thefictionvixens Chapter 26: The War Begins
Chapter 26: The War Begins
The next morning, Ye Zhi woke up early as usual, fed the larvae and replenished her pheromones, then left the nest and flew straight to the location where the divinely bestowed seed "Chimera" was planted.
Upon seeing Ye Zhi's arrival, "Chimera" emitted a joyful signal. Nourished by fresh flesh and blood, its main vine grew upwards like an inflating balloon, reaching a height of two meters, three-tenths taller than its former mother plant.
Before long, the slender worker ants that were "delivering food" arrived with the carcasses of several wild rabbits. Early that morning, Red Citron led a large group of combat worker ants to the border that bordered the Kingdom of Giant Tooth Ants. Today, it was Green Citron who came.
Compared to the impatient and curious Red Citron, Green Citron is much more composed. However, since it mainly handles logistical work, its hunting and combat skills are not as refined as Red Citron's. The carcasses of these rabbits appear to have died from broken necks, lacking the horrifying penetrating wounds found on the deer hunted by Red Citron.
But that doesn't matter. The citron, leaf weaver, "chimera" and the worker ants on site are not picky. The only problem is that there are not many of them, probably not enough for the "chimera" to eat.
The citron waved its antennae and began to direct the worker ants to divide the food in an orderly manner, distributing it to the worker ants on the spot. At the same time, it deliberately left a pile of scraps of meat, seemingly prepared specifically for Ye Zhi and "Chimera".
"King Qingyuan!"
Ye Zhi folded her membranous wings and landed, nodding her antennae in greeting. Qing Yuan also nodded her antennae in response, then pointed to the pile of minced meat, and then to the two-toothed pitcher plant's divinely bestowed seed behind her: "Prepared for you."
After casually taking a couple of bites, Ye Zhi began feeding the "Chimera," picking up pieces of flesh cut into appropriately sized pieces and tossing them into the various insect traps.
The Chimera emitted excited mental fluctuations, and white "roots" extended from its insect cage, wrapping around the pieces of flesh and beginning to absorb them. Meanwhile, Ye Zhi, having finished feeding, took flight again to search for "teaching aids."
"Chimera, this is a harvesting spider. It's clumsy and doesn't have much attack power, but it also doesn't have much flesh on its body."
"Is it edible?"
"I already said I don't have much fat on my body."
"That means there's meat. I want to eat it."
"This is a rove beetle that releases toxic gases and contains toxins. I do not recommend you eat it."
"It's okay, I'm not afraid, let me try it."
"This is a jumping spider..."
"It looks delicious, I think it's edible?"
"......able."
"Chimera" learned very quickly, and apart from wanting to eat everything it saw, it was completely different from the temperamental and eccentric divine seed that Wu Yuan had described. But Ye Zhi was happy to see this, and soon grabbed all the "teaching aids" nearby.
As the plant grows, "Chimera" becomes more proficient in using psychic powers, and the connection in its soul has transformed into a tangible primal energy, representing the vigorous vitality of the divinely bestowed seed.
Seeing that there were small invertebrates called "chimeras" nearby, Ye Zhi began to teach it about numbers, even mixing in some little knowledge from her past life memories.
The Chimera listened attentively and soon began to apply what it learned to other situations, giving Ye Zhi, who had no experience in education, a sense of accomplishment. She would reward it with small invertebrate carcasses from time to time, and time passed quietly.
......
The territory of the Tree Ant Kingdom, bordering the Mighty Ant Kingdom to the east.
Zuo Wang Hongyuan's nearly three-meter-long slender body moved along the earthen path. Behind him, two rows of slender worker ants with glossy black exoskeletons followed closely, their bodies parallel to each other. Every move they made revealed the solemn and murderous aura of a military formation.
Climbing up a low hill, the citron tree swayed its belly up and down, producing a screeching sound like a file scraping glass, which spread in all directions.
Upon receiving the order, the worker ants behind him immediately stepped forward and lined up in a row beside the citron, forming a sharp triangular formation with the citron as the "spearhead" of their attack, pointing directly at the other side of the hillside.
"Click, click..." A series of knocking sounds rang out. Below, another army of ants was already waiting in full battle array. When the long, thin ants appeared, they all raised their heads, tapped their mandibles, and made a terrifying clicking sound.
Those were large, dark-bellied ants with powerful teeth. At this moment, their gray-black, matte-textured bodies were stepping on the soil, which seemed to have just been cleared of vegetation and fallen leaves and was still somewhat messy. With a clicking sound, they slowly changed their formation.
"Squeak...crack~!" A piercing screeching sound rang out as Hong Yuan led the charge—more than a hundred slender worker ants, each two meters long and as swift as leopards, spread their six limbs and talons, treading across the chaotic soil, and launched an attack!
Their glossy black carapaces were now completely covered with primal energy, gleaming with a metallic sheen, and the edges of their sharp jaws gleamed with a cold light, making them exceptionally ferocious and piercing.
Meanwhile, in the opposite formation of giant toothed ants, the clicking sound from the hammering suddenly stopped. In its place came a series of soft sounds that were still similar to "clicking," but accompanied by pulling, like a crossbow being cocked and locked into position.
The unique mouthpart structure of the giant toothed ant allows its long, straight mandibles, resembling fire tongs, to be temporarily fixed in a locking structure, maintaining an open 180-degree angle. Then, propelled by spring-like muscles, they snap shut and strike, unleashing astonishing force.
Amidst the sound of the trap jaws opening and gathering power, there seemed to be a slight crackling sound of electricity mixed in. That was the electric arc ionizing the air from the mandibles of the Dark-bellied Giant-toothed Fierce Ant combat worker ant, which had reached the Mountain Lord level and comprehended the innate ability [Thunder Collapse].
But at this moment, the army of slender ants had already arrived. The red citron ant took the lead and charged ahead. With a flick of its antennae, the two nodules on its waist, which were like beads strung together, exerted force together, and its hind abdomen swung forward with the swing of its body!
Amidst the metallic clanging of swords being drawn from their sheaths, a sharp, gleaming lance suddenly extended from the end of its abdomen, like a charging knight brandishing its gleaming lance.
"Click, click..."
The mandibles moved, their mandibles snapping shut, but instead of striking the bodies of the slender ants, they slammed their mandibles into the ground, producing a series of dull, clicking sounds.
With a click, their bodies were lifted into the air by the reaction force of hitting the ground, managing to shift backward and barely avoid a fatal stab.
However, the Red Cypress, which had extensive experience fighting against the Giant Tooth Ant, clearly knew that the opponent's retreating step was a feint. The flick of its abdomen was actually a decoy, and then it flicked its tail stinger upwards, sending the nearest Giant Tooth Ant flying!
The other combat worker ants nearby were equally experienced; with a stinger, countless large-toothed ants immediately sprayed their tissue fluid on the spot.
But Hong Yuan felt no joy whatsoever—his years of combat experience told him that this retreat was only the beginning of the giant toothed ant's tactical counterattack, and the truly dangerous part of the battle was just beginning.