Over twenty cultivators moved together within the forest on a dark night. They were all dressed in armor and helts, covering every inch with cloth. The only exposed part was the eye region.
Quickly, a tall and robust figure infiltrated among them. So had already seen a large man in charge of another mission, so no one found it strange, as the mission was ticulously planned. They would attack stealthily, and the armor could contain a cultivator's Qi without leaking much. Among the whole group, no one could sense each other's cultivation due to this.
After half an hour of walking, the leader at the front stopped and removed his helt, revealing a handso face with golden hair. He closed his eyes and focused on sensing sothing in the distance; in the midst of the n, a penetrating gaze was focused on him without anyone noticing.
"It's just to the north," Innoa said as he put the helt back on, making sure it was completely impenetrable.
No one but him knew exactly what their mission was; they only had a sense that it would be dangerous due to the armor provided to everyone. "Okay, everyone, listen carefully. This ti, we're dealing with a colony of insect beasts. Our target is sothing essential that their queen creates," announced Innoa.
The expressions of everyone beca strange. Did they really need to make such big moves to steal sothing from insect beasts? They weren't even considered divine or demonic, given their apparent weakness.
"Don't be foolish. We can be easily wiped out. They're not just insect beasts. They're Lurian Ants."
Upon hearing that they were after Lurian Ants, the expressions of so people changed behind their helts. Many had already heard of this na, as they were rare and challenging creatures to deal with.
Lurian Ants are a unique species found in hidden and dark caves. They stand out for their vibrant colors and bright patterns, with jaws that emit a soft light in the dark, allowing them to navigate easily in the depths of caves and during the night.
Despite not being large, ranging from half to one ter, they were considered top-tier divine beasts. However, they weren't true divine beasts as they lacked a Qi core. According to a stricter classification, they were simply considered insect beasts.
The most frightening part about them was their venom. This led people to include them as Divine Beasts. Although their venom wasn't fatal, it was incredibly painful. A sting would be so agonizing that it would make a person wish to die.
Moreover, Lurian Ants lived in groups. A colony of them could contain thousands, perhaps even tens of thousands. If stung by ten of them, it would be enough to drive soone into madness from pain and death without leaving a corpse.
Although everyone was wearing protection, these armors had openings at the shoulders, elbows, knees, etc. This was done to not restrict movent too much, which ant their defense wouldn't be able to completely prevent a simultaneous attack.
The hearts of everyone trembled with fear. Although their faces were covered, the fear in their eyes was revealed.
"You don't need to be afraid. The mission was planned by the advisor down to the smallest detail. He personally gave a group escape formation. By using the laws from the grass along with the formation, we can strike like lightning, entering and leaving quickly."
"As long as we're fast enough, there shouldn't be any problems. This is our first collective move. I hope everyone can bring forth their strength," Innoa said, looking slightly at everyone.
His aning was extrely obvious. Everyone was newly arrived disciples in the sect or had stagnant cultivations, all struggling to move out of Qi Gathering and enter the Foundation Establishnt Realm. Their levels ranged from six to nine.
Hearing that, their hearts trembled. The rewards and prestige they would gain could completely change their future.
"Okay, everyone, let's go." Innoa didn't waste ti as he moved, and everyone followed suit with high spirits. Alm and Bruno also went with the flow, filled with joy.
Without anyone noticing, Bruno and Alm, who were following at the very back of the group, left a swift trace of bodily odors. They even checked to make sure the wind wouldn't blow the result against the rest of the group.
After checking the mories of the muscular man, Bruno could only get a general idea of the mission without many details. However, with information about the armor, the gathering of the second group, and the other elders searching for sothing deeper, he could get a sense of how they intended to use the thunder power from the grass. Clearly, they were preparing for a silent assault with a swift escape.
The muscular man was as tall and broad as Denil; the only difference was that he was pure muscle, while Alm and Bruno were pure fat. His armor fit perfectly... or almost...
'I feel like we are going to fart again...' Bruno couldn't help but complain. Almost didn't an perfectly. Their huge belly was truly being pressed against the armor, and it didn't help that they always ate like an elephant.
