Dawn Spider

Purple Wind commands the worker ants to dig forward with all their might.

We arrived at our destination quickly.
Blood Fruit Lord, Yellow Cherry Lord, and Purple Wind Mountain Lord, the three insects joined forces and quickly cleared the area.

An arched road sign made of bluish-green jade stone comes into view.

The lower part features a flowing water pattern, while the upper part features a floral pattern. The exquisite and delicate carving remains as good as new even after millions of years.

The iconic cloud pattern of the Mist Republic sets off three large, silver-gray characters: 【Wooden King's Mansion】.

It also comes with a distinctive feature: a sharp drupe and three twisted, slender, serrated leaves.

A power symbol designed based on the fruit and leaves of a certain tree.

Lord Jin Nan also cleared out a relatively well-preserved metal fragment ahead and erected it as a warning sign by the roadside, with two rows of characters vertically engraved on it:
[High-risk restricted area, unauthorized personnel prohibited]

Trespassers will bear the consequences.

—Wooden Prince's Mansion?

—The Prince's Mansion?
Jin was filled with questions.

Historical records indicate that during the earliest period of the Mengwu Empire, the "Mengwu Emperor" did indeed confer many titles of nobility, but later, due to internal and external circumstances, he changed to a republican system, withdrew the imperial title, and also abolished various noble titles.

The archway features the iconic cloud pattern of the Mist Republic, as well as symbols of independent power, clearly indicating that this was once a king of the Mist Empire.

The former residence of a prince, a historical site?

That's not right either; the sign clearly says: High-risk restricted area.

What does 'high-risk restricted area' mean?
If it is an ancient site, it will never be a high-risk restricted area; at most, it will not be open to visitors and entry will be prohibited.

"The Mengwu Empire went bankrupt and collapsed more than 100 million years ago, so how could there still be a title of king?"

Jin Baishi was completely baffled.

"Mr. Jin, what do you think? This should lead to some great ruins, right?"

The Blood Fruit Lord inquired.

Jin affirmed, "Judging from the signs, this road leads to a very important and prestigious ancient site!"

Jin then changed the subject, saying, "As for whether we'll find anything, and what we'll find, we'll only know after we dig through. Everyone, hurry up and dig along this path."

"it is good!"

"dig!"

"Dig! Dig! Dig!"

The insects moved their claws.

...

This is the south coast of Ivory Island.

A wide, straight road leading directly south.

Half a month later,

early morning,

After everyone had rested, they went underground to start digging. Jin followed them into the site, dug a pit in a nearby tunnel, huddled inside, and put a primal crystal into his life pouch to meditate and absorb it.

Not long after it started, Lord Jin Nan's spiritual power roared and spread underground like a tsunami.

"I dug it! I dug it!"

"A metal building! What a magnificent metal building!"

"This is indeed a very high-standard ancient site! We're going to strike it rich!"

"Boss Jin! Wake up! You're going to make a fortune!"

"..."

Jin was startled awake from his meditation and flashed forward.

Lord Jin Nan raised his claw and pointed.

"Boss Jin, over there! About 400 meters away, a huge metal building! I've never seen such a building material before, and it has strong primal energy properties!"

"Don't get excited! Dig over and take a look!"

"Yes! Dig first!"

"Jin Nan, get out of my way! Move aside! Move aside!"

"Dig! Dig! Dig!"

Lord Jin and Lord Jinnan were pushed to the back of the cave.

Purple Night directed the worker ants to dig through the rocks.

Lord Huangying and Lord Zifeng solidified the excavated rocks into the shape of ant eggs.

Firethorn commanded the soldier ants to quickly move away.

Blood Fruit and Lord White Cang collaborated to control underground water seepage.

Lord Tuanhua cleaned up the seepage.

The team worked together skillfully and advanced rapidly.

Half a day later,
It's like digging right up to the gates of a palace.

Jin had never seen such a greenish-blue metal wall before, and faintly, a trace of the original wood-type energy remained.

The dark blue gate is thirty meters wide and about seventeen or eighteen meters high.

The door was half-closed.

Jin directed the team to clear the area from all sides.

The results came out soon.

It was indeed a palace. They had just dug to the palace gate when they found a royal palace wall that was over forty meters high and seven or eight meters thick.

Above the palace gate, three large silver-gray characters are engraved on the wall: 【Wooden Prince's Mansion】

Very puzzling.
Such a luxurious building must have been constructed after the human civilization submitted to the true god of nature.

Primal metals are precious resources, and before humans turned to the true god of nature, it was impossible for them to be so extravagant as to use primal metals to build walls.

However, after pledging allegiance to the true god of nature, human civilization entered the Galactic Federation era. Where did the title of king come from? And why did they brazenly return to their home planet to build a luxurious palace?
"This is the city wall that defends against foreign invasion. Lord Jin Nan, sense how far it extends."

"I've sensed it..." Lord Jin Nan said excitedly, yet somewhat embarrassed, "It's very far away. With my strength, I can't sense its end. It's an infinitely magnificent building."

