This is the Origin Force Star Realm under the protection of the Natural God.
All life—be it mighty or petite, vigorous or frail—has the chance to awaken, ascend to beco Origin Force Life, gain wisdom, and beco an Origin Force Warrior.
The Natural God has bestowed upon the Insect Clan the capability to gather plant seeds and for the Life Pouch to nurture Life Seeds.
Life Seed Plants grow and mature, blooming and fruiting; the Origin Force Food they yield helps the Insect Clan grow and evolve rapidly.
The Insect Clan reigns over the Star Realm.
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The Dulai Fla Spider Tribe wanders the continent as a caravan, strictly adhering to two principles:
First, absolute neutrality.
They never engage in wars between races or kingdoms, maintaining even neutrality between the Insect Clan and the Beast Clan.
Second, no deal for less than 20% profit.
Of course, and never a losing transaction. Especially on the long, perilous trek from the Ten-thousand Tribes Continent deep into the Wan Country Continent, if a trade doesn't yield enough profit, it's a loss.
Yet, this ti, lde might just take a loss.
Dragon Cypress was discovered by lde last spring. The na was given by lde, and at lde's suggestion, the first Life Seed chosen was the 'Dragon Cypress' seed.
Originally, it was believed that a rare and unique Male Ant King would be much sought after in the all-female Ant Clan Kingdom.
The reality, however, was the opposite; after asking seventeen Great-Headed Ant Kings, all expressed no interest in a Male Ant King, refusing to spend even a single Source Stone on him.
Now, another spring has co; Dragon Cypress has beco a Primary-Level, Age Period 4 Ant King.
For the Insect Clan, every molting brings one Age Period Evolution; each ti they choose a plant seed for their Life Pouch, nurturing a Life Seed.
Dragon Cypress has already nurtured three cypress Life Seeds: Dragon Cypress, Spiked Cypress, and Round Cypress; he desperately needs a safe territory to sow his seeds.
...
The caravan travels by night, resting in camp during the day.
In the first light of dawn, the towering boundary barrier emits a dazzling, multicolored glow.
This is already the far eastern edge of the Wan Country Continent, gathering site of the Dulai Fla Spider Tribe's caravan. Dozens of caravans, hundreds of Mountain Lord Level Fla Spiders, great and small, gather here, exchanging intelligence, trading goods—a roaring hustle.
"Dragon Cypress, I'm truly sorry..."
lde hesitated, words stuck in his throat.
A Mountain Lord Level Fla Spider, like an armored battle vehicle, its broad carapace piled with silk-woven multicolored packs—the capital of the caravan's trade: Origin Force Food and Source Stones.
Atop the highest pack, a male ant—about two or three centiters long, mbranous wings behind—drooped his antennae in deep dejection.
"I know, lde, what should I do..."
lde hesitated and said, "There is no place for the Ant Clan to survive in the Ten-thousand Tribes Continent. On the Wan Country Continent, without shelter from a fellow Ant King, you'll have no foothold; once you leave the caravan, patrolling Soldier Ants will instantly spot you and treat you as an invader to be slain..."
Dragon Cypress's dejection twisted into fear.
lde hurriedly added, "Don't worry, Dragon Cypress. We in the caravan know of another safe place, but..."
Hope rekindled in Dragon Cypress; he waved his antennae, hope filling his voice: "Where is it?"
lde: "Cloud Trace Continent."
"Cloud Trace Continent?" Dragon Cypress looked toward the shimring barrier, asking, "Over there?"
"Yes..." lde flexed his forelimbs; the earth shifted beneath them, forming a ball of soil that floated in the air.
"The world we live in is a gigantic sphere—it's not just the Wan Country and Ten-thousand Tribes Continents."
As lde spoke, a strand of spider silk wound horizontally around the soil ball: "This is the equator. The Natural God set up the Divine Force Barrier, dividing the planet into north and south hemispheres."
