Chapter 67: Beehive

Chapter 67: Beehive

After leading the Lion Pride on a few hunts along the way, Bran parted ways with them at the edge of their Territory. One lioness seemed to want to follow Bran, but she was driven back. So, after letting out a dissatisfied roar at Bran, she left, swishing her tail.

Now, only Bran and Huahua, the inseparable pair, moved forward toward their goal. It seemed nothing had changed. But ever since Bran killed the Lion King, he noticed that the constant feeling of being watched by various Predators had disappeared. Now, all the glances directed at them were filled with wariness and caution.

This was not good, at least for Bran and Huahua, it was very bad and dissatisfying. For these two who had just joined the team of seeking thrills, they were searching everywhere for various challenges. Of course, they were not foolish enough to provoke truly powerful beings. Seeking thrills was about finding excitement; that was the essential difference from suicide. Although in the Northlands, seeking thrills could really lead to death, that was precisely the important reason it could provide a mental thrill.

The spiritual connection and Soul Resonance between Bran and Huahua gave Huahua many human-like behaviors. After being away from crowds, some of Huahua’s traits gradually seemed to affect Bran too. After continuous hunting, their wild side was completely unleashed. The human and the cat simultaneously developed certain shared traits—bloodthirst, curiosity, and a thrill-seeking style.

…

Bran was tending to his wounds, and Huahua crouched beside him, licking her own injuries. For Huahua, with her abilities, to also get injured, one could imagine how dangerous and exciting it had just been.

Some creatures didn’t need to be extremely powerful; individually, they might not be very lethal, but they were at least troublesome enough. These were the not-too-fat, not-too-lean targets perfect for a bite in Bran and Huahua’s eyes—except it seemed they had chipped their teeth on them.

Bran had been trying hard to find creatures with abilities, and then he got what he wanted. Enormous numbers—weeds, mosquitoes, ants, and so on. Many tiny insects and small animals hidden underground. Every step he took, the number of lives underfoot was too many to count. As he gradually became familiar with the environment of the Fertile Plains Grassland, whenever he carefully sensed and searched through his own Mana Web, the Mana interference or resistance caused by abilities filled the entire web, and he became somewhat numb.

Nature was fair; it did not especially favor humans. Feeling special about Awakening was only because the human population was relatively small. When he expanded his observation to the broader natural environment, there were more samples to collect, and they no longer seemed rare. So, he gave up this nearly futile sample collection. Simply collecting had become meaningless. Observing unique phenomena was more helpful than merely collecting samples. Perhaps this was the way to solve the problem. What Bran needed was communication—the experience and sensations of using various abilities. For now, only fellow human Wizards could provide this kind of experiential insight, and that was the most valuable part.

Today, a massive Beehive on their path caught Bran’s interest. Countless giant bees buzzed around the Beehive. This huge Beehive emitted a unique Mana Fluctuation, similar to Bran’s Mountain Villa. After that, Bran played the game all mischievous kids love—poking the beehive…

Then they fled in panic, being chased very, very far. Huahua, who originally wanted to cover the rear, was stung twice and let out a miserable cry. With a few flashes, she left Bran far behind. After landing, Huahua stepped on the tips of grass, using the rebounding force from each bent blade to leap far away, escaping easily. Although Bran was covered head-to-toe in Dragon Gold, he didn’t have much of it right now. Spreading it evenly over his whole body made the layer too thin to be useful. He usually used Dragon Gold to protect key areas or as a means to stop bleeding and bandage wounds after getting injured. Against these giant bees, the thin layer of Dragon Gold protection was simply not enough…

So, Bran finally discovered that his twin blades could be swung so fast they became impervious, and he could do this while sprinting madly. Every sting from a giant bee was an incentive for Bran, triggering his endless potential and pushing him to constantly break his limits. Under the constant stimulation of “faster, faster, even faster,” Bran ran until he reached a pond and, without a second thought, plunged headfirst into it.

