Ren Yifei raised an eyebrow. The dungeon's name was "Ant Nest," and the first clue was "Male Ant?"
Male ants are the most special members of an all-female ant colony, and their sole purpose is reproduction.
Both princess ants and male ants are reproductive ants. When they have wings, they go out for a nuptial flight. After the princess ant is fertilized, she returns, loses her wings, becomes a queen, and enters the reproductive state. Male ants, on the other hand, are disposable; they die after use.
Afterwards, the queen lays eggs. The unfertilized eggs develop into new male ants, while the fertilized eggs go in two directions: one is to become the new queen, and the other is to become worker ants.
Soldier ants are the stronger and larger-headed among the worker ants. Worker ants and soldier ants are responsible for all the trivial tasks, such as raising larvae, cleaning the nest, and protecting the home.
"Thump." He couldn't help but sit up.
The first layer consists of worker ants, the ones with long horns and ears are soldier ants, and the pampered, winged nobles who do nothing... are the princess ants and male ants?
Ren Yifei speculated that the ghost's true form was a member of the male nobility.
However, these nobles enjoy the best of everything, so what obsessions could they possibly have?
This copy contains too much information; it's not just about ant societies, but may even involve other advanced civilizations.
Actually, it's quite simple to 'annihilate' this colony, because there's a big tree behind the 'ant nest'. If he cuts down the tree and smashes it directly onto the cone-shaped ant nest, the ant nest and the life inside might cease to exist.
But the kind of annihilation Jiang wanted wasn't like that. He wasn't just oppressed by people, but also by the system, and he wanted to overthrow the system. Smashing an anthill with a tree trunk clearly didn't fit the bill.
Ren Yifei temporarily abandoned the role of 'Jiang' and split himself into two characters: one is the missing worker 'Jiang', and the other is the soldier 'Gucheng' who is suspected to be a player.
He used a more radical approach, precisely for this purpose.
Use the identity of player Gu Cheng to find clues and finally bring 'Jiang' back.
He must first understand the reasons for the emergence of this magical and contradictory system, as well as the extent of the involvement of another advanced civilization, before he can find a solution.
If he had more time, he would have chosen a gentler approach. But now there are only six days left.
Despite pondering the relationships between these social classes repeatedly, Ren Yifei still fell asleep after midnight. Early the next morning, the adult soldiers and civilians in the numbered cave gathered and began assigning tasks.
Ren Yifei used plant-based glue to mix the paper pulp, which allowed the paper mask to fit the face perfectly. Aside from the inability to make many facial expressions, there were no other problems.
This method of merely disguising one face can significantly extend the time he can use illusions.
After he got ready, he went downstairs and was assigned the task of supervising the laundry workers.
The manager left after assigning the tasks. Looking around, Ren Yifei found the soldier or civilian he had previously noticed who had been assigned to patrol the third floor, and made an excuse to ask to switch tasks.
Yes, he wanted to go and see the third floor, where the cubs were born and raised.
According to the rules of the ant world, worker ants and soldier ants develop from the same fertilized egg, but because of different developmental conditions, they develop into different species in the egg.
If the world truly operates according to the laws of the ant world, and the developmental conditions determine the class of a fertilized egg, then the children of workers and soldiers might not follow the same path as their parents.
Hearing Ren Yifei's request, the other party was quite surprised, probably not having considered such a thing. But compared to spending a whole day walking around on the third floor, it was certainly more comfortable to sit there and supervise others' work, so he was somewhat tempted.
"Is everything alright?"
"If you don't tell me, and I don't tell you, what problem will there be?"
The soldier and the civilian were persuaded, and they exchanged metal tags, since everyone recognized the tags, not the people. Sometimes they didn't even look at the tags.
He went up to the third floor and entered. The gatekeeper looked up and glanced at him: "Employee number."
Ren Yifei gave him the number, which he noted down, and then waved him away.
Holding a spear, Ren Yifei walked expressionlessly down the same path he had taken yesterday. The pregnant women were still there, each in their own small room, receiving the same treatment.
Those with plump figures and ruddy complexions were soldiers and civilians, while those with sallow complexions and some thinness were workers and civilians; they were easy to identify. Ren Yifei walked along, comparing each face with those he had seen the day before, and found that several familiar faces were missing, while several new faces had appeared.
He quickly walked past the maternity ward and headed towards the area he hadn't entered the day before.
There were already babies crying there, one after another, like a grand chorus.
As he entered, he was immediately struck by a strong, sour stench even before he saw anyone. Ren Yifei remained unfazed, and did not slow his pace.
The infant care area was darker than the maternity area, and the air was not well circulated; the sour smell lingered for a long time.
The cries of babies grew closer, some loud and some faint.
"Excuse me, excuse me." He heard hurried footsteps behind him. He turned around and saw four workers carrying a stretcher with a woman in labor on it, rushing inside without stopping.
Huh? Is she about to give birth?
Ren Yifei followed behind.
The woman on the stretcher was a pregnant worker, judging from her clothing. She seemed to be in labor; her voice was trembling with pain.
He watched as the woman in labor was carried into a warm, brightly lit room, and the wooden door closed as soon as she entered.
Giving birth is not a simple matter; it doesn't happen overnight. So Ren Yifei only glanced at it before walking past the room that carried a faint smell of blood.
After walking past the delivery room and down a smooth corridor for a few minutes, he finally arrived at the childcare area. In his imagination, this should be a place similar to a kindergarten, but…
On both sides of the road, in the dark room, there was a large communal bed with more than a dozen babies, all under one year old, lying there, being cared for by two workers.
