MCDWTBS Chapter 40
by VolareChapter 40: The Insectoid Cub Pupates into a Cocoon
The bone-white little snake was inconspicuous and lacked any intimidating presence. No one would associate it with the “divine artifact” that had previously emitted eerie red light and flames.
It slithered away from Bishop Sandersfi’s charred body, its long, serpentine form wriggling in a bizarre manner. It didn’t look like a snake, but rather a stiff stick. It hissed for a while, abandoning its attempts to move this unfamiliar body in a dignified way. Its body stiffened into a bone-white rod, rolling across the ground, which was riddled with craters from energy blasts.
As it rolled toward Serra, it emitted hissing, grumbling sounds, adjusting its direction as it veered off course. It was at this moment that the faint, white halo around it caught Sandersfi’s attention.
“A… divine artifact?!”
Sandersfi disregarded the excruciating pain of Edwin’s light blade piercing his shoulder, his eyes nearly bursting as he watched the bone-white “divine artifact” come to life and slither. Shock and fear instantly made him forget the intense agony he was enduring, his brain burning with terror.
The Mother Goddess… the Mother Goddess’s divine artifact, manifesting?
That’s impossible! This is impossible! The Mother Goddess died long ago. He personally saw her remains, those fragmented bones that had already been divided and claimed, those things that the Church had compiled into divine gifts, but were in reality merely divine power stolen by usurpers…
The Mother Goddess cannot still exist!
Even if the Church prayed to the Mother Goddess with utmost sincerity a thousand times, even if Sandersfi was a prominent cardinal in the Church, even if they proclaimed their piety and loyalty to the entire insectoid race, even if they imposed the will of the gods upon every insectoid in order to establish an ideal nation belonging to the Church and the God-Child.
But as a bishop of the Church, Sandersfi knew very well that whether it was the Church or the Imperial Family, whether it was the noble male insectoids or the lowly female and sub-male insectoids, the Mother Goddess they devoutly worshiped was nothing more than a corpse.
A corpse that could not speak, could not act. Only in this way could her “will” and “divine pronouncements” be conveyed by the Church.
But all of this was predicated on the Mother Goddess having completely and irrevocably left them.
Overwhelming dread engulfed Sandersfi, causing him to ignore the agonizing pain of his pierced scapula and violently hurl Edwin, the blasphemer whose lower abdomen he had pierced with his mental tendrils, away. He pressed one hand against the gushing blood from his shoulder, screeching in a piercing voice:
“Retrieve the Church’s divine artifact!!”
Amidst the chaos, only a few insectoids heard the bishop’s command, but most of the Church’s female insectoids were busy guarding their male masters. After Edwin was pierced by the male insectoid’s mental tendrils, his previously unstoppable combat prowess was on the verge of collapse. Ordinary female and sub-male insectoids could have their wills shattered simply by being whipped with mental energy, let alone being completely pierced.
The energy of his protective barrier was exhausted, and blood spurted from his lower abdomen. His fair face also lost all its luster, revealing a dryness like white sandpaper. His strength was drained, and the intricate, exquisite insectoid Texture patterns turned from crimson to grayish-black, like black cracks left by dried lava on the ground, both eerie and beautiful.
As Edwin teetered on the brink of death, amidst the chaos filled with smoke and blood, he still attracted many gazes. Everyone remembered the burning flames of his revenge, everyone remembered how he had shot through the Church’s defenses like a jet-black arrow, piercing the cardinal’s shoulder.
Whether they were enemies or allies, he had made them tremble.
But they also knew that Edwin would not survive this time. He had not been marked by a male insectoid, and Pheromone Collapse Syndrome had already left him exhausted. Moreover, he had been pierced by a powerful male insectoid’s mental tendrils. In the history of the insectoid race, no female or sub-male insectoid had ever survived such a situation.
Sison had originally aimed his particle gun at Sandersfi’s chest, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw Edwin being flung away. Reason told him that Edwin’s injuries were far beyond the scope of rescue, and even if the Young Male Master was still present, he would probably be powerless to save him. He should focus on killing the Church’s insectoids, but—
Sandersfi’s female slave hatefully fired bullets at the blasphemer who had harmed her male master. Several other mental tendrils from the Church’s male insectoids also extended toward Edwin in a vengeful manner, wanting to tear this audacious blasphemer to shreds as a warning to others.
Sison spread his wings and swiftly swooped toward the falling Edwin, using his light blue wings to shield him from the Church insectoids’ energy blasts.
