The drainage channel was less than 20 meters long and 30 centimeters wide; because of the slope, its depth ranged from 10 to 30 centimeters.
It was very simple and could be dug through in just a single day.
Molan was absolutely right.
At night, a light rain fell, and water accumulated in the trumpet-shaped, upward-facing leaves of the Deep Blue God-Given Seed.
The next day, it cleared up,
The second broad leaf slowly unfolded toward the sunlight, with a small bud tip at its center as well.
This arbor from the Outworld Civilization seemed not to grow lateral branches.
Each leaf was a layer, growing upward layer by layer.
The God-Given Seed’s life force was vigorous, and in just half a month, its height exceeded 40 centimeters, and the diameter of its woody main stem reached about 1 centimeter.
This could be considered as having survived the vulnerable seedling stage.
Dragon Cypress was still not quite assured, and, together with Molan, guarded the pond day and night.
Two days later, the second leaf had already taken on the basic shape of a "trumpet."
Meanwhile, inside the first leaf, at the spot where rainwater accumulated, many roots sprouted simultaneously from the leaf surface and the main stem.
The roots grew rapidly, densely interweaving with each other.
These roots were not just ordinary aerial roots; apart from helping absorb water, they also reinforced the leaf and strengthened the main stem.
Dragon Cypress filled a bamboo tube with clean water and poured it into the second broad leaf. As before, it took less than two days for many roots to sprout on the leaf and the main stem, twisting and intertwining together.
A wondrous alien plant.
While Dragon Cypress and Molan marveled at it, they also made a guess: this plant must have come from a place where strong winds were common, most likely accompanied by heavy rains.
Dragon Cypress led the worker ants back to the mountain, blocked the half-dug pond drainage channel, and dug a diversion channel connecting to the upper stream of the nearby creek to store water for the pond.
Specialized Soldier Ants kept undergoing feather transformation one after another.
The current number had reached 63.
Twelve were sent out as a team, accompanied by large, medium, small, and micro soldier ants, to guard the Molan Territory.
Six were sent out as a small team to garrison the mountaintop, specifically guarding the Large Fruit Hemlock Sampling.
Another six were stationed at the Ant Nest territory, mainly to guard the still young Dried Fragrant Cypress.
Three were posted beside the nursery.
Twenty-four were split into two hunting squads of twelve soldier ants each.
And another twelve were stationed at the pond at the foot of the mountain, protecting the Deep Blue God-Given Seed.
The hatchery in the ant nest also held twenty-four large and small Specialized Soldier Ant larvae.
At present, there were enough Specialized Soldier Ants.
Dragon Cypress switched to cultivating micro, small, medium, and large worker ants to bolster the ant nest’s internal support capacity; as well as small, medium, and large soldier ants to strengthen the ability to hunt insects of various sizes in the forest and diversify the food supply for the nest.
The current Specialized Worker Ants all followed Dragon Cypress and dug a temporary ant nest at the foot of the mountain to settle down for now.
First, upstream from the Deep Blue God-Given Seed, at intervals of one meter outward, they dug a large pond six meters on each side and one meter deep.
The late-spring season brought frequent rains,
The excavation method was similar to the mountain water reservoir: after planning the location, they first dug a drainage channel leading to the lower reaches of the creek to ensure rainwater could be promptly drained away.
They left late and returned early, working for three days and resting for one.
After seven days, the drainage channel had reached nearly one meter in depth, and they began digging the pond.
Most of the time, Molan stayed by the little pond at the mountain’s foot, occasionally entering the forest to help hunt for food.
While Dragon Cypress worked busily, he always kept an eye on the Deep Blue God-Given Seed.
After it grew its second broad leaf, its growth rate noticeably slowed; when the third broad leaf unfurled and its height broke the one-meter mark, its growth rate plummeted.
The once light green stem with blueish patterns gradually became darker and more somber.
The unfurled leaves grew tougher and thicker day by day, especially along the veins and edges, which were turning woody.
