Chapter 72 The Myriad Manifestations Forest Insect Sea Devours Life The thick fog still hadn't dissipated, and...
The thick fog still hadn't dissipated, completely blocking their view. The scene of the test they had just experienced was still fresh in their minds. Yao Xu and Mi Qing were vague about what had happened, but Yan Chao guessed that it must be related to the power of all spirits.
The further they went, the heavier the air became, almost suffocating, and the four could barely hear each other's footsteps. Then, the necklace around Yan Chao's neck lit up, followed by Feng Xi's voice: "Chao Chao, can you hear me?"
Yan Chao pulled out the necklace with delight and said, "Feng Xi, I can hear you!"
Feng Xi said, "Before that incident, I tried to find you using this, but I failed. Now it has finally been restored."
Yan Chao suddenly asked, "Then how did you find me using it before?"
Feng Xi truthfully replied, "I have a connection with it. But just now, it seems that my connection with you is stronger."
Yan Chao suddenly realized and said, "Could it be that what just happened established a rapport between us?"
Feng Xi said, "That's not bad."
Yan Chao reached out and touched him. She could sense Feng Xi beside her, but the thick fog obscured the view, making him seem both close and far away. She had always found it strange that the Spirit of the Banner said the Myriad Manifestations Forest was the source of life for all things in the world, yet the environment here was unpredictable and devoid of any life. Could this also be related to the power of all spirits?
Yan Chao said, "Since we can establish a shared understanding, can't Yao Xu and the other two also do the same? Are you able to contact them? I wonder how they are doing?"
Feng Xi replied, "They are alright. But my connection with them is extremely weak, so I don't know what they went through. Since they have regained consciousness, they should be fine."
As soon as they finished speaking, a faint light suddenly appeared ahead, drifting through the thick fog and leading the four of them to a certain place. When the light disappeared, what appeared before them was a forest of black tombstones standing in the dim light, exuding an ominous aura like tombstones.
Feng Xi walked at the front, with Mi Qing bringing up the rear. She followed mechanically, head down. Her face remained deathly pale, her lips tightly pressed together, her eyes staring blankly at the mud beneath her feet, as if piercing through the earth and landing in some distant, cold place. Yao Xu tried several times to speak to her, tentatively asking, "Qingqing, are you alright?" She simply shook her head, remaining silent.
Yao Xu felt a pang of unease. He rubbed his bloodshot eyes hard, muttering something that sounded like a complaint or a pep talk: "This damn miasma, just one breath and it shortens my lifespan... I wonder what's in that forest, my lungs are about to rot..."
The "path" beneath our feet grew increasingly slippery and difficult to traverse, the terrain seemingly rising slowly. The pile of decaying leaves grew thicker, emitting an even stronger, more pungent stench, mixed with a nauseatingly sweet floral fragrance that made one dizzy. The sound of dripping water had become much more frequent, no longer a "drip-drip," but a soft "rustling" sound coming from all directions.
Feng Xi suddenly stopped in his tracks and raised his hand in a gesture.
Everyone felt a chill and stopped.
Yao Xu lowered his voice and asked, "What's wrong?"
Yan Chao held his breath and listened intently. Apart from the sound of water and a "rustling" sound, there was nothing unusual for the time being.
Feng Xi did not answer immediately. His sharp gaze swept into the depths of the fog ahead, and he lowered his body slightly. Yan Chao followed his gaze; the fog was thick and the figures were indistinct.
Suddenly, Yan Chao's gaze fell upon a patch of exceptionally dark, decaying leaves not far from his feet, which seemed to twitch very slightly.
Almost at the same moment her alarm bells rang, Feng Xi's sharp shout pierced through the thick fog: "Retreat!!"
Too late!
Not just one piece! It was hundreds and thousands of withered branches and leaves covering the ground that were lifted up at the same moment, as if a lid had been lifted, by the surging black tide below!
That "tide" is a living thing!
