The Dominating Throne approached the Purple Tung Insect Nation, docking on the river surface.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid sped into the Land of Origin Force.

After three years, much had changed: the forest was heavily logged, and new saplings were planted afresh.

Large areas of mature woodland had been reclaimed, with new plant species replacing the old. The White Poplar Ant King continuously optimized and enriched the plant varieties within the kingdom.

Deep in the night.

Dragon Cypress walked in front, with Ink Orchid stealthily following behind; one ahead, one behind, traversing the ground with practiced ease until they reached Wuye's dwelling cave.

"Wuye—" Dragon Cypress restrained his spiritual power, calling out in a low voice.

Inside the cave, the sleeping Wuye jolted awake, lifted his head, fixed his gaze, forcibly suppressing the joy in his heart, rose to his feet, and quickly came out.

"Dragon Cypress Ant King, where's Ink Orchid?" Wuye looked around in all directions.

Dragon Cypress flicked his tentacles, pointing to the left.

In the shadow of the walnut tree under the moonlight, Ink Orchid's silhouette was faintly visible.

Ink Orchid asked, "Wuye, have any major upheavals occurred in these past three years?"

Wuye: "None. Everything remains much the same as before. I have followed your instructions, observing and listening quietly, gathering information."

Dragon Cypress: "Ink Orchid and I have come this time specifically to learn how much useful information you have managed to gather."

Wuye: "A lot."

Wuye: "I've found out that the White Poplar Ant King is currently a five age-period lord, with a total of 40 Life Seed plants: one White Poplar Divine-Given Seed; one common White Poplar Life Seed, roughly 45 meters high; one common Long-Leafed Arborvitae Life Seed, about 60 meters high; one Mountain Maple Tree, standing some 65 meters tall..."

Wuye: "The Red Phellodendron Ant Queen holds a single common Divine-Given Seed named 'Red Phellodendron', its enhancement effect is Metal System Elemental Ability strengthening, which doesn't match their awakened elemental talent, so it's essentially wasting a Life Seed slot. The other 39 are all common Life Seeds, including one White Poplar..."

The White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen were ambitious, selecting only the finest arbors for their Life Seed plants.

Wuye continued, "Within our Barley Bug Tribe's warriors, the oldest, the Mountain Thorn Mountain Lord, evolved to Evolution Mountain Lord Level 134 years ago, and is currently at sixth age-period. Its Life Seed plants are: one fate-leafed mountain thorn, a bush transforming to arbor, currently about 20 meters tall; and one white-leafed berry, also a shrub..."

Wuye narrated in detail the information on every Barley Bug tribal warrior.

Currently, there are fourteen Mountain Lord-Level Barley Bug warriors, aged between over a century to thirty or forty years old.

The higher the age, the longer the Life Seed plant has grown, the taller the tree, and the greater its yield.

Wuye understood Dragon Cypress's intent: not only did he tally detailed types of Life Seed plants, tree heights, and yields, but also tracked the distribution of these yields.

For every insect, and every Origin Force Food, there is an upper limit to consumption for enhancement. At first, the effects are most pronounced, but as strengthening reaches a certain point, the benefits start to diminish, until the limit is reached.

For lord-level further evolution, thousands of kinds of Origin Force Food are required.

The current output of the Purple Tung Insect Nation now struggles to sustain the continued evolution of the White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen. Each year, they consume only a little of the gathered Origin Force Food; most is distributed to those Barley Bug warriors willing to submit, and to their own Assistant Kings.

About forty years ago, the White Poplar Ant King began gradually relaxing restrictions on Mountain Lord-Level Barley Bug warriors, allowing them to continue evolving upward.

Simultaneously, the White Poplar Ant King also began breeding masses of ordinary Barley Bugs, training new Barley Bug warriors, and forcing them to select designated plants as their Life Seeds.

Wuye: "The White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen advanced to Evolution Lord Level one hundred and twenty-six years ago. It took twelve years to evolve from one to two age-level lord, with the evolution season in autumn; nineteen years from two to three, also in autumn; twenty-seven years for three to four; thirty-eight years for four to five, all evolutionary sleeps chosen for autumn."

Wuye: "They became five age-period lords thirty years ago. Due to restrictions in Origin Force Food diversity, their evolution is becoming clearly more difficult."

Wuye: "Dragon Cypress Ant King, this is all the information I have gathered so far. Is there anything else you need me to find out?"

Dragon Cypress: "Of the Ten Assistant Kings in the Termite Kingdom, is there currently only one Lord-Level?"

Wuye: "Every year, when the Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed fruit ripens, all insects must assemble beneath the tree. The tribal Mountain Lord-Level Barley Bug warriors have observed closely, and indeed, only one currently exists."

Dragon Cypress nodded, reassured.

The White Poplar Ant King distributes Origin Force Food first to itself and the Red Phellodendron Ant Queen, then to the submissive Barley Bug warriors, and lastly to his Assistant Kings.

The reason is simple: once the Barley Bug warriors evolve, they can select more Life Seeds beneficial for their own evolution and growth.

It also shows that the White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen believe they have these Barley Bug warriors fully controlled, so they are not particularly wary of them.

The information provided by Wuye was sufficiently detailed; it was enough data to roughly estimate the White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen's next evolutionary sleep period.

"Wuye, through which channels did you acquire all this information?"

"Part of it came from daily observation and tallying; some from overhearing Barley Bug warriors at secret gatherings; and some from occasionally asking tribal elders."

