"He's closing in. It looks like he's about to strike."
Roughly twenty miles from the market, upon receiving word that the trailing cultivator was about to move, Qi Ping immediately dodged into a nearby thicket. He then swiftly released his combat bee colony, numbering over two thousand, and the Sun-Fire Crow.
Although he had lost over three hundred High-speed Ring-cutter Bees against the Demon Insect King, his total combat force across the Toxic Bees, Ink-Armor Bees, and High-speed Ring-cutter Bees still exceeded two thousand.
Qi Ping then used Wild Shape to transform into an Ink-Armor Bee, blending into the swarm. For commanding and observing a battle, the high-defense Ink-Armor Bee was ideal; for fleeing, the swift High-speed Ring-cutter Bee was superior.
With the colony and the Sun-Fire Crow deployed, Qi Ping didn't hesitate. He ordered the colony to counter-attack and surround the eighth-level Qi Refinement cultivator following him.
By now, Qi Ping could see the appearance of his stalker.
'Why is he in black robes again? Then again, it's standard for this kind of business. That robe looks like a decent dharma artifact.'
'I'll send a vanguard of two hundred bees from the three combat variants to test his strength. If he's truly just at the eighth level, I'll kill him. If he's a hidden Foundation Establishment expert, I'm out of here.'
Having decided, Qi Ping issued the command through his special connection with his animal companions. Upon receiving the order, the swarm split off two hundred bees instantly, forming a battle formation and charging forward with perfect coordination. One could see the absolute discipline of the colony—trained, obedient, and fearless.
The black-robed cultivator trailing Qi Ping was completely stunned when he saw the sky-blotting swarm. He had been following a cultivator who appeared to be at the first level of Qi Refinement and was likely no higher than the middle stage. How did he end up provoking so many bees radiating the aura of the late first rank? Every single one of these late-stage first-rank bees gave off a dangerous vibe!
What shocked him even more was that this massive swarm was composed of three different types of bees, and they were subtly organized into a powerful battle formation! There was no doubt that a powerful insect tamer stood behind them! This realization chilled the black-robed cultivator to the bone as he smelled the thick scent of death.
'What do I do... what do I do?'
'Right, break through and get back to the market! I have to get back to the Qingshi Market to call for help if I want to live!'
Faced with this situation, the panicked cultivator immediately turned to flee. But how could Qi Ping give him the chance? Not only were the two hundred bees already attacking, but his path back was already blocked by other bees.
A life-and-death struggle erupted instantly!
Facing the incoming swarm, the black-robed cultivator didn't hesitate to pull several talismans emitting powerful fire-attribute pressure from his storage bag.
'A Talisman Cultivator?' Qi Ping's brow furrowed slightly as he saw this. Fire-attribute talismans were indeed a counter to his bees to some extent.
'But that alone isn't enough.'
"Spread out and encircle!"
Under Qi Ping's command, the swarm quickly dispersed, maintaining a distance from one another as they launched an attack from all directions—above, below, and from every side!
In his desperation, the black-robed cultivator triggered three fire talismans in quick succession. Three violent fire snakes roared across the battlefield! Simultaneously, a golden shield appeared around him for protection. The violent heat was so intense that even Qi Ping, in his Ink-Armor Bee form, felt a sense of mortal danger. The bees hit by the fire snakes perished instantly under that terrifying power.
However, because the bees were spread out, the three fire snakes only killed about twenty or thirty of them. The High-speed Ring-cutter Bees, in particular, dodged the moment the talismans were activated.
More bees swarmed from every direction, slamming into the cultivator's spiritual shield. Gradually, the golden shield around the black-robed cultivator began to dim.
'A Talisman Cultivator... fire talismans and defensive talismans...'
'His strength is decent, but it won't change the outcome!'
"Colony, hear my command! All-out attack!"
At Qi Ping's order, the sky-blotting swarm descended upon the black-robed Talisman Cultivator. In the blink of an eye, the protective gold light around him faded rapidly. Seeing this, the cultivator triggered several more defensive talismans, but none held for long. Before long, he was riddled with cuts and overcome by toxins, collapsing to the ground. Shortly after, he breathed his last.
The only success the black-robed cultivator had was when the bees were densely packed; he had managed to trigger a few lightning and fire talismans, killing nearly seventy bees. Qi Ping could have used a kiting formation to slowly drain the cultivator's trump cards, but considering they were only twenty miles from the market, he chose to finish it quickly.
'A Talisman Cultivator's combat power is indeed impressive, but that is all.'
Qi Ping felt no pity for the man lying dead on the ground. After the kill, he had the bees crawl inside the man's robes to search him. Finding nothing else of immediate value, he ordered the bees that had touched the body to drag the corpse away for disposal. He instructed them to hide and stay away for ten days to two weeks after they were done. These bees numbered fewer than two hundred, so their temporary absence wouldn't affect him much.
At the same time, Qi Ping chose not to touch the cultivator's storage bag directly. Instead, he ordered a squad of bees to take the bag to a river for cleaning and then bury it deep underground. He would retrieve it after some time had passed. Qi Ping was in no rush for the contents; safety came first, and he had plenty of patience.
Once all traces were cleared, Qi Ping—who had never revealed himself throughout the entire process—fled the area with the Sun-Fire Crow and his own storage bags. It was impossible for an enemy to follow his scent. Not only had the bees left almost no trace, but even if an enemy had legendary tracking methods, they would only find hundreds of similar scents heading in every possible direction.
Qi Ping didn't give much thought to the death of the black-robed Talisman Cultivator. As long as he wasn't surrounded by Foundation Establishment or Golden Core experts, he was confident in his ability to escape. As for the loot, he could wait a week or two.
He felt the most important thing right now was to rent a suitable spiritual land to plant the Hundred-Spirit Grass, expand the colony, and earn spirit stones. Upon returning to the Cloud-Mist Mountain Range, he headed straight for the Cloud-Mist Great Hall, which managed the mountain range's operations.
The Cloud-Mist Great Hall was a joint establishment of the Qingyuan Sect and the three major families of Qingshi County. It was responsible for the leasing and security of the mountain range and surrounding spiritual lands. Here, one could see all currently available leases.
'I hope there's a good spot left...' Qi Ping hoped. With so many people fleeing the mountain range lately, there might be more options for him to choose from.
For his next home, Qi Ping wanted to create a true Druid Sanctuary suitable for his development. He intended to build his beekeeping industry here, so he had high requirements for size, location, spiritual energy density, and privacy.