With such a windfall, Lu Qing naturally wouldn't forget his good brother.
He flew across the river and kicked the dozing Dazhuang.
"Wake up. There's good stuff across the river. Come on, follow me."
At the mention of good stuff, Dazhuang instantly perked up.
...
Seeing the whole tree crawling with meat worms, Dazhuang practically danced with excitement.
"I knew it! Stick with the boss and there's always meat to eat!"
"Keep quiet. The ants' perception is incredibly sharp. From now on, don't make a sound. Just keep your head down and eat!"
Lu Qing snatched one up and started eating.
Dazhuang had already dug in....
Since Lu Qing couldn't feel full, he naturally ate at a breakneck pace.
Having starved for two days, Dazhuang also had a massive appetite.
By evening, the meat worms on the ancient tree had been picked completely clean.
Dazhuang lay back on the treetop, completely satisfied.
Lu Qing finally reached the threshold for advancement as well.
'Energy accumulation complete. Proceed with advancement?'
'Advance!'
All his accumulated energy began to gently wash through his body. It felt incredibly comfortable.
A few seconds later, the advancement was complete.
'Species: Ink Blade Mantis
Level: Low Tier Sixth Grade (0.1/300)
Skill: Enhanced Slash and Pierce (Evolvable)
Skill: Rapid Flight (Evolvable)'
His body size surged once again, reaching sixty centimeters.
His Sickle Legs were also reinforced once more.
The pair of Sickle Legs had turned inky black, and their serrations had grown far denser. At a glance, they looked exactly like black blades.
The spikes at the tips were even more pronounced and sharp.
They truly could slash and pierce!
"This tree has been picked clean. Let's move to the next one!"
"More? I really can't eat anymore."
Dazhuang didn't have the ability to store energy. After feasting all afternoon, he was stuffed to the brim.
Lu Qing thought for a moment. "Then head back to the forest first. I'm going to eat for another night."
Dazhuang was already used to his boss's appetite, so he immediately spread his wings and flew off.
With his strength advanced, Lu Qing was faster and his strikes were more precise, making it even easier to deal with the soldier ants.
After taking care of the soldier ants, he went back to grinding experience.
After his advancement, the Flesh Value provided by the Third Grade meat worms dropped once again.
He often had to eat three of them just to gain 0.1 Flesh Value.
Fortunately, there were plenty of them. The meat worms on this single tree could easily provide over a dozen points.
Time to grind!
...
The worker ant was dumbfounded.
It had come to fetch food for the Queen to eat.
Yet, the normally packed breeding ground left it completely empty-handed.
"Food, none."
Right after the message was sent, three more worker ants hurried over.
The tree that had originally been covered in meat worms now didn't have a single one.
The panicked worker ants quickly settled down, leaving the ancient tree in an orderly fashion.
A short while later, dozens of soldier ants with gleaming armor began to search the area.
...
As Lu Qing was relishing his meal, he sensed something amiss.
Looking down, he saw dozens of soldier ants swarming up the tree.
He had been discovered!
Although these soldier ants were a grade lower than him, they would still be incredibly difficult to fend off if they swarmed him.
Since he could run, there was naturally no need to fight them head-on.
Without the slightest panic, Lu Qing spread his wings and flew off.
Right at that moment, an exceptionally clear voice echoed in his mind.
"Thieving Mantis, how dare you steal the Ant Race's rations!"
The Ant Queen!
He was hundreds of meters away from the Ant Nest, yet she could project her consciousness this clearly. The Ant Queen was undoubtedly an extremely powerful existence.
Even knowing how powerful the other party was, Lu Qing didn't cower in the slightest.
"What do you mean, thieving? I stole this with my own abilities!"
The law of the jungle was the survival of the fittest, so of course he was going to be unapologetic.
The Ant Queen was clearly furious. "With your own abilities?! Do you think our Ant Race is weak and easily bullied?!"
Lu Qing had originally planned to just fly away, but now he was no longer in a hurry.
