162: Chapter 162: Stealing, burglary!

The swarm was devouring the hellfire, even attempting to assimilate the scorched earth beneath them.

If left unchecked, the Extreme North would have a new master.

"Roar!"

A Platinum Peak Fire Spirit let out a roar, its voice filled with panic.

Responding to it was a rumbling sound emanating from deep underground.

In the center of the Extreme North, over a hundred volcanoes that had been dormant for a century shook simultaneously.

Black rocks cracked, and dark red magma shot straight into the sky.

Nearly a thousand terrifying auras awakened from the depths of the magma.

Diamond Tier.

Nearly a thousand Diamond Tier Calamity Fire Spirits in total.

They were the true Foundation of the Fire Spirit race.

At this moment, they were awakened by the events on the periphery.

Stealing their authority and touching the Foundation of their race's survival—the intentions of these bugs had completely enraged them.

A natural disaster, descending!

The sky of the Extreme North turned completely dark and grey.

Cracks in the Void Realm spread, and the wild winds were ignited.

Fire elements within a thousand miles went berserk, forming towering fire tornadoes that connected heaven and earth.

These disgusting bugs did not deserve to possess their power.

Destruction was the only mercy.

The hundreds of thousands of newly evolved Hellfire Source Bugs lay on the scorching scorched earth.

The volcanic craters on their backs stopped erupting; fear suppressed their desire to feed.

They felt the oppression of hierarchy.

The destructive natural disaster was imminent.

Just at this critical moment, ripples appeared in the Void Realm at the edge of the Extreme North.

A slender figure, ten meters in length, stepped onto this scorched earth.

The Bug King.

It had been lurking on the edge of the Extreme North, watching this evolution with cold eyes.

The scene before it was exactly as it had envisioned.

These mindless Fire Spirits were indeed enraged.

The kingly antennae on the Bug King's head lit up with a deep purple glow.

The power of heaven and earth was mobilized.

This was the Extreme North, the home turf of the Fire Spirits.

The power of heaven and earth that the Bug King could mobilize was weak, but it was enough to convey emotions.

Ripples centered on the Bug King swept across the entire volcano cluster, accurately landing deep within the Souls of the thousand Diamond Tier Fire Spirits.

It was not merely simple mental fluctuations; it contained powerful emotional strength.

Friendship, submission, and a clear sense of negotiation.

The Bug King lowered its stance, and the infectious nature of its emotions spread rapidly along with the power of heaven and earth.

Under the soothing effect of these emotions, the anger of the Fire Spirit leaders faltered.

The natural disaster hovered in mid-air.

They lowered their heads, their eye sockets locking onto the silver-white bug below.

They decided to listen to what this bug had to say.

If they were not satisfied, the natural disaster would strike at any moment, wiping everything here flat.

The Bug King flashed forward.

Braving the high temperature, it appeared directly in front of all the Diamond Tier Fire Spirits.

It folded its forelimbs.

It lowered its head slightly and bowed to them.

The movement was elegant.

The Bug King raised its head, its compound eyes looking toward the fire giants standing like mountains before it.

It sighed inwardly in amazement.

As expected of the Fire Spirit race that occupied the most extreme environment in the Divine Realm.

The total number of these guys was only a mere few tens of thousands, yet there were nearly a thousand Diamond Tier ones.

This number was slightly higher than all the Diamond Tier beings of the Bug race plus the Sea and Sky Races combined.

Not to mention their shared lineage and the Body Integration ability they possessed.

Once these nearly a thousand Diamond Tier Fire Spirits merged into one.

I'm afraid only that old madman, the Tyrant, could contend with them.

The Bug King put away its amazement, and mental fluctuations were transmitted again.

"Apologies."

The Bug King maintained a proper stance: "On behalf of the Bug race, I apologize to you all for this disturbance to the Extreme North."

Within the volcano cluster.

Several Fire Spirits with the largest forms and deepest auras exchanged glances.

