No way it's such a coincidence—they just evolved and immediately obtained a Divine-Given Seed, and it's even a wind element ability enhancement that matches the Long Shield Grasshopper Tribe's talent.

Dragon Cypress immediately thought of the extra-large metal case used for preserving Azure Tree Seeds.

Most likely, Huagi Mountain has similar Outworld Civilization Artifacts that can preserve plant seeds for an extremely long time.

During the Origin Force Silent Period, stranded as an Origin Force Isolated Island, with no chance to evolve further, not even the Divine-Given Seeds could help. So, the Divine-Given Seeds harvested by generations of Shield Grasshopper Warriors while managing their territory were never used, just stored up.

After more than five thousand years of accumulation, how many Divine-Given Seeds have they hoarded?

—As Ant Clan members, it's perfectly reasonable to occasionally dabble in a bit of killing and looting, isn't it?

Dragon Cypress was getting fed up.

But looking at Ink Orchid beside him…

...

Dragon Cypress fully understood Yellow Stem's mentality. It needed Source Stones, Origin Force Food, and life-extending Divine-Grade Fruit. No insect isn't afraid of death; given the chance, Yellow Stem would surely want to evolve to an even higher level.

But there are just too many good things on Huagi Mountain, so Yellow Stem doesn't dare to trust Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid lightly.

However, Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid were out of patience to keep circling around Yellow Stem.

"Source Stones are not an issue. However many you want, the Flame Spider Roving Merchants can bring them over, as long as you pay enough for it."

After Dragon Cypress finished, he simply asked, "Yellow Stem, Ink Orchid and I explored the ruins at Xinghu Lake and Maple Poplar Lake and found some things; at the same time, we have some questions. Could you help answer our doubts?"

Yellow Stem: "Sounds like you didn't find any Source Stones."

Yellow Stem: "Ask me anything, I'll answer it all."

"Good!" Dragon Cypress jumped onto the Throne, picked up two long strips of broken wood, leapt down, and placed them on the ground, aligning them to reveal a smooth, oval-shaped groove.

"Yellow Stem, Spruce, do you recognize this?"

"Yes."

"Of course."

Yellow Stem and Spruce leaned in to take a look.

Spruce: "Cypress wood. Remnants of some Cypress Divine-Given Seed."

Yellow Stem: "This is near the Tree Heart. Wild Divine-Given Seeds from King-Level and above Cypresses can concentrate soul and all strength into one point—the 'Tree Heart.' This remnant is from where the Tree Heart formed."

Dragon Cypress: "But we didn't find the Tree Heart."

Ink Orchid: "The place marked as Maple Poplar on the Knowledge Hall map is now called Black Lotus Lake. Dragon Cypress and I also found the ruins where the Stealth Beetle Tribe and Blackwing used to live, but found nothing."

Yellow Stem: "As expected—"

Yellow Stem bowed his head, antennae touching the smooth groove of the wooden strips, then raised his claw in invitation, saying, "Let's go deeper into the cave to talk."

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid hesitated briefly, then followed.

Yellow Stem led the way, bringing them into the treasure vault where Origin Force Food was stored, stood in front of the cabinet door, considered for a moment in silence, then asked:

"Dragon Cypress, Ink Orchid, have you ever wondered—does the Insect King represent the ultimate limit of evolution?"

Ink Orchid: "9th Age Insect Kings will leave the Origin Force Star Realm."

Yellow Stem: "Uh—"

Yellow Stem choked for two seconds, then said, "Looks like you know more than I thought. No need for me to rattle on, then."

Yellow Stem: "Once the Origin Force Silent Period begins, the Natural Star Realm's running laws shift, making the conditions for an Insect King to leave the Origin Force Star Realm easier to meet. The lower the natural Origin Force concentration, the lower the requirement to leave. In the end, once an Insect Clan Warrior reaches King-Level evolution, they're allowed to leave. And those King-Level Wild Divine-Given Seeds naturally leave as Tree Hearts or seeds along with the Insect King. Staying means certain death."

That's almost exactly as they suspected!

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid's antennae stood upright, quietly awaiting the rest.

Yellow Stem: "Beneath this treasury there are over a hundred more storage vaults, sealed away are the tree bodies shed by the three Divine Trees—Huagi, Quandong, and Linnan—as well as their… Tree Hearts!"

Divine Trees?

Three of them!!!

Dragon Cypress noticed Yellow Stem's shift in wording and couldn't help asking, "You mentioned the Natural Star Realm has some kind of law?"

Yellow Stem: "Law means a rule that governs the world… rules set by the Natural True God."

Dragon Cypress: "Where did the Insect Kings who left go?"

Yellow Stem: "No idea. The vault below has murals—our Shield Grasshopper Tribe had many ancestors who, upon reaching the evolutionary limit and sensing the Origin Force Star Realm Law, either left of their own will or were forced out. After leaving, none ever returned. No insect knows where they went or what happened to them."

