Novel Full Chapter 349: [The Genesis Hive]
Chapter 349: [The Genesis Hive]
“Father.”
Imperia lightly patted Kael’s head with her little limbs, trying to wake him up. It was quite a surprising action; after all, the little Ant had always focused on making sure her Father got enough sleep.
Even when they trained together, the little thing would focus on time, and once it was too late, she would force him to sleep, constantly telling him how important rest was.
Today, however, was different.
It was finally Imperia’s turn to spend some time alone with her Father.
Yes, after Igni, Cirri, Vitaria, it was now Imperia’s chance to enter the Ancient’s Call together with her Father. Because of this, the little Ant was so excited that she could barely catch a wink of sleep last night.
And now that she knew the Time Limit of Ancient Call was over, she started nudging Kael to wake up. After all, wasting time like this wasn’t a good habit.
“Father.”
The little thing called out again. This was already the tenth time, but Kael hadn’t moved. Imperia momentarily turned silent; she could see that her little limbs weren’t doing anything, therefore, she came up with another plan.
She walked towards Kael’s right ear and put her limb inside, instantly making Kael move.
“Father.”
She called out again, and finally, Kael heard her voice.
“Ria…?”
He called out sleepily.
“It is morning already, you should wake up.
Sleeping for long isn’t a good habit.”
The Ant spoke, changing her words.
The change would have surprised Kael, but he was too sleepy to note anything. He just—
“Just a few more minutes.”
He requested.
“Fat—”
Imperia wanted to stop him from sleeping and waking up again, but when she saw how her father was sleeping so peacefully, she stopped.
She had seen how hard her father had been working these past few days; she knew how he had been functioning on barely five or even fewer hours a day. And yet, even with all that, he didn’t complain, not even once. He even took time out of his busy schedule just to play with them all, even if it meant sacrificing a few more hours of sleep.
Since her Father was doing so much for them…
“…Alright, Father.”
She spoke lightly as she moved towards Kael’s forehead and started ruffling his hair with her limbs.
“Sleep well.”
Yes, she decided to not be selfish and let her father sleep for two more hours.
It wasn’t a big deal—they could skip going to the Ancient Call today. Her Father needed a well-deserved rest.
The two of them could always go together tomorrow, can’t they?
With a light smile on her face, Imperia crouched as she rubbed her forehead with her Father’s and closed her eyes, ready to sleep for a little while longer.
But then—
“Ria…?”
Kael blinked groggily, then focused on the little Ant softly pressing her head to his. For a moment, his exhaustion melted, and very quickly, he realized it.
“It is finally your turn, isn’t it?”
He chuckled softly.
“It is alright, Father, we can skip today.”
Ria nodded lightly.
But Kael…
“Hmm? Why would we skip?
I was looking forward to spending time with my youngest daughter.”
“Really?”
Ria’s expression changed, and Kael gently brought his finger on top of her and patted her head.
“Of course.”
Ria’s eyes brightened.
“Then let’s go quickly. Or we will be behind schedule.”
She spoke. The Ant still tried to keep her mature voice, but Kael could clearly hear her childish side.
And it was adorable.
He laughed lightly, then he gently freed himself from Lavinia’s hold, lifted Nyrri up before putting him on the floor as he himself stood up.
“Let them sleep for long. They are all tired.”
He spoke.
“Yes, Father.”
Ria nodded as she quickly jumped on his shoulder. Kael then walked a little further away from the others and finally opened the portal.
“Shall we?”
He questioned as he stared at his youngest daughter.
And Imperia,
“Yes!”
She nodded excitedly, and the two of them walked in.
…
The father and daughter walked out to the other side, Kael’s step landing on the solid ground. The portal’s flow behind them flickered once before vanishing.
Their eyes slowly adjusted to the change. As the two looked around, they realized they were standing inside a vast, cavernous space—no, it wasn’t just a cavern.
This place felt like it was carved by purpose, not by time. The walls curved like the insides of a living creature, smooth yet textured with layered stone and hardened soil. The scent hit him next—rich, earthy, tinged with dampness and something oddly sweet. Faint bioluminescent moss clung to the walls, glowing a gentle green that barely outlined the space ahead.
