

Seeing the leader return, the mercenaries at the outer circle automatically opened a gap. The mercenaries in the inner circle did not stop their attack; they were hitting or rather digging at a pit similar to the one outside the camp.

"A monster suddenly burrowed out from underground, swallowed one of our brothers in one bite, and then burrowed back in," a mercenary hurriedly reported.

"Did anyone see what the attacking demon beast looked like?" Angus looked around and asked.

"I vaguely saw it was a long-bodied demon beast."

"Its head and body were the same size."

"The monster's mouth was on the top of its head, and when it opened, the whole head split apart."

Several mercenaries who had seen the incident described it in a flurry of words.

"It was like a giant earthworm," one mercenary added.

"Not good, it's a Devouring Worm!" Angus's face suddenly changed.

As a hunter, Angus was most familiar with the Devouring Worm. They are a type of level three earth-element demon beast that lives underground, resembling a massively enlarged earthworm. Devouring Worms have no head or eyes, with their vital point being the heart located in the middle of their body. Both ends of their body are mouths used for swallowing prey, capable of instantly devouring any creature that fits. They are creatures of little intelligence, hunting almost entirely on instinct.

"It's impossible, I specifically checked before, this is not the territory of Devouring Worms," Tony immediately raised doubts.

Devouring Worms are a social species with a strong sense of territory. If one finds a Devouring Worm, then within a radius of ten or even hundreds of miles, there will surely be hundreds or even thousands of Devouring Worms. Their hunting territory is a no-go zone for life.

"No, Tony, you overlooked one thing. The territory of Devouring Worms can move. When they cannot find enough food in one place, they will move to another. The movement speed of Devouring Worms underground is not fast. The attack starting just before dawn indicates their territory has just moved here or is still looking for a new territory," Keynes said, frowning.

As they spoke, screams rang out again.

A hole collapsed without warning near the edge of the camp, and a gray giant worm shot out from underground like lightning, with a huge suction coming from the mouth that split open at the top of its head.

The mercenary closest to the hole was instantly pulled in by this suction force, managing only to scream before being swallowed by the Devouring Worm, half of his body disappearing.

This all happened in the blink of an eye, and by the time the others turned their heads at the scream, the Devouring Worm, dragging the mercenary with half his body still outside, was burrowing back into the hole.

The nearby mercenaries watched helplessly, unable to come to the rescue.

A flash of white light, and Keynes's unsheathed giant sword flew out.

A beautiful arc grazed the ground at the edge of the hole, spraying yellow-brown blood. The upper half of the Devouring Worm's body lay limp on the ground, while the other half fell back into the hole.

The nearby mercenaries rushed over, and after much effort, they managed to cut open the body of the Devouring Worm and pull out the recently swallowed mercenary.

From being swallowed to being rescued, only a moment had passed, but the mercenary had already lost his life. The mercenary's skeleton had been compressed and deformed by the Devouring Worm's stomach, and the skin exposed outside the armor had been corroded by the worm's digestive fluids, leaving a gruesome sight that even those accustomed to death could not bear to look at, turning away with tears in their eyes.

This is the terror of the level three demon beast, Devouring Worm: sudden attacks from underground, terrifying swallowing abilities, and being prey for warriors and magicians even a level or two higher. And this kind of attack is unpredictable; as long as it stays underground without showing itself, except for earth magicians, no one can do anything about it!

The hunting territory of Devouring Worms is a death trap!

"Retreat, retreat immediately!" Keynes almost