The midsummer bustled with life, echoing with the incessant chirping of insects and birds day and night. Amidst the commotion, Speckle silently toiled away.

Before dawn, it was necessary to venture out for provisions, flitting between grass blades, collecting dew, and watering the young shoots of the Shun Grass. At noon, it was time to hunt, taking advantage of the blazing sun to gather and transport the ripe white mulberries and mirage fruits, depositing them at the doorstep of the Great Head Ants' nest.

The ant colony burgeoned rapidly, perhaps exceeding tens of thousands. Their digestive capacity was extraordinary; they were indiscriminate eaters, consuming flesh and collecting seeds.

Every morning, Speckle meticulously inspected the seeds they left to dry until the mulberries and mirage fruits ripened and fell to the ground.

It took several days for Speckle to search through the rotting fruit, but the results were disappointing. The probability of nature bestowing an original force seed was too low. Harvesting a Shun Grass original seed was purely a stroke of luck; there was no sign of the coveted white mulberry or mirage fruit original seeds.

The Great Head Ants also discovered the presence of mulberry trees and tirelessly transported the seeds, accumulating a surplus of food for the year.

An interesting turn of events followed. After a torrential rain, the ant colony began migrating to the nearest oak tree. Initially, Speckle thought they were frightened by their own released scent and decided to move. However, upon observation, ants from both colonies were active.

It wasn't relocation but division; more accurately, it should be called splitting. Some ant species, when the queen ant landed after her nuptial flight, formed alliances to establish empires to survive their vulnerable stage.

As the ant empire grew to a certain size, it needed to curb further expansion. Depending on the food situation, two different outcomes occurred: if food was scarce, the strong queen would incite the worker ants to kill the weaker queen, monopolizing power, known as "queen selection"; if food was plentiful, the weaker queen would wisely choose to leave, taking a group of worker ants, a few larvae, and some food to seek out a new location to establish her own empire, known as "nest splitting."

Speckle found this phenomenon both fascinating and unsettling, especially regarding the split-off faction. With almost ten days passing without rain, it was likely they encountered a drought or the fixed dry season climate.

The relentless sun scorched the land, causing cracks, and the moisture in the air disappeared without a trace. The sky remained cloudless, the air dry, and the dew between the grass blades decreased day by day until it vanished completely.

Streams ceased to flow, forcing Speckle to journey to a distant pond to fetch water to sustain the Shun Grass. The ordinary Shun Grass managed by the Great Head Ants fared even worse. The drought caused the grass to yellow, and the tender shoots ceased to grow. Despite its tenacity, the grass entered a semi-dormant state, barely clinging to life.

In this critical moment, the second batch of blade-horned locust larvae hatched, devouring the tender leaves of the Shun Grass that had already ceased growing. The Great Head Ants were helpless.

Speckle fought desperately, each locust consumed only the two fattest hind legs, burying the rest under the Shun Grass or giving them to neighboring ants.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

The Shun Grass field was devastated, and these poor ants would likely harvest only a few Shun Grass seeds this autumn, unsure if they could survive the harsh winter.

Speckle dried the uneaten blade-horned locust legs, stored them in a drying chamber within a black giant stone. Time passed, and after a month, signs of molting and growth appeared on Speckle's body again, but this time, the weakness was more severe.

The drought season was dire. Without watering, the Shun Grass seedlings, not yet fully grown, would likely wither. And the detestable blade-horned locusts, if not killed in time, would devour the Shun Grass seeds.

Speckle dared not fall into deep slumber, even after labor, resting briefly to regain energy, constantly waking intermittently to check the surroundings, kill daring locusts eyeing the Shun Grass seeds, and release angry pheromones to deter them.

Speckle believed that enduring the dry season and starving the hungry locust nymphs would improve the situation.

The battle continued for about ten days, with no rain for twenty consecutive days. It was evident; it wasn't just a dry season but a drought.

In the jungle, many tall trees began to yellow, and the green grass on the banks of the stream withered, the water pools dried up. The number of blade-horned locust nymphs plummeted; they either starved to death or fled elsewhere.

In both colonies, many ant corpses were carried out every day, piling up into two small hills.

The little flower snake that had settled nearby was nowhere to be found, likely succumbing to the heat or seeking refuge elsewhere.

Speckle regretted rashly planting the Shun Grass seeds; now, unable to find water sources to irrigate, the mature leaves of the Shun Grass began to yellow, semi-withered, and the tender leaves stopped growing.

If the drought persisted, it surely wouldn't survive.

With no other options, Speckle exerted all efforts to construct a makeshift shelter, blocking the scorching sun, hoping to survive and leaving it to fate.

Speckle could no longer hold on and retreated into the depths of the nest, falling into a deep sleep.

In slumber, a wealth of inherited knowledge about the seeds bestowed by the gods awakened, branding into the soul's memory:

"The seeds nurtured by the seeds bestowed by the gods are vastly different from those of ordinary seeds and require the absorption of a large amount of original force. Therefore, it is necessary to choose a place rich in original force for planting. The best method is to bury the original stone underground to help it grow..."

"Junior warriors must not choose the seeds bestowed by the gods as their seeds because during evolution and dormancy, which are crucial for their own growth and the gestation of seeds, the seeds bestowed by the gods will consume a large amount of original force, delaying the process. Junior warriors are weak and may be burdened to death..."

"Knowledge concerning life and death, why didn't it awaken earlier?"

"This is a case of closing the stable door after the horse has bolted..."

"Yet I was not burdened to death..."

Waking up in a daze, consciousness was somewhat fuzzy, and the body felt weak, much more severe than the first time during evolution.

Having skirted the edge of death once again, Speckle was fortunate to have survived.

With physical strength depleted and weakened, in the pitch-black nest, vision slightly blurred.

The long-missed humid air prompted Speckle's first realization; the drought had passed during the slumber.

Consuming a few leaves covering the nest, resting for a while, gradually regaining strength, climbing upwards, and entering the dry storage room.

Fortunately, with two failed attempts behind, the third time was a success. The storage room within the black giant stone remained unaffected by the damp

ness, and the jerky was well-preserved.

Eating most of the remaining stock, gaining nutritional replenishment, cells rapidly dividing and growing, and the body gradually recovering, the dull carapace radiating a metallic luster.

Inspecting oneself, a Level 3 junior warrior, 22 in length, the body shape undergoing tiny changes, slowly transitioning to the most suitable combat form envisioned.

Spitting out a purple-gold seed, emitting a faint purple light in the darkness. This was the newly gestated seed bestowed by the gods, the second seed.

Speckle specifically opened a small hole deeper into the dry chamber to store this precious and rare seed.