I Became the Alchemy Master by Picking Up Trash-Chapter 203 - 201: Xi Yuan Tournament (Part 27)

With Red Fierce Ants blocking the road ahead, the Red Fierce Ant Army from behind also caught up.

Seeing that the All Cure Team was about to be surrounded by the ant swarm, Ye Qingting made a decisive move, drawing the Ice Sword, as the Primordial Spirit rapidly activated:

"Deep Blue Ice Dragon—!"

Affected by the high temperature, the Ice Dragon was a bit leaner than usual, but that didn’t hinder its ferocity at all, letting out a high-pitched dragon roar, it charged into the newly formed Red Fierce Ant swarm.

The blue Ice Dragon opened its big mouth, its tail swinging vigorously, scattering the Red Fierce Ants running at the front into chaos, with their tidy phalanx turning into disarray.

As the Deep Blue Ice Dragon blocked the pursuing Red Fierce Ants, Ye Qingting shouted: "Everyone, climb to the peak and rendezvous with Team Tianyi!"

The triangular cave at the summit was the only easily defensible position in the vicinity, impervious to attacks. If they didn’t want to be worn out by the sea of ants, they had to go up!

Li Xing leaped high, stepping on the back of a Big Red Fierce Ant ahead, and sped towards the Stone Peak. Cui Tianxiao and Qi Ming followed Li Xing’s example, using the Big Red Fierce Ants as stepping stones, advancing quickly, with Ye Qingting covering the rear.

The disruption caused by the All Cure Team successfully attracted the attention of the General Ants in the front and rear forces. After a brief exchange of feelers, they quickly agreed on a strategy—to eliminate the bipeds on the ground first, and then concentrate forces to attack those on the Stone Peak!

Pheromones stirred the air, and all the Big Red Fierce Ants suddenly changed direction, turning their giant jaws towards the four members of the All Cure Team.

Li Xing was just about to land on the back of a Big Red Fierce Ant in front when it, originally bustling forward on the ground, suddenly twisted its body violently, while its kin all around raised their mandibles, supporting their bodies to bite at Li Xing’s leg.

Li Xing frowned, delivered a sweeping kick, shattering the heads of those Big Red Fierce Ants trying to attack her. Then, regardless of the other Red Fierce Ants’ resistance, she continued stepping on their backs to advance, merely applying a bit more force, causing large holes to appear in the backs of each Red Fierce Ant she stepped on.

As the General Ants’ orders spread, the Red Fierce Ant swarm surged towards the All Cure Team like boiling seawater.

"Follow me!"

Li Xing drew the Heavenly Wolf Saber, clearing a path ahead, while Cui Tianxiao and Ye Qingting protected Qi Ming in the middle, closely following behind Li Xing toward the Stone Peak.

Low-tier Star Beasts stood no chance against Elemental Spirits of the Heavenly Armor level, yet they surrounded the four formidable opponents like machines insensitive to pain and fear, relentlessly charging forth.

Batch after batch of Red Fierce Ants fell, giving Li Xing the impression they were using their carcasses to build barricades to stop them from reaching the Stone Peak.

If that were true, she had to admit, this tactic was working. After advancing only a little over forty meters, the corpses and remains of the Red Fierce Ants already reached their waists, and the blood and viscera made it difficult to lift their feet, turning the place into a hellish scene.

At the moment, the greatest obstacle to the team’s progress was not the Red Fierce Ants’ attacks, but how to push aside the ant carcasses piled on the path.

While Li Xing used the back of her knife to clear the way, a shadow suddenly fell overhead, and alarms blared in her heart. The Abnormal Fire instantly transformed into a Flame Umbrella, covering the entire team.

"Sizzling—!" The sound of liquid vaporizing resounded above, and a faint sour stench filled the air.

They were using acid!

Li Xing was furious, flicking her hand elegantly, the Abnormal Fire rolled upward, enveloping the escaping ambusher like a bundle. The Flying Fierce Ant didn’t even have time to scream before being vaporized by the scorching high temperature.

"Everyone be careful, there are Flying Ants capable of spitting strong acid!"