At the same time, the roots at the bottom of the pond were also developing rapidly, drilling deeper into the soil, reinforcing their grip and ability to absorb nutrients.
This was the God-Given Seed nurtured by the Insect Clan’s Life Pouch—it grew rapidly through its vulnerable stage, then automatically shifted to spending energy on improving its overall strength and disaster resistance.
Survival is the instinct of all life.
The hibiscus bloomed on North Mountain.
On South Mountain, it rained every few days.
It was hard to work in the mud; even pond excavation became a matter of working for three days and resting for two.
It was another rainy day.
At dawn, Dragon Cypress crawled out of the temporary ant nest built under a nearby hillside and piloted the Dominating Throne toward the pond.
Upon getting close, it took a vigorous shaking of his tentacles to get the orders transmitted.
The Specialized Soldier Ants guarding the area had already been soaked for half the night and now returned to the nest in formation to eat and rest.
The Dominating Throne had a rainproof function, so Dragon Cypress took over from the soldier ants, standing guard by the pond.
The gloomy sky flashed with brightness,
A bolt of lightning struck down from the clouds, hitting the forest not far away.
Rumble~ roll~ rumble~
Main thunder followed closely behind.
—There’s thunder as well!
—There wasn’t this much rain last year.
Dragon Cypress glanced at the big pond he’d just begun digging next to him, which only had an outline so far, feeling quite vexed.
He was worried he wouldn’t be able to finish it in time and fill it with water. If a drought hit again this summer, they’d be in trouble.
He looked again at the Deep Blue God-Given Seed taking root in the small pond...
Dragon Cypress’s heart skipped a beat, and as his thoughts spun, the floating Dominating Throne slowly descended and drifted closer.
A strange, joy-colored spiritual thought directly entered his mind.
Dragon Cypress jumped up from the cushion, and tentatively sent a calling spiritual thought to the Deep Blue God-Given Seed.
Dragon Cypress immediately got a response.
It was still weak, a vague and childish spiritual thought.
The Deep Blue God-Given Seed had become self-aware!
Dragon Cypress: "My name is Dragon Cypress. My name is Dragon Cypress."
Deep Blue God-Given Seed: "Dragon Cypress."
Dragon Cypress: "You are called Azure. Your name is Azure."
Deep Blue God-Given Seed: "Azure."
So it could grasp the meaning of a name right after gaining consciousness?
Dragon Cypress’s heart stirred, and he asked, "Azure, do you have inherited memory?"
Azure sent over a confused spiritual thought.
Plants don’t have that.
However, the Deep Blue God-Given Seed had once evolved to a great height.
Could the Dominating Throne’s "zero and rebirth" erase even memory?
Dragon Cypress asked again, "Azure, do you recognize the Dominating Throne I’m sitting on? You and it both come from the Creator Civilization."
Azure, as before, sent a perplexed spiritual thought.
"Azure, you’ve just gained consciousness and your spiritual power is weak, rest now."
After letting it know, Dragon Cypress glanced around—the area was empty of birds and beasts. The Dominating Throne rose rapidly and flew straight toward the northern mountains.
Inside the cave, different kinds of Origin Force food were laid out in neat little piles on a large spider silk bag spread flat.
On rainy days, Molan didn’t want to go out, so, in boredom, he counted the food stores in his inventory.
Twenty-seven piles—only twenty-seven kinds of Origin Force food left.
Of the thirty-five types Dragon Cypress had picked, most were cheap and of poor taste, but eight kinds of dried fruit were actually pretty delicious and had disappeared before he knew it.
In less than two months, Origin Force food worth two thousand Source Stones was already down to less than half.
Molan was starting to miss his Ice-Fire Water-Making Pot.
"When will Dragon Cypress advance to Mid-Level Ant King?"
"When will the Deep Blue God-Given Seed bloom and bear fruit?"
"Should I ask it when the rain stops?"
Molan was pondering all this when, looking up, he saw the Dominating Throne piercing through the rain curtain and appearing at the cave entrance.
PS: The pace is a bit slow, there aren’t many readers following, so here’s an extra update to chase the rankings.