Chapter 65: Thirteen Days (Part 2)

  It's been a whole week since Zong Yin returned to the Soul Academy, and just yesterday he chose to go into seclusion like Yang Jun, but not by his own will. He was kicked out by Hei Sen because his Queen Bee had successfully entered its mature form. Hun Yu used some special methods, using Zong Yin's original soul power to nourish the Queen Bee's larvae, causing it to emerge from its cocoon three weeks ahead of schedule.

  However, the downside is that the queen's aggression and toxicity have decreased somewhat. After all, a forcibly matured queen bee is still immature in many ways, although it does not reach the level of a ninth-level soul master, the newly formed venom can still soften Zongheng's soul, which is much stronger than the venom of the artificially raised queen bee in the classroom.

  This newly hatched queen bee, after all, is a ninth-level soul master breed, with a strong desire to conquer in its bones. In just one day, it defeated and tamed the queen bee that had been helping Zonghui cultivate his soul power, as well as the swarm of killer bees in the classroom.

  It didn't matter at first, but when Zong Yin saw Hei Sen appear, he quickly came up with a plan. He let the queen bee lead his newly acknowledged little brother and, disregarding the smell that made them uncomfortable, they all rushed out of their nest and launched a suicidal charge at Hei Sen.

  Tens of thousands of killer bees swarmed towards Hei Sen, looking more shocking than dispersing to attack others. Hei Sen was also stunned for a long time without reacting, and for a while, he was somewhat flustered. What Zong Yin did not expect was that countless students who had been abused by Hei Sen for several months saw Hei Sen unable to draw his sword, and someone shouted loudly: "Brothers stand together! Those with grievances complain! Those with grudges take revenge!"

  Everyone then used their strongest soul techniques, taking cover behind the Killer Bees as they charged forward. Immediately afterwards, Zonghui finally witnessed the power of the "Star Explosion" he had always wanted.

  Kuroba, who was busy dealing with the killer bees, saw that this group of rabbits had become even more unscrupulous and his originally dark face turned even darker. He let out a loud roar, and the killer bees flying everywhere suddenly burst open like countless fire flowers, just like the "Man Ten Sei" fireworks that Sōin had once seen, except that instead of golden sparks, they emitted green liquid.

  All students who had not yet reached Hei Sen's level were instantly stunned and stood still in their tracks.

  "Has everyone's strength increased recently? So you're itching for a fight again? Well, I'll help you loosen up! Boom!"

  Hei Sen's face was tinged with a sly smile, as if he were saying something extremely delightful, but just as he uttered the last word, everyone felt as though countless tiny insects had crawled into their skin through their pores, and before they could react, those "insects" exploded.

  Fortunately, Black Forest's control over his own soul power was far beyond what a Soul Master could compare to, so no one exploded into a bloody mist like the Killer Bee, only stripping off a layer of skin. However, this pain was even more heart-wrenching than the pain caused by the Killer Bee, after all, the Killer Bee could only harm a small area of the soul, while Black Forest had combed through everyone's entire body.

  The queen bee, who had been glaring fiercely and hiding in Zonghui's hair, seemed to have identified Zonghui as the mastermind. Hei Sen gave him special treatment, and those soul powers that turned into "little bugs" just exploded as soon as they entered other people's skin. So although others looked very terrifying, they actually didn't receive too serious injuries.

  Zong Yin was different, those subtle soul forces only exploded after penetrating deep into his flesh and blood, his body surface was filled with countless dense bloody holes, even in places like the back of his hand where there was little flesh, you could see the bones.

  What made Zong Yin feel helpless was that this was still the effect after he had raised his soul power barrier and shield in the first time after discovering Hei Sen's star explosion, Hei Sen's soul power turned into smaller particles when they encountered Zong Yin's soul power barrier, and they rushed through the gaps in his barrier without any obstruction, instantly penetrating his blood and flesh through his pores.

  Zong Yin lay on the ground with a hideous grin, but his eyes still shone with excitement. The Star Burst was just a Blue Star martial soul technique, yet the power it displayed at this moment was in no way inferior to that of a Red Star martial soul technique!

  So when Kuroba recovered from his external injuries and was kicked out, Sora left without saying a word. In the classroom, it was indeed too quiet, repeating the same training every day. At first, it might have been okay, but as time went on, even Sora couldn't take it anymore. The killer bees and queen bees could no longer provide any help to Sora, who would rather train alone with his own queen bee.

  To know that the queen bee's effect on oneself is a catalyst for soul power, but once it takes effect on others during battle, it becomes a deadly poison, so he and the queen bee still need to practice their coordination.

  The place where Zong Yin practiced was the Soul School's training room, which was quiet and didn't have to worry about making too much noise or damaging anything. The only pity was that there were no living things for Zong Yin to practice his queen bee's combat coordination with, so he had to go find someone else's trouble, but Zong Yin couldn't do it.

  A fist-sized, yellow-and-red shadow darted rapidly through the air, its wings beating swiftly as the sound enveloped his ears. Zhong Hui's eyes gleamed with a nimble light, his right arm transformed into a massive stone arm, three soul blades appearing and disappearing around him, ever vigilant for any incoming attack.

