Chapter 31: This Time, It's Stable
Su Xiao didn't know much about the [Greed Chapter], but after challenging the old sage, he understood one thing: his blade technique still needed further refinement, and the old sage was a good sparring partner.
Fatigue washed over him, and Su Xiao yawned. He was surprised to notice that the sky had already darkened; it had only been around three in the afternoon.
He took out his pocket watch to check the time. It was now six in the evening. Three hours had passed without him realizing it. The [Greed Chapter] blurred the concept of time, making one feel as if only a short while had gone by. This might be greed for time itself.
Su Xiao felt that to defeat the old sage, aside from improving his blade technique, he could only study whether the [Greed Chapter] had any loopholes or the like. However, the latter was not advisable.
As for equipment and such, they were completely useless. That place was a pure contest of technique, containing nothing else. Otherwise, the old sage wouldn't have been able to kill Su Xiao with a single stab. With Su Xiao's physique, he could withstand five or six strikes without issue.
Su Xiao lay down in the wooden shed to rest. Before long, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha returned, bringing a large pile of spoils.
There were quite a few second-stage insect nests in the swamp area. This expedition had destroyed a total of 28 second-stage nests, yielding 175,320 units of bio-energy.
Following the usual procedure, they went on a massive spawning spree. 876 new Demon Beasts were added, including 7 elite individuals.
Demon Beasts: 5,115.
Elite Demon Beasts: 49.
With the Demon Beast count surpassing the 5,000 mark, Su Xiao planned to attack the third-stage insect nests once the number exceeded 8,000. Those 12 third-stage nests were like big chunks of fat, each conservatively storing over 300,000 units of bio-energy.
Attacking a third-stage nest required an absolute numerical advantage in one's own insectoid forces. If it turned into a war of attrition, it would be a huge loss. The enemy would consume bio-energy to continuously spawn troops, and the Demon Beasts would suffer heavy casualties.
After this hunt, Su Xiao had Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha rest for six hours each, as the tasks ahead would be even more demanding.
Around one in the morning, Bubu Wang, Amu, and Baha each led 1,700 Demon Beasts out to hunt. The more Demon Beasts in each team, the faster they could capture nests, and the more bio-energy they would obtain.
At seven in the morning that day, a travel-worn Beini returned. At first glance, Su Xiao didn't even recognize her.
"You went mining too?"
"Meow!"
Beini pounced toward Su Xiao, but unfortunately, her legs were too short. Su Xiao grabbed her by the "fateful scruff of the neck," leaving her flailing her paws in the air.
"Oh? Got beaten up?"
"Meow~"
Beini's eyes were brimming with tears. She hadn't been beaten; she had been humiliated and nearly died.
"You went to provoke it. It's lucky you didn't die."
Beini ended up in such a miserable state because she sensed that the sacrificial divine ox might have some treasure. As it turned out, the moment she got close to the divine ox, it locked onto her.
The divine ox, perhaps bored, hung Beini on its horn and flung her away with a toss, intending to smash her to death. Or maybe it was venting its anger, having been offended by a group of humans earlier.
Fortunately, the team's storage space contained a custom parachute and protective gear for Beini. Otherwise, being flung several thousand meters into the air, even if she didn't die from the fall, the friction with the air at supersonic speed would have ignited her into a fireball. Clearly, the divine ox couldn't be bothered to crush her underfoot and just wanted to watch a firework.
"We'll get revenge later."
"Meow meow meow?"
Beini stared at Su Xiao in disbelief, meaning that she was lucky to have survived. Going back to court death might result in total annihilation.
After Beini slept for a while, she also joined the hunting force. Su Xiao split over 400 Demon Beasts from each of the three teams to form a 1,200-strong insectoid unit for Beini.
This gave them four insectoid units hunting simultaneously, greatly improving efficiency.
Time passed quickly, and soon it was four in the afternoon the next day. Before six in the evening, all four insectoid units returned. The reason was that the nearby second-stage nests had been hunted to extinction.
Not just second-stage nests; by the end, even first-stage nests were nowhere to be seen. The only ones left trembling in the surrounding area were the 12 third-stage nests.
Su Xiao had anticipated this. Resources wouldn't be infinite. With the base camp nest at its current level, to continue developing, they had to target the third-stage nests or expand the hunting range.
