Chapter 63: The Enemy Reappears (1)
To the south of the Brood Nest lay towering cliffs, while lakes and rivers hemmed in the east. Even so, with the west and north connected in a fan-shaped expanse, the swarm’s territory expanded rapidly as the three armies pushed forward.
Day by day, Luo Wen continued dispatching hundreds of Queen Ants to oversee and develop the new territories.
The swarm’s scale was steadily growing, yet it remained far from capable of directly confronting the Yellow Earth Ant Legion head-on.
The days stretched on in monotony. Without internet, phones, games, or newspapers, and not even a creature to converse with, loneliness loomed over Luo Wen. Gradually, the reports from the three armies, delivered every three days, became the highlight of his otherwise dull existence—the sole reprieve in his barren life.
Unfortunately, while the Queen Ants possessed some intelligence, it was only relative to the simple-minded Worker Ants and Soldier Ants. Their reports were terse, devoid of richness or intrigue, and failed to bring Luo Wen any satisfaction.
As boredom gnawed at him, Luo Wen began to fear that without some kind of diversion, he might succumb to depression. Sometimes, he found himself staring at the distant lake surface from a tree trunk, even contemplating trying to swim to see if he could evolve the ability to breathe underwater.
Luckily, reason still held sway over his impulses, narrowly restraining these self-destructive thoughts. But as his restlessness grew, his rational grip began to erode.
Just as Luo Wen felt he might succumb to his reckless whims, a message from the northern army brought good news: they had encountered Red Ants once again.
The Black Ants, though diligent, were disorganized and weak. They posed no threat and served only to replenish the expeditionary forces’ food stores when discovered. For this reason, the destruction of countless Black Ant nests by the three armies was considered trivial and unworthy of reporting.