Chapter 396: 388 Queen Bee Appears?_1
But it was like an emperor, with all the other giant fire bees only able to follow behind.
The seven or eight giant fire bees that followed closely behind it were also dark red in color, just not as deep as its hue.
Its body was almost black with how red it was.
Its flying speed was equally terrifying, suddenly appearing right in front of Qin Niu.
Probably only Qin Niu’s Green Demon Bee could barely compete with it.
The equally flight-capable War Bees were considered ‘garbage’ in comparison.
It wasn’t a small difference, but a very large gap.
Fourth and the other Termites were caught completely off guard by this sudden turn of events.
Qin Niu only saw a fleeting shadow before the blackish-red Queen Bee was already in front of him. It was too fast.
It effortlessly penetrated Qin Niu’s aura armor as if it were a game.
After piercing through the aura armor, it cleverly chose to attack the exposed parts of Qin Niu’s face.
The eyes are a significant weakness.
It’s not possible to cover the eyes as well, leaving them almost unprotected.
The Fire Bee Queen wasn’t courteous with Qin Niu, lifting its abdomen, the terrifying Poison Stinger aimed directly at his eyes.
Luckily, Qin Niu was also battle-hardened.
Even under its sudden attack, he reacted quickly, retreating swiftly while also shifting his head to dodge this fearsome Fire Bee Queen.
At this critical moment, a streak of dark green shadow rushed forward.
It was Qin Niu’s Green Demon Bee.
It was currently only Grade Five and had a lot of room for growth.
Probably feeding it Ancient Banyan Tree Blood would easily allow it to advance to Grade Six, or even Grade Seven.
It was also the strongest of all Qin Niu’s bee insect pets.
Not strong in just one aspect, but powerful in every aspect.
The Green Demon Bee engaged in direct combat with the Fire Bee Queen.
Normally, a Queen Bee rarely participates in combat.
Especially after laying eggs, their job is to lay eggs.
Only if the hive faces utter destruction and the swarm is at a life-or-death crisis would the Queen possibly fight alongside the female bees against a formidable enemy.
As for the male bees, apart from mating with the Queen Bee, they’re good for nothing else.
The poison stingers of the Queen and female bees are actually evolved from their ovipositors.
The male bees, despite their size, can’t even defeat an ordinary female bee.
It’s similar to spotted hyenas, where the females are significantly larger than the males.
This participation of the Fire Bee Queen herself was somewhat puzzling. After all, even if Qin Niu had entered their habitat, he wasn’t at the hive yet, far from posing a mortal threat to the hive.
Perhaps it had to do with the temperament of the fire bees.
They have a violent temper and would fiercely fight against any slight offense.
The Green Demon Bee clung to the Fire Bee Queen’s body, with both bees wrestling together.
The Fire Bee Queen’s Poison Stinger desperately jabbed at the Green Demon Bee.
The Green Demon Bee was similarly ruthless.
Both of their stingers possessed extreme penetrating power.
The Green Demon Bee, with its special abilities of Phantasmal Shape and Regeneration, had an ability akin to immortality. When it came to biting, it certainly had the advantage.
The Fire Bee Queen couldn’t hurt it, but it could bite or sting the Fire Bee Queen.
It was akin to a dimensional attack.
After being stung by the Green Demon Bee, the Deicide Poison seemed to have caused severe damage to the Fire Bee Queen’s body.
Soon, it lost the ability to resist.
Qin Niu hurriedly took out a Metal Bug Canister and put the Queen inside.
As for the remaining giant fire bees, Qin Niu considered them of little threat.
After being imprisoned, the Fire Bee Queen still curled up its body, its wings trembling nonstop.
Looking at the Green Demon Bee, it too had been stung, but it was seemingly unharmed.
Worthy indeed of being the revenge bee cultivated with all the heart and soul of the Green Demon, it had declared victory in its first battle, and was extraordinarily remarkable. It justified all that Qin Niu had invested in it.
