Ant Lord in the Star Realm

Upon the Dominating Throne,

a specialized Blue Ant over a meter long, a Great Soldier Ant with menacing mandible teeth, and countless Worker Ants of all sizes crawling busily back and forth.

Two Little Sky Ox Warriors huddled together, trembling with fear.

The High-Level Ant King's ant colony was truly terrifying—even a random Worker Ant could easily bite to death one of their 2nd age Primary-Level selves.

Dragon Cypress: "Don't be afraid. They're very smart and won't hurt you."

Ink Orchid: "This is a Specialized Blue Ant. They can refine fruit into delicious Ant Honey."

Dragon Cypress: "Would you like to try some?"

"No, thank you."

"Thank you."

The two Little Sky Ox Warriors edged their way to the Throne's edge, peeked down, but realized they'd flown to dizzying heights and quickly shrank back onto the Throne.

"If an ant falls, would it die?"

"Of course."

Then we would definitely die too.

The two Little Sky Ox Warriors mustered some courage and hid beneath the Stump Ant Nest.

Ink Orchid took out two wooden plates made from Keg Vine Seeds and set them before the Specialized Blue Ant.

The Specialized Blue Ant buried its head and spat a little Ant Honey onto them.

"Ant Honey. You should have some."

"We're not hungry."

"It's really delicious."

"We just ate."

Ink Orchid: "..."

Dragon Cypress also couldn't help but feel speechless watching this.

These two little ones were truly clever—and quite wary, a bit like he was as a child.

Dragon Cypress thought for a moment and asked, "Have you noticed there's no Origin Force in the outside world?"

Purple-Spotted Capricorn Beetle Warrior: "We noticed."

Dragon Cypress: "That's because our continent is currently in an Origin Force dormancy period, and only a very few extremely small areas have any Origin Force."

Dragon Cypress explained to them, "The world we live in is a round, spherical planet. The Natural God used Divine Power to set up a boundary barrier, dividing the planet into eight continents. The continent we are on is called Cloud Trace Continent. Ink Orchid and I fly on the Dominating Throne to explore..."

Dragon Cypress gave them a detailed rundown of the current state of the Cloud Trace Continent, opening the door to their understanding of the world. He also spoke of the Ten-thousand Tribes Continent and the neighboring Wan Country Continent, and recounted the various strange sights and experiences from his childhood travels with caravans across the continent.

Sure enough, the two little ones gradually became utterly absorbed, brimming with longing and deep admiration for Dragon Cypress's experiences and knowledge—so much so that they unconsciously let down their guard.

...

"Do you two have names?" Dragon Cypress asked.

The two Little Sky Ox Warriors lifted their forelegs and pointed at each other.

Furry-Horned Beetle Warrior: "He's Snakebark Maple."

Purple-Spotted Capricorn Beetle Warrior: "He's Blue Catalpa."

Ink Orchid suddenly got excited and cheered, "Dragon Cypress! How should we name the newly discovered Land of Origin Force? Blue Catalpa Lake?"

Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple exchanged glances.

Blue Catalpa: "I agree."

Snakebark Maple: "I oppose!"

Dragon Cypress: "Then how about Twin Catalpa Lake?"

"Doesn't sound good!" Ink Orchid thought for a moment, then said:

"Aren't we planning to plant Black Lotus on a large scale? That natural lake is perfect for it. Why not call it... White Lotus Lake! A brilliant name that echoes Black Lotus Lake."

What kind of logic is that?

Brilliant?

Dragon Cypress: "..."

Blue Catalpa: "..."

Snakebark Maple: "..."

...

After three and a half days of flying,

Xianglan Mountain came into view.

The Dominating Throne lowered its altitude.

The Northern Gorgon Water Reservoir appeared within sight.

Ink Orchid proudly introduced, "That's my Divine-Given Gorgon Fruit Seed. Its name is Northern Gorgon. Its strengthening effect is pancreas enhancement, specifically improving digestion. The result is that it increases absorption rate and efficiency of Origin Force Food."

"Wow!"

"Is that really a Divine-Given Seed?"

"Has it borne fruit yet?"

"Amazing!"

"Ink Orchid is amazing!"

Staring at the vibrant swathes of Gorgon Fruit Leaves, Snakebark Maple and Blue Catalpa exclaimed in wonder, genuinely envious from the bottom of their hearts.

The Dominating Throne pressed forward.

Ink Orchid: "That's my other Divine-Given Fruit-Scented Orchid Seed. Its name is Fragant Orchid."

Snakebark Maple: "!!!"

Blue Catalpa: "!!!"

There really was more than one Divine-Given Seed!

Snakebark Maple: "Ink Orchid, you are so wealthy."

Blue Catalpa: "Beautiful insects are favored by the Natural God and receive Divine-Given Seeds."

Snakebark Maple: "Smart insects are blessed by the Natural God and receive Divine-Given Seeds too."

Blue Catalpa: "That's right."

Snakebark Maple: "Exactly."

Blue Catalpa: "Ink Orchid is a clever and beautiful Flower Mantis Warrior."

Snakebark Maple: "And very strong as well."

