Insect Mother
The surface of the stagnant water suddenly swelled up.
It wasn't bubbles; something was pushing up the entire surface of the water from below, stretching the oily green film into a translucent sheet. With a muffled "pop," water splashed outwards, and a cloyingly sweet and fishy smell wafted over.
Lu Heng paused, raising his hand to shield his nose.
At the center of the whirlpool, something slowly rose to the surface.
The creature was about half a person's height, its entire body a swollen, grayish-white color, like a bloated heart. Its surface was covered with bluish-black veins, pulsating rhythmically. Several cracks appeared at the top, densely packed with undeveloped insect eggs. Tiny insect shadows writhed beneath the translucent egg membranes. Large clumps of silt and decaying roots trailed behind it. As it rose to the surface, wisps of black mucus seeped into the water, making the oily green surface even more murky.
Lu Heng raised his wrist, pointing the Wristband at the object.
The screen flickered twice, and the displayed authentication information made his pupils shrink slightly.
[Insect Mother (Bronze Tier): Hive Core Unit. Capable of spraying corrosive venom; its primary function is the continuous production of various mutated Insect Swarm. Possesses psychotropic abilities, releasing a special odor to disrupt the minds of its prey.]
Bronze Tier.
It's not a judgment, it's an identification and confirmation.
Lu Heng's gaze lingered for a moment on the cracks riddled with insect eggs. Insect Swarm —meaning the source of the overwhelming Insect Tide outside the depression was this very thing. As long as it kept jumping, the insects would never be eradicated.
As he was thinking, the wind changed direction.
The smell wafted over.
It wasn't exactly fragrant, nor was it exactly foul; it was a strange sweetness, like overripe, rotten fruit, mixed with an indescribable warmth that went straight into my nose. As I smelled it, a voice in my head said, "Come closer, even closer, there's no danger."
Lu Heng paused, his eyes instantly turning cold.
An instinctive revulsion rose from the bottom of his stomach, like someone brushing a feather against the back of his neck. Almost without hesitation, his Mental Energy surged outwards from between his brows—
With a soft "hum," it was as if some invisible thread in the air had been snapped. The sweet, cloying scent suddenly stopped, and the Insect Mother on the water's surface twitched violently, its slits at the tip opening and closing with a sharp, almost ear-piercing screech.
Mental temptation.
It was useful to him, but that was all it was good for—"useful."
However, the reaction from the Blood Taisui was much more intense.
Lu Heng felt a heat on the back of his neck, and the Mycelium beneath his armor instantly taut—not from fear, but from rage. A mental wave, far more ferocious than his own mental shock, blasted out from the Blood Armor, like a net with barbs, slamming down on the Insect Mother.
There was no probing, no warning in that fluctuation, only the naked, apex predator's hunger: mine.
The Insect Mother's hiss changed tone, from provocation to a shrill scream. The slits at its tip suddenly opened, and a stream of dark green venom shot out like an arrow— the Mycelium of the Blood Taisui didn't even try to dodge, colliding head-on with the venom, hissing and producing a layer of white smoke. But the Mycelium itself didn't break; instead, it curled back up along the direction of the venom, wrapping around the Insect Mother's body.
Lu Heng didn't want to see what happened next.
The Insect Mother struggled desperately, spraying venom in gushes. The dark green droplets hissed as they corroded the surrounding water, but the Mycelium tightened its grip, burrowing into the cracks in her skin and into the openings where the eggs lay, twisting and sucking them from the inside. The Insect Mother's throbbing grew weaker and weaker, and her grayish-white body shriveled at a visible speed. The undeveloped eggs didn't even have time to struggle before they were ground to dust along with the mother.
It only took a few minutes from start to finish.
The Mycelium has loosened.
A clump of grayish-white ash drifted down from the water's surface, only to be blown away by the wind before it even touched the water. Only a few wisps of dark green venom remained on the surface, which were quickly swept away by the Mycelium retracted by the Blood Taisui.
The depression fell completely silent.
Lu Heng stood on the bank, looking at the stagnant water before him, his brows furrowed tightly.
nausea.
It wasn't the Insect Mother —at least Insect Mother was an opponent, and her death was relatively quick. What was disgusting was this water: oily green, with an iridescent film floating on it, and black slime seeping from the Insect Mother at the bottom, its sweet, fishy smell mixed with the sour smell of venom; just one whiff made your throat taste bitter.
He looked down at the Blood Taisui.
