Badge in Azure

“What do we do?” The demon named Luola, who wielded a short spear. He stared at a corpse as he asked this question, feeling disgusted. A demon would only be interested in flesh when they got hungry, just like humans. If one was not hungry, who would be willing to cook human meat?

“Let the magic bugs surround this place. The more time elapses, the more magic bugs there be in the battle. Let’s go and visit Sir Nailisi’s master.” Cuisi was too lazy to break down the door. The structures in this temple were too sturdy, it was too difficult to break down the doors. The people inside could not hold out for long though. Once they could not stand it any longer and rushed out, there might be more than one-hundred-thousand magic bugs already.

One-hundred-thousand magic bugs were akin to one-thousand elite human troops. As long as there were a few skilled magic bugs amongst this crowd, their offensive power would grow exponentially.

In the demonic plane, there was a huge population and a variety of magic bugs. Many magic bugs were the favorite food of the devils and imps. Nailisi had summoned the warring-type magic bugs however. The weak imps and spirits would usually control such warring-type magic bugs to protect themselves.

At Cuisi’s grade, the extra help a magic bug could give him was almost non-existent.

“Hmm? Sir has given the order, to ask us to… ha ha, we have already done it!” Cuisi became jubilant. Nailisi had ordered them to take action as soon as possible, to kill all the soldiers in the temple. Even though the last hall still contained thousands of soldiers, the magic bugs had blocked its entrance. Since the soldiers did not dare emerge, the problem was almost resolved already.

“Let’s go, we will lead ten-thousand magic bugs to remove the last trouble.” Cuisi did not want any delays. The feeling in this temple was making him feel uneasy, it would be better for him to leave this place with Sir Nailisi. Long ago, the Goddess of Myers was extremely powerful. Even if only a tiny bit of majesty was left behind, it could also cause the creatures who were almost devils, such as Cuisi, to be very sensitive.

A menial task like commanding the magic bugs would of course lie on the shoulders of the other three relatively weaker demons. Cuisi walked at the front alone, not used to being in a woman’s body.

“I have to implore Sir Nailisi to terminate the Ultimate Shapeshifting Skill as soon as possible. I will get used to this form if too much time goes by, and that will be the most troublesome issue. There are perverts in the demonic dimension too, if…”

Cuisi did not dare think further, he was just very afraid that Nailisi would turn out to be a male demon. If that was the case, he would wind up in a terrible state.

The bugs which could be summoned by Nailisi were pretty inferior. After a long time, the three demons amassed a group of ten-thousand magic bugs. Many magic bugs had eaten their fill and were now laying their eggs. Also, some of them had lost their teeth in an attempt to bite off the magic armor. Even though the magic bugs were creatures which had strong vitality, their teeth would only grow back after a few days’ time.

The slaughtered magic bugs became the best food for the other magic bugs. The uninjured magic bugs were led by the four demons as they made a beeline for the central hall.

The low grade magic bugs were ill-disciplined, but Cuisi was not willing to be involved. After much effort, the three demons then brought these ten-thousand magic bugs under control. Very soon, they had arrived at the plaza outside the central hall.

Four mages were the first to discover the magic bugs. Even though they were grade-4 mages, they obviously had more combat experience. Immediately, some mages released magic scrolls, casting the Firewall Spell in order to obstruct the progress of the magic bugs.

These two-hundred soldiers were the best elites serving Bifano. The moment the magic bugs were spotted, they did not get flustered. Instead, they wielded their handheld crossbows to shoot the flying magic bugs.

In Titan, a mage rarely used magic scrolls in battle, because a scroll was too expensive. The materials for making a scroll were also difficult to obtain. This was in contrast to Sregl Island. The mages on Sregl Island did not use magic scrolls because they were disadvantageous in helping the mages experience the details of a battle. All the scrolls were created to help increase their control over the elements.

Be that as it may, the mages on Sregl Island had a large quantity of scrolls at their disposal, they were not impoverished.

A handheld crossbow was a cheap attack-type weapon, its special feature was a high firing speed. Its flaws were having a low offensive power and accuracy. Its range also made it seem unsuitable to be labeled a “crossbow”.

Almost all the crossbows had a range of more than two-hundred meters. Only a handheld crossbow had a lethal range of a dozen meters, just like the weakest bow. A well-trained archer would enable the handheld crossbow to enjoy the same firing speed as a bow, yet it would consume less stamina.

Two-hundred soldiers fired their handheld crossbows, shooting more than half of the flying magic bugs out of the air. Even though these affected magic bugs did not die, they had lost their offensive abilities for the time being. That being said, the arrows which got shot into the bodies of the magic bugs were corroded by their bodily fluid, so they could not be reused even if they were taken out.

Hundreds of magic bugs managed to make their way above the two-hundred soldiers, before lunging downwards. The soldiers drew their short swords and slashed at them calmly. The mages were also blessing the soldiers with magic, so the magic bugs could not swallow the soldiers’ armor and their bodies.

Most of the magic bugs which flew through the barrage of arrows possessed a tough shell. Whenever the steel blades descended on the shells, sparks would be created. A huge portion of these two-hundred soldiers were swordmasters, they possessed a great deal of strength. As a result, the bugs still fell to the ground even though their shells were not broken. They rolled across the ground, feeling giddy from the impact.

