CHAPTER 73: CHAPTER 073: BLACKWING

This time, Dragon Cypress brought along two ten-meter-long spider silk ropes gifted by Melde.

Ghost Fan’s cave had a bearskin.

Improvised on the spot: punched holes in the bearskin, tied it with spider silk ropes.

Ink Orchid helped, digging silt together with Ghost Fan in the riverbed.

Dragon Cypress controlled the Dominating Throne, hoisting mud through the air to dump on the riverbank.

Busy for two full days and still not done cleaning when a torrential storm hit—flash floods swept in, churning with mud...

After the rain,

another four days of work finally cleared it completely.

Lost a total of six extra days.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid worried that all the rain fell to the south—Xianglan Mountain would surely face drought again this year, and they worried whether Round Cypress and Spiked Cypress could handle such natural disasters.

Most of all, they worried about Azure. Was there enough pond water where it rooted? Were its fruits nearly ripe?

They hurried home in haste.

...

"Dragon Cypress! Dragon Cypress!"

"Origin Force fluctuation!"

Ink Orchid ripped off the leaf covering its head and pointed in a direction.

"Oh—" Dragon Cypress also pulled off the leaf, raised his tentacles, and calmed his mind to sense—but felt nothing.

Many times proven, Ink Orchid was naturally hypersensitive to Origin Force fluctuations.

Dragon Cypress directed the Dominating Throne to change course.

Passing through rugged mountains and peaks, the terrain gradually leveled out.

After half a day’s flight, they could feel Origin Force spreading outward from a central point.

The Dominating Throne suddenly halted, hovering midair.

Looking from above, a mountain range blocked the view, while a river wound through the valley.

"Ink Orchid, the usual routine?"

Dragon Cypress slowly lowered the Dominating Throne.

"Okay. Let’s rest first."

Ink Orchid agreed, dove down, plucked two broad purple taro leaves, came back—handed one to Dragon Cypress, covered himself with the other.

’Usual routine’ meant resting first, waiting till midnight to sneak over and scout—check for Life Seed Plants and other Insect Clan Warriors.

If Life Seeds were present, count their number and judge their strength.

If they were too strong, observe from the shadows to see if they could fly.

If they were both strong and good at flying, extreme caution was needed.

Dragon Cypress’s rule: without equal strength, never openly engage with Insect Clan members that could pose a lethal threat.

Now, Dragon Cypress’s body was just about twenty-five or twenty-six centimeters long—a taro leaf could cover him entirely. The Dominating Throne settled on a lower hillside, tucked into the shade, and he buried his head, planning a nap.

"Dragon Cypress!"

Ink Orchid suddenly startled and jumped up.

Dragon Cypress tossed off the leaf covering and stood up too.

In the distance, a black dragonfly was racing toward them.

Dragonfly Warrior!

The fastest airborne predator.

Run?

—Run!

Dragon Cypress was alarmed.

That dragonfly was too fast.

The Dominating Throne had just taken off, and the dragonfly was already within a kilometer.

It abruptly stopped in midair, seemed to size them up, then suddenly turned and dashed away, shrinking rapidly to a black dot.

"???"

Dragon Cypress, about to flee, paused in confusion.

"Dragon Cypress, did you see that?" Ink Orchid was full of questions.

Dragon Cypress: "I’m certain it was a Dragonfly Warrior."

Ink Orchid: "..."

Ink Orchid: "But its size didn’t seem that big. Smaller than me."

Ink Orchid was no small bug himself, being nearly half a meter long.

But as a dragonfly, its size was actually less than a six-age-period intermediate Flower Mantis Warrior...

So it was just an intermediate warrior at best!

Maybe even lower.

"Dragon Cypress, should we go over?"

Ink Orchid really wanted to chase after it.

Dragon Cypress was naturally cautious and said gravely, "Run!"

With that, he maneuvered the Dominating Throne skyward. "Maybe it went home to fetch reinforcements? Dragonflies are all fierce."

Calming himself after the scare, Dragon Cypress added, "Dragonflies have superb vision during the day—at night, not so much. We’ll sneak back tonight, see what’s up and then decide."

Ink Orchid thought it over and praised, "Dragon Cypress, you’re rock steady!"

...

They moved away from the Land of Origin Force, hiding deep within the jungle.

At midnight under the silver moon, they set out.

