The terror of a Demon Insect King was beyond doubt, and the true methods of nurturing them had long been banned from circulation in the cultivation world. Because such a creature currently could not be absolutely controlled, and its fierce, cunning nature made peaceful coexistence with other life forms impossible, it was resisted by almost all practitioners and living beings.
Even in territories ruled by spirit beasts, a Demon Insect King was strictly forbidden from gaining a foothold. Even demonic cultivators forbade the appearance of such a nurturing method, as raising one was essentially destroying one's own foundation.
And yet, a Four Saints Demon-Nurturing Grand Array had appeared right here on Qi Ping's land! And it had actually succeeded!
No matter how Qi Ping had speculated, he never imagined that the place he had been cultivating all this time had given birth to such a thing.
'No wonder there was a constant stream of spiritual energy rising from below...'
The materials required to nurture a Demon Insect King were incredibly precious. Even the tiny amount of spiritual energy that leaked out was more than enough to nurture ordinary first-rank spirit herbs.
'And no wonder that ever since the demon insects appeared, a batch was lured here every three days. They were likely being summoned by that Demon Insect King below.'
'It's a good thing I had the Golden Marrow Bees train in battle formations and later bred the High-speed Ring-cutter Bees. They blocked wave after wave of incoming demon insects. Otherwise, if those insects had been controlled by the King and used to destroy the array's foundation, allowing this creature to escape... the consequences would be unthinkable.'
Qi Ping was certain that something had gone wrong with the array; otherwise, it shouldn't have given the Demon Insect King an opening to summon external help. Either the array had fallen into disrepair over the years, or the one who set it had intentionally left a loophole.
'But this Demon Insect King clearly hasn't been awake for long, and its awakening coincides with the emergence of the demon insects... could this be too much of a coincidence?'
Qi Ping felt it was likely not a coincidence. Too many such "coincidences" had occurred lately.
There was the Spirit Beast Nurturing: Demon Insect Chapter gifted by Sister Nan, and the mysterious hidden grotto on Peak 007 in Area A. There was the secret realm at the border of Qingshi and Baiyun Counties spewing out massive numbers of demon insects. Now, there was a Demon Insect King appearing beneath the Blood Ginseng.
Combined with the Blood-Sin Insects appearing in the mountain stream where Fat Zhou lived, the world-shaking chaos of the rogue cultivators, the members of the Evil Devotee Alliance mingling with the marauders, and the strange behavior of the Qingyuan Sect...
All these events had occurred in succession over these past few years, transforming the originally peaceful and stable Qingtian Domain into a place of chaos and peril! The convergence of all these factors suggested that an earth-shattering event was brewing within the Qingtian Domain.
'It is a pity my information is too limited. I cannot deduce the true undercurrents at play.'
'For now, all I can do is secretly accumulate strength and wait for the right moment.'
At the very least, with the Li-Fire Crow and his bee transformations as trump cards, Qi Ping was confident he could preserve his life as long as he wasn't sucked into the center of the whirlpool.
'But right now, if this Demon Insect King isn't strong enough yet, I shall gratefully accept its bounty...'
Since he had discovered its existence, Qi Ping could not allow such a creature to escape. Although contracting the Demon Insect King was impossible, both the King-grade spirit insect corpse and the bloodline power of the King itself could be used later. When he reached Foundation Establishment, he could attempt to use these two bloodlines to evolve his bee swarm.
An entity of this level was not something one could buy with spirit stones. Even a Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Qingyuan Sect would find it nearly impossible to obtain such materials. Thus, if he secured these two carcasses, they would serve as the ultimate resources for his bees' future evolution!
Beyond that, the four Spirit-Origin Stone Pillars were also treasures. The fundamental reason why the Blood Ginseng patch had such dense spiritual energy was because of those four pillars. Spirit-Origin Stone Pillars were crafted from Spirit-Origin Stones, which were precious materials used as the cores for high-level arrays. Spirit-Origin Stones were a by-product of spirit stone mines; they contained incredibly dense spiritual energy, but it was highly volatile and mixed. Even high-level cultivators found it troublesome to absorb, so they were mostly used to power grand formations.
Qi Ping's primary interest in the four pillars was using them to nurture spirit herbs. According to the bees' perception, although the energy in these pillars had been heavily consumed, the remaining reserves should be more than enough to nurture high-tier first-rank or even ordinary second-rank spirit herbs.
This meant that if he obtained these pillars, Qi Ping wouldn't have to strain himself to rent a spirit land in Area A for the time being. He could simply rent a larger plot in Area B and use these pillars to nurture his high-level herbs! The remaining energy in the pillars could be perfectly utilized by him!
This alone held a fatal attraction for Qi Ping. Therefore, provided he could ensure his own safety, he would find a way to secure both the insect corpse and the pillars.
Furthermore, aside from these two items, there were other objects in the cavern the bees couldn't describe, as well as mysterious symbols they didn't understand. These things also piqued Qi Ping's curiosity. Ancient texts even recorded that slaying a creature like a Demon Insect King could increase one's chances of enlightenment and one's affinity with the Dao.
So, Qi Ping planned to kill the Demon Insect King before exploring the rest of the grotto.
'I should see if there is a way to kill it while it is still pinned down by the array. It has only just been birthed; this is its weakest moment.'
'It's a pity the manual doesn't have more detailed information on the Four Saints Array and the Demon Insect King. I'll have to test it myself.'
After a moment of silence, Qi Ping quickly formulated a strategy.
"Bees, go in groups of ten. Form your battle arrays and attack the Demon Insect King. Strike with all your might to see if you can wound or kill it!"
"Buzz... (Understood, Boss!)"
Following Qi Ping's order, four High-speed Ring-cutter Bees, three Ink-Armor Bees, and three Toxic Bees immediately formed an array and launched an attack. The reason he sent so few at first was that he feared the King could devour their energy. If he sent too many at once and they became its nourishment, it would be a disaster.
This combination of three bee types would allow him to test the King's attack power, defense, flexibility, and toxic resistance while it was bound by the array. Once he gathered this data, he could formulate a definitive plan for the kill.
Inside the cavern.
The blood-colored Demon Insect King struggled with its plump body, absolutely stunned. It was bad enough that these little bees weren't controlled by it, but now they actually dared to attack? Could they not feel the bloodline pressure emanating from it? This situation was entirely at odds with the memories of its bloodline inheritance.
However, though it was confused, it wasn't afraid. Even though its body was bound by the array, it wasn't something these little fellows could touch. Perhaps the previous failure to control them was simply because the distance was too great. Once these little things drew near, the power of its mental enslavement would show its true strength!