CHAPTER 394: CHAPTER 379: ANT KING TRUST CARD

The autumn wind rustled, fallen leaves drifting down.

Under a sky as blue as a polished jade, the Dominating Throne streaked along with its long blue tail, speeding into the borders of the Purple Tung Insect Nation.

"I’m off to check on my Red Phellodendron Divine Seed!"

Ink Orchid tossed out a line, kicked off, and took to the air, arching downward in a dive.

In the past year, Dragon Cypress had paid some attention to that Red Phellodendron Divine Seed. Half-dead and half-alive, it definitely wouldn’t make it, but it wouldn’t die anytime soon either.

Not pressing for details,

The Dominating Throne slowly lowered its flying altitude, heading straight for the central region, toward the Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed.

It was the annual Divine-Given Purple Tung Seed harvest season again; the seeds were about to ripen.

Barley Bug Tribe warriors each carried a Spider Silk Bag, the whole group gathering beneath the tree.

Snakebark Maple, Areca, and Fragrant Cypress were also beneath the tree, leading their ant hordes, waiting for the fruits above to fully ripen for picking.

"Great King! Round Cypress!"

"Dragon Cypress Ant King!"

The Dominating Throne approached, and insects called out one after another.

Dragon Cypress gave a brief response, then leaped to the ground with Round Cypress, introducing: "This is Command Ant Round Cypress, in charge of territory management."

The Barley Bug warriors all tapped their antennae in greeting to Round Cypress.

Dragon Cypress swept his gaze around and, somewhat speechless, said: "Mountain Thorn Mountain Lord, Magnolia Bark Mountain Lord, Fuzzy Flower Mountain Lord, it’s getting a bit arduous to divvy up these Divine-Given Purple Tung Seeds like this. Many Barley Bug warriors have had their fill of the seeds. After splitting, they lug them back to their caves, store them all winter, then haul them out again next spring just to come trade them to me. It’s a real hassle."

The Barley Bug warriors all voiced their agreement at these words.

"Exactly!"

"Yes, that’s right."

"Carrying them back and then hauling them here again is such a bother."

"That’s what we’ve been discussing."

...

Dragon Cypress thought it over briefly and said, "Ink Orchid and I once found the exuviae of a King-Level Peak Black Birch Divine-Given Seed at a relic of an Insect Clan tribe during the last Origin Force Era. This wood is harder than hardened rock and earth, impervious to water and fire, not easily damaged. Besides me, no other insect can process it."

Dragon Cypress: "So how about this? I use the exuviae of the Black Birch Divine-Given Seed, grind and carve them into token-like objects similar to ’Spider King Silk Scrolls’. I’ll make them in three denominations: 100 Source Stone, 1,000 Source Stone, and 10,000 Source Stone."

Dragon Cypress paused, watching the crowd of insects for their reaction, then continued:

"There are quite a few advantages."

"The first advantage is that it makes selling goods easier—just like in this situation of shuffling Divine-Given Purple Tung Seeds around. After splitting up, if you don’t want the seeds yourself, you can sell them directly to me. For example, in summer or fall, if someone’s territory has a freshly ripened Life Seed fruit that needs quick sale, you can bring it over now, swap it temporarily for ’Ant King Trust Card’, and then, next spring when the Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed blooms and unified trading season arrives, you can use the ’Ant King Trust Card’ to buy whatever Origin Force Ant Honey you need from me."

"Seems like it could work..."

"Sounds feasible..."

"I agree..."

Replies came, sparse and scattered.

Snakebark Maple had planned to raise his antennae and shout support, but after thinking it over, his antennae drooped back down.

Dragon Cypress paused again, then continued: "The second advantage is... Many Divine-Given Seed fruits have a maturation cycle, usually three, four, or five years. Divine-Given Origin Force Food and Ant King Honey aren’t available every year. Some warriors might need Divine-Given Origin Force Food to boost their chances of successful Evolution. In that case, you could trade for an ’Ant King Trust Card’ now, and then use it when the item you need comes in stock."

Dragon Cypress: "The third advantage is, in my trades, I recognize the card, not the insect. You can even exchange ’Ant King Trust Cards’ among yourselves. You can transfer, lend, or gift them as you like."

Dragon Cypress: "And a fourth advantage—while running the Purple Tung Insect Nation territory, there may be jobs the Ant Clan can’t handle. I might need help from you Barley Bug warriors."

"I’m an ant of principle. No matter how well we get along, when you help, I’ll pay you your due wage. That goes for Ghost Fan, White Rice, Snakebark Maple, Areca, and so on—any Insect Clan warrior working for me is paid, and I can use ’Ant King Trust Cards’ to do it. Makes things easier, too."

