The two little ones, Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple, were after all just eight-age-period Primary Warriors; neither Dragon Cypress nor Ink Orchid felt comfortable letting them survive independently.

Dragon Cypress detoured to Kiwifruit Mountain, confirmed the two little ones were safe and sound, promptly sowed the Life Seed plants, and saw them through the vulnerable stage without incident.

Dragon Cypress stayed an extra day, patrolled the area around the territory, killed off all the large beasts that might threaten the Little Warriors or Life Seed plants, left them a jar of Origin Force Ant Honey, and hurried back to Xianglan Mountain.

He then transported another batch of Worker Ants and Blue Ants, heading straight for Cold Orchid Mountain.

The whole process took seven days.

The temporary Ant Nest had already been opened up, Blue Ants permanently stationed inside, with 5 Soldier Ants guarding the ant nest entrance.

Twilight, as the sun set in the west.

Black Cory had not finished for the day, currently commanding Worker Ants to dig out the riverbed at the base of the mountain, and 15 Soldier Ants had also been mobilized to help carry stone.

Next to Black Cory were 3 Large Blue Ants, and about 10 Worker Ants napping beside the Blue Ants.

Dragon Cypress understood immediately—forty-five Specialized Worker Ants, forty-five Large Worker Ants, organized in nine groups of ten, cycling in shifts between eating and resting.

The fifteen Soldier Ants were divided into three teams, rotating to help as needed.

This kind of command is more efficient, but mentally taxing.

Black Cory—an absolutely surreal ant—once he hears there's a benefit, works harder than anyone, but if there's nothing in it for him, he can't even be bothered to move.

"Great King—"

The Dominating Throne docked, and Black Cory ran up enthusiastically to greet him.

"This trip, I brought another twenty Large Soldier Ants. Arrange to strengthen the ant nest's defenses."

"Understood, Great King!"

"It's getting late, you should all head back to the nest and rest."

"Day's over—everyone clock off!"

Dragon Cypress didn't say much else, laid down the wooden plank.

Black Cory helped set it right, waved his tentacles, calling the Worker Ants and Soldier Ants down from the Throne to help out.

Dragon Cypress also brought Blue Ants on this trip, leaving them to rest overnight, spending a day in the forest hunting large animals alone, to stockpile enough food for the working ant colony.

Black Cory stayed to oversee the excavation effort.

Dragon Cypress returned to Xianglan Mountain, packed his belongings.

It was still late spring at this time.

This year's autumn, the White Rice Divine-Given Seed would bear fruit. So, he packed 1,000 Source Stones, ten jars of Origin Force Food, set out light and fast, went directly to White Rice Mountain.

After completing trades with White Rice and Black Rice, he headed west to Ghost Fan Mountain to trade with Ghost Fan and Woodberry.

Heading north, he passed Southern Sour Jujube Mountain, made an inspection loop, and tended the Southern Sour Jujube Divine-Given Seed and the Keg Vine he'd planted.

Moving farther north, he skirted Black Lotus Lake and restocked the ant colony's food reserves there.

After circling around, Dragon Cypress returned to Xianglan Mountain, rested two days, then loaded 3,000 Source Stones and four jars of Origin Force Ant Honey, overloaded the Throne, and wobbling along, finally arrived at Scarletlight Mountain to harvest the Divine-Given Scarletlight Fruit.

Brought all the goods back to Xianglan Mountain, thus finishing out this season's late-spring-to-early-summer roving merchant trade routes.

Day by day, the temperature rose ever hotter.

The Divine-Given Seed nurtured by Cuihua Hanlan entered its peak growth stage; Ink Orchid stayed close by, never leaving, guarding against any mishap.

The Divine-Given Seeds for Fruit-Scented Orchid, Azure, and Northern Gorgon all bloomed one after another and successfully set fruit.

Down by the Azure Blue Reservoir, the Black Lotus Life Seed sown by Ink Orchid in early spring was flourishing rapidly, sending up three flower buds before the arrival of early summer.

This year, harvest of high-level Black Lotus Seeds was in sight, greatly accelerating Black Cory's evolution.

...

Dragon Cypress rested on the mountain for five days, then set out again with thirty Specialized Blue Soldiers and a number of Worker Ants.

This time, there was no rush.

He first went to Kiwifruit Mountain to check in on the two little ones, Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple, worked alongside them, taught them a variety of territory management tricks, and stayed for four or five days.

The sky was thin with clouds, sunlight intense.

