Dense, ink-black clouds churned and rolled, blotting out the sky and sun. Sunlight struggled to penetrate. Even though it was only just past three in the afternoon, the brightness between heaven and earth was extremely low, barely better than dawn, though not quite pitch-black.
"Ah, don't come over... don't come over!"
A school worker screamed heart-wrenchingly, trembling all over. His legs shook uncontrollably like a sieve, his face deathly pale!
He was a diligent laborer who had worked tirelessly caring for the flowers and grass at "Xijiang University" his whole life without complaint. His life had been largely uneventful. Now sixty-one, he only needed to hold on for another six months before he could apply for retirement. Then he could tend to some flowers and plants at home, drink tea in his leisure time, play with his grandson – he would be content with that life.
But...
But he never, ever expected this monster to suddenly burst out right before his eyes!
It was a beetle, fiery red all over!
He had seen plenty of beetles, stepped on countless numbers of them...
However, the one before him was at least the size of a Spanish bull!
Through his glasses, the worker clearly saw the giant beetle's fiery red carapace covered in bizarre patterns. Its six long, thin legs were comparable to large water pipes, each easily two meters long. The sharp, blade-like conical horn on its head looked chilling in the dim light.
What made one's blood run cold was the Fire Red Beetle's compound eyes!
They held a human-like gaze!
Filled with hatred, disgust, and deep cruelty and bloodlust!
At the same time, the compound eyes flowed with a strange luster – those eyes actually glowed, their brightness no less than a low-wattage light bulb!
"Hiss hiss"
The Fire Red Beetle moved its mouthparts, emitting a low, harsh screech. Disgusting green liquid dripped from its menacing fangs onto the grass below, sizzling and emitting white smoke. The green grass quickly withered and yellowed. Clearly, the liquid was highly corrosive and toxic!
"Quick... quick, run..."
The worker muttered to himself, trembling. His mind screamed at him to turn and flee, but his legs wouldn't obey, too weak even to stand steadily. How could he possibly escape?
He had only locked eyes with the Fire Red Beetle for five seconds, yet cold sweat drenched his entire body, soaking his clothes!
Helplessly watching the red insect draw closer and closer, he could already smell its unique, rank odor. Then, soon, he felt a heart-piercing, sharp pain in his ankles!
"Ah! My legs!"
The worker collapsed onto the ground, almost fainting from the pain. Blood gushed from both legs. He could clearly see his ankles severed clean through; both feet had been completely bitten off by the giant insect!
"Crunch crunch"
The giant insect, along with the worker's leather shoes, chewed on the pair of feet. Even though the feet were old and smelly, the giant insect devoured them extremely quickly as if savoring a delicacy. In less than two seconds, it swallowed them down!
Then... the worker's body was bitten piece by piece by the giant insect. First the legs, then the abdomen, and finally, even the worker's head was chewed into pulp...
In the end, only a pool of dark red blood, fragmented flesh and internal organs, and scattered shreds of cloth remained on the grass...
Such a large living person, completely disappeared in less than half a minute, filling the giant insect's stomach!
Not only the students in Li Jiayu's class, but people in other classrooms also watched, their faces pale and bloodless. Many felt their stomachs spasm and vomited right on the spot!
However, the old school worker wasn't the only one brutally devoured by the giant insects on the school grounds. There were also students rushing back to their dorms to collect laundry, couples dating under the shade of trees, and...
More people died at Xijiang University in that single minute than in all its previous years combined!
In the first instance, over twenty people in the school were killed. And those giant insects, seemingly appearing out of nowhere as if popping out of thin air, grew increasingly numerous. In just a few breaths, their number reached nearly a hundred!
One beetle was the size of a Spanish fighting bull; its destructive power was countless times more terrifying... A hundred of them posed an unimaginable threat to the students on campus, no less than an armed military unit...
All the students shivering in their classrooms felt utterly dreadful, like citizens facing an imminent city massacre!
Moreover, historical massacres at most involved dismemberment or live burial. But being killed by these giant insects meant being directly chewed inch by inch and swallowed!
The mere thought of such a death was enough to shatter one's courage and soul!
"Insects! Insects! How can there be so many terrifying insects!"
"They're eating people! They eat people! I know that couple... the guy is from my hometown, the girl is my friend... How could they both be eaten just like that? Ugh..."
"Impossible! The largest beetle in the world is the Titan beetle, but it's only 18 centimeters long... Even with genetic mutation or genetic modification technology, it's absolutely impossible for beetles to grow that big!"
The classroom erupted in chaos. Some screamed in terror, some babbled incoherently, others tried to rationalize with scientific data. Some girls who had already wet their pants found them getting even wetter, while some who hadn't peed before now found their pants half-soaked...
"These insects are not insects that could grow in Earth's environment... They come from the Insect Realm..." Li Jiayu watched the giant insects crawling and tumbling on the open ground, his gaze deep and sharp, implicitly containing an irrepressible killing intent.
"Insect Realm?"
Gao Xiang thought for a moment, then said in astonishment:
"I remember now, you said before that Earth's space would oscillate, creating many spatial rifts... Do you mean those spatial rifts lead to the Insect Realm? That there will be many red beetles like that, and they can come to Earth without restraint..."
The further Gao Xiang thought, the more horrified he became!
If everything Li Jiayu said was true... when humanity lost electricity and modern weapons, how could they face those brutal and cruel giant insects?
Would they have to fight them with flesh and blood?
How was that possible... Gao Xiang didn't even dare to think about fighting those giant insects. He felt that suicide might be a more acceptable option!
"You guessed correctly... Hmm, my axe skills haven't regressed, it seems."
Li Jiayu swung the fire axe a few times. Although not as skillful as sword masters, the swings whistled through the air, possessing speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness.
In his previous life, Li Jiayu was often pushed to his limits, forced to pick up weapons and fight. Hammers, bricks, steel bars, baseball bats, slingshots, crossbows, kitchen knives, chairs, even daggers, forks, and belts – he had used them all as weapons!
Later, when Li Jiayu joined a Demon Hunting Group, he systematically learned some combat techniques and armed fighting skills. Although not exceptionally powerful, he was likely not inferior to well-trained soldiers.
Seemingly satisfied with his handling of the fire axe, Li Jiayu smiled and said:
"However, the Insect Realm isn't the only one... Besides insects, there's mainly the Abyss Realm..."