Titan

This time, Zhang Fan had a bolder idea. He recombined the genes of Super Six-Eye and the Overlord Beast, adding Parasitism genes to hatch a new Six-Eyed Overlord Beast.

Then, instead of using hatching technology, he had the Six-Eyed Overlord Beast parasitize Rebecca. The result of this idea was... the birth of an entirely new battleship-class member of the Insect Race: the Thunder Emperor.

The Thunder Emperor measured 200 kilometers long and 100 kilometers wide. It had a dove-like head with six eyes, four wings, twelve tentacles along its belly, six Ice Blue Dragon cannons on its back, and twenty-four Scarab energy cannons along its flanks. To Zhang Fan's surprise, its head could fire an immensely powerful Energy Source Cannon blast. A single test shot flattened a quarter of Jade's near side.

Seeing this astonishing power, Zhang Fan stood stunned for a long time. "Could this thing destroy Jade with one full-power shot?"

Noya analyzed it. "Based on our current energy calculations, if all our Qi Spiders supplied their entire energy reserves to the Thunder Emperor, it could erase Jade from the universe."

"I finally have the power to destroy planets!"

Noya cried out, "Overlord, look..."

Following the direction of Noya's sharp spine, Zhang Fan discovered that Jade, which he had thought was already destroyed, was still alive. Without the Thunder Emperor's test shot, they would never have noticed. Jade's roots covered the entire planet.

What the Insect Race had destroyed was only its surface. Given time, it would soon grow back.

"Why don't we withdraw the entire Insect Race and have the Thunder Emperor destroy it? Unless we destroy this thing, it can regenerate endlessly."

Zhang Fan did not answer Noya immediately. Instead, he fell deep into thought...

After a long while, Zhang Fan suddenly told Noya, "Destroying it would be such a waste. I'm going to assimilate its consciousness and turn this organism into one of the Insect Race."

"Summon all the Matriarchs. I need their power!"

All the Matriarchs gathered. Standing atop the Thunder Emperor's head, Zhang Fan began pooling their mental power and released an intense mental shock wave as his first probing attack.

Under the surprise assault of the first mental shock wave, Jade's roots began coiling and writhing incessantly, like a nest of startled snakes.

Zhang Fan seized the opportunity to launch a second mental shock wave. This time, the sustained mental assault drove all of Jade into a frenzy.

The Insect Race on the ground also began coordinating with Zhang Fan, surging madly toward Jade's exposed roots. Under the combined torment of mind and body, Zhang Fan felt as though he could hear Jade's silent wails.

Zhang Fan would not give it a chance to catch its breath, even though he, too, was growing weak. Noya forcibly hatched hundreds of nearly mature Matriarchs and compelled them to join Zhang Fan's Consciousness Stream.

With the impact of the final mental shock wave, Jade went completely limp. So did Zhang Fan.

Lying in Noya's arms, Zhang Fan said in a barely audible voice, "Have the Parasitic Ticks plunder Jade's body. Preserve... I want its infectious fungus."

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Fan passed out...

After three days of recovery, Zhang Fan finally regained full consciousness. He shook his still-dizzy head and looked at Noya, who stood at the front of the command room. "How are things?"

The moment Noya saw Zhang Fan arrive, she grew as excited as a little girl. She cried out, "Overlord, do you know? You're incredible! Jade-Jade has now been completely transformed into one of the Insect Race..."

Zhang Fan knew exactly what this meant. It meant he could now control an entire planet. The increase in the Insect Race's strength was far beyond a mere step up.

Zhang Fan gazed with satisfaction at the masterpiece before him: Titan, a planetary member of the Insect Race that had turned pale purple.

Titan had a volume of roughly twenty trillion cubic kilometers, about twice that of Earth. It could perform photosynthesis independently, converting absorbed solar energy and internal fusion into life force. Following parasitic implantation by the Parasitic Ticks, Titan now fully possessed an Insect Race consciousness.

Through careful study, Zhang Fan also discovered that Titan was inherently parasitic and had retained Jade's infectious properties. In other words, if there were other living planets like Jade, whose bodies were controlled by plants, Titan could parasitize them. Even on lifeless planets, Titan could independently spread Insect Race genes and transform them.

Titan was like a virus, except that the body of this virus could not move. The Insect Race under Zhang Fan's command now served as its means of transmission.

Noya brought a pale-purple fungus before Zhang Fan and smiled. "Overlord, this is the Insect Race fungus evolved through Titan. It can control the consciousness of organic life forms and replicate itself, making it more powerful than Zombie Bugs in that respect. Its only drawback is that it cannot survive harsh environments of extreme heat or cold."

Zhang Fan nodded. "That's already excellent. This is exactly what we need to expand our forces. If there are planets like that, send the Insect Race to attack them directly."

"How long would it take to hatch large numbers of Rebeccas on Titan and then parasitize them to produce Thunder Emperors?"

Noya smiled. "We don't need to go through all that trouble anymore. I've already had Titan start hatching Thunder Emperors directly. The first batch of six hundred should be ready to enter space in three days."

Zhang Fan looked at Noya in surprise, then laughed. "Not bad, little one. You're improving! But there still aren't enough Thunder Emperors. This pace is too slow. We need more Titans. It's time to show your aggressive side."

Noya said excitedly, "Overlord, do you mean I can lead the Insect Race in attacking the surrounding planets?"

"Of course. What else did we come here for? We're short on time and have plenty to do. That old bastard, the Western Realm Great Emperor, is watching us at all times. If he finishes his business ahead of schedule, we won't even know what killed us."

Noya said solemnly, "Rest assured, Overlord. In three days, I'll lead the new Insect Race forces to conquer the surrounding planets and expand our entire army."

Zhang Fan summoned a Matriarch named Vira and told her, "Lead a Thunder Emperor force back to the Thunderflame Star System and tell Yata to clear out a star system so the new Insect Race can build an army."

Vira suddenly asked, "Should I visit the Asha Star System too?"

Zhang Fan laughed. "You little ones are thinking things through more thoroughly than I am. Go ahead. I'd almost forgotten about them. Oh, and go back to the Death Star to check how your original ancestors have evolved. Integrate the current Insect Race genes into them as well."

"Overlord, didn't you want the Insect Race on the Death Star to retain their genetic gaps?"

"Yes, they should retain those, but have them expand wherever they need to. We need every bit of strength we can muster now. After all, the Western Realm Great Emperor can travel to other universes to wage war. Our current strength is no match for him."

Following Zhang Fan's instructions, Vira returned to the Thunderflame Star System with the fungus and a fleet of Thunder Emperors.

Meanwhile, Noya's preparations were complete. Six hundred Thunder Emperors, a million Super Six-Eyes, and hundreds of billions of ground troops stood ready to deploy. This time, Zhang Fan's objective was clear... invasion!