In a solo battle, each soldier could slaughter these magic bugs effortlessly. The magic bugs also had their fair share of flaws, and their flaws were pronounced. Their wings and eyes were areas which got damaged easily.

The tremendously strong demon called Aiwa noticed that the magic bugs who went around the firewall had gotten into a stalemate with the soldiers, and he got impatient. He bent down and picked up a magic bug the size of a dining table, and then tossed it over the firewall powerfully.

This table-sized magic bug attacked by spraying toxic liquid. The toxic liquid carried microscopic bone pins. These magic bugs did not have eyes and they relied on heat signatures to launch their assaults. Most creatures would contain a higher temperature around their nasal and mouth regions, and these regions also had the lowest defensive power. As the magic bug was confused by the firewall, it could not locate the enemy at all.

Aiwa simply threw it into the formation of soldiers, and a soldier’s head was struck by its bulky shell. The soldier fainted, while the magic bug flipped its body over, totally unharmed. As its feelers swayed about, it had located its target.

Pfft…

A burst of toxic liquid was ejected, hitting a soldier square in the face. This soldier had been blessed with the Stone Skin Spell, and in less than half an hour, the toughness of his body had become sturdier than leather armor. The toxic liquid streamed down his face and it did not injure the solider. The bone pins had penetrated the stone skin though, piercing into the soldier’s nose.

“Ah!” The soldier’s cry was cut off as the toxins had invaded his brain, causing him to collapse onto the ground. The magic bug pounced on him, inserting a slender hollow tube into the soldier’s facial injury, injecting even more toxic liquid. The flesh underneath the soldier’s skin decayed swiftly, turning into a delicacy for the magic bug.

Seeing that it was effective, Aiwa was overjoyed, he then continued tossing more of such magic-defeating magic bugs.

The three demons had ways to extirpate these two-hundred soldiers, but a demon generally did not like dealing with a mage directly. The few mages kept releasing more scrolls. As their lives were at stake, no one dared use their magic chords carelessly.

“These cute magic bugs!” Cuisi exclaimed. A demon was not vulnerable to the toxins in a magic bug. A magic bug would attack a demon using only their teeth, which was ineffective. A magic bug was also not as strong as a demon. Even if a demon was besieged by thousands of warring-type magic bugs, they could still escape and they might not even get injured.

A magic bug’s mental strength was very low, a demon could use their unique mental strength to control a magic bug. If a human could launch mental assaults repeatedly, they could harm the magic bugs too. It would even be more effective than a massacre by a demon.

Be that as it may, humans were vulnerable to all kinds of poisons. If the soldiers were not blessed by the mages, they would have died due to all those toxins.

Just like how the demons had lost some of their advantages over the magic beasts found in the human plane, the humans were also helpless in the face of these magic bugs.

“Agreed, these magic bugs are very useful, but they are difficult to rear. Sooner or later, they will all die out,” the three demons echoed. Throughout the past few days, Cuisi had subdued all of them. As Cuisi was oppressed by Nailisi, he had to vent all his anger on his comrades.

A magic bug had a short life, and they ate a lot too. If food was absent, the reproduced magic bugs would quickly kill one another, or starve to death. Cuisi had discovered the flaw in the magic bugs. On the human plane, in the absence of the environment found in the demonic plane, the mother bug’s ability to lay eggs would get increasingly weaker. Eventually, it would just stop producing new magic bugs, and they would go extinct.

In a short-lived battle, these things were more effective than the skeletal soldiers though. Three not-so-powerful demons could control thousands of magic bugs each, while a human mage of a similar grade could only control a few hundred skeletons.

“Humph, you three better buck up. If Sir Nailisi’s plan is delayed…” Cuisi urged the three demons. The three of them were behaving slowly, unwilling to participate in the battle.

Within the central hall, Lex heard the sounds of battle outside. The soundproofing ability of the temple’s structures could be controlled. People outside could not hear what was going on inside, but the people inside could still hear everything. She looked at Saleen doubtfully, but Saleen simply smiled at her signaling that there were no problems.

Nailisi was secretly surprised. According to her original plan, the few hundred magic bugs would require two to three months in order to make up a sufficient number to pose a threat to Bifano’s army. Unexpectedly, so many magic bugs had been reproduced in less than a week. The news from Cuisi had caused Nailisi to be in disbelief.

Tens of thousands of magic bugs could actually exterminate an army of a few thousand humans. Even though this outcome was related to the battle environment, was it not a little too ridiculous?

Nailisi secretly whispered into Saleen’s ear. When Saleen heard the description by Nailisi, he also could not quite believe his ears. There was going to be a protracted battle with Bifano, how did it end so quickly?

“Master, how should we conceal the issue of the magic bugs?”

“No need to conceal it, Lex will discover your identity sooner or later. Since the men she brought along could enter the temple, their loyalty is unquestionable. Other than Bifano, no one else will disclose your secret.”

“Should I get rid of him now?”

“Keep him alive a little longer, I want to find out more about the Agares family. We have gone a little overboard this time around. If we do not have a deeper understanding, it might be difficult for us to return to Metatrin City.”

“Master, I was too impetuous.” Nailisi lowered her head. She also realized that Saleen had made the right choice. A person like Bifano would not only be backed by the Fire Dance City. Ever since the beginning, no powerful characters had appeared, which was incongruent with the status of the Agares family.