"I feel like I'm not very popular here."

The Grass Dragon ambled over, laden with bundles big and small.

Dragon Cypress: "Welcome to Cloud Trace Continent, my friend."

Grass Dragon: "…"

Grass Dragon: "Why didn't those two little guys, Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple, come greet me?"

Dragon Cypress: "They've been running around with me for days, just went back to the mountain to rest."

Dragon Cypress chuckled and asked, "Grass Dragon, are these from Melde? Your start-up funds as an independent roving merchant?"

"No——"

The Grass Dragon stopped, controlled the spider silk ropes tying the goods, untied them, and unloaded bags one after another while explaining:

"Last early winter at the Dulai Flame Spider Tribe gathering, Lupine and I secretly observed White Ivy and Yellow Peach. Judging from how high they bounced as they walked, we figured they'd made a lot of profit, and a lot at that."

After the joke, they got down to business.

The Grass Dragon said seriously, "So, Lupine and I talked it over, figured the Origin Force Honey business could work, and decided to give it a try. We also had Yellow Peach Mountain Lord make us 30 metal cans, got a bottle of Bee King Jelly. This year, we're making 30 cans of Bee King Honey, priced at 1,000 source stones per can, only aiming for comprehensive physique enhancement for now. As for flavor and aroma, whichever kind sells best on White Ivy's end, bring that. I'll take it back to the Ten-thousand Tribes Continent and hand it to Lupine, who can help promote it along with her roving trade."

The Grass Dragon asked, "Dragon Cypress, you trade with White Ivy, right? Got leftover Origin Force Food?"

Dragon Cypress: "Yes."

Dragon Cypress: "But not much left. White Ivy has started settling up with me using Spider King Silk Scrolls too."

Grass Dragon: "I figured you really need source stones here, so I brought extra over."

The Grass Dragon opened four large spider silk bags one by one, brimful of glittering source stones: "A neat 4,000 pieces. As a Level 4 high-level Flame Spider roving merchant, I can only carry this much in one trip."

The Grass Dragon then opened several medium and small spider silk bags, each packed with different kinds of Origin Force Food.

"At purchase price, giving you a fair price, the total is worth 12,000 source stones. Dragon Cypress, check it over."

Dragon Cypress gave everything a quick look, nodded his tentacle, and said, "No problem."

Grass Dragon: "Will the Origin Force Food be enough?"

Dragon Cypress: "30 cans will definitely be plenty."

Grass Dragon: "Good! I'll give you 8 Spider Silk Scrolls too."

The Grass Dragon looked at the petite spider silk bag Dragon Cypress carried with him.

Dragon Cypress handed it over, saying, "Melde's Divine-GivenFruit-scented Orchid Seeds, 500 grains, help deliver them over there."

"That's what Melde wants too. 5,000 source stones. 5 Spider Silk Scrolls?"

The Grass Dragon took the bag, opened it for a glance, carefully stowed it away, then counted out 13 Spider Silk Scrolls with a 1,000-source-stone denomination and gave them to Dragon Cypress.

Settling the accounts first.

"As for the Ten-thousand Tribes Continent, Lupine will cover that side. Next year, Melde and I will come over together. Dragon Cypress, figure out whether you need source stones or Origin Force Food more? Whatever you need, that's what I'll bring."

Dragon Cypress waved the Spider King Silk Scroll and said, "…I need both pretty badly."

Dragon Cypress hesitated for a bit, then said helplessly, "But mainly, let's focus on transporting Origin Force Food. As for source stones, bring as much as you can.

Both White Ivy and the Grass Dragon had pretty limited carrying capacity.

As transaction volumes rose, he'd inevitably receive more and more Spider King Silk Scrolls in the future.

Deep in Cloud Trace Continent, Dragon Cypress only had two ways to use Spider King Silk Scrolls.

First, find Seven-Leaf or Melde to buy high-priced Origin Force Food.

Second, once enough scrolls were saved up, find a caravan, pay them a hefty reward, and have them run a dedicated trip to bring over a large shipment of source stones. The Spider King Silk Scrolls would be exchanged for source stones that he could actually use.

There was also a third option—using them for future payment when buying a 'One-Glimpse Fruit'.

...

Dragon Cypress called Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple over to help. After several busy trips, they moved everything to the Rednan Mountain Ant Nest.

Two hundred Blue Ants spent half a day to brew 30 cans of Origin Force Honey.

"Grass Dragon, sorry to keep you waiting."

"Not at all. Your speed is enough to boggle any spider."

