"Holy shit! What's going on?!"
Chen Hao and his friends, who were just about to carry away the pig carcasses, were completely stunned by the sudden turn of events.
Before they could even react, the swarm of insects completely engulfed them.
"Ah! My eyes!"
"Help! A bug flew up my nose!"
"Don't bite me! Get away!"
In an instant, screams, curses, and the sound of frantic swatting blended into one, creating a scene of utter chaos.
Although the insects didn't have much Attack Power, their sheer numbers were overwhelming.
Imagine hundreds of bugs swarming a single person, trying to crawl into your eyes, nose, and ears. The feeling was simply worse than being stabbed.
"Wind Blade Wolf! Use Wind Blade!"
In the chaos, Chen Hao tried to command his Contracted Beast to counterattack.
However, his already heavily injured Wind Blade Wolf was now covered in dozens of cockroaches. It was rolling on the ground in a frenzy, howling in distress. How could it possibly have the focus to use a skill?
And just as they were thrown into disarray by the insect swarm, their formation in shambles, Gu Yuexi made her move.
Her figure was like a phantom, silently slipping into the fray.
Her target was the tallest, skinniest student.
The boy had his eyes shut, waving his arms wildly to drive away the flies on his face, completely oblivious to the arrival of the grim reaper.
SHLICK!
A cold light flashed!
The dagger in Gu Yuexi's hand, like the fangs of a viper, slit his throat with vicious precision.
Blood instantly gushed out.
The tall, skinny student's movements froze. His eyes bulged, his face a mask of terror and confusion as he fell rigidly to the ground.
A one-hit kill!
"W-Wang!"
A student next to him saw this and screamed, scared out of his wits.
Chen Hao saw it too. The color drained from his face instantly as a bone-deep chill shot up from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.
"F-First-Grade Middle Stage!"
The moment Gu Yuexi attacked, he had clearly felt the eruption of Qi Blood fluctuations from her!
That was definitely the power of a First-Grade Middle Stage!
'But how is that possible?!'
'Doesn't she have terrible Martial Arts Talent? Wasn't she still at the First-Grade Early Stage even as a high school senior? When did she break through?!'
'And this combat prowess is insane!'
'A First-Grade Middle Stage one-shotting a First-Grade Early Stage Martial Artist? That... that combat experience and explosive power are comparable to a First-Grade Late Stage Martial Artist, aren't they?!'
'And that mosquito!'
Chen Hao's head snapped toward Gu Yuexi's shoulder. He saw that the giant black mosquito had remained as steady as a mountain from the very beginning, completely unaffected by the insect swarm!
And those insects... they had appeared without any warning and attacked with such precision and unity!
A thought that made his scalp tingle exploded in his mind.
'These insects... could they be controlled by *it*?!'
'That's it! It has to be!'
'No wonder! No wonder there was a sudden insect infestation in the classroom yesterday! No wonder this swarm appeared just now!'
'What kind of monster *is* this?!'
'It can not only evolve, but also control swarms of insects?!'
'If... if it really has such terrifying abilities...'
'Then... then these Iron-skinned Pigs on the ground...'
Chen Hao's mind felt as if it had been struck by lightning, instantly connecting all the clues!
'So... so everything she said earlier was true!'
'They really did kill these pigs!'
'After all this time, I was the ridiculous, posturing clown?!'
'I was so smug, thinking I'd stumbled upon a treasure left behind by some professional hunting team. I was even shamelessly analyzing the situation, planning to claim the credit for myself...'
At that moment, endless regret and fear washed over him like a tidal wave.
"Run! Run for your lives!"
His intense will to live made Chen Hao cast aside all thoughts of face or pig carcasses. He turned and tried to bolt into the woods.
However, Chu Sheng had already anticipated his move.
'Trying to run? Did you ask for my permission?'
With a thought, he issued a command to his little brothers lying in wait on the ground.
'Second squad, go! Trip him!'
