EP.4
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【Acacia Fire Ant】
Its scientific name is Titanomyrma.
This ant measures about 2 cm in length and possesses an aggressive nature.
Though larger than other ants, their population is small. However, the potency of their formic acid is also stronger than that of ordinary ants, making them not to be underestimated.
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Formic Acid?
I hurriedly swept the leaves aside and concealed myself.
Screech!
The branch I was on had visibly cracked.
What the hell.
Seeing the smoke, I sensed that a direct hit would not end with just pain.
Fortunately, it seemed that they couldn’t use their formic acid continuously.
I seized the chance while they were regrouping.
Though the ant was larger than others, it was meaningless in front of me.
It wasn’t much different from dealing with aphids.
Smash!
The ones crushed under my foot ceased to breathe while I quickly gulped down the rest.
An ant is still an ant.
But I couldn’t let my guard down.
Ants communicate using pheromones. If it left a mark, countless ants would rush in.
Hoping it hadn’t released any pheromones, I activated my sprint.
The energy of the wind enveloped my body.
Having reached level 6, I had become embarrassingly strong compared to before.
I dashed across the branches with ruthless speed.
It might have looked like I was just hopping back and forth, but the effect was astounding.
Splat.
The ants crushed underfoot burst apart.
Before long, I had caught the gaze of every ant I laid eyes on.
If this had been where things ended, I would have felt fantastic.
I could have thought of it as a free experience points event and slept soundly after a delightful snack.
However, the commotion was not over yet.
【Acacia Fire Ant LV3】
【Acacia Fire Ant LV1】
【Acacia Fire Ant LV2】
….
A black wave was visible.
Ants were climbing the branch, gathered in such numbers that counting them became a challenge.
They easily surpassed double digits and were nearing triple digits.
What was even more frightening was that this wasn’t the end. More and more ants were swarming up the trunk of the tree.
It was impossible to keep track of how many there were.
There’s no winning by being surrounded.
Even if I took them down one by one, it would be impossible to contend with their numbers.
If even one out of ten managed to shoot formic acid before being killed, I would end up coated in it and meet my demise.
The only word that flashed through my mind was one.
Run.
The best option was to escape this place.
There was no reason to stay here. I had made a decent nest, but I hadn’t formed any attachment to it. It wasn’t worth my life.
However, escaping was also not an option.
Because the ant’s bodily fluids were smeared all over me.
Even if I tried to run, they would pursue me relentlessly.
I had only one method open to me.
To take down every single one of them.
But that was practically impossible.
It was beyond the capabilities of a level 6 gecko lizard.
The black wave was approaching right before me.
There was little time to ponder.
‘…Sprint.’
Once again, the energy of the wind merged with my body.
I dashed toward them at full speed.
It was do or die.
Countless ants perished beneath my feet.
The faster I ran, the slower I became. The ants embedded their jaws into my legs even as they died. I could shake them off by stamping my feet, but my speed was impeded.
They intertwined their bodies, creating a natural barricade.
It seemed they knew I was trying to escape.
But if they thought they could block me with such a low height, they were sorely mistaken.
I tightened my thighs. Adopting a posture to minimize air resistance, I slammed into the ground.
Whoosh.
I was a flying lizard.
I successfully leaped into the air, soaring over the barrier of ants.
Farewell, little ants.
I glanced back slightly.
Surprisingly, they began crossing over to where I was.
They were creating legs with their bodies and traversing the branches without jumping.
What a bunch of unbelievable creatures.
The ants likely saw this as an efficient strategy. In fact, it truly was. Anyone witnessing such a large number of enemies advancing simultaneously would want to flee.
However, my blood ran cold. Instead of succumbing to fear, I thought about what would be the most effective action.
I meticulously observed the movements of the ants climbing atop each other.
The moment the leader reached the branch I was on, I leaped and whipped my thick tail.
Thwack!
They were annihilated, quite literally. I severed the middle of their legs, causing numerous ants to plummet to the ground. They likely wouldn’t have died, but they would find it difficult to return to the battlefield for a while.
I continued to obstruct their movements.
Whenever they formed legs, I smashed them.
Yet, the ants seemed to learn, reducing the thickness of their bridges while increasing their numbers. It became impossible for me alone to destroy all the bridges.
Without hesitation, I moved on.
My strategy was just beginning.
The ants charged fiercely.
Their jaws barely grazed my skin, allowing formic acid to seep in through the cracks.
It stung fiercely. The moment I hesitated, I would be met with a terrible death.
I swung my tail to prevent them from clinging onto me.
Raising my head slightly, I focused on the location I had been contemplating from the start.
I adjusted my speed to lure the ants without them noticing.
“Kyieeek!”
The place I drew them to was none other than the nest of Nephila Jurassica.
She appeared startled by my sudden entrance along with the horde of ants.
However, that moment of surprise was fleeting. Perhaps angered by the thought of losing food and having her home threatened, she prepared for battle, swinging her long legs.
The ants were similarly taken aback by the sudden strong opponent, yet they rushed toward the spider upon seeing the scattered corpses of aphids nearby.
Of course, some of them still clung to me, but their numbers were very few.
They left just the minimum amount of troops to attach to me, while most of their forces rushed for the spider’s web.
They instinctively understood that they needed to deal with the suspiciously large spider first instead of me, a mere gecko lizard.
“Kyieek!”
I let out a sigh of relief.
I commended myself for not targeting Nephila Jurassica.
If I had fought her, I would have been dead within three seconds.
The power of that spider was overwhelming.
Smash!
Just a brush of her long legs could cleave an ant in half.
