CHAPTER 60: CHAPTER 060: DEAL, CONFRONTATION

"Oh!"

Red Fox introduced, "This is Little Warrior Black Rice, the mischievous Little Black Rice."

Red Fox further explained, "Following the Inherited Memory of the Natural God, White Rice sheltered many common Mountain Sphere Centipedes in its territory after advancing to a High-Level Warrior. Last year, we were fortunate to have a new Little Warrior born."

The Little Warrior ran over and nimbly climbed onto Red Fox’s back. It then scurried up to Red Fox’s forehead and looked up in amazement at the Dominating Throne floating in the low sky. Its two slender tentacles waved vigorously, as if to greet Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid on the Throne, but the distance was too great, and its Mental Power couldn’t reach.

Red Fox reined in its spiritual power and privately recounted things to Little Black Rice.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid watched with both surprise and delight. Another potential customer! Our roving merchant business has such a promising future!

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid tacitly said little, pretending they had seen many insects before and were not surprised by the sight of the Little Warrior.

Picking up the previous topic, White Rice asked, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, how do you purchase Origin Force Food produced by common Life Seeds?"

Dragon Cypress said, "I need to see the actual item and price it according to type and quality."

Ink Orchid took out a Spider Silk Bag. It rolled the bag into a tube, clutched it in its paws, and shook it towards the ground below, saying, "This is a Spider Silk Bag woven by the Diaphus Flame Spider. It’s waterproof, moisture-proof, fire-resistant, and durable. Its five-colored patterns are also quite pretty. It’s specially designed to preserve Origin Force Food."

"Here’s one for you."

Ink Orchid tossed down the Spider Silk Bag.

White Rice understood what Ink Orchid meant, picked up the Spider Silk Bag, and ran towards its dwelling cave.

"Get that Small Pellet Scolopendra Warrior something to eat." Dragon Cypress waved a tentacle.

The Specialized Blue Ants holding ’Woodberry Ant Honey’ turned their heads and fed a little to the Large Blue Ants that had just undergone Feather Transformation a few days prior.

Dragon Cypress waved its tentacles again to direct.

Specialized Blue Ants carrying Ant Honey made from common fresh fruits went one by one to the Large Blue Ants, each feeding them a bit.

Ink Orchid flapped its wings, left the Throne, plucked a leaf from a nearby Rice Tree, and placed it on the soft cushion.

A Large Blue Ant blended the various Ant Honeys in its stomach to create a delicious, mixed-fragrance Ant Honey, then buried its head and regurgitated it onto the leaf.

Ink Orchid held the leaf between its claws and glided to the ground.

"Little Black Rice, this is Ant Honey, the most delicious food," Ink Orchid said.

Not daring to linger too long in front of a High-Level Red Fox Warrior, Ink Orchid said these words quickly and flapped back to the Throne.

Sphere Insects had a sensitive sense of smell.

Little Black Rice stared at the leaf, waving its tentacles. It discerned the scent of Origin Force Food from the sweet aroma, cheered, and leaped straight from Red Fox’s forehead to the ground, pouncing on it.

"Thank you."

Red Fox gave thanks on behalf of the Little Warrior, relaxed its guard, lay on its side on the ground, and watched Little Black Rice gobble up the food with a kindly look, reminding it, "Little Black Rice, eat slowly. No insect is going to compete with you for food."

"There is! White Rice!" Little Black Rice ate even more ferociously.

White Rice, carrying the Spider Silk Bag, hurriedly returned.

"Little Black Rice? What are you eating? It smells so good!"

Little Black Rice moved to the side, blocking White Rice, raised its abdomen, and held its tail pincers high.

White Rice was quite annoyed at this.

"Hey! You ungrateful little thing..."

"White Rice!" Red Fox interrupted, scolding, "How many times have I told you? Don’t fight Little Black Rice for food. It’s already on guard against you."

"I was just playing with it..." White Rice fell silent, frustrated, and asked again, "Red Fox, what is this? The fragrance alone makes it seem exceptionally delicious."

Red Fox replied, "This is Ant Honey brewed by the Worker Ants under the Dragon Cypress Ant King’s command. It’s probably something similar to honey, I guess."

Is this Ant Honey? White Rice became lost in thought, searching its Inherited Memories for information related to Giant-Headed Ants. It remained puzzled for a long while. Giant-Headed Ants weren’t known for producing honey. Could it be...

White Rice looked up, gazing towards the Dominating Throne.

"Dragon Cypress Ant King, your Worker Ants seem quite different from the ones described in the Inherited Memories..."

Dragon Cypress replied, "Indeed. This is a unique ability bestowed by the Natural God. The purpose is to better preserve Origin Force Food derived from fresh fruit and to bring delicious food to the Insect Clan Warriors living on Cloud Trace Continent."

White Rice asked, "Then how is the price for the Ant Honey determined?"

Dragon Cypress responded, "It depends on the Origin Force Food used in the blend. Any Origin Force Food can be made into sweet Ant Honey, and the pricing is based on the type and quality of the Origin Force Food used."

Dragon Cypress continued, "White Rice, let’s first look at the Origin Force Food you’re ready to sell so we can agree on a price."

"Alright!"

White Rice looked around, thought for a moment, then ran forward for about thirty or forty meters. It placed the Spider Silk Bag filled with items on the ground and then ran off.

Ink Orchid leaped up, sped through the air, landed, picked up the Spider Silk Bag, and returned to the Throne.

