Chapter 50
Big Pineapple's frenzied movements paused for a moment, and then he fell silent.
The black mist slowly dispersed. He did not know what he wanted to do now.
Nor did he know what he should do.
His heart was deeply conflicted.
Or rather, deep down, he actually wanted to see this grandson or granddaughter of his.
But he did not dare say it.
He was afraid.
He was terrified.
The way he was now...
In truth, the moment he dispersed the black mist around him, he had already made his choice.
Deep down, he wanted more than anything to see this descendant of his.
He had already missed out on too much with his son.
Zhang Baoguo hesitated as she watched the black mist disperse before her.
Everything that had just happened within that mist was still vivid in her mind.
A mosquito had been thrown inside and exploded.
The blood mist was still drifting in midair, and the heavy stench of blood filled her nostrils without a moment's respite.
Should I go in?
The other party seemed to know her father or grandfather.
The being inside had dispersed the black mist after hearing her father's and grandfather's names.
But could it be a trap?
Both sides remained silent, waiting, as time stretched on endlessly.
At that moment, Big Pineapple desperately suppressed the frenzy within his heart.
A trace of clarity occasionally flashed through his blood-red eyes.
His vision could only reach as far as the area the black mist had covered earlier. He could not see beyond that range.
So, as long as the other party walked another ten meters forward, he would be able to see his grandson.
At that moment, his heart was unbearably conflicted. He wanted his grandson to come inside and let him have a look at him.
Yet he also wanted him to leave quickly. He feared that, in his current state, he would hurt him.
An Asura Clan member tentatively stepped into the area previously shrouded in black mist. Nothing happened.
Another Asura Clan member stepped inside. Everything remained normal.
"Senior, are you unable to move? Could you tell me what happened in there? Are you unable to leave that place?"
Zhang Baoguo's voice rang out again, but Big Pineapple still chose silence.
In the end, Zhang Baoguo did not enter that area.
Because she was the king of the Asura Clan, she had to take responsibility not only for her own life, but for every member of the Asura Clan as well.
So she could not gamble with her life.
This was what her grandfather, the first Asura King, had written in The Way of Kings.
Her father, for example, was someone who liked to gamble with his own life.
Although she still admired her father greatly, Zhang Baoguo did not much like his way of doing things.
Afterward, she had people cordon off the entire area that had previously been shrouded in black mist.
She designated it a forbidden zone and forbade anyone from entering.
Zhang Baoguo left, taking all the Asuras with her.
In the end, Big Pineapple never got to see his granddaughter.
He stood quietly in midair, his blood-red eyes looking into the distance. Though he could see nothing, with nothing but scriptures filling his vision.
At that moment, however, he felt his heart gradually begin to calm.
That calm did not last long before he returned to his previous frenzied state, roaring again and again, repeatedly ramming his head and body against the invisible, transparent barrier before him.
At times, he let out grotesque, sinister laughter; at others, terrifying howls.
Everyone in the livestream felt that they were not watching a transmigrator who had traveled to another world, but a horror movie-or, for that matter, a madman.
In the fifth year of the third Asura King's reign, fifty years had passed since the ant queen fled to the west.
Back then, Zhang Aimin had taken advantage of the ant queen's injuries to keep it pinned down, never giving him any opportunity to grow and develop.
He had beaten him all the way to the west, and even afterward, he had continued launching a western expedition every five years.
That year, Zhang Baoguo carried on her father's tradition, leading five hundred thousand Asura Clan members westward and winning a great victory, slaughtering over eighty thousand soldiers of the ant army.
Strangely, however, they did not find the ant queen. They cleared out an ant nest, exterminated every ant inside, and returned.
In the tenth year, the second western expedition began. This time, he led seven hundred thousand Asura Clan members.
They did not see the ant queen. What they saw was the Ant Clan, blanketing the sky and earth, swarming over every mountain and plain!
As it turned out, as early as twenty years ago, after the incident with Zhang Aimin, he had already discovered that those four-armed fellows came to attack him at regular intervals.
So he calculated the timing and built two ant nests.
To make those fellows think he had yet to recover his strength and had few ants, they preferred to travel farther afield to search for food.
They kept the place where they lived lush and green, full of birdsong and fragrant flowers.
In truth, apart from that one area, the ants had already gnawed their way through the entire west.
The ant queen's thoughts were simple. Even after three generations-Big Pineapple, Zhang Aimin, and Zhang Baoguo-took turns beating him, he had never actually thought of revenge.
His only thought was to survive.
And to survive, he needed powerful military strength and more worker ants. Only then could he stop those people from attacking his home again and again.
So he began to hide-or rather, he had already been hiding ever since he fled to the west.
But Zhang Aimin still refused to let him be, so he created a second ant nest.