Seeing Dragon Cypress become suspicious, Wuye clarified, "I am always extremely careful, only ever asking one or two questions at a time, never more. When others discuss, I rarely speak, just listening quietly."

Dragon Cypress asked, "Your Barley Bug warriors often meet to plot against the White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen?"

Wuye: "We definitely cannot gather often; our meetings are held every year just before the Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed's fruit ripens and all are required to assemble beneath the tree. Occasionally, during the hottest part of summer, there may be small gatherings to exchange information."

Dragon Cypress asked, "Who organizes these?"

Wuye: "Mainly the three elder Mountain Lords: Mountain Thorn, Magnolia Bark, and Fuzzy Flower."

Dragon Cypress: "Are they arranging for other Barley Bug warriors to feign submission, to continue growing and evolving?"

Wuye: "Yes. The Barley Bug warriors' combat power is too weak. We need more Mountain Lord-Level warriors, preferably even Lord-level warriors."

As a member of the Ant Clan, Dragon Cypress often pondered how to motivate his command ants to work to their fullest extent with the least expenditure.

Dragon Cypress, a savvy manager, asserted, "This is an indirect method of manipulation and motivation: manipulating your development to facilitate resource allocation. Giving you hope, encouraging your survival. Amongst the three Mountain Lords—Mountain Thorn, Magnolia Bark, and Fuzzy Flower—there must be traitors! In fact, all three old bastards may already have fully defected to the White Poplar Ant King!"

"What?!" Wuye was stunned, "That... that's impossible... why?"

Dragon Cypress: "The White Poplar Ant King promises them resource allocation, aides their evolution to Lord-Level and even King-Level, allowing them to live longer, of course."

Wuye shook his tentacles fiercely, unwilling to believe it.

Dragon Cypress did not wish to upset him, and consoled, "It's only my speculation, meant to remind you to be extra cautious. I may very well be wrong. You certainly don't need to try and verify it."

Dragon Cypress added, "Regardless, the information they give you won't be false; there's no reason to fabricate it. That's enough for now."

Dragon Cypress: "Wuye, we still have more than fifteen years to prepare; there is no need to rush. In your daily life, don't show any obvious signs of information gathering. Simply pay attention and observe as usual."

Dragon Cypress: "From now on, you only need to monitor the current shifts in the Purple Tung Insect Nation, and keep an ongoing watch on the evolution status of the Mountain Lord-Level warriors and Assistant Kings. I will come to find you again in three years."

Wuye: "Understood!"

Dragon Cypress: "Also, make sure you observe the topography and remember the location of the various Termite Kingdom satellite nests, along with the approximate numbers of stationed Soldier Ants and Worker Ants."

"I've been watching that, Dragon Cypress Ant King, do you need this information?" Wuye asked as he raised his claw and began drawing on the ground.

Dragon Cypress waved his tentacles to interrupt, "No need for now. Before action is decided, I will come to ask you."

Like in the Ant Kingdom, the primary function of Termite satellite nests is to facilitate territory management and resource gathering; these outposts shift as the territory develops and food sources are depleted. Asking now serves no purpose.

Dragon Cypress raised his claw, drew a circle on the ground, shifted his position, giving instructions: "This is east, that's west. Wuye, indicate for me the location of the Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed, White Poplar Divine-Given Seed, Red Phellodendron Divine-Given Seed, the White Poplar and Red Phellodendron Ant Kings' Life Seed distribution, and the positions of the Termite King Nests."

Wuye: "They are all clustered in the center of the Land of Origin Force. The Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed sits at the very center, where the Origin Force concentration is about twice what it is here."

Wuye raised his claw, drew a small circle at the center of the larger one, double-checked the directions, and then pricked three small holes with his toe-tips around the little circle, explaining:

"The White Poplar Divine-Given Seed is here, the Red Phellodendron Divine-Given Seed is over here, about a thousand meters from the Purple Tung Divine-Given Seed. The White Poplar Ant King has used Earth System Abilities to raise two palace-like mountains as royal palaces."

Wuye: "All the ordinary Life Seeds belonging to the White Poplar Ant King and Red Phellodendron Ant Queen are scattered around the palaces. Centered on the White Poplar and Red Phellodendron Divine-Given Seeds are plots of Daphne Trees—they especially like Daphne Trees."

Dragon Cypress: "And the water source? Do you have a distinct dry season here? How is irrigation managed? There must be some drought-resistance waterworks, right?"

Wuye: "There isn't a fixed dry season, but some years there has been drought. Back in the Purple Tung Insect Nation era, they built five reservoirs east, south, west, north, and center, all interlinked by rivers and canals, irrigating the entire insect kingdom."

Wuye drew circles with his claw, marking the reservoir locations, then connected them with lines showing rivers and canals.

The central reservoir sits between the White Poplar and Red Phellodendron Divine-Given Seeds.

And, there is also a river that flows right past the Termite King's Palace.

In addition, there is a reservoir near the heart of the Land of Origin Force…

Dragon Cypress eyed the layout with growing delight.

With this geographic environment, his Water System Blue Soldiers would be able to exhibit their full strength!

Dragon Cypress solemnly reminded him again, "Wuye, you've done very well. From now on, do only as much as necessary, prioritize secrecy and safety—never reveal Ink Orchid's or my presence to any other insect."

"Understood!" Wuye nodded vigorously with his tentacles.

"Then Ink Orchid and I won't linger further—we'll return in three years!"

With that, Dragon Cypress departed, hurriedly leading Ink Orchid away.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.