Chapter 48: Fertilization
Currently, every insect in the Brood Nest possessed genes allowing them to consume soil. With this talent, the entire ground became a buffet of solid food. If solid intake was needed, they could eat as much as desired.
Luo Wen’s idea was swiftly implemented.
He began by selecting 500 Worker Ants for an experiment, instructing them to consume soil daily and deposit the resulting bio-fertilizer near designated plants.
The results were remarkable. The same number of Worker Ants consuming soil produced several times more bio-fertilizer compared to their previous diet.
During this period, Luo Wen also ordered the ants to stop assisting the aphids in migrating. Whether aiding plant growth would succeed still required further trials and time. Thus, Luo Wen decided to pursue both paths simultaneously: researching bio-fertilizer while curbing the aphid population.
The bio-fertilizer experiment was a resounding success. Perhaps aligning with natural laws, the fertilizer produced from soil consumption was significantly more effective than that derived from aphid secretions.
Initially, only 500 ants were assigned to consume soil daily, but this mandate soon expanded to include every insect in the Brood Nest—except for Luo Wen himself and the Spy Bugs lazing in the hatchery.
With over 20,000 insects producing bio-fertilizer daily, the output was substantial. Luo Wen hatched additional Worker Ants specifically tasked with distributing the fertilizer across the vegetation within the territory.
Even with the plants being fertilized, the restriction on aphid numbers remained in place. The current aphid population already supplied the Brood Nest’s needs with surplus left over, so there was no need to increase their numbers.