This hunt yielded a record-breaking amount of bio-energy: 67 first-stage nests and 53 second-stage nests, totaling 438,600 units of bio-energy.
Spawning continued. This session lasted over an hour. After repeated cultivation, the base camp nest's breeding speed for Demon Beasts had noticeably increased, and the chance of producing elite individuals was higher.
2,193 new Demon Beasts were added, including 25 elite individuals. The total number of Demon Beasts reached a terrifying 7,357.
Looking out, the tens of thousands of square meters of fungal carpet near the base camp was almost completely filled with Demon Beasts. Among them, the 14 Stingers looked quite pathetic.
Su Xiao decided to release these Stingers. After equipping them with sensing devices, he sent them westward and southward. Their tasks were to find other nests and "unveil the map," increasing the visible area on the virtual map.
Although the Demon Beast count hadn't reached 8,000, it was time to attack the third-stage nests.
At eight that evening, Su Xiao selected a third-stage nest and formulated a battle plan. Bubu Wang was to infiltrate the nest and harass its queen, at least making her anxious and unable to calmly command the lower-tier insectoids in battle.
Amu would lead 74 elite Demon Beasts as the vanguard. Each of these 74 elite Demon Beasts was at the boss level in a fourth-tier derivative world, with 89 points of True Strength and 93 points of True Agility. Together, they could slaughter an equal number of fourth-stage combat insectoids.
At nine in the evening, all the Demon Beasts in the mother nest set out in full force. With the [War Lord] title's bonus, each Demon Beast gained +2 Stamina and +2 Intelligence.
In the forest, the sound of dense running came. With this many Demon Beasts, stealth was impossible. The ground trembled slightly from their charge.
Under an ancient tree, two tree-rat-like creatures were fighting over a green fruit.
Rumble...
The ground shook. The quicker of the two tree rats immediately scurried up the tree, while the other looked toward the source of the noise. That glance was its downfall. It couldn't even move its legs, frozen stiff.
Demon Beasts rushed past the small tree rat. Just as it closed its eyes, waiting for death, a sharp claw picked it up and tossed it into the tree.
"Meow~"
Beini leaped onto the back of an elite Demon Beast and disappeared from the small tree rat's sight.
Where the Demon Beasts passed, the grass was flattened, and all beasts fled.
After charging for an hour and a half, the Demon Beast army halted. Half a kilometer ahead stood a sixty-meter-tall insect nest, surrounded by over two thousand combat insectoids. For a third-stage nest, maintaining such a standing force was already a significant expense.
"Roar!!"
The Demon Beasts let out a chorus of roars.
"Woof!"
Bubu Wang, at the very front, barked, and all the Demon Beasts surged forward.
Unexpectedly, several humanoid insectoids rushed out of the enemy mother nest. One of them was carrying an insectoid queen on its back. The queen... was trying to flee.
The battle ended in just fifteen minutes. Flames rose high as Amu, in his magma state, stood atop a pile of insect corpses, holding an unconscious insectoid queen in his hand.
Out of 7,357 Demon Beasts, 7,126 survived. Despite the numerical advantage, this insectoid nest was troublesome, featuring a large type of combat insectoid.
After clearing the battlefield, Bubu Wang reported to Su Xiao. They had seized 415 Life Stones (Medium), consistent with Bubu Wang's earlier reconnaissance. These long-established third-stage nests had a habit of stockpiling Life Stones, waiting for the day they could evolve to the fourth stage.
The good news was accompanied by bad news: after this third-stage mother nest was destroyed, the four nearby third-stage mother nests began spawning troops.
This meant that attacking these third-stage mother nests wouldn't yield much bio-energy and would result in heavy Demon Beast casualties.
When the Demon Beast army returned to the nest, a new round of spawning began. This time, 2,000 new Demon Beasts were added, with the remaining bio-energy reserved for the army's daily upkeep. The total Demon Beast force reached 9,357.
With this number of combat insectoids, they could dominate the third-stage insectoid ranks. There were still 9 days and 17 hours until the World Coordinate formed.
Su Xiao's decision was not to attack the third-stage mother nests that had already started spawning. They had been too aggressive in grabbing resources, alarming several of the 12 third-stage mother nests. With this one destroyed, a total of 8 third-stage mother nests had begun spawning.
Su Xiao immediately ordered an attack on the remaining 3 third-stage mother nests.
