Chapter 183 - 159: Ten Thousand Poison Forest, Insect Slave

Chapter 183: Chapter 159: Ten Thousand Poison Forest, Insect Slave

Ke Jing finished speaking.

Jin Fang sneered. "Heh, the herding path of the Ten Thousand Poison Forest? They’re nothing but an Insect Slave."

Steward Ma, the Patrol Guard Captain, and the others nodded slightly, expressions of disgust in their eyes.

Much like the Cyan Yang Sect, the Ten Thousand Poison Forest also had two cultivation paths.

The first was the Spirit Insect Manipulator path, which focused on refining a Lifebound Spirit Insect and contracting thousands of other insects. Due to the specific aptitude required, this path had few disciples, but none of them were to be trifled with.

The second was the herding path. When first embarking on this path, a cultivator would use a Secret Technique to merge with a mother insect. Under the technique’s influence, they became something neither human nor insect. This process indirectly allowed both the spirit insects and the cultivator to break free from some of their bloodline shackles, continuously transforming into something unknown.

However, because of this lack of restraint, as their cultivation rose, the will of the mother insect would gradually take over. In the end, it was impossible to tell whether they were a cultivator or an insect demon!

As a result, the Ten Thousand Poison Forest was rife with conflict.

When the strange locusts appeared in the Ring Mountain Spiritual Land, the stewards all suspected a cultivator from the herding path.

Only they could breed such bizarre insects.

The reason Steward Jin and the others were so excited was simply because they coveted the cultivator’s very flesh and blood.

Their half-human, half-insect bodies were considered a supreme natural treasure.

Depending on the cultivator’s cultivation level, a grand medicinal pill refined from their body could help a cultivator of a corresponding realm break through a minor bottleneck. Even for those at the peak of their realm, it could provide a significant boost when attempting to break through a major bottleneck.

This was also why they had ignored the strange locusts in the Spirit Fields after discovering them; they wanted to lure out the cultivator who dared to use the Cyan Yang Sect’s Spiritual Land as their personal pasture.

To be on the safe side, Steward Jin and the others had specifically contacted Luo Fang and Feng Bai Mei, who were in the middle of searching for any sign of Tong Zuo.

Though they disdained Insect Slave cultivators, they knew that such beings were often accompanied by a frighteningly large swarm of insects.

Great rewards were accompanied by great risks.

The cultivator Ke Jing had performed the Soul Search on was one of the herder’s servants. He was the one who had been hiding in the shadows, spying on the Spiritual Land.

Luo Fang and Feng Bai Mei briefly conferred.

They immediately split the numerous Patrol Guards into several teams. Led by the captains and stewards, they fanned out to surround the herding cultivator’s location.

To prevent any chance of escape, Luo Fang and Feng Bai Mei split up, each guarding one flank of the encirclement.

Night fell, and the moonlight cascaded down like a waterfall.

Flickering dark figures moved swiftly through the dense forest.

When they encountered Spirit Beasts, they paid them no mind. If they sensed a demonic aura, they would all steer clear of its range.

The group continued to advance at a rapid pace.

「Two hours later.」

A rugged hill, less than three hundred meters high, came into view.

Unlike the other lush, green hills, this one was covered in blackish-brown stone ridges, dead trees, and withered grass.

When they were about five hundred meters away, everyone stopped. They took out jade vials from their robes and sprinkled a pale yellow powder over themselves.

A faint, acrid smell spread, masking their auras.

They stopped circulating their Spiritual Power and relied on their physical strength to run toward the hill.

A team led by Steward Jin was the first to reach the foot of the hill.

The hill was deathly silent.

As the Patrol Guard cultivators behind him scanned their surroundings, looks of horror and unease appeared on their faces.

On the hill’s blackish-brown rocks, in its crevices, and upon the withered grass and dead branches, countless insects of all sizes lay waiting.

The smallest were only the size of a thumb and jade green, while the largest were the size of a grown man’s fist and a withered yellow. A rough estimate put their numbers in the thousands, and this was only one corner of the hill.

