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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 252:
The sound was so abrupt that she didn't even notice where it came from.
Freya suddenly turned around, only to find that there was nothing there.
The green grass swayed lightly, and the red sky showed no abnormalities; aside from the rustling sound, it was eerily quiet here.
She frowned slightly, on high alert, and extended her hand to scatter a large area of black particles.
These particles vanished completely upon contact with the air.
As she sensed the feedback from these particles mentally, still, there was nothing there.
"Is this a joke?"
With her current strength, unless a wizard used an illusion spell on her, it was impossible for her to experience auditory hallucinations.
Just as she pondered what it could be, the hoarse voice came again, this time seeming to be right next to her ear.
"Young lady, are you looking for me?"
The warm breath brushed past the tips of her hair, and Freya felt a chill run down her spine; an eerie sensation spread through her heart.
"Die!!"
With a whoosh, the Azure Wind Flow she had gathered exploded, like countless sharp blades, instantly slicing everything around her into tiny fragments.
Amidst the scattered dirt and weeds, Freya quickly retreated, staring in horror at the spot where she had just stood.
Since her arrival in this world, almost no one had been able to get so close to her while she was on guard, even ignoring her invisible defensive force field.
She finally stood still after retreating to the other side of the pond.
However, the place where she had just unleashed her power was still empty. Only a large black circular area remained, revealing the ground that had been cut by her Force Field.
"What is this? There’s no energy presence and no feeling of Spirit at all?"
Freya felt a chill on her forehead, covered her ears where she had sensed the breath earlier, and broke out in a fine cold sweat.
"Are you afraid, young one? I am here, right at your feet."
Hearing the voice again startled Freya, and she instinctively looked down, only to find a black bug that had appeared at her feet without her noticing.
The Black Bug stood upright like a gentleman. It was even dressed in a sharp tailcoat. It wore a black round hat and held a black cane in its right limb.
The bug's two mandibles opened and closed, but the voice truly came from it.
Freya took a cautious step back, frowning slightly. She felt it was absurd.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
"I am a resident of this place. It's been a long time since I've seen a human, so I was curious and came to take a look. I didn’t expect to frighten you. I’m truly sorry."
With that, the Black Bug removed its round hat and bowed awkwardly as an apology.
"A resident of this place? Are there many beings like you here?"
Freya noticed its key phrase and asked directly.
"Of course! I am Count Kukkakabur of the Black Insect Empire. I originally came to Mist Lake to clear my mind after a breakup, but I didn’t expect to encounter a human. What a surprise!"
Its antennae twitched as it spoke with a tone full of emotion.
"Mist Lake?"
Freya turned her head and glanced at the pond nearby, which was no more than ten meters in size. Given the size of this Black Bug, it could indeed be called a lake.
From its words, Freya also vaguely inferred that it hadn't seen humans for a long time, possibly a wizard who once managed this secret realm.
After pondering for a moment, Freya smiled slightly and said, "Hello, Count Philip. May I ask where your empire is located? I would love to visit, and I am very curious about the ability you just demonstrated."
It silently approached her side; even an all-around attack had not caused any harm. Given its large size, that should have been impossible. Thus, Freya was completely certain that this Black Bug possessed some kind of magical ability.
However, as she observed the appearance of this Black Bug, without that outer layer and speech, it looked just like an ordinary black beetle.
"Well, I'm afraid that's not possible," said Black Bug Count Kukkakabur with a somewhat troubled tone upon hearing Freya's words. "You humans are too large; my empire cannot accommodate your body. However, I can show you that technique from earlier."
"Is that so? I'm truly honored," Freya replied, surprised by the simplicity of the Black Bug's thoughts as she raised an eyebrow.
"Actually, it's just an ordinary technique. You humans have exchanged with us before. Now, watch closely."
With that, Black Bug Kukaka waved its staff in front of itself. The Black Bug, which had been standing still just moments ago, seemed to evaporate; its form gradually faded until it completely disappeared.
Freya was taken aback. There had been no aura around the Black Bug, and the gesture of waving its staff seemed casual yet resulted in such an eerie disappearance.
Even a wizard's energy manifestation wouldn't vanish so cleanly.
However, from the image of its disappearance, Freya felt a vague sense of familiarity.
"How about that? Isn't this technique impressive?"
The raspy voice of the Black Bug seemed to come from a great distance, yet she felt as if it were right beside her.
"Yes, it's truly amazing," Freya exclaimed while expanding her sensing abilities.
Before long, the Black Bug's form reappeared in the same spot, as if it hadn't moved at all.
"If you want, I can give it to you, but I need to exchange something," the Black Bug stated directly.
"What do you need?" Freya frowned and replied. "I came out in a hurry this time and don't have much with me."
"Oh? Not much?" The Black Bug, Kukaka, twirled around with its staff and looked up. "Well then, do you have any meat? Just a little bit will do."
"Meat?" Freya wasn't sure if she understood its words correctly, but she took out some dried venison from her waist pouch and placed it on the ground, puzzled. "Is this it?"
"Oh! This is it!" The Black Bug, Kukaka, became so excited upon seeing the venison that it dropped its staff and lunged forward.
Six slender black limbs eagerly touched the dried meat, while the antennae on its head moved about restlessly, seemingly very happy.
"I haven't smelled meat in a long time; I thought I would never eat it again in this lifetime."
Freya looked at the Black Bug's behavior in speechlessness, unsure of what to think.