With the Demon Beasts' combat suppression and absolute numerical superiority, by the time there were exactly 9 days left until the World Coordinate formed, the 3 more distant third-stage mother nests were all destroyed. The resources gained were used for spawning.
Dark clouds churned in the sky, and thunderclaps boomed. Near the base camp nest, 15,207 Demon Beasts had gathered, including 165 elite individuals.
The base camp had expanded to about 30,000 square meters. As far as the eye could see, it was filled with black-shelled Demon Beasts.
Blood dripped from Su Xiao's fingertips. He was injured. A few hours ago, he had left the base camp and was "ambushed" by over thirty contractors. In the "moment of crisis," he even activated Demon Hunting Hour to "retreat," "narrowly escaping death."
Su Xiao's next goal was simple: push straight through to the deepest part of the base camp forest. There were many more insect nests there. As for the distance, with the [War Lord] title's bonus, the distance issue was partially resolved.
[War Lord] Title Effect: When allied forces exceed 10,000, gain a group buff of +2 to all True Attributes (excluding Luck), +20% march speed, and +50 morale. If morale exceeds 70 points, allied soldiers will fight fearlessly until numbers drop below 15%, at which point desertion may occur.
All 15,207 Demon Beasts received a buff of +2 True Strength, +2 True Agility, +10 Stamina (secondary attribute), and +10 Intelligence (secondary attribute).
Even if it only boosted one or two, this effect would be strong. But applying it to 15,207 Demon Beasts simultaneously meant that even Su Xiao himself would be overwhelmed by the insectoid tide in a short time.
Name: Demon Beast
Health: 100%
Bio-Energy: 14/15
True Strength: 84 points (+2)
True Agility: 87 points (+2)
Stamina: 80 (+10)
Intelligence: 15 (+10)
Charm: Lower-tier insectoids have no Charm attribute.
The next target: flatten all insect nests inside the base camp forest, striving to accumulate the Demon Beast count to 30,000.
The development of the insectoid forces was like rolling a snowball. Even Su Xiao himself didn't know how big this snowball could get.
---
Sun Tribe, 7:00 PM.
The wood in the fire crackled, sending a few sparks flying out of the campfire before they died out in the air. A group of primitive people covered in fire patterns were worshipping, dancing, and running around the bonfire. The orange firelight reflected on their faces.
From the darkness nearby, a man and a woman emerged. They approached the campfire. A few members of the Sun Tribe glanced at them but then ignored them.
"Yaklo, your people were attacked?"
Afro picked up a berry and ate it. The downside of this world was the lack of entertainment.
"Yes, attacked. There was only one person. According to four Perception-type contractors, even though that madman tried to conceal himself, the unique bloody scent of insectoids on him couldn't be dispersed. Attacking a third-stage insectoid nest alone... what a madman. He was already injured before attacking us. Too bad, we almost permanently kept him there."
As he spoke, Yaklo's lips curled up.
"..."
"..."
Afro and Mu Yushi exchanged glances, then looked back at Yaklo.
"Haha, hahaha..."
Mu Yushi burst into laughter. How many times had it been? Finally, their Apocalypse Paradise had a chance to defeat Reincarnation Paradise.
"A powerhouse like that... has he resorted to desperate measures? Sigh~"
Afro sighed, the sweet and sour juice in her mouth lifting her spirits.
"Desperate measures, a good description. No matter how many times we three factions have lost before, this time, we win!"
Even with Yaklo's composure, he couldn't help but clench his fist. Facing the Reincarnation Paradise faction alone in a World War was a nightmare.
"That's right... this time, we win. If he hadn't come to attack, I would have been a bit uneasy."
Mu Yushi took out a bottle of good wine and three glasses.
Clink~
The glasses clinked. Su Xiao's earlier attack had basically confirmed to them that this war was stable. Moreover, based on Su Xiao's decision-making displayed so far, he clearly had nothing to do with being a cunning old fox.
Yaklo, Mu Yushi, and Afro hadn't considered one thing: what they saw was exactly what Su Xiao wanted them to see. In their perception, Su Xiao was a powerful combat maniac obsessed with blade techniques, completely unrelated to terms like "old yinbi." That might have been true once, but people grow.
When the insectoid army exceeded 15,000, it was destined that the three-paradise alliance would be thoroughly outmaneuvered and drowned by the insectoid tide.