Dragon Cypress took the bag and opened it. Inside were eleven gourd containers sealed with softwood stoppers.

These were no ordinary gourds.

White Rice had a Gourd Life Seed. When the Gourd Fruit fully matured, the Gourd Seeds became Origin Force Food, and the outer shell would lignify, forming a natural storage container, perfect for keeping dried Origin Force Food items.

Dragon Cypress randomly picked up a gourd and opened it. Shaking its tentacles to sense its contents, it identified them as Large Fruit Stinky Chestnut Seeds.

It poured out one seed, holding it between its claws to examine it, then swallowed it directly. After a brief Perception, it commented, "The quality is decent, but the granules are too small. Five seeds for one Source Stone."

White Rice was not as easy to deal with as Ghost Fan. It said, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, do you have other Origin Force Foods? Can I take a look and get a price so I have a reference?"

White Rice added politely, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, please don’t misunderstand. I don’t mean to distrust you. I just hope that both sides can trade fairly and avoid any resentment. This way, we can continue to interact for a long time."

This insect was raised by a fox.

Dragon Cypress thought for a moment and said cheerfully, "Of course, you can. Since it’s our first meeting, I’ll give you a Ghost Fan Seed and a Southern Sour Jujube Seed."

Dragon Cypress waved its tentacles and patted Ink Orchid.

Ink Orchid, engrossed in watching the Sphere Insect Little Warrior eating below, was somewhat distracted and hadn’t paid attention to the conversation between Dragon Cypress and White Rice.

"Dragon Cypress, what is it?"

"It’s nothing. I’ll do it myself."

Dragon Cypress opened the Spider Silk Bag, took out the items, and threw them down from the Throne.

White Rice stepped forward to pick them up, holding them between its claws and scanning them back and forth with its spiritual power for comparison.

The Southern Sour Jujube Seed was produced by a Mountain Lord Level Wild Divine-Given Seed.

The Ghost Fan Seed was produced by a High-Level Warrior’s God-Given Life Seed.

The two Fruit Cores were about the same size, and their kernels were also similar.

The Southern Sour Jujube Seed had a slightly more condensed Origin Force than the Ghost Fan Seed.

Dragon Cypress waited for a short while and then leisurely explained, "Although the Ghost Fan Seed only comes from the territory of a High-Level Warrior, spiritual power enhancements are rare and precious, hence its high value: twenty-five Source Stones per seed. The Southern Sour Jujube Seed is of Mountain Lord Level quality, but its enhancement effect is too ordinary, so it’s priced lower: ten Source Stones per seed."

"Reasonable!" White Rice agreed, though feeling a bit regretful.

The Southern Sour Jujube Seed is truly a bargain! Unfortunately, the Mountain Sphere Centipede’s membranous wings were too weak, making the enhancement largely meaningless. Besides, trapped in this narrow Land of Origin Force, they didn’t have much use for flying abilities. Enhancing its Comprehensive Physique and spiritual power, striving for an early promotion to Mountain Lord—that was the top priority in an insect’s life.

White Rice said, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, I have a rough idea of the prices now. I think your offer for the Large Fruit Stinky Chestnut Seeds is too low. Four seeds for one Source Stone would be more appropriate..."

Regular Little Flame Spider Warriors usually follow a Caravan for three to five years before gradually becoming familiar with the prices of various Origin Force Foods and mastering trading patterns. And you already have it all figured out?

Dragon Cypress understood that White Rice was simply bargaining; it lacked real confidence.

This was White Rice’s first time trading with other insects, and its distrust was almost instinctual.

Dragon Cypress, an old hand who could hold its own even against Melde, calmly said, "White Rice, the price you mentioned is both right and wrong. The price you’re talking about is what a Caravan would charge when selling to other insects. Ink Orchid and I traveled here on the Dominating Throne, across vast distances and through harsh weather. We obviously need to gain some profit from our trades, don’t you agree? Without any benefit, who would be willing to make such a journey, right?"

White Rice replied, "Yes..."

Dragon Cypress continued, "We buy at five seeds for one Source Stone and sell at four seeds for one Source Stone. Ink Orchid and I make a profit of one Stinky Chestnut Seed for our trouble. There’s no problem with that, is there?"

White Rice conceded, "No problem..."

In its first trade, White Rice was defeated.

Dragon Cypress then opened another gourd, poured out a Black Rice Seed the size of a mung bean, and stated directly, "This one’s granules are too small. Twenty-five seeds for one Source Stone."

White Rice grew anxious and questioned, "Why is it even cheaper than Stinky Chestnut Seeds? The Stinky Chestnut Seeds aren’t that big either!"

Dragon Cypress didn’t answer directly. Instead, it picked up several more gourds one after another, and finally poured out a White Rice Seed, saying, "This one is ten seeds for one Source Stone."

White Rice was hopping mad and asked, "Why? Why is there such a big price difference between Black Rice Seeds and White Rice Seeds?"

Dragon Cypress stated matter-of-factly, "It’s because of the difference in enhancement effects. I’m not even keen on acquiring Black Rice Seeds; they’re hard to sell once I get them."

White Rice felt like it understood, yet it was also very confused and annoyed with itself. If only I had known, I would have nurtured fewer Black Rice Tree Life Seeds and more White Rice Tree Life Seeds! Looking at Little Black Rice again... this little one was also to blame, choosing Black Rice Trees for its first and second Life Seeds. Such a huge loss!