By IMERPUS RELUR
--
The nest rumbled faintly.
It wasn't a quake—
It was the sound of something moving through earth.
> [Alert: Hostile Detected – Eastern Tunnel, Zone Delta]
Name: Burrowing Worm
Tier: 2 Wild Beast
Threat Rating: Moderate
Estimated Size: 2.4 meters
Weakness: Soft Underside
Lin Shen's fingers twitched, a wave of alertness echoing through the hive. The ants tensed. They felt it too.
> [First Combat Initiated]
Lord EXP Enabled
Troop Instinct Transfer: Active
He took a deep breath.
"I want two squads of Tier 1 workers in front. Spiked Worker, take point. Hold formation near the nest chamber mouth. Do not engage until I command."
The ants moved with unnatural unity—six-legged phalanxes, responding not to orders, but to instinct woven by connection.
Lin Shen closed his eyes for a moment.
He saw the creature—a pulse of movement cutting through the soil, sending vibrations through the tunnel walls. It was closing in.
> Distance: 15 meters…
10 meters…
Then the soil burst open like a bomb had gone off.
The Burrowing Worm screeched as it emerged—pinkish and thick-bodied, lined with wet armor and serrated inner jaws. Its head twisted unnaturally toward the swarm.
"NOW!"
> [Command Issued: Full Assault]
[Spiked Worker Active Skill: Piercing Lunge – Activated]
[Tier 1 Workers: Surround and Pin]
The Spiked Worker moved like a dart, smashing its mandibles into the worm's flank, drawing ichor. The regular workers surged forward, latching on and biting down. Their small size let them crawl under the beast, aiming for the soft underbelly.
The worm thrashed.
One ant was crushed instantly.
Lin Shen winced—not from fear, but from the feeling. A flash of pain. Loss. But also—
> [Instinct Recorded: Evasion Pattern – Stored in Echo Chamber]
[First Death Recorded. Transfer Successful.]
The next wave of ants moved differently. More precise. Sharper reactions.
They had learned.
"Spiked Worker—lunge again, target the jaw joint!"
The creature screamed—then spasmed violently.
> [Enemy Health: 4%… 2%… 0%]
[Burrowing Worm Defeated]
It collapsed in a heap of crushed earth and steaming blood.
The chamber fell quiet again.
Then—
> [Combat Victory]
[Lord EXP +24]
[New Material Acquired: Worm Chitin, Soft Flesh, Beast Core Fragment (Damaged)]
[Hive Memory Updated]
[Worker Ants Gained 2% Efficiency Trait]
[Spiked Worker: Near Evolution Threshold]
Lin Shen exhaled.
It had begun.
His first death.
His first command under fire.
His first evolution.
> [Swarm: +1 Memory]
[Lord: +1 Instinct]
He looked at the corpse of the worm, then down at his dirt-covered feet.
"I will turn this world into instinct."