Chapter 613 - 610: Sounds in the Forest

Chapter 613: Chapter 610: Sounds in the Forest

"BUZZ."

"BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ."

An endless expanse of red still filled Mo Ling’s vision. His senses seemed to remain imprisoned.

He felt himself separate from the Finger Insect’s body and plunge once more into the depths of the Sea of Blood.

But now, faint "buzzing" sounds echoed through the once-silent Sea of Blood, like flies hovering by his ear...

...

"Flee, flee far away..."

Mo Ling gradually realized he could understand those strange buzzing sounds. It was a very simple language, using the length and weight of different "buzzes" to distinguish words and meanings.

"Flee? Why do we have to flee?"

Mo Ling stammered out the question. His voice traveled forward and bounced back, and by sensing the returning sound, he was somehow able to sketch an outline in his mind.

The outline looked like an ear, currently spinning in the air. It was the very thing urging him to escape.

"The flock of Feeding Birds of Prey is coming! We have to run! If they find us, we won’t make it out alive." The voice grew extremely urgent. Mo Ling could feel its panic.

Seeing Mo Ling still dawdling, the ear-shaped creature floated right over and started pushing him into the distance.

"Listen for yourself! How big is the flock? We’ll be too late if we don’t run now! Why are you just spacing out?" the voice demanded.

’Listen for myself?’

Mo Ling was still confused, but his body moved on its own.

With a tremor of his body, faint sound waves shot through the forest. When they bounced back, Mo Ling had already pinpointed the size of the flock. The sheer number left him completely stunned.

"What kind of creatures are those... How terrifying."

"Just how many are there? Thousands? No, tens of thousands!"

The flock of Feeding Birds of Prey blotted out the sky, their cries echoing throughout the forest. Countless sharp shrieks startled the insects of the forest, and the Feeding Birds of Prey swarmed in, devouring the panicked bugs. Not only that, but other creatures in the forest also suffered their assault. Even massive beasts were torn to shreds under the siege of these frenzied birds.

The Feeding Birds of Prey that failed to get any food actually started gnawing on their own kind. As blood rained down from the sky amid mournful cries, it triggered another mad scramble.

The flapping of wings, the wails of the injured, the clashing of beaks, the tearing of claws through flesh...

Innumerable terrifying sounds bored into Mo Ling’s body. This time, he didn’t need his companion’s urging and immediately fled into the distance...

"I thought you were scared stiff," the companion said, a lingering fear in its voice.

"No, I just couldn’t process it all... Where are we running to?"

"Out of the forest, to the seashore. The Feeding Birds of Prey will stay in that forest for a long time, so that should buy us a while."

"Okay," Mo Ling replied blankly. Right now, his senses were filled with the sounds of the Feeding Birds of Prey slaughtering each other. The sounds echoed endlessly in his mind, stirring up waves of uncontrollable fear and nausea.

As Mo Ling and his companion fled further away, the sounds from the forest began to fade.

"The flock of Feeding Birds of Prey seems to have stopped..." the companion confirmed after listening carefully.

"What are they doing?"

The companion listened for a while longer before saying fearfully, "They’re killing each other."

’Killing each other?’

"Why are they killing each other?" Mo Ling asked, confused.

"Probably not enough food in the forest. They killed every living thing, leaving only a few hiding insects. They don’t like to eat plants, so they can only devour their own kind. You know how it is—those frenzied birds will do anything for food..."

The companion’s voice was filled with terror for the Feeding Birds of Prey. It was only forcing itself to remain calm to explain the situation to Mo Ling.

"If they keep killing each other like this, won’t they wipe out their own flock?"

"No. Even if they kill them all, they’ll quickly reproduce a new flock. The young of those frenzied birds only need half a day to grow into their adult form if they get enough nutrients."

"I’ve heard from other ear flies that these Feeding Birds of Prey have no gender. They just need to consume enough nutrients to reproduce asexually. And they don’t lay eggs—they give birth to live young..."

’Such a terrifying creature, and its reproduction is so simple?’ Mo Ling was completely dumbfounded.

"These Feeding Birds of Prey are a natural disaster. When faced with them, we have no choice but to hide..." The companion’s voice was full of helplessness. In the face of these frenzied birds, no one could even think of resisting.

At the same time, Mo Ling extracted another piece of information from his companion’s words.

"An ear fly? Is that what our species is called?"

Mo Ling let out a faint buzz, sensing his own outline from the reflected sound. Just as he thought, he looked exactly the same as his companion.

"Am I an ear fly too?"

A strange thought suddenly arose in Mo Ling’s mind. He felt that he shouldn’t be an ear fly.

But when he tried to think harder, he couldn’t remember what he originally looked like.

And now, he was getting more and more adept at using the abilities of an ear fly.

’If I’m not an ear fly, then why can I use an ear fly’s abilities?’ This only made Mo Ling more confused.

’Who am I?’

Just as Mo Ling was lost in his confusion, his companion’s excited voice rang out.

"There’s another ear fly clan by the sea! What good luck."

’Another clan?’ Mo Ling listened carefully. Sure enough, there was a faint buzzing in the distance. It was other ear flies conversing, though they seemed to be hidden in a secret location.

"In here." The companion led Mo Ling directly into a seaside cave. After navigating through the winding crevices, they quickly found the clan’s base.

"Which clan are you from?" a Guard ear fly asked, blocking the path of Mo Ling and his companion.

"The Tree Cave Clan," his companion replied.

"What brings you here?" Hearing they were from the Tree Cave Clan, the Guard ear fly’s tone softened slightly.

"The flock of Feeding Birds of Prey has entered the forest. They’re devouring everything. To escape, all the members of our clan scattered..." As it recounted its experience, the companion’s voice still trembled.

"The flock of Feeding Birds of Prey?" The Guard was startled. "They’ve already reached the forest?"

"Follow me!" The Guard immediately grew tense and led Mo Ling and his companion into the depths of the cave.

"Great Clan Leader, these two escaped from the Tree Cave Clan! They bring important news!"

The Guard quickly relayed the information about the arrival of the Feeding Birds of Prey to the Great Clan Leader before it.

This ear fly, which had been floating in the depths of the cave, was enormous—twice the size of a normal ear fly. It hovered in the air, listening quietly to the Guard’s report.

"Great Clan Leader, what should we do?" the Guard asked anxiously.

"Flee," the Great Clan Leader answered without hesitation.

"Why? We just moved here not long ago. The clan hasn’t even established itself yet, and now we have to flee again? We can’t just keep hiding from them forever, can we?" The Guard was extremely reluctant.

The Great Clan Leader floated silently in the air. It seemed completely unsurprised by the arrival of the Feeding Birds of Prey, its emotions showing no fluctuation.

"Besides fleeing... is there any other way?"