Then, two more strands of silk crossed vertically: "The Divine Force Barrier placed by the Natural God slices the planet into eight continents. The Northern Hemisphere—where we are—has the Ten-thousand Tribes Continent, Wan Country Continent, Dragon Bamboo Continent, and Cloud Trace Continent."
"Our Dulai Fla Spider Tribe's ancestors participated in continental explorations and made this inference: in any given period, among the four northern continents, only two are rich in Origin Force, while the other two fall into 'Silence.' Currently, Dragon Bamboo Continent and Cloud Trace Continent are both in their Silent Periods."
"'Silence' ans the mountains are depleted of Origin Force, a vacuum of Natural Primordial Force. We, as Origin Force Life, without Origin Force—it's like a fish without water—we can't survive, but..."
lde had no mind to be mysterious, pausing before finally saying, "Cloud Trace Continent may be in its Silent Period, yet near the region close to the Divine Force Barrier, Origin Force seeps through from this side of Wan Country Continent. It's barren, but enough for you to take root and live. Dragon Cypress, it's the only safe place I can suggest for you."
Barren, and safe.
Dragon Cypress latched onto these words, feelings in turmoil, saying, "I understand. Thank you, lde."
"I'll take you over..."
lde let the Spider King Spurge of the caravan know, then carried Dragon Cypress away from the group at a brisk pace across grassy plains, climbing a hill thick with low grass and shrubs.
Dragon Cypress's gaze was drawn to the standing stone steles.
"lde, what's that?"
"That's the Chronology Stele of our Fla Spider Tribe. It's tradition. Every year, we send a Little Fla Spider to Cloud Trace Continent across the barrier, to check the Origin Force there, and carve a mark on the stele—one for each passing year."
lde carried Dragon Cypress closer.
There were thirteen steles in all; five already covered in carved 'spiders'—one spider with eight legs, each leg marking a year; each stele had a hundred spiders, so five steles ant four thousand years.
The sixth stele was halfway done.
lde said, "The cycling of continental Origin Force is just a theory from our ancestors in the Fla Spider Tribe. To date, it's been over forty five hundred years; Wan Country and Ten-thousand Tribes Continents haven't obviously declined in Origin Force, while Dragon Bamboo and Cloud Trace remain in the Silent Period."
"Still, faith in the ancestors' theory is strong, so every year a Spider King arranges for this to be done, and we plan to continue indefinitely—it's beco the custom of the Dulai Fla Spider Tribe."
"Oh—" Dragon Cypress stood on higher ground, looking around in every direction.
"lde, how do I cross the Natural God's Divine Force Barrier?"
"That way!"
"There's a passage over there. Follow the passage straight through, and you'll reach Cloud Trace Continent. Origin Force seeps down that passage constantly into the other side, so Dragon Cypress, settle sowhere near the exit on a high slope, and plant your Life Seeds..."
lde explained as he scurried forward, reaching the hillside's far side.
A hole less than a ter in diater.
With a Mountain Lord Level Fla Spider's imnse size, lde couldn't fit inside.
"Dragon Cypress, right here."
"Buried beneath this hill is a Starship from the Outworld Civilization—long, long ago, the Natural God struck it down, and it crashed here, becoming our passage through the Divine Force Barrier."
"Back when the Starship fell, loads of Ant Kings ca to explore, opening any hatch they could, and took away every treasure they could haul."
"Dragon Cypress, there's a lot of space inside. Once you're in, follow the markings—don't wander, or you'll lose your way..."
lde reminded him, then, with a thought, manipulated the spider silk binding the packs—silks untwined themselves nimbly like arms. With a 'rip', a pouch was opened, and a petite knapsack extracted from within.
"Thank you." Dragon Cypress raised his two forelimbs to receive it.
It looked large, but contained only three Life Seeds and six valuable arbor seeds gathered by Dragon Cypress.
The knapsack weighed almost nothing, so Dragon Cypress held it by the handle, fluttered his wings, and landed on the ground.
"Wait."
Rip—a second pack opened. Five black wheat grains, each as big as Dragon Cypress's head, ca floating down.