After a while, it snapped back to reality from its excitement, awkwardly retracting its limbs and picking up its staff again, shyly curling its antennae.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. That was inappropriate. I'll get you what you asked for right away."
With that, a small black object the size of a fingernail was tossed out, and Freya quickly caught it.
She discovered that this object was actually a miniature book. The text was clearly visible and surprisingly written in the Abyssal Magic she was familiar with.
She simply glanced at it before putting it away.
Watching Freya put away the book, Black Bug struggled to move a piece of deer meat that was many times larger than itself.
"Alright, I've been out here long enough. I should head back. If you have more meat next time, come to this lake; my guards will notify me."
It didn't wait for Freya to respond and eagerly waved its staff again, causing both the insect and the piece of meat to disappear from sight.
Freya watched its departure, surprised that such a magical race existed in this secret realm.
"Is it just meat?" Freya fell into deep thought.
Although she didn't understand why this strange Black Bug wanted meat, it was clear that this trade was quite advantageous for her.
"The only thing I can't be sure of now is whether I can learn this technique."
After pondering for a moment, she shifted her attention to the pond.
There were many fish in the pond, some of which were mutated due to energy pollution, appearing to have strong attack power.
However, for Freya, these creatures held little value.
After observing for a while, she gave up.
This area, aside from the empty red color being particularly strange, was not much different from the grasslands outside, except for the presence of some bizarre and dangerous creatures.
Freya walked for a while, only picking up some dangerous or interesting specimens to collect.
Moreover, aside from discovering traces of one of the two people when she first entered this area, she hadn't encountered anything else.
Standing next to a massive ancient tree, Freya carefully collected the tree resin with her knife and placed it into a test tube, then corked it and put it back on her person.
She looked around, and in the distance, a few horned bovine creatures were leisurely grazing on the grass, while among them, a giant spider with six legs was patiently lurking.
Occasionally, large birds that she couldn't name flew overhead.
This Biological Zone was vast, almost like a complete ecological space.
"Could they have already gone to another area?" Freya frowned.
She had left a message in Roy's Secret Mark earlier, but had not received any information until now. However, based on the reaction of the mark, Roy was still alive.
"I have collected some valuable items by now. Although this secret realm is rich in resources, the various mechanisms and creatures inside are beyond my current capabilities. Should I just head back now?"
She had been in this area for over two hours, encountering some extremely dangerous Alien Creatures. If she hadn't remained vigilant at all times, she might have suffered serious harm.
Clearly, the Wizard Organization that established such a vast secret realm must have been top-tier; at least the Crimson Eagle she knew had never had such scale.
While she was contemplating whether to stay or leave, suddenly, the ground shook violently.
Then, the vast grassland surged like waves in the sea, large patches of turf and weak creatures falling to the ground.
"What’s happening? An earthquake?"
The sudden change made her quickly grab onto a nearby ancient tree.
Most secret realms are semi-independent spaces where natural disasters from the outside world are impossible to occur.
However, the upheaval beneath her feet was undeniably real.
Freya looked down at the ground and was shocked to find that dark shapes were swiftly moving through the soil beneath the grass cover like flowing water.
"Worms??"
These black insects all have black shells, but they resemble ants, swarming in such large numbers that their continuous movement resembles flowing water.
What surprised Freya even more was that these insects emitted a faint energy aura.
"Is this a Summon Spell?"
Being exceptionally sensitive to energy auras, she immediately sensed something unusual.
The tremors from the earthquake continued. Far away from Freya, large flocks of Birds took off while screeching, and the creatures on the ground seemed to sense something as they scattered in a frenzy, as if trying to escape from something.
An endless stream of insects quickly gathered, crawling out from the ground and moving toward a specific location.
In a certain grassland of the Biological Zone, Roy, covered in blood, stared intently at what appeared to be a creature made up of countless Faces not far ahead.
He held a Short Staff made of ice crystals, emitting a Blue Light aura, surrounded by traces of battle aftermath.
Just as he was about to unleash the Spell he had been preparing for a long time, suddenly, the menacing and strange hunting dog turned its head sharply to look into the air. Its black eyes seemed to see something terrifying, and with whimpering sounds, it abandoned Roy and fled.
"What?"
Seeing the hunting dog run away, Roy instinctively turned his head in the direction it had been looking. Immediately, terror spread across his bloodied face.
"What is that thing!?"
In Roy's line of sight, beneath the red sky in the distance, a massive black face slowly rose from the ground.
This black face twisted and changed continuously like flowing water, with its opened eyes revealing a frenzied expression.
"Ah, how nostalgic it is to sense the aura of life again, Fex. After a thousand years, I have finally returned!"
As if overlapping voices of countless people echoed, the black liquid that had just been Faces gradually coalesced into a complete head.
He turned his yet-to-be-formed neck and then opened his Big Mouth, a powerful suction emanating directly from it.
A large flock of startled Birds was swallowed in one gulp, and a torrential rain of blood fell from the sky.
The ground trembled with a rumbling sound beneath the giant head, and intense waves rapidly spread outward from him.
Roy stared blankly at this creature that seemed to have crawled out of hell, only awakening when the earth shook.
Just as he regained his senses, he took off running.
As it devoured, the giant's head appeared to grow rapidly, suddenly extending significantly, while countless Black Insects quickly formed its body.
"I need more powerful flesh and blood to build my body and my offspring."
A strange overlapping voice echoed around him. As soon as he finished speaking, several groups of Black Insects that were gathering around him split off and quickly formed humanoid figures dressed in black robes. (To be continued...)
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