Chapter 99: You're Already Crying From Frustration
Buzz, buzz, buzz...
"Little Blue Light, are you going out?"
Pom-Pom's long ears twitched as they looked down at the hovering insect.
Buzz.
The tiny creature flapped its translucent wings in affirmation.
"Alright, but you must wear your identification tag. Otherwise, the local authorities will mistake you for a wild pest, pom!"
The conductor reached out with tiny, furry paws, carefully looping a custom-made dog tag around the bug's thorax. The polished metal gleamed under the cabin lights.
[Little Blue Light — Official Passenger of the Astral Express]
With this small metal tag secured, there was no need to worry about Little Blue Light being randomly attacked by the Luofu guards. Probably.
The little blue bug flew out of the Astral Express.
Buzz, buzz, buzz...
'Buzz, where is the boss?'
Little Blue Light paused in mid-air, raising its head to look toward the highest point of the Ambrosial Arbor.
Buzz?
Soon enough, Little Blue Light landed directly on the massive trunk of the Ambrosial Arbor.
The sheer chaos unfolding across the Xianzhou Luofu had actually provided the perfect cover for Little Blue Light to approach the ancient tree unnoticed. also, while it currently looked like nothing more than a harmless, cockroach-sized bug, it was fundamentally still a terrifying Envoy of Destruction.
"Little Blue Light!"
Rekka called out, extending a hand. The miniature terror of the cosmos dove in, landing gently on his open palm.
"How did you even get out here?" Rekka mused, lightly tapping its hard carapace with an index finger. "Pom-Pom actually let you wander off alone?"
Buzz~
The insect vibrated happily, nuzzling against his finger.
Rekka's lips curled into a wicked grin. "Well, your timing is absolutely flawless. I hereby declare your temporary seal lifted. Tell me, buddy... how do you feel about tasting some pure, unadulterated Path energy of Abundance?"
Buzz?
The bug paused. Then it launched itself into the air, flying in chaotic, ecstatic loops around Rekka's head.
Buzz!
'Boss, you're the absolute best, buzz!'
Rekka dug into his coat pocket, fishing out two metallic devices—a suppression cube and its corresponding unsealing key. He clicked them together.
A sharp mechanical hiss echoed across the platform. Instantly, Little Blue Light's tiny form warped. Its carapace cracked and expanded, chitinous plates shifting and grinding as it rapidly ballooned to several meters in length. Its mandibles unhinged, reshaping themselves into a terrifying, elongated proboscis perfectly designed for extracting deep-rooted sap.
"Is it really okay to let it eat that much? Won't it get cosmic indigestion?" March 7th asked, leaning away with a wrinkled nose.
"Nah, have a little faith in the guy," Rekka waved her off casually.
"Buzz!" Little Blue Light let out a deafening, metallic chirp of agreement before plunging its proboscis straight into the ancient bark.
Gulp. Gulp.
The wet, heavy sound of aggressive swallowing echoed across the invisible platform. Thick, glowing streams of pale green sap rushed up through the bug's translucent mouthparts. With every gulp, the fluorescent veins pulsing along its broad back flared with blinding intensity.
"Wow. That suction power is genuinely impressive," Stelle remarked. She squatted near the edge of the platform, resting her chin lazily in her palm as she watched the spectacle. "But Rekka, if it keeps going at this rate, won't the entire tree be sucked completely dry?"
"Isn't that the whole point?" Rekka chuckled, crossing his arms. "To the people of the Xianzhou, this giant weed is a cursed product of the Abundance. Sure, a few secret cultists might be crying in their sleep over it, but officially? The Luofu loathes this thing. We're doing them a massive public service."
Thirty minutes passed in a blur of aggressive slurping. Finally, Little Blue Light pulled back, letting out a satisfied, rumbling burp that shook the air. It was completely stuffed.
The ancient, terrifying essence of the Ambrosial Arbor—the concentrated life-force of the Abundance—now sloshed happily inside the belly of a giant cosmic insect.
Buzz.
'Boss, I feel like I've reached a whole new level, buzz.'
If insects could flex, Little Blue Light was absolutely striking a bodybuilder pose right now. It radiated an aura of pure, unadulterated power, practically echoing with the triumphant sound effect of a video game character hitting max level.
