Ant Lord in the Star Realm-Chapter 472 - 452: The Divine-Grade White Poplar Fruit Matures, Reversing Fate

Chapter 472: Chapter 452: The Divine-Grade White Poplar Fruit Matures, Reversing Fate

Late autumn.

Purple Tung Insect Nation.

The first batch of six White Poplar Divine Seeds had entered the final stage of ripening and harvest.

Dragon Cypress, Ink Orchid, Yellow Stem, Spruce, Giant Cypress, Round Cypress, Black Leaf, and Black Birch had all gathered.

Red Moonseed and Chinese Clematis had also been brought over to observe and gain insight.

Barley Bug Warrior Wuye and Pueraria came to join in the excitement as well.

The golden sunset slowly sank into the western mountains.

A silver-white crescent moon appeared faintly on the eastern skyline.

All the insects exercised patience, quietly waiting.

Suddenly, Ink Orchid stood up, raised its wings, gently patted Dragon Cypress’s carapace, and waggled its tentacles toward the big tree ahead.

"It’s starting."

Carefully sensing, the rate at which the White Poplar Divine Seed was absorbing Origin Force seemed to have sped up.

Calming down and waiting, the speed of Origin Force absorption was clearly increasing.

"It’s starting!"

Dragon Cypress stood up, flapped its wings in signal. "Everyone, fall back!"

The insects gathered under the tree all got up at once, standing three hundred meters away to watch from a distance.

"White Poplar, don’t hold back, use up all the Primordial Energy you’ve stored in Glinting Gold."

Dragon Cypress gave this final reminder before running off.

The speed at which the White Poplar Divine Seed absorbed Natural Primordial Force became ever faster; as night fell, it suddenly intensified, forming an Origin Force vacuum around the trunk, rapidly spreading outwards.

Taking the advice, White Poplar immediately deployed the Origin Force and energy stored inside Glinting Gold, stabilizing the violent Origin Force fluctuations. The range of the Origin Force vacuum halted within thirty meters of the trunk.

The fruits on the tree turned from blue to green, then from green to yellow. A pale yellow hue blushed with faint orange-red. In the black night, on six fruits, white Origin Force patterns flickered with incandescent light, illuminating everything beneath the tree.

Deep into the night, a unique fragrance, both tart and bitter, wafted through the forest, stirring excitement among the watching ant colonies.

The White Poplar Divine Seed suddenly erupted; the range of the Origin Force vacuum rapidly expanded by another twenty or thirty meters before calming down after a short while.

Gradually, everything settled, returning to the usual rhythm of breathing in Natural Primordial Force.

— It’s done!

— Yellow Stem, don’t panic, wait, I’ll come take a look.

Dragon Cypress quickly ran forward.

The fruit had completed the Primordial Energy quality change, leaving just one small final step.

White Poplar was drawing water from inside the fruit; the orange-red oval berries slowly shriveled, their once glossy, smooth skins steadily growing dull.

The moon set.

Morning sun rose in the east.

Bathed in golden morning light, the surface of the White Poplar Fruit wrinkled along its white Origin Force markings.

Toward noon, the fruit completely dried into a dried fruit.

White Poplar: "Dragon Cypress, it’s ready."

"Alright!"

Dragon Cypress leaped up, flashed by, and snatched a White Poplar Fruit into its claw.

Holding it in both claws, it turned it over for inspection.

A rich aura of Life Force.

There was also some enhancement and transformation; the effect of promoting Force Evolution was about equal to that of ordinary Origin Force Food worth ten thousand Source Stones.

Dragon Cypress gave it a simple look and, confirmed, turned and waved his claw to signal.

Round Cypress led the ant colony, rushing over quickly.

Ink Orchid, Yellow Stem, Spruce and the others also swiftly gathered round.

Dragon Cypress put the first White Poplar Fruit into a Spider Silk Bag and handed it to Yellow Stem. "Giant Cypress, take Yellow Stem to the King Nest. Eat one first, see what happens."

"Yes!"

"Okay!"

Giant Cypress led the team, escorting Yellow Stem away.

Ink Orchid, Spruce, and Red Moonseed flew up and down. In the blink of an eye, they plucked the remaining five fruits from the tree.