Countless venomous insects, each about the length of a thumb and with a dark brown carapace! They swarmed and jostled each other, bursting forth frantically from beneath decaying leaves, from crevices in fallen logs, and from holes in the rocks! Their enormous mandibles snapped open and closed, making a clicking, grinding sound. They had no specific target; or rather, their target was everything within their range that possessed any sign of life.
The air was instantly filled with an even sharper stench, so strong it was suffocating.
Yan Chao's hair stood on end. The dense swarm of black insects instantly transformed into a mountain of corpses in her illusion, making her stomach churn. But her body moved faster than her mind. With a soft "whoosh," the umbrella opened instantly, precisely deflecting a wave of poisonous insects that were swarming towards them.
"Pfft! Pfft!" Several muffled sounds rang out. The poisonous insects crashed into the umbrella surface, shattering instantly and splashing out yellowish-green slime, which splattered onto the nearby moss and immediately corroded into a wisp of white smoke.
"Waaah—!" A painful whimper came from behind. It was Mi Qing!
The poisonous insects were relentless; before Mi Qing could react, more than a dozen had crawled up her trouser leg. She kept shaking her leg, trying to shake them off.
Yao Xu said nervously, "Mi Qing, don't move!" He suddenly waved his hand, and a scorching red light burst from his palm. It was not an offensive flame, but an invisible barrier that slammed into the swarm of insects on Mi Qing's leg.
"Sizzle!" A chilling, scorching sound filled the air. The moment the red light swept over the swarm, their carapaces deformed, and several fell directly off Mi Qing's legs, still twitching! Yao Xu's face also paled slightly; this method was clearly too taxing on his magical power.
Yao Xu shouted, "Yan Chao! Come and see Mi Qing!" With that, he summoned the Xuanjiang Sword, and with a flash of cold light, he cleaved the poisonous insect in two.
However, killing a few is like a drop in the ocean.
Yao Xu roared, "Too many! This is even more troublesome than that long worm, Ye Zi!"
As if enraged, the swarm of insects, which had been crawling about haphazardly, suddenly stopped. Then, all the poisonous insects turned in unison towards the four people!
"Click, click, click...!!"
"Click, click, click...!!"
The sound of countless hard mouthparts rubbing together suddenly amplified, converging into a terrifying wave of noise capable of tearing apart nerves. A dark brown tide of death—the "sea of insects"—had formed!
A more surging and denser stream of poisonous insects erupted forth! Layer upon layer, vying for position, they converged into a twisting and churning wave, rushing toward the four people in the center at an astonishing speed!
My vision was instantly filled with black.
Feng Xi said, "You're courting death!" His voice remained calm, a flash of white light appeared in his eyes, and his figure suddenly disappeared from the spot.
In an instant, he appeared in front of the most surging swarm of insects. The Lotus Shadow Dart transformed into a silver halo between his fingers, separating the three of them from the insect horde.
"Pfft pfft pfft pfft—!!" The dozens of poisonous insects at the forefront were instantly shredded into pieces. Black carapace fragments and slime rained down. A safe zone temporarily formed within a foot around Feng Xi. Beneath his feet, a layer of insect corpses and flesh rapidly accumulated.
Feng Xi shouted, "Yao Xu! Protect them!"
Yao Xu said, "Understood!" He took a deep breath, changing the Xuanjiang Sword from a thrust to a sweep. Wherever the sword energy passed, poisonous insects were blasted away with a crackling sound. He took a step forward, protecting Mi Qing and Yan Chao in the small space behind him.
Yan Chao looked at Mi Qing, who had been bitten by poisonous insects. The wounds had begun to fester, and ordinary medicines were no longer effective. If this continued, she would probably die here. In front of her were Feng Xi and Yao Xu, who were fighting off the poisonous insects together, but even the two of them, no matter how strong, would eventually run out of strength.
We absolutely cannot sit idly by and wait to die!
Suddenly, Yan Chao had an idea and said to the two of them, "Feng Xi, Yao Xu, I'll lend you some of your magic power!"
