Into the Black Nether Abyss Again

Several days later, Mu Chen knocked on the gate of Heavenly Insect's courtyard.

"The Northern Spiritual Academy? I never imagined you were still an academy student, little brother Mu Chen. Are you planning to enter one of the Five Great Academies next?"

Upon hearing that Mu Chen had come to say goodbye, Heavenly Insect put on a look of surprise.

"Yes. Judging by the time, the admission quotas for the Five Great Academies should be announced soon. I just don't know how many places our Northern Spiritual Academy will receive this time."

Mu Chen's dark eyes turned toward the crimson clouds on the horizon. Deep within them was reflected a slender, graceful figure, with long silver hair like the Milky Way and eyes as clear as crystal. Her delicate little face, which would surely one day possess beauty capable of bringing ruin, often wore a coldness that kept others a thousand miles away. Yet he knew how tender she was beneath that icy exterior.

As a fellow man, Heavenly Insect saw at a glance what was on his mind. He clicked his tongue twice and shook his head. "Little brother Mu Chen, you don't look like you're worrying about admission quotas at all. You look more like you're thinking about someone..."

Heavenly Insect's words chased Mu Chen straight out of his memories. He first looked at him in surprise, then, upon noticing the teasing glint in his eyes, could not help blushing slightly.

After all, he was only a teenage boy. Having someone suddenly see through his thoughts inevitably left him a little embarrassed.

"Please stop teasing me, Brother Heavenly Insect..."

Heavenly Insect gave him a teasing look and chuckled. "What's there to be embarrassed about? It's only human nature. Still, I'm rather curious about what kind of girl could have you pining for her like this..."

"I-I'm not pining for her..." Mu Chen's voice lacked conviction.

Heavenly Insect raised a hand and patted Mu Chen's shoulder, speaking meaningfully. "Little brother Mu Chen, I'm sure your future will be anything but ordinary. You may even claim a place for yourself in the Great Thousand World someday. So, work hard at your cultivation..."

Watching Heavenly Insect turn and walk away, Mu Chen froze.

He could not understand why Heavenly Insect seemed even more confident than he was that he would become a powerful expert someday. Had he noticed something Mu Chen himself did not know?

Suddenly, Mu Chen thought of the Great Pagoda Art his mother had left him. All the signs indicated that her identity was far from ordinary. Perhaps she really had come from some major power in the Great Thousand World...

Had Heavenly Insect noticed certain distinctive qualities in the spiritual energy he cultivated?

He wanted to ask more, but did not know how to broach the subject. For a moment, Mu Chen felt his thoughts tangle like a skein of hemp.

A long time passed like this. Looking at Heavenly Insect, who had already entered his room, Mu Chen let out a long breath with a complicated expression. He could not quite understand why a single remark from him had thrown his mind into such turmoil.

Perhaps Heavenly Insect really had noticed something, but judging by his attitude, he was unlikely to tell him much. Why trouble himself needlessly?

In the end, strength ruled this world. As long as he became strong enough, the day would come when he unraveled every mystery!

With that resolve, Mu Chen left Heavenly Insect's courtyard. Early the following morning, he said goodbye to Mu Feng, then traveled from Mu City to Northern Spirit City through the Teleportation Spirit Array before heading straight for the Northern Spiritual Academy.

Heavenly Insect stayed in the Mu Domain for another five days. During that time, Mu Feng finally gathered all the materials he needed, which he used to make two Junior Spirit Insect Pouches. Along with the Spirit Insect Liquid he had prepared over the past few days and a net specifically meant for catching spirit insects, his initial preparations were complete, even if the equipment was somewhat low-grade.

With everything ready, Heavenly Insect felt it was time to depart.

The Black Nether Abyss was still extremely dangerous. Although the Nine Nether Sparrow had been deep within it, her location had not been in its innermost reaches.

Searching for the Golden Origin Heavenly Silkworm meant Heavenly Insect would have to venture deeper still. He might encounter beings even more terrifying than high-tier spirit beasts there, and he had prepared himself mentally well in advance.

The next day, Heavenly Insect said goodbye to Mu Feng early in the morning, then placed all his belongings inside his Mustard Seed Bracelet. With two Spirit Insect Pouches hanging from one side of his waist and his Insect Flute on the other, he set off for the hive twenty li outside Mu City.

After all these days of nurturing, the Soul Devouring Bee Swarm should have recovered to seventy or eighty percent of its former numbers.

