Experiment, Part One

Just when Rowan was bored out of his mind, the Aquatic Army forces patrolling the river discovered a new insect in the water. They successfully caught it and brought it to Rowan.

At first glance, this insect looks somewhat similar to the Little Black Bug from before, but it is dark brown, with a slightly flattened head and a very obvious shoulder plate. The Little Black Bug, on the other hand, does not have a shoulder plate.

It also has only one pair of eyes, which is a clear difference from the Little Black Bug. It also has three pairs of legs, but the forelegs are small, short and thick. The middle and hind legs, although they are also like oars, have many more hairs on them.

The communications soldier couldn't explain how the insect came to be; he only knew it was caught in the river.

Looking at its oar-like Walking Leg, Rowan figured it was probably some kind of Little Black Bug that could float on the water. So he didn't pay much attention and casually put it into his stomach.

But to his utter surprise, the little bug gave Rowan a huge surprise.

That very night, he entered a pupal state, and his body structure underwent some fundamental changes.

After an unknown amount of time, Rowan emerged from his cocoon. He first ate some food to fill his empty stomach. Then, while eating, he began to examine his entire body.

But as he examined each part of his body, he became increasingly puzzled, as there seemed to be no change on the surface of his body.

Rowan lifted his paddle-shaped hind legs and examined them. Could this be it? But this was a change that occurred after he ate the Little Black Bug last time. Upon closer inspection, it seemed that he had more leg hair.

After eating the Little Black Bug last time, the last pair of his original eight Walking Leg transformed into paddle-like shapes. These "paddles" didn't perform very well on land, which initially made Rowan quite uncomfortable.

But Rowan Walking Leg that even without using the "oar," he could move swiftly using only his other six Walking Leg, climbing mountains and trees as if walking on flat ground. After getting used to it, he didn't feel any impact.

But that last change was just a simple localized molting, not enough to pupate. Does this mean that this time, with a few more leg hairs growing, it'll pupate?

"That's absolutely impossible," Rowan shook his head, rejecting the idea. His body would only form a pupa when a major change occurred; that was for sure. Since it wasn't visible on the outside, the change must be inside his body.

I went to the Mother Nest first and checked. There was an extra set of genes in the gene bank, which seemed to be related to the respiratory system. It should have come from that little insect.

Considering the size of that tiny insect, this respiratory system certainly couldn't make its body grow larger, so it must have another function.

Actually, it's quite simple to find out. Rowan just needs to arrange for the Mother Nest to produce a few Insect Egg. Given the size of these insects, it wouldn't require much energy.

However, it takes a considerable amount of time for Insect Egg to develop and mature, Rowan, eager for an answer, was clearly impatient.

However, Rowan still arranged for the Mother Nest to produce some Insect Egg using the genes of the small insects as templates, and updated the gene pool for subsequent Ant Queen orders.

He then rushed to the Aquatic Army base by the river.

The "Aquatic Army base" sounds impressive, but it's actually just a makeshift base by the lake. Because the soil there is too muddy and moist, it's unsuitable for nesting, so no Ant Queen. These bases are scattered along lakes and rivers at intervals, essentially serving as makeshift docks.

Rowan found the base where the little bugs were discovered. It wasn't too far from the Mother Nest, and some Sampan Bug were gathering there to familiarize themselves with their abilities.

The Sampan Bug are insects that hatched from the Little Black Bug that Rowan caught last time. They were named that because they look like sampans upside down in the water.

Because it's a lakeside base, it's mostly inhabited by small Sampan Bug. Due to the rapid current, these little creatures lack power and can easily be swept away by the current.

They caught this new little insect from somewhere; Rowan had wandered around the lake countless times but had never seen one like it before.

Rowan searched the area for another day, but unsurprisingly found nothing.

It seems the only way to get the answer as quickly as possible is to participate in the experiment myself.

Before, with those oars on his hind legs, Rowan had never gone into the water. Now, of course, he wouldn't risk his life by entering the lake, even though he was currently the largest "Sampan Bug" in the Swarm.

Of course, he had his own methods.

At his command, over a million Excavator Bug and five Giant Scorpion were summoned. Giant Scorpion are quite useful when digging large-scale projects, so Rowan replenished his forces with more after the battle.

They usually eat dirt to maintain their basic survival needs, and only eat a good meal when they have a mission...

At the lakeside, Rowan marked out a small area, intending to dig a swimming pool about 80 centimeters deep. Because he could reach a height of about one meter when he stretched out his long legs, 80 centimeters was a very safe depth.

The insects gathered were all experts at digging holes and creating pits, so digging out a swimming pool was a piece of cake for them.

In just one day, the swimming pool, which was about twenty square meters in size, was dug. Then, under Rowan's command, the insects dug a canal connecting to the lake.

The lake water flowed in, slowly filling the swimming pool.

With everything ready, Rowan, legs propped up, cautiously entered the pool.

Then he slowly retracted his Walking Leg one by one, coiling them beneath his body. Once all his Walking Leg were retracted, he actually floated on the surface of the water.

He tried to paddle along the paddle-shaped hind legs, and a series of thrusts propelled him forward. Unfortunately, the pool was too small for his size, and he hadn't paddled for more than a few strokes before he touched the edge of the pool on the other side.

But Rowan wasn't annoyed at all; this novel experience excited him, and from then on, he became amphibious.

After playing for a while, he finally remembered his business.

Feeling the changes in his body in the water, as if by instinct, he suddenly plunged into the water.

The water surface was rippled violently, bouncing back and forth along the edge of the pool before slowly returning to calm.

Time passed, and half an hour later, Rowan was still submerged, as if swallowed by a pool of water, and had not yet surfaced.

Underwater, a large black worm was lying on the bottom of the pool. A bubble at the end of its abdomen was very conspicuous in the water.

This large insect was none other than Rowan. After half an hour of research and personal experience, he roughly understood how the respiratory system, which required pupation to increase functioned.