As the old saying went: the poor play with cars, the rich play with luxury watches, and the truly elite play with genetically modified cosmic super-bugs.
From the outside, the Ambrosial Arbor didn't look much different. It had already been a massive, withered husk of ancient wood for centuries. But internally, it was completely hollowed out.
"—You?! What have you done?!"
A massive orb of emerald spiritual fire materialized in the air before them. The voice echoing from the flames trembled violently, vibrating with a volatile mixture of deep heartache and apocalyptic rage.
Rekka blinked, casually scratching the back of his head. He pointed a thumb at the drained husk of the Arbor. "Oh, hey. Did you want a sip too? My bad. Unfortunately, the kid drank it all. We're fresh out."
The sphere of green spiritual fire violently expanded, its edges flickering dangerously as the flames began to shift toward a furious, blood-red hue.
Ignoring the furious energy entity, Little Blue Light suddenly tucked its limbs in and began spinning rapidly in mid-air. It looked exactly like a digital monster mid-evolution sequence. It was a familiar sight, reminiscent of the time those Swarm bugs in the Herta Space Station's Seclusion Zone had gorged themselves on Rekka's custom nutrition blocks. Only this time, Little Blue Light was undergoing a genuine, Abundance-fueled metamorphosis.
Watching her grand, centuries-in-the-making master plan get slurped up by a bug made Phantylia so angry her chest physically ached. Which was quite a feat, considering she was currently a bodiless ball of fire and didn't actually have a chest.
Buzz—!
"Run, run, run! The Old Auntie is losing her absolute mind back there!" Rekka shouted, vaulting onto the insect's broad carapace.
Stelle and March 7th scrambled up right behind him, grabbing onto the newly formed chitinous ridges. Thus began the greatest, most chaotic joyride the Xianzhou Luofu had ever seen.
Phantylia was on the verge of a complete psychological collapse. These wretched Trailblaze brats had pushed her past the brink of madness.
First, her careful, flawless layout for the Luofu's destruction had been completely blown to pieces.
Second, her carefully crafted identity had been shamelessly impersonated.
Third, the divine power of the Ambrosial Arbor had been casually snatched away by a pet insect.
And fourth... they dared to call her an Old Auntie!
"Little Blue Light, hit the gas! Fly faster!" Rekka yelled over the rushing wind, slapping the bug's armored back like he was spurring a horse. "That Old Auntie must be going through severe cosmic menopause! Why else would she be throwing such a massive tantrum?!"
Buzz!
The giant bug chirped in agreement, its wings blurring into a continuous hum as it tore through the sky.
Stelle stood tall on Little Blue Light's back, her coat whipping wildly in the wind. She turned around to face the pursuing fireball, raised both hands, and framed her face in a mocking, exaggerated gesture of mock-pity.
"Look at you. You're already crying from frustration," Stelle called out, her voice perfectly deadpan yet dripping with maximum disrespect.
"Stop right there—!" the fiery entity shrieked, the green flames flaring wildly.
"Won't stop, won't stop, absolutely will not stop~" Stelle chanted in a sing-song voice, pulling down her lower eyelid and sticking her tongue out at the ancient Lord Ravager. "Old Auntie can't catch up! Old Auntie is going to die of high blood pressure~"
"Who are you calling an Old Auntie?!" Phantylia roared, the sheer volume of her voice rattling the surrounding floating islands.
"Whoever is currently throwing a frantic temper tantrum! That's who!" Stelle shouted back cheerfully.
"You damned bug!!!"
"I mean, Little Blue Light is literally a bug to begin with," Rekka pointed out helpfully. "You're just stating biological facts at this point!"
Trying to insult a giant insect by calling it a bug was about as effective as trying to offend Sun Wukong by calling him a rascal monkey. It held absolutely zero weight.
Besides, Little Blue Light was too busy enjoying its new form to care. Its body, which had started out at a modest few meters, had rapidly expanded to over ten meters in length. Its spiked, scythe-like limbs had grown terrifyingly thick and razor-sharp. complex, glowing green patterns now mapped across its dark carapace, pulsing with the overwhelming, life-giving aura of the Abundance.
Seeing the distance between them rapidly widening, the massive ball of green fire suddenly warped. The flames stretched and twisted, condensing into a colossal, burning green hand that swiped through the clouds, aiming directly for Little Blue Light's tail.
