In the arena.
The soldier bees came and went with the same few moves, and Allen, tired of watching, raised his finger and pointed at the soldier bees in mid-air.
Swoosh!
A silver beam shot out from his fingertips.
Spell shape, Moonlight!
A spherical spell with a 10-meter radius shaped into a rectangular beam of light three meters wide and a hundred feet long, projecting straight into the sky!
The soldier bees were caught off guard and struck by the beam, their insectoid form instantly forcibly dispelled!
As they transformed back into human form, their wings vanished, and they tumbled down from the air!
The spectators outside the arena couldn't help but exclaim in unison at this scene!
In the private room, the queen bee raised a slender eyebrow, slightly surprised by the spell Allen had just unleashed.
After all, the Soldier Bee was a well-trained Bee Knight. He remained calm in the face of danger, unleashing his "Phantom Step" mid-air, transforming into a cloud of silver mist.
After a narrowly escaped landing, he emerged from the mist, barely catching his breath, when he saw Alan streaking towards him!
Fear was evident in the Soldier Bee's eyes!
He hurriedly drew his Cold Iron Bow and unleashed a swift three-shot volley!
Swish, swish, swish!
Three arrows formed a V-shape in the air, blocking Alan's path.
Alan's speed remained undiminished, as if he were deliberately charging headfirst into the Cold Iron Arrows!
The spectators, including Ella and the Queen Bee, all thought he was trying to use his physique to forcibly deflect the arrows!
Of course, that was fine.
However, after being struck by the arrows, could he still maintain his high-speed momentum? Just a little slower, and the Soldier Bee would have had a chance to catch her breath and soar back into the air.
However, they were all wrong.
As the arrows approached, Allen suddenly crouched down, transforming into a black panther!
Three arrows whistled past her back.
The panther leaped forward, like a dark cloud, sweeping over the Soldier Bee's head.
The Soldier Bee looked up at the sky, a look of astonishment on her face.
She watched helplessly as the panther descended, tackling her to the ground.
The sharp fangs pressed against her throat, the tips sinking into the flesh.
A little more force and they would have pierced her flesh, drawing blood instantly!
The Soldier Bee lay on her back, her limbs sprawled, goose bumps covering her neck.
She was so frightened that her mind went blank!
The referee on the sidelines hurriedly blew the whistle, declaring Allen the winner.
Alan stood up and transformed back into his human form.
A deathly silence fell on the surrounding audience, still unaware of the shock.
From the second-floor box, crisp applause broke out first.
Alan looked up.
A tall, voluptuous, beautiful woman, richly dressed, smiled at him and clapped gracefully, her eyes and brows etched with admiration.
The other spectators quickly followed suit, standing and applauding.
"Who is that lady in the second-floor box? She's quite impressive!"
Alan asked his junior sister on the sidelines.
Ella glanced in his direction and quickly lowered her voice to remind him, "That's Her Majesty the Queen Bee. Why don't you thank her?"
Alan understood, turned to face the Queen Bee, and bowed.
"Good boy, not only a good fighter, but also very graceful."
The Queen Bee nodded and smiled.
"I hope that boy can please me in bed, too."
That night, Allen was summoned by the Queen Bee to serve her in the palace.
In the bedroom, he had to work even harder than in the arena.
If he didn't serve the Queen Bee well, he feared being sent to a brothel.
The problem was... he seemed to be working too hard.
So much so that the palace guards suspected this boy was an assassin, sent specifically to murder His Majesty.
Otherwise, why would His Majesty moan from night to daybreak?
How could His Majesty's body endure such a night of tossing and turning?
Thankfully, the Queen Bee was magnanimous and personally cleared Allen's name, sparing him a prison sentence.
Afterwards, the Queen Bee tenderly persuaded Allen to stay in the palace and accompany the Emperor, even offering him the title of Prince of Triere.
In the Bee Tribe, a prince is the official consort of the Queen Bee.
A prince possesses no real power, but a glamorous public image.
This is the highest position a man can achieve in a Hive City.
Alan never forgot why he had come.
His junior sister was still waiting to fight alongside him; how could he afford to indulge in fame and fortune?
He politely declined the Queen Bee's invitation to stay in the harem, expressing his greater desire to serve His Majesty on the battlefield.
The Queen Bee of Triere was a truly virtuous ruler, and she remained unperturbed by Allen's refusal.
After careful consideration, she reluctantly escorted him from the palace.