A grim expression appeared on Steward Jin’s face. He flipped his hand over to reveal a jade token and whispered a few words into it.

Then, with a wave of his hand, he led his group cautiously up the hill.

Meanwhile, the other teams also reached the base of the hill.

The teams closer to Steward Jin’s position also encountered locusts, but the teams farther away found a type of insect resembling the cicadas of the Mortal World.

The smallest of them were jet-black, and the larger the cicada, the paler its coloring.

After receiving this information, Luo Fang and Feng Bai Mei quickly changed their positions.

「When the moon reached its zenith.」

The teams reached the summit one by one.

Before them was a large, slightly sunken crater, like the mouth of a volcano.

Within it lay spirit insects, all at least the size of a fist. But to the surprise of Luo Fang and the others, despite the great number of spirit insects, there were no demonic insects, nor was there any sign of the herding cultivator.

’Did he sense us and run away?’

As the thought crossed their minds, everyone’s expressions turned grim.

After going to all this trouble, they had come up empty-handed. A surge of anger was unavoidable.

Feng Bai Mei, in particular, shot a cold glare at Jin Fang and the others.

"Hmph..." With a cold snort, she stopped caring about startling the insect swarm. She erupted with immense Spiritual Power and transformed into an Escape Light, departing instantly.

After she left, the insects, startled awake by her Spiritual Power, all took to the air. They circled a few times before settling back down.

Luo Fang glanced across, saw that Feng Bai Mei had left, and shook his head. He looked down into the center of the crater and paused in thought. A few specks of fluorescent light, no bigger than grains of rice, flew from his sleeve. They shot to the center of the crater and merged into the bodies of the fist-sized locusts and cicadas.

’Are they really willing to abandon this swarm they worked so hard to cultivate?’

Luo Fang scanned the surroundings, smiled, and took out his jade token to whisper a few words. His figure blurred for an instant and then vanished.

Having received his orders, the teams departed one by one.

They didn’t dare to be as conspicuous as the Steward had been. They moved like mortals, leaping and bounding as they descended the hill.

Still feeling unsatisfied, the stewards and captains didn’t believe the herder would simply abandon the swarm. Each of them left behind a surveillance measure before leading the Patrol Guards back into the forest.

「The next morning.」

Li Changsheng stepped out of his wooden house and took a deep breath. The cool, damp air was invigorating.

He stretched lazily and headed for the kitchen.

Just then, CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Little Wooden Head suddenly shook its branches, making a series of crisp chimes.

Li Changsheng froze.

A streak of azure light shot across the sky, landing in his small courtyard just a few breaths later.

The spiritual light faded to reveal a beaming Steward Ma.

Li Changsheng sized him up. His clothes were neat and his aura was full and well-rounded; he showed no signs of having been in a fight.

He breathed an inward sigh of relief and cupped his hands. "Greetings, Senior Brother."

Ma Rong waved his hand with a smile. "I’ve told you, Junior Brother, there’s no need for such formalities with me."

"Senior Brother, please, come inside and we can talk."

Li Changsheng nodded with a smile and gestured for him to enter, leading him into the wooden house.

After they were seated,

Li Changsheng poured Ma Rong a cup of tea and asked, "Senior Brother, did you and the other stewards leave the Ring Mountain Spiritual Land yesterday?" He paused, his expression turning serious. "Was it because the Power Demon Sect came back?"

"And what about the insect plague in the Spiritual Land? Those locusts were far too strange..."

Feeling anxious, he blurted out all his questions and observations in a rush.

Ma Rong took a slow sip of tea and waved his hand with a smile. "Calm down, Junior Brother. It wasn’t the Power Demon Sect."

Before Li Changsheng could even sigh in relief, he continued, "The ones attacking the Spiritual Land this time were cultivators from the Ten Thousand Poison Forest."

The Ten Thousand Poison Forest?

Recalling what he knew about the Ten Thousand Poison Forest, Li Changsheng had a moment of realization. ’The strange locusts in the Spiritual Land must be their doing.’

Seeing Ma Rong’s calm demeanor, he was taken aback for a moment. He cupped his hands and said, "Senior Brother, please explain."