If it really was a Blood Spirit Cicada, it would greatly enhance the quality of Alana’s potions. And this one had been golden, sothing far rarer than ordinary variants. Marcus could not help wondering whether it possessed other hidden uses as well.
Unfortunately, he had scared it away.
’Damn it.’
The creature had been absurdly alert. Even the Red Locust Cicada Net proved useless against it. And even if he managed to track it down again, how was he supposed to capture sothing that cautious?
The frustration sat heavily in his chest.
"Reee..."
Just as Marcus stood there, uncertain whether to continue searching or retreat, the golden cicada’s clear, resonant cry drifted faintly through the grove once more.
Monts later, the thirty or so ordinary cicadas answered in unison, their calls weaving together exactly as before, forming a strange natural orchestra that followed their leader’s rhythm.
Marcus stared toward the sound, disbelief giving way to irritation.
’Seriously?’
That felt deliberate, like a challenge. Like the creature was openly mocking his earlier failure.
His temper flared. Without hesitation, Marcus pushed deeper into the grove, following the direction of the call.
He was not leaving empty-handed. Not when he still had options left. After all, he had yet to use his true trump card.
You do not provoke a tiger and expect it to lie quietly afterward.
Moving forward was anything but easy. Red locust bees patrolled the forest in restless swarms, forcing Marcus to advance cautiously, weaving between trees, stopping often to conceal his presence. Every step required patience and every movent demanded precision.
Still, he pressed on.
Nearly an hour passed before the scenery began to change, and when it did, Marcus stopped short, unable to hide his astonishnt.
It felt like stepping into another world.
The dense red locust forest that had blocked out the sky suddenly gave way to openness. Before him stretched a vast grassy clearing dotted with only a handful of red locust trees. A cool stream wound gently through the grass, catching sunlight as it flowed, while faint crimson glimrs shimred in the air. Soft red locust petals drifted lazily downward, turning the entire place into sothing almost dreamlike.
The atmosphere alone lifted his spirits.
A powerful wave of energy washed over him, dense and pure, rivaling the energy surrounding Star Lake itself. At the center of the clearing stood a colossal red locust tree, and perched upon its branches were the golden cicada and its followers, chirping peacefully as they rested.
Marcus’s gaze rose slowly.
The tree was enormous. At least five ters thick at the trunk. A red locust tree of this size could only exist after a thousand years of growth. And astonishingly, this clearing contained not one, but three such ancient giants.
The massive trees grew intertwined, their trunks twisting together like a natural sculpture shaped by ti itself. Sunlight filtered through their crowns, illuminating the clearing with a warm crimson glow. Suspended beneath their branches, a fist-sized red locust flower floated gently in midair, spinning as if guided by an invisible current.
Marcus’s eyes imdiately sharpened.
The flower radiated brilliant red light that slowly dissolved into the surrounding environnt. From ti to ti, petals released by the three ancient trees drifted toward it, circling and rging into the glow. From a distance, it almost appeared as if the flower itself had been woven from countless falling petals.
"Red Locust Spirit!"
The words escaped Marcus before he realized he had spoken.
The sight reminded him instantly of the Peach Blossom Spirit within his own body. Back in the forbidden region of the Vixen Clan’s Peach Blossom Spring, he had first encountered it in almost the exact sa way, floating beneath blooming trees like a living miracle.
There was no mistake; this Red Locust Spirit had no owner. No master had claid it.
Heavenly treasures belonged to those destined to find them. A grin slowly spread across Marcus’s face.
"Well then... thanks for the guidance, golden cicada."
Of course, heavenly treasures were never easy to obtain.
The clearing sward with red locust bees. Thousands of them filled the air, densely packed around the Red Locust Spirit, forming an almost impenetrable living barrier.
Three enormous hives hung from the ancient trees like massive crimson fortresses. Endless streams of bees flew in and out, their movents organized and relentless. Marcus could not even begin to estimate their numbers.
His excitent cooled instantly.
’Damn.’
With this many bees, using Pebble to lure them away was impossible. The mont he approached, hundreds would descend upon him. He would not even have ti to react before being stung to death.
No wonder the Red Locust Spirit remained untouched. Protected by a swarm of level fifty red locust bees, the treasure sat beneath an army powerful enough to deter nearly anything.
What Marcus did not realize was just how fortunate his timing truly was.
Had he arrived earlier or later, not only would he have failed to obtain the Red Locust Spirit, he might never have witnessed it at all.
The three ancient trees, nourished by this energy-rich land, had spent a full thousand years cultivating spiritual essence before finally giving birth to the Red Locust Spirit only yesterday.
Whenever a heavenly treasure appeared, monsters inevitably gathered to claim it.
Already, more than a dozen boss-level monsters from throughout the grove had attempted to seize the spirit. Yet the surrounding territories were populated only by lower-tier creatures. None possessed the strength required to break through the overwhelming bee swarm. Every challenger had been slaughtered by venomous stingers before even reaching the clearing’s center.
Had a Mythic Beast appeared, the outco would have been entirely different. The spirit would already be gone, and the bees themselves likely wiped out.
At the sa ti, the presence of the Red Locust Spirit was transforming the entire grove.
The red locust bees themselves were proof. Just yesterday they had been level fifty, but nourished by the spirit’s overflowing energy, they had gained four levels overnight. Within ten minutes, they would reach level sixty.
Given two uninterrupted days, the swarm could rise beyond level eighty. Their leader, the Red Locust Bee King, would begin evolving toward Mythic Beast status. At that point, few creatures would dare challenge them for their treasure.
All of this depended on one condition; they had to protect the Red Locust Spirit for two full days.
anwhile, influenced by the ancient trees, the golden cicada and its followers had already begun using layered sound waves to gather the grove’s red locust fragrance, slowly forming a natural seal around the sanctuary and the spirit itself.
Marcus knew none of this.
Standing at the edge of the clearing, he watched the golden cicada, the swirling Red Locust Spirit, and the endless sea of bees guarding it. His mind raced, thoughts colliding as he searched desperately for a solution.
Charging in ant death.
Retreating ant giving up a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity.
He narrowed his eyes, forcing himself to think carefully, pushing his mind harder and harder as he searched for a shortcut, a weakness, any opening that would allow him to succeed and claim the treasure safely.
He needed a way. And he refused to leave without finding one.
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