Perhaps he really wasn’t a good soldier. As Ellen had said, he wasn’t suited for the battlefield, he could never get used to the sacrifice of his comrades, to using the lives of his compatriots as bargaining chips for victory. It was cowardly military females like him who had caused the female insectoids to gradually disappear from the army.
But what was the point of an army that couldn’t even protect its own compatriots, and who were they fighting for?
A tear slid down Sison’s cheek as he pressed down on Edwin’s abdomen, which had been pierced and was bleeding profusely, trying to stop the rapid loss of blood. He had thought that Edwin would be unconscious at this point, his body convulsing under the influence of the male insectoid’s mental energy, but he heard Edwin murmur:
“My… male child… avenge…”
This simple thought was like an excessively stubborn anchor, deeply piercing Edwin’s soul, refusing to allow him to succumb to his crumbling body and collapsing consciousness. His spiritual sea was collapsing, that space carefully nurtured by Serra trembled and blurred, but refused to dissipate.
Edwin coughed up a mouthful of black blood, freeing himself from Sison’s arms. He used the light blade to support his body, staggering to regain his footing.
Seeing Sandersfi frantic, forced to release his mental tendrils and personally pursue the rolling, grumbling bone-white little snake, Edwin stabbed the light blade through Sandersfi’s only intact shoulder, pinning the esteemed cardinal to the ground.
“Ahhhhh!!!”
Sandersfi let out a pig-like scream. His once refined and elegant face was twisted beyond recognition. The sharp pain caused him to howl incessantly, and soon his throat could no longer produce any sound.
“…This is for my insectoid cub,” Edwin said, his face pale, as he slowly pulled out the light blade. The heat of the light blade was constantly corroding Sandersfi’s flesh, and his blood did not flow out, but instead turned directly into black-red smoke.
“This is for Marshal Ax, and all the military females who died at the hands of the Church.”
Edwin raised the light blade again, this time aiming for Sandersfi’s head. He was like an obstinate enforcer, his pair of deathly silent eyes only held burning flames, turning his own life into a weapon of revenge, completely disregarding any harm he might suffer.
Sison spread all of his wings, closely protecting Edwin from the attacks of the other insectoids. At this moment, he had no time to think about anything else. He knew that the sails had been raised, that everything was irreversible, and that their lives were about to end. And deep down, he hoped that Edwin would succeed this time.
He hoped that at least before he died, Edwin could get what he wanted, and that those female and sub-male insectoids who had died in vain could receive a little bit of insignificant justice.
But just then, all the insectoids with bloodshot eyes, who were either killing or struggling to survive in the chaos, heard a faint but ethereal, strange sound.
“Hiss… hiss…”
A strange energy wave, which the insectoids could not resist, emanated from the kneeling, lifeless insectoid cub, rippling out like waves in water. This power was not violent, and did not cause direct physical or mental harm to any insectoids. Instead, it caused their spiritual seas to resonate continuously.
The insectoids blinked lightly, uncontrollably stopping their attacking or fleeing movements. The male insectoids’ mental tendrils froze stiffly in mid-air, their postures strange, like subservient maggots. The robots surrounding the Church insectoids also lowered their mechanical arms, as if they had been cut off from their power source, remaining motionless.
Most of the insectoids were confused, suddenly losing their previously urgent desire for survival and slaughter, losing their complex emotions. That strange sound and gentle energy tugged at their souls, driving their limbs, causing them to involuntarily want to submit to that power.
But Sandersfi, in this almost harmonious tranquility, felt immense fear. He had lived for three hundred years. Although he couldn’t compare to the Pope and Bishop Sass, or the Imperial Family’s elderly prince, he was knowledgeable enough. He knew what this almost mind-cleansing energy wave meant.
This was not the power of a male insectoid, nor was it the power of the “divine artifact” that the Church had seized from the Mother Goddess’s remains. This was divine power, which could only be the power of life’s origin that the Mother Goddess had emitted when she created life.
That was the power that summoned all insectoids. Whatever the Mother Goddess needed, whether it was a male insectoid or a female insectoid, whether it was noble or lowly, all should heed this call.
Sandersfi opened his mouth wide, his eyes almost bulging out of their sockets, unable to make a sound. The tendrils that were about to pierce Edwin’s chest could not advance, and fear caused him to sweat profusely.
Edwin paused, his action of raising the light blade to stab frozen. He suddenly looked toward the direction of the male insectoid cub. A tear slowly seeped from the corner of his blood-red eyes.
The body of the male insectoid cub, who was kneeling with his head lowered and devoid of life, began to twist in the center of the energy wave. His short, chubby insectoid cub body seemed to be covered in some kind of holy and faint light, gradually becoming indistinct. And those black tendrils he left behind, whether they were faded or shattered, began to revive in this pure life force, beginning to writhe stiffly, gathering toward the insectoid cub’s direction.