"Hand over the power of the Abundance!" Phantylia's voice boomed, echoing like thunder.
"Hand over my foot!" Rekka spun around, his hand diving back into his bottomless pockets. He whipped out a small, gleaming silver cube and hurled it directly at the incoming fiery palm. "Eat this! Stabilizing anchor, activate!"
The silver cube snapped open in mid-air, its internal mechanisms whirring as it projected a massive, invisible spatial force field. The moment the giant green hand slammed into the barrier, the reaction was instantaneous. It was like dumping a massive bucket of liquid nitrogen over a campfire. The fiery construct hissed violently, its flames sputtering and shrinking by more than half in a matter of seconds.
Rekka seized the opening. He slammed his hand against the bug's glowing carapace. "Little Blue Light, I officially grant you permission to summon the Swarm! All limits released!"
---
Miles away, in a quiet, undisturbed courtyard of the Luofu, a golden-haired merchant sat gracefully on a stone bench. He was resting, casually conversing with the massive, ornate white coffin resting upright beside him.
"'Tools of the trade'..." The merchant murmured, his tone polite and conversational. "I truly hope I haven't offended you by using such a crude term. But ultimately, the relationship between you and me can essentially be considered a business deal, can it not?"
The golden-haired merchant offered a soft, elegant chuckle.
He casually tilted his head back, gazing up at the serene Xianzhou sky.
Suddenly, a massive, dense black cloud of terrifying cosmic locusts tore across the horizon, buzzing with apocalyptic intensity. Right on their heels, a colossal, shrieking ball of emerald fire chased after them, leaving a trail of scorched clouds in its wake.
"...Huh?"
The merchant's elegant smile froze. He blinked, completely thrown off guard. It took him a long, silent moment to process the sheer absurdity of what had just flown over his head. Slowly, he turned his gaze back to the silent sarcophagus beside him.
"Was that... your doing?"
The coffin, naturally, offered no explanation.
---
High above the Luofu, Little Blue Light's translucent wings vibrated at a terrifying frequency. The newly formed green patterns across its back flared with blinding intensity, pumping raw Abundance energy into its muscles.
"Go, Little Blue Light! Shake off the Old Auntie!"
Buzz—!
A sonic boom shattered the air as the giant insect suddenly accelerated, tearing through the sky and leaving the furious Phantylia eating their dust once again.
March 7th crouched low against the rushing wind, gripping a chitinous spike for balance. She was laughing, but a distinct edge of worry tightened her features.
"Hey, running away like a bunch of hooligans is fun and all, but this isn't exactly a long-term solution, is it?! She's practically glued to our tail! What happens if she actually catches up?!"
"She won't," Rekka replied, his voice brimming with absolute, unshakeable confidence. "Little Blue Light just chugged the concentrated power of the Abundance. Its base speed stats have completely skyrocketed. Besides, look at her. The angrier she gets, the sloppier her flying becomes. We just need to maintain our distance, keep mocking her, and wait for her to completely lose her composure."
"Okay, and then what?!" March 7th yelled over the wind.
"Then?" Rekka raised an eyebrow, a dangerously sharp grin spreading across his face. "We lead her right out into open space. I really want to see exactly how many direct blasts from the Hyperion's main cannon a Lord Ravager can take to the face before she vaporizes."
"You—wretched—little—insects—!" Phantylia's voice tore through the atmosphere, distorted by sheer, unadulterated hatred.
"Louder! I literally cannot hear you!" Stelle cupped both hands around her mouth, leaning dangerously far over the edge of the bug's shell as she screamed back at the top of her lungs. "You want the divine power of the Abundance, but you're asking with such a tiny, pathetic voice?! Speak up from the back!"
March 7th swallowed hard, her eyes widening as the distant ball of green fire began to violently shift into a deep, blood-boiling crimson.
"Uh, Stelle? She's turning red. Like, really red. Maybe you shouldn't provoke her so much? What if she actually snaps?!"
[Inorin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me and keeps these daily updates flowing!
Want to read 50 chapters ahead or just want to help keep a shameless translator alive? (My livelihood actually depends on this, haha 😭). You can support me directly here:
(P.S. Just remove the brackets and replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters): patreon[.]com/InorinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/InorinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]