National destiny: Starting with a coffin, building an aircraft carrier is broadcast live globally.

That pulsating thing... let's call it the heart for now.

That heart was clearly the source of the insect swarm.

Rather than being an important organ...

This thing is more like a tumor, deeply embedded in the gray trunk of the giant glass tree, yet it is able to maintain its most basic survival.

"Chirp chirp chirp..."

A batch of [Shattered Light Beetles] hatched from it, shook off their wet shells, and eagerly crawled down the tree veins to join the surging black tide below.

The returning beetles have swollen abdomens.

They would suck up the undigested, glowing tree pith and then inject it back into the dead giant tree through their mouthparts.

Is that reciprocating kindness?

Does this heart feed on the entire forest to nourish this enormous tree?

[Experienced mentors, newbies welcome! Guaranteed learning, meals and accommodation included!]

[Stop joking, this tree is in such a sorry state...]

[That's strange. Following the pattern of the previous trees, shouldn't it have turned to ash and then transformed into a bird?]

[Perhaps... it's not dead yet?]

"This tree and its heart don't seem to match..."

Ivan looked at this and that, and finally made an awkward complaint.

"The art style feels completely different, has it mutated?"

Mutations?

He stared at the way the 'heart' was rooted in the tree trunk for a long time.

Although the thing in front of us isn't a living person, from a pathological perspective, it's less a mutation and more a symbiotic relationship, or perhaps a crueler, more cold-blooded one...

parasitic.

For this tree, death is not the end, but a new beginning.

But this giant tree... has clearly been deprived of the right to new life.

While the 'heart' draws some kind of nourishment from it, it also feeds back energy from other trees, keeping it alive until its last breath, maintaining its state of a living dead tree, unable to collapse, and unable to usher in its own rebirth.

"Its cycle has been disrupted."

He casually and softly stated the conclusions he had reached.

"That's right... I can sense that they are two different lives..."

Aurora's brow was full of pity.

The power she extended was non-aggressive and therefore not repelled.

"So it should have died like other trees, turning into a bird to protect this forest, or rather, it shouldn't have died at all."

Nathan's sequence made him feel—

A faint, lingering lament.

The agony of being imprisoned in a decaying body, unable to live or die.

"No wonder it looked awkward..."

Ivan shouldered his worries, spat, and said, "Wouldn't cutting that thing solve the problem?"

The captain shook his head and didn't say anything.

Things are probably not that simple.

The fact that this tumor could parasitize such a powerful mother tree and, in turn, control the ecology of the entire area speaks volumes about how difficult it was to treat.

The sense of being spied on, which had subsided for a while, became even stronger after they arrived...

This is not a good sign.

But whatever it is, whether it's powerful or not, it has to be removed.

How can we get rid of these insects?

After pondering for a moment, he silently took out three large buckets from the system warehouse and slammed them onto the ground with three loud thuds.

"This is......"

Nathan recognized that this oil was from Naga territory, and his eyes lit up.

Three oil drums were kicked to his feet.

"Sprinkle it," the captain instructed. "Be careful not to get it on your clothes, it won't wash out."

Is that something that can't be washed off?

As Ivan slapped open an oil drum, he said with a face full of black lines:

"Boss, if we set fire to this forest, won't we become roast meat too?"

He kicked one of the buckets to Aurora, who caught it with one hand.

"It's not time to light the fire yet, let's get to work!"

No one objected anymore.

Several people carried oil drums, cleaning up the swarms of insects on the ground as they ran in all directions, leaving four sticky, winding trails behind them.

At first, the beetles ignored the four creatures.

They are active at night and are busy transporting tree pith under the cover of darkness to feed their mother.

But this assembly line operation...

The sticky black liquid on the ground increased, and countless of their companions were stuck inside and unable to move. The swarm of insects stopped, the rustling sound briefly ceased, and then, as if receiving some kind of command, it erupted again.

The black waves broke away from the planned transport route, changed direction, and surged towards the four of them!

Individually, they are only about the size of a large cockroach on Earth. They cannot fly and are quite fragile; you can stomp on several of them with one foot.

But now...

Insects piled on top of each other, shells rubbing against each other.

Amidst this teeth-grinding "click-click-click" sound, a gigantic, deformed beetle rose from the ground.

Two meters... five meters... ten meters.

Finally, countless [Shattered Light Beetles] stacked together actually formed a huge humanoid silhouette!

"......roar--!!!"

Countless wriggling carapaces, arthropods, tentacles, and gleaming compound eyes pieced together, barely enough to make out facial features, and the giant roared as it opened its deformed mouth wide.

With each movement it made, beetles would fall with a clattering sound, and new beetles would immediately crawl up from its feet to fill the gap...

The giant insect's body maintained its balance through constant wriggling and replenishment.

"...It's too ugly."

Any objective evaluation.

At this moment, the four of them were scattered in four different directions, with Ivan being the closest to the insect giant.

Ivan looked up at the swarm of insects, then swung his axe at its calf with tremendous force, causing the insects to burst with juice, yet the creature didn't even flinch!

"Don't confront them head-on!"

The captain gave the order.

The giant insect also moved.

It bent down slowly but swiftly, and an arm made entirely of beetles swept across, sending several boulders flying and crashing into the forest, creating a shower of leaves.

The arm could extend during the attack, affecting more than just Ivan!

"Get out of the way!"

Nathan yelled and rolled on the spot to avoid a boulder.

Ivan lunged forward, landing right at the giant's feet. His arm whistled past the giant's head, and his axe slashed down at the giant's ankle.

"Click."

A swarm of insects was chopped down, but the next second, countless insects were drawn back in like magnets...

Unharmed.

"Damn, how am I supposed to fight this? Every cut I make will make me gain ten pounds!"

Ivan dodged the giant insect's stomping foot by flipping over, frantically shaking off the insects that had fallen on him while complaining loudly.

He smacked his lips and asked, "Is this considered a mass troop attack strategy?"

I'm actually a little envious.

But as much as I envy them—

"Keep watering it, and kite it."

The four of them ran around the tree, with the giant insect in pursuit, its body made of flowing beetles quickly covered in a pungent, sticky liquid.

In their view,

Every step it takes adds to the countdown to its demise.

However, as the commotion here grew louder, the insect swarm abandoned the outer glass trees and began a full-scale defense.

The giant insect, disregarding losses, swung its arms, forcing the four step by step towards the center...

The four were startled to realize—

This is driving them toward that constantly throbbing black 'tumor'!?