The wormhole cavern stretched before them.
Every surface was covered in creeping, purple-black creep.
The living carpet pulsed faintly underfoot, filling the underground chamber along with swarms of Zerg organisms that skittered and slithered in the shadows.
Hu Liena and Xie Yue stared at this grotesque world, their faces pale with terror.
This was Spirit City—supposedly the safest place on the entire continent! And yet beneath the Spirit Hall Academy, of all places, lay an alien hive. No one would ever believe such a thing existed.
But here it was—right under the noses of the Pope and countless Title Douluo.
Xie Yue’s mind worked quickly, and a realization struck him.
This must have been approved by Her Holiness long ago. Only we… only we were deemed qualified to know.
With that thought, some of the fear in his chest eased. He turned to Hu Liena and whispered reassuringly, “Don’t be afraid. This is all arranged by our teacher and Spirit Hall. This is a test.”
Hu Liena blinked at him, wide-eyed.
“Brother… you’re saying this is a test?”
She looked around again at the squirming, armored beasts and the endless, pulsing creep. Nothing about this resembled a proper school—or a proper teacher.
And yet Xie Yue said it was a test?
Her heart quaked. When did Spirit Hall’s standards for disciples rise to this level…?
Lin Fan descended lightly in front of them, his scarlet eyes sweeping over the brood.
Already, the three children taken earlier were cocooned inside genetic incubation chambers, their bodies undergoing Zerg bio-modification.
As for Yan—Lin Fan’s chosen prodigy—he was currently undergoing fusion with a very special Zerg organism: the Brood Queen.
The Brood Queen was a new creation, born when Lin Fan’s hive had evolved to Tier 4. Until now, it had never been revealed, as Lin Fan had been busy weaving his plans across the continent.
The Queen’s body was massive and terrifying, armored with thick barbed plating. Unlike frontline combat strains, her flesh was soft, flexible, and alienly elegant.
What set her apart, however, was her upper half.
From her monstrous, spined torso rose the figure of a woman—strikingly beautiful, with sharp Western features. Her “hair” was a cascade of thick tendrils, barbed and alive, writhing slowly in the air.
The Brood Queen was unlike any other Zerg. She stood above standard units, but beneath a Queen of Blades. Each one wielded immense psionic power and specialized abilities:
Ability One: Queen’s Command.
She could secrete a pheromone-like substance that inspired nearby Zerg, strengthening them and enhancing their ferocity.
Ability Two: Desecration.
By burning vast amounts of energy, she could rapidly spawn countless spores. These spores, once matured, hatched into one-use thrall-beasts capable of charming or subjugating weak-willed lifeforms, turning them into expendable cannon fodder for the Swarm.
This—this was one of Lin Fan’s trump cards.
With enough determination, he could unleash the Queen’s spores across the continent, enslaving or annihilating every living being. The entire Douluo plane would drown in chaos.
But that would also make him the mortal enemy of all Spirit Masters. Even the God Realm might intervene. Lin Fan was not yet ready for all-out war.
For now, his focus returned to the massive pulsating spore sac resting on the creep nearby. Inside it, the Brood Queen’s essence was fusing with Yan’s spirit and body.
This was her ultimate ability: Contract.
The Queen could form a permanent spiritual link with a chosen host, binding them to the Swarm. Through this pact, the host could draw on the Queen’s full power.
While primarily supportive, the Queen’s base strength rivaled that of a seventy- to eighty-thousand-year soul beast. And as Lin Fan’s hive grew, so too would her might.
Once bonded, the host and Queen became inseparable—sharing senses, spirit, and battle. The host could even summon her directly to the field.
For Yan, this was the greatest reward. He was talented, but not yet on the level of Tang Hao. To someone like Tang Hao, a Brood Queen would be of little consequence. But for Yan… it was the perfect match.
As for why Lin Fan hadn’t given such power to Zhu Zhuyun or others? Simple. They already commanded Zerg Warforms—blade-dancer queens and bio-mechs. They didn’t need such a gift.
Each of the three Zerg war-mechs left in Zhu Zhuyun’s group was powerful enough to force even a Title Douluo like Tang Hao into a bitter battle. Together, the three could very well end him.
No—Yan was the best choice.
Lin Fan’s scarlet gaze then turned to Xie Yue and Hu Liena.
These two, the Golden Generation’s brightest pair, possessed one of Spirit Hall’s strongest martial soul fusion techniques. Alone, they weren’t overwhelming geniuses. But together, they had potential as a devastating trump card.
Still, the position of “Queen of Blades” was not something Lin Fan would give to someone like Hu Liena. She lacked the innate foundation of Xiao Wu, a hundred-thousand-year soul beast, or Qian Renxue, heir to the Angel God.
Beautiful or not, Hu Liena alone would never be worthy.
Lin Fan’s eyes flickered with decision.
These two would undergo enhancement similar to Zhu Zhuyun and Dai Weisi—enthrallment and strengthening through Zerg charm-beasts. Stronger, more malleable than forced assimilation, yet still bound to the Swarm.
He waved his hand lightly.
“Are you ready? Accept the evolution that awaits you.”
“Wh-what?”
The siblings exchanged nervous glances, dread swelling in their eyes.
From everything they had seen, Lin Fan’s so-called strengthening was anything but pleasant.
Before they could protest further, the creep shuddered violently.
With a wet crack, two massive pods opened like flowers and swallowed them whole. Flesh-tubes snaked in, connecting, pulsing.
A bloated winged Zerg crept atop each pod, plunging its swollen abdomen into the sacs. Thick, green fluid pumped inside as Hu Liena and Xie Yue’s muffled cries faded into silence.
Lin Fan’s eyes narrowed, thoughtful. Then he turned and strode swiftly back toward the surface.
—
Outside Spirit Hall Academy.
Chrysanthemum Douluo stood waiting, hands folded, his expression unreadable.
Bibi Dong gazed at the immense soul-force barrier enveloping the entire academy, her brows lifting slightly.
“Elder Ju… this shield?” she asked calmly.
“This is merely to prevent prying eyes, Your Holiness,” Chrysanthemum Douluo replied smoothly. “May I ask what brings you here?”
“Oh?”
Bibi Dong’s tone carried a subtle edge of authority.
“Why, to see for myself how our new head instructor is training the children, of course.”
****
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