The Mycelium, its surface speckled with white spots carved out by the venom, writhed restlessly, conveying a sense of unease, as if it were still hungry and wanted more.
"Perfect." Lu Heng pointed to the water's surface, "Go down and purify this water."
The Blood Taisui conveyed a clear sense of disdain.
"Don't be picky." Lu Heng's tone left no room for negotiation. "The residual poison at the bottom of the water, the slime of the Insect Mother —it's all your food. Eat it all."
After hesitating for a couple of seconds, the Blood Taisui finally succumbed to its appetite, and several thick Mycelium reluctantly ventured into the water, spreading out along the bottom. The oily green water surface cleared in concentric circles around the Mycelium, the rainbow-colored membrane was ripped up and absorbed, and the black slime at the bottom was uprooted and dragged into the Mycelium.
Lu Heng stood on the shore waiting, while spreading his senses to warn the surroundings— the Insect Mother was dead, the Insect Swarm had lost its command, and the remaining insects on the outer edge of the depression were disintegrating and posed no immediate threat.
The clarity of the water at the bottom expanded in concentric circles, and it looked like it was about to cover the entire depression.
Suddenly, the Blood Taisui conveyed a sense of doubt.
The Mycelium stirred at the bottom of the water and brought something up with it.
With a "plop," the thing was dropped by the Mycelium onto the muddy ground at Lu Heng's feet.
Lu Heng looked down.
It was about the size of a fist, dark brown in color, with layers of carapace-like patterns on its surface, forming a perfectly round box shape. A few tiny Insect Crystal were embedded in the seams, faintly glowing. There was no keyhole, no gaps, it was a single, seamless piece, like a flattened insect egg.
He raised his wrist, pointing the Wristband at the object.
A faint light flashed on the screen--
[Insect Plague Treasure Chest: A special item from this Insect Plague event. Opening it will grant you exclusive items for combating the Insect Plague.]
Lu Heng stroked the shell-like patterns on the surface of the box a couple of times, and without much hesitation, he pried it open forcefully.
With a soft "click," the box split open at the seam. There was no light or sound, only three items rolling out and landing in my palm.
The first item was a small, sealed tube. The tube was made of some kind of translucent keratinous material, and inside it was sealed a white pill the size of a fingernail, which had no odor.
The Wristband was photographed--
[Insect Repellent: Special Consumable. Effectively repels all mutated insects within range, with significant effects on Insect Nest units. Duration: approximately 12 hours. Item exclusive to this Insect Plague.]
The second item was a solid, dark brown block with visible patterns of insect carapace fragments on its surface. It was hard to the touch and had a faint earthy smell when brought close.
[Insect Carapace Fertilizer: A special fertilizer made from crushed and compressed insect beetles. It is highly fertile and can significantly promote crop growth.]
The third item is a palm-sized round shield, made entirely of layers of insect carapace pressed together. The edges are polished smooth, and it feels heavy in the hand. The surface still retains the keratinous texture unique to Grey Carapace Insect carapaces.
[Insect Carapace Shield (Black Iron Tier): A shield made from compressed insect armor. It possesses a certain level of physical defense and is lightweight and durable.]
Lu Heng laid out the three items in a row and examined them for a long time.
Insect Repellent, for getting rid of bugs, lasts twelve hours. Insect Carapace Fertilizer, for farming. Insect Carapace Shield, Black Iron Tier defense, inferior to his Blood Armor and even inferior to the protection of the Bone-Shaving Knife.
He paused for two seconds, then gathered the three items back into his palm.
It's really useless to him now.
The Insect Repellent was too short-lived, only providing temporary relief; fertilizer was useless for someone like him who was constantly on the move in the apocalypse; and the shield was even more of a waste, as the Blood Taisui was the best shield available, and he couldn't spare the resources to raise a second one.
Lu Heng shook his head, put the three items into the Wristband's compartment, and straightened up.
The wind blew in from outside the depression, carrying the astringent scent of the woods. The stagnant water had been almost completely purified by the Blood Taisui; the oily green color had faded, and the surface was clear enough to see the bottom, even the pebbles and decaying roots underneath. The sweet, fishy smell had mostly dissipated, leaving only a faint, earthy scent similar to that after rain.
He turned around, glanced back at the way he had come, and then turned towards the northeast where the Insect Tide was coming from.
The Insect Mother is gone, and the Insect Swarm is collapsing.
But the Insect Plague in this world will obviously not end with the death of a single Insect Mother.
Lu Heng took a step forward and continued walking.