The soil growls from below, rocking the pebbles up and down. With trembling branches, many trees swayed and shed their crisp, yellow leaves. A faint blue steam was patrolling above the soil, wilting every plant that smelled its acrid stench.
Slipping through the maze of timber, the tree-thick snake around forty-feet dashed in zigzag as a thousand five-inch insects chased behind it.
“Hiss,” its eyes glowing dimly, the snake bared its fangs, turning sharply before stretching its mouth wide open. The Spawns didn't falter, opening their mandibles and welcoming the evil snake.
“SHAA!” With their own hiss, they lit up like glow-sticks, expanding rapidly as the snake closed its mouth. With one gulp, the Spawns were crushed inside—POP!
“HISS!” The snake opened its mouth, wanting to vomit the fluid inside its mouth in vain. Sticky blue blood was bitterly painting its mouth, forming a faint blue steam that escaped through its fangs.
The snake felt no pain, but the sensation of firecrackers in its mouth was unbearable, almost making it swallow a tree to see if it would help.
However, it didn't slag for long. From the distance, it caught sight of another thousand Spawns rushing over toward it. With a U-turn, it resumed slithering toward freedom.
As it slithered, it felt as though the soil was a quagmire, and the trees were peeping with countless unseen eyes. Its body was sinking into the quicksand-like soil, but it still kept trying to flee.
Like a bolt, the Spawns reached the snake as they burned their lives without thinking of tomorrow. The snake wanted to turn and eat the insects, but it stomached its hunger and kept running. The bitter taste had yet to wash away.
“SHAA,” the Spawns opened their mandibles once more. Seeing the snake ignoring them, they welcomed the free bite and glowed like glow-sticks just like earlier. This time, they landed on the snake and clamped down, tugging at its scales with their glowing mandibles.
“HISS!!” In no time, the snake felt like dull cleavers were trying to pry it open. Turning one-eighty degrees, it lunged at the Spawns and in one swift motion, all the Spawns were swallowed.
This wasn't a coincidence—the Spawns instantly gave all their energy toward one Spawn. The rest died instantly, turning into dry corpses that dropped like raisins on the snake's mouth. On the other hand, the supercharged Spawn flew further down the snake's innards and before the snake could crush it—BOOM!
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“HISS!!! The snake opened its mouth, releasing blue mist and a river of thick, crimson blood.
The snake's own blood.
Even as leaves trickled on its back, the snake spasmed on the spot, its mouth open while vomiting near-endless blood. It never knew the Spawns could supercharge one of their own. It was oblivious to what occurred, all it knew was the sudden explosion and agony.
Feeling such intense unfamiliar sensation, the snake looked around, trying to find more Spawns with scythes clawing out of its gaze. It was done for, it wasn't hard for it to realize.
“Hiss…”
However, this tyrant wouldn't go down like a saint!
Seeing the snake being a sitting suck, Kiru organized his army to charge at the snake while exhausting their life energy. He'd face massive casualties, but he believed this snake would bring benefits for his lord.
He didn't care if he’d be killed for losing so many Spawns, he only cared for the Swarm's progression!
The whole forest buzzed as countless Spawns bolted toward the snake like a thunder-cloud of black and blue. The snake was still looking around, acting blind. Finally seeing Kiru from afar, its eyes glow brightly as it charges with all its might.
Kiru was the strongest Spawn in the army, the snake could tell. A swarm needed a leader, it was betting that Kiru was it. The snake was decades old and there were other colonies of insects in the mountain range, not just the Swarm.
Saplings were toppled as it charged atKiru, but the latter remained unmoving. With its speed, the snake reached Kiru in mere seconds and with its mouth opened, it hisses loudly before biting down with a thunder-like snap!
His army was quick. Despite most of them burning their life energy, they could only cut through the snake's scales with a lot of effort. Still, they had numbers. They easily fulfilled Kiru’s demands.
The snake was burning a hole through Kiru with its glare, unfazed by the skinning of its body. As long as the Spawns holding it down weakened, it would eat Kiru whole.
“Hiss…”
With all of its skin torn off, the snake was living in hell while on earth, but refused to die. Kiru preferred it this way, landing in front of the pile of snake skin.
His mouth began glowing blue as he ate the snake's skin while it watched. He had difficulty when eating the snake's scales, even while burning his life to enhance his mouth and mandibles.
Despite the utter waste, he kept munching.
“Hiss…”
With a choked hiss, the snake slowly dropped its head, hissing one last time before the fire in its eyes crumbled. Just in time, more than half of his army fell to the ground, their bodies dry and useless.
Kiru stopped eating the scales and flew toward the snake, eating its flesh to replenish his energy. He noticed the mummified Spawns, but he tore his gaze off of them.
One-hundred thousand…
Four-hundred thousand…
“HISS!!!”
Countless hisses burst out as dozens of snakes tore through their mother's flesh. Without looking around, they bolted out in all directions.
It wasn't his first time killing pregnant prey, but seeing the unborn offsprings of his prey act so lively was a first for him. It was the same for his army, they all froze before hearing his command.