Only then did he realize he had landed right on top of a monster lurking in the water. The situation seemed to surprise both sides, but Bran was in a state of high tension and excitement. He immediately stomped on the monster’s head, using the force of the monster lifting and turning to leap back onto the shore, and then ran along the bank.

The frightened monster instinctively surged out of the water, slapped onto the shore, and wanted to chase Bran’s retreating figure. Then it replaced Bran, becoming the target for the swarm of giant bees to vent their fury.

…

Huahua carefully licked the wounds on Bran’s back with her tongue, helping him clean out the stingers. Luckily, these giant bees were not known for their venom. Although the stings were very painful, there were no other severe adverse reactions. Pain was also a kind of stimulation, a thrill, wasn’t it? Bran comforted himself. Right now, his arms felt like they were almost not his own anymore. He had to find and quickly kill a prey before this excitement faded. Otherwise, once the excitement passed, it would be difficult to lift these arms again.

Bran’s arms hung limply. He held a piece of raw meat in his mouth, chewing listlessly. This was a painful lesson. Now Bran decided to win with his mind. His experiences over the past period had simplified his thinking somewhat. He shouldn’t have just picked up a stone and thrown it at the Beehive…

For the next two days, Bran rested obediently. After being beaten up by the giant bee swarm, the human and the cat temporarily behaved.

…

Approaching the Beehive again, Bran was much more careful. He slowly sat down on the outskirts, letting the giant bees get used to his presence. Then he inched closer bit by bit. When he was still more than ten meters away from the Beehive, he extended his Mana. Then the Mana emanating from the Beehive made contact with his.

At this moment, Bran was only curious and cautious, without any hostility. Both strands of Mana had similar attributes—assimilation and permeation. This made their contact a kind of collision rather than mutual covering or merging.

The slight friction at the edges of the two Mana streams did not disturb the other party. After a mild probing, Bran could conclude that the other party’s Mana was not as refined and thick as his. The giant bees were just acting on instinct.

He now pondered whether he could absorb the other’s ability in some way. Like when his Sister contacted that recently deceased Wizard, the Mana transferred over on its own. The trouble was he had to find the source of the Mana. With such a huge Beehive, even if he wanted to tear it open, it wouldn’t be an easy task.

He needed a partner—a thick-skinned fellow who loved honey. That way, you get the honey, and I get the Mana. Just as Bran withdrew his Mana and sat not far from the Beehive, thinking of a way to proceed, a disturbance came from the Beehive direction. He felt his target approaching him. So, he opened a blank area in his Mana Web; the spherical Mana Web seemed to open a big mouth. A huge queen bee flew over alone and hovered right before his eyes, its wings flapping with a buzzing sound. This reminded Bran of the little snake he encountered during his first camping trip. They mostly acted on instinct and intuition. Now it was attracted to Bran’s side.

Was it that simple!? Bran was somewhat stunned. I had a thousand methods ready to implement, ten thousand ideas brewing. And you just came over like that? Was all that stinging before for nothing? Bran could have swatted this reckless queen bee dead in one hit, but he resisted that simple and tempting thought. A Mana contest between similar types—this was a rare opportunity, a rare experience.

Bran slowly closed his Mana Web. So, the queen bee’s Mana and Bran’s Mana began to press against and rub against each other. Bran felt like a dog struggling to gnaw on a bone. Although this bone wasn’t too big, it was quite hard and tough on the teeth.

Within Bran’s Mana Web, the Mana Tide continuously washed over. After a long period of confrontation, the Mana Fluctuation emitted by this queen bee was gradually worn down and smoothed out. Now the answer Bran cared about most was about to appear. When his Mana swept over the queen bee’s body, interference from the creature itself prevented further action. He could not directly plunder the other’s ability, even if they were of the same type. That was good; Bran felt a sense of relief. At least before life faded, abilities were not so easily plundered.

Having gotten the result, Bran raised his hand and crushed the queen bee. Then a cool feeling flowed into his body through his fingertips, and his body felt a sense of fullness.