CHAPTER 36: CHAPTER 036: BLUE ANT (EXTRA RELEASE, PLEASE FOLLOW)

Ink Orchid stood guard outside the Ant Nest for five days and nights.

After figuring out the Water System Ability, Dragon Cypress used the Dominating Throne to send it home to rest quickly.

Dragon Cypress also returned to the Ant Nest. He spat out a newly bred Green Torreya Seed and chose a Golden Pine Nut as the first Life Seed of his first Age Period as a Mid-Level Ant King.

He continued to eat, rest, and recover the energy lost during Evolution.

「Dawn.」

Feeling mostly recovered, he left the Ant Nest and went to the pond.

"Azure, I’ve evolved! A Mid-Level Ant King."

Azure responded, "I felt it. I’ve evolved too."

Dragon Cypress asked, "So, have you noticed if your growth has sped up?"

Azure replied, "It seems so..."

Good!

Dragon Cypress was overjoyed.

His primary reason for anxiously advancing to Mid-Level Ant King was to hasten the growth of the Divine-Given Seeds. So they could grow up sooner, flower and bear fruit sooner, with more flowers producing more fruit.

Dragon Cypress said, "Azure, during your growth, make sure to root deeply. In a while, after I’ve excavated the four large reservoirs around here, I will connect them, making them one with the small pond where you’re currently rooted."

Azure took a long time to understand Dragon Cypress’s meaning. It then sent a joyful mental message, agreeing, "I understand now!"

「...」

The sun was still fiercely hot in early autumn.

Various wild fruits on the mountain were ripening all at once, and Ink Orchid began a new round of searching for Divine-Given Seeds.

Dragon Cypress took a day off and accompanied Ink Orchid around the mountain, snacking on various fruits along the way.

They had zero finds, but it was a very happy day.

At twilight, they returned to the Ant Nest.

Feeling full of vitality and having passed the period of weakness post-Evolution, Dragon Cypress communicated with the Dominating Throne to activate the ’Messenger’ function.

[Please choose the type of Messenger]

[Guardian of Strength]

[Guardian of Hydrology]

[Producer of Agriculture]

[Producer of Refinement]

Eh?

Dragon Cypress paused, then realized.

Strength was the Racial Talent of the Giant-Headed Ant.

Upon advancing to Mid-Level Ant King, he had also awakened the Water System Talent. Correspondingly, the Dominating Throne now offered new Water System ’Messenger’ options, including choices for Water System Soldier Ants and Worker Ants:

Guardian of Hydrology?

Producer of Refinement?

The Water System Ability wasn’t particularly potent, so Water System Soldier Ants likely wouldn’t be strong either. He disregarded them.

What does ’Refinement’ mean?

Is the Pheromone stimulation for developmental differentiation the same for them?

Then, can the ’Intelligent Worker Ants’ I breed using [Producer of Agriculture] Ant Eggs command the Worker Ants bred from [Producer of Refinement] Ant Eggs?

Similarly, can Soldier Ants from the Strength System command ’Hydrology’ System Soldier Ants?

This is a critical question...

Dragon Cypress thought for a while, then various doubts began to emerge in his mind.

These questions could be pondered and clarified one by one in the future.

He still chose [Producer of Agriculture] to first try breeding ’Intelligent Worker Ants’ possessing the racial Inherited Memory.

[Please choose the quantity]

[Quantity 1]

[Quantity 2]

[Quantity 3]

[Quantity 4]

The maximum number of Ant Eggs that could be produced each time had increased to 4!

Dragon Cypress was delighted once again.

If he could still maintain a four-day cycle, producing 4 Ant Eggs each time, that would mean an average of one Ant Egg per day.

This truly was great news.

Having consumed various Origin Force Foods that enhanced his Comprehensive Physique, Dragon Cypress confidently chose [Quantity 4].

A blue light swept over.

[Physical condition is not ideal, please choose a different quantity]

Dragon Cypress: ...

Had he not fully recovered yet?

Dragon Cypress tried choosing [Quantity 3].

It passed successfully.

The Dominating Throne transmitted a suction force, and the Messengers began the first stage of Origin Force Breeding.

「...」

Dragon Cypress tallied the total number of ants in his colonies across South Mountain and North Mountain, and on the various terrains both high and low.

Large, mid-sized, small, and micro Worker Ants: 58. Logistical support was ample.

(Total nurtured: 60; lost: 2)

Specialized Worker Ants: 82.

(Total nurtured: 86; lost: 4)

Large, mid-sized, small, and micro Soldier Ants: 67.

(Total nurtured: 80; 13 lost to combat or unexplained disappearances)

Specialized Soldier Ants: 76 (two disabled).

(Total nurtured: 84; 7 lost to predation and combat, 1 washed away by a storm flood)

Total ant population: 280.

Additionally, the Hatchery contained 21 Ant Eggs and Larvae.

