Chapter 28: The Crimson Lotus Bee Queen
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The moment Mo Fan spoke, he was rewarded with a scornful roll of Lin Xiaojun’s eyes.
She glared at him furiously and said coldly, “If you don’t say anything, no one will mistake you for a mute!”
Mo Fan paid no mind to Lin Xiaojun’s attack.
This was a critical moment.
Such a phenomenon at the border of the Western Ridge meant that some massive upheaval must have taken place within.
According to the people at the Little Tavern and the Wine Immortal Wang Yun, that dazzling, heaven-defying divine treasure was likely about to emerge. Otherwise, some hidden expert among those who had entered earlier must have fought so violently that the very heavens and earth had collapsed, driving the Scarlet Flame Bees—with their astonishingly keen senses—to this border.
Yet judging from the current situation, the latter possibility seemed unlikely. Otherwise, the Scarlet Flame Bees would not merely be circling here. They would be fleeing for their lives in a frenzy.
“I think we can try it, but…” Yao Xin lowered her head and thought for a moment before agreeing with Mo Fan’s proposal to kill the Scarlet Flame Bee Queen.
There were two difficulties in carrying out Mo Fan’s plan. First, among the countless bees, which one was the queen?
Second, the Scarlet Flame Bees were all formidable. Every one of them possessed the strength of the Mortal Body Stage of the Body Tempering Realm. If they launched an attack and swarmed toward them, the result would be nothing like the earlier incident, when Mo Fan had overturned some dew and attracted only a small number of bees.
If anything went wrong, the four of them might be devoured alive by the Scarlet Flame Bees.
They would be buried in a foreign land!
“Hmph. Yao Xin! He’s an idiot, but are you going to be an idiot too? You know perfectly well what the situation is. Even if a heaven-defying treasure really is about to appear in Western Ridge Panlong, you still need to consider whether you have the ability to claim it—especially when you’re traveling with a useless burden.”
Lin Xiaojun rebuked Yao Xin, then offered her own opinion:
“I think we should stop here and wait for more people to gather. Then we can combine our strength, break through the swarm, and enter the Western Ridge. Otherwise, we should each return to our sects and give up this opportunity.
“We’re all still young. Missing one or two opportunities is no great loss.”
As Lin Xiaojun said this, there was an unmistakable edge to her voice.
They were all experts from powerful forces that had already opened their Wasteland Domains. They had the time to wait—but did Mo Fan?
Did he have that kind of time?
Yet, surprisingly, Yao Xin did not argue or grow angry this time. She understood how dire the situation was.
“I agree with Xiaojun,” Xiahou Ji said, leaning on his long sword as he looked toward Mo Fan. A trace of apology flickered inadvertently in his eyes.
He, too, had chosen Lin Xiaojun’s proposal.
Of the four people, there were two suggestions, and Mo Fan had been defeated utterly.
This place was simply too dangerous. No one dared guarantee that they could safely pass through the Scarlet Flame Bee swarm and enter the Misty Western Ridge alive.
What was more, among them was Mo Fan—a useless man who had not even opened a Wasteland Domain.
Although Xiahou Ji and Lin Xiaojun had both witnessed Mo Fan’s strength, they were certain that under such circumstances, the moment he entered, he would die without a doubt.
For the sake of safety, they had all chosen Lin Xiaojun’s suggestion.
Mo Fan did not become angry because Xiahou Ji and Yao Xin had sided with Lin Xiaojun. Given the current circumstances, anyone would have made the same choice.
In fact, Xiahou Ji’s decision made Mo Fan feel that he was genuine and unpretentious. If Xiahou Ji had instead told him that they would live or die together, Mo Fan would have thought him hypocritical.
As for Yao Xin, Mo Fan could not see through her. He did not care in the slightest about her choice.
Having friends like these made Mo Fan feel relieved.
Therefore, he had already made up his mind.
This time, he could not drag Xiahou Ji and the others down with him.
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“Fine!”
Mo Fan exhaled crisply. Within his eyes, as still as a dead pool, something continued to churn.
He had to go to the Western Ridge this time. The divine object about to emerge within might well be what he had been searching for. He could not miss it, did not dare miss it, and absolutely could not afford to miss it.
Lin Xiaojun was right. They were all still young, and missing one or two opportunities meant little. At worst, they could seek them out again in the future.
But that applied to people like them. Mo Fan could not withstand such a loss.
The tension in Xiahou Ji’s spirit eased after Mo Fan exhaled. Leaning on his long sword, he limped back the way they had come.
They had decided to abandon this expedition.
“Little Brother Mo, what are you doing?”