The Green Demon Bee landed on the metal insect jar in Qin Niu’s hand, crawling restlessly.
“If you want to eat, you can have those Giant Fire Bees, but this Queen Bee is very precious, I need to keep it,” Qin Niu said, knowing what the Green Demon Bee intended to do.
As an Insect Master, encountering a completely new insect species definitely warranted saving for research to see if it could be cultivated further.
This Fire Bee Queen possessed formidable combat strength; it just happened to meet its match this time, which was why it seemed rather weak.
Unfortunately for it, it was suppressed by the Green Demon Bee in every aspect.
He examined the captured Fire Bee Queen with delight.
He noticed some fine, intricate patterns on its body that didn’t seem like natural markings, but rather ones that developed over time.
“Something’s not right, though; despite looking very dominant, it lacks the queen’s temperament, not quite like a true Queen Bee,” Qin Niu mused, confident in his insect identification skills.
He had seen many Queen Bees before.
Even the weakest hive’s Queen Bee always possessed an innate regal aura.
Although this Fire Bee Queen had a dominant aura, it lacked the pampered nobility and the leader’s presence that should come with being the head of a colony. It felt like a general, not an emperor.
A thought suddenly struck Qin Niu.
Could those Giant Fire Bees merely be evolved common female bees?
And could this crimson Fire Bee Queen in fact be a Bee General?
With this possibility in mind, Qin Niu’s gaze involuntarily shifted towards the depths of the side tunnel.
Regrettably, with the ground covered in scorching lava, he couldn’t venture deeper to uncover the truth.
Was there another way to lure out the true Queen Bee?
Qin Niu pondered with a frown.
Even after capturing this Fire Bee Queen, that sense of danger still lingered, indirectly confirming his suspicion.
Perhaps there was an even more formidable creature, or even a monster, deep within the side passage, or the bee he caught was a Bee General, not the Queen Bee.
Considering how powerful just a Bee General was, the Queen Bee’s strength must be truly terrifying.
He had always been desperately searching for a suitable male bee for the Green Demon Bee to mate with.
Given the strength of the current Fire Bees, wouldn’t capturing one or two male bees solve the problem that had troubled him for days?
Then, the Green Demon Bee could lay eggs normally.
He dreamt of creating a Green Demon Bee combat swarm.
Elder Jiu Yin had, with just a Corpse Bee swarm, laid waste to numerous Innate Realm experts, causing even Spirit Qi Realm experts to tread cautiously. If Qin Niu succeeded in creating a Green Demon Bee swarm, even Immortal Masters would have to be polite upon meeting him.
As for Spirit Qi Realm experts, they would become easy prey in his presence.
With just a move from the Green Demon Bee, he could instantly kill Spirit Qi Realm experts.
Just thinking of the immense benefits, he became excited.
But how could he venture into the depths of the side tunnel to investigate?
Send in the Green Demon Bee?
That was his sole treasure; if the Fire Bee Queen was too powerful, or if there were formidable monsters living deeper within the side passage that killed his Green Demon Bee, the loss would be unbearable for him.
After all, the Green Demon Bee had not reproduced yet—there was only one female bee.
The female bee’s ability to withstand risks was very weak, and he couldn’t afford to recklessly risk her. The best solution was to quickly find an excellent male bee for her, mate them, and then breed a large number of Green Demon Bees.
With that, all problems would be solved.
Qin Niu summoned several War Bees, but ultimately shook his head.
The War Bees couldn’t even defeat the Giant Fire Bees, let alone a Fire Bee General.
“Hey, that’s right, the Green-Head Summoning Bee can summon other wild bees for battle. I wonder if its summoning ability works on the Fire Bees?” Qin Niu remembered the Green-Head Summoning Bee.
It was a very special type of bee.
He had tamed two in total and only ever caught two.
One of them had been nurtured with Ancient Banyan Tree Blood, significantly enhancing its abilities.
Now was the perfect time to put it to the test.