A towering Insectoid with six arms and four eyes cradled his limbs and looked up at The Propagation divine remains.
He was the Locust-like Insectoid chieftain, king of the entire swarm—Insect King.
"Didn't expect the outside world to notice this place so quickly—looks like there's no time left to prepare."
He sensed several Emanator-level auras racing toward him.
And among them… one actually carried the aura of Propagation.
It must be his daughter, apparently given a human name by her birth-mother—Livelier?
To think she'd become the swarm's traitor; giving her special treatment for her Talents had been a mistake.
While Insect King pondered the divine remains, the ground shook violently.
"They're here…"
He turned and walked out of the transformed Insect Nest tree.
Seeing Kiana's group outside, he raised an arm and flicked it forward.
"Devour them, brave Locusts."
Countless Insectoids burst from the tree's holes and dove at Kiana and the others.
Mid-flight every Locust-like Insectoid turned jet-black; their once-vibrant life-aura became toxic.
(Think real locust plagues: when numbers hit critical mass the insects become poisonous.)
Their physical stats also spiked.
With the sky blotted out by the swarm, everyone drew their weapons.
"Heavenflame… come forth!"
"No!"
Livelier reached out too late; Kevin's strike had already unleashed a sky-scorching inferno.
A wall of insects peeled away; charred corpses rained down.
"Hold your breath—run!"
Livelier shouted the warning.
The fallen corpses began emitting black gas that rolled toward the group.
"This toxin scrambles Path Imaginary Energy—pull back!"
After analyzing the vapor with her Truth Clearance, Kiana yelled.
The instant she spoke everyone retreated.
If it could disrupt Imaginary Energy, it might also affect Honkai Energy, whose core is imaginary internal energy.
So caution ruled.
Even the newly made Emanators tread carefully.
They all sensed the Insectoid king was at minimum Emanator-level… Kiana frowned, lifted a finger toward the swarm.
"Bang—"
A single syllable; a sonic boom shot from her fingertip, punching into the swarm's heart.
Zzzzt—!
Boom—
Space fractured at the center, arcs of lightning tearing nearby insects into the spatial maelstrom.
One shot obliterated most of the swarm; the rift also blocked any poison drift.
That casual strike made Insect King narrow all four eyes in dread.
Just then Qlipoth appeared yet again.
"…"
Qlipoth glanced at the spatial tear, then stared straight at Kiana.
"Misunderstanding… won't do it again…"
Flushing, Kiana scratched her head and quickly apologized.
She wasn't scared, but this time the fault was hers.
Qlipoth swung his hammer, mended the rift, glanced toward the Divine Tree, and vanished.
The terror-struck Insect King exhaled in relief once Qlipoth disappeared.
The Bug Emperor of old had been hammered to death; that fear was etched into their genes.
Especially for the sentient ones.
"Bzzzz—"
The instant Qlipoth vanished, Insect King's wings vibrated at a weird frequency.
That eerie pulse swept the entire star system.
Every Insectoid battling the Qingqiu Army—or waiting on planets—turned toward the Hive-Mother.
They all froze, then beat their wings and sped to the nest.
The Qingqiu Fleet accelerated in pursuit.
Insect King looked at the corpses, opened his fang-filled maw, and inhaled.
The bodies dissolved into raw energy and streamed into his stomach.
Then he turned his gaze to Livelier.
She met his stare without fear.
"Come back—return to me."
!!!"
Livelier's pupils shrank; her body began walking toward him of its own accord.
Kiana darted in and knocked Livelier out cold.
A storm-wrapped figure plummeted, shredding the remaining insects overhead.
The tempest crashed beside Kiana; a slender hand swept out.
"Kiana, that big bug's their boss, right?"
The winds faded; Feixiao twin gun-blades in hand, eyes locked on the towering figure.
She actually felt pressure from him?
Feixiao stepped forward, eager for the fight.
"Kiana, leave him to me—okay?"
"Sure, but…"
Kiana glanced where Qlipoth had looked, hesitated, then shook her head. "If anything feels off, retreat immediately."
"Hey, 'failure' isn't in my dictionary."
With a cocky grin she lunged, blades leading.
Insect King thrust an arm to grab the stab, but Feixiao retracted and swept her other blade at his gut.
He caught that weapon just as firmly.
"Not bad."
Her eyes widened in delight, a red gleam flashing.
She squeezed the trigger—an energy round scorched his belly.
It only left a faint scratch on the adamant carapace.
Seeing the failure, she stabbed for his throat with her other gun-blade.
"Too slow."
Insect King tilted his head, voice cold as he stared down at her.
If this was all she had, she wasn't worth his time.
"Heh…"
Sensing his contempt, she chuckled, kicked his gut, and flipped back.
"Then let's get a bit serious."
Surrounded by jade gales, Feixiao hovered in mid-air.
A fox-shaped, horned, cyan-white Spirit coiled around her, glowing eyes fixed on Insect King.
This time he dropped his leisurely stance and freed his other arms.
Facing an Emanator, caution was required.
Even with a portion of the Bug Emperor's divine remains, overconfidence could be fatal.
And more than one Emanator stood before him.
He needed an opening—one eye slid toward the unconscious Livelier.
-------------------------------
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