Heavenly Insect had also specially concocted a medicinal liquid to stimulate the evolution of Devouring Spirit Bees this time, and he intended to test it on this swarm.

Upon reaching the mountain where the hive lay, the first thing Heavenly Insect saw was the dense layer of dark clouds overhead. The entire vast mountain range was deathly silent, without even the chirp of an insect or the call of a bird, and the air was steeped in death.

Heavenly Insect could not help frowning at the sight. Without his supervision, even though he had ordered the Devouring Spirit Bees not to slaughter indiscriminately, the area around this mountain had still suffered.

In fact, along the way, Heavenly Insect had seen few travelers even on the nearby main road. Clearly, they too had been frightened off by the swarm looming overhead like a dark cloud.

An Insect Master really could not do without his Spirit Insect Pouch... Otherwise, he could not even enter a human city, because its people would come to drive him away before he got close.

It seemed his stay over the past few days had caused Mu Feng quite a bit of trouble. Still, this was the Mu Domain, and Mu Feng, its Domain Lord, had the final say in everything. Even if trouble arose, it would have little impact on him. At worst, he could simply issue a notice.

Of course, if Heavenly Insect left of his own accord, Mu Feng would probably be quite pleased.

He took out his Spirit Insect Flute and brought it to his lips. As a lilting melody rang out, the dark clouds overhead began to shift, then formed a spiraling storm that swept down toward him.

Heavenly Insect watched calmly. Once the storm of Devouring Spirit Bees drew near, one of the Spirit Insect Pouches at his waist flew up under the control of his spiritual energy and opened on its own...

It was like opening the drain of a pool, sending all the water swirling into the outlet.

In the same way, the Soul Devouring Bee Swarm in the sky spiraled into the Spirit Insect Pouch.

In the end, all tens of thousands of Devouring Spirit Bees entered that palm-sized Spirit Insect Pouch...

Heavenly Insect sent his spiritual sense into the Spirit Insect Pouch and saw the dense black swarm resting within a gray, chaotic space, all of them in dormancy.

Thanks to the abundant spiritual energy within that space, the Devouring Spirit Bees would not die there. Instead, their growth would accelerate while they slept. That was the wondrous feature of the Spirit Insect Pouch!

Its effects seemed similar to those of a Mustard Seed Bracelet or Cosmic Bracelet, but its advantage lay in its ability to hold living creatures. Although Heavenly Insect's two Spirit Insect Pouches were only junior-grade and could hold only particular types of spirit insects, they would still be exceedingly rare treasures to outsiders.

Unfortunately, this was a method unique to the Spirit Insect Tribe. Others could not learn it!

After gathering all the Devouring Spirit Bees, Heavenly Insect took out the evolution liquid he had specially prepared for them and poured all of it into the Spirit Insect Pouch.

Through his spiritual sense, he watched the medicinal liquid turn into mist upon entering the chaotic space, then be drawn into the Devouring Spirit Bees' bodies along with the spiritual energy. Anticipation stirred in his heart...

He hoped this evolution would bring him a few pleasant surprises!

Upon returning to the Black Nether Abyss, he found its environment as harsh as ever. In particular, when Heavenly Insect returned to the place where Nine Nether had undergone her tribulation, he discovered that the volcano which had once stood there had been reduced entirely to a basin.

The basin was pitch-black, with traces of volcanic scorching everywhere. In some places, the lava had not fully solidified and still flowed in liquid form.

Heavenly Insect sighed in wonder once again. The might of those flames alone showed how terrifying the Nine Nether Sparrow had been, even before evolving into a Nine Netherworld Sparrow!

After taking a look, Heavenly Insect did not linger. Instead, he headed toward the location of the Black Nether Ant Nest he had investigated earlier.

The Black Nether Ant Nest lay a hundred and fifty li southeast of this point. It was not within the deepest reaches of the Black Nether Abyss, but it was still perilous. Throughout the journey, Heavenly Insect concealed his aura and proceeded cautiously, doing his best not to attract the attention of the high-tier spirit beasts.

When he came within ten li of the ant nest, traces of Black Nether Ants began appearing around him.

What Heavenly Insect had not expected was that these Black Nether Ants were not junior-grade spirit insects as he had imagined, but intermediate-grade ones... He even personally witnessed a millstone-sized Soldier Ant spit out a mouthful of something resembling black lava, killing an intermediate-tier Earthshaking Bear outright. It then sliced the enormous bear apart with its sharp mandibles and carried the pieces back to the nest with its companions as food.