They called it "taking care," but it was just a quick glance. Several children were crying, but no one paid any attention. One child was about to fall off the cliff, but they remained unmoved.
Ren Yifei's arrival startled them. They awkwardly caught the baby who almost rolled off the bed and gave an embarrassed smile.
Ren Yifei noticed that some children's pants were soaked with sweat, and they had been crying for a long time, their voices were hoarse.
Across from this room, in a room of the same size but with good ventilation and light, there were several individual small beds, each with one or two wooden toys inside.
Two workers are also taking care of things here, but their mental state is completely different from that of the other side.
Of the eight cribs, only four were occupied by babies, chubby and healthy, sleeping soundly. Their arms, when stretched out, were as thick as the thighs of the children opposite them.
Ren Yifei walked straight past the two completely different nurseries without glancing to the side.
You can't show any of your complicated feelings, because that's what's 'normal' in this world.
There were several similar rooms behind, all occupied by newborns, clearly indicating a class distinction.
The lives of NPCs here are truly predetermined from birth. No amount of individual effort, intelligence, or other talents can change their fate.
The despair of Jiang, who was good at reading, and the ceiling he felt that made it hard for him to breathe, existed in his world all the time, like a shadow.
"He will wipe out the entire clan." Ren Yifei recalled the words of a nobleman that Gu Cheng had relayed when he killed him.
If the nobleman is the 'ghost' they are looking for, then his obsession with stopping 'Jiang' means that 'Jiang' succeeded.
If not, then this nobleman accidentally discovered Jiang's rebellious nature, in which case Jiang may have already failed in reality.
So, did Jiang succeed or fail?
He then saw the living environment of children aged one to three, who are beginning to learn and master things they will need to learn in the future.
The children of laborers were exposed to tools used for work. The children of soldiers were exposed to weapons, shamanic tools, and books. Even the content taught by the teachers responsible for educating them was completely different.
The concept of class is implanted in the mind at a very young age.
He had walked around for half an hour and returned to the exit, the same door he had come from. The guard was still sitting by the door, fiddling with a small knife in his hand without looking up.
It turns out the entire childcare area is circular. The central circle is the route they took yesterday to deliver the Black Cube. The room filled with machines is located in the very center of the tower.
The third floor contains nothing but the place where women of the working class and soldiers give birth, and where the young children grow up to be three years old.
There are no nobles here, nor are there noble offspring. They should have their own exclusive territory for breeding and raising. The brooding platform for raising princess bees in the hive is also different from that of other bees.
The light at the doorway was blocked by something. He looked up and saw two people.
A worker helped his wife in. Like all worker couples, the man was as thin as a skeleton, while the woman had an unusually large belly (which appeared particularly large because the mother was thin).
"Sir, look at this." The man took out a wooden plaque.
The gatekeeper glanced at the words on the sign, confirmed them, and nodded indifferently: "Come with me."
The couple followed the gatekeeper with trepidation until they reached an empty room that had not yet been cleaned.
"You'll stay here. We'll provide three meals a day until you give birth." The gatekeeper pointed out the location and couldn't wait to leave, not wanting to spend another second with these 'lowly people'.
The pregnant woman sat down on the straw mat while the man cleaned. He also took a half-eaten piece of luncheon meat from his pocket: "Chestnut, eat up. Your belly is so big, the baby inside must be very healthy, maybe it's a soldier."
The woman stroked her belly, her face showing both joy and sorrow: "If only we could raise this child ourselves..."
"Shh." The man covered her mouth, his face covered in cold sweat as he watched Ren Yifei walk by outside.
Ren Yifei, however, seemed not to hear or see anything, and continued walking past.
Only when his footsteps had faded into the distance did the man release his grip and exhale softly: "That was close."
Ren Yifei walked past the delivery room again, where painful cries could be heard; a woman was giving birth. He wondered if she would give birth to a worker or a soldier.
In a bee kingdom similar to an ant kingdom, the factor that determines whether a larva grows into a queen bee or a worker bee is food.
Bees that are fed royal jelly will grow into queen bees, while those that are fed royal jelly in the early stages and mixed honey in the later stages will grow into worker bees.
Assuming that whether a child develops into a worker or a soldier depends mainly on the nutrition the mother receives, then the strange behavior of those couples can be understood.
In order to pass on their own genes and give their children more resources and a better chance of survival, they must replenish their energy to ensure the healthy development of the baby in their womb.
For this reason, the child's father could starve himself, even to the point of starvation.
However... on one hand, there was not enough luncheon meat to fill their stomachs, while on the other hand, there was so much bread, meat, and vegetables that they could throw away. The workers and civilians tried their best, but they could only get close to the lowest level of the soldiers and civilians.
Comparing the conditions of the two pregnant women, Ren Yifei was not optimistic about the Gongmin couple.
The work of inspecting the third floor was tedious and boring; it was just going around in circles. Ren Yifei walked around twice and then sat down to rest.
Lunch was delivered at noon.
He then realized there was also a staff meal. It was even more lavish than yesterday's dinner, with an extra egg and a piece of fruit.
There was no such fruit to be seen outside. It was sweet and juicy, and looked very much like the varieties that had been continuously improved and cultivated in later generations. Ren Yifei ate it all without realizing it.
A little while later, some workers came to collect the empty plates. When he saw the remaining pieces of meat and bread on them, his eyes lit up.
Ren Yifei pinched his nose, showing his repulsion, but the other party was used to it.
"She's given birth! She's given birth to a nobleman!" A gust of wind blew from the direction of the delivery room. The excited workers, ignoring Ren Yifei, rushed towards the main entrance, reporting the good news as they ran.
Ren Yifei and the worker both turned towards the delivery room: "A nobleman?"