Chapter 460: Chapter 457 – Ant Nest
After cleansing the horrifying bone chamber with War Sun Flame, the three sisters continued deeper into the endless Greywood Labyrinth. The bright golden-white holy flames from earlier still left traces of heat in the air, completely incinerating the remaining bones and evil spirits that once inhabited the place. However, the deeper they advanced, the darker and more suffocating the surroundings became.
The air grew increasingly stifling, like being inside the chest of a living creature breathing slowly. The corridor walls, which were once rough stone, were now covered in thick greenish slime that glowed faintly, like thousands of small worms pulsing slowly. Every time their feet stepped on the floor, a slick, sticky sound echoed schlup... schlup... sending chills down their spines. The characteristic smell of damp earth mixed with a sharp acidic aroma that stung the nose, like a blend of rotting tree sap and the sweat of long-dead animals. Sol, the golden kitten perched on Sylvia’s shoulder, continued to watch the surroundings with glowing golden eyes full of caution. Its long, smooth tail occasionally flicked restlessly, whipping the air as if sensing an unseen threat.
"This air... is so heavy," Alicia murmured softly while gripping her magic staff tighter. The soft light from the crystal at the tip of her staff illuminated the narrow corridor ahead.
Sylvia did not reply. Her dark red eyes narrowed, trying to pierce the darkness. Her undead instincts told her they had entered a truly different territory. The Greywood Labyrinth was not just a stone tunnel; it was a living, breathing entity that constantly changed and threatened.
Suddenly, the corridor they were walking through widened dramatically into an extraordinarily large chamber. The ceiling was high but filled with round gaping holes like hungry mouths. The floor and walls were also covered with similar holes, some small like wells, others large enough for two people to pass through at once. The ground surface was covered with deep, chaotic claw marks, as if this place was an arena or an active giant nest. Some holes still emitted thin acidic-smelling steam, and from within came faint sounds like the scraping of thousands of small legs.
"What is this...?" Stacia stopped walking, gripping her grimoire tighter until the old book trembled slightly. "It looks like a giant termite nest, but much larger and... more alive. Look at these claw marks. This is no ordinary place."
Alicia narrowed her eyes, her magical aura spreading slowly like white mist. "I sense a lot of life underground. So many... thousands. They’re moving, rising to the surface. Toward us. Quickly."
Before they could formulate a strategy, the ground in one of the large holes in the center shook violently. KRRRRKKK... KRRRRKKK... The loud, echoing scraping sound filled the chamber, as if stone was being gnawed by a giant machine. Two large figures emerged with surprising speed. Giant worker ants! Their bodies reached two to three meters in height, with powerful mandibles gleaming like double-bladed knives, thick black exoskeletons like steel, and six sharp legs capable of digging through hard stone in seconds. Their long antennae vibrated rapidly, sending invisible pheromone signals throughout the entire nest.
Sylvia frowned deeply. "Giant ants... and this is just the beginning. They’re not ordinary monsters. This size is already mid-tier."
The two worker ants immediately detected the intruders. Their small black eyes gleamed ferociously. They didn’t attack right away, but began approaching defensively, their mandibles opening wide and ready to tear. Less than ten seconds later, other holes began to pulse. More worker ants crawled out from wall holes, the floor, even the ceiling. Their numbers increased at a terrifying speed: two became ten, then twenty, fifty, even over a hundred in a very short time.
The chamber that had felt spacious now felt cramped and claustrophobic. The glossy black bodies moved like a living sea of insects. The sound of their scraping legs krrrt... krrrt... krrrt... filled every corner of the room, like thousands of knives being scraped against stone. The acidic smell grew stronger, mixed with pheromones that made their heads spin. The faint crystal light on the walls reflected off their exoskeletons, creating eerie dancing shadows.
Sylvia could no longer count the number of enemies. "Too many. This place really is their nest. If I use large-scale fire, we could get buried or run out of oxygen in this enclosed space."
She didn’t waste time. With a quick movement, Sylvia completely dropped her human body disguise. Her smooth skin turned into a deathly cold pallor like a freshly deceased corpse, with faint black veins visible beneath the surface. Her dark red eyes glowed brightly, and an aura of death spread out like thick black mist that swallowed the surrounding light. Her black dress transformed into its true darker version, full of moving bone and chain motifs, as if alive. Her undead power surged to its peak.
