Douluo: Transforming Xiao Wu into a Zerg Queen Was Just the Beginning-Chapter 9: The Terrifying Power of the Hydralisk – Expanding Toward the Forest’s Edge

Hydralisks required almost twice the incubation time of Zerglings.

All the Zerglings had long since finished their enhancements, and it took quite a while longer before the Hydralisks finally hatched.

Squelch—!

Three massive spores burst open, and three pairs of scythe-like blades ripped through their outer membranes.

Three towering Hydralisks slithered out of the spores.

Their vicious heads, raised high like a king cobra's hood, led their long, coiling bodies as they crawled forward.

On the front of their bodies were a pair of curved, deadly scythe arms, gleaming with a chilling metallic sheen.

Their heads were long and narrow, their crimson pupils flickering with menace.

Behind their heads bulged a venom sac, filled with highly corrosive acid.

Even their normally soft tails had been reinforced, now covered with thick, black chitin.

Menacing. Lethal. Absolutely captivating.

They looked like living works of deadly art, and Lin Fan was completely mesmerized.

"This is... insanely badass!"

Unable to hold back his excitement, Lin Fan immediately commanded the Hydralisks to emerge and hunt. He needed to see their combat capabilities firsthand.

In the depths of the forest, the Zerglings received the order and quickly moved out.

Soon, they surrounded a hundred-year soul beast.

Lin Fan transferred his consciousness into one of the Zerglings to watch through its eyes.

Inside the encirclement, the soul beast was trembling at the sight of these black-armored, grotesque creatures.

Moments later, the Zerglings opened a gap in their formation.

The Hydralisk slithered in slowly, dragging its massive body into the ring.

From the Zergling's perspective, the Hydralisk was colossal—taller than a grown man, exuding suffocating pressure.

Its glowing red eyes locked onto the soul beast, sending chills down any spine.

It crawled forward with eerie calm, raising its scythe blades.

The soul beast, paralyzed with fear, didn't even dare lift its head to look at the Hydralisk.

With a swift strike—

SLASH!

"Awoooo!!"

A blood-curdling scream rang out as the Hydralisk's blade neatly cleaved half the soul beast's body in two.

And this was supposed to be a defensive-type soul beast—yet its sturdy shell was sliced apart like tofu!

Without pause, the Hydralisk opened its jaw and fired a stream of neon-green acid, which exploded across the beast's remains.

The soul beast didn't even have time to cry out again before its body was completely melted away.

A golden soul ring slowly floated upward, glowing fiercely—as if filled with lingering resentment.

Lin Fan withdrew his consciousness, thoroughly satisfied.

The Hydralisk had exceeded expectations.

Originally, the Hydralisk was a fragile long-range unit, designed to attack from a distance with its corrosive acid.

But thanks to the gene enhancements from the Hatchery, its biggest weakness—fragility—was significantly mitigated. Anyone assuming it was still easy prey would find themselves dissected by those deadly scythes.

Having confirmed its offensive potential, Lin Fan smiled and nodded in approval.

He then checked his panel:

[Current Energy: 6,310 points]

A single Hydralisk cost about 300 energy. A Zergling spore only cost 150—and it produced three Zerglings. Cheap and effective frontline troops.

Despite the Hydralisk's overwhelming strength, its bulky size made it slower and less agile than Zerglings. So, Lin Fan decided to keep Zerglings as his main assault force.

With his decision made, Lin Fan began planning the next stage of development.

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The low-tier soul beasts were growing scarcer in the area—an obvious sign that the forest was being cleared out.

They were deep in the forest now, and if he wanted to continue expanding, staying here wasn't going to work.

He had to move toward the forest's outskirts to find more hundred-year and sub-hundred-year soul beasts.

He gave the order: Drones and Creep were to move forward together, digging deeper underground in the direction of the forest's edge, expanding the underground empire.

One of the Level 1 Hatcheries was now dedicated entirely to Drone production, excavating a tunnel and placing a new Hatchery every 200 meters in a massive underground cavern.

Once any of these Hatcheries had enough energy, they would immediately upgrade to Level 2.

The other Hatcheries followed the production ratio of 9 Zerglings to 2 Hydralisks, continuously producing new combat units without pause.

Lin Fan also recorded a new tactical formation into the Zerg mental network—Zergling harassment and baiting in front, Hydralisk acid attacks from the rear.

Zerg combat tactics were growing more refined by the day.

Hydralisks now had an acid attack range of nearly 500 meters, with a precision margin of just 20 centimeters.

With such accurate and deadly tactics, the soul beasts of the forest were in for a nightmare.

Each squad consisted of 9 Zerglings and 2 Hydralisks, patrolling the forest for prey.

Zerglings, with their nimble bodies, could traverse the forest with ease, constantly scouting.

Upon spotting a soul beast, they would immediately alert the others through the mental network.

The Zerglings would then swarm the target, executing a carefully choreographed dance of baiting and attacking—grinding the soul beast down.

If the prey proved tough, two acid blasts would arc across the sky like missiles, landing with devastating precision and breaking down the target's defenses.

Even if it survived the acid, the Zerglings would swarm in for the kill.

In just half a day, ten such teams had formed—hunting soul beasts with frightening efficiency.

Fortunately, the Soul Beast Forest was enormous. Each ten-thousand-year soul beast's territory spanned dozens of kilometers.

Compared to the vastness of the forest, the Zerg were still just a small ripple in a vast ocean.

Still, Lin Fan remained cautious.

He kept the hunting squads' paths aligned with the tunnels the Drones were digging, ensuring safe and controlled expansion toward the forest's edge.

If someone could observe this world from a god's-eye view, they'd see it clearly:

Deep beneath the forest, a massive underground empire was quietly taking shape.

Tunnels stretched in every direction, dug out rapidly by countless Drones. The purple-black Creep spread behind them, covering walls and floors as the swarm expanded.

An invasive force was rising unseen beneath the forest.

While the Zerg developed, Lin Fan wasn't idle either.

He occasionally surfaced to spar with soul beasts trapped by Zerglings, using the opportunity to sharpen his own combat skills.

Trapped between the Zerglings, the soul beasts had no choice but to attack him—giving Lin Fan the perfect chance to engage in close-quarters battle.

Even if he got hurt, all he had to do was lie down on the Creep, and his injuries would rapidly heal.

And honestly—who ever complains about too much combat experience?

That kind of practice could save his life one day.

After all, no matter how powerful his swarm became, if he himself was weak, he'd still be vulnerable.

Just imagine: a powerful enemy finally carves their way through the sea of Zerglings—only to find Lin Fan standing there...

Not a helpless commander...

But a top-tier martial powerhouse.

What kind of despair would that inspire?

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