Ant Lord in the Star Realm-Chapter 517 - 497: The Crab Has No Head
Areca Rainforest.
The Dominating Throne had just landed.
Ink Orchid spoke to Black Leaf and Tie Bush, both excited and uneasy:
"Fragrant Silk Island has discovered a Divine-Given Seed in the process of gestation, a shrub unique to the Southern Hemisphere, the Fey Oil Fruit. The normal Fey Oil Fruit ripens from the end of autumn to early winter. This Divine-Given Seed should be about a month later..."
"Dragon Cypress can’t think of a good solution and suggested leaving it be. Black Leaf, Tie Bush, you give it a try and come up with something?"
Black Leaf responded immediately: "If Great King couldn’t think of a good way, surely neither can we."
Tie Bush had been about to agree,
but Ink Orchid snapped, "Black Leaf! You’re already an ant independently running your own territory, you need to learn to think for yourself."
Black Leaf and Tie Bush shivered, forcing their brains to work.
Dragon Cypress: "..."
Black Leaf ventured, "Great King, Second King, how about asking White Rice Mountain Lord for help, using earth system abilities, dig up the whole Fey Oil Fruit tree with its soil, then use the Dominating Throne to transport it back to Swinging Leaf Island?"
Ink Orchid: "A ’little tree’ that’s six or seven meters tall. But unfortunately, the Dominating Throne is even smaller."
Dragon Cypress moved its tentacles and tapped Black Leaf on the head. "Ordinary plants are fragile. If you transplant a tree during fruiting, even if the tree survives, the fruit certainly won’t."
Black Leaf: "Then I’m out of ideas."
Ink Orchid turned to look at Tie Bush.
Tie Bush: "I..."
Tie Bush’s eyes darted left and right, "Crabs have no brains, crabs are no good at coming up with solutions."
Fine~
Ink Orchid sighed, "Weren’t you two going to Swinging Leaf Island to check out the situation? There’s no danger on the island, let Dragon Cypress take you over."
...
The travel speed of the Dominating Throne now made it possible to sneak from the Areca Rainforest to Swinging Leaf Island of Molan Continent in just a little over two days.
Ink Orchid stayed behind.
Dragon Cypress took Black Leaf and Tie Bush, wandered around the island for two days, then sent them back.
A round trip, and it was already deep winter.
Dragon Cypress headed alone to the Thousand-Island Archipelago, hiding in the seabed near a large island of about 400 square kilometers in area.
Every so often, it swept with Soul-Setting Ability.
The latitude of the Thousand-Island Archipelago was similar to Southern Sour Jujube Mountain, in a warm temperate region, with distinct seasons—sufficiently hot in summer, but not cold in winter.
At present, it was midsummer in the Southern Hemisphere, peak hunting season for the Bee Clan, and also when many plant fruits matured.
Dragon Cypress lay on the seabed for twenty days, observed just one King-level small swarm of bees landing to hunt, but detected no activity from Assistant Kings or Insect Clan Warriors vassalized under the bee clan.
Dragon Cypress changed position, moving from the east side of the island to the north, and continued its covert surveillance.
Half a month later,
two Mountain Lord Level Assistant Kings, leading two or three thousand specialized, large, and micro worker bees, descended in grand fashion upon the island.
The bees dispersed into the island’s jungles, flitting constantly as they gathered, then concentrated at the island’s central point.
Busy for two days straight, the swarm departed.
Dragon Cypress went ashore to investigate.
On the wooded land under the central mountain of the island, wild fruits and various seeds were everywhere, sorted into piles and discarded according to type. Unsurprisingly, those two Assistant Kings were searching for Divine-Given Seeds.
They were surely under the command of some Little Bee King from the coastal bee kingdoms of the Mainland, seizing the opportunity during the lull of midsummer to venture overseas for development.
Dragon Cypress searched thoroughly.
It picked up the corpse of a micro worker bee.
By its body shape, it was undoubtedly a wasp.
Four to five centimeters long, its carapace sported a striking mix of gold and pitch black.
Pale gold tentacles,
black eyes, golden head, black thorax, with half its upper abdomen gold and half its tail black.
At the tip of its tail was a pale yellow stinger.
Dragon Cypress searched its inherited memory and identified it: [Forest Beard Bee]
Awakened Wood Element Talent, adept at using poisons. Most impressive of all, the "toxins" manufactured by this bee clan are deadly to animals, yet great nourishment for plants—making them one of the best at farming among the Insect Clan.
Omnivorous, fond of meat, but also dines on high-sugar fresh fruits.
—Most of the bee kingdoms near the coast of the Mainland, are composed mainly of Forest Beard Bees.
Dragon Cypress continued its covert watch.
Another twenty-odd days passed,
at the end of summer,
still no insects landed on the island.
Preliminary observations suggested:
—The Forest Beard Bee Kingdom must occupy vast territory on the Mainland, and is not aggressively controlling the Thousand-Island Archipelago—merely using it as a supplementary hunting ground, making sporadic descents to gather food.
