Just as the embryonic Heavenly River appeared and the Elven Empire began to totter, the land of the Genesis Blue Lotus World also shook, with earthquakes breaking out everywhere.
Edgar the Elf Emperor's army staggered, and Patrick and Rameses were startled as jets of black lava erupted from underground.
Wizard Rameses said, "This magic pressure is—it's the swarm."
"The Mother of Insects of the Void Swarm has finally made her move."
The Elven Empire's capital suddenly began splitting apart from the ground up. Edgar the Elf Emperor had no choice but to abandon his attack on Locke's forest ranger system. He immediately ordered, "Withdraw."
"Return to defend the capital."
An enormous black spider emerged from underground like a volcano. That "black lava" was actually red spider silk; it only looked black because so many black spider eggs hung from the webs.
The webs landed on the ground, covering it with thick carpets of silk. Wormlike insects rapidly crawled from the eggs, then ravenously devoured leaves, roots, animal carcasses, and anything else edible. They grew, formed cocoons, and emerged as black spiders covered in armor.
The Black-Armored Spiders seemed even stronger than the earlier Red Spiders. Their numbers were immense, and even the weakest had the magic pressure of a First-Class Wizard Apprentice. Each was the size of a calf.
The vast tide of Black-Armored Spiders swept through the Imperial Capital like flowing water.
A grand slaughter began.
Meanwhile, black spider legs emerged across the land, thrusting it apart and reaching toward the sky like eight pillars holding up the heavens.
As the eight spider legs swayed, the land shook, and the Genesis Blue Lotus World trembled incessantly. The swarm frantically devoured the resources of the elven Imperial Capital and launched a counteroffensive underground, attacking ten of the Elven Empire's subterranean