The Barley Bug warriors looked at each other, debating in low voices.

The first three advantages that Dragon Cypress mentioned didn’t sound all that convenient...

But that fourth advantage...

You could earn income by doing labor?

Now that "advantage" actually tempted the Barley Bug warriors.

Fuzzy Flower Mountain Lord asked, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, with your many types of ants, you can do anything yourself. How can we Barley Bug warriors actually help you?"

"That’s simple—"

Dragon Cypress contemplated briefly, then said, "Right now, in the Purple Tung Insect Nation, I’m targeting more than 300 key plant species for cultivation. Later on, after searching in the wild and buying from caravans, the number will be over 500. Tasks like raising seedlings, selecting saplings, pruning, picking seeds—all these require experience, technical knowledge, and real-time judgment. Worker Ants can hardly do them. Assistant Kings can, but there aren’t enough of them to get it all done. That’s when I’ll need more help from warriors like you."

Fuzzy Flower Mountain Lord: "...Oh."

Mountain Lord Magnolia Bark stammered, "But we Barley Bug warriors have personal bug territories to tend, and tribe-wide lands to manage... we’re rather busy, you know~"

Dragon Cypress: "After you’re done with your own work. When you’ve got time, you can help me."

Dragon Cypress: "We’ll discuss that later, depending on circumstances. Let’s first focus on the ’Ant King Trust Card’. Before entering the Purple Tung Insect Nation, when I traded with other insects across Cloud Trace Continent, there were always loans and tabs kept. There were only about a dozen insects then, so I could remember them all. But now that Barley Bug warriors are joining the Cloud Trace trade system, with so many more Insect Clan warriors, I probably can’t keep it all straight anymore."

Mountain Lord Magnolia Bark: "That’s absolutely true."

Fuzzy Flower Mountain Lord: "Dragon Cypress Ant King, as long as you guarantee the Ant King Trust Card can always be traded for Origin Force Food, that’s all that matters."

Dragon Cypress: "That’s for sure. Don’t worry—Ink Orchid and I hold as many as 14 Divine-Given Seeds, with two Divine Grade, one Top-Level, and one Superior Grade. Every year, I trade with caravans for amounts tallying up to a million Source Stones, and with Huagi Mountain we sometimes manage major deals in the tens of millions. There’s zero chance these cards can’t be honored."

At that, the Barley Bug warriors were completely floored—simultaneously awed and envious.

Snakebark Maple waved his forelegs and shouted, "Dragon Cypress Ant King mighty! No one can doubt your power!"

Mountain Thorn Mountain Lord tapped his antennae and said solemnly, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, we trust you!"

The rest of the Barley Bug warriors all tapped their antennae in agreement.

That’s right—trust me!

Dragon Cypress really was pushing the ’Ant King Trust Card’ just for convenience. Of course, when he hit a cash crunch, he could also relieve some pressure by issuing a few extra cards.

The deal was struck.

Dragon Cypress stayed for a while, chatted idly with the Barley Bug warriors, then took his leave to return to the Royal Palace, arranged for Round Cypress to rest and prepare for Evolution.

Dragon Cypress himself hurried overnight to the Sturdy Birch Mountain ruins of the Red Darkling Beetle Tribe, hand-selected ten pocket-sized Black Birch Divine-Given Seed remnants, and brought them back to the Purple Tung Insect Nation before dawn.

He set the specifications and rushed through the processing.

The 100 Source Stone denomination Ant King Trust Card was carved with an Orchid Mantis on the front, a Fruit-Scented Orchid on the back, with characters marking the value and serial number.

The 1,000 Source Stone Ant King Trust Card had a Great-Headed Ant King on the front, an Azure Tree on the back, with characters indicating amount and serial number.

The 10,000 Source Stone Ant King Trust Card was made larger: ten centimeters long, six wide, and one thick. The front was carved with both Orchid Mantis and Great-Headed Ant King motifs; the back with a Night Fragrance God-Given Seed design.

All Ant King Trust Cards were punched at both ends, for stringing on Spider Silk Rope or grass cord, making them easy to keep and carry.

Black Birch is the world’s hardest wood; only Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid have the power to split it. Ink Orchid’s claws are too clumsy; only Dragon Cypress can manage the fine cutting and carving.

Working day and night, he finished the first batch of Ant King Trust Cards before the Divine-Given Purple Tung Seed harvest, and completed the first trade smoothly.