CHAPTER 404: CHAPTER 389: GUIDANCE FROM THE HUAGI DIVINE TREE

Bathed in the golden morning light,

the Dominating Throne sailed into the territory of the Purple Tung Insect Nation.

White Willow and Ink Orchid flew over side by side to greet them.

"Dragon Cypress Ant King!"

"Yellow Stem..."

Ink Orchid and White Willow called out, circling the throne, their eyes fixed on the silvery, radiant, egg-shaped tree heart held aloft in both the claws of Yellow Stem atop its head.

Ink Orchid: "Greetings, Linnan Divine Tree!"

White Willow hurried to greet as well: "Greetings, Linnan Divine Tree!"

The Linnan Divine Tree stirred its spiritual power.

Two little insects.

Not worth responding to.

Yellow Stem smoothed things over: "Linnan Divine Tree, this is the Flower Mantis Warrior Ink Orchid. In the assault on the Termite Kingdom, it was the one to ambush and kill the lord-level Ant King and Ant Queen."

Linnan Divine Tree: "An ambush doesn’t count for much."

Yellow Stem: "Uh..."

Yellow Stem looked a bit awkward, not daring to say any more.

This Linnan Divine Tree is really hard to get along with...

Ink Orchid and White Willow noticed Dragon Cypress’s drooping antennae, looking completely indifferent, so neither said much more either, obediently accompanying the throne on the left and right as it flew on.

They landed directly on the prepared tubao.

Yellow Stem, balancing the tree heart atop its head, clumsily crawled up, scraped at the earth with its middle legs, dug a pit, and buried the tree heart in the soil.

Immediately, a powerful suction came from the earth, creating an Origin Force vacuum zone of more than ten meters’ radius.

Dragon Cypress swayed its antennae, issuing commands; the nearby blue soldiers sprang into action, lining up in long rows straight to the river canal, activating their Water Control Ability, ferrying one-meter diameter water spheres from the canal in layers and passing them to the tubao.

Dragon Cypress personally maneuvered them, causing the water spheres to break apart midair, sprinkling as fine droplets down below.

Over a hundred water spheres in a row, soaking the entire tubao through and through.

A yellow-green sprout tip streaked with bright silver markings pierced through the soil, greedily devouring Origin Force, shooting up with every passing moment; the Origin Force vacuum steadily expanded.

Yellow Stem retreated step by step, then simply turned around and ran down the tubao, standing with Dragon Cypress, Ink Orchid, White Willow, and Black Leaf to observe.

The blue soldiers and soldier ants scattered throughout the forest all gathered around, watching curiously.

"Dragon Cypress Ant King~"

"Yellow Stem~"

"That’s the Linnan Divine Tree?"

Ghost Fan, White Rice, and Snakebark Maple hurried over as well, but stopped at a greater distance, watching with caution.

"Yes! The Linnan Divine Tree!"

Dragon Cypress vigorously waved its antennae, driving off the crowding ant swarm, and said, "The Linnan Divine Tree really isn’t easy to talk to—let’s keep our distance."

Everyone withdrew, moving over a hundred meters away to watch from a safe distance.

The young cedar seedling that broke ground quickly grew to one meter tall, then two, then three, with the Origin Force vacuum expanding at the same pace.

By noon, the tree had grown past twenty meters high.

The vacuum zone now spanned a radius of nearly a hundred meters, and the Origin Force fluctuations spread out to four or five hundred meters.

The spectating ant swarm suddenly grew restless, their messages being relayed layer by layer until it reached Dragon Cypress: Barley Bug Warriors approaching.

Dragon Cypress activated the Soul-Setting Ability, sensing briefly.

The Origin Force fluctuations had drawn all the Barley Bug Warriors over, crowding the far bank of the river canal, craning their heads to watch.

On the stone bridge to the west, three more Barley Bug Warriors waited—the Mountain Lord Mountain Thorn, Mountain Lord Magnolia Bark, and Mountain Lord Fuzzy Flower, most likely.

Dragon Cypress considered a moment, then maneuvered the Dominating Throne to low altitude and floated over.

"Dragon Cypress Ant King!"

The three Barley Bug Mountain Lords waved in greeting.

Mountain Lord Mountain Thorn asked curiously, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, has another Divine Tree taken root?"

Dragon Cypress: "Yes. That’s the Linnan Divine Tree, overseeing Huagi Mountain’s war affairs... not a friendly tree by any means. Best to watch from the riverbank. We’ll keep our distance too."

Mountain Lord Mountain Thorn: "Oh—"

Mountain Lord Magnolia Bark: "Dragon Cypress Ant King, is this Linnan Divine Tree from the Divine God-Given Seeds?"

Dragon Cypress: "Yes. Its fruit is named ’Kunlun Seed’, and it grants Wood Element Talent."