Moreover, being in her web made her even more formidable.
The ants couldn’t even reach her body, being crushed beneath her legs.
I focused on dispatching the ants charging at me while observing the battlefield.
If this continued, it was bound to be the spider’s victory.
Good. I thought about leveling up by devouring the stragglers left behind.
With that mindset, I prowled around the area.
However, the situation quickly turned on its head.
There were far more ants than I had anticipated.
A massive number of ants surged in like a black wave.
While those that touched the web became the spider’s meal, it was only temporary.
The moment I missed one ant, another climbed onto its back, stepping over its own kind instead of the sticky web to approach Nephila.
“Keeek!”
One of the mindless ones seemed angered after devouring all the aphids and had no intention of retreating.
They charged relentlessly, disregarding their own lives, willing to die just to allow the next ant to get a little closer.
The spider fought remarkably well, but at this rate, the outcome was obvious.
…Could she really lose?
I thought it was best to flee without hesitation.
If the ants were aggroed toward me, escaping might just be feasible.
If I plunged into a nearby pond, the bodily fluids would likely wash away.
It was unfortunate for the spider, but there was no alternative.
This was the wild.
In a situation where I was barely hanging on, I had no luxury to assist someone else.
…
“Gegegek!”
I let out a valiant roar and rushed toward the spider.
Using my tail, I detached the ants clinging to her legs. I stomped on one preparing to spray formic acid and let out a roar.
“Gekgek!”
Pull yourself together, spider.
If you die, I won’t be able to steal any bugs to eat.
The sudden entrance seemed to bewilder the ants.
Nephila Jurassica shared in that confusion.
However, that confusion didn’t last long.
The ants recognized me as an enemy and began to attack.
“Keeek!”
And there stood Nephila Jurassica to block them.
She leaped down from her web.
Utilizing her long legs, she began to stomp down on the advancing ants indiscriminately.
A legion of ants surged forth, and a lone spider along with a lizard held their ground against them.
Once again, the tide of battle shifted.
Nephila Jurassica raised one of her legs and lightly tapped me.
Even without words, I understood.
“I still haven’t forgiven you.”
She was surely uttering some cliché line in the heat of the moment.
I raised a leg in response.
I had only one thing to say.
“Stay quiet, I’m coming now…!”
*
The general leading the fire ants, Sharp Jaw, caught wind of a certain pheromone.
It was the grim news that the aphids he had been nurturing had all perished. Sharp Jaw hurriedly climbed the tree along with his soldiers.
What he discovered was a lizard peacefully sleeping while scratching its belly.
Sharp Jaw issued orders to his subordinates to deal with the lizard and went off to scout elsewhere. It was an efficient way of handling things; he didn’t believe such a lizard could defeat his vanguard.
However, that was his mistake.
Upon returning from his reconnaissance, his eyes fell upon the corpses of the vanguard.
The dozing lizard, resting with a peculiar posture, was now walking on its hind legs despite its short stature.
Moreover, its speed was incredibly swift.
It toyed with Sharp Jaw’s enraged troops, attacking them with cunning precision.
The intelligence displayed by the lizard was far beyond anything he had ever seen before.
Sharp Jaw was a seasoned commander who had faced countless battles.
He recognized his blunder and decided to split his forces.
Seeing the ants shift their formation, the lizard immediately took flight.
Sharp Jaw was beside himself with fury. The lizard acted as though it was above him, a veteran commander. Though frustrated, he knew that letting personal emotions cloud his judgment was a grave mistake.
With gritted teeth, Sharp Jaw chased after the lizard.
And there, he unexpectedly encountered the queen of this tree.
The last opponent he wanted to face.
Yet, there lay the scattered corpses of the aphids around him.
Retreat was not an option.
Resolved to face death, he poured all his forces into the fight.
The once impenetrable movements of the spider began to falter.
Just as he thought it was almost over, the peculiar lizard intervened once more.
After detaching the soldiers that clung to the spider’s body, it started to fight alongside her.
Sharp Jaw couldn’t shake off his uneasy feeling.
This battle seemed more difficult than any he had faced before.
Even during the grand operation to steal Oviraptor’s eggs, or when hunting the injured Microraptor, he hadn’t felt this anxious.
Thoughts of defeat loomed at the end of this battle, a notion that should not have crossed the mind of a commander.
Sharp Jaw raised his jaw high.
He was an old veteran. What once was his pride, his formidable jaw, had dulled over the years.
Yet he was still Sharp Jaw.
As his jaw grew dull, his wisdom sharpened.
Both the spider and the lizard were formidable fighters, but it was not without their openings.
He noticed that they weren’t familiar with each other’s movements.
Internal discord. As a seasoned general, he wouldn’t let such an opportunity slip by.
Sharp Jaw released pheromones, momentarily holding his troops back.
At that moment, the foes began to clash with each other, as if waiting for it.
With silent movement, he stealthily maneuvered his elite troops behind them.
“Gegegek!”
“Keeek!!”
At the moment their brawl intensified, he charged forward with his elite soldiers.
It was an opening.
Whoosh!
And in that instant, his world began to spin.
What in the world was happening?
His questions were soon answered.
The elite soldiers who had followed him were now beheaded, their bodies cleaved in thirds, soaring into the sky. Sharp Jaw realized he had met the same fate as his comrades.
“Gekgek!”
“Keckek!”
The spider and the lizard cried out simultaneously.
The ants couldn’t comprehend their words.
However, the meaning of their cries was vaguely understood.
Interference.
Wouldn’t that have been what they were saying?
Sharp Jaw trembled his legs.
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