1978 Ant Nes

Boom!

A white light exploded amidst the horde of ants. A mushroom cloud was generated, and it rocked the entire cavern.

Announcements played in Han Sen’s head, over and over, countless times. Han Sen heard himself receive two Jade Ant beast souls. They slid into his Sea of Soul.

“Awesome!” Han Sen felt great. He hadn’t felt like this in a long time.

The Sky fellow stopped and stared in shock. He was frozen by what he had just witnessed.

Spell fired another rocket, and it landed amidst the Jade Ants. Countless more died, and roasted corpses were scattered all about.

“D*mn! Your gear is powerful.” The man came running back. He looked at Spell as he spoke.

“It’s all right. It’s strong, but I’m also just lucky,” Han Sen said smarmily.

Spell required three seconds to generate a rocket after each use, but after firing three or four of them consecutively, the Jade Ants that were still alive retreated back into the tunnel and did not return.

The guy didn’t object to what Han Sen said. He thought it made fine sense. But he still looked at Spell with hefty interest, and said, “My name is Yu Jing. What is yours?”

“Han Sen,” Han Sen said.

You are the Han Sen that was carried into Sky Palace by Uncle Crane?” Yu Jing asked in surprise.

Han Sen shrugged his shoulders. What could he say?

You look different from the stories I’ve heard, and your geno armament is strong,” Yu Jing said.

“I see you are an Earl, so why are you calling Thousand Feather Crane an uncle?” Han Sen asked.

Yu Jing smiled. “Uncle Crane is a student of the tenth leader. I am the sixth elder’s student’s student. I’m more like a grandson, to be honest. At the very least, I should call him uncle.”

After that, Yu Jing went on to say, “Han Sen, are you interested in co-operating with me?”

“No,” Han Sen said immediately.

Yu Jing was disappointed. After a while, he said, “Don’t you at least want to hear my proposal?”

“No thanks,” Han Sen said. Then he walked towards the Jade Ants that were killed. He was going to collect their xenogeneic genes.

Yu Jing understood, but his face turned red. He couldn’t keep himself from explaining, so he said, “Brother Han, it isn’t like that! I can deal with Viscount Jade Ants. The reason I ran was because there is an Earl inside there, and it is a mutant ant queen. So, I had to run!”

“A mutant ant queen?” When Han Sen heard this, his eyes opened wide.

Han Sen had received Xuanyuan Dragon’s xenogeneic gene, but he had been unable to absorb it. He wanted to understand what the difference between ordinary genes and mutated genes were. If he could get his hands on an Earl mutant gene, he might just be able to figure it out.

Yeah, I was unlucky! I found a jade fruit tree, and just as I was about to claim some jade fruit for myself, I was started to see a Jade Ant nest right next to it. I was unable to collect the fruit, and I almost died. I used everything I had—every item I owned—to keep myself alive. I lost everything on this excursion.” Yu Jing sighed.

And then, Yu Jing suddenly smiled at Han Sen. “Brother, I think you are so strong. You must be a hero! Why don’t you and I go collect the jade fruit and split the haul between us?”

“No offense, but why can’t I just go there by myself right now?” Han Sen smiled at Yu Jing.

Yu Jing smiled, but it quivered with a touch of nervousness. He responded, “Brother Han, you have only been in Sky Palace for a few days! You don’t know much about Xuanyuan Cave, do you? Although Xuanyuan Island does not look big from the outside, it is very large on the inside. Even if you were down here for a whole year, you wouldn’t be able to explore every nook and cranny of this realm. The cave system is complex, too, so you’d likely find yourself lost. Without me, it is highly unlikely that you’ll find the fruit within the next few months of searching. Do you really want to waste your time in such a fas.h.i.+on?”

“That makes sense. Okay, we’ll split the haul of fruit in half,” Han Sen said as he dug through the corpses of the Jade Ants.

The rocket had been too powerful, and the Jade Ants were only Viscounts. Most had been blown to smithereens, to such an extent that the xenogeneic genes were utterly annihilated. When he was done, Han Sen had only been able to collect a dozen xenogeneic genes.

Yu Jing was so happy to hear this, and he said, “Brother Han, you won’t regret co-operating with me! Can your geno armament destroy an Earl Jade Ant?”

Han Sen searched around for a few more Jade Ants that had not been destroyed, and then went in search for the jade fruit tree with Yu Jing.

Truthfully, Han Sen’s goal in this venture was not anything that rested on the boughs of the tree. Any fruit he collected would be a decent bonus. What he wanted to do the most was kill that Jade Ant Queen.

Yu Jing was not lying. The jade fruit tree’s location was well-hidden. They traversed a number of complex tunnels for over an hour before finding it. The tree was behind a hidden alcove and cave.

“Brother Han, do you see the rock beside the tree? That is the exit of the ant nest. If we get too close, the ants will come pouring out. I examined it earlier, and there were at least eight Earl Jade Ants. There was also an ant queen. What are you going to do?” Yu Jing looked worried. He was afraid Han Sen would back out.

“We have a deal, don’t we? We split the haul of fruit in half, and the Jade Ant xenogeneic genes are for me,” Han Sen said.

Yu Jing immediately said, “Yes. It does not matter who kills it; you can have the xenogeneic genes.”

Yu Jing said that, but inside he thought, “The Mutant Jade Ant Queen? That thing is as strong as a Marquise. With seven or eight Earls alongside it, and the other ants too, I think you’ll end up running off without laying claim to a single xenogeneic gene.”

“Okay, that’s the deal then. You go over there,” Han Sen said coldly.

“I go? How?” Yu Jing asked with shock.

“Walk there. You can fly or crawl, if you so prefer. Just go over and draw those ants out.” Han Sen smiled.

“Draw them out? Your plan is to draw them out, kill them, and collect the fruit?” Yu Jing looked at Han Sen queerly.

“Do you have a better idea?” Han Sen smiled at Yu Jing.

It was easy for Han Sen to collect jade fruit. With Han Sen’s rabbit shoes, he could pick the tree clean before the ants even emerged.

But Han Sen wasn’t there for just the fruit. Picking it and then leaving was not on the agenda.