Development and Conflict

Two months of time slipped by in the blink of an eye, and the Mother Nest had undergone a radical transformation.

Above the Mother Nest sat a Transfer Station acting as a Fake Nest, connected to four ant nests by four spacious tunnels. Within these tunnels, worker ants moved back and forth, constantly transporting food from the ant nests to the Transfer Station.

They would then wait until evening, when the passage between the Transfer Station and the Mother Nest reopened, to transfer the food into the Mother Nest.

Above the Transfer Station, the soil excavated during the creation of the tunnels had been piled into a high mound. Not only did it prevent rainwater from flooding the tunnels, but it also served as a burial ground for unpartitioned food, such as the carcasses of many Sentry Worker Ants.

With the constant blood transfusions from the four ant nests, the Mother Nest developed rapidly. The number of adult insects surpassed the one-thousand mark, while other eggs, pupae, and larvae totaled nearly two thousand more.

These newly bred insects were all upgraded versions with drastically altered genetic makeups. While they still resembled ants in appearance and habit, they were internally a combination of several different insect species.

Back when the temporary Mother Nest was first excavated, Rowan had ordered the Mother Nest to produce over two hundred Excavator Ant eggs, adding the Soil-Eating Gene to ensure they wouldn't starve in the harsh early environment.

Excavator Ants possessed all the functions of ordinary worker ants and were also experts at digging. The four tunnels connecting to the ant nests totaled over a thousand meters in length, all thanks to these new ants.

Once the tunnels were dug and a stable food source was secured, Rowan deployed worker ants equipped with Formic Acid Spray. These ants had poor melee capabilities and were primarily responsible for transporting food and providing long-range fire support during combat.

Then there were the new soldier ants, based on the original soldier ant template but modified with different gene fragments. Externally, this manifested as different offensive weaponry: some had the hook-like mandibles of the Earth-Yellow Ant, some had enlarged versions of the Black Ant's own mandibles, and others possessed the giant mandibles of the Black Armored Beetle.

At the same time, they were infused with the strength genes of the Black Armored Beetle. Combined with their base soldier ant genes, their mature forms were a size larger than ordinary soldier ants, making them significantly more formidable in battle.

Beyond these, there were a few special units, such as Scout Bugs equipped with Clairvoyance, capable of seeing over twenty meters. However, due to their low intelligence, their ability to describe what they scouted was limited, rendering them of little use for now; they required further upgrades and training.

Then there were the Spy Bugs. Since the four ant nests were scattered, Rowan couldn't spend his days running thousands of meters back and forth to infiltrate and transport food. Out of necessity, he developed these insects capable of altering their own pheromones.

Limited by their intelligence, these insects were initially poor at completing tasks. However, they possessed a degree of self-learning capability, and after Rowan taught them hands-on for over a month, they were finally able to complete their missions independently.

After that, although their performance still had flaws, Rowan entrusted them with the work of smuggling food from the ant nests. It wasn't that he was reckless; he had his own reasoning.

Firstly, the safety of these insects was guaranteed; the Black Ants could not identify their disguise. At worst, if they failed to cover their tracks, the Black Ants might discover the Smuggling Tunnel.

But the strength of the Mother Nest was no longer what it once was. Even if discovered, so what? Although the ant nests had several times the population of the Mother Nest, Rowan was confident he could flatten them.

If it weren't for the fact that these tool-insects were doing their jobs quite well, a few of the surrounding ant nests might have already been wiped out.

Just a few days ago, the ant nest to the southeast discovered a Smuggling Tunnel, and several scout soldiers infiltrated it. The ant nest then gathered a large force to charge into the tunnel. The Mother Nest reacted quickly; the transport worker ants, who also doubled as scouts, scattered pheromones along the way as the transport team retreated from the tunnel in an orderly fashion.

Then, the Soldier Ant Legion of the Mother Nest entered the tunnel, and the transport worker ants stopped retreating, following behind the soldiers toward the battlefield. When the two sides met, there was no nonsense—a massive battle erupted immediately.

The soldier ants of both sides blocked the tunnel, while worker ants took the opportunity to sneak in, biting off antennae and tearing at limbs. However, the Mother Nest was equipped with a long-range strike phalanx; after a few rounds of Formic Acid Spray, the enemy worker ants suffered heavy casualties. Although the enemy soldier ants had higher defense, their eyes, antennae, and other weak points were scorched.

All the insects in the Mother Nest had been infused with the Acid-Resistant Gene. Thus, while the Formic Acid Spray didn't distinguish between friend and foe, it did nothing more than wash their carapaces until they were exceptionally shiny, causing them no harm at all.

The wounded soldiers of the ant nest were naturally no match for the unscathed troops of the Mother Nest. Lacking the support of their worker ants, the formation of the ant nest's soldiers was completely shattered.

The worker ants of the Mother Nest swarmed forward, grabbing their limbs and pulling them apart until they were immobilized, limbs torn asunder. The Giant Mandible Soldier Ants then took the opportunity to step forward and decapitate them.

Following this, the Mother Nest's soldier ants led the charge, unstoppable. Some worker ants followed closely behind, while others lagged to finish off enemy soldiers who hadn't fully died from the acid corrosion.

They fought all the way to the Hatching Room of the ant nest, only retreating after Rowan intervened. As the defeated party, the ant nest naturally dared not protest, forced to swallow their teeth along with the blood.

Post-battle statistics showed the Mother Nest lost nine soldier ants and dozens of worker ants. The ant nest, however, lost seventy-one soldier ants and nearly a thousand worker ants. It could be said they were left half-crippled after a single battle.

Although the Mother Nest suffered some losses, they gained a massive amount of ant carcasses—high-protein food and excellent food reserves. Most of what was buried in the mound above the Mother Nest were the spoils of this war.

However, the food intake of that ant nest subsequently dropped significantly. This led Rowan into deep self-reflection: why was he so aggressive? Wouldn't it be better to resolve conflicts amicably?

Even if they had to fight, he could have stopped while he was ahead. He felt he had been a bit rash. Although watching the insect army charge during the battle had been blood-pumping, crippling the ant nest had also hindered his own development.

Out of support for the ant nest's post-war reconstruction, Rowan temporarily closed the Smuggling Tunnel to let them recuperate. Fortunately, their eggs hadn't suffered much damage. He believed that under such strong "supportive policies," they would soon be able to resume their duties as tool-insects and do an even better job.

Rowan hadn't participated in this local war because his own size had changed drastically. Since he had abandoned infiltration work, the transport tunnels had not been expanded. If he participated, he would not only block the tunnels but also hinder the combat performance of himself and the other insects.

Through this war, Rowan felt that the intelligence of this batch of insects had clearly improved. If he had to describe it, the original insects were like simple machines that only worked when given commands. This new batch of insects was more like they possessed a certain level of AI, capable of completing complex tasks and demonstrating a degree of learning ability.

As for what caused this change, Rowan guessed it might be the continuous growth of the Mother Nest or the interaction of various gene fragments. Of course, this was just a guess; the specific reason required further observation and experimentation.

In any case, for Rowan, this was a positive change.