Alm imdiately warned. 'Be careful! Make sure it is as silent as possible!'
Without anyone noticing, they left a swift, invisible stream of bodily odor behind. No wonder they insisted on following the group from the very back. 'The fart of the ninja, silent and deadly!'
Alm almost vomited blood right there and then. 'Shut up!'
When the na of the ants was ntioned, Bruno already knew what they were dealing with. The Lurian Ants are highly organized, living in deep colonies inside caves. Their colonies can house thousands of individuals, divided into soldiers and a queen.
During the day, Lurian Ants send their soldiers on expeditions outside the colony in search of ores and natural plants containing high levels of Qi. These resources are brought back to the cave and used to create a unique and lush underground garden where the ant queen cultivates rare and unique plants. These plants serve as a source of food and cultivation for her.
The soldier ants couldn't reach a cultivation level above the third level of the Qi Gathering Realm. From birth to death, they were all insects. However, the queen ant was an exception. Her body was huge, and over years of cultivation, she would develop a core and beco a true divine beast.
The plants created by the queen were treasures for alchemists. Developed with the purpose of absorbing any type of Qi, they could acquire various properties, making them able to be refined into an infinite variety of different pills. The elders who went deeper into the forest must be harvesting other items to combine with the plants.
Alm and Bruno were getting more and more excited, and now, with all the information, their minds were buzzing with multiple sches to rob this young master.
After walking a few hundred ters, they began to hear a buzzing sound. Occasionally, pieces of ore and Qi-rich plants were scattered on the ground.
Alm could sense a one-ter shadow rushing to a nearby location even though its movents were extrely fast. However, Bruno noticed sothing even more intriguing and pointed out to Alm several trees with marks in a radius of several ters. Alm nodded sinisterly. 'Hehe, this ti it's going to be fun.'
"Be careful! Don't attack the ants. Otherwise, it will attract even more of them," warned Innoa after also sensing their proximity.
After covering another stretch, everyone slowed down. A mountain ahead was completely dark and imperceptible to the eyes, but the natural Qi coming from it left no doubt.
Countless ants were coming and going exceptionally busy. Everyone's hearts rose to their throats.
Inno imdiately ordered, though. "So of you will investigate the situation."
Three people imdiately advanced without hesitation, starting to sneak towards the colony, which was hundreds of ters away.
Innoa nodded approvingly. The others exchanged glances and sighed sadly. These three had obviously made a good impression on the leader, who was well-regarded by the alchemist advisor.
But Alm laughed internally. 'You guys are really a bunch of pathetic idiots. Everyone is wearing helts and armor. Who can recognize them? If you want to show loyalty, at least make sure they know it's you, right?'
The three moved with intelligence, crawling slowly. Seeing them approaching, everyone beca nervous. Even Innoa was extrely tense.
In fact, all he needed was for them to confirm the situation in the colony and return so he could plot an appropriate entry and exit route. The armor did its job perfectly, allowing them to blend in silently. The three were sneaking very well, not disturbing the busy ants.
But the mont they were fifty ters away, the busy ants stopped imdiately as the world fell silent.
"Quick, run!" Innoa's expression changed slightly, and he shouted.
But the mont he spoke, hundreds of ant soldiers shot straight for the three. The three were horrified, knowing they were unable to fully defend against the attack. Quickly, they turned back and ran.
However, there was still one person who was too late and got bitten in a small gap on the shoulder.
"AARGH!"
This person let out a miserable scream. Although their face was covered, everyone knew it was twisted in pain.
The toxicity was incredibly potent, specializing in agonizing nerve pain. It had nothing to do with the cultivation base. In fact, soone with a higher cultivation base would have even more sensitive nerves and feel even more pain.
After being bitten, an instinctive reflex made the affected person punch their shoulder, seeking desperate relief from the excruciating pain.
"NO!" Innoa roared furiously.
However, he was too late. The victim had already hacked the ant into pieces, releasing reactive and desperate rage. The mont the ant was killed, the entire colony seed to tremble in response.
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