Chapter 378: Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle |
"What is this?"
Qin Ziwen narrowed his eyes, staring at the tide of insects surging towards them. His fingertips twitched slightly, and Insight silently activated.
【Belly Aphid Spider: ☆☆】
Mogu flipped his wrist, and the greatsword's blade hummed as it extended to both sides, activating Hunting Expansion.
With a horizontal sweep, wherever the sword's edge passed, those fist-sized insects were sent flying backward in groups like dead leaves swept up by a fierce gale.
He leaped lightly, his figure shooting up from the ground. His left hand reversed the shield and smashed it viciously towards the cave wall's dome.
"Break—"
The cavern trembled violently, large chunks of rock breaking off and crashing into the insect swarm.
Qin Ziwen's eyelids twitched. He squeezed his legs, and Chitu, understanding, took a few steps back.
On the uneven shield surface, a sticky layer of insect paste was smeared, dripping down along the edges.
Centered on his landing point, within a radius of several dozen zhang, the Belly Aphid Spiders that had just been sent flying by the shockwave rolled on the ground a few times, wobbled as they got up, turned their bodies, and surged towards him once more.
Qin Ziwen saw the pattern. "These insects are very light. They're a bit hard to kill."
Like willow catkins drifting down in spring, a fist smashes down, the catkins scatter, but once the wind stops, they gather back together.
The Crowned Eagle beat its wings, a powerful airflow surging from beneath its twin wings.
A fierce gale swept forward along the ground, rustling the shrubs loudly. Large swathes of Belly Aphid Spiders were swept up like dust driven by a broom, tumbling and crashing against the surrounding cave walls.
But before long, they climbed back up again.
Those with broken legs, cracked carapaces, even with half their bodies gone, were still inching towards them.
No screams, no retreat, like a group of puppets emptied of fear.
"No brains, and not afraid of death." Qin Ziwen squinted. "There must be a central core. An Insect Queen?"
Mogu's greatsword was still sweeping horizontally, each swing stirring up a bloody storm.
But there were always a few that slipped through the net, crawling up his legs.
They couldn't bite through his skin and flesh, but they clung like countless tiny hooks, covering his leg.
Mogu frowned and stomped his right leg down hard.
"Thump—!"
A circle of shockwave erupted, shaking off all the insects on his leg. Several had their teeth shattered by the vibration, flipping onto their backs, their six legs flailing wildly in the air.
Mogu didn't look at them. Instead, he raised his head, looking towards the deepest part of the underground forest.
"It's inside. I can hear it."
He took a step forward.
Just that one step, and the surrounding Belly Aphid Spiders seemed to trigger some switch, frantically surging towards him, layer upon layer, almost about to engulf him.
Mogu's gaze darkened slightly. "They want to stop me."
"The more the enemy tries to stop us, the more it proves we're on the right path." Qin Ziwen, riding on his horse, curled up the corner of his mouth. "Crowned Eagle, raise the wind."
The Crowned Eagle lifted its head, a sharp cry tearing through the cavern's dead silence.
The next moment, within the usually calm underground cavern, wind arose.
The Crowned Eagle violently flapped its wings once, and a fierce gale plowed forward along the ground.
The Belly Aphid Spiders clinging to the vines, stone walls, and ground were swept up in groups, crashing against the cave walls with wet *splat* sounds.
In the brief moment the wind subsided, Mogu moved.
He transformed into a blur of afterimages, wrapped in a low sonic boom, and charged directly into the eye of the wind!
The greatsword in his hand rose high and chopped down vertically!
Where the sword's edge passed, vines along the way burst apart, shrubs exploded, and debris filled the air.
He bulldozed his way through, carving out a passage.
Deep within the underground forest, a massive black shadow lay nestled in the shrubbery.
Sensing Mogu's approach, this enormous figure shifted its body slightly.
Around it, a large number of Belly Aphid Spiders formed a circle, blocking Mogu in the center.
"Interesting." Qin Ziwen rode Chitu to arrive behind Mogu.
He looked up, sizing up the giant insect before him.
【Superhuman·Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle: ☆☆☆☆★】Level 1 Stone Honey, Level 2 Bewitching Evil Sound
This was a giant insect resembling a scarab beetle in appearance, but its size was comparable to a bus.
Not just big, but also robust.
Many immature Belly Aphid Spiders, only the size of a fingernail, clung to its back, sucking the spherical sap oozing from the gaps in its wings.
From this Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle, Qin Ziwen sensed an emotion called "maternal love."
He quickly shook his head, dispelling the strange feeling in his heart.
He was going crazy. He actually sensed a loving emotion from an insect.
Noticing someone's arrival, the Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle didn't react much. It still lay lazily on the ground, even curling its antennae downward from its head, the tips clenched into fist-like shapes, as if waving to him.
Welcome.
"These don't seem to be the same species." Mogu looked around left and right, then strode forward.
The insect tide along the way was pushed back by the shockwave.
Mogu arrived behind the Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle. Behind it, blocked by its body, was a dusty Altar.
On the Altar, a deep blue metal card floated.
When Mogu walked towards the Altar, the Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle, which had been lying here in a Buddha-like state of indifference, finally moved, emitting a bizarre sound from its throat.
The sound was low and penetrating, lingering in the ears like an echo.
Qin Ziwen frowned. He felt as if a centipede had crawled out from deep within his ears.
His whole body felt tingly and numb. Deep within every blood vessel, it was as if an ant was crawling.
It made his blood involuntarily accelerate.
"QUIET!!!"
Mogu turned and slammed his sword onto the top of the Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle's head.
The Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle's body shuddered, and the sound abruptly ceased.
The tingling, numb feeling in Qin Ziwen's ears also instantly vanished.
He looked at the Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle again, his gaze unfriendly.
This thing actually played dirty. It was the first time he encountered an animal that used sound to attack.
He narrowed his eyes, sizing up the thing before him from top to bottom.
"Master, this is the card from the Altar." Mogu handed over a card.
Qin Ziwen took the card.
【Advanced Building Card】Level 1 Insect Taming Hall
Qin Ziwen's expression shifted slightly. He narrowed his eyes, examining the card in his hand.
The function of this building could be guessed from its name.
It should also be a characteristic building of this map.
Insect Taming Hall. He just didn't know what method of taming it used.
"Master, how should we deal with this?" Mogu asked, frowning as he stomped his foot.
He shook off all the Belly Aphid Spiders that had gathered around.
These insects were fearless, surging forward wave after wave.
"Make them stop, or die. I know you understand." Mogu placed his sword against the Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle's neck.
The Giant Aphid Rhinoceros Beetle looked at them with innocent eyes, then emitted a low, rumbling hum.
Before long, the Belly Aphid Spiders gradually quieted down.
"Master, how should we deal with this?" Mogu looked at Qin Ziwen.
Qin Ziwen looked around and realized they were surrounded by insects.
From all directions, it was all Belly Aphid Spiders. Dense, countless insects transformed into a sea of bugs. Everything in sight was a seething mass of gray-green insects.
The Crowned Eagle folded its wings, standing on Chitu's hindquarters. There was no place to land around them.
Qin Ziwen said, "I'll go back first and use this card, see its function first. You keep an eye on these insects."