Yao Xin was walking at the very back. After going more than a dozen meters, she sensed that something was wrong and hurriedly turned around.
Mo Fan had already charged into the swarm.
She cried out in alarm.
Xiahou Ji and Lin Xiaojun heard her shout and quickly turned around.
In the distance, they saw a young man surrounded by thousands upon thousands of Scarlet Flame Bees. In an instant, he vanished from sight.
“That boy!”
Xiahou Ji’s fury erupted. He drew his long sword and, after several flashes, appeared at the edge of the swarm, attempting to pull Mo Fan back at the last possible moment.
Xiahou Ji’s movements were incredibly swift, but the swarm was faster still.
Before he could reach the place where Mo Fan had been surrounded, groups of Scarlet Flame Bees fixed their eyes on him and blocked his path.
“Big Brother Xia!”
Lin Xiaojun and Yao Xin hurried to his aid. The sound of the zither and sword qi erupted together, instantly killing a vast number of bees.
As Lin Xiaojun slaughtered the Scarlet Flame Bees, she cursed Mo Fan viciously.
In her eyes, no one was more despicable than Mo Fan.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
With Lin Xiaojun and Yao Xin joining the battle, the three of them quickly cut down the swarm surrounding them.
They carved a bloody path through the bees and escaped the swarm’s territory.
The Scarlet Flame Bees fed on flames, and their primary method of attack was fire.
Even when surrounded by only a small number of bees, Xiahou Ji and the others had been reduced to a sorry state.
Mo Fan, however, was now surrounded by thousands upon thousands of Scarlet Flame Bees. The blazing fire they unleashed illuminated half the sky.
No one could know how dangerous his situation was.
Standing amid the raging flames, Mo Fan suffered agonizing torment.
Fortunately, the fire spewed by the Scarlet Flame Bees not only trapped him but also hindered the swarm’s attacks.
Taking advantage of this, Mo Fan unleashed his footwork and repeatedly struck down each Scarlet Flame Bee with his Shadow-Killing Fist.
Boom, boom, boom, boom!
Explosions of raging fire shook the mountains and forests. In an instant, the entire border of the Western Ridge became a sea of flames.
Mo Fan moved through that sea of fire, his skin burned raw in numerous places.
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The flames spat out by the Scarlet Flame Bees contained a deadly poison. If an ordinary person were touched by them, the consequences would be unthinkable.
But who was Mo Fan?
The Scarlet Flame Bees’ fire poison was not enough to injure him.
If their poison was deadly, his was deadlier still.
The Blood of Poisonbane began to flow.
A single drop fell to the ground, and the land in that spot instantly became barren.
Mo Fan grinned. His body trembled as he threw back his head and let out a long howl.
“No one can stop my path, Mo Fan’s path!”
Sizzle, sizzle! Sizzle, sizzle!
He allowed the flames to scorch his body until he was covered in blood.
He looked like a demon that had emerged from the depths of the netherworld. Wherever he passed, flowers and trees withered, while the poison sank three inches into the earth.
Boom, boom, boom, boom!
With the Blood of Poisonbane coursing through him, Mo Fan fought the Scarlet Flame Bees, every punch detonating one of them.
The bees shattered in midair, bursting into clusters of sparks that scattered in every direction.
Because those sparks had been tainted by Mo Fan’s Blood of Poisonbane, they were poisonous as well.
When they fell into the forest, they instantly stripped the flowers and trees of their vitality. If they touched a flying Scarlet Flame Bee, they melted it on the spot.
In this manner, less than half a day later, Mo Fan had slain thousands upon thousands of Scarlet Flame Bees with his fists.
Boom!
With a final punch, he blasted apart the body of the last Scarlet Flame Bee.
His eyes blood-red, Mo Fan stood amid the sea of flames and forest, gazing toward the depths of the mist.
There, a Scarlet Flame Bee several times larger than the others beat its wings with a heavy buzz as it stared at him.
The bee was brownish red all over. Its enormous body was roughly the size of a newborn infant, while a pair of horns several feet long trembled ceaselessly atop its head. From its mouth, it occasionally spewed poisonous flames that scorched the entire void.
It simply stood there, staring at Mo Fan.
Perhaps afraid of something, it did not dare charge forward immediately.
The Scarlet Flame Bee Queen!
It must be you.
Mo Fan shifted his feet and sprang forward to kill it.
Bang!
Before his fist could even touch the enormous creature, a tremendous force struck Mo Fan and sent him flying. He crashed into the forest, which was engulfed in flames.
Enduring the pain, he slowly rose to his feet.
Then the scene before him left him utterly stunned.
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