…
In the battle between the Triere and the Abe Bee Tribes, both sides deployed thousands of soldier bees. The focal point of the battle between the two sides was the honeycomb fortresses erected atop giant Titan trees.
Alan and Ella belonged to the newly formed 46th Bee Battalion, assigned to garrison a medium-sized honeycomb fortress on the front lines.
In their first week, the combat missions were relatively easy, with the occasional harassing Abe bee scouts easily repelled.
On the battlefield, Alan first encountered the Abe soldier bees.
Abe soldier bees also have three forms.
The most common form on the battlefield is their hybrid form.
Similar to the Triae bees, they also have a humanoid upper body and a bee abdomen.
However, there are subtle differences.
The Triae beemen look more human.
The Abe bees look more elf-like, with pointed ears and silver-gray hair, important features for distinguishing friend from foe.
Most of the Abe Soldier Bees wore breastplates and wielded silver spears. Their preferred tactic was said to be charging in formation.
Soon after, Allen personally experienced the terrifying momentum of the Abe Heavy Cavalry Regiment's massed charge!
At dusk, a regiment of Abe Soldier Bees arrived at the front lines and immediately launched a powerful assault on the fortress where Allen and Ella were stationed!
The Abe Soldier Bees collectively transformed into hybrid forms and formed into a neat square formation.
The silver breastplates gleamed in the setting sun.
The silver spears resembled a dense, silver forest!
A solemn, murderous aura permeated the battlefield.
The battalion commander of Allen's unit quickly deployed his troops, securing a tight defense!
A thrilling horn blasted from the opposite side of the battlefield.
The Yabei cavalry regiment collectively flapped its wings and launched into the air. Countless pairs of giant wings vibrated at high frequency, a humming roar.
Swish!
The front row of Yabei soldier bees, spears pointed forward, led the charge!
Following closely, the second row, the third row, the fourth row... each raised their spears and charged.
The entire cavalry formation moved forward at high speed, like a floating sheet of silver scales.
The Triai bees, having long fought their nemesis, had developed their own strategies for dealing with the Yabei soldier bees' massed charges.
At the battalion commander's command, the front row of soldier bees erected tower shields made of beeswax and hardwood, forming a shield wall.
In front of the shield wall stood a row of spiked chevaux de frise.
A double line of defense, resisting the cavalry charge!
The back row of Triai soldier bees, unleashed their bows and arrows!
Cold iron arrows flew like locusts, obscuring the sky and showering the charging Yabei cavalry with fire!
The Trie Bee Tribe had always relied on its powerful long-range firepower to repel the Yabei Bee Tribe's tidal surges.
This time, it looked no different.
…Really?
A jaw-dropping scene unfolded on the battlefield.
The charging Yabei Bee Tribe suddenly split into multiple forms!
Each of them, eight incredibly lifelike mirror images, densely packed together, filled the battlefield!
The Yabei Bee Tribe's secret martial art, "Mirror Shadow Body Technique," was similar to the second-level magic "Mirror Shadow Spell."
Each mirror clone had an equal chance of sharing damage.
With "Mirror Shadow Body Technique" activated, the probability of an Yabei soldier bee being hit by an arrow was a measly 1/9.
The actual results were even more disastrous than the paper calculations. A hail of arrows rained down, hitting almost all but phantoms.
Only a dozen or so Abe soldiers were shot and withdrawn from the battle.
The defenders' subsequent volleys also had little effect.
The enemy had already advanced, leaving the defenders with no room to fire. What should they do?!
"Don't panic!" the battalion commander drew his dagger and shouted to reassure the troops: "We still have chevaux de frise and shield walls! They can't break through—"
Swish—BOOM!
The battalion commander's shout was interrupted by a sharp sonic boom.
The charging Abe soldiers collectively freed their left hands.
They curled their thumbs, middle fingers, and ring fingers, extending their index and pinky fingers forward in a strange "ram's horn" gesture.
From his index and pinky fingers, he shot out two V-shaped wind blades, resembling a pair of translucent wings unfolding!
A secret second-level martial art of the Abe Bee Clan—Storm Wings!
Similar to "Thunder Wave," but with a longer range and greater power.
The barricades and shield walls blocking the front of the position were shattered into shards by the "Storm Wings" bombardment!
The shield-bearing Triai soldier bees, struck by the sonic boom, felt their ears ooze blood, causing them to feel dizzy at best and deaf at worst!
This was all thanks to the Triai Bee Clan's remarkable sonic resistance, cultivated through years of battle with the Abe Bee Clan.