Dragon Cypress, Round Cypress, and Black Leaf simultaneously directed Blue Ants to regurgitate Ant King Jelly into three prepared Metal Cans, sealing three fruits inside and sending them off to the Huagi Mountain Treasury for storage, to be delivered to the Flame Spider Caravan next year.

Two fruits were left, preserved with Origin Force Ant Honey, to be consumed by Yellow Stem in the coming days.

Harvest complete, everything was tidied up at lightning speed.

Dragon Cypress went to the White Poplar Divine Seed tree, tapping with his tentacles, releasing Flourish Ability four times.

"White Poplar, have you finished using the Primordial Energy from Glinting Gold?"

"It’s used up."

"Give it to me. I’ll take it to Night Fragrance first."

"Oh—"

White Poplar answered with some reluctance.

Colored metallic fluid oozed from the trunk, condensing into Glinting Gold, which gently floated into the Spider Silk Bag carried by Dragon Cypress.

Dragon Cypress turned and handed it to Ink Orchid to take to Night Fragrance.

Dragon Cypress himself then hurried toward the Royal Palace.

...

Yellow Stem was too old, already at the end of insect life, eerily reminiscent of the Red Fox from years before.

Jogging from the White Poplar Divine Seed to the Royal Palace—a distance of about two thousand meters—Yellow Stem was already sprawled weakly beneath the Throne, gasping, utterly exhausted.

Giant Cypress and Spruce hurriedly fetched a container of Ant Honey to feed.

Dragon Cypress and the other insects crowded around the entrance of the King Nest to observe.

Yellow Stem, grown old, now ate little. Even a small Metal Can was only half-finished before it couldn’t eat more.

Spruce helped it onto the Dominating Throne.

There was an art to eating White Poplar Fruit—it was originally a berry, but after becoming Divine-Grade, a very thin layer of fruit pulp covered its outside, imbued with Origin Force effects; then a thin shell; at the core, the kernel.

The White Poplar Fruit was to be eaten whole, peel, shell and all.

But after drying, the outer pulp became very hard—harder than the lignified shell.

Yellow Stem tried biting a couple of times but couldn’t chew it.

Spruce helped, slicing it finely with a claw and quickly handing it over.

Yellow Stem swallowed it quickly.

Spruce and Giant Cypress stood guard by the Dominating Throne, observing closely. Sensing Life Primordial Energy dispersing within Yellow Stem’s body, they confirmed it was safe and quietly withdrew.

"Great King..."

Giant Cypress sent out an inquiring wave of spiritual power.

Dragon Cypress: "Black Birch, guard with the soldiers. Spruce can stay. Giant Cypress, go guard the White Poplar Divine Seed. The other insects, you may go."

"Understood, Great King."

Black Birch commanded the Soldier Ants to form an Ant Wall, blocking the entrance.

The entrance passage was narrow, and the other insects gradually departed one by one.

Dragon Cypress also stayed, from time to time peeking through the gaps in the Ant Wall to check the situation inside the King Nest.

As the rich Life System Primordial Energy fused into the body, remodeling flesh and blood, the aura of death and decay around Yellow Stem steadily faded, replaced by vital Life Force.

The effect after using White Poplar Fruit was similar to that of the Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit. Some results appeared immediately after use, and after one Molting Evolution, the effect was fully realized.

The difference was the former worked on the body, the latter on the soul.

The first Divine-Grade Baihe Fruit worked best.

The effect lasted the longest as well,

only after four full days was all the Primordial Energy exhausted.

"Spruce—"

Yellow Stem’s call came from inside the cave.

"Here!"

Spruce glanced at Dragon Cypress.

Dragon Cypress waved his tentacles to instruct.

The Soldier Ants released their grip on each other, the Ant Wall blocking the entrance collapsed.

Black Birch led a Blue Ant, following Spruce into the cave.

The Blue Ant bent its head, exuding Ant Honey onto a stone dish.

Spruce carried it to place before Yellow Stem.

Dragon Cypress was the last to enter; no need to even ask—the change was visible at a glance.

After just one White Poplar Fruit, Yellow Stem had truly returned to the "mid-old" age of fifty or sixty.

