Chapter 146: The Trap

"You didn't expect this, did you, wizard creature?"

A priest insect clad in white silk emerged from behind the statue, its antennae twitching in delight.

"How does it feel to be outsmarted by the native insects you disdain?" the priest insect taunted, tightening the starlight net around the puppet wizard.

The puppet wizard glanced sharply at his puppet, only to find it ensnared by the starlight seal as well.

"Curious how I discovered this insect was your puppet?"

The priest insect approached the golden warrior insect, methodically removing the black crystal embedded in its body. Each extraction elicited a pained howl from the warrior, its antennae thrashing like whips.

But once the black crystal was fully extracted, a light burst from within, which the priest insect promptly crushed.

The warrior insect's demeanor calmed, its mandibles emitting a faint, broken hum: "Thank you... High Priest."

Then it fell silent.

Cradling the black crystal, the High Priest prayed:

"Poor child, I will return you to the embrace of the Mother Insect God. Praise be to the Mother Insect God!"

The black crystal dissolved into light and vanished into the void. The High Priest rose and approached the puppet wizard.

The starlight net relentlessly battered the puppet wizard's magical barrier, warping it with intense pressure, threatening to shatter it at any moment.

The High Priest's brow crystal emitted a beam of starlight, reinforcing the net, which constricted with renewed vigor, instantly shattering the magical barrier.

"Accept your judgment, wizard creature."

...

Within the Mother God Temple, Richard followed Ulysses through the winding corridors.

The walls were adorned with murals painted by insects using mineral pigments, depicting the glorious deeds of the Mother Insect God. Such artwork would thrill wizards studying indigenous history, prompting them to extract the murals whole.

But Richard had no interest in such things and hurried past.

The rescue mission was timed down to the minute. Delays might mean missing the wizards' withdrawal and being overwhelmed by insects.

Ulysses took a sharp turn, entering an upward-sloping passage. Insects, born with wings, frequently designed inclined paths without stairs in the temple.

"Ulysses, how much further?"

Richard calculated the time anxiously. He and Ulysses had been in the temple for nearly three minutes; if they didn't find the target soon, they would need to retreat.

The rescue mission wouldn't exceed ten minutes. Beyond that, insect reinforcements would swamp the wizards, making the rescue futile and endangering themselves.

"Caw, just ahead, we're almost there."

Ulysses vanished up the incline, and Richard followed into a wide corridor.

At the end, Ulysses hovered, clutching two golden heads. Nearby, the headless bodies of Mother Insect Guards stood frozen in their final stances.

Two guards dispatched with a single blow from Ulysses.

Richard hurried to catch up, stowing the guards' bodies in his bag.

The corridor ended in a stone chamber, its door melted away by Ulysses' flames.

Inside, aside from a silk cushion, the most striking feature was a head-sized, golden statue of the Mother Insect God.

"This is the place you said held a lot of faith energy?" Richard asked, puzzled.

Ulysses seemed equally baffled: "Caw, this is the closest spot, but it isn't what I expected."

He eyed the statue, then covered its eyes with two blobs of ichor.

As a divine being, he understood his peers' tricks; even an indigenous god could observe the world through its statue.

"Caw, the faith energy should be inside this statue."

Richard attempted to lift the statue, but it slipped from his grasp, clanging to the ground.

Stunned, Richard looked from the statue to his hand.

Given his current strength, even a statue weighing a thousand pounds shouldn't have been an issue.

Suddenly, Richard had an idea. He touched the statue, triggering a message in his mind.

[Material: Orichalcum Statue]

[Extractable Substance: Faith Energy]

[Extraction Cost: 300 Mental Energy]

"Of course!" Richard exclaimed, delighted. He activated his bloodline, lifting the statue with ease.

"The entire statue is made of Orichalcum!"

Such a large piece of Orichalcum would fetch an astronomical price in the wizarding world!

"Caw, what does your furnace say? Can it extract the energy?" Ulysses asked anxiously via mental link.

"It can, but it'll take some effort. If the statue melts, will it affect the faith energy inside?" Richard stored the statue in his magical pocket. Extracting all the faith energy in one go was mentally taxing, so he needed to do it in parts.