"Ha~ha~"

Dragon Cypress handed over Ant Honey one can at a time through the cracks.

Grass Dragon took out a bottle of Bee King Jelly, used a spider silk rope to dab it, opened each metal can in turn, applied it evenly, twisted each can back and forth to seal, and finished the packaging.

"Is the Bee King Jelly supply stable?"

"Not for now. White Ivy is searching everywhere for it, too. We're competitors. It's my elder, so I have to give way."

The Grass Dragon always had a way of making things funny.

Dragon Cypress chuckled and continued,

"No worries. I'll help you find a way."

"What way could you possibly have?"

"You'll see soon enough."

"When is soon enough?"

"Whenever you're short on Bee King Jelly."

"I'm short right now."

"Couldn't tell."

"Alright, let's get down to business."

The Grass Dragon paused, chose his words, and said seriously: "Last end of autumn, just when the One-Glimpse Fruit ripened, at the early winter tribal gathering, lots of spiders were discussing it. Lupine and I sniffed out some details."

"Last year, the auction closed at 3.5 million source stones. Three old Insect Kings were bidding for it, all for the same reason: to revert their Divine-Given Seed into seed form and pass it down to their juniors."

Dragon Cypress: "…That's a bit expensive."

"A bit expensive? Only a bit?"

The Grass Dragon kept sealing up Origin Force Honey, sighing, "Dragon Cypress, you've grown so fast! Three million source stones don't even faze you anymore."

Dragon Cypress: "I mean, compared to the benefits, 3.5 million source stones is worth it."

The Grass Dragon analyzed seriously, "You must be rushing to use it once you reach Evolution Mountain Lord Level, right? If you can't put together that many source stones, you'll have to borrow from Spider King Spurge and Aconite Spider King, right?"

"For large loans, even at a friendly rate, that's three percent. Just the annual interest alone is 100,000 source stones. How many years would it take for you to pay off the principal and interest?"

For this, Dragon Cypress had done the math long ago, and answered calmly, "It's not a big problem."

Dragon Cypress changed the subject and asked, "Grass Dragon, you roam the continents, know a lot—got a question for you."

Grass Dragon: "Ask away."

Dragon Cypress: "For big places like 'Crown Mountain', there's got to be more than one wild Divine-Given Seed, right?"

Grass Dragon: "Not many, five. But every single one is a top-level arbor."

Dragon Cypress: "Uh…"

Grass Dragon explained in detail, "Ordinary Divine-Given Seeds are all grown by tribal warriors into Life Seeds. Great tribes like that only choose the absolute best Divine-Given Seeds, plant them to become wild Divine-Given Seeds, pour tons of resources into them, and build them up as the backbone of their tribe's long prosperity."

So that's how it is?

Thinking about it, the logic was easy enough to understand.

Dragon Cypress asked again, "So have you ever heard, for a wild Divine-Given Seed that's reached at least Mountain Lord Level, any way to survive the long Origin Force Silent Period without dying?"

Grass Dragon: "???"

Grass Dragon: "I say, Dragon Cypress Ant King, isn't that a pretty weird question?"

Dragon Cypress waited for a bit but got no more reply, guessing Grass Dragon had never heard of anything like that. So he deftly changed the subject, saying:

"Doesn't your Dulai Flame Spider Tribe send a little warrior over every year to check out the Origin Force conditions in Cloud Trace Continent? On the Ten-thousand Tribes and Wan Country continents, lots of insects are worried about the Silent Period, right? I'm also thinking—should I try cultivating a wild Divine-Given Seed, leave something for my juniors."

"Juniors?"

"Blue Catalpa and Snakebark Maple?"

"Or are you planning to raise a new Ant King in the future? Dragon Cypress, as I understand, you're not exactly an ant with a strong clan spirit."

The Grass Dragon was no pushover, immediately following up with suspicion: "Have you run into something big? Did you find a tribal relic from the previous Origin Force Era in Cloud Trace Continent? That can't be right. Those areas bordering the Divine Force Barrier have been dug over and searched by the Ant Clan countless times. There's no leftover stuff for you to find."

Dragon Cypress: "Grass Dragon, you're overthinking. Just a random thought, just asking."

Dragon Cypress didn't plan to tell Grass Dragon about the Dominating Throne just yet. He sped up, handed over the cans, and urged:

"It's getting late, Grass Dragon. You should head back to your caravan soon, spare White Ivy some worrying."

"White Ivy? It would worry?"

The Grass Dragon reacted strongly, then quickly calmed down, grumbling, "Dragon Cypress, you're changing the subject! You're hiding something from me."

