« Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter » Chapter 44: White Ant Queen Half a month later. Outside the mountain, the summer heat was sweltering, but inside the mountain, it remained cool. Accompanied by Bai Jing, Fu Shaoguang left the Demon Market . Soon, a gigantic earthen fortress came into view. It was the Ant Nest . Fu Shaoguang entered it, marveling at the sight. The Termite Demons truly deserved their reputation in the Demon Market for their construction skills. The Ant Nest stood tall like an earthen mound, magnificent on the outside, and even more intricate on the inside, with roads extending in all directions. Crisscrossing and dense with tunnels. Like a dense, sprawling network. Fu Shaoguang believed his memory was good and his sense of direction accurate; he could remember the path at first, but he quickly became disoriented. His head was spinning. He stuck closely behind Bai Jing. Perhaps only Termite Dem...
Achieving Immortality in a Cultivation World by Extraordinary Means: Chapter 1: Mayfly
Chapter 1: Mayfly
Azure Cloud Lake.
The water was as clear as a mirror, and green moss sprouted. The blue sky, white clouds, and surrounding green trees were reflected in it, creating a harmonious scene where water and sky blended into one.
Green duckweed swayed, and beneath its leaves, oval eggs the size of millet gradually transformed, giving birth to dense swarms of nymphs: brown-striped, with two compound eyes, two antennae, six legs, ten abdominal segments, and three caudal filaments.
These nymphs often hatched one after another alongside dragonfly nymphs. The two were similar in appearance, differing only slightly in their abdomen and cephalothorax. The latter were dragonfly larvae, which often preyed on the former. Therefore, the nymphs and dragonfly nymphs began a life-and-death struggle as soon as they were born—a battle for survival where the strong preyed on the weak, one fleeing and the other killing.
Before he could even figure out his situation, his body turned cold, and all his fine hairs bristled, as if a moment's delay would mean certain death. He instinctively used all six of his legs to roll to the side.
From the corner of his compound eye, he glimpsed a dragonfly nymph ferociously tearing at him with its mandibles. If he hadn't reacted in time, he would have died instantly. Although he was not human in this life and couldn't yet understand his situation, the threat of death was very real.
To be able to start over, he was incredibly happy and cherished it immensely, absolutely unwilling to lose his life just like that.
Seeing the dragonfly nymph aggressively charging, Fu Shaoguang desperately maneuvered and moved, circling the aquatic plants to fight his powerful enemy. The dragonfly nymph was clearly the natural enemy of his species in this life, and merely prolonged fighting would eventually lead to defeat. He used his intelligence, moving toward the muddy sand and using his six legs to kick up dust. This disrupted the dragonfly nymph's vision, allowing him to seize the opportunity to bite specifically at vulnerable areas like its abdomen.
After one strike, whether it hit or not, he immediately retreated and repeated the trick. After several attempts, he managed to ride on the dragonfly nymph's back, clinging tightly with his six legs, and ferociously bit through its abdomen. This spot was far more fragile than the eyes.
He had expected to feel disgusted, but to his surprise, he felt no discomfort at all. Instead, his blood boiled, and Fu Shaoguang desperately sucked the dragonfly nymph's blood. The dragonfly nymph's struggles grew weaker and weaker. Fu Shaoguang gradually felt filled with power.
Having dealt with his opponent, he immediately burrowed deep into the muddy sand. Other members of his kind stopped after digging to a certain depth, but Fu Shaoguang continued to dig deeper, digging and burying as he went, blocking the passage and leaving only a tiny breathing hole.
It wasn't until he ran out of strength that he collapsed in the hole, resting carefully to recover his energy. He had given his all. Others could only do what insects do and leave the rest to fate. If they survived this ordeal, all the better; if not, it was their destiny.
Soon, frog croaks sounded, and several frogs appeared. Their tongues snatched up many nymphs, which they gulped down. Several Crucian Carp, flicking their fins and tails, also arrived, scrambling for the feast, eager to fill their bellies.
Hearing the commotion outside, Fu Shaoguang shrank his body in fear, silently chanting:
"You can't see me!
None of you can see me!"
Time flowed like water, a month passing in the blink of an eye.
In the clear, shallow water, a nymph hid beneath emerald green algae, desperately feeding. Even as other members of its kind stopped eating and rested lazily, it continued to feed.
If he could, Fu Shaoguang would also want to "lie flat," but his fate was not his own; who knew he would transmigrate into a mayfly nymph?
The infamous short-lived species!
Mayflies know neither dawn nor dusk. Living for even a day was considered good. Some only lived for an hour or two.