Yellow Stem: "When Cloud Trace Continent entered the Origin Force Silent Period, the triggering conditions of that law fell lower and lower as the continent's Origin Force concentration dropped. According to the murals, many Insect Kings from Huagi Mountain disappeared one after another. When the law's set time comes, insects just vanish into thin air."

Dragon Cypress: "!!!"

"Oh—" Ink Orchid immediately pressed, "Then those three 'Divine Trees' you mentioned, why didn't they leave?"

Yellow Stem: "The Origin Force Star Realm also has another law: Every Origin Force Life form can reach up to 9th Age King-Level, but can't break through to the next Life Level. That's one of the reasons everyone has to leave."

Dragon Cypress: "!!!"

Ink Orchid: "!!!"

Yellow Stem hesitated, then asked, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, Ink Orchid, did you pass through the Starship Wreckage cutting across the land, bypass the border barrier set down by the Natural God, and trade with the Flame Spider Roving Merchants?"

Ink Orchid: "Yes."

Yellow Stem asked, "You found the Dominating Throne inside the Starship, right?"

"No way—" Ink Orchid wanted to claim it was a Natural Godsend, but doubted Yellow Stem would believe such a lie.

Dragon Cypress admitted straightforwardly, "That's right. We picked it up."

Yellow Stem: "To the east of Cloud Trace Continent is a neighboring land called 'Dragon Bamboo Continent.' Long ago, there was also a Starship Wreckage stretching through, linking Cloud Trace and Dragon Bamboo. Our Shield Grasshopper Tribe ancestors saw it fall from the Outworld and immediately went to investigate, bringing back loads of Outworld Civilization Artifacts."

Dragon Cypress instantly understood, "So, your Shield Grasshopper Tribe ancestors also picked up treasures about the same level as the 'Dominating Throne'?"

Yellow Stem: "That's right."

Yellow Stem: "Three bird egg-shaped metal spheres. But they're not for Insect Clan Warriors—they can only be used by Wild Divine-Given Seeds, and the user has to be King-Level. Once used, they fuse with their Tree Heart."

Yellow Stem: "They have a variety of functions, but the most important is in shielding from the laws."

Ink Orchid: "Shielding from the laws?"

Yellow Stem: "It means you won't be restricted by the Natural God Realm, and can break through your limits and keep evolving upward!"

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid were absolutely stunned.

After a very long time,

Dragon Cypress: "So they stayed behind, existing as seeds in Huagi Mountain's deepest vaults, waiting for the next Origin Force Era to arrive."

Yellow Stem: "Yes. And no."

Yellow Stem: "The three Divine Trees stayed behind to protect Huagi Mountain's unbroken legacy. In fact, after the Origin Force Silent Period began, our Shield Grasshopper Tribe had many instances of our warriors dying out. The solution was: if a warrior was about to die of old age and no new warriors had been raised, the Huagi Divine Tree would be taken out, planted, and grown into a great tree, waiting for a new Shield Grasshopper Warrior to appear and inherit the knowledge."

Dragon Cypress: "Then why not remain as great trees all the time?"

Yellow Stem: "The Land of Origin Force is too small, can't support it."

Yellow Stem asked, "Dragon Cypress Ant King, Ink Orchid, do you understand now why I'm using the term 'Divine Tree'?"

—We understand!

—You've made it perfectly clear.

Dragon Cypress and Ink Orchid both nodded their antennae in unison.

Yellow Stem: "Also, their evolution is so advanced that their daily Origin Force requirements are enormous. Huagi Mountain's Origin Force Point can't supply enough, so they have to stay dormant as Tree Hearts, waiting."

Yellow Stem: "Every time we awaken any one of them, plant the seed, and nurture it to grow, it burns through a colossal amount of Source Stones."

Dragon Cypress: "Roughly how many Source Stones are needed?"

Yellow Stem: "To nurture it into a full tree, it takes about 5 million Source Stones. Then, daily consumption runs at about 300 to 500 Source Stones per day. If you want them to flower and bear fruit, that'll cost even more, and the number varies."

Yellow Stem: "There's another big expense… the Natural Laws will forcibly remove any being in the Star Realm that exceeds King-Level. The Divine Trees can't act recklessly—if they attempt evolution breakthroughs, fruiting, fighting and so on, they risk exposure and triggering the law. At that point, it takes huge amounts of Origin Force to resist the law."

Ink Orchid: "Impressive!"

Dragon Cypress: "..."

What's so impressive about that?

This year, the Source Stone stockpile in Xianglan Mountain Ant Nest is up to 29,000 pieces, and even Dragon Cypress was feeling great, thinking it was abundant and well-off.

Just once would take five million?

Not to mention daily expenses and the extra costs?

Dragon Cypress felt an urge to just turn around and leave.

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