The solutions to the current problem were either to find new ck Ant nests to share the burden or, once the number of insects in the Brood Nest reached a sufficient size, topletely annihte the ant nest, turning its inhabitants into food and iming the territory.


    The two approaches were not mutually exclusive. Luo Wen could search for new ck Ant nests while simultaneously infiltrating and eroding the neighbor’s nest. However, this would mean Luo Wen would be busy again.


    Deploying a few Camouge Bugs to infiltrate the ant nest and feast without drawing suspicion was feasible. But expecting them to handle Luo Wen’s tasks—stealing food while cleaning up traces—was unlikely given their limited intelligence.@@novelbin@@


    If any mistakes exposed their actions and led the ck Ants to track them back to the Brood Nest, it would spell disaster. The Brood Nest’s currentbat capabilities were far from sufficient to withstand an assault. Thus, Luo Wen had no choice but to personally handle the undercover work and food transport operations in the ant nest.


    As for exploration, Luo Wen had already scouted the area within a few dozen meters around the Brood Nest. To find another ck Ant nest, he would need to venture farther.


    Currently, most of the insects in the Brood Nest were modeled after ck Ants. Lacking vision, they relied on close-range contact with their antennae to gather information. This method posed numerous dangers, and the farther they traveled, the higher the risk of encountering threats.


    Given the current poption in the Brood Nest, it would be difficult to sustain such heavy losses.


    Luo Wen needed new types of insects with functional eyesight, capable of detecting potential dangers from a distance and reporting back the gathered intelligence. But once again, he faced the same fundamental problem: while Luo Wen could likely configure the required physical traits, he couldn’t enhance the insects’ intelligence.


    The insects in the Brood Nest werepetent in repetitive, mechanical tasks but struggled with anything moreplex. They couldn’t fullyprehend Luo Wen’s instructions, meaning he had to personally oversee all critical missions.In the future, when he had more time and resources, Luo Wen resolved to create intelligent insects. He didn’t need many—just one or two capable of leading others would suffice.


    Grumbling aside, Luo Wen diligently attended to his responsibilities. Each day, he transported enough materials to the temporary storage chamber to keep the transport teams upied for a day, sealing the passage to the hatchery tightly and surrounding the area with pheromones signaling danger and warning others to stay away.


    Afterpleting this task, Luo Wen would crawl out of the ant nest to scout farther afield.


    The Brood Nest was also developing steadily. The first batch of pupatingrvae had emerged, forming a new generation of adult ants. As they matured, they would gradually take on various tasks within the colony.


    The Brood Nest itself had grownrger. Although Luo Wen’s size had also increased recently, it seemed unlikely he could still carry the massive structure.


    Applying his principle of preparing for danger during times of peace, Luo Wen used Big ck as a temte, removing the gene for Burrower Legs after observing that the oversized Giant Mandibles conflicted with burrowing efficiency. These mandibles, wider than the body itself, made underground movement cumbersome.


    Additionally, Luo Wen incorporated pheromone genes formunication and identity recognition. Using this temte, the Brood Nest produced a dozen eggs. If they sessfully hatched, these insects would be specialized fighters tasked with defending the Brood Nest.


    This was Luo Wen’s first time using a self-designed temte to produce insects from eggs. It was an entirely new experiment. He didn’t know if such artificial gic configurations could support aplete developmental process from egg to maturity.


    If these insects, with their entirely novel gic sequences, could grow into fully developed, mature adults, it would signify a breakthrough. When resources were abundant, the Brood Nest could produce a series of insects with unnatural but highly advantageous traits.


    By then, the Brood Nest’s influence would expand exponentially, like a snowball gaining momentum. It would no longer need to parasitize the ant nest to grow.


    Energized by these promising thoughts, Luo Wen threw himself into his work with renewed enthusiasm. Events also seemed to be unfolding in a favorable direction.


    A few dayster, Luo Wen’s efforts bore fruit. He discovered another ck Ant nest in the opposite direction of the Brood Nest.


    This new nest was muchrger. Luo Wen counted over fifty Soldier Ants within it, suggesting a total poption of three to four thousand.


    The ant nest not only boasted a muchrger hatchery but also had two of them. Additionally, there were several food storage chambers. Worker Ants ground food into powder with their mandibles, secreting a protective substance to prevent spoge.


    Naturally, the hatchery was filled with even more Yellow Bugs, parasitic creatures brazenly stealing Luo Wen’s resources. Infuriated, he spat on each one, dooming them to annihtion.


    This new ant nest was over a hundred meters from the Brood Nest. Its vast poption and extensive patrol coverage meant there were no blind spots. Luo Wen would need to dig at least fifty meters of underground tunnel to transport food. It was a monumental task.


    Fortunately, Luo Wen now had many underlings. He assigned over twenty ants to the transport teams to handle food transport, left another twenty newly emerged ants to tend to thervae, and led the remaining dozens in a massive excavation project.


    Luo Wen’s daily schedule became packed. At dawn, he would transport food from the first ant nest to the storage chamber, seal the tunnel, and leave the transport teams to work independently. Then, he would hurry back home, gather his excavation team, and head to the second ant nest to dig a new tunnel. Along the way, he’d practice his Luo-style Insect Combat Technique with a few of the new neighbors, ensuring his skills remained sharp.


    The ck Ants who watched the performance often couldn’t afford his appearance fee and were forced to “pay” with their lives, bing food for the excavation team.


    Time flew by, and as the massive smuggling tunnel nearedpletion, trouble arose with the transport teams.


    The first nest’s smuggling tunnel had been dug close to the patrol’s blind spot, just over ten meters from the ant nest. However, as Luo Wen shifted focus to the second nest and stopped performing hisbat demonstrations, the number of Scout Worker Ants in the area gradually increased.


    Today, by sheer bad luck, a transport team carrying food emerged from the tunnel and came face-to-face with a Scout Worker Ant.


    The Scout Worker Ant noticed arge group of ants resembling itself butcking proper identification. It immediately moved forward to challenge them.


    The transport teams, not known for their patience, responded aggressively. After a heated antenna duel, a fight broke out.


    Although the Scout Worker Ant was outnumbered, this was the transport teams’ first battle. Despite their superior numbers, they allowed the Worker Ant to escape.


    The transport teams didn’t think much of it. However, when they returned to the tunnel with more food, the Worker Ant had brought reinforcements, lying in wait to ambush them.