In his previous life, his body was frail, and later he contracted a terminal illness. While in the hospital, he loved to research mayfly information the most. He felt they were very similar to him. But he couldn't help but envy them:
"With mayfly wings, dressed in splendor.
The glory of a single day, the dance of life.
A short life, but one lived in utmost brilliance."
However, a month ago, upon first seeing the appearance of his own kind and realizing he had undergone rebirth as a mayfly nymph, Fu Shaoguang became a hypocrite, terrified to death.
A mayfly's life goes through four stages: egg, nymph, subimago, and imago. In the latter two stages, their mouthparts degenerate, and they no longer feed. Only during the nymph stage can they accumulate energy. Of course, he had to seize the opportunity to strive. As long as he didn't die, he would eat like crazy.
Mayfly nymphs grow for one to three years, undergoing ten, twenty, or even forty molts. The more molts, the longer the imago's final struggle. Fu Shaoguang had undergone two molts in the first month, already much stronger than his contemporaries who had only molted once. But it still wasn't enough, so he continued to eat.
Algae, stonefly larvae, chironomid larvae... Fu Shaoguang did only two things every day: eating and sleeping.
He calculated time by the molting frequency of other larvae of his kind. They were very regular, molting approximately once a month. Three months after birth, Fu Shaoguang had molted six times, and his physique was stronger than other nymphs, which was both a blessing and a curse. The good thing was his strong vitality. The bad thing was being a bigger target.
Therefore, every time he moved, he would coat himself in a layer of mud and then roll a few times in the non-toxic, pungent algae.
The weather grew cooler, and the water temperature gradually dropped. As autumn turned to winter, Fu Shaoguang followed the crowd of his kind, migrating to find suitable overwintering grounds.
During the migration, his nerves were taut. He would immediately hide at the slightest disturbance. Perhaps due to the dual blessing of transmigration and a strong body, Fu Shaoguang's five senses were acute, allowing him to detect danger earlier than other members of his kind, and thus timely hide, conceal himself, and flee. He would also frequently stop to replenish his mud coating.
Climbing and crawling, they advanced for half a month. The water temperature gradually warmed, and the group stopped in a downstream cove. The water here was deeper, the temperature more suitable, and it would be easier to survive the winter even if it froze. After finding a secure and hidden spot, Fu Shaoguang diligently dug a deep, thick, and interconnected burrow, much like a "cunning rabbit's three burrows."
He carefully observed the surroundings, and only when he saw other members of his kind foraging safely, without any danger, did he emerge and frantically eat.
The colder the climate, the lower the water temperature. Fu Shaoguang dug his hole deeper and deeper to resist the severe cold. However, his appetite grew larger and larger, and food became increasingly difficult to find, often leaving him only half-full.
Nutrition equals lifespan. Eating means extending life.
The nymph stage has only one mission: eat!
Fu Shaoguang risked expanding his activity range. He ate more algae, aquatic plants, and detritus, and hunted more mosquito and fly larvae, as well as other invertebrates. Sometimes, when he was so hungry his eyes turned green, he would first bite off the sharp thorns of algae, hold the sharp weapon, bury himself in the muddy sand, and risk hunting solitary dragonfly nymphs.
Of course, he wasn't overly reckless. If anything went wrong, he would immediately flee—either quickly escaping far away, hiding in rock crevices, or desperately digging deeper into the muddy sand. During this period, he faced numerous life-threatening situations. If he hadn't been clever, he would have probably undergone reincarnation already.
Ate and slept, slept and ate. Another three months passed in a daze.
With two or three peach branches, the ducks were the first to know the water was warm. Fu Shaoguang, now six months old, had molted twelve times, and including the length of his caudal filaments, his body was now the size of a grain of rice.
But he didn't jump around; instead, he hid even deeper. As the ice and snow melted, aquatic creatures became active—emerging, breathing, and foraging—and the number of natural enemies increased. However, he was also quite happy, as food gradually became more abundant and diverse, so he no longer had to worry about insufficient food.
Splash!
A school of Crucian Carp swam over. Fu Shaoguang immediately hid in his newly found hiding spot, which was where the Drunk Fish Grass was located. Many fish disliked the smell of this aquatic plant, which contained trace amounts of neurotoxins. After eating it, fish would temporarily lose sensation and consciousness, floating on the water's surface as if drunk or anesthetized.
He waited until there was no more movement, then lingered for a moment before resuming his activities and continuing to forage.
A month later, Fu Shaoguang was pleasantly surprised.
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