A normal person in their position would have been unlucky not to die!
The battalion commander's face paled.
Alan and Ella exchanged a glance, their hearts equally heavy.
Even among the Abe bee soldiers, few possessed both the "Mirror Shadow" and "Storm Wings" skills.
The cavalry regiment currently attacking the fortress possessed a remarkable mastery of both martial arts!
What they were facing now was undoubtedly the Abe bee's ace force!
The newly formed 46th Battalion, with a total of 400 men, over half of them were recruits and mercenaries. They were hardly considered the elite of the Triae bee tribe.
I had the misfortune of running into the enemy's ace. I could only blame my bad luck...
The brutal battle continued into the night.
The defenders had lost all their positions outside the fortress and were forced to retreat to an armory for a final stand.
Alan and Ella's company were the last to withdraw.
When they returned to their base, the gazes they received from the crowd were markedly more respectful.
In this fierce battle, Allen and Ella performed exceptionally well.
Allen, in particular, slew no fewer than twenty powerful Abe Knights.
The might of the "Thundering Explosion Wave" completely overwhelmed the "Storm Wings"!
Had he and Ella not led the charge, holding the front lines and protecting the rear, the other two companies would have had no chance to retreat.
The armory was filled with the pungent stench of blood, and even more oppressive was the gloomy atmosphere.
After the battle, over half of the newly formed 46th Battalion had suffered casualties.
It was clear to everyone that the fortress could not be held.
At dawn, everyone would face the final judgment.
A guard ran over and took Allen and Ella to see the battalion commander.
The commander was also wounded and lay on a stretcher.
Ella glanced at her, then immediately looked away, a wave of pain etched in her heart.
The battalion commander was gravely wounded, his entire right arm chopped off by the wind blade.
The bandage covering the wound was already soaked with blood.
The battalion commander forced himself to stay strong and weakly explained the battle plan.
She and the other seriously injured soldiers, not wanting to burden their comrades, decided to remain at the fortress and fight to the bitter end.
The wounded alone were not enough to delay the enemy.
To ensure the safe evacuation of the majority of the soldiers, they had to proactively attack the enemy camp at night and create chaos.
The enemy would be distracted, allowing them to retreat calmly.
It was obvious that the troops responsible for the night attack were essentially going to die.
This suicide squad would be led by Allen and Ella.
In the best-case scenario, they might be able to seize control of the chaos and eliminate the enemy's main commander, completing a stunning "decapitation" operation and directly reversing the tide of battle.
Of course, this was far too difficult.
The battalion commander didn't expect them to pull it off.
Alan and Ella hadn't refused to carry out the suicide attack.
If the battalion commander himself wasn't afraid of death, what else could they say?
They had no choice but to steel themselves, risk their lives, and fight for their lives!
Late at night.
The company to which Ella and Allen belonged, all 84 men, received orders to carry out the decapitation operation!
The soldiers collectively executed their "Phantom Step" to infiltrate the enemy's main base.
Inside the commander's tent, candlelight shone.
A tall figure sat by the window, seemingly drinking alone.
Allen gestured, signaling his men to follow the plan and split up, setting fires and creating chaos.
Allen and Ella, leading two of the most elite squads, a total of 24, charged directly into the headquarters!
As soon as they pushed open the headquarters door, a sneer was heard.
"Why are you just now? I've been waiting!"
The tall female officer of the Yabei tribe stood up, holding a wine glass.
She turned to face the invading group of assassins, her expression unwavering.
Her long silver-gray hair draped over her shoulders, and her pupils were a pale silver.
Her deeply chiseled features exuded a domineering beauty.
Even more impressive was her figure and attire.
The Yabei bees were generally thin and shorter than the Trier bees.
The silver-haired female officer was an exception.
Alan estimated that she was almost as tall as himself.
She was tall, her muscular build beautifully proportioned.
Her long legs, in particular, were perfectly round and straight, with no gap when they were together.
The female officer wore heavy black armor, the breastplate deliberately emphasizing her feminine features.
Her plump steel bra, punctuated by gleaming steel spikes, resembled two thorny roses.
Her helmet was equally exaggerated.
Two long, decorative feathers rose from the top, like the antennae of a longhorn beetle.
"Brother! We're in trouble now! We've hit a steel plate!"
Ella tugged at Alan's sleeve, her face filled with bitterness.
"That woman... is General Eva!"
"This ancestral spirit I merged with has died at her hands no fewer than twenty times!"