Snakebark Maple and Blue Catalpa transformed into compliment machines, snuggling obediently by Ink Orchid's side.

Ink Orchid thoroughly enjoyed the attention, full of glee.

Dragon Cypress was speechless.

Weren't these the same little tricks he used when he was young?

Back when he followed the caravans to rich territories, he and Grass Dragon would do exactly this, lavishly praising the Lords to see if they could score some perks.

Compared to him and Grass Dragon of those days, these two little ones were far less skilled.

And look at Ink Orchid, so pleased with herself over nothing.

"Dragon Cypress, stop for a moment." Ink Orchid called out, "I'm going to take them to meet Fragant Orchid and Northern Gorgon."

Dragon Cypress: "..."

Dragon Cypress controlled the Dominating Throne and landed at the entrance to the North Mountain Ant Nest.

Ink Orchid hurried with the two little ones toward the Divine-Given Fruit-Scented Orchid Seed.

Dragon Cypress pulled out a wooden plank, propped it as a ramp, and waved his tentacles. The Worker Ants carried the half-grown Great Soldier Ant larvae, cultivated during the journey, out of the Stump Ant Nest and towards the Mountain Cave Ant Nest.

Noticing the commotion, Round Cypress, Fragrant Cypress, Cypress, Spiked Cypress, and Giant Cypress came over in turn.

Dragon Cypress inquired about the territory's situation. After confirming all was well, he helped supervise moving the Stump Ant Nest off the Dominating Throne.

Just as they finished,

Ink Orchid returned with Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple.

After a brief introduction from Dragon Cypress, the Dominating Throne carried everyone to visit the South Mountain Territory with the two little ones.

"Up and down the mountain, every Life Seed Plant is guarded around the clock by Soldier Ants. Since Sky Ox eat trees, they're on the high alert list. You two shouldn't wander around aimlessly, or you'll be mistaken for pests by the Soldier Ants and get butchered."

"It's best not to move around without Ink Orchid or me."

"Got it."

"Understood."

"Dragon Cypress Ant King, is that your reservoir at the foot of the mountain?"

"Is there also a Divine-Given Gorgon Fruit Seed inside?"

Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple were captivated by the reservoir below the mountain.

Ink Orchid helped answer, "Yes. It's called Southern Gorgon."

Ink Orchid continued, "Over there is the Azure Blue Reservoir. See that tall, broad-leaved arbor? That's the Deep Blue God-Given Seed. It's from an Outworld Civilization—there's nothing like it in the Natural God System—and it's a unique plant species. The Azure Fruit tastes superb."

Another Divine-Given Seed!

The Dragon Cypress Ant King has two as well!

Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple were amazed.

"What huge leaves!"

"Do the fruits grow under the leaves?"

The two little ones snapped out of their daze with yelps of amazement.

The Deep Blue God-Given Seed grew quickly, already nearly thirty meters tall, its twenty-fifth large leaf unfurling.

The very first leaf on the bottom was even four or five meters wide.

The Dominating Throne accelerated, hovering above the water.

"Dragon Cypress."

Azure greeted them, exclaiming in surprise, "Insect Clan Little Warriors!"

Dragon Cypress explained succinctly, "We found them in a newly discovered Land of Origin Force. It's nearly impossible for little warriors to survive alone in the wild, so Ink Orchid and I brought them back to protect them until they grow, and then we'll decide what to do next year."

Azure: "Will they stay on Xianglan Mountain?"

Dragon Cypress: "There's nowhere on Xianglan Mountain for them to take root."

"Oh—"

Azure sounded a bit disappointed, then asked, "Dragon Cypress, what are those birds?"

It was probably referring to the mudflat at the reservoir's inlet.

Dragon Cypress: "White cranes. They're eating your fish. I can chase them off for you."

"Don't!" Azure hastily said, "Don't chase them."

Dragon Cypress was puzzled, saying, "I remember you chased the Black-Striped Snake away."

Azure: "The Black-Striped Snake eats frogs."

Dragon Cypress: "Fish are okay, but frogs aren't?"

Azure: "...Yeah."

Dragon Cypress: "But Spiked Cypress wants to catch a couple of fish from the reservoir. Why don't you allow that…"

Azure: "That's different."

Dragon Cypress: "How's it different?"

Azure fell silent in thought for a while before answering: "Balance."

Dragon Cypress: "Balance?"

Azure: "If Spiked Cypress leads the ant colony to hunt, it'll disturb the balance of life in the reservoir. The white cranes won't."

Dragon Cypress: "But what about the Black-Striped Snake? There're quite a few frogs in the reservoir now, aren't there?"

Azure: "I don't know… I just don't like snakes…"

Don't like snakes? Why?

Dragon Cypress thought for a moment and asked, "Azure, would you like me to assign you two squads of Soldier Ants to command?"

Azure was quiet for a bit, then replied, "I don't like Soldier Ants."

Alright then.

Alien plant logic was truly unfathomable for insects.

Dragon Cypress didn't bother to argue. Turning to Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple, he said:

"The orchard on that hill is planted with Silver Cypress Trees and Purple Kiwifruit. When you reach your 3rd age period, you can choose either of these as your Life Seed—they're both top-level on the continent."