radicalducati Chapter 14: Feeding and Nest Excavation
Chapter 14: Feeding and Nest Excavation
"Your Majesty, the prey has been brought back!"
The king ant, known as the red citron, led two slender worker ants, each about a meter long, into the nest chamber, its head held high and antennae raised, as if it were standing tall and proud.
Behind it, two worker ants were working together to lift a dead fawn and gently place it on the ground.
On the side of the deer carcass's chest cavity, a shocking penetrating wound was clearly visible, as if some sharp object had pierced straight through the gap in the side ribs, heading straight for the heart, killing it cleanly and decisively.
Ye Zhi couldn't help but recall the sharp stinger of the long, thin ant's tail. She had personally witnessed it pierce straight through the body of a large-toothed ant during a battle with a dark-bellied ant, which was enough to show how sharp it was.
In their previous lives, ordinary slender ants were formidable creatures. Among them, the outstanding red and black slender ants were jokingly called "domestic bullet ants" because of their extremely powerful stingers. In this world, the slender ants that have awakened their Force are equally fierce.
In their inherited memories, the slender ant race is basically guaranteed to awaken metal-based abilities, and the innate ability that is guaranteed to be awakened is called [Self-Sharpening] - attaching metal-based primal energy to their mandibles and tail stinger. When it pierces into flesh, the primal energy attached to the surface peels off layer by layer, allowing the tail stinger to always maintain unparalleled sharpness.
This move reminded Ye Zhi of the depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds from her past life, and her inherited memories also stated that this move was enough to break through most defensive abilities of the same level—perhaps this deer doubted Lu Sheng before it died; what grudge could it have held against me to use such a ruthless move...
Immediately, the red citron swayed its antennae, and on either side, two worker ants, upon receiving the command, dropped their prey, snapped their mandibles together, and gently dissected the carcass's abdomen. Strips of fresh, bloody flesh were torn off and laid out on the ground.
Seeing this, Wu Yuan didn't say anything more. With a hook of its forelimb claw, it snatched a piece of meat into its mouth, flipped its jaws, and swallowed it. Then it ordered, "Cut two smaller pieces so the little guy can have a bite to replenish his strength."
A few thin strands of flesh were gently torn off by Red Cypress with its tarsi and carefully placed in front of Ye Zhi. Then, Red Cypress seemed to come alive again and looked at Green Cypress, who had been staying beside the Black Cypress Ant King, and asked, "Green Cypress, how does this little guy's talent compare to that of the Great King, the old King Green Zhi?"
This Red Citron King seems to have been born relatively late, and may have never seen it in person, only heard about the Blue Citron King from the Black Citron King and the Blue Citron King, thus it was full of curiosity about the Weaver Ant race.
"This little guy has a big appetite, just like you!" Wu Yuan said somewhat irritably, then called to Ye Zhi, "Little guy, you eat first, don't worry about it. The Qingzhi Ant King was already gone when it was born, so it's a bit curious about your species. You don't need to worry about it."
Ye Zhi's guess was confirmed. At the same time, his mouth did not stop moving at all - this was the first time he had eaten meat since his rebirth, and it was the flesh and blood of a vertebrate that he could not eat under any circumstances now.
But at this moment, taking a bite was a big problem—not because he couldn't bring himself to eat the bloody raw meat; his instincts had changed, so there weren't so many problems. The key issue was that vertebrate muscle fibers are tight, and his not-yet-fully-repaired jaws made tearing them apart quite difficult.
After a struggle to tear it apart, Ye Zhi finally managed to swallow the piece of fresh meat. She then picked up another piece and did the same, while raising her head, waving her antennae, and looking at Wu Yuan with hopeful eyes in her dark compound eyes.
Seeing this, Wu Yuan took out two more small spider silk bags and said, "These are all kinds of primal food that enhance overall physique and shell toughness. Many of them were left behind by the Green Ant King, and were once unique plant products of the Tree Ant Kingdom..."
Seemingly recalling unpleasant memories, Wu Yuan's emotions gradually sank, but the movements of its claws did not stop at all. It tore open the bag and took out five seeds: "Eat this much for now, nurture the divinely bestowed seeds, slow down the evolution speed, and molt more safely."
Ye Zhi didn't stand on ceremony and immediately picked up a seed and skillfully put it in her mouth. But upon hearing "divinely bestowed seed," the two Kings looked at her with some excitement—it seemed that they hadn't actually been told about it before.
"Little guy, do you have a divinely bestowed seed?" The question came from the already curious Red Citron, while at this moment, the usually calm Green Citron also wiggled its antennae and cast a curious glance.
"I found the two-toothed pitcher plant in the territory of the giant toothed ant!" Ye Zhi said with some pride. He had already confirmed the rarity of the divinely bestowed seed, and his emotions at this moment were genuine. It seemed that being reborn as an ant did have its rewards of luck.
"Truly a little fellow favored by the God of Nature!" Hong Yuan exclaimed excitedly. "I heard from the Great King that the Old King Qing Zhi also possessed two divinely bestowed life seeds, but it's a pity..."
Seemingly sensing Wu Yuan's gaze, Hong Yuan immediately swallowed back what she was about to say, quickly changing her tune. At the same time, she tore off a small piece of venison and looked at Ye Zhi with some eagerness, saying, "Little guy, you must evolve quickly so we can also taste the primal energy food produced by the Divine Seed of Destiny. I've only had it once or twice!"
"The Ant King said I should slow down a bit," Ye Zhi responded, but her eating didn't slow down at all. She ate a bite of venison and a bite of Force food, quickly finishing all five Force food items. Then she slowly lay down and spit out a drop of honey from her stomach and swallowed it.
Seeing that the ants had almost finished eating, Wu Yuan looked at the corpse in front of him, which had been half-eaten, and waved his antennae, saying, "Qing Yuan, go and take the rest of the meat to the hatching chamber for the larvae. Hong Yuan, go and help make a nest chamber for the little guy so he can stay here temporarily."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I'll go right away!" Red Cypress excitedly waved its antennae. It seemed that because of the divinely bestowed seed, it was now even more concerned about Ye Zhi. It immediately summoned two worker ants to find a suitable spot in the main nest chamber.
After finding a suitable spot, it simply waved its antennae, causing the two worker ants following it to retreat, and then used its mandibles to carve into the rock face in front of it.
After taking a couple of bites, it seemed to find the process too slow, so it simply bent its belly, extended its sharp tail stinger, which gleamed with a metallic sheen, and clearly activated its [Self-Sharpening] ability, aiming straight for the wall.
The sharp, spear-like tail needle transformed into a chisel, carving a small hole the size of a mouse hole in the rock face. Then, it rotated its abdomen, continuing to carve out space deeper. Once everything was complete, it excitedly ran over, transmitting its telepathic message:
"Your Majesty, the little one's nest chamber is finished. Little one, come and see if you're satisfied. If not, I'll dig another one..."