The ant queen had never thought of destroying anything. From beginning to end, it had only wanted to live. That had been true when he was forced to emerge from his egg, and it remained true afterward.
But what it did not know was that sometimes, its very existence was an original sin.
Because, by living, it would affect others' ability to live.
From beginning to end, theirs had been a struggle that could only end in death.
All of this had been destined the moment he crawled out of his egg.
Zhang Baoguo's expression did not change at the sight of so many ants. She commanded the Asura Clan to change formation, fighting the ants until heaven and earth were turned upside down.
The Asuras were an inherently warlike race, fearless of life and death once battle began.
The Ant Clan obeyed the ant queen's orders. Even if ordered to die, they would not hesitate in the slightest.
These two races collided.
Ten days. The battle continued for ten straight days, without the slightest pause or rest.
Both the Asuras and the Ant Clan suffered countless casualties.
But by then, the Asura Clan was exhausted. Their supernatural power had been flawed to begin with.
Even though they had constantly tempered themselves over the years, repeatedly improving their ability to endure pain, they still seemed somewhat powerless before these endless ants.
After ten days of fighting, fewer than two hundred thousand of the seven hundred thousand Asuras remained.
This was no battlefield. It was a millstone of flesh and blood!
Although, at the very beginning, their supernatural power let them kill the enemy two against one, or even one against one, and some powerful ability users could even fight many opponents alone without trouble.
Once the pain struck afterward, however, they could only withdraw and let others take their places. This cycle repeated, but the ants were endless, while their strength was ultimately limited.
Zhang Baoguo stared at the scene before her, her eyes nearly splitting with fury. Of the seven hundred thousand troops, she had lost five hundred thousand in just one battle!
And judging by the situation, the ants behind them were still endless. Continuing to fight here would only lead to death.
But should I retreat?
Though there were still a million Asura Clan members back home, most were elderly, weak, women, or children. It was said that any Asura who picked up a weapon was a warrior.
But there was still a gap in physical fitness between them and true warriors!
Yet continuing to fight here would achieve nothing, even if every last one of them died.
So someone had to return and spread word of what had happened here.
They had to be told to prepare.
Otherwise, they simply dared not imagine the consequences if these ants suddenly descended upon them.
And all she could do was buy as much time as possible. Otherwise, those behind her would have no time to prepare at all.
Thus, after Zhang Baoguo sent people back with the news, he fought while retreating, their numbers dropping from two hundred thousand to one hundred thousand, then fifty thousand.
Even so, she still did not give up.
She had thought it through. What she needed to do now, and what she could do, was kill as much of the ants' fighting force as possible.
She did not believe the ants were endless!!!
A guard shouted before Zhang Baoguo, "Your Majesty, the forbidden zone is behind us!"
Hearing this, Zhang Baoguo immediately recalled the sight of that ant entering the black mist and exploding on the spot.
Over the years, the black mist had continued expanding. Though it was not fast, it was steadily spreading into the surrounding area.
At that rate, it would reach the Asura Clan's territory within two hundred years.
Because of her orders, the Asura Clan did not dare enter. Though some children had gone inside and come back out safely.
Far more, however, had gone mad, and no small number had vanished inside.
Thus, it had truly become a forbidden zone. The fence, originally built along the edge of the black mist, was now being built a thousand meters beyond it.
During these ten years, he had only just taken the throne, with one matter after another to handle and western expeditions to lead. Previously, she had planned to speak with the person inside after this expedition ended.
Because he felt that the being inside might truly have some connection to them.
Other creatures, such as mosquitoes, would explode on the spot upon entering.
But if Asura Clan members entered in disbelief, their mortality rate did not quite reach one hundred percent.
Have I actually retreated all the way here now?
In other words, another five days' journey would bring her into Asura territory.
Even if she continued to stall, she could only buy half a month.
At this thought, Zhang Baoguo's expression hardened. She ordered the others to continue fighting as they retreated, deciding to speak with the one inside.
Zhang Baoguo came to a halt before the black mist, listening to the deranged, frenzied howling within.
She kept calling into it, trying to get a response, but all she heard was still crazed howling and roaring.
Turning to look at the fewer than twenty thousand Asuras remaining behind her, Zhang Baoguo gritted her teeth. Continuing to fight would mean death anyway.
Rather than that, she might as well take a gamble!
These ants had no intelligence. They would only follow the ant queen's orders to surround and kill her and her people.
He had already made his plan. Even if he entered the black mist and died inside immediately, these ants would still charge in after him.
At worst, they would perish together!
At this thought, Zhang Baoguo roared, "Enter the forbidden zone!!!"
As the first Asura Clan member charged into the black mist, their body abruptly exploded, blood mist scattering.
Zhang Baoguo's heart sank, but she continued shouting, "Go in!"
With that, she took the lead and charged into the black mist.