He changed direction and landed on another tree. With a swift flash of his blade, he dispatched a soldier ant and casually stuffed another meat worm into his mouth.
"So what if I'm bullying you? What are you going to do about it? Do you think I, Mantis Lord Caiyi, am afraid of you?!"
With that said, he tossed another one into his mouth, chewing with immense relish.
The Ant Queen commanded nearly a thousand Fifth Grade worker and soldier ants. Any race that saw them had to give them a wide berth. When had she ever suffered such an insult?
She immediately sent another telepathic message, practically gnashing her teeth.
"Is the Mantis Race declaring war on my Ant Race?!"
The Ant Race was ferocious, and very few species were willing to provoke them. However, that list certainly didn't include Lu Qing, who loved stirring up trouble.
He sent meat worms into his mouth one blade strike at a time, eating them like snacks without pausing the telepathic exchange.
"Declare war? Do you measly little ants even deserve to use that phrase? I, Lord Caiyi, could drown you all with a single glob of spit! Eating your meat worms is giving your Ant Race face! And you have the nerve to yell about war? If a real war breaks out, this Lord will send you straight to the afterlife with a single strike of my blade!"
The Ant Queen might not have understood exactly what he meant by 'afterlife', but the disrespect radiating from his response couldn't have been more obvious.
The Mantis Race didn't take the Ant Race seriously at all!
To them, the Ant Race was nothing but a third-rate species!
The Ant Queen was utterly enraged.
"You have a lot of nerve! If you have guts, stay right where you are!"
"Stay where I am? Only a sitting duck wouldn't move!"
Lu Qing had drummed up some work for the Lord, fully achieving his goal. He naturally wasn't going to stick around and tangle with these highly combat-capable ants, so he immediately flapped his wings and soared high.
Even as he flew away, he didn't forget to trash talk.
"I've eaten my fill today! By the way, your Ant Race's breeding skills are a bit mediocre. These meat worms were a little tough and not plump enough. You should improve your techniques over the next few days. I'll be back to taste them again later!"
Taking advantage of them and then complaining about the taste? Did he think the Ant Race were his servants?
This was simply an unforgivable insult!
"I swear I will wipe out your Mantis Race..."
Lu Qing flew to the other side of the river.
When he looked back, he saw dozens of soldier ants milling about furiously by the river.
Ants couldn't swim; this river was a perfect natural barrier!
Just as he was about to make a relaxed exit, he heard the buzzing of wings.
Focusing his gaze, he saw five flying ants heading straight toward him.
Compared to the soldier ants, the flying ants were slightly longer, and their black armor appeared much thinner. However, their mandibles didn't look the least bit weak.
It seemed these five flying ants were also Fifth Grade!
Their defense was slightly weaker, and Lu Qing was confident he could break through their armor, but there was simply no point in fighting.
After all, he had his 'beloved' Lord Caiyi backing him up.
He had gone to so much trouble to drum up this 'high-quality project' for the Lord; naturally, he had to leave a hundred percent of the work for her to handle.
Without another word, Lu Qing flapped his wings and flew away.
...
Dazhuang was incredibly full. Plus, all the natural predators in the area had either fled, died, or taken detours around them, making it entirely safe. So, he swayed as he walked, heading back to the dense forest at an unhurried, leisurely pace.
The few bugs he bumped into along the way immediately turned and fled the moment they saw a behemoth like him.
This made Dazhuang feel even more smug.
Right at that moment, the buzzing of wings caught his attention.
He could tell it was the sound of his boss flying!
Sure enough, a second later, a silhouette shot past him.
"Run!"
The boss's hasty warning left Dazhuang completely bewildered.
"What the hell?"
He turned his head to look, only to see five relatively slow flying ants hurrying over.
Their mandibles were sharp, their expressions were ferocious, and they radiated murderous intent...
He cried out in shock, "Holy shit!"
Dazhuang threw open his wings, scrambling and half-flying as he accelerated to chase after his boss's figure.