The bee hovered in midair, its golden compound eyes like two compressed suns, with the figures of Li Bufan and Little Devourer reflected deep within its pupils.
Li Bufan did not attack immediately, instead surveying the surroundings first. This underground space was exceptionally vast. The luminous moss overhead provided ample light, dense spiritual herbs grew across the ground, and that enormous ancient tree stood at the center like a pillar of heaven.
If he went all out here, those precious spiritual herbs would inevitably be caught in the crossfire and destroyed—and he intended to take every last one of them with him. With a thought, he drifted several hundred zhang to the side, arriving at a relatively open stretch of rocky ground.
The bee clearly misunderstood his movement, assuming he was preparing an attack. Its body dipped slightly, its wingbeats abruptly quickened, and a golden afterimage shot straight out from where it had been hovering.
Its speed was astonishing. Even three breaths after it had left its original position, the afterimage only slowly faded from the air.
Li Bufan's Yang God Realm Spiritual Sense had caught its trajectory in advance. In that instant, Nine Yang Body Protection surged at full force, golden radiance flaring across his body and wrapping him like armor flowing with molten lava.
Clang! The bee's stinger struck precisely against Li Bufan's chest, producing a crisp sound like clashing metal.
Even through the solid layer of golden protective light, Li Bufan could still feel the sharp, condensed penetrating force from the stinger's tip, like a red-hot iron needle attempting to pierce a thick iron plate.
Ripples spread across the surface of Nine Yang Body Protection. Layer upon layer of golden light dispersed and neutralized the penetrating force, yet a few hair-thin strands still seeped through, leaving a