Hypocritical.

They clearly sent bugs to steal the authority of the Fire Spirit race.

Now they casually referred to it as a "disturbance," which showed that this bug was extremely scheming.

"Cut the crap!" a hot-tempered Fire Spirit roared.

It waved its hand, and a hellfire whip lashed directly at the Bug King's face, "Spit it out, or we'll burn you all to ashes!"

The Bug King flashed, easily dodging the whip.

Idiots.

The Bug King cursed silently.

It stopped beating around the bush and threw out its trump card.

"A transaction." The Bug King's signal was clearly transmitted to every Fire Spirit, "The Bug race will help you reproduce, and you will help the Bug race evolve."

"Every time the Bug race enters the Extreme North, as long as one Hellfire Source Bug walks out alive,"

"I will offer one hundred bugs from other branches for you to burn."

"The bugs that fail to adapt to the hellfire and die on the scorched earth are free."

"How about it?"

As soon as these words were spoken, several in the Fire Spirit group were furious.

"Insolent!" that hot-tempered Fire Spirit roared again, its bone halo spinning, "The Extreme North does not need you dirty bugs!"

"Get out! Return the power you stole!"

The Fire Spirits around it followed suit, making a move to bring down the natural disaster in the sky.

"Shut up."

A deep, aged voice sounded within the Fire Spirit group.

A Fire Spirit with a slightly smaller form, but a golden bone halo, emerged from the crowd.

The flames in its eye sockets flickered steadily, revealing profound wisdom.

The Sage.

The Sage Fire Spirit stopped the actions of the hot-tempered faction, lowered its head to look down at the Bug King, and seemed lost in thought.

It saw through the current predicament of the Fire Spirit race.

The Extreme North was too comfortable.

No natural predators, no survival pressure.

In these long years, the Fire Spirit race had stopped evolving.

They spent their days soaking in magma, frolicking with each other, and waiting to die.

Their numbers were stagnant; it took a full hundred years to give birth to a few tens of thousands of new Fire Spirits.

While in the outside world, the Bug race and the Sea and Sky Races were fighting fiercely and evolving crazily.

If this continued, the Extreme North would sooner or later be trampled by the monsters outside.

The Bug race's proposal hit the vital point of the Fire Spirit race.

The Bug race was fuel.

It could significantly accelerate the gestation of new Fire Spirits.

The birth of the Hellfire Bug race could also stimulate the growth in strength of existing Fire Spirits.

"We need time to discuss." The Sage responded.

The Bug King nodded slightly and took half a step back, indicating understanding.

It stood on the scorched earth, its heart calm.

The entire situation was already within its calculations.

The Hellfire Source Bugs stealing the Fire Spirits' power—this group of arrogant guys would never let them leave alive.

A direct confrontation would cause heavy losses for the Bug race and might even provoke a counterattack from the entire Extreme North.

The only way was to bind them with interests.

As long as the birth of the Hellfire Source Bugs was linked to the reproduction of the Fire Spirit race.

In mid-air, a thousand Diamond Tier Fire Spirits gathered, and mental fluctuations collided between them.

"We cannot agree!" the hot-tempered Fire Spirit waved its arms.

"They stole the hellfire! This is a blasphemy against the authority bestowed upon us by the Creator! Kill them all and end the future trouble once and for all!"

"Yes! The Extreme North is our territory, why should we let bugs run wild!"

On the other side, a conservative Fire Spirit shook its head.

"Killing them is easy, but what about the future? We just continue soaking in magma and sleeping?"

"Haven't you noticed that in the last few decades, the birth rate of new Fire Spirits has been getting lower and lower?"

"The energy provided by the earth veins is no longer enough to support the expansion of the race."

"That still doesn't mean we can cooperate with bugs!" the hot-tempered Fire Spirit retorted, "These bugs are extremely cunning; today they steal hellfire, tomorrow they might even dig up the core of the Extreme North!"

