Chapter 10: Counterattack (Part 1)

Li Ran’s team grew to seven members, including theMonier couple Monier couple, Guo Shier and Cecile, Qi Wu Zhen and Li Ran. Just as they hovered in the air, patrol vehicles approached. Those who could fly like this must be experts, so the people in the vehicles spoke to them in a non-strict tone, asking, “Who are you?”

Wang Dayang shouted, “We’re professionals from the Spellcraft Clan!”
Hearing that they were professionals from the Spellcraft Clan, the patrol members immediately became very respectful, though they were slightly puzzled: When did professionals from the Spellcraft Clan start appearing in groups?

No one dared ask, as the Spellcraft Clan was always mysterious and highly favored by the leaders of various races. Any race that could establish connections with their elite professionals would receive favorable treatment, as these professionals often possessed things that other races lacked. Someone immediately drove one of the vehicles to invite the seven of them to board and take them directly to the gathering site.

The seven stepped out of the vehicle upon arriving at the gathering site. There weren’t many people there—news of the tragedies elsewhere had already reached this place, and most of the people had withdrawn. A few remained, but they would leave soon as well. This was because the Tianling Clan didn’t want to give up this important gathering site yet, so they left some people to guard it.

Guo Shier wondered, “Why is it so deserted?”
Wang Dayang replied, “They probably withdrew. We saw many spaceships along the way; they must be people leaving here.”
Guo Shier said, “Hmm, it’s good the insect swarm didn’t follow. Otherwise, this place would have been destroyed.”
Li Ran said, “We’ll stay here for two days to see if the insect swarm comes.”
Wang Dayang said, “Let’s find a place to stay first. I know a place—hehe, it’s a residence specially prepared by the Tianling Clan for elite guests from other races.” Without caring what others thought, they flew low over the streets and headed straight there. Walking would have been too slow, so flying was more convenient. In less than two minutes, they arrived at a fortress. Wang Dayang landed and waved to a Tianling Clan guard, saying, “We want to stay here.”

The guard called over a servant in blue clothes and said, “Go and welcome our guests.”
The servant stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and led everyone inside the fortress, quickly arranging accommodations for them. The place was very empty now, with almost no one around—most outsiders had left, leaving only the Tianling Clan’s guards. So, the arrival of the seven attracted a lot of attention.

The rooms inside the fortress were all made of metal, with only doors and no windows. The interiors were simple, furnished only with a thick woven carpet—nothing else. Even an ordinary expert could withstand extreme temperatures here, so having a room to stay in was sufficient.

Guo Shier and the others didn’t mind either. While training outside, they couldn’t be picky about the quality of their lodging; as long as they had a place to rest, it was good enough.

Li Ran said, “We must act together. If we’re going out, everyone goes out together; if we’re resting, we all return together. Under no circumstances should anyone be left behind.”

Everyone understood that once an insect swarm attacked, even if they had the means to seal away the Void Insects, it would still be extremely dangerous. By staying together, they could collectively resist the attacks of the Void Insects, which would be the best chance to capture them. It wasn’t easy to deal with an insect swarm alone.

The group agreed and went back to their rooms to rest. The next morning, they got up and went to the main street. Since they had nothing to do, they decided to take a look at this famous gathering place.

Walking along the street, they could see how bustling this place used to be. However, most shops were closed, and even if there were people on the street, they all seemed in a hurry, making the entire street unusually quiet. After walking for a while, everyone felt bored. Guo Shier said, “Almost all the shops are closed. Heh, we came at the wrong time.”

Wang Dayang said, “I’ve been here before. This street used to be packed with people. Heh, it’s really too quiet now.”

After circling the area, they were greatly disappointed, finding nothing distinctive. Though disappointed, they weren’t surprised. It was already remarkable that there were people here; most of the ruins were likely deserted.

On their way back, they suddenly heard a sharp screeching sound. Wang Dayang froze and said, “An alarm!”

Everyone immediately became excited. Waiting here was extremely boring, and hearing the alarm made them alert. Guo Shier asked, “Are it insects?” Then he quickly flew into the air, and the others followed. Cereslin had always stayed close to Guo Shier, never straying far. When Guo Shier rose into the air, she grabbed his arm and flew up with him. Guo Shier wasn’t surprised; he was used to having Cereslin by his side, so he immediately wrapped his arm around her slender waist.

A large number of flying vehicles rose into the air; they were all from the Tianling Clan. They also saw Li Ran and the others, but ignored them. In the distance, a massive shadow appeared, creeping along the horizon. Guo Shier laughed and said, “It’s indeed the Void Worms. Hehe, there are quite a few of them. We’re in for a big haul this time.”