"Dragon Cypress, this Black Sparrow Wheat will strengthen your carapace—a farewell gift. Good luck to you."
"Thank you, lde."
Dragon Cypress opened his petite sack, packing the Black Sparrow Wheat in one by one.
"lde, will we et again?"
There was sadness in Dragon Cypress's voice, his attachnt clear.
lde felt as downcast, his first loss in over a decade of trading—painfully unwilling to let go.
Without kin to shelter him, this Little Ant King who had followed him for a year would probably not survive the harsh wilds.
lde: "If everything goes well, I'll co back here in two years. I hope I'll see you then."
"You'll see in two years for sure!" Dragon Cypress put away his belongings, collected himself, and declared resolutely:
"lde, I owe you five Black Sparrow Wheat, worth two Source Stones. I'll repay you in equal-value Cypress Seeds."
Saying this, he hefted his knapsack ten tis his own size, and with steady steps, walked into the passageway.
Soon he passed through the earth, coming to the Starship's battered tal door.
Inside was a spacious, all-tal corridor. Endless years had left a mottled trail of rust; on the walls, arrows carved by unknown plant sap marked the way.
At intervals, another violently broken tal door appeared.
Dragon Cypress was curious, but kept lde's warning in mind—following the markings, not daring to stray.
This colossus of tal—a journey long and winding.
Who knows how long or how far he travelled; only when utter fatigue forced him to stop did Dragon Cypress rest, eat a Black Sparrow Wheat, then continue.
When exhausted, he stopped, ate another Black Sparrow Wheat, again pressing onward.
At last, in the endless darkness, a faint glimr of dawn appeared.
Pushing through the gap of a heavy tal door, scrambling up a passage of earth and stone, he t the morning's light at the far side of the continent.
—Had it been a day and a night's journey?
Dragon Cypress scaled a hill, set down his knapsack, and gazed all around.
Behind him, the Divine Force Barrier soared straight up to the skyline.
Before him, ranges of mountains undulated, and a dense, boundless forest stretched out.
A cricket hopped by straight in front of him.
Dragon Cypress's mbranous wings flared as he launched himself, pouncing down, jaws and forelegs working in tandem—he twisted the cricket's head clean off, then ripped free the two fat, springy hind legs to gnaw upon.
While restoring his physical strength, he quietly observed his new surroundings.
It was just as lde had described: Origin Force in Cloud Trace Continent was clearly much weaker than in neighboring Wan Country. Focusing, he felt the Origin Force seeping ceaselessly through the passage, diffusing quickly and thinning out.
Barren—and so, safe.
But that 'safety' was only in comparison to Wan Country Continent next door.
All around, grasses and reeds buzzed with insects and frogs; treetops danced with birds; deep in the woods, beastly roars sounded from ti to ti. Who knew how many silent hunters lurked unseen, waiting in patience.
For a Primary-Level, Age 4 Ant King, the wild mountain forests were perilous and full of danger.
Dragon Cypress quickly filled his belly, retreated under a tussock, and hibernated to rest.
Only near noon did he raise his pack and set off northward toward the mountain peaks.
Not daring to stray too far from the passage exit, nor to venture too great a distance, Dragon Cypress made sure to find a good spot on the southeastern slope of a mountain before dark, digging into the bedrock to carve out his Habitat Cave.
With strong survival instincts, Dragon Cypress spent the next three days—save for necessary hunting and rest—tirelessly digging out the cave in a planned, winding, stair-stepped manner, boring ever deeper into the rock strata.
anwhile, he observed the surroundings for signs of large predatory animals on the mountain.
On the fourth day, a steady spring rain fell. Spotting water pooling in a dried-up nearby stream, Dragon Cypress was finally at ease; between the cave and stream he cleared weeds with his mandibles, dug holes, sowed all three Life Seeds, and pressed small stones down to keep out foraging insects or birds.
PS: This is the second volu of Star Realm; even if you haven't read Star Realm Roach, it won't affect your reading.
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