Chapter 133: The Evolution of the Nest

"Prince Trener, this is the core of the Iron-Clad Ant nest."

Inside a secret chamber within the castle, Rochell solemnly picked up a gemstone resting on a stone pedestal. The gemstone was iron-gray and hexagonal, with the image of an armored ant at its very center.

Nests naturally manifest in every corner of the world and are typically immovable. However, throughout humanity's long history of mastering these nests, a method was developed to seal a nest within its core, facilitating transport and portability. The drawback, however, is that this method can only be used once; once a nest has been moved in this state, it can never be moved again.

Li Ju took the nest core from Rochell. As it touched his palm, a gentle warmth emanated from its surface.

"Prince Trener, just to be safe, you should complete the ritual to bind your consciousness to the nest right here," Rochell advised.

"Very well."

Li Ju nodded. He drew a small blade he carried, sliced his palm, and let his blood seep onto the surface of the core. Immediately after, he began to chant in a convoluted, archaic language.

This was the Controller Ritual, the method humans used to seize control of the nest cores of other creatures.

When humans first began to control these nests, they did not use this method. Instead, they relied on a crude and brutal process of refining the core with their own mental energy. This approach had many flaws: it required a high level of strength from the practitioner and could not be used to control nests of creatures stronger than oneself, lest the core's backlash reduce the practitioner to an idiot.

Later, as the era progressed, humanity's methods for controlling nests evolved. Two hundred years ago, a master of nest theory known to posterity as the "Azure Sky Emperor," Jada Pells, invented this Controller Ritual.

Initially, the ritual was ignored and rarely used. But after Jada—an ordinary man—used the ritual to seize the nest of an Emperor-grade creature, the Azure Sky Illusion Bird, and subsequently established an empire, the world was set ablaze, and the ritual spread rapidly.

The Controller Ritual is simple to operate and places no requirements on the practitioner's strength. Even an ordinary person can use it to control the nests of high-level creatures, and one can even draw upon the nest's power to bolster their own strength. It was precisely because of this ritual that the way noble families raised their heirs changed dramatically; they no longer prioritized the heir's personal strength—since refining a nest would boost their power regardless—but rather focused on whether the heir possessed the capability to maintain a family.

Thirty seconds later, a flash of light swept across the Iron-Clad Ant nest core, and the image of the ant at its center vanished. Li Ju suddenly felt his consciousness link with the Iron-Clad Ant nest before him.

"The nest will only grant you strength once it is fully deployed and released from its core state," Rochell explained, observing that Li Ju had finished the refinement. "So, do not be surprised that your strength hasn't reached the Knight-grade simply by refining the core."

Li Ju nodded dismissively, indicating he understood. His attention was focused on the panel of information that had suddenly appeared before his eyes.

"Nest: Iron-Clad Ant (Level 9) (Knight-grade)
Available Nest Creatures: Iron-Clad Ant (1 per 5 days)
Status: Core state, not yet deployed"

"Iron-Clad Ant (Level 9) (Knight-grade)
Overview: A giant ant clad in iron armor with immense strength. Both its defensive and offensive capabilities are at the absolute pinnacle of Knight-grade nest creatures. Its overall combat power is not inferior even to a Level 10 Baron-grade creature.
Evolution Path: Once the nest is deployed, it can be evolved by feeding it the nest core of a Fierce Ant."

Nest evolution...

Li Ju took note of the term.

"Uncle Rochell, do you know about nest evolution?" Li Ju asked directly.

"Nest evolution? Why do you ask about that?" Rochell looked surprised.

"I saw the term in some books at the library, but there was no explanation, so I've always been curious about it. Seeing this core today reminded me of it, so I thought I'd ask," Li Ju shrugged, as if he were just acting on a random whim.

"Ah, nest evolution..." Rochell mused, organizing his thoughts.

"This is also a theory proposed by Master Jada back in the day, even earlier than the Controller Ritual. It was a phenomenon he stumbled upon by chance. Master Jada discovered in the wild that a Baron-grade nest creature, the Swordsman Bird, had fed the core of a Viscount-grade creature, the Flame Tiger, to its own nest after wiping out the tiger's colony. Eventually, after digesting the Flame Tiger's core, the Swordsman Bird's nest evolved into a Marquis-grade Fierce Flame Bird nest. That was the first evolution path humanity ever mastered."

"The Fierce Flame Marquis in our Sea Snake Kingdom currently controls that very Fierce Flame Bird nest, which evolved through that exact path," Rochell said slowly. "To date, we humans have discovered eleven evolution paths, including that of the Swordsman Bird. However, those are just the public ones; whether those noble families have hidden paths tucked away, that is hard to say."

"Does the Iron-Clad Ant have an evolution path?" Li Ju asked after Rochell finished.

"No. If the Iron-Clad Ant had an evolution path, I doubt the family council would have let the Count hand this nest over to you, Prince Trener," Rochell shook his head. "Any nest creature with an evolution path is worth several times more than others of its grade. The Iron-Clad Ant is already a top-tier Knight-grade creature; if it had an evolution path, its value would likely rival that of the most elite Baron-grade nests."

After hearing Rochell's words, Li Ju looked back at the information on the panel.

If the panel could reveal the evolution path for every nest creature... he would be able to soar to new heights in this realm.

"Uncle Rochell, do you know where one might find a Fierce Ant nest?"