The Sage Fire Spirit listened quietly to their argument until the voices gradually subsided, then it spoke.

"We have regressed."

Once these words were spoken, all the Fire Spirits fell silent.

The Sage Fire Spirit extended a finger, pointing toward the distant New Continent.

"A hundred years ago, the creatures outside didn't even have the qualifications to step into the Extreme North."

"Now, these bugs have withstood the burning of the hellfire and completed their evolution."

"Do you think that killing this batch of bugs before us will allow you to sleep soundly?"

"The Bug race is evolving, the Sea and Sky Races are evolving. Even that group of Tyrant Demons in the center of the Divine Realm are fighting."

"Only we are sleeping."

The Sage Fire Spirit looked at the hot-tempered Fire Spirit.

"Your hellfire has already been adapted to by the bugs. In another hundred years, will they evolve armor that is completely immune to hellfire?"

"By then, what will you use to burn them?"

The hot-tempered Fire Spirit was speechless, the flames in its eye sockets flickering uncertainly.

"We need fuel." The Sage Fire Spirit made the final decision, "The rations delivered by the Bug race can allow us to reproduce rapidly."

"We need to use this resource to stack up more Diamond Tier ones, and even push for higher ranks."

"As for the power they stole..." the Sage Fire Spirit sneered, "One for one hundred. For every part they take, we can use it to grow tenfold; it's a business that guarantees profit without loss."

The hot-tempered faction was still unconvinced: "That still doesn't mean we can agree; where is the dignity of the Fire Spirits!"

The Sage snorted coldly.

"Dignity is always built upon strength."

"We need to increase the stakes; we cannot let this bug think we are easy to manipulate."

The argument continued, but the trend had shifted toward the Sage Fire Spirit.

More and more Fire Spirits realized that isolation would only lead to destruction.

The Extreme North needed fresh blood and resources to break the current stalemate.

The Bug race's proposal was currently the most feasible way to break the deadlock.

A full hour.

A thousand Diamond Tier Fire Spirits finally reached a consensus.

The natural disaster hovering over the volcano cluster dissipated, turning back into fire elements and merging into heaven and earth.

The Fire Spirit Sage emerged from the crowd, looking down at the Bug King below.

"A transaction, it is possible."

The Sage's mental fluctuations were solemn and full of oppression.

"The terms must be changed."

"One for three hundred."

"All evolved bugs must leave a trace of their Origin imprint before leaving the Extreme North."

"If they dare to use the Fire Spirits' power against Fire Spirits, the imprint will detonate, wiping them out directly."

The Bug King heard this and did not hesitate in the slightest.

"Deal."

It agreed too quickly.

It made the Fire Spirit Sage pause for a moment, suspecting that it had asked for too little.

The Bug King bowed again.

Subsequently, it turned around.

The antennae on its head issued a retreat order to the hundreds of thousands of Hellfire Source Bugs.

The dark red sea of bugs began to withdraw from the Extreme North in an orderly manner.

The Bug King walked at the end.

Deep within its cold compound eyes, a hint of human-like mockery emerged.

One for three hundred?

Imprint restriction?

Too naive.

The thing the Bug race lacked the least was quantity.

Let alone one for three hundred, even if it were one for five hundred, the Bug Mother could hatch them within a short time.

As for the Origin imprint?

The characteristic of the Formless Tribulation Bug was adaptation to all things; once they stepped into the Gold Peak.

Opening the second and third adaptations.

After fusing with the Demon Vulture, Liquid Metal Crab, Bone Fish, and many other creatures.

A mere Fire Spirit imprint would have long been washed away completely during the evolution.

The Bug King raised its head and looked at the sky of the Divine Realm.

Its heart laughed silently.

I laugh at these Fire Spirits for their lack of strategy, and the Tyrant Demons for their short-sightedness.

The ultimate hegemon of this Divine Realm will only be the Bug race.