  In the blink of an eye, the queen bee darted towards Zong Yin like a hunting hawk, its six dark green venomous stingers all retracted together, forming a sharp spearhead that stabbed straight at his chest.

  In the blink of an eye, the poisonous thorn had already arrived in front of Zong Yin. Even with his current eyesight, the cold gleam on the dark green poisonous thorn made one's heart tremble. If this strike were to hit its mark, even if it couldn't pierce through his body, the intense toxin would be enough to make Zong Yin drink a whole pot of it.

  Zong Yin's natural movement was also crucial, with his right palm stretching out according to the flow of air, bringing a whistling wind sound as he slapped forward into the empty void.

  Unfortunately, Zong Yin's blow fell through empty air. This was not the first time he had missed his target. Even if he could observe the flow of energy, in the face of absolute speed, Zong Yin simply couldn't react in time.

  The queen bee's wings made a slight movement, accurately escaping from the gap between Zong Yin's fingers and continuing to rush towards his chest.

  Fortunately, Zong Yin had not only prepared this one move. The three soul blades combined into a flying dart-like blade that rotated rapidly to protect Zong Yin's chest.

  As Zhong Yin had expected, the queen bee's body was unable to withstand his soul blade and could only choose to dodge.

  "Gotcha!"

  As soon as he saw the Queen Bee, Zong Yin's mouth corners suddenly hooked up with a curved degree, and the six-sided solid soul power shield appeared abruptly around the "Queen Bee", wrapping him tightly inside.

  Zong Yin seemed to be about to say something, the queen bee moved her mandibles as if mocking him, flapped her wings and continued to charge towards Zong Yin's chest with six poison stingers that showed no signs of change.

  Zong Yin's heart was racing, and he suddenly had a very bad premonition. However, he didn't have any room for regret. The queen bee's poisonous stinger pierced through Zong Yin's soul power barrier as if it were paper, easily inserting all six poisonous stingers into his chest.

  Zong Yin's body shook violently and he fell to the ground, unable to get up for a long time.

  The queen bee, after stinging Zong Yin once, didn't exhibit any other extreme behavior. She slowly flew up and landed on Zong Yin's petrified shoulder, her large compound eyes staring at him with an innocent expression. As a first-class soul master, the Queen Bee's spiritual intelligence had gradually opened up. Although she was the one who caused her master's injury, it seemed like this was also her master's order. The queen bee thought to herself.

  After a long time, Zong Yin finally caught his breath and struggled to sit up on the ground with his legs crossed. He forced a weak smile onto his face as he took out a piece of raw meat from his storage ring and placed it aside, indicating for the Queen Bee to play with it while he also stuffed some food into his own mouth. Then, he closed his eyes and began to cultivate his soul power during this moment when his soul was softened.

  It's been a week since this simple game of cat and mouse started, for several reasons. Firstly, Zong Yin thinks he is not a masochist, so he doesn't want to be easily stung by the Queen Bee, and through mutual attacks, he can comfort himself mentally. Secondly, what Zong Yin fears most now is an opponent like the Queen Bee who has incredible speed and strong attacking power, so he wants to get familiar with her as much as possible, so that when they meet again in the future, he won't be at a disadvantage, and maybe he can find some ways to counterattack.

  It's just that even if all the hidden cards are revealed, Zong Yin has never withstood the queen bee's fierce attack for more than a minute. The queen bee's speed and penetration power were simply too strong, leaving him no extra time to think. As long as he was given an opportunity, it could successfully deliver the venom into his body.

  The queen bee didn't bother with Zong Hui either. When she saw that he had started eating, she quietly flew to one side and ate calmly.

  Zong Yin took a deep breath, secretly grateful to have met Lu Jin. The queen bee he had contracted with was actually a variant species with some variation. Otherwise, even if its spiritual intelligence was high, the soul beast shouldn't be so clever when it had just come of age.

  Its toxicity is increasing every day in proportion to its wisdom. When Zonghui was stung by the queen bee at first, he could only feel a pain like being cut by a small knife. The duration of the toxin's effect was probably only four or five hours, and even then, it could only form a strand of soul power. However, now that its toxicity has increased, every time Zonghui is stung, not to mention the pain, just the feeling of despair from deep within his soul makes him want to commit suicide each time, as if dying would be a relief.

  The queen bee's venom had elevated to a whole new level, and if not for the mixed jade, Zong Yin would have despairingly inserted the soul blade into his own heart from the very beginning. Having learned a lesson once, every time he was stung by the queen bee afterwards, he would recall those deeply ingrained hatreds to ensure that amidst that desperation, there remained a thread of rationality.

  While the toxin is intense, the benefits are also evident. Zong Yin's newly cultivated soul force has been subtly increasing every day, from one strand on the first day, to one and a half strands on the second day, two strands on the third day... all the way to four strands today, with his cultivation speed steadily increasing by about half a strand per day.

  In just one week, his soul power had increased by nearly twenty units. If he continued at this rate, in another thirteen days, Zong Yin would reach a soul power of over 1,000 units. However, the toxins were already making it difficult for him to bear, and he feared that when the time came, the toxins would directly dissolve his soul.

  However, Zong Yin's biggest shortage was time. He had no way out and could only gamble that his cultivation speed would be able to reach the Soul Master stage before the Queen Bee venom killed him.