After the long and exhausting battle against the Silverblade Centipedes, Dai Yaun finally drove the remaining swarm away. The final few silverblade centipedes hissed in terror, their remaining armored legs scrambling frantically over the mangled carapaces of their fallen brethren as they dived back into the deep, dark fissures of the mud. The ground around him was littered with broken bodies and greenish blood. He bent over, hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath.
Before he could relax even for a moment, new rustling sounds came from all around him.
"Damn it… can you just give me a moment to rest, centipede bros?" Dai Yaun cursed under his breath, still breathing heavily.
"Huh!"
He lifted his head and squinted at the new arrivals. Ten eerie-looking insects emerged from the surrounding undergrowth. Each one was a high-level Mid Tier 1 beast, two sub-levels higher than his current realm. The aura they released was noticeably stronger than the centipedes.
The creatures looked like a disturbing cross between a spider and a crab. Each was about two feet tall with a thick, broad carapace covering their backs. The most unsettling feature was the human-like face on each carapace. The faces were disturbingly detailed — with eyes, noses, and mouths that twitched and moved slightly as the insects crawled. The expressions on those faces shifted between curiosity and hunger, creating an extremely eerie atmosphere.
Their bodies were covered in hard, dark exoskeletons with sharp spines along the sides. Eight powerful legs supported their weight, ending in hooked claws perfect for gripping and tearing. Two pairs of sharp mandibles clicked hungrily at the front, dripping a clear liquid. Their movements were unnaturally quiet and coordinated, making them even more unsettling.
Dai Yaun's expression turned serious. These were not simple monsters. The human-like faces on their backs made his skin crawl.
Without warning, the ten Human-Faced Insects attacked.
They moved with surprising speed and coordination. Two charged from the front while three flanked him from the sides. The remaining five moved to surround him completely. Their hooked legs dug into the ground as they closed in.
Dai Yaun reacted instantly. He picked up his iron rod and swung it in a wide arc to keep them at bay. Bang! The rod smashed into one insect's carapace, but the creature only staggered back instead of dying. Its hard shell had absorbed most of the impact.
Slash!
A sharp pain flared across his ribs as one of the pointed legs tore through his tunic, leaving a deep, bleeding gash across his scarred chest. Dai Yuan gritted his teeth, unleashing a desperate Furious Wave Punch straight into the pale, human-like face of the offending insect.
Clang!!
His fist struck the carapace, but instead of shattering the shell, the blow felt like hitting a solid mountain wall. The human face on the carapace twisted into a mocking, contorted grin as the shockwave of the strike rebounded straight back into Dai Yuan's knuckles, causing his hand to go completely numb. The high-level beasts were simply too physically durable and inherently stronger than his current base cultivation.
"These things are tough!" he muttered, while touching the bleeding wound on his chest.
The insects pressed their attack relentlessly. One leaped onto his back, its claws digging into his shoulder. Another slashed at his legs with its mandibles. Dai Yaun roared and shook the one off his back, but more kept coming. Their coordinated movements made it difficult to defend against all of them at once.
He swung his rod again and again, managing to crush the legs of two insects and kill one after a series of heavy blows. However, the remaining nine became even more aggressive. They started using hit-and-run tactics — darting in to attack before quickly retreating behind their companions.
Dai Yaun's body was already tired from the previous fight. New wounds opened up across his arms and legs. Blood flowed freely. The situation was becoming desperate. If he continued like this, he would eventually be worn down and overwhelmed.
He had no choice left. He had to risk it.
"Ahhhh! Break for me!" Dai Yuan roared, his voice booming under the canopy.
With a determined look, Dai Yaun activated his Shamanic Rune. The Grade 3 rune on his upper torso burned hot. A powerful surge of energy flooded his body. His exhausted muscles were revitalized, and his overall strength rose dramatically.
Feeling the violent torrent of rune energy running rampant through his veins, Dai Yuan's eyes turned completely bloodshot. He stepped forward, the ground shattering beneath his heel as he targeted the closest insect.
With a speed that defied his massive frame, he brought his fist down like a falling meteor, executing a rune-infused strike directly into the center of the creature's pale shell.
CRACK!!!
Under the overwhelming pressure of the Shamanic boost, the insect's high-level defense finally failed. The broad carapace split completely down the middle, the human face fracturing into pieces as thick, dark green fluid erupted from the wound. The creature collapsed into the mud, its legs twitching violently before going still.
Sensing the sudden shift in power, two more insects lunged from his flanks, their pincers snapping furiously. Dai Yuan didn't even turn his head. He spun on his heel, his left hand reaching out like a lightning bolt to grip the front leg of the first attacker, using his explosive, rune-boosted strength to lift the two-foot creature completely off the ground. With a savage roar, he slammed it brutally into the second insect.
BOOM!
The violent collision shattered the carapaces of both beasts simultaneously. Dai Yuan leaped forward, driving his heel straight through the fractured human face of the pinned insect, before delivering a devastating downward punch that crushed the head of the other.
The remaining insects hissed angrily and attacked with renewed fury. Dai Yaun met them head-on. He used his enhanced speed to dodge their strikes and counter with powerful punches. One after another, he crushed their bodies with raw strength.
With the boost, Dai Yaun's movements became much faster and stronger. He dropped his rod again, preferring to fight with his bare hands in such close quarters. He charged forward and smashed his fist into the nearest Human-Faced Insect. The punch landed with tremendous force, cracking its carapace and killing it instantly, instantly the battle retur
After a fierce exchange, he managed to kill three of the Human-Faced Insects. Their broken bodies lay on the ground, faces frozen in twisted expressions. But the rune overload was already putting an immense, agonizing strain on his advanced silver bones, and The remaining six insects paused, sensing the sudden increase in his power. They circled him more cautiously now, waiting for another opportunity..