Chapter 1 - 1 Chapter 1 This Ant Queen is Extraordinary_1 (1/2)

1 Chapter 1 This Ant Queen is Extraordinary_1

Translator: 549690339

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The rainstorm raged for two full days, puncturing the ground with countless holes, before it finally began to relent.

Faint blushes of evening glow appeared at the edge of the sky as the cries of cicadas came in waves.

A lithe teenager, about sixteen or seventeen, ran barefoot on the muddy path, splashing mud with every step towards the mountains behind the village.

“Ah Niu, it’s getting dark. Don’t go up the mountain, or the tigers will eat you,” someone called out.

“It’s not just the tigers, there are also ghosts and goblins!” another added.

The boy ignored the well-meaning advice and occasionally looked up at the sky.

Then he continued running toward the mountains.

The villagers shook their heads and sighed; they thought the child might be cursed.

What a sin for a child without parents!

Boys cherished by their parents would already be negotiating marriages and warming beds with pretty wives at his age.

Yet for Ah Niu, even food and clothing were problems.

The teenager didn’t look back as he ran along the uneven mountain path into the chilling quietude of the mountains.

He climbed a large tree with agile, monkey-like movements.

Then he waited quietly and patiently.

Time trickled away, the sky dimmed, and dusk was about to fall.

His clear, shining black eyes stared intently at the open space above a weeds-filled field ahead, his gaze steadfast and determined.

“Buzz, buzz, buzz…”

Countless tiny dark shadows flowed from all directions in the air, dancing above the open field of weeds.

This was a large swarm of termites, their bodies white or brown.

They blanketed the sky, their numbers astonishing.

Qin Niu’s expression grew more focused as he carefully watched the swirling ants. Every year this season, after a heavy rain at dusk, large swarms of termites would emerge from their nests, gather, and pursue one another to select mates.

This phenomenon was known as the mating flight.

“The last one I picked starved to death before the first batch of worker ants grew up; this time, I must select the best one,” he muttered to himself.

He did not rush but instead patiently sought out the strongest and most promising female from the swarm.

At that moment, he was like an expert hunter.

After the termites had freely found their ‘marriage’ partners, they landed on the ground to complete the act of mating.

After the act, some of the male and female termites would go their separate ways. Others would find a good spot to dig a nest, then seal the entrance, consummating their matrimony in privacy, forming a lifelong monogamous pair. However, the lifespan of a King Ant was much shorter than that of the Ant Queen, so he would eventually be replaced.

These breeder ants lacked both the ability to forage and to feed on their own, necessitating feeding from worker ants, and the vast majority of male ants would die within a few hours to several days.

The female ants would become ‘Ant Queens’ in waiting; they needed to find a suitable place quickly to build a rudimentary nest that could shield them from the elements and hide them from predators, then begin laying eggs, raising their offspring, and building their Termite Kingdom.

This process was exceedingly dangerous; out of ten thousand wannabe ‘Ant Queens,’ perhaps only one or two would successfully create a kingdom.

Qin Niu’s gaze settled on a robust female, her belly round and full.

Her substantial size made her stand out from the other females, and not just a little bit.

This one was quickly abandoned by him.

During the mate selection process, she performed a fancy roll in the air.

Squandering her strength recklessly showed a profound foolishness. It indicated that the female had no vision and had not considered the long-term survival of her Kingdom.

The first time he had chosen a female, he chose one of these ‘brainless’ ones.

As a result, the queen had died of starvation even before the first batch of worker larvae could mature.

He was looking for a female with foresight, one who knew how to be thrifty.

However, such a wise female was extremely hard to find.

After swiftly giving up on the largest female, Qin Niu quickly sought a new target.

Time continued to slip away.

He abandoned one female after another when they showed any less-than-perfect traits.

The sky gradually grew dark.

Anxiety started to stir within him as his vision would soon deteriorate, making it impossible to see clearly at longer distances.

If he missed this chance, he might have to wait until next year.

In the night, he spotted a diminutive white termite perched on the back of a larger one.

Could such a small male find a mating partner?

In nature, weak males had no right to reproduce. The strong could have multiple mates, while the weak might die alone.

This was the brutal law of survival of the fittest.

He peered closer, no, the tiny one on top was not male, but female.

A female termite so small? Far too weak.

After mating, the petite female exerted herself to break off her wings with her front legs. This was to conserve unnecessary energy expenditure and also to reduce the chance of being spotted by predators.

Because from the moment she left on her mating flight, leaving her original colony behind, there would be no worker ants to feed her.

She would have to starve until she laid eggs and nurtured the first batch of workers.

Only when the first generation of workers matured and was sent out to forage, returning to feed her, would she have a chance to eat again.

If she didn’t last that long, she would starve to death.

Thus, it was essential to conserve every bit of energy.