It was just about time for the peak of the summer drought; only then did he set out, crossed over the vast mountain range, and made for Cold Orchid Mountain.

Mid-afternoon.

At the base of the mountain in the forest, Black Cory and the ant colony were lounging in the shade.

The Dominating Throne descended slowly, hovering over the muddy marshland.

The river diversion engineering project was now complete.

The planned eight drainage ditches around the marshy mire had all been roughly dug out.

All the weeds were cleared away; the silt, scorched by the blazing sun, dried and cracked.

"Great King!"

Black Cory led the ant colony over.

"Black Cory, well done!"

Dragon Cypress praised, laying down the wooden plank.

Black Cory hurried forward to help, set it in place, waved his tentacles, called the Blue Soldiers, Worker Ants, and Blue Ants down from the Throne, and at the same time asked:

"Great King, shall we begin excavation?"

"Go ahead!"

Dragon Cypress added, "Excavate a layer of surface clay every day at sunset. The next day, after it bakes thoroughly under the scorching sun and dries out, remove this layer again at dusk with the Worker Ants."

"One layer a day, digging down layer by layer. I also brought thirty Specialized Blue Soldiers, have them work on the side as guards during the day. If any Worker Ant falls into the mud, they can carry out a quick rescue. If it rains during excavation, let the Blue Ants use Water System Ability for drainage."

"...Understood."

Black Cory didn't really get it but didn't ask further, called the new Blue Soldiers and Worker Ants to rest in the woods, then familiarized the newcomers with the path up to the mountain ant nest.

Dragon Cypress parked the Dominating Throne in the woods, randomly picked ten Specialized Worker Ants and led them to the center of the mud pit, found the spot directly above the Treasury, and tapped his tentacle to issue a long string of complicated commands.

The ten Specialized Worker Ants closed their mandible teeth, forming a flat shovel shape, buried their heads, dug into the mud layer, scooped up a large chunk of clay, and carried it away.

Dragon Cypress led the way, hauled the clay to a designated spot, and kept issuing commands.

The Specialized Worker Ants opened their jaws; a Large Soldier Ant stepped forward, with its curving, scythe-shaped mandible teeth, scraping off clay stuck to the Worker Ants' mouthparts.

—The efficiency's pretty good!

—Black Cory commands the Worker Ants to dig, while I direct the Soldier Ants to scrape.

Dragon Cypress silently evaluated, calculating, waggled his tentacle, called four Specialized Worker Ants to follow him to the center of the pit, and continued testing.

Black Cory, finished with work, came down to watch.

The Worker Ants ran back and forth over a dozen trips, digging a pit over three meters in diameter and nearly a meter deep.

Digging deeper led to soft mud underneath, loose enough to trap an ant.

Black Cory now understood Dragon Cypress's arrangement. Still puzzled, he asked, "Great King, is it all like this—mud underneath?"

Dragon Cypress: "There's at least four or five meters of soft mud down below."

Black Cory: "Great King, why is it like this? Is it because of the Treasury?"

Dragon Cypress raised his head, choosing his words: "The Starship Treasury used Primordial Energy Metal of extremely high strength and considerable weight. When it crashed down from the Outworld, it smashed into this spot, creating a gigantic, deep pit."

"Look at the surrounding terrain—it's all hills. And if you look closely, it's all very sticky clay. Every rainy season, especially with heavy rain, this clay turns to mud and flows down the mountain, collecting in the pit made when the Treasury crashed. Over countless years, it formed this mud flat."

"The area around is all high ground, with only the spot where the Treasury fell being low. In the rainy season, not only does river water flow down from above, but there's also groundwater constantly seeping into the pit where you can't see it."

Dragon Cypress: "From the combination of all these factors, we got a mud pit here that's quite a challenge to deal with."

While Dragon Cypress explained, he observed Black Cory's reaction.

Probably thanks to eating Black Lotus Seeds, Black Cory's mind worked sharply; from his look, he understood seventy, maybe eighty percent.

"...Got it," Black Cory answered thoughtfully.

As expected, a guy with strong learning and comprehension ability! Dragon Cypress waved his tentacle and said:

"Time's about right, let's get to work. Black Cory, you're in charge of excavation. The Worker Ants may get trapped in the mud, so make sure there's always a way out. Dig from east to west, always backing out as you go."

"I understand!" Black Cory suddenly seemed to figure it out, answered energetically, furiously waving his tentacles, and sent commands to the ant colony in the forest.

The ant colony mobilized—work began.

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