Soon, those wriggling black tendrils reunited in the terrified or amazed gazes of all the insectoids, completely engulfing the male insectoid cub’s body, weaving into a giant cocoon.
Edwin’s eyes, which had originally shown signs of death, shook violently. Without hesitation, he returned to the insectoid cub’s side, which had transformed into a several-meter-high, black-gray giant cocoon, as quickly as possible. He pressed his trembling, damaged hand against the outer wall of the cocoon, feeling the heavy cocoon thrumming slightly beneath his palm, like a rising and falling heartbeat.
A huge smile appeared on his bloodstained face, and his dying heart began to beat wildly, sending warmed blood to all parts of his damaged body. He flung away the light blade, standing between the giant cocoon and the Church insectoids.
The Young Male Master hadn’t died… his insectoid cub was fine. Let him protect him one last time, until he successfully developed and emerged from the cocoon.
*
After Serra’s body shattered amidst the excruciating pain, his consciousness didn’t actually dissipate.
Ancient Western scientists had once calculated that after a person’s head was cut off, consciousness could linger for eleven blinks of an eye. And some devotees of mysticism believed that the human soul existed and weighed 26 grams, detaching from the human body at the moment of death.
But Serra’s consciousness lingered for longer than expected. Everything after death was silent. He couldn’t hear any sound, as if his soul was imprisoned in a silent, other-dimensional space. But the scenes were still playing out before him, things he could only watch, but could no longer interfere with.
He watched Edwin fall into immense grief over his death, he watched Sison and the other female insectoids of the Duke’s Mansion choose to stay and continue fighting, he watched Edwin burn his life away, all for a revenge that was destined to fail.
Serra trembled incessantly in the other-dimensional space. He “called” Edwin’s name, but even he himself only heard a silent echo. He tried to calm down, but his will rapidly collapsed when he saw Edwin’s abdomen being pierced.
Souls can’t cry, but the pain and despair were as tragic as they had been in life. Serra had always felt that he regarded Edwin as his future revolutionary companion, a good brother to share life and death with. Later, he knew that his feelings for Edwin had shifted somewhat, but he didn’t think that this would change anything essential.
After all, Edwin’s identity was his “male parent,” and he was Edwin’s “insectoid cub.” Regardless of how insectoid society saw it, they were trustworthy companions, family members, and comrades. As a party member, Serra couldn’t imagine any relationship more sacred than this. He knew that his possessiveness toward Edwin was somewhat excessive, and he even wanted to rescue Edwin from this approaching storm, wanting to ensure Edwin’s safety and happiness at all costs, even if it meant detaching Edwin from his original fate. So what?
Serra didn’t think that anyone could meet Edwin and not change for Edwin. After all, Edwin was… Edwin, an existence that Serra could not pile up with all the beautiful words in two lifetimes. He gave Serra an anchor in another world, giving Serra endless motivation and inspiration. In two lifetimes, Serra didn’t think he had met any life that could compare to Edwin. He would never leave Edwin’s side, he allowed himself to indulge, to give in, holding Edwin’s hand tightly.
But when death stood between them, Serra realized that indulgence was tantamount to self-immolation in an open flame.
Behind those bright, selfless feelings, he had fostered more torturous, private emotions toward Edwin. The complexity of human nature meant that emotions were always two sides of the same coin. When Serra allowed himself to indulge and wallow, those possessiveness, selfishness, and obscurities that bred in the shadows would also become the fertile ground for his pain.
It was all his fault. If it wasn’t for his selfishness and indulgence, if it wasn’t for his insistence on clinging to Edwin, playing this “male parent and young cub” role-playing game that he knew was fake, Edwin wouldn’t have fallen into this situation, wouldn’t have dedicated his own life to Serra’s insignificant death and failure. This was the greatest crime Serra had committed.
He had never treated Edwin as a male parent, never.
Edwin… he was everything, he was meaning. He was never a substitute for a biological male parent that an insectoid cub had chosen in loneliness.
Amidst the immense remorse and pain, Serra couldn’t perceive anything until—
A bone-white snake tail stretched into the void, frantically whipping his soul.
“Teacher Lin! Calling Teacher Lin! Is Teacher Lin there? Wake up! Wake up! It’s me! Yun Jiarang from the Philosophy Department, Class of ’23!”
“Stop spacing out, Teacher Lin! If you love, then love, if you’re gay, then be gay, don’t put yourself on a pedestal!!! If you don’t pupate soon, your resurrection card—I, your student, will run out of energy!”