"Caw, melting will, but cutting won't."

Richard nodded. "That works."

With that, he left the stone chamber, ready to exit and head to the temple's outskirts to prepare for extraction.

But as he moved to leave, a loud "boom" reverberated, a powerful magical wave shaking the temple's thick walls, causing cracks to form.

"Hmm?"

Richard was startled. Such intense magical fluctuations weren't typical for wizards.

Peering through the cracks, he saw a familiar figure struggling within a starlight net.

Countless evocation spells bombarded the net, causing it to tremble violently.

But clearly, despite the tremors, the starlight net showed no signs of breaking. The wizard casting spells, however, was rapidly depleting their energy.

"The puppet wizard? What's he doing here? Wasn't he supposed to be rescuing wizards?"

Watching the struggling wizard within the net, Richard felt a pang of confusion.

But then it dawned on him.

This must be the puppet wizard's true goal.

Looking through the cracks, Richard saw four golden pedestals, each holding something that made his heart race.

"Is that... the Blood of the Insect God? Those are Mother Insect God relics!"

Seeing the four pedestals each topped with a Mother Insect God relic, Richard swallowed hard.

Greedy bastard of a puppet wizard!

Four relics, no wonder he's trapped now!

Ulysses chimed in: "Caw, your kin was likely tricked. None of those are real; they're all faith energy constructs."

"Hmm? All fake?"

Richard's heart sank, a sense of dread washing over him.

"Caw, they might fool you, but not me," Ulysses scoffed. "But they're crudely made. Either the insects are sloppy, or these were rushed jobs."

Ulysses' words hit Richard like a thunderbolt, scattering his thoughts.

Considering the puppet wizard's plight, if these items were hastily made, the wizards had likely walked into an insect trap.

The insects had turned the puppet wizard's arrogance against him, ensnaring the wizards in a trap!

Realizing this, Richard didn't bother verifying his thoughts and immediately pulled out his communication crystal ball.

"Ellie, Lawrence, it's a trap. Retreat immediately!"

...

"Stop resisting, wizard creature."

The High Priest stood outside the starlight net, infusing it with celestial energy.

This wizard's power exceeded expectations; even trapped, they unleashed formidable strength.

When he deployed the starlight net to ensnare them, the wizard nearly burst through with a surge of magical energy.

If they had broken free, the plan would have suffered a major setback.

But the wizard ultimately fell short, unable to escape the net's hold.

Now, the puppet wizard's struggles were futile, a beast in its death throes.

Watching the puppet wizard, the High Priest felt a rare sense of satisfaction.

Since the war began, the Black Crystal Insects had gained little on the battlefield, losing kingdom after kingdom. Meanwhile, infiltrating wizards wreaked havoc, causing varying degrees of damage to every kingdom.

In the Black Mushroom Insect Kingdom, his domain, wizards had even attacked a major hatchery.

This left the High Priest restless, spending all his time handling affairs or praying and meditating before the statue.

Finally, he could breathe easier.

Just a day ago, during a meal, he noticed something amiss with his food.

The Mother Insect God's blessing had heightened his senses significantly, a secret he kept well.

His enhanced sense of smell detected a foreign substance in his dish—though nearly odorless, it hadn't escaped him.

Tests revealed poison in the sacrificial fungus, lethal enough to require extensive detoxification, weakening him to the level of a two-star priest during recovery.

Tracing the poison's source, he quickly uncovered the puppet insect among them.

Calculating the poison's activation time, he deduced that wizard creatures would soon assault the Mother God Temple and adjusted his plans swiftly.

He intended to capture every invading wizard in one sweep.

"Sigh!"

The High Priest sighed, "If only you'd acted a bit later. My plan would have been fully set."

His timing had been slightly off, leaving gaps in his plan before the wizards struck.

If the wizards realized the truth, many might escape.

"Hmm?"

The High Priest's gaze snapped to a crack in the temple wall, detecting a faint energy wave crossing his senses.

That wasn't Black Crystal Insect energy!

"Who's there?"

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