As a Mid-Level Ant King, the Soldier Ants and Worker Ants I nurture will also be of a corresponding mid-level Life Level and definitely stronger.

Next, the main focus will be on mass-nurturing Specialized Worker Ants—another 40 of them. With Intelligent Worker Ants assisting, I won’t have to worry about command being an issue.

Soldier Ants suffer heavy losses in battle, so all sizes need to be adequately replenished.

I wonder how long the breeding cycle for Intelligent Worker Ants is. Is it also 60 to 70 days?

Dragon Cypress strategized, formulating a general plan for the next stage of the ant colony’s development.

「...」

[Messenger · Producer of Agriculture completed]

Dragon Cypress inspected the Ant Eggs, noting they were slightly larger than during his Primary-Level Ant King phase—a change hardly noticeable without careful measurement.

There were no other differences.

He applied Pheromones to stimulate development and signaled the Worker Ants to move them.

One of these would be nurtured into an ’Intelligent Worker Ant.’ It was placed in a separate Hatchery, attended by one mid-sized Worker Ant and three small Worker Ants—a total of four Worker Ants dedicated to its care.

After a day’s rest, he activated the Messenger function of the Dominating Throne and chose [Producer of Refinement].

After three days, three semi-translucent Ant Eggs, tinged with a pale azure and purely of the Water System, were produced.

He tried using Pheromones to stimulate them, differentiating them into Specialized Worker Ants, Large Worker Ants, and mid-sized Worker Ants.

「...」

The response of Common Life Seeds was much slower than that of Divine-Given Seeds.

Seven days after Dragon Cypress was promoted to Mid-Level Ant King, the eight Common Life Seed plants finally showed slight changes. The autumn temperatures, still being moderate, helped their growth slightly.

The fourth Giant Cypress Life Seed exceeded 1.5 meters in height. It would definitely bloom next spring, and he could consider allowing it to bear a moderate amount of seeds.

Two days later, the Intelligent Worker Ant hatched. Dragon Cypress needed to visit the Hatchery three times daily—morning, noon, and evening—to replenish the Pheromones stimulating its differentiation. When he rested at night, he had the Worker Ants move the larva onto the Dominating Throne, as the abundant Origin Force there was conducive to its growth and development.

「...」

The Ant Eggs from [Producer of Refinement] hatched one after another. The Larvae were generally tender and white, with faint blue ring patterns.

Ten days later, down the mountain, the excavation of the third large reservoir, located south of the small pond, was completed.

Another ten days later, before the temperature dropped further, the fifth broadleaf of the Azure Divine-Given Seed unfolded, and the plant reached a height of three meters.

At the same time, the Intelligent Worker Ant larva developed rapidly, its body length exceeding 5 centimeters. Its body was snow-white and plump, appearing particularly robust.

The Inherited Memory indicated that nurturing Gigantification Soldier Ants required feeding them large amounts of Strength-based Origin Force Food to enhance their physique.

Nurturing Intelligent Worker Ants also required Origin Force Food, but there were no special type requirements.

Just then, the Ink Orchid Seeds from Molan Territory were harvested, and 60 seeds were delivered.

Dragon Cypress started by feeding the Intelligent Worker Ant larva the lower-quality Ink Orchid Seeds.

He didn’t dare give too much—just one seed per day.

The Stone Orchids and Snow Orchids in Molan Territory bore fruit successively.

This year’s harvest was abundant; 100 Stone Orchid Seeds alone were delivered.

Dragon Cypress then mixed the three types of Orchid Seeds to feed the Intelligent Worker Ant larva.

Once its body length surpassed 10 centimeters, he began feeding it high-quality Origin Force Food purchased from Melde.

「...」

The Larvae from the [Producer of Refinement] Ant Eggs pupated and emerged via Feather Transformation.

They were just over 5 centimeters in length.

They had black carapaces. Their abdomens featured a total of six blue rings.

For easier distinction, Dragon Cypress simply named this type of Worker Ant ’Blue Worker Ant,’ abbreviated as ’Blue Ant.’ Correspondingly, the Soldier Ants would be named ’Blue Soldier Ant,’ abbreviated as ’Blue Soldiers.’

After the Blue Ants ate their fill, their abdomens swelled, and the blue rings became semi-transparent. It was faintly visible that their stomachs were filled with food that had been converted into a white liquid.

Dragon Cypress used his spiritual power to scan them and immediately understood.

The so-called ’Refinement’ ability involved processing food to extract and store pure, directly absorbable energy and nutrients.

Through continued observation, he quickly noticed that whenever other Worker Ants in the colony became hungry, the Blue Ants would regurgitate the refined food stored in their stomachs to feed them.

Understanding the role of the Blue Ants, Dragon Cypress immediately had another thought: Could Origin Force Food also be refined?

At this thought, a myriad of brilliant ideas began to pop up in Dragon Cypress’s mind.