Chapter Twenty-Seven: Gathering the Harvest

After retrieving the Temporal Ant, Lu Sheng quickly summoned all his subordinates to begin collecting the red pouches. In less than five minutes, every red pouch was gathered. He didn’t possess a Storage Card, but he did have a sub-dimensional space. Once all the red pouches were collected, he didn’t rush to inventory his gains. At this moment, Shi Jiu and the others were likely growing impatient outside. Fortunately, the entire battle lasted less than half an hour, so the time spent wasn’t excessive.

Exit the dungeon space!

...

Mu Kui spoke with some concern, “Why hasn’t Lu Sheng come out yet? Could something have really happened to him inside?” Shi Jiu sighed, unable to hide his worry. “It’s my fault, really. I forgot he had only just awakened. His Talent Card's skill is so absurdly powerful that I overlooked the fact that he’s just begun.” Shi Jiu felt remorseful; as the captain, he was responsible for his teammates' safety. Because of his oversight, Lu Sheng was exposed to unknown danger, and guilt weighed heavily on him.

As the group discussed, a figure appeared behind them. Lu Sheng stepped forward curiously, “What are you all talking about?” Mu Kui and the others turned, their tension easing as they saw Lu Sheng return.

“What took you so long?” one asked.

“It’s not my fault—the Red Fire Ants were chasing me so closely. There’s a one-second delay when returning, and I was afraid they’d snap my leg off in that second,” Lu Sheng recounted, his tone suggesting he had faced great peril.

Shi Jiu laughed, “Alright, alright. Let’s hurry back. I’ve calculated it; the red pouches we have are enough for us to advance our ranks, so there’s no need to risk going back. Besides, the commotion from the battle and chase was pretty loud. It might attract others. Better not let anyone discover we have so many red pouches.”

Discretion was essential. They were merely underlings of Li Kuang, or even Wang Ziping—if Li Kuang or Wang Ziping forced them to hand over the red pouches, what would they do? Give them up, or refuse? This was the apocalypse, a world without order! The ruler’s words were law. Fairness existed only among the strong.

Excitement brimming within, they hurried back to the settlement. But as survivors in the apocalypse, they quickly adjusted their emotions.

On the way, Lu Sheng’s thoughts were immersed in his bounty.

First, the cards:

[Red Fire Ant: Worker]
Quality: White
Rank: Tier One, Early Stage
Skill: None

[Red Fire Ant: Soldier]
Quality: White
Rank: Tier One, Early Stage
Skill: None

[Red Fire Ant: Captain]
Quality: White
Rank: Tier One, Late Stage
Skill: Hardened Shell

[Red Fire Ant: Queen]
Quality: Green
Rank: Tier One, Perfected
Skills: Rapid Reproduction, Psychic Shock.

Psychic Shock: Delivers a mental assault to the target.

All four types of Red Fire Ants were acquired. Upon seeing the Queen’s skills, Lu Sheng felt a lingering fear. He had no idea how powerful Psychic Shock was, but anything affecting the mind was dangerous—the brain is one of the most vital organs. Without any means of defense, who knows what the outcome would be? Possibly outright brain damage.

Lu Sheng was even more grateful for his Temporal Ant; without its suppression, the final result could have been very different. Truly, this world was perilous—staying home to raise creatures was the path to safety.

Worker Ants: 152
Soldier Ants: 312
Captains: 5
Queen: 1

This was his total card haul from the expedition.

There were other resources as well; after slaying so many Red Fire Ants, it wasn’t as if nothing dropped, he simply hadn’t had time to check.

Red pouches: 356—an abundance. Using fifty for cultivation, he could sell the remaining 306. One pouch was worth two Tier One Source Pearls; his wealth now needed no further explanation.

The Red Fire Ant drops totaled five items: three Tier One Source Pearls, one Skill Card, one Equipment Card.

[Power Boost]
Rank: Tier One
Effect: Temporarily doubles strength when activated.

[Equipment Upgrade Card]
Rank: Tier One
Effect: Allows one weapon to be upgraded; valid only for card weapons, including those wielded by monster cards.

He set them aside for now; he didn’t have a suitable recipient. If he had to use them, the only option would be the Stone-Throwing Goblin.

Monster card skill acquisition was limited. At Tier One, only one skill could be learned; each tier added another skill slot. So Lu Sheng wasn’t about to waste the Temporal Ant’s skill slot on something useless.

The Equipment Upgrade Card was decent, but the Temporal Ant didn’t use weapons.

That was the sum of Lu Sheng’s gains from this expedition. No one else had harvested as much. Claiming he wasn’t excited would be a lie, but he had to restrain himself from grinning—unless he simply couldn’t help it...

Breeding the Queen wasn’t urgent; that would wait until he returned and prepared properly. Not only would it grant him a chance to amass many cards, but it was also an opportunity to make a fortune. Collecting enough red pouches to sell would be lucrative.

Then he could buy all the highly fertile, easy-to-raise species from the breeding shop.

Placing a Source Pearl on the Rapid Development Device—now, finally, this device would start working. This meant the Bloodthirsty Mosquitoes in the pool would be ready for harvest tomorrow. If they were all Tier One, Perfected, he would truly be prosperous.

Lu Sheng wondered: would offspring of Tier One, Perfected Bloodthirsty Mosquitoes also reach that rank? He had no certainty—only time would tell.

Smiling, Shi Jiu’s group soon returned to the settlement.

Inside, only women and some disabled were busy; the second squad, left as guards, saw their return and weren’t surprised. Others had come back earlier. From those who returned, they learned that there hadn’t really been any mission—just a token effort. The leader allowed them to roam freely, so wandering and returning was fine.

With the dungeon so dangerous, some teams hadn’t wanted to risk it and had returned early. If Shi Jiu hadn’t discovered the Red Fire Ant nest, they too might have just made a round and come back.

The group entered their team’s quarters and began dividing the spoils. Each received thirty-two red pouches. Shi Jiu announced that two Tier One Source Pearls would be handed over as routine tribute.

Their squad was required to submit one Tier One Source Pearl weekly. If they lacked Source Pearls, they could offer equivalent goods. It was simply to keep the settlement running; no one objected.

After collecting their share, each planned to go home and focus on cultivation, departing with barely concealed eagerness. Clearly, they were excited to reach Tier Two.

Lu Sheng alone had the lowest rank; the others were already at Tier One, Mid-Stage. With their red pouches and a month’s time, breaking through to Tier Two was a certainty.

On the way back, Mu Kui eyed Lu Sheng curiously, “Why do I feel like you’re not that excited?”

Lu Sheng stared wide-eyed, “Really? Maybe I’m just overexcited already...”