Hearing this, the two, though unsure of her intentions, still transferred their magic to her. Yan Chao raised two fingers and lightly touched her brow, a drop of blood falling. Yan Chao frowned, infusing her magic into the medicine to heal Mi Qing's wounds. The paper umbrella also formed a barrier for them.
"Snap! Snap! Snap!" A series of cracking sounds rang out as the poisonous insects knocked down by the umbrella exploded. Yellow, green, and black slime coated the umbrella surface, emitting a sizzling, corrosive sound. The potent toxin seemed to penetrate even the most viscous surfaces; Yan Chao felt a slight tingling sensation in her arm. She gritted her teeth and continued to remove the toxins from Mi Qing.
Feng Xi roared, "Yao Xu! Right Wing!"
He was caught in a pincer attack by three swarms of insects, the pressure increased sharply, and a breach had already appeared.
Upon hearing this, Yao Xu abruptly stopped spinning, using the tip of the umbrella as leverage to flip backward in mid-air.
"ah--!!!"
*Pfft pfft pfft pfft pfft—!* Another series of rapid explosions. A stench filled the air. This temporarily relieved Yan Chao from his predicament.
Feng Xi said urgently, "Mi Qing, be careful of your head!"
Several poisonous insects sprang from the tall fern leaves, heading straight for Mi Qing's unsuspecting nape. She had only just recovered some strength and, ignoring the pain, pulled Yan Chao close, bending down to dodge the insects' attack.
A close call!
Mi Qing didn't turn around. She suddenly bent down, not to dodge downwards, but to straighten her back and pull out the wooden hairpin to meet the poisonous insect.
"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!" With several muffled thuds, three poisonous insects were pierced by the wooden hairpin. The resulting force knocked Mi Qing and Yan Chao off balance.
Yao Xu was shocked. He forced back the poisonous insects in front of him with his sword and tried to rush over.
Feng Xi was tightly entangled by the most surging swarm of main insects. The light wheel of the Lotus Shadow Dart had shrunk by a size, and the insect corpses piled up even higher at his feet, almost submerging his calves. His body was covered in slime and fragments of insect armor, with several corroded holes and charred edges.
Just then, Mi Qing suddenly raised her head.
Those eyes, which were originally clear and gentle, were now bloodshot as they stared intently at the poisonous insects in front of them that were trying to bite the hairpin apart.
She didn't pull out the violin; there simply wasn't enough time.
She swiftly extended her fingers, striking with unparalleled precision and ferocity, towards a poisonous insect. Not pinching, but almost piercing through, she dug her nails into its most vulnerable crevice.
"Ugh!" A scream burst from her throat.
"Sizzle!"
She managed to tear off half of the hard shell of the venomous insect, which was larger than her thumb, with her bare fingers. Thick, foul-smelling yellowish-white sap and severed limbs sprayed instantly onto her hands and face.
A numbing sensation crept into her fingers. A sharp burning pain traveled along her nerves. Her face contorted instantly in agony and from the effects of the toxicity.
But she didn't stop.
The moment the insect corpse hit the ground, something suddenly appeared in her hand.
It was a broken black claw, the severed limb of the insect. It seemed to have some kind of ancient engraving on it, which looked very much like the unique symbols of the Cloud Acacia royal family.
The moment she saw the engraving, it was as if she had been struck by an invisible bolt of lightning. Her expression was strange, and she made a strange "hoarse" sound from her throat.
Mi Qing murmured to herself, "No...impossible...this is..." Her body, ravaged by the poison, began to convulse violently, but her eyes remained fixed on the object in her hand.
"Yunhuai... Father, Mother..."
A chilling, despairing coldness, even more intense than the numbing poison, gripped her heart.
Yao Xu cried out sadly, "Qingqing!"
Mi Qing's body stiffened abruptly amidst violent convulsions, like a puppet with broken strings. The last glimmer in her eyes was an obsession with and confusion over the fragment in her hand. Then her pupils dilated, and she fell straight backward!
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Author's Note: Every chapter I write is one less to write; history will repeat itself in the next chapter...
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