Space Odyssey from Abandoned Mining Space Station-Chapter 604 - 187: The New Insect Race_3

Chen Ming also saw around the body of the Insect Queen, gradually appearing things similar to insect eggs, wrapped in a translucent deep purple membrane.

The new generation of the Insect Race, possessing spiritual energy and fungal abilities, is being nurtured by the Insect Queen within them.

This signifies a huge new change in the Insect Queen, or rather, the Insect Race.

They have evolved from oviparous reproduction to a form similar to budding reproduction.

Using the abilities of fungi to nurture individual insects, the overall reproduction speed has greatly increased.

Moreover, the Insect Queen has not abandoned its original method of reproduction; it can still lay insect eggs containing larvae when necessary.

It does not necessarily require a fungal mat for reproduction, though the fungal mat can increase this efficiency.

In no more than two days, the Insect Queen will be able to completely replace the insects inside this insect nest, whose coverage now greatly exceeds the size of the former city.

Once the Insect Queen completes nurturing the new insect nest, the proliferation speed of the Insect Race will experience exponential growth.

Additionally, Chen Ming discovered that these fungal mats on the ground are not just organs for feeding and nurturing larvae.

When adults hatch, they can connect through some special organs on their limbs with the fungal mats formed by combining the insect biomass and fungal genes on the ground.

Directly extracting nutrients from them.

Although the efficiency is not high and a patch of fungal mat can store limited nutrients, if too many insects simultaneously absorb nutrients, it may deplete the mats under their feet.

However, such a situation requiring large amounts of nutrition from numerous insects is certainly during battles, and battles lead to deaths.

The deceased bodies can be digested directly by the fungal mat, converting into nutrition, immediately supplying the other still-fighting Insect Race.

Although it cannot completely free the Insect Race from the limitation of food and energy crystals, it greatly alleviates the initial problems faced in prolonged combat.

It seems the previous strategy of Chen Ming feeding fungi to the Insect Queen was correct.

The Insect Queen, including the entire insect nest, has undergone significant evolutionary and ability enhancements, preparing Chen Ming for future attacks on the cities of the Mechanical Race.

Seeing the Insect Race like this, Chen Ming suddenly thought of a question.

Would fire be more effective against the Insect Race?

Chen Ming remembered when the Insect Queen controlled a horde of insects to cause trouble in the Mechanical Race city, they were destroyed by the Mechanical Race’s Blazing Silkworm Cannons.

Back then, the Insect Race showed little resistance to fire, or perhaps no carbon-based life form should naturally have resistance to fire.

Now, having incorporated the genes of fungi which also fear fire, would they...

Chen Ming felt slightly concerned.

He thought about it and decided it was best to test it now.

Chen Ming specifically asked the Insect Queen to provide him with a few Insect Race and a small piece of fungal mat.

Then Chen Ming directly near the Insect Queen, manufactured a Mechanical Race mechanical body, the Blazing Silkworm, mastering the manufacturing technology during this period.

This Mechanical Race has two attack modes: a close-range, long-duration flamethrower mode, and a long-range pinpoint artillery shooting mode Chen Ming had seen before.

Chen Ming tried the flamethrower mode, which he had not seen before.

When a ten-meter-long, five-meter-tall Blazing Silkworm sprayed a violent flame that covered a 30-degree, 100-meter-long area in front.

Chen Ming silently asked for a few more insects and pieces of fungal mat from the Insect Queen.

Then he began the testing.

Although the testing process experienced some difficulties, the results indeed gave Chen Ming more confidence for future battles.

To be honest, just as Chen Ming found a planet recently colonized by the Mechanical Race.

The Insect Queen awoke from her evolution with great changes, even possessing methods to counter the previously most powerful attack methods the Mechanical Race had against the Insect Race.

Although this transformation took some time, it’s not an issue. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

In such circumstances, if Chen Ming does not act quickly, it would be unworthy of his preparations during this time.

Meanwhile, another piece of good news arrived from the distant Empire.

Bai Quan, who had promised to send the Speed Particle Technology Stardust Level Cruiser Carrier, had the spaceship embodying Chen Ming’s spiritual energy, with the Enlightenment Nerve, already arrived.

It had been delivered to the boss’s colony, and with the boss’s arrangement, Chen Ming’s Dusk Core had been installed.

Handing over the cruiser completely to him.

After a few more transitions, the cruiser could arrive beside Chen Ming.

Of course, Chen Ming first notified Bai Quan, using Bai Quan’s connections to cover the transition’s traces to avoid tracking.

Though it was not good to bother people so late at night, Chen Ming was finally getting a bit impatient.

Moreover, Bai Quan seemed quite busy as well; at least when Chen Ming contacted him, he still appeared to be working.

Though it wasn’t very considerate to Bai Quan, knowing he hadn’t rested made Chen Ming feel less guilty about disturbing someone so late.

And twenty minutes after the Stardust Level was delivered to the boss’s side,

it, carrying Chen Ming’s Enlightenment Nerve, performed several transitions and came beside Chen Ming.

Chen Ming immediately went aboard the Stardust Level in person, locating the Enlightenment Nerve stored in a special storage container in the captain’s room of the Stardust Level.