A sweep with spiritual power confirmed physical strength was depleted, weak and drained, yet bodily function had fundamentally transformed, now suffused with vital Life Qi machine.

A Soul-Setting Ability check—Yellow Stem’s soul also felt "much cleaner" to the others.

All-around, it had truly become younger.

"Yellow Stem, how are you feeling?"

Dragon Cypress asked symbolically.

Yellow Stem was self-examining, pleased, excited, and sighed: "A gift from the Natural God, reversing fate itself!"

Black Birch immediately spoke: "Congratulations, Yellow Stem, on returning to your youth."

Spruce checked over and over, breathing a long sigh of relief and delight: "Yellow Stem, after you finish all three White Poplar Fruits, you should be able to molt and evolve at least once."

"Yes—"

Yellow Stem suddenly looked worried again: "This evolution of mine... there won’t be any mishaps, will there?"

"With the Dominating Throne assisting you, you won’t die."

Dragon Cypress gently waved his tentacles.

Yellow Stem’s body had recovered, but its heart—weathered by the ravages of age—could never truly return to its youthful state.

Arrangements were made for food and drink, a walk, and a day of rest.

Then came the second White Poplar Fruit.

The effect the second time was noticeably weaker.

In just over two days, the Divine-Grade Fruit’s Life Primordial Energy was completely used up.

Yellow Stem returned to the middle-aged state of about forty or fifty.

Ate to recover physical strength, walked and exercised, rested for a day, and took the third fruit.

The effect of the third White Poplar Fruit was much further diminished.

Yellow Stem’s life state stabilized at around forty years old.

Ate, moved around.

Head foggy and drowsy, with a strong premonition of Age Period Evolution.

Hurriedly ate more of the Ant King Honey prepared by Dragon Cypress, mainly brewed from Divine-Given Sky-Blue Persimmon and a mix of other Divine-Given Origin Force Foods aiding Molting Evolution.

As soon as its tentacles drooped, it fell into a deep sleep.

Deep sleep evolution.

This time, Yellow Stem’s risk was indeed quite high.

Dragon Cypress, Ink Orchid, Spruce, and the others kept watch in the passage outside the cave.

They waited anxiously for five days,

then faint waves of Origin Force rippled within the King Nest, but quickly quieted.

Soul-Setting Ability took shifts, constantly sensing inside.

After half a day, soul consciousness awakened.

A while later, Yellow Stem’s weak spiritual power called from within the King Nest:

"Spruce—"

Peeled open the Ant Wall blocking the entrance for a look.

Yellow Stem had successfully molted; having slept too long, it was weak and exhausted.

But—it was alright!

It had made it safely past this brush with life and death.

"Black Birch, Spruce, you two feed Yellow Stem."

Seeing all the insects crowding into the King Nest, Dragon Cypress ordered:

"Red Moonseed, Chinese Clematis, Pueraria—stop crowding; you three hurry and bring the good news to the Huagi Divine Tree and Linnan Divine Tree."

"Giant Cypress, go hunt for fresh meat. Round Cypress, Black Leaf—you two go make soup."

"Yellow Stem’s rebirth is worth a grand banquet and thorough celebration!"

— Yes!

— Good!

— Got it!

— Understood.

The insects agreed, but none wanted to leave. They crowded around the Dominating Throne, craning forward for a curious look.

After completing this Molting Evolution, the life-extending effect of the Divine-Grade Baihe Fruit was fully realized, granting ninety years of abundant remaining life.

By calculation, Yellow Stem now had up to a hundred years of life left.

Yet it was still only a High-Level Warrior...

But it hadn’t become a newborn, or even a few years old.

Yellow Stem’s body was at the peak youth of about twenty years old, overflowing with vitality force.

By the instinctive sense of an Origin Force Life, this vitality could resist the erosion of time.

— So, this is what the life-extending Divine Good really does.

Everyone understood, and under Dragon Cypress’s urging, gradually dispersed.

When evening came, a grand banquet began, celebrating and feasting late into the night.

...

This year, Dragon Cypress chose to spend the winter in the Purple Tung Insect Nation, entering Origin Force Ability combat training under the guidance of the Linnan Divine Tree, beginning with the Ant Clan’s Strength System.

First step of Strength System training: weighted running and climbing...