The four no longer lingered in battle, charging forward with all their strength. God-Devouring Insects constantly surged out along the way, but they were either repelled or bypassed. After rushing past more than a dozen bone mountains, a massive cave entrance finally appeared ahead. Deep within the cave, faint dark red light flickered.
"That's the exit of the nest," Dai Chengfeng checked the map, "Pass through this cave and we can bypass the central altar, directly reaching the western side of the wasteland. There's another entrance to the Forest of Divine Fall there. But deep within the cave is the God-Devouring Insects' mother nest—we must pass through quickly. Once entangled by the mother insect, we'll be in trouble."
"What strength is the mother insect?" Tang Wulin asked.
"At least equivalent to a 2nd-Class god, and it can continuously produce God-Devouring Insects. Fighting it in the nest, we'll be trapped in an endless sea of insects."
"Then don't get entangled, charge straight through." Qian Renxue decided without hesitation.
The four charged into the cave. The interior was even more spacious than imagined. The cave walls were densely covered with holes, countless God-Devouring Insects drilling in and out. The deeper they went, the denser the God-Eroding Miasma in the air became, already condensing into dark red liquid that dripped from the cave ceiling, corroding pits into the ground.
Suddenly, the entire cave shook violently. In the darkness ahead, two lantern-sized red lights lit up. Accompanied by heavy crawling sounds, a colossal creature slowly revealed itself.
It was a God-Devouring Insect magnified a thousand or ten thousand times—over fifty meters long, its entire body covered in black-gold carapace, its mouthparts like giant scissors emitting ear-piercing metallic grinding sounds as they opened and closed. It emitted the aura of peak 2nd-Class god, and even more terrifyingly, behind it, more God-Devouring Insects were pouring out from various holes, filling half the cave in the blink of an eye.
"The mother insect!" Dai Chengfeng's expression changed, "It's actually guarding the only path!"
"I'll hold it off, you all charge through!" Tang Wulin didn't hesitate. The Golden Dragon Spear erupted with dazzling golden light, thrusting toward the mother insect.
"Wulin!" Qian Renxue wanted to stop him, but it was too late. Tang Wulin was already fighting the mother insect, Golden Dragon power fully erupting, temporarily suppressing it.
"Go!" Bibi Dong grabbed Qian Renxue's hand, transforming into a cyan light and charging forward. Dai Chengfeng followed closely behind, wind blades clearing the way, sweeping aside the ordinary God-Devouring Insects along the path.
"No, Wulin is still behind!" Qian Renxue struggled.
"He won't die, but if you go back, we'll all die here!" Bibi Dong's voice carried a rare sternness, "Believe in your man. He has the Golden Dragon King bloodline—he won't die that easily!"
Qian Renxue gritted her teeth, finally stopping her struggle. She spread her six wings, sacred flames condensing into a cone shape before her, helping Dai Chengfeng clear the way together.
From behind came Tang Wulin's roars and the mother insect's screeches. The entire cave was shaking, constantly dropping debris. But Qian Renxue didn't dare look back—she feared that once she turned, she wouldn't be able to resist charging back.
Finally, light appeared ahead—that was the cave's exit.
The three charged out of the cave, returning to the wasteland. This was already the western side of the wasteland. In the distance, the outline of a black forest could be seen—that was the Forest of Divine Fall.
"Wulin..." Qian Renxue turned to look at the cave, her eyes full of worry.
"He's coming." Bibi Dong suddenly said.
Before her words fell, a streak of golden light charged out from the cave, heavily crashing to the ground—it was Tang Wulin. His Golden Dragon King armor was damaged in multiple places, blood at the corner of his mouth, but his eyes were still bright.
Immediately after, the mother insect's massive body also charged out from the cave, but its movements suddenly stiffened—embedded in its head was a Golden Dragon Spear, the shaft completely buried with only the spear tail trembling outside.
Tang Wulin wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and grinned: "Done."
The mother insect emitted a final unwilling screech, then crashed to the ground with a thunderous sound. Its massive body began to disintegrate, turning into black dust that dissipated. The ordinary God-Devouring Insects also lost their vitality after the mother insect's death, retreating like a tide.
"Are you alright?" Qian Renxue rushed over to help him up.
"Minor injuries, nothing serious." Tang Wulin pulled out the Golden Dragon Spear, green blood of the mother insect still staining the shaft, "This beast's carapace was really hard. If I hadn't found its nerve node, it really wouldn't have been easy to kill."
Dai Chengfeng examined Tang Wulin's injuries and breathed a sigh of relief: "Good, they're all superficial wounds. The Golden Dragon King's recovery is astonishing—you'll be fine after resting a while."
Bibi Dong gazed toward the distant Forest of Divine Fall and said in a heavy voice: "We have no time to rest. The commotion from the battle just now was too great—we may have already alerted other existences on the wasteland. Before they react, immediately enter the Forest of Divine Fall. Once there, the God-Devouring Insects won't dare follow, because the forest has their natural predators."
"Natural predators?" Qian Renxue asked.
"In the Forest of Divine Fall grows a type of 'Soul-Devouring Tree' that specifically feeds on divine souls. Although God-Devouring Insects can devour divine power, their divine souls are weak—their favorite prey of the Soul-Devouring Trees," Dai Chengfeng explained, "So, God-Devouring Insects never approach the Forest of Divine Fall. Once we get there, at least we won't have to worry about insect tides."
"But Soul-Devouring Trees are even more dangerous," Tang Wulin smiled bitterly, "Wolves before, tigers behind—this place really isn't fit for humans."
"This place was never meant for the living," Bibi Dong said indifferently, "This is the divine tomb, the kingdom of the dead. We living people barging in are intruders to begin with. Continue forward. The true danger has only just begun."
After a brief rest, the four set out toward that black forest.
And behind them, in the depths of the wasteland, countless slumbering existences were slowly awakening.
Pairs of eyes opened in the darkness, gazing in the direction of their departure.
In those eyes were madness, resentment, greed, and also... a hint of barely detectable anticipation.
After ten thousand years, living people had finally once again stepped into this forgotten land.
The Abyss had awakened.
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