Crossing the same sight-blocking mountains as before, ahead was a plain forest encircled by mountains. In its center, a huge lake—water flowing in from the northwest, out from the southwest, then through swamps and valleys beyond.

The Dominating Throne circled once, roughly establishing their range—just the plain and lake beneath the mountains, covering a few hilltops as well.

Dragonfly Warriors liked to stay by water.

Dragon Cypress first searched the woods, confirmed no other insects, then cautiously approached the lake.

Soon, he sensed unusual Origin Force fluctuations.

Along the shallow lakeside, among the lotus leaves, there was a patch with ten or so especially thick lotus leaves, the lotus flowers larger, pulsing with Origin Force—confirmed as Life Seed Plants.

Nearby grew two clusters of sweetflag about three to four meters tall each, a clump of barnyard grass, and one big and one small White Willow Tree.

The dragonfly was resting beneath the larger, four-meter-high willow.

Its body was jet black with a metallic sheen, reflecting blue-green and red flashes under the bright moonlight.

The four wing tips were transparent.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid both recognized it at once: Blackwing.

Not an intermediate.

Just a primary Blackwing Damselfly Warrior, nothing more.

The Life Seed Plants were small and few—probably at age period 7, a blackwing barely half a meter across—nothing to worry about.

The Blackwing Damselfly Warrior slept soundly, totally unaware of being watched from above.

The Dominating Throne drifted slowly, circling the lakeside to continue searching.

After a full circle, no other Life Seed Plants or Insect Clan Warriors were found.

"No wonder it ran just after one look during the day. It was scared too!" Ink Orchid muttered.

Dragon Cypress had been frightened then, so he said nothing.

Ink Orchid asked, "Dragon Cypress, what do we do now?"

Dragon Cypress: "Come back tomorrow morning."

The Dominating Throne retreated quietly.

Next dawn, they crossed the mountain and slowly entered the lake region.

Ink Orchid spread his wings, released his Origin Force aura, and sent out intense Origin Force fluctuations.

The Blackwing Damselfly Warrior shot into the air in terror, hovering and staring warily at the Dominating Throne.

Ink Orchid called out, "Hello!"

Given this poor, weak dragonfly warrior, Dragon Cypress skipped the Natural God intimidation act and directly introduced himself:

"I’m called Dragon Cypress. Dragon Cypress Ant King."

"Ink Orchid." Ink Orchid was terse.

The little Blackwing Damselfly Warrior turned and fled, vanishing to a black dot in an instant.

Dragon Cypress: "..."

Ink Orchid: "..."

Ink Orchid: "Dragon Cypress, it’s even more timid than you... But really fast!"

Dragon Cypress: "..."

Dragon Cypress: "No worries. We’ll wait in its territory."

The insect could run, but the Life Seeds couldn’t.

The Dominating Throne slowly descended to the willow where Blackwing had rested last night.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid’s eyes were drawn at once to the wide patch of lotus flowers along the lake’s shallows.

They searched their inherited memories—no record of these lotuses.

The Blackwing Damselfly Warrior evidently relied on its speed and vision range, hiding to observe from afar. But seeing its lair discovered, it obediently flew back.

"This is my territory... What do you want?"

Blackwing bravely—though nervously—questioned them with awkward Mental Power, fear thick in the tone.

"Don’t be afraid, we mean no harm."

Ink Orchid soothed, "Dragon Cypress and I are roving merchants, just passing through."

Dragon Cypress said, "My first Life Seed Plant was a Dragon Cypress Tree, so my name is Dragon Cypress. Ink Orchid’s was Molan Grass, and so he’s called Ink Orchid. What’s your name? White Willow?"

Blackwing thought and thought, then replied, "Then call me White Willow."

White Willow asked, "You’re roving merchants? Are you from the Flame Spider Tribe?"

Dragon Cypress: "We’re not of the Flame Spider Tribe... This is the Cloud Trace Continent, and it’s in an Origin Force Silent Period. Most places are Origin Force Vacuum Land—the flame spiders can’t travel here. Only a few Origin Force Points can support Insect Clan Warriors. Ink Orchid and I use the Dominating Throne to move between them."

Dragon Cypress weighed things and decided to waste some spiritual power explaining patiently.

"The Dominating Throne is the greatest creation of the Outworld Creator Civilization. The Natural God destroyed the Creator Civilization, and granted the Dominating Throne to me..."