Against a Demon Insect King, Qi Ping felt that one could never be too cautious. Nothing could be allowed to happen to the Li-Fire Crow. Therefore, it was essential to use the High-speed Ring-cutter Bees to drain the King's strength and force out any hidden tricks.
Upon receiving Qi Ping's command, the Ring-cutter Bees immediately formed groups of thirty and launched a continuous, systematic barrage of attacks from all directions.
Inside the cavern, the Demon Insect King was on the verge of a mental breakdown. It was bad enough that it had worked itself to exhaustion using its enslavement talent without success, and being harassed by three tiny bees earlier was like being bitten by a mosquito. While it had been enraged, there wasn't much it could do. After all, a King trapped by an array is bullied by bees.
But now, these bees were going even further—thirty of them were surrounding it and slashing away! Although it had a steady supply of spiritual energy and essence from the giant corpse to recover, its instincts as a Demon Insect King made it feel violated. Its fierce nature was fully ignited.
A massive wave of spiritual sense suddenly swept out from the King. This time, the King didn't try to enslave them; it used its raw spiritual power to forcibly crush the consciousness of all thirty Ring-cutter Bees! Although it hadn't yet awakened a specific soul-attack talent from its inheritance, for a creature with such powerful innate soul-talent, such a primitive soul-attack was a trivial matter.
Outside, sensing the disappearance of the thirty bees' presence, Qi Ping's face darkened. 'This Demon Insect King indeed has other methods!'
He immediately ordered the remaining live bees to report on the King's condition. Soon, he had an answer. 'A bit weakened, is it? Then it's working.'
Having confirmed the effectiveness, Qi Ping issued another order: "Change to groups of twenty. Attack with everything you have. Don't give the King a chance to breathe!"
Qi Ping was feeling ruthless, his determination to take down the King only growing stronger. If his bees could successfully evolve using the King's bloodline after he reached Foundation Establishment, gaining its physical or soul talents, their potential would reach an unparalleled level. How many beast-tamers could claim to use a Demon Insect King's bloodline as fodder for their insects?
At this point, Qi Ping called Yaya over and explained the situation inside. "Yaya, I remember that the life-fire of the Golden Crow bloodline is very effective against souls. It should also be good for defending against soul attacks, right?"
While the damage of a Sun-Fire Crow's life-fire didn't technically target the soul, if a soul left the body and was scorched by such a flame, the result would be exceptionally miserable. With such an effect, it should serve well as a defense against the King's spiritual attacks.
"Caw! (That's right, Boss!)"
"Caw! (As long as I cover my body with my life-fire, any ordinary soul attack that dares to touch me won't have a good ending!)"
"Good, then I am relieved!" Hearing this, Qi Ping felt more at ease. Even if the King had energy left, the life-fire would serve as an excellent shield.
"Yaya, when you go down, don't worry about the cost. If you can't kill it in one go, come back up to recover before going again. During that time, I'll have the bees continue their harassment."
"Also, try to attack its head. Keep the flesh of the body as intact as possible; I need it to extract the bloodline." After a moment of thought, Qi Ping added these instructions.
In the records, there was no shortage of Golden Core or even Nascent Soul cultivators who had died at the hands of a Demon Insect King of a lower rank. Against such an enemy, one could never be too careful.
"Caw! (Got it, Boss!)" Yaya nodded solemnly. It also knew that this enemy was out of the ordinary.
After more than a dozen waves of Ring-cutter Bees attacked without fear of death, providing continuous interference and assault, the Demon Insect King finally slumped into a state of exhaustion. At this moment, Qi Ping didn't hesitate and sent Yaya into the fray.
Inside the cavern, the Demon Insect King felt like it was going mad. A King of its generation, birthed for such a short time, only to be tortured into this state by a few tiny bees. It glared ferociously at the distant bees that showed it no fear; now, if they dared to approach, it would kill them without hesitation. Though the consumption would be high, it could still kill this swarm.
However, as it waited for the bees to strike again, a black silhouette completely enveloped in golden-red flames suddenly charged in through the cavern entrance! Seeing this figure, a sudden sense of crisis rose from the depths of the King's heart! It caused its entire body to tense up.
The bees had merely been a drain on its resources; the Spirit-Origin Pillars and the corpse essence could replenish its spiritual power, and its soul power would eventually recover. Thus, the bees weren't a fatal threat. But this new figure was different—just sensing the powerful aura emanating from those flames gave it a lethal sensation.
Without any time to react, a violent battle erupted instantly! Following the location Qi Ping had pointed out, Yaya dove straight for the Demon Insect King and unleashed its strongest killing move. Its life-fire transformed into a pillar of flame with immense impact and piercing power, relentlessly striking and scorching the King's head!
The places touched by Yaya's flames instantly began to char. A piercing, miserable shriek echoed through the cavern. Violent rage and the threat of death fused together, and the Demon Insect King went utterly feral! Though it realized the visitor meant it harm, its body was bound by the array, preventing it from dodging or using its physical strength to counterattack.
Therefore, it mobilized its remaining soul power to strike frantically at Yaya, ignoring the fact that Yaya's life-fire would damage its soul. Under the King's desperate assault, the flames of Yaya's life-fire flickered violently, and some even began to extinguish!
Yaya was startled! What terrifying spiritual attack power this King possessed! The layer of Sun-Fire Flame it wore had been reinforced on Qi Ping's orders, and yet it had almost failed to hold. If it had charged in without adequate preparation, its survival might have truly been in question.
With a surge of ruthlessness, Yaya frantically mobilized its bloodline power to strengthen the intensity of the flames covering its body and its attack. Having once lost and then regained its bloodline, Yaya's utilization of that power was now far more sophisticated than before.
Under the amplification of its bloodline, Yaya's life-fire suddenly flared up. The flickering, dying flames became incredibly stable, and the power of the fire erupting from its beak surged instantly!
Facing this, the Demon Insect King fell into total despair. The strength of this crow was beyond its imagination, especially the power carried by its life-fire. It had only just been birthed, its body was trapped by the array, it could only use soul power, and it had been drained by the earlier battle with the bees.
No matter how the King tried to squeeze its reserves, it could not further strengthen its soul power. Amidst agonizing pain and bitter resentment, a pillar of fire finally pierced through its head.