Lu Qing rejoiced. His evolved skill was staggeringly powerful—it had cleaved straight through a Green Worm Lord, a creature renowned for its defense, splitting it cleanly in two!
The three remaining Green Worm Lords stared in dumbfounded shock.
Huh?
Hadn't his attacks just failed to break their defenses a moment ago?
How had Lord Zhe been cleaved into two literal halves in the blink of an eye?
...
Lu Qing didn't pause, immediately slashing at the second Green Worm Lord.
His crimson Scythe blurred into an afterimage, chopping the unreacting Green Worm Lord in two.
Green worms possessed tenacious vitality. The front half of its body was still squirming on the ground.
"Where's my butt? I can't feel my butt..."Lu Qing ignored it, locking his gaze onto the third one.
The last two instantly snapped to their senses and frantically spat streams of silk at him.
But in close quarters, this was his domain!
Fully prepared, Lu Qing easily dodged the attack and swept his Scythe out.
The strike was devastatingly precise. A single slash decapitated it.
The final Lord couldn't escape being butchered, either.
The remaining ordinary green worms stared blankly at the unbelievable scene.
In their eyes, Lords were the most unstoppable beings in the world.
Four Lords meant four invincible powerhouses—even the gods themselves wouldn't stand a chance against them!
And the result?
That Mantis had butchered them with a single strike each, leaving them in gruesome pieces.
With their Lords dead, what will to resist could they possibly have left?
Sluggish by nature, they instinctively tried to flee, but their species' abysmal speed made escape impossible.
Lu Qing casually swung his Scythe. Moments later, the ground was littered with severed green worm corpses.
...
Dazhuang watched in utter disbelief!
He had been planning to run away. After all, ordinary green worms were hard enough to deal with, let alone four Green Worm Lords.
When he first saw Qing Yi "fleeing," Dazhuang had been ready to follow right behind him.
Little did he know, it had been a feint for a counterattack.
His limited intellect hadn't grasped that Qing Yi's fake retreat was a tactical maneuver—drawing the enemy out to close the distance.
The impossibly tough Green Worm Lords had been casually butchered by Qing Yi.
Those were Green Worm Lords!
They might have been among the weaker Lords, but they were Lords nonetheless.
Yet Qing Yi had easily slaughtered four of them!
It was too shocking!
Too fierce!
Dazhuang spread his wings and glided down from his high perch.
"Fierce, so fierce! Brother, you're amazing! Four Green Worm Lords weren't even a match for you!"
Lu Qing casually waved a Sickle Leg. "I did alright."
"There are hundreds of green worms here. Eat as much as you want!"
Dazhuang rubbed his Scythes together. "Should we offer some to our Lord? Seeing these Green Worm Lords would definitely win her favor."
That single sentence made Lu Qing laugh.
He was still just an insect, after all. His desire for a female Mantis was carved deep into his bones.
"Favor my ass! You don't have a shred of ambition. All you ever think about is mating."
"Eat if you want to eat, but forget about bringing anything to that female Mantis!"
Lu Qing didn't bother trying to reason with him. He got straight to work on his grand endeavor of grinding experience.
Perhaps because his own grade had advanced, the Flesh Value he gained from consuming ordinary green worms had plummeted.
Swallowing three whole worms only gave him 0.1 Flesh Value.
The hundreds of green worms here would only amount to a dozen points of Flesh Value at most.
Lu Qing turned his attention to the Green Worm Lords.
With just a single bite.
'Gained Flesh Value +0.2'
It had actually doubled!
It seemed he needed to devour creatures of the same tier for high Flesh Value. And if he killed something of an even higher tier, the Flesh Value yield would be massive!
Four Green Worm Lords would definitely be enough for him to advance another grade!
'Gained Flesh Value +0.2'
...
Dazhuang had barely finished half a green worm when he looked up, only to realize the entire area had been wiped clean of corpses.
If not for the mottled green stains splattered across the dirt, he would have thought his eyes were playing tricks on him.
Hundreds of ordinary green worms, plus four forty-centimeter-long Green Worm Lords... all gone?
He ate all of that way too fast!
Dazhuang shifted his gaze to Lu Qing.
He forcefully swallowed the shredded meat in his mandibles, his eyes filled with awe.