"No."

Dragon Cypress replied, neither too heavy nor too light.

"Forget it."

The Grass Dragon was disappointed. "Guess I'm not a real friend to you!"

Grass Dragon: "Actually, about your question, I do know a thing or two…"

Dragon Cypress: "Go on."

Grass Dragon: "Last year, Melde mentioned to Spider King Spurge that you needed a 'One-Glimpse Fruit', and needed to relocate a Divine-Given Seed. Spider King Spurge immediately called out you were lying! You're not an honest Ant King at all."

Dragon Cypress: "…"

Grass Dragon: "Surprised? White Ivy told Spider King Spurge all about the Scarletlight Divine-Given Seed long ago. The moment Spurge heard you needed a 'One-Glimpse Fruit', it knew exactly what you were up to."

Dragon Cypress: "…"

Dragon Cypress: "I knew it. White Ivy can't keep a secret."

Dragon Cypress: "Anything else?"

Grass Dragon: "About the One-Glimpse Fruit, Spider King Spurge still agreed to help. And while at it, it explained a few Divine-Given Seed secrets to Melde and me that most insects don't know."

Dragon Cypress perked up his tentacles and waited for more.

Grass Dragon: "If necessary, King-Level Divine-Given Seeds have two ways of being relocated. First is mostly for great tall tree types—they gather their soul and all their strength in the center of their stump, forming a Tree Heart. It can be cut out, transplanted somewhere else, buried, and with enough time and source stones, it'll regrow."

"Second is a rare ability of a very few Divine-Given Seeds, mostly herbaceous plants. They'll condense their soul and all power into a single seed as they flower and bear fruit—similar to how the Flame Spider Tribe handles their Life Seeds. Also much like the effect of a 'One-Glimpse Fruit.'"

"The two methods are different in form, but there's no essential difference."

Grass Dragon: "What you want to know is, can a wild Divine-Given Seed survive the Origin Force Silent Period in a 'Tree Heart' or 'Seed' state, right? In an Origin Force vacuum, it's impossible. Whether it's in seed or tree heart form, they're both alive, and living Origin Force Life must burn origin force to sustain vitality."

Grass Dragon: "Dragon Cypress, did you find the Tree Heart or seed of a wild Divine-Given Seed from a tribe of the last Origin Force Era?"

Grass Dragon: "Or… not quite. You've never seen a Tree Heart or seed, otherwise you wouldn't ask it this way…"

The Grass Dragon sorted out the clues, feeling just a step away from the truth, racking his brains and calculating.

Dragon Cypress answered unhurriedly, "Grass Dragon, your biggest problem as a spider is overthinking everything. It actually stunts your growth. That's a flaw, you should fix it."

"Learn from White Ivy Mountain Lord—if you can avoid thinking, then don't think. Happy and worry-free is best."

Dragon Cypress: "And one more small question. Can Divine-Given Seed exuviae be bought or sold?"

"What?"

The Grass Dragon was startled, instantly thinking of many things. "You guys found a wild Divine-Given Seed corpse? Some old tribe's relic from the Origin Force Era in Cloud Trace Continent?"

Dragon Cypress was vague: "Something like that."

Grass Dragon: "The Tree Heart? Is there one?"

Dragon Cypress: "All that's left is a bunch of broken branch fragments… didn't see a Tree Heart, I'll look for it again later."

Grass Dragon: "Check carefully! If the force environment is right, there's some chance it survived."

Grass Dragon: "Divine-Given Seed exuviae makes great fertilizer, really good for Life Seed Plants. Best keep it for yourself."

The Grass Dragon rarely grew serious. "I happen to know a little. This stuff can't be traded, for two reasons. First, if Divine-Given Seed remains could be bought and sold, then every Insect Clan Warrior with a God-Given Life Seed would be living in fear, always on guard against being killed and robbed by other warriors."

Dragon Cypress remarked, "Just like the 'One-Glimpse Flower' thing."

Grass Dragon: "…Exactly."

Grass Dragon: "Same basic logic."

The Grass Dragon thought it over and spoke in a grave tone: "Second, Divine-Given Seeds are all awakened, sentient lives, protected by the Natural God. Trading in their corpses for profit would bring Nature's punishment. Anyway, for us in the Dulai Flame Spider Tribe, that's a line we won't cross."

"Alright—"

Dragon Cypress, disappointed, said, "Nothing more. Don't ask. Off you go. See you next year."

PS: Plot needs, some settings have changed from my cockroach story, readers who've read it, don't worry about it.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.