Above them, the ceiling stretched so high it disappeared into shadow. Massive roots, some thicker than Kael’s body, dangled from above like hanging limbs. From them, tiny glimmers blinked—Ants, thousands of them, crawling silently in perfect harmony.
What surprised them the most was that none of these ants attacked them—they didn’t even flinch at their appearance.
They just… watched.
Kael took a cautious step forward, eyes scanning every inch of the eerie landscape.
“Where are we…?”
He questioned slowly.
*Picture*
Imperia, who was sitting on his shoulders, looked around as well, her antennae gently twitching in the air. Her big purple eyes swept the surroundings, but she didn’t say anything.
For some reason, she felt tense. This place felt familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. Everything around her felt ominous; however, the moment her eyes fell on the hundreds of thousands of ants staring at her, she felt relieved.
She could feel a connection to these ants, just like she felt with all her children. She knew they would move the moment she gave a command. Another thing she found odd was that these ants did not have a Queen.
There were different types of ants here, but none of them had their Queens—almost as if they appeared out of nowhere, without a mother giving them birth.
Or…
The Mothers were dead.
Imperia’s face turned grim when she thought of that possibility. For now, however, she simply acknowledged her children’s existence and did not think too much about it.
They would soon learn about everything anyway. For now, she focused on the rest of her surroundings, and soon, her eyes finally fell on it.
At the center of the cavern, there was a structure much different from anything she had ever seen. A massive chamber, shaped like a dome carved from amber. Thick vines covered it, glowing with an inner golden light. The pulse of it was slow and rhythmic—almost like a heartbeat. Roots wrapped around it, protecting it like ribs.
“That… doesn’t look natural.”
Kael narrowed his eyes.
He stepped forward cautiously. Soon, however, his expression changed when he glanced at Imperia.
The Ant was frozen; her gaze was locked on the chamber.
“Ria?”
He asked gently, somewhat worried.
Ria didn’t respond right away, her antennae twitched lightly.
“I… don’t know what this is,”
She spoke in a low voice.
“But… I feel it.”
She muttered, her purple eyes reflecting the heartbeat of the strange cocoon ahead.
“It’s calling me.”
“Calling you…?”
Kael frowned.
“Mhm…”
And Imperia didn’t know how to explain.
“I feel like… I need to move inside.”
She just spoke what came to her mind, and just as Kael heard those words, a screen appeared in front of him.
[The Genesis Hive]
[Mission: Evolution Catalyst]
[Mission Description:]
[Deep beneath the Ancient Sanctum lies the Genesis Hive—a sacred place where queens are forged through extinction. Here, evolution is not a gift, but a gauntlet of blood and survival.]
[Here, the Mother of All Ants must begin her Evolution. The Metamorphism will trigger a surge of ancient power that will awaken the apex predators of the Ancient Insect World, the Undereign.]
[Drawn by instinct and fear, these creatures will converge on the Hive, determined to crush the rise of a new sovereign before it can begin.]
[While the Mother of All Ants undergoes her evolution, completely vulnerable, lead the vast army of her children and defend the Brood Chamber against five ferocious waves of enemies.]
[Objective:]
[Protect the Mother of All Ants.]
[Defeat 5 waves of Insect Predators.]
[Prevent the Brood Chamber from being breached.]
[Time Limit: 24 Hours]
[Special Conditions:]
[Swarmmind Link: To protect her, the Mother of All Ants has granted you her power. You are now mentally linked to all ants in the Hive, allowing you to issue real-time battlefield commands.]
[Completion Reward: Baptism of the Hive Sovereign]
…
“Evolution…?”
Kael’s expression changed.
Shouldn’t this be happening after they cleared the Mission?
How has this turned into the Mission itself…?
Slowly, he turned towards his Ria and…
‘Is she so strong that her very Evolution is a Mission…?’
After all, he did read that the power released from her Evolution would cause the so-called apex predators to attack her in fear.
The moment Kael thought about it,
His expression turned cold.
Attacking his little Ria…?
He would crush every single one of them into tiny little pieces with his own hands.