Chapter 21- “Glorious” Victory

Tian had gotten very used to seamlessly switching between his combat arts. Everything below the Heavenly Person level may be the arts of ants, but at least they were nimble, uncomplicated ants. He kept moving to the side of the… whatever it was, letting Light Body Heavy Hands move him like a drifting feather. The rope dart spun considerably faster, becoming a dull blur over his head. He took a short lunge forward and let the rope dart snap out, the weight suddenly returning to normal as the heavy dart reached the long needles covering the creature.

The needles didn’t resist the dart at all. They softly bent out of the way as the dart smashed through and into the fleshy side of the beast. There was a firmness to it, but the resistance wasn’t anything much. He had stabbed into much harder things. The dart had fully buried itself into whatever the creature was. He ripped the dart out in a spray of a yellow liquid. The liquid coated the long needles, making them more visible and more sinister. There were even more of the hair-like needles than he had thought.

The flying needles had come from the front, and it had to contort its body to launch them. Tian kept a close eye on the side of the beast, but it didn’t seem to be getting ready to launch anything. Instead, it was turning to face Hong. Tian punched the dart into it again, then wound up for a third shot when he saw the tail end of the beast sweeping towards him like a wall of spears. He lept back out of reach. The distortion in the air didn’t seem quite right for the end of the… thing. Was it going to launch again? Tian jumped away, tumbled and jumped again.

There was a familiar hissing noise, and once again the sand grew needle-like hairs.

He retaliated with a rush and a heavy smack with the dart, but it seemed to have no effect. Only stabbing it with the dart did much. He could try forcing his dart into a spear again, but the striking power might not even be as good as what he could do normally. What was Hong-

The creature raised itself up. He could suddenly see its underside- leathery but seemingly soft, a faint white-tan color, a dozen legs on each side. It seemed faintly familiar, though he was sure he had never seen anything like it before. Hong was stabbing up into the beast, her spear ripping great holes in it. There was some sort of lingering damage to the wound. Tian had cultivated keen eyes, and he would swear the wounds widened after her spear withdrew.

Tian loved Snake Head Vine Body dearly, but he had to admit, whatever art Hong Liren was practicing, it was more lethal. That thought tickled something in him, and despite being in the middle of battle, he wanted to laugh. It was like her boxing- direct, violent, lethal. No need for his complicated methods, just directly kill. Perhaps he had something to learn from her.

There was some kind of face up there- he could see mandibles. The legs terminated in cones with alarming points, somewhere between a claw and a foot. The mandibles spread, and yellow bile sprayed out from between them. Hong and Tian both dodged, but some splashed onto their robes. Tian could smell something acrid. Whatever the bile was, it could dissolve their protective suits.

But equally, whatever the bile was, it wasn’t this creature’s blood. At least his rope dart didn’t have any of it. Tian rushed in, going directly for the belly of the beast. His dart lashed out and plunged deeper into one of the holes Hong had made. With a flex of his vital energy, the dart bent down into a hook, and the rope turned rigid. Barbs jutted out from the rope.

The claw-tipped legs stabbed at Tian. That was fine. He didn’t mind dodging. Every time he shifted around, the fifteen foot long saw he was holding ripped the wound wider and wider. He got as close as he dared to the creature’s belly. It was unlikely to spit corrosive bile into its own wounds. This time, the most dangerous place was actually the safest place.

For her part, Hong helped by poking additional holes in the creature. She might not be able to saw, but she could auger. In what must have been a fit of spite, she quickly punched a line of six holes in the giant thing so close together that they were nearly touching. Then the corrosive effect spread and a long rip opened up.

Tian swore internally, then sharply turned and dashed to the sided.

“Where are you-” Hong’s yell was cut off with a yelp as she scrambled back. The thing couldn’t scream, it seemed, but they had hurt it badly. It slammed downward, its pointy legs jabbing wildly in the dirt.

Then it spun around and ran away. The two cultivators shared a look. Could… could the wasteland monsters do that? Was that allowed?

Tian had the urge to chase after it, but it was faster than them to begin with. If it could shoot those needle-hairs from its rear end as well, wouldn’t that be just looking for death?

“Caterpillar! That’s what it reminds me of, a fuzzy caterpillar.” Tian thought. Then swore again, because it really was too damn frustrating. Their suits were shredded, they were forced to fight, to jump around to dodge caustic bile, all for what, exactly? And even if they had killed it, Tian didn’t know of any use for a twenty foot long caterpillar.

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Didn’t caterpillars eat leaves? What was a caterpillar doing in the middle of a barren desert? It definitely didn’t get that big eating lichen. He frowned, following up that thought.

“Giant insects.”

“Yes, Brother Tian, I just about managed to figure that out. It was a giant insect. Well done. Very well done. I’d offer you a cookie, but I’m all out.”

“I’m not talking about your incompetent packing, Sister Hong. I’m wondering how come there are so many giant insects here in the wastes.”

“Because this is where they live. Obviously.”

“Oh, it’s obvious?”

“Yes. The things we keep running into where they live and hunt, live and hunt there. The logic is a little complex, but give it time and you will be able to follow it.” Hong’s voice was very kind.