The sight left Heavenly Insect both startled and delighted. He was startled because these Black Nether Ants were so powerful that subduing them would prove considerably more difficult. He was delighted for precisely the same reason: if he could subdue them, they would be an enormous help in his search for the Golden Origin Heavenly Silkworm!

"Black lava... Could these Black Nether Ants have mutated under the influence of the Nine Nether Sparrow's Nine Nether Flame...?"

Watching the Black Nether Ants, Heavenly Insect carefully searched his memories and found a possible explanation for the colony's mutation.

There was no telling how many years the Nine Nether Sparrow had spent in the Black Nether Abyss. In the memories of Heavenly Insect's original self, at least, he had arrived here more than twenty years ago.

Back then, he had happened upon the Nine Nether Sparrow after she failed her first tribulation. Tempted by the rare opportunity, he had tried to take advantage of her weakened state, only to be burned to death by a blast of her Nine Nether Flame...

Given how terrifying the Nine Nether Flame was, it was hardly surprising that it could affect the spirit beasts and spirit insects living nearby over such a long period.

From a modern perspective, it could be understood as "natural selection and survival of the fittest."

I'll capture a Black Nether Ant and give it a try first... Heavenly Insect planned.

He then sent out a few Devouring Spirit Bees to search for an isolated Soldier Ant. The process was not difficult, and he soon found his target.

"Chitter, chitter, chitter..."

Seeing a human suddenly appear before it, the Soldier Ant immediately chittered in excitement, clearly delighted to have finally found a lump of meat.

Heavenly Insect paid it little mind. A melody sounded from the Spirit Insect Flute in his hand, and the Black Nether Ant charging excitedly toward him suddenly began staggering as though drunk...

The Bewitching Soul Melody could muddle a target's consciousness, leaving it in a soulless daze.

Heavenly Insect then stopped playing and swept out threads of spiritual energy with both hands. They swiftly formed a large net in midair, binding the bewildered Black Nether Ant.

Next, Heavenly Insect extended his index finger. A blood-colored Spirit Seal flew from its tip and sank straight into the Black Nether Ant's forehead...

Immediately afterward, Heavenly Insect sensed an additional hazy consciousness within his mind. It belonged to the confused Black Nether Ant!

That blood-colored Spirit Seal was one of the Spirit Insect Tribe's methods for controlling spirit insects, called the Insect-Control Blood Talisman. Through runes condensed from their own blood essence, members of the Spirit Insect Tribe could establish a shared consciousness with spirit insects controlled by the insect-control Spirit Mark. It was a secret art exclusive to the Spirit Insect Tribe, beyond the grasp of ordinary Insect Masters.

Heavenly Insect then caught a low-tier spirit beast and had the Black Nether Ant carry it back to the nest. He left a strand of his spiritual sense on the ant to investigate the nest in detail.

This had been one of his original self's strongest methods. Cautious by nature, his original self had always followed the principle of planning before acting. His sole impulsive act had been when he encountered the Nine Nether Sparrow, and then he had died... It had to be said that his luck had been truly awful!

The Black Nether Ant Nest lay within an enormous, pitch-black mountain. No plants grew on its slopes, which were covered entirely in black rock, and a small basin resembling a volcanic crater sat at its summit.

Several entrances, each three zhang wide, lay at the foot of the mountain. Countless Black Nether Ants were coming and going, dragging innumerable spirit beast carcasses and even trees into the tunnels.

The strand of Heavenly Insect's spiritual sense attached to the Soldier Ant followed it through one entrance and into the winding passages within the mountain.

The ant nest was enormous, having hollowed out almost the entire mountain. Its interior extended in every direction like a vast labyrinth. An outsider who entered might struggle to find a way out even after ten days or half a month.

Carrying the spirit beast's corpse, the Soldier Ant instinctively made its way to the nest's food storage area. The moment it entered, the overwhelming stench of blood nearly dispersed Heavenly Insect's spiritual sense.

He also discovered that the Black Nether Ants responsible for sorting the spirit beast carcasses in this chamber had turned scarlet all over. Their sturdy mandibles were larger as well, and their strength was several times that of ordinary Soldier Ants.

These blood-colored Black Nether Ants were clearly far stronger in battle than ordinary Soldier Ants, almost rivaling high-tier spirit beasts.

Excellent, excellent. These blood-colored Black Nether Ants have even greater potential. They're certainly worth raising, Heavenly Insect thought with great satisfaction.