A swarm of locusts charged into the wall of fire. In moments, half of them fell from the sky, a sight that brought relief to the group. Burning them seemed effective.

"Wait, they're not dead. They're crawling this way," Shao Qi shouted, ordering the drivers to reverse to higher ground.

Zhou You examined them closely, "Their wings are burnt, but their bodies remain intact. They're likely made of heat-resistant materials. Their eyes have turned red—be wary of any potential threats."

"Who could've manufactured these? Surely not for invasion or to consume crops?" Xuan Xue joked, suggesting that such a motive would greatly underestimate plant regrowth.

Even if they lost a season's crop, starvation wasn't an immediate concern. Nor did these locusts appear to pose a significant threat.

"Could they devour armored vehicles?" There were mutated beasts capable of gnawing through the toughest alloys.

As they spoke, the locusts reached the convoy's front, bypassing the armored vehicles and moving forward, seemingly not targeting them.

Shao Qi leaped out of the vehicle, standing amidst the swarm. Noting they weren’t climbing onto humans, he bent down, grabbing a locust. It was still warm. He squeezed, crushing it. Instead of fluids, only a few struggling legs tried to pierce his palm, which he promptly snapped off.

He dissected the locust, revealing intricate wiring inside. Handing the "corpse" to Zhuo Hao, he remarked, "Investigate this. What's its purpose?"

Zhuo Hao started disassembling it right away, extracting every wire. He then inserted several tiny storage devices into his portable equipment. Quickly accessing the data, he informed Shao Qi, "Boss, these creatures can record audio and video. Perhaps they're used for reconnaissance and surveillance?"

"If they're dispersed, they could cover the entire country in no time, rapidly relaying information back."

Zhou You also captured one for analysis, frowning as he observed, "It doesn't seem that simple. Look at its legs, made of premium materials." With just a gentle poke against the armored vehicle's door, the leg pierced a small hole.

Everyone witnessing was taken aback. The armored vehicle's material was incredibly resilient, tough enough to resist the bites of most mutated beasts. Yet, this tiny needle-like leg was so sharp.

"It seems like it's made of advanced bone spikes. The sheer number of these locusts suggests a substantial amount of material was used. The nation or power behind these creatures must be wealthy."

"Hold on, look over there!" someone pointed towards a large rock behind the convoy. For some reason, the locusts were gathering on it. In the blink of an eye, the rock disintegrated to dust, seemingly decomposed by the locusts.

"What just happened? Why did they target that rock?"

Everyone was baffled by these locusts. Their actions were utterly mystifying. What were these creatures, and what was their endgame?

"I've figured it out. They're after the mechanical debris."

Sure enough, beneath the rock, they found a robot head. But it was quickly devoured by the swarm, leaving no trace behind.

The locusts then scoured the area for more debris, consuming whatever they found. A lot of the debris had already been collected and stored in their vehicles by Yao Chen and his team. It was uncertain how the locusts detected them or if they could find the ones stored in the vehicles.

Shao Qi ordered everyone to capture some of the locusts for further research. Soon after, they all gathered around the armored vehicle housing the robot remains.

This scene exemplified the phrase 'locust invasion'. Once the swarm moved on, the area was barren. The terrain was now remarkably flat. These creatures were incredibly efficient at clearing land.

"Have you noticed? They don't seem to care about living creatures. Scorpions crawling past them are unharmed, and they don't even glance at humans. Can they distinguish between targets?"

"If humans made them, there must be a specific setting. For now, they appear interested only in the robot remains. Perhaps those who made the robots don't want their technology falling into our hands, so they created these creatures to clean the battlefield?"

This theory seemed plausible, but the meticulousness appeared overkill given the high cost. And, with the locusts visible to everyone, wouldn't shooting them down result in a net loss?

"Perhaps the robot technology is just too precious," the group pondered, becoming even more protective of their loot. Fortunately, the locusts didn't seem sophisticated enough to locate the stored debris. Once they finished cleaning the area, they began to retreat. The green wave moved across the desert, from a distance resembling a moving meadow.

"Move out! Follow them!" Shao Qi commanded the convoy to move, tracing the path of the locusts. On their prior encounter, the locusts could fly. Now, with most of their wings damaged, they crawled, with a few flying overhead seemingly leading the way.

The convoy followed suit, heading towards Jiucheng. It seemed that those controlling the locusts were stationed there.

Darkness was falling, and a sandstorm approached, obscuring the distant skies. Jiucheng vanished within the sandy veil. The green swarm on the ground appeared disoriented by the storm, scattering in all directions.

Shao Qi, left with no choice, decided to proceed to their intended destination, albeit at a snail's pace. By the time they approached Jiucheng, it was pitch-black. Without visibility, they drove recklessly, nearly crashing into buildings multiple times.