Fourth update done! I'm exhausted — spare a few monthly tickets for comfort.
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"You've been alone with that woman Yu Aoqing... heh heh..." Earth Demon's laugh was incredibly lewd. "The Young Master once said that whenever he's alone with a woman, this old servant must seal away his Divine Sense. This old servant has kept that firmly in mind."
He had indeed said that before. Yang Kai gave a slight nod but didn't bother to explain, instead saying, "I'm afraid I'm about to meet this so-called Insect King. I'm going to try to subdue it. You cover me from the side."
Hearing that Yang Kai was getting down to business, Earth Demon immediately became serious. "This old servant obeys!"
Yang Kai looked around and found the burrow to be quite spacious, though a nauseating stench permeated the entire space. After searching for a while, he still couldn't locate the Insect King.
What he did find were numerous skeletal remains and corpses scattered throughout the burrow.
Zhang Yu, Miao Lin, and Luo Qianqian of the Yunxia Sect were all here. The three of them appeared to have suffered tremendous agony before death — their eyes were bulging grotesquely, and their flesh had withered away like dried wood, making for a truly horrifying sight.
Zhang Yu had died first, and her desiccation was the most severe. Miao Lin was hardly any better. Only Luo Qianqian still retained a trace of moisture in her flesh, but even that was barely anything.
"Young Master... it seems the Insect King drained all their flesh and blood." Earth Demon's voice was grave.
"Mm." Yang Kai nodded slightly and crouched down to examine Luo Qianqian's corpse. This female disciple of the Yunxia Sect had been mating with Miao Lin when the great insect dragged her away, and she was still completely naked. What had once been a beautiful young girl now had a terrifying visage — truly a sight to sigh over.
Where was the Insect King?
Just as Yang Kai was on guard and scanning his surroundings, Luo Qianqian's corpse seemed to shift ever so slightly. Then a streak of golden light suddenly burst from her arm, hurtling straight toward Yang Kai.
"Young Master, watch out!"
Yang Kai was already on high alert. Though the attack was sudden, he didn't panic. True Yang Energy circulated through his body as his footwork activated. With a flicker of his figure, he appeared over a dozen zhang away.
But before he could steady himself, he realized that streak of golden light had followed him like a shadow, arriving right before his eyes.
Fast! Yang Kai's expression changed as he dodged again.
Just like before. The golden light came flying at him once more.
Yang Kai heard a faint buzzing sound, and within the golden light, he could just make out a silhouette that looked similar to those otherworldly insects — only infinitely smaller.
This was the Insect King?
Yang Kai had assumed the Insect King would be some massive creature, but he never expected it to be so minuscule. Yet its flight speed was nothing short of astonishing, and as the Insect King, it was surely far more ferocious and difficult to deal with than those other insects.
Not daring to be careless, Yang Kai employed his footwork to maneuver around the burrow against the Insect King, biding his time for an opportunity to strike.
After fifteen consecutive dodges, his Yuan Qi was nearly depleted, yet the Insect King remained on him like a maggot clinging to bone — the distance between them hadn't increased at all. If anything, it had grown even closer.
No more room to dodge. Yang Kai planted his feet firmly, his expression grim, and threw a punch straight at the golden light.
True Yang Energy Erupts Violently!
What happened next left Yang Kai stunned — the punch hadn't sent the Insect King flying at all. Instead, a sharp pain shot through his fist, and the golden light vanished without a trace!
He hastily pulled back his fist and stared hard. What he saw made his face go pale with horror — there was a tiny, bloody hole on the back of his fist, and beneath the skin, a small bulge burrowed into his hand. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared completely.
"What the hell kind of bug is this?" Yang Kai's soul trembled with fear. He had come here intending to subdue the Insect King, but he never expected to suffer such a grievous loss in the very first exchange — it had actually burrowed into his body.
He quickly sat cross-legged and focused his senses. But there was nothing unusual anywhere in his body. It was as if the insect had simply vanished the moment it entered.
"Young Master, do you feel anything amiss?" Earth Demon asked in alarm.
"No." Yang Kai was just as puzzled. Judging by the deaths of those people from Cloud Mist, the Insect King must have burrowed into their bodies to feed on their flesh and blood. But why was he completely fine?
"Something's not right — look more carefully! This old servant just remembered an ancient anomalous insect that bears some resemblance to this thing!"
Yang Kai naturally knew something was off. He quickly quieted his mind and probed the arm where the Insect King had burrowed in.
After a long while, he finally discovered some traces.
The Insect King had actually burrowed into the Star Map space on the back of his hand.
This Star Map space had been opened specifically through cultivating the Star Trace martial art. Under normal circumstances, the space accumulated Yuan Qi, ready to erupt all at once when needed.
In Earth Demon's words, this technique was a one-shot deal — once fired, it was either kill or be killed!
Last time inside the Inheritance Grotto-heaven, Yang Kai had relied on the Star Trace to grievously wound that turtle-type demon beast.
This bizarre Insect King had actually managed to burrow its way into this space, and Yang Kai could clearly feel the massive amount of Yuan Qi he had accumulated inside the Star Map space over the past few months being frantically devoured.
In just a short while, it had consumed a full quarter of the reserves.
Now that it was inside, Yang Kai had absolutely no way to get it out — unless he chopped off his wrist. When he relayed this discovery to Earth Demon, the latter immediately panicked.