Dozens of cockroaches and stink bugs lurking on the ground instantly shot out from the grass, charging fearlessly toward Chen Hao's feet.
"Fuck!"
Chen Hao felt his feet slip out from under him. Losing his balance, he face-planted with a SPLAT!
And in that one second of delay, Gu Yuexi's figure appeared behind him like a shadow.
Feeling the icy killing intent behind him, Chen Hao was scared witless. He scrambled to turn around, his face devoid of its earlier arrogance and pride, now filled with nothing but endless terror and regret.
"D-don't kill me! I was wrong! I was really wrong!"
"The p-pigs! They're all yours! I don't want them! I'm begging you, please let me go!"
He begged incoherently, not even sparing a thought for his own Contracted Beast.
However, the only response he received was a pair of cold, merciless eyes and a dagger gleaming with a frigid light.
"Too late."
SHLICK!
The dagger fell, clean and decisive.
The expression on Chen Hao's face was forever frozen in that moment of terror and regret.
The remaining two students were completely stupefied by the scene.
Their minds went blank, with only a single thought remaining: "run."
"Demons! They're demons!"
"Help me! I don't want to die!"
They didn't even think of fighting back. All they knew was to turn and flee in different directions, letting out desperate screams.
But it was all in vain.
Under the harassment of Chu Sheng's overwhelming insect swarm and the pursuit of Gu Yuexi's phantom-like Body Technique, they didn't make it ten meters before meeting the same fate as their companions.
Soon, silence returned to the forest.
Only the thick stench of blood and the corpses strewn across the ground remained.
Gu Yuexi walked over to Chen Hao's corpse and expressionlessly wiped the blood from her dagger, as if she had just done something utterly insignificant.
For her, eliminating the problem at its root was the first Law of survival.
Meanwhile, Chu Sheng had already flown eagerly to the side of the dying Wind Blade Wolf.
'Heh heh, husky, don't blame me. Blame your master for being the wrong choice!'
Chu Sheng muttered to himself, then ruthlessly plunged his [Armor-Piercing Spike] into the Wind Blade Wolf's neck!
[Qi Blood +3.1]
[Qi Blood +3.2]
[Ding! Host has absorbed 9.2 Qi Blood! Current Total Qi Blood is 96.1!]
[Ding! Blood digestion in progress. Estimated time: 30 minutes. 2.8 Evolution Points will be gained!]
'Awesome!'
Chu Sheng satisfyingly retracted his proboscis. Seeing his Qi Blood Value skyrocket again, he felt absolutely wonderful.
'96.1!'
'Just 3.9 more Qi Blood to reach the 100-point mark!'
'I'm so close! It looks like I can make it today!'
Chu Sheng's heart filled with anticipation. What would his third evolution be like?
'My current Race is "Blade-winged Blood Mosquito." What kind of mosquito will I become next?'
'What's more!'
'Once my Qi Blood reaches one hundred, I'll become a First-Grade Early Stage Demon Beast!'
He had a feeling this evolution would be far more incredible than the previous two.
The more Chu Sheng thought about it, the more excited he became. He glanced down at the human corpses on the ground, hesitated for a moment, but ultimately gave up on the idea of drinking their blood.
It wasn't that he was squeamish, it was mainly because...
[Human, First-Grade Early Stage Martial Artist, Qi Blood Value approx. 120, Blood Quality: Inferior.]
[Human, First-Grade Late Stage Beast Tamer, Qi Blood Value approx. 25, Blood Quality: Extremely Inferior (Debilitated).]
Chu Sheng: "..."
'Forget it, the quality is just too poor!'
'I probably wouldn't gain many points from drinking it, and it'd have a nasty medicinal aftertaste. Not worth it!'
With a thought, he began to consider what to do with his twenty-some surplus Evolution Points.
[Ding! Current Total Evolution Points: 22.8!]
'I'll save ten points for evolution, and use the rest to upgrade my Skills!'
Chu Sheng looked at the Skills on his panel and began to ponder.