```
Eating regular food could only stave off hunger, but eating meat was the way to quickly increase one's cultivation level.
He had found that the nutritional value of wild beasts' meat was far superior to that of pork.
Especially wolf meat, though a bit tough to the taste, had an extraordinarily appealing beneficial effect.
After finishing his meal and resting briefly, he again took up his knife and rope and entered the mountains.
The three large Korean pine trees he had cut in the mountains had not yet been hauled back.
Every day he needed to start a fire for cooking, which meant a steady consumption of firewood.
Moreover, he had to consider the amount needed for rainy days and the long winter, so it was imperative to take advantage of the current season and stockpile more.
Upon reaching the mountains, he checked on the condition of the Ant Nest.
Fourth led three Worker Ants in digging out a new side chamber, apparently in preparation for food storage. The four Worker Ants were continually expanding the side chamber to store more food.
"Success depends on forethought; without it, one will fail."
With an ample food supply, they would have no worries, whether in the lengthy winter or during the harsh rainy days.
Qin Niu watched for a while, then went about his own business.
He made multiple trips transporting firewood home, deliberately staying busy until dark before descending the mountain, hoping to encounter a wild beast that would attack him.
Unfortunately, he never encountered such 'good luck'.
The sounds of wolves howling and beasts roaring constantly came from the depths of the mountains, but none appeared to seek him out for a fight.
"Alas! How interesting life is. When you're powerless, you fear meeting formidable beasts, but now that I have some strength, I yearn for such an encounter, and yet it eludes me."
Qin Niu lacked the Hunter's hunting skills and couldn't track down wild beasts.
All he could do was 'fish for the law'.
Using himself as bait and waiting for some fierce beast to take an interest in him, then his opportunity would arrive.
The next day, he entered the mountains early in the morning.
This was because his previous encounter with the old wolf occurred just after dawn.
As usual, he went to check the Ant Nest.
Inside the egg-laying chamber, the number of ant eggs had increased from ten yesterday to twenty today.
The Ant Queen had laid another ten ant eggs the previous night.
Its reproductive capacity was truly formidable.
Only Queens of Ants and Bees are capable of such prolific daily egg-laying.
But the Bee Queen's daily output is far less than that of the Ant Queen.
In terms of reproductive ability, the Ant Queen is undoubtedly the most frenetic of all creatures.
At this rate, by next month, the ant colony will likely undergo explosive growth.
From laying to hatching and morphing into adult insects, the cycle only takes about twenty days.
Theoretically, in just about twenty more days, the number of Worker Ants in this colony will rise from four to fourteen, and then increase by ten every day.
By then, the growth of this ant colony will be unstoppable.
Qin Niu had been studying Insect Master knowledge recently and was considering strengthening this termite colony.
The most important thing was to upgrade the Ant Queen.
If the Ant Queen grew stronger, so would its offspring.
...
Life passed day by day, uneventful yet fulfilling.
He never encountered another wild beast.
It was unclear whether it was because his own strength had increased and the wild beasts could sense the danger and dared not approach, or simply because he was unlucky.
He thought that maybe venturing deeper into the mountains might result in encounters with fierce beasts.
With his current strength, he could barely handle one or two wolves.
If he were to come across a tiger or leopard, he figured he wouldn't even have a chance to run for his life.
Being always cautious, he certainly wouldn't take such a risk.
The number of eggs laid by the Ant Queen remained consistent at ten per day, neither more nor less. By the eighth day, it had laid a total of eighty ant eggs.
Possibly taking into account that there were only four Worker Ants and the limited amount of food they could bring back, the Ant Queen stopped laying eggs after producing eighty.
Qin Niu had been learning Insect Master knowledge every day, working hard to become a Preparatory Bug Master.
No one in the village knew he was raising a termite colony.
Being someone who preferred to keep a low profile, he certainly wouldn't reveal his hand to outsiders.
After more than ten days, the first batch of ant eggs successfully hatched, and after several molts, they evolved into mature insects.