The members of the Tianling Clan were extremely panicked. Their fortress detection devices had already identified the situation in the distance, and the danger level had reached its highest. The so-called highest alert meant they should retreat immediately without resistance—any delay would mean certain death.

Guo Shier said with a smile, “Although we don’t have much goodwill toward the Tianling Clan, this gathering place with its seven fortresses is still a decent spot. Running into us is just their luck. Hehe, let’s go after them!”

All the remaining spacecraft in the gathering place took off, with numerous flying vehicles transporting people to the ships as they began an emergency retreat. Faced with such an unstoppable disaster, their only option was to flee as quickly as possible. According to messages from the clan’s leadership, any resistance was futile, so the order was to retreat immediately upon spotting the worms, abandoning all supplies. Lately, the Tianling Clan had lost too many members, and even a large clan like theirs could hardly bear it—they had to protect their people’s lives.

A few Tianling Clan members dressed in royal armor maintained order at low altitude. Chaos was absolutely not allowed at this moment; if disorder broke out, they had the authority to kill without hesitation.

A skilled Tianling Clan warrior flew into the air, clad in a complete set of starfield armor. He was the clan’s grand elder and the highest commander of this gathering place.

Li Ran laughed loudly and said, “Let’s go!” The seven of them immediately formed a five-star formation. Purple chains extended out, binding them together as they flew toward the swarm of worms.

The panicked Tianling Clan members who were fleeing in chaos were stunned by this sight.

The grand elder saw everything clearly. If it weren’t for the attack of the worm swarm, he had originally planned to visit Li Ran and the others. By the time he heard the news, it was already late at night, so he hadn’t been able to go. Of course, he couldn’t worry about that now. He never expected these professionals from the Spellcraft Clan to be so fierce, daring to head straight for the worm swarm. Suddenly, he remembered something—a message he had received the day before, saying that a few top professionals from the Spellcraft Clan could defeat the Void Worms. He pondered to himself, “Could it be them?” He regretted not having made contact with these people earlier; it would have been of great help to the Tianling Clan.

The Grand Elder immediately activated the detection device of the Starry Sky Armory to scan the distance. He wanted to see just how capable these mages from the Spellcraft Clan really were to stand against the swarm of insects.

The group of seven led by Li Ran wasn’t moving very fast, as the Void Insects were also fast. It took only a short time for them to get close—like two airplanes heading toward each other. In less than a few minutes, they could clearly see the swarm. Guo Shier repeatedly sent out soul waves to detect the insects. He said, “There are an enormous number of these insects… I can only estimate, maybe around a hundred thousand… Haha, everyone, work hard and try to catch as many as possible!”

Guo Shier slammed his fist on the Soul Calming Cauldron, which immediately grew larger until it reached the size of a water tank before stopping. The five experts were positioned at the tips of the five stars, with him and Sericeline in the safest spots, allowing them to focus fully on sealing the Void Insects.

But the other five also needed Guo Shier’s protection; if a large number of Void Insects rushed at them, they would be swept away by the Soul Calming Cauldron.

In just a few moments, the seven of them plunged into the swarm. Guo Shier cast several spells, and the Soul Calming Cauldron emitted waves of shock that instantly knocked down the insects in the front. Then, a white light swept through, dragging hundreds of insects toward the mouth of the cauldron, where Guo Shier began sealing and capturing them frantically.

Everyone was striving to seal as many Void Insects as possible. Once sealed, these insects could only be used as one-time weapons, so the more, the better.

The Grand Elder watched the detection results from the Starry Sky Armory, his eyes growing wider and wider. The swarm had stopped advancing! He couldn’t believe that such a small group of seven had managed to halt it. What kind of technique was this? He could hardly believe his own eyes. He activated the detection again, this time using a highly energy-consuming long-range detection that could pick up even the slightest changes.

Whenever Guo Shier detected a large group of Void Insects approaching, he would immediately send out shock waves to knock them down, preventing the swarm from gathering strength and allowing them to gradually erode it. As sealing accelerated, the number of Void Insects decreased.

There were over a hundred thousand of these Void Insects, covering the sky and land. Once Li Ran’s team plunged into them, the insects stopped flying and attacked the seven of them fiercely. The souls of these seven were incredibly attractive to them. If they could destroy their physical bodies and obtain their souls, then all the Void Insects that acquired these souls would get a chance for a massive transformation. Thus, the Void Insects instinctively knew that Li Ran’s group was absolutely delicious.

It’s a pity that the seven of them are extremely strong, and with the Protection Cauldron’s safeguard, once the Void Worms get too close, they are immediately knocked away by the Cauldron’s oscillating waves, making it impossible for them to approach. After all, the Void Worms’ weapon is spatial rifts; they don’t have any long-range attack capabilities. If they can’t get close, they pose no threat to Li Ran and his group.