Giant Monster and Insect

In the gloomy waves...

Giant monsters landed on the shore one after another.

If a single Giant Monster with a pitch-black shell as hard as stone was enough to make people feel invincible...

Then when a full four such monsters appeared on the coast, swinging their cold, sharp crab claws as they charged...

This scene undoubtedly shattered the confidence people had always held.

At this moment...

Wisdom and courage were no longer the words that defined humanity.

Weakness and powerlessness were.

Although Ned had used Water Mosquitoes to detect the monsters' approach in advance and promptly notified nearby tribesmen to retreat, greatly reducing the initial casualties...

Seeing such a massive number of Giant Monsters break through the defensive line...

Fear began to spread.

Some of the younger tribesmen couldn't help but tremble in their legs, struggling to carry out the plan.

In the midst of this panic...

Ned's expression was grave as he promptly raised the Rot Spirit Staff high.

"Don't be afraid!"

"They're just ignorant beasts with shells, while we are warriors blessed by the gods!"

"Under the gods' witness..."

"Victory will ultimately belong to us."

Driven by fate...

This once unrestrained youth, who had previously fled from his duty, seemed to mirror his father.

In that sudden moment, he awakened that inspiring power.

In a daze...

People seemed to see the tall figure from the long night, raising a torch high and leading the tribe forward.

Under Ned's words, the tribesmen regained a shred of courage.

They followed the original plan and shouted loudly.

"Come on!"

"You monsters!"

Ned and the tribesmen kept shaking the glowing Worm Lamps in their hands, shouting angrily.

The Giant Monsters were indeed lured by the conspicuous blue light.

As if enraged, they all turned in unison and chased after these insignificant humans who dared to provoke them.

Although...

Some tribesmen still lost their lives under the Giant Monsters' sharp crab claws during this time...

The people finally led them into that jungle.

This was exactly what Ned wanted.

This jungle...

Was the kingdom of poisonous insects established by the people under the guidance of the Rot Spirit Flower.

Not only the most ferocious Yamal Spiders that Ned had just awakened...

But also countless carefully selected poisonous insects...

Were now sleeping within.

Just as these Giant Monsters barged into the dense jungle...

Thinking they could still easily slaughter these insignificant creatures...

Several Yamal Spiders, already poised to strike, launched their attack first under Ned's control.

The acid they directly sprayed from their mouths was on an entirely different level from that of the Acid Arrow.

One unlucky crab Giant Monster was hit by all the acid.

Black smoke immediately billowed from its pitch-black shell, and it let out a strange screech before collapsing.

The other giant crabs swung their claws, slashing at the Yamal Spiders.

A Yamal Spider hiding behind a clump of grass was instantly cleaved in two by the sharp claws.

But the purple acid also splashed onto the monster, dealing it massive damage.

"Loose arrows!"

Under Ned's roar.

His agile tribesmen, also climbing among the trees, seized the moment to loose their arrows.

The dense jungle hampered the Giant Monsters' movements, and the insects' harassment of the beasts gave the people a concealed, safe vantage for shooting from the treetops.

Row after row of arrows flew out.

As the Giant Monsters took the blows, they rammed their massive bodies into the tall trees, sending leaves and wood chips showering down. The tribesmen, faces slick with cold sweat, hurriedly leaped to nearby trees as the trunks began to topple.

But with each tree that fell.

The space left for retreat grew smaller and smaller.

Then.

From within the jungle.

A faint blue glow finally lit up in patches.

One by one, pale blue Rove Beetles began streaming out of tree hollows without end.

A dense, dark swarm of insects blanketed the entire forest.

This spectacular sight.

Was not Ned's doing.

Rather.

It was the power of the Messenger of the Gods.

In that moment.

All the other Rot Spirit Insects on the island collapsed.

Ants, dragonflies, Giant Cockroaches—all fell into slumber.

In their place.

Hundreds upon hundreds of Rot Spirit Poison Insects awakened across the forest.

The Rot Spirit Flower could not control every single one of the tens of thousands of Rot Spirit Insects.

But.

It could extend their lifespans through dormancy, keeping some already-parasitized insects in a state of readiness.

When the need arose.

It would revive those sleeping insects.

And now.

Was the moment these terrifying poison insects awoke.

One by one, the Rot Spirit Poison Insects rose into the air beneath the excited gazes of the people.

They did not attack the armored shells of the Giant Monsters.

Instead.

With their exceptionally tiny bodies, they burrowed into the gaps between the hard carapaces.

These intelligent insects bypassed the tough defenses.

They drilled straight into the soft flesh beneath the armor, gnawing at the Giant Monsters' most vulnerable meat and injecting venom there.

Faced with this countless swarm of minuscule insects.

The Giant Monsters could only swing their crab-like pincers wildly.

But those huge, sharp claws lost all use in that moment.

They simply could not inflict any real damage on these lowly bugs, let alone purge the venom already invading their bodies.

"The Messenger of the Gods is protecting us!"

"Attack!"

Seeing the Giant Monsters all locked in paralysis, Ned knew this was the perfect opportunity. He fired the Rot Spirit Staff from his specially made crossbow.

As the corrupting power spread, another Giant Monster crashed to the ground.

One by one, the Giant Monsters, worn down by the combined efforts of people and insects, began to falter.

They tried to flee the jungle, but it was already too late.

When the last Giant Monster in the forest finally collapsed, oozing its foul, pale yellow fluid.

These invincible monsters.

Had been defeated by insects countless times smaller than themselves.

Ned stood in the tree, gazing at the Giant Monster corpses strewn across the ground.

Countless insects flew out, surging into the sky at that moment.

This scene left him stunned, and he murmured to himself.

"God."

"Is this the root reason You bestowed the Rot Spirit Flower?"

Perhaps.

On the day the divine granted the Rot Spirit Flower, the wise God

had already foreseen this very scene.

What truly restrained these giant beasts was not something equally colossal, but swarms of

humble yet intelligent insects.

After this group of Giant Monsters that had stormed the forest fell, humanity finally sounded the horn of counterattack.

The battle lasted from daylight until the second dawn.

Under the leadership of Boer, Ned, and Barlow, the enraged tribesmen, working alongside the power of the Rot Spirit Insects, began to continuously encircle and hunt down the remaining Giant Monsters that had scattered in all directions across the island.

In the end, all eleven Giant Monsters were slain by the people.

In the brief war, the tribe's victory declared its end.

Surviving the calamity, covered in dust and grime, the people stared blankly at their surroundings.

After a long while, once they had confirmed the news with the messengers running to and fro, the tribesmen embraced each other, weeping and cheering.

They knelt down, looked up at the sky, tears and snot streaming down their faces, and loudly proclaimed their victory with fervent excitement.

"We have successfully driven back these colossal monsters!"

"God, did You see that? Your believers... have not let You down!!"