"Sigh~"

Jin said again, "This isn't a building, it's a defensive wall. We're entering the city now. Lord Jin Nan, sense ahead and look for metal structures."

Lord Jin Nan raised his paw and said, "There is one about 120 meters ahead. It is very large and uses a more advanced emerald green primal energy metal."

—Then stop talking nonsense!
—Dig it up and take a look!

The insects passed through the palace gate and dug forward with all their might.

The tunnel leads directly to the windows on the second floor, allowing people to squeeze into the building's interior through the windows.

A mental scan revealed that all the insects were quite shocked.

Eleven domed buildings of varying sizes are connected together in an arc shape to form a complex.

The one we are currently in is the largest in scale and made of the most special materials—a metal casting with wood-based primal energy properties. The material is of very high quality, and its powerful primal energy properties have been preserved for countless millennia.

The natural forces within the building were affected by it, and all of them brought out a trace of wood-based force characteristics.

The situation was somewhat unfavorable; most of the doors were open, and there were very obvious signs that the room had been tidied up.

The golden figure flashed and headed straight for the top floor.

The buildings are not tall; the largest one is only four stories high, and the meditation room is also located on the top floor of the fourth floor.

The door to the quiet room was closed, but not locked.

Jin focused his mind and sensed that there was no danger. He then pushed hard with his claws, and the heavy metal door slowly opened.

A wave of pure wood-based primal force washed over me.

A hemispherical space with a radius of over 100 meters is supported by 33 metal columns.

In the center is a throne shaped like a thousand-petaled blue lotus.

The dome is composed of lotus leaf and lotus flower patterns made of gemstones of various colors and shapes.

The surrounding walls are also inlaid with gemstones to create patterns of jungles, plants, animals, flowers, and birds.

On the ground, there are densely packed elliptical grooves.

Jin understood immediately: the ground was originally inlaid with Chaos Stones. Over the long years, the Chaos Stones had lost their chaotic energy due to the dormant environment of the primal force, and had collapsed and disappeared.

The gemstones embedded in the stone walls and pillars, forming decorative patterns, are called 'World Gems'. These are supreme treasures that only Star Realm and Sovereign Realm experts can use to comprehend the laws of the universe, and each one is priceless.

An extremely luxurious meditation room, a top-tier luxury palace that only the ruler of the universe is qualified to build.

This is the 'royal palace' of a certain powerful figure in the Mist Republic, a master of the Wood-type Laws.

"The Wood King's Mansion? The Wood King?"

"Never heard of that before!"

Jin's doubts deepened. Without time to think further, his spider eyes flashed with a sharp light as he scanned the area, while his mental energy rapidly scanned and searched.

Their gaze fell upon the lotus seedpod of the thousand-petaled blue lotus throne in the center.

On it sits a dark wooden plaque, its inscriptions carved in the most primitive way:
Youth may never return, but flowers may bloom again.

People of the future, do not destroy the sacred sites of the ancients; you cannot bear their wrath upon their return.

It also ends with the signature: [Hua Xiao]

Jin was shocked.

—Do flowers bloom again?
—The fury it will unleash upon its return?

In human languages, 'it' usually refers to a non-human being...

Who is it? A primal plant with a very high level of evolution?
"The Wood King's Mansion..."

Jin suddenly understood.

Humanity has long since abolished the feudal system of granting titles and kings, but the primal plants that coexist with humans may not be so. They can disregard the rules and regulations of human society.

'Wood King' refers to a Primal Force plant in the Mist Republic that has reached the Dominator Realm in terms of evolution.

Is this ruin the 'royal palace' from which it took root?
This palace is the residence of a certain human lord who is dedicated to guarding and caring for it.

The message on the wooden sign is a warning to those who come after, not to damage the arrangement here, that the 'Wood King' is not dead, and that there will be a day when he is reborn and returns, and that one should be careful of retaliation.

"..."

"But I'm not human!"

Jin Xintou complained.

Hesitantly, he wondered whether he should pry open all the jewels in the palace...

"gold!"

"Boss Jin!"

"Is there any treasure?"

"This ruin is huge!"

Is it empty?

"dangerous?"

The other insects rushed up one after another. Seeing Jin standing at the door, they asked questions and simultaneously used their mental energy to scan the palace.

"Sigh~ Never mind~"

"There's nothing of value here. Let's go look around elsewhere."

As Jin spoke, he manipulated a spider silk, rolled up a wooden plaque placed on the Thousand-Petaled Blue Lotus Throne, and pulled it out, pointing to the characters on it as he said:

"This is the alien warriors warning us not to cause trouble here. They are not completely dead yet, and they will be reborn one day."

--What?
—Reborn and returned?
The insects jumped up and down in terror and horror.

Jin then turned the wooden plaque over to reveal three strings of characters of varying lengths.

"This seems to be the password to the treasure vault?"

"The alien warriors anticipated that one day insects would dig this place up. This is a treasure left for us, one we are allowed to take. Lord Jin Nan, search the ruins' treasury." (End of Chapter)