The dense swarm of ants on the ground also came over to join the fun.
Now, Caiyi was truly panicked.
On the ground were the troublesome ants and Sabertooth Pigs.
In the air were the fierce Arrow Sparrows and Iron-Beaked Birds.
Even in the trees were the fearless green caterpillars.
This was simply... certain death!
"Wait, let's talk..."
But the beasts gave her no chance to speak, swarming forward all at once.
Enemies attacked from all directions like a tidal wave.
Caiyi fared alright; with her strength and grade, she could hold out against the surging army for a while.The remaining female Mantises, however, were not so lucky. Without even room to resist, they were torn to pieces by the flock of attacking birds and swallowed.
Caiyi grew frantic.
The time for Mantis reproduction had been imminent, yet they were entirely wiped out before they could even reach their moment of pleasure.
Over a decade of management, destroyed in a single day. Her title as territory Lord was now nothing but an empty name.
Heartbreaking!
But right now she couldn't even protect herself, so what could she do?
She forced herself to hold on, looking for an opportunity to escape.
...
Dazhuang felt he had learned another trick!
He had learned far too much from following Lu Qing!
"Brilliant, truly brilliant!"
"So this is what Boss meant by borrowing a knife to kill someone!"
"But then again, I can understand the knife, but what is a 'person'?"
What was a person...
"A two-legged race, and every one of them is as smart as me!"
Dazhuang immediately expressed his shock. "Holy shit, every single one of them is full of dirty tricks? Then that race must be incredibly strong!"
Lu Qing didn't answer, instead looking toward the battlefield.
Several races were besieging her, and there was even a Low Tier Seventh Grade Iron-Beaked Bird preparing to charge at any moment... Caiyi was probably going to suffer!
"Stop talking nonsense. We're too close to the battlefield here. We need to retreat, lest those lunatics spot us."
The individual strength of these lunatics was nothing special, but gathered together, they were absolutely not to be underestimated.
If these races discovered Lu Qing, the instigator, the consequences...
Dazhuang shrank his neck.
...
Lu Qing couldn't stay idle. While still on the move, he had already formulated his next grand plan for leveling up.
With the armies of Iron-Beaked Birds and Arrow Sparrows encircling the Mantises, their rear nests were bound to be empty.
As a sentimental Mantis, since their nests were empty, he felt obligated to deliver some warmth.
"Let's go, to the cliff!"
The Iron-Beaked Birds' lair wasn't very far away, built in the ancient trees halfway up a cliff about ten li away.
Generally speaking, a Mantis's travel speed wasn't fast, but Lu Qing was far from ordinary.
Blessed with skills, he could burst forth with powerful flight capabilities in an instant, and then glide for a distance.
In just a few moves, he had left Dazhuang far behind.
This was an unfamiliar environment, so Dazhuang felt uneasy.
"Boss, wait for me!"
"Time waits for no man, and delivering warmth demands the element of surprise..."
"But I'm not a man!"
There was nothing wrong with that statement, but Lu Qing didn't slow down.
"I'll go scout ahead first to see if there's any danger."
...
The Iron-Beaked Birds' lair was quite easy to find.
Dozens of large bird nests were built in the ancient trees, with about a dozen females responsible for incubation and guard duty.
Hatchlings had already emerged in some of the nests.
The females' grades weren't high; they were all Third Grade and Fourth Grade.
The strongest was just a single male in charge of guarding, with the strength of Low Tier Fourth Grade.
With Lu Qing's current strength, dealing with these Iron-Beaked Birds wouldn't be too strenuous.
Now confident, there was naturally no need to hide.
"Who goes there!"
The vigilant Iron-Beaked Bird guard heard the noise Lu Qing made.
All the other birds raised their heads and looked toward the top of the mountain.
When they saw a Mantis at the top of the cliff, all the Iron-Beaked Birds breathed a sigh of relief.
The guard stated even more casually, "Don't panic, it's just a Mantis!"
The other Iron-Beaked Birds also relaxed.
A Mantis—their favorite snack, crispy and crunchy.
...
Having clearly assessed the strength of these Iron-Beaked Birds, Lu Qing unfurled his wings without hesitation and flew down.
Following his descent, cries of surprise erupted from the Iron-Beaked Birds.
"What a large, plump Mantis! Is this a gift from the heavens?"
"Now the children can improve their diets, and they won't have to eat those unnutritious bugs anymore!"
One by one, they grew excited, completely unaware that danger had already arrived.
...
Lu Qing landed on a branch, directly facing the Iron-Beaked Bird guard.
His height had already reached nearly seventy centimeters. Coupled with two incomparably sharp Scythes, he looked exceptionally imposing.
Looking at this Fourth Grade Iron-Beaked Bird guard...
It was only half his height, needing to raise its head just to meet his eyes.
A stormy sea of shock welled up in the guard's heart.
A Mantis is a Mantis, but wasn't this size a bit too exaggerated?!
That exaggerated physique and the two large, pitch-black Scythes truly struck fear into it.
This wasn't a snack; this was the King of Hell!
The guard warily backed up a few steps.
It was frightened by Lu Qing, all of its previous arrogance having completely vanished.
"What... what brings you here?"
Lu Qing said, "Revenge."
"Your army of Iron-Beaked Birds swept through the territory of my Mantis Race. Since courtesy demands reciprocity, I naturally have to take good care of you all. Jie jie jie."
The guard immediately spread its wings, entering a state of high alert.
"Quick, notify the patriarch..."
Lu Qing glanced at it. "Heh, a Mantis trying to stop a... bah, a bird's wing trying to stop a Mantis. How reckless!"
A Sixth Grade fighting a Fourth Grade was simply far too easy.
He struck out directly, and his strike was an utter crushing defeat.
Before the guard could even react, its neck was snapped.
Lu Qing had long since adapted to the law of the jungle where the weak were prey to the strong. Brandishing his dual Scythes, he finished off these Iron-Beaked Birds in just a few moves.
Out of the dozen or so, one still managed to slip through the net.
A Third Grade female Iron-Beaked Bird flew desperately toward the cliff, clearly intending to recall their patriarch to the rescue.
From the cliff to the depths of the dense forest was only a few minutes' journey.
A round trip wouldn't even take ten minutes.
Just as Lu Qing felt he wouldn't be able to gorge himself this time, a Mantis suddenly leapt out from the top of the cliff.
It was Dazhuang, who had finally rushed over.
He was already on the verge of reaching the Fifth Grade.
His full-powered strike was not to be underestimated.
Slashing a Scythe against the bird's wing, he broke the wing of the Iron-Beaked Bird that was trying to fetch reinforcements, sending it plummeting down with a miserable screech.
Dazhuang landed steadily on a branch, looking somewhat smug. "This time, I'd say I'm truly inverting the heavenly order!"
As their natural predators, the Iron-Beaked Birds ate countless Mantises every year. Now, however, Dazhuang had single-handedly slain a Third Grade Iron-Beaked Bird. The sense of achievement was incredibly satisfying.
Lu Qing tossed an Iron-Beaked Bird over to him.
"Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and eat, before things change! Their patriarch could return at any moment!"
Dazhuang immediately began enjoying the spoils of war.
Lu Qing had already reached the Low Tier Sixth Grade. The Fourth Grade Iron-Beaked Bird guard and the few female birds had actually provided thirteen points of Flesh Value.