Standing before him now, Qing Yi looked like an absolute mountain.
"Qing Yi, you seem to have grown again."
Indeed.
After advancing in grade, his size had noticeably increased.
'Race: Black Blade Mantis
Level: Low Tier Fifth Grade (7.6/150)
Skills: Deadly Heavy Strike (Evolvable)
Swift Winged Flight (Evolvable)'
His body size had skyrocketed to nearly half a meter.
His Sickle Legs gleamed with a dark metallic luster, and his once-green wings had grown darker and thicker, affording him decent defensive power.
Dazhuang, who was still only a few centimeters long, watched with endless envy.
"If only I could grow as fast as you! Then I'd definitely win the Lord's favor. Just thinking about it makes me happy!"
He was a lost cause!
Lu Qing let out a cold snort. "Your head is full of nothing but winning the Lord's favor. You're going to get eaten sooner or later!"
"So what if I get eaten? One night of bliss and a horde of descendants—that's the greatest destiny a male can ask for!"
Great my ass!
...
The Iron-Beaked Bird was soaring rapidly through the air, leading two slightly smaller kin. Their destination was the same dense forest he had visited once before.
"That dense forest up ahead is a prime foraging spot! There's absolutely no danger, and it's crawling with weak green worms and Mantises!"
"It's enough for us to feast for days!"
"You found such a great spot and didn't forget us! You really are a stand-up bird, Tieyu!"
Tieyu replied as he dove, "Of course. I always share the wealth."
The three Iron-Beaked Birds soon arrived above the dense forest.
"This is the place! The green worms and Mantises are right down there. Hunt to your hearts' content!"
With that, Tieyu took the lead and swooped down.
The other two birds followed suit.
They split up to cover more ground for their feast.
Tiezi smoothly changed direction, heading straight for the ancient tree.
He loved eating Mantises. One bite, and they would crunch perfectly in his beak.
The Mantis he had spotted last time managed a lucky escape. But this time he was sneaking in. He'd like to see it try and run now!
...
Lu Qing stood idly in the shade of the tree, feeling rather bored.
Now that he was at the Fifth Grade, ordinary green worms couldn't provide him with any more Flesh Value.
If he wanted to advance, he had to hunt down higher-level Green Worm Lords, or find completely different prey to eat.
There had only been four Green Worm Lords in this entire area, and he had already devoured them. Which meant if he wanted to keep grinding experience, it was time to change his menu.
...
Meanwhile, a thoroughly stuffed Dazhuang was lying contently on the other side of the tree. He was completely oblivious to the two Iron-Beaked Birds closing in on him.
The two Iron-Beaked Birds couldn't help but rejoice at their good luck as they landed.
Tieyu hadn't lied to them! They had spotted a crisp, delicious Mantis the moment they touched down!
And an entirely defenseless one at that!
They could finally have a proper taste!
They crept closer. Once they were in range, one of them eagerly lunged, pinning the Mantis to the dirt beneath its talons!
"Haha, got him!"
"Incredible! Your hunting skills are brilliant—a perfect strike!"
Dazhuang was terrified out of his mind.
He had just taken a quick nap, only to wake up pinned beneath the talons of an Iron-Beaked Bird.
It was over!
Over!
He was definitely going to be eaten!
Dazhuang could face death unflinchingly when it came to mating with a female Mantis, but being caught by a bird triggered his raw survival instincts. He frantically begged for mercy, "Lord birds, I don't taste good! Please, spare me!"
"Hahaha, spare you? Wouldn't that make us stupid birds?"
Desperate, Dazhuang threw out his final bargaining chip. "I have a brother! He's incredibly strong! If you don't let me go, you'll be in massive trouble!"
The Iron-Beaked Bird scoffed. "And what species is this brother of yours?"
"...He's also a Mantis!"
The two birds burst into raucous laughter.
"Damn it, I'm going to die laughing!"
"Also a Mantis? Hahaha, hurry up and call this brother of yours over! That way we can each have one!"
Dazhuang didn't understand why they were laughing so hard. He foolishly insisted, "I'm telling the truth! My brother really is extremely powerful..."
The two birds laughed even harder.
Right at that moment, a voice echoed into their minds.
"Let him go."