They appeared larger than the first batch of Worker Ants and their bodies seemed stronger.
Fourth and the other three Worker Ants had been extremely busy during this period.
Digging and expanding the nest, storing food, feeding the Ant Queen and the larvae, they were swamped with work.
```
Thank goodness, the hardest days have finally passed.
All ten termite eggs from the second batch hatched successfully, and they metamorphosed into adult insects, instantly giving us ten new forces.
With ten additional worker ants, the productivity and support capabilities of this ant colony would increase by more than threefold.
Qin Niu stood in front of the ant nest, grinning foolishly by himself.
It really hadn't been easy.
After nearly two months of perseverance, the ant colony was slowly growing stronger, and its ability to survive was substantially improving.
His dream of becoming an Insect Master was gradually coming true.
Although termites couldn't be used like crickets in fighting matches to win their owner a fortune, nor could they, like the cripple's rat, help people find lost objects, termites had their unique abilities.
Qin Niu initially raised them to assist with farming.
As his knowledge on being an Insect Master kept growing, he discovered the role of termites was far more significant than that.
As long as he raised them well, they would have great potential in the future.
They could even help their owner in combat.
Guided by Fourth, the ten newly born worker ants quickly learned foraging skills and wilderness survival experience alongside their nestmates.
Watching all this, Qin Niu felt sweeter than honey in his heart.
Tomorrow, the third batch of termite eggs should also metamorphose into adult insects, and this termite colony will enter a rapid expansion period.
The Ant Queen had been continuously accumulating energy these days.
Its body had grown two or three times larger than before.
Chubby and white, it lay lazily in the nest, hardly moving at all.
Its only job was one—to lay eggs.
When Qin Niu returned home, he saw the corn saplings in the field had begun to yield ears of corn.
The saplings grew taller than a person.
Lush and green, he estimated harvesting over a thousand pounds of corn shouldn't be a problem.
As long as he waited until next month, he could eat his fill every meal and indulge in fine grains without having to endure those hard-to-swallow wild vegetables and tree barks anymore.
In the middle of the night, while Qin Niu was sleeping soundly, a sudden sense of unease pulsed through his heart.
He felt very uneasy.
And was immediately jolted awake.
"Not good, the ant colony has encountered great danger."
Qin Niu was the Ant Queen's owner, and the entire ant colony were his pets.
Forming a contract with an Ant Queen or Bee Queen came with its advantages.
Their direct descendants were more like 'clones', equally controlled by the owner.
At that moment, the ant colony seemed to be facing a major disaster.
Worker ants had already fallen in battle.
Female Milky White Ant (Ant Queen)
Grade: Grade Two equality-winged insect, upgrade experience 117/1000
Lifespan: 4.2 years
Energy: 2861
Skills: Reproduction level one 0.85/10, Feigning death level one 2/10
Talent: Medium intelligence
Ant Colony: Subordinate Worker Ants 4, lifespan 3 months. Ordinary Worker Ants 9, lifespan 3 years.
One of the newly metamorphosed worker ants had already died.
Qin Niu, burning with anxiety, disregarding the danger, immediately grabbed a firewood knife and a medicine hoe and raced into the mountains in the dark.
This termite colony was the result of nearly two years of his efforts, depleting his family's wealth on just three low-grade Contract Charms.
It had been a struggle to succeed once, but now, as the ant colony was on the cusp of a snowball-like expansion, it had met with a significant crisis.
It was already worth risking his life to save them.
The most important one was the Ant Queen.
Then came 'Fourth'.
As long as these two termites were safe, even if all the other worker ants and eggs were lost, it wouldn't matter.
They could quickly rebuild.
Fortunately, there was a crescent moon in the sky to light the path ahead.
The bright moonlight fell evenly across the earth, casting a mysterious veil over the landscape and making the mountains at night even more eerie and cold.
When Qin Niu arrived at the scene, the entire nest was in disarray.