102: Chapter 102 "Feeding" in a Desperate Situation
Chapter 102: 'Feeding' in Desperation
That piercing rat squeal was like a red-hot steel needle, stabbing viciously into my nerves, which were on the verge of collapse from exhaustion!
I jolted violently, forcibly rousing my spirits. The muscles beneath my carapace instantly tensed, entering a state of maximum alert!
The sliver of Demonic Power I had just recovered was instantly pushed to its limit.
Did the Night Crow chase us down?!
No! That's impossible, not this fast!
Even if he had tracking methods, it would be impossible for him to lock onto our randomly jumped landing spot with such precision!
My will immediately connected to the nearby 'sentinels' through the Swarm Network.
A mutated Cockroach perched atop a pipe shared its 'vision' with me.
It was a dim, grainy image, mixed with the stench of grease and decay.
I 'saw' it.
At the spot where that rat had 'sacrificed' itself, a mutated giant dog, even larger in size, covered in green pustules, and exuding a thick stench of corpse, was tearing at its carcass, emitting horrifying chewing sounds.
It wasn't the Night Crow.
Just a passing... stronger predator.
The string pulled tight in my heart loosened slightly.
But immediately, an even heavier sense of oppression washed over me.
It was a false alarm, yet it made me realize even more clearly just how perilous our current situation was.
In this underground world rife with danger, in our current state, any slightly stronger mutated creature was enough to end our lives.
"Cough... cough cough..."
Just then, a weak, violent coughing sound, as if she were about to cough up her lungs, came from beside me.
Lin Qingzhi had woken up.
She slowly opened her dim phoenix eyes. A flicker of confusion crossed her gaze first, followed immediately by the deep-seated vigilance and scrutiny belonging to the Empress.
She immediately struggled to sit up, attempting to circulate her cultivation method to save herself.
However, the next second, an unprecedented sense of... powerlessness and pain appeared on her pale, pretty face.
I could clearly sense the condition inside her body through the Symbiotic Bond.
A complete mess.
The vicious curse power of the Soul Devouring Nail, combined with the terrifying backlash from directly confronting the Night Crow, was like two of the fiercest venomous snakes, frantically tearing and destroying within her already fragile soul and meridians.
Forget condensing True Essence; right now, even mobilizing a trace of vital energy was an extravagance.
She couldn't even feel her arm that had once been pierced by the Soul Devouring Nail; only a patch of numb deadness remained there.
For the first time, she revealed a true sense of... weakness.
Looking at her pained expression, which even carried a hint of helplessness, my heart felt as if it were being fiercely squeezed by an invisible large hand.
It hurt.
It hurt more than when my own carapace shattered or my wings were torn.
Without hesitation, I immediately sank my consciousness into the System Panel.
"evolution points: 20000"
This was the entire spoils of war we obtained after jointly killing the Magician.
It was also the only trump card I currently held that could turn the tide!
"System, activate the Energy Conversion function of the Symbiotic Bond!"
"Consume ten thousand evolution points and convert them into the purest source of life essence to be transmitted to Lin Qingzhi!"
"Ding! Confirm consumption of 10000 evolution points to perform energy transmission for Bond Target (Lin Qingzhi)? This operation will consume 50% of your current reserve energy and may cause your evolution process to slow down. Host, please choose cautiously!"
The System's prompt carried a tone of admonishment for the first time.
But I didn't hesitate in the slightest.
evolution points can be earned again if they are gone.
But if she were gone...
What meaning would my evolution have then?
"Confirm!"
Boom!
A warm, pure torrent of energy, brimming with vigorous life essence, instantly surged out from within me, transforming into a dazzling golden ribbon of light that slowly injected itself into Lin Qingzhi's cold, lifeless body!
"Buzz—"
Lin Qingzhi's delicate body suddenly trembled.
She could clearly feel an extremely pure life energy, one that would make any Essence Rank expert go mad, surging wildly into every part of her body, repairing her shattered meridians and nourishing her soul that was on the verge of collapse.
That energy was like clear spring water arriving in a drought, allowing her nearly withered field of life to regain a trace of vitality.
Although this energy was not enough to completely eradicate the malicious Soul Devouring Nail curse that had already invaded the source of her soul.
It was enough to forcefully pull her back from the brink of death!
She slowly and laboriously turned her head.
Those cold phoenix eyes locked tightly onto me.
Locked onto me, this Little Mosquito, whose carapace had dimmed and wings were tattered due to energy depletion.
Her eyes were filled with a shock that words could not describe, and a complex emotion she had never experienced in both her lifetimes.
Moved?
No, that word was too superficial.
It was the heavy impact of being guarded by someone else's life, an impact profound enough to make even an Emperor's heart tremble.
"You evil creature..."
After a long while, she finally transmitted her thoughts to me in an extremely weak voice, yet one that carried a slight tremor she herself hadn't noticed.
"...What a... fool."
A fool?
Perhaps so.
I felt the immense emptiness within my body from having expended half my evolution points, yet my heart held no regret. Instead, there was an unprecedented sense of... fulfillment.
However, just as I was preparing to respond to her, she suddenly used the last bit of strength in her body, reached out that pale, powerless hand, and grabbed my damaged wing, pulling me close to her.
We faced each other.
No, my countless compound eyes faced her breathtaking phoenix eyes.
"Remember this."
She branded her will deep into my soul in an unprecedentedly serious tone, word by word.
"Don't ever do such a stupid thing again in the future."
"Your life is just as important as mine."