A dense swarm of Flying Fierce Ants was closing in from all directions, their numbers so abundant that they almost covered the sky.

Golden talismans emerged, and Qi Ming activated the Defense Talisman Array.

While the aerial troops were still out of acid-spitting range, Cui Tianxiao’s fingers swiftly moved, unleashing dense purple Thunder Arrows towards the sky.

Qi Ming also rapidly changed hand signs, forming metallic blades silently in the air, then sent them piercing toward the Flying Fierce Ants.

Ye Qingting released the Deep Blue Ice Dragon once more, the Ice Dragon winding its way into the sky, tearing into its enemies.

In the sky, purple, golden, and blue lights interwove into a net. No matter how quick the Flying Fierce Ants’ reactions were, they couldn’t escape such a dense Elemental Attack. The Flying Fierce Ants hit by the barrage fell to the ground like raindrops.

The team reacted swiftly and cooperated seamlessly. From the moment Li Xing discovered the Flying Fierce Ants to the mass of ants being shot down, it had only been a couple of breaths.

On the Stone Peak.

The departure of the Red Fierce Ant swarm finally gave Team Tianyi a chance to breathe. Continuously releasing their Primordial Spirits, even against low-tier Star Beasts, had pushed their physical and mental stamina to the limit.

Jiang Yuesheng slumped to the ground, panting heavily whilst watching the All Cure Team advancing slowly through the ant swarm. Seeing them instantly kill swathes of Flying Fierce Ants felt unsettling for Jiang Yuesheng, though he was helpless about it.

Excluding Qi Ming the talisman master, solely based on the prowess of the two martial masters from the All Cure Team, they were indeed formidable. Ye Qingting’s Ice Sword was a typical close-combat weapon, yet his unique skill, the Deep Blue Ice Dragon, allowed him to attack without distance restrictions, both near and far.

Cui Tianxiao was skilled with a bow, though his weapon also had forms suitable for close combat. Given time, these two would unquestionably grow into versatile warriors.

In contrast, Jiang Yuesheng himself excelled in close combat, but his range attack skills and battle strength were undoubtedly his weak points.

Jiang Yuesheng’s Primordial Spirit and spiritual power levels were unmatched among the young Elemental Spirit users. Growing up, apart from Chu Yunyi, he had never regarded anyone else as formidable. However, this year’s military academy competition had made him re-evaluate Ye Qingting and Cui Tianxiao.

At some point, these two juniors had already grown into experts he had to treat carefully.

Jiang Yuesheng clenched his fists unconsciously, suddenly feeling a sense of urgency; he needed to strive harder, or he’d be surpassed.

The General Ants’ feelers trembled, and the nearly halved aerial squad of Flying Fierce Ants regrouped, fearlessly charging at the All Cure Team once again. Though most Flying Fierce Ants perished under Elemental Attacks, quite a few still managed to approach the quartet, spitting acid from their mouthparts.

The acid’s corrosive power was incredibly strong, causing Qi Ming’s defensive formation to hiss and smoke. Li Xing gave Qi Ming a look, and he understood instantly, making the elemental power fluctuations on the defensive formation unstable, with the talisman flickering as if it could collapse at any moment.

The General Ants’ feelers vibrated more frequently, gathering all surviving Flying Fierce Ants atop the defensive formation, continually spraying acid.

Seeing the moment ripe, Li Xing was about to summon her Three Thousand Lotus to reap the Star Beasts when suddenly Chu Yunyi’s transmitted voice reached her ears: "Ah Xing, the Flying Fierce Ants must not be completely wiped out!"

Li Xing’s heart tightened, and the next second, the Abnormal Fire surged, opening like lotus petals, incinerating all Flying Fierce Ants and Red Fierce Ants within a radius of a hundred meters to ashes.

A large area opened up in the Red Fierce Ant swarm, and as the peripheral Red Fierce Ants hadn’t yet filled the road, the All Cure Team took the opportunity to sprint towards the Stone Peak.

Cui Tianxiao picked up several sturdy ant legs, using them as arrows to shoot into the sheer cliff face of the peak, allowing the four to step on the ant leg arrows and leap into the summit cave in a few bounds.