Stacia and Alicia followed. Stacia transformed into her true Fallen Angel form. Eight jet-black wings spread wide, releasing cold winds full of darkness. Her gray dress changed into its original version covered in gleaming dark runes, and her silver hair floated. Alicia transformed into a pure white translucent spirit body, her white dress floating softly like mist, her beautiful face now looking more ethereal and cold.
"We’ll fight with physical attacks and support magic," Sylvia said coldly, her voice echoing like wind from a grave. "Don’t let them surround us. Stacia, guard the right side. Alicia, stack as many debuffs as possible. Sol, support from above."
The battle exploded without mercy.
The worker ants charged from all directions like a black flood. Their powerful mandibles were ready to tear flesh, their sharp legs ready to stab like spears. Sylvia advanced at the very front. From her shadow, Chain of Abyss shot out like dozens of living black snakes. The chains streaked with terrifying speed SCHLAAAKKK! piercing the nearest ant’s body. The chains tore through the thick exoskeleton like paper, splitting one ant in two. Thick green fluid spurted heavily, hitting the walls and creating acidic smoke.
Stacia used her grimoire as both a physical weapon and a magical one. She smashed the thick book like a war hammer THUD! CRACK! crushing the head of the ant in front of her until its antennae shattered and scattered. Then she unleashed sharp wind spells from the open pages "Gale Slash!" creating black wind blades that sliced through three ants at once. Her eight black wings were also used for attack, slashing like eight living sword blades, severing enemy legs with slash! slash! slash!
Alicia stayed in the back, her spirit body floating nimbly. She unleashed various debuff spells without pause. "Weakness Shell! Slow Movement! Corrosion Aura! Muscle Fatigue!" The ants’ hard shells began to soften like melting wax, their movements slowed dramatically, and even small wounds immediately rotted rapidly, emitting a pungent stench.
Sylvia fought with typical undead brutality. Her sharp zombie claws extended, tearing open ant bellies with RIPPP! RIPPP! The sounds of tearing flesh and bone filled the chamber. The Abyss Chains continued moving wildly, piercing, coiling, and destroying from all directions. Because the number of ants kept increasing from the holes, she began using her terrifying zombie poison. With a touch of her cold hand, some wounded ants turned into her undead subordinates, their bodies turned pale, their eyes glowed red, and they immediately turned on their own kind with ferocity.
"You belong to me now," Sylvia murmured coldly, a faint smile appearing on her pale lips.
Sol, the golden kitten, also fought nimbly. From its mouth, golden laser beams shot out PEW! PEW! PEW! with high precision. Each shot left a perfect burn hole in the head or joints of the ants, making them collapse with heavy thud! sounds.
The battle grew increasingly brutal and relentless. The chamber full of holes allowed the ants to keep pouring in like an endless flood. The bodies of dead ants piled up, their green fluid flooding the floor and making footing slippery. Sylvia struggled to maintain position, limited space meant every movement had to be precise. Her chains and claws worked tirelessly, but enemy pressure grew heavier. Stacia was breathing somewhat heavily despite being a Fallen Angel; her gray dress was soaked with green ant fluid. Her wings were occasionally bitten, but the dark runes immediately healed the wounds.
"Their numbers are insane!" Stacia shouted while smashing her grimoire toward a group of approaching ants. "But the EXP we’re getting must be enormous! If we can clear this nest, our levels will rise rapidly!"
Sylvia did not answer. Her undead body knew no fatigue, but she knew this was only the beginning. In the depths of the larger holes, she could sense stronger vibrations larger and stronger soldier ants were preparing to rise. Some bigger worker ants began to appear, their mandibles thicker and glistening with poison.
SCHLAAAKKK! Sylvia’s chains pierced three ants at once, coiling around their bodies and slamming them into the wall until they shattered. RIPPP! Her claws tore open another ant’s stomach, spilling its green innards. Sol continued firing lasers, accurately clearing the area around Sylvia. Alicia kept stacking debuffs, making the groups of ants behind them slower and easier to finish off.
However, the more ants that emerged, the more cramped the chamber felt. Some ants managed to get close and bite Sylvia’s arm, but her undead flesh only tore slightly before regenerating instantly. Stacia was forced to use defensive spells to protect Alicia when a group of ants charged from the ceiling.
The battle in this hole-filled chamber was still raging fiercely, with no signs of ending soon. Green fluid, the scraping of legs, emergency pheromone screams, and the impacts of magic spells filled the room.