Mountain Lord Magnolia Bark: "Very expensive, right?"

Dragon Cypress: "Of course. Five million per fruit."

"..."

The three Barley Bugs fell silent.

The entire Barley Bug Clan only earns a few hundred thousand Source Stones per year.

Just one fruit costs five million!

Changing the subject,

Mountain Lord Fuzzy Flower asked, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, when do you think Wuye should enter sleep for evolution?"

Dragon Cypress: "Probably after the spring trade is finished."

"Alright!"

"Understood."

The three mountain lords agreed.

...

Dragon Cypress maneuvered the Dominating Throne into the air, heading to the Huagi Divine Tree.

"Huagi Divine Tree, I’ve invited the Linnan Divine Tree over."

"It didn’t cause trouble, did it?"

"...Not yet."

"Don’t worry—with me here, it won’t do anything outrageous."

"...I know."

Dragon Cypress didn’t feel reassured at all.

After a brief exchange with the Linnan Divine Tree, it was clear that things were even worse than what the Quandong Divine Tree had told him—this tree considers insects beneath it, and is completely devoid of character.

The Huagi Divine Tree sharply perceived Dragon Cypress’s worry.

"You don’t need to worry about it. Don’t water it, don’t protect it, just keep your distance. Don’t get close, walk around it, don’t bother with it."

Dragon Cypress: "...Understood!"

Huagi Divine Tree asked: "It’s almost time for your trade with the Flame Spider Roving Merchants, right?"

Dragon Cypress: "Yes. There are still about seven or eight days."

Huagi Divine Tree: "How many caravans are you trading with? How are the Divine-Given Seeds and Divine-Grade Fruits being distributed? Tell me in detail."

Dragon Cypress understood—Huagi Divine Tree was concerned about whether the caravans had enough strength to assemble teams and carry billions in Source Stones for Huagi Mountain.

Dragon Cypress considered briefly, then said, "There are three caravans I trade with: the Zeqi Caravan led by Spider King Spurge; the Caowu Caravan led by Aconite Spider King..."

Dragon Cypress recounted the detailed information about the three caravans led by spider kings that he knew.

He also summarized the situation across the border in the Ten Thousand Nations Continent.

Huagi Divine Tree patiently listened, then stated, "Three caravans aren’t enough. Ask the three spider kings to introduce at least two more caravans. Future outputs of the Gold Jinhe Divine-Given Seed will be allocated to the newly recruited caravans."

Huagi Divine Tree: "Over the millennia, Huagi Mountain has collected some Divine-Given Seeds. Once Yellow Stem evolves to Evolution Mountain Lord Level, all of them will be activated. When the Divine-Given Origin Force Food is produced, it should also be allocated to the newly introduced caravans."

Dragon Cypress: "!!!"

Dragon Cypress: "Alright!"

The Huagi Divine Tree paused, then spoke in an instructive tone: "You hold trading rights to five Divine God-Given Seeds. That alone will make every Flame Spider Caravan flock to you. In these trades, you’re in an absolutely dominant position. Caravans are tools for gathering resources; don’t let them feed too well, or they’ll become arrogant and forget who’s master and who’s guest. But don’t starve them; without enough profit to entice them, they won’t have the strength to crawl another step."

Huagi Divine Tree: "Now, you’re solely responsible for all trading between the whole Cloud Trace Continent and the Flame Spider Roving Merchants. Treat the Cloud Trace Continent as a whole, and think from a leader’s perspective."

Huagi Divine Tree: "Managing caravans is all about finding balance. Balance means having caravans keep each other in check, but not letting profit disputes erupt into conflict. Balance isn’t about equality; on the contrary, the Cloud Trace Continent’s core resource output must not be divided equally."

Huagi Divine Tree: "When assigning resources specifically, first you must distinguish the close from the distant: intentionally put them into groups of spiders that are close and trustworthy, average relationships, and distant but still contactable. Deliberately divide them into three levels."

"Second, assess the caravan’s strength, and what resources they bring. Similarly, based on prior trading records and what goods they deliver, assign a grade."

"Third, evaluate the caravan’s reputation. Those with bad reputations on the continent must not be dealt with; those that have violated trust in trade, treat them ruthlessly—demote, reduce privileges, or cut ties outright according to the situation."

"Combine these three factors and distribute benefits flexibly."

Huagi Divine Tree: "You’re a smart ant. So far, you’ve managed everything well. However, as your Ant Kingdom develops and the Cloud Trace Continental Insect Clan Warriors continue to evolve and grow, and as trade amounts swell each year, you must weigh all things more carefully."

So this was once the leader of Huagi Mountain?

Dragon Cypress: "Thank you for your guidance, Huagi Divine Tree! I’ve truly learned much!"