Chapter 56: Severely Wounded Claw

“They’re all dead,” Feng Qun replied with certainty.

At that moment, a hissing sound echoed from afar. Zhuo Fan and Feng Qun’s faces changed instantly as they looked toward the source. The sound was unmistakably familiar—it was the movement of a Venomous Demon Spider. A massive spider wandered into view, and Zhuo Fan and Feng Qun turned and fled without hesitation. Yet, unexpectedly, the Demon Spider let out a sharp scream and likewise turned tail, scurrying away.

Feng Qun, noticing this, glanced back and saw the spider already far gone. “Something’s off,” he muttered, halting to observe the surroundings carefully. No other creatures approached; usually, Fanged Demons and Serpent Demons would be drawn to the scent of blood.

“Wait!” Feng Qun suddenly thought of something. He bent down, scooping up a handful of bloody sand.

He then dashed out of the trench, weaving through several streets until he finally encountered a Fanged Demon. As soon as the creature saw Feng Qun, it bared its teeth and lunged—but in the next moment, its body tensed, and it fled in terror.

“So it’s the power of this blood. Could it be that the blood of the Razorclaw insect tribe has a restraining effect on their monsters?” Feng Qun’s guess was spot-on, though he didn’t fully understand why.

This was the favor granted to divine races. If one day a deity were born on Blue Star, and that god happened to be human, other animals would fear the species, never daring to attack them. Humanity would truly become the dominant force—not merely surviving in the wilderness, vulnerable to wolves and bears. This was the unique influence of divinity.

“Excellent, this is wonderful.” Feng Qun returned to city hall.

“Call the people back. The blood of these Razorclaw insects can prevent monster invasions. Have someone scatter the blood around and guard the area carefully.”

“And the flesh of these Razorclaw insects—it must be nourishing.”

Zhuo Fan frowned deeply at this. “These insect creatures seem capable of speech.”

Although their communication was through mental force, it still marked them as independent beings. Humans have always feared ghosts and spirits, and most avoid eating creatures with intelligence, like cats. The Razorclaw insects were clearly soulful beings; eating them felt strange to Zhuo Fan, as if he were consuming another person.

Feng Qun, hearing this, immediately adopted an educational tone. “Zhuo Fan, at a time like this, how can your awareness be so low? The Fanged Demons and Serpent Demons eat humans, and you’ve eaten their meat. Why shouldn’t we eat insects? As long as it makes us stronger, anything can be eaten.”

With that, Feng Qun quickly pried open a mantis forelimb, scooped out the meat inside, and swallowed it raw.

He smacked his lips and said, “It tastes a bit like shrimp. Not bad, you can eat it raw.”

Zhuo Fan was deeply impressed, and a thought arose in his mind. In this apocalypse, perhaps only people like Feng Qun could survive; he himself was still too naive.

“I’ll go call the others back.”

Though the night was dangerous, nowhere seemed safer than here. With the Razorclaw insect blood protecting them, no other monsters dared approach. In the future, this place might become the largest base in Yangchuan City.

…

Elsewhere, Qin Hao was still hunting down Razorclaw insects.

The insects fled in terror, not daring to pause for even a moment. Yet Qin Hao caught them every time and killed them without mercy.

“Human, if you slay so many Razorclaw insects, our god will unleash a curse upon you. You’d best know when to stop.”

“Pfft!” Qin Hao sliced through the creature’s body with a single strike.

Stop? That thought never crossed his mind.

Why did alien races not know when to stop, but instead invade? Was it not because humanity was weak and powerless, a planet without developed star energy, not worthy of respect?

Qin Hao felt no obligation to respect his enemies.

He would kill—every single one, leaving not a trace.

Qin Hao slew another Razorclaw insect and pressed on with his hunt.

“He’s here, that human butcher is here.”

“Run!”

“Don’t chase me, don’t follow me!”

“No! The Thousand-Armed God will not spare you!”

The Razorclaw insects died in utter misery.

At the same time, because their communication relied on mental force, their thoughts spread out, letting many humans hear their anguished screams, with some even witnessing the scene.

A figure in a tower, spying downstairs by moonlight, trembled with excitement at the sight.

“There’s a person—a human hunting monsters.”

“How can those monsters speak?”

“Does humanity have a savior? Is there a superhero among us? This is wonderful.”

That night, the countless screams of the Razorclaw insects became a tonic for humanity’s spirit.

They seemed to glimpse hope and worshipped Qin Hao, who hunted the insects in the darkness.

Qin Hao, at that moment, was chasing Razorclaw insects through the city. In a single night, he hunted down two thousand.

When dawn broke, a small black hole appeared, followed by a blood-red halo that shot toward Qin Hao.

The third layer of the blood-red halo settled upon him.

Simultaneously, the hero system responded—a white glow descended, and a trace of divine radiance appeared around Qin Hao.

“Hero Qin Hao, you have accumulated ten thousand kills of level-one evolved Razorclaw insects. Your deeds have been sensed by the Razorclaw civilization, which has marked you with a curse.

“You have earned the title ‘Razorclaw Butcher.’

“The Peace Alliance will shield your aura from detection. You may freely unseal this protection by wearing the title.

“You have severely wounded the Razorclaw civilization. As a reward, the Peace Alliance bestows unique divinity upon you—all Razorclaw insects facing you will have their fighting power diminished.

“Congratulations on receiving the Divine Energy Seal. This seal may be activated to counter the Razorclaw civilization.”

A seal with divine energy functionality—this had never appeared during previous hunts.

Perhaps it was because Qin Hao had slain an intelligent race for the first time. Before the reversal of time, he had seen a few humans with divine energy seals, each one a legend.

Qin Hao activated the seal, which also enhanced his five senses, making him even more attuned to the Razorclaw insects.

He continued his hunt.

Daylight now flooded the city. The surviving residents of Yangchuan City once more risked their lives to emerge. It was the eighth day of apocalypse; with no food or water left, staying home meant certain death.

Qin Hao raced through the city streets. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened—he saw a white sheet hanging from the fifth floor of a residential building.

The sheet was spread open, ink stains forming three large characters.

“There are insects.”

Qin Hao quickly approached the building.

As he drew nearer, he sensed the presence of Razorclaw insects.

They really were there.