—Within the Forest Beard Bee Kingdom, there are Little Bee Kings who, with little to do in their own territories, send their swarms out across the archipelagoes in search for something.
Dragon Cypress slipped away quietly.
And took a detour to check on Fragrant Silk Island.
The Divine-Given Seed Fruit on the Fragrant Silk Divine Tree still had three or four months until maturity.
The Fey Oil Fruit tree, which was nurturing its Divine-Given Seed, had not swelled much after a summer’s growing. This species grows branches in summer but its fruit only matures and swells in autumn.
Dragon Cypress double-checked to confirm, then didn’t linger, setting out overnight.
...
...
...
Here, on Cloud Trace Continent, it was early spring.
Black Leaf and Tie Bush headed for Cold Orchid Mountain to tend the Black Peach No. 2 Orchard.
Black Cory usually resided on Southern Sour Jujube Mountain, Black Peach on Molan Mountain, each responsible for one Land of Origin Force, mainly caretaking the Black Peach No. 2 Orchard, and also looking after Dragon Cypress’s Divine-Given Seeds.
Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid resided mostly on Molan Mountain.
With little to do,
Ink Orchid busied itself with Molan Grass in the woods.
Dragon Cypress concentrated on cultivating Specialized Green Soldiers, and was also preparing a batch of lord-level combat strength for Xianglan Mountain.
As spring deepened,
The Divine-Grade Thousand-Layer Fruit from Aconite Spider King arrived punctually; Ink Orchid ate it immediately—its "Forest Symbiont" ability would require eight age periods to be awakened.
There was another Divine-Grade Green Bean, which Ink Orchid would eat at the eighth age period. Every Divine-Grade Fruit available, Ink Orchid consumed to capacity.
After trading with the Flame Spider Roving Merchant and quickly completing the spring Divine-Given Seed search, Dragon Cypress took up long-term residence in the Purple Tung Insect Nation, continuing to cultivate Specialized Green Soldiers there.
In the Ant Nest, Green Soldiers emerged daily, their number rising to over three hundred.
Dragon Cypress personally led them in combat training under the Linnan Divine Tree.
...
Time slipped by, and summer arrived.
Every day, Ink Orchid chased after Dragon Cypress with reminders:
—Dragon Cypress, another day has passed.
—Dragon Cypress, isn’t it about time?
—Dragon Cypress, be careful the Divine-Given Fey Oil Fruit Seed isn’t snatched by the Flame Spider Roving Merchant, yet falls to the ground and rots and sprouts by itself.
—Dragon Cypress, let’s go and wait in the Areca Rainforest early.
If it was anything like this, Ink Orchid would say it once, then fly up to the mountain to catch the breeze, then come back and flap Dragon Cypress, repeating it again.
Repeating every once in a while.
The same approach used as a child on the Northern Gorgon or Cuihua Hanlan Divine-Given Seeds—very effective.
In less than a day, Dragon Cypress was tormented to near madness.
They set out early,
detouring to check on Xianglan Mountain, then on to Molan Mountain, Black Lotus Lake, Southern Sour Jujube Mountain, and Cold Orchid Mountain—checking on the Divine-Given Seeds and Black Peach No. 2 Orchard.
The earliest-transplanted Black Peach No. 2 tree on Molan Mountain had already borne fruit; this year the first batch of peach fruit would be harvested.
The fruit trees at the other three Land of Origin Force sites would begin fruiting gradually over the next couple of years.
Dragon Cypress, intentionally dragging things out, made a slow circuit of inspections, dawdling the whole way, finally reaching the Areca Rainforest at the height of summer.
Ink Orchid stayed behind to wait.
Dragon Cypress set out alone to sea.
...
Molan Continent, mountain cave passageway.
Dragon Cypress carefully peeked its head out, focusing intently, activated the Soul-Setting Ability—a swift flash.
No powerful Insect Clan souls detected.
Safe!
Dragon Cypress controlled the Dominating Throne, slowly making its way through the underwater tunnel.
It traveled a hundred kilometers west in the deep sea, then veered south, heading straight for Fragrant Silk Island.
Getting close,
The throne dived to two hundred meters below, slowly advancing.
Finally, it stopped in the deep sea ten kilometers from the island, and stayed hidden.
With intense focus, it invoked Soul-Setting Ability, instantly scanning the entire island, then immediately ceased the power.
Beneath a Giant Beaked Ivory Palm Divine-Given Seed tree, a strong spidery soul coalesced almost into substance—showing off a dazzling five-colored radiance.
Spider King!
Illusory Color Flame Spider!
"What’s this unlucky spider up to? It’s almost deep winter and only now crawling up into northern waters?"
Dragon Cypress stayed perfectly calm, maneuvering the Dominating Throne to glide deeper into the ocean—coasting for twenty kilometers before daring to pick up speed and make a rapid escape.
