Rhinoceros Beetle

When Lin Miao went in person to pick up the goods he had ordered, the merchant, who had once again managed to source the insects he needed, let out a heavy sigh the moment they met.

“Times have changed. While importing things into the country has actually become easier, the core issue is that they're getting harder and harder to source.”

He said that from now on, rare foreign insects would only become increasingly difficult to find.

The drastic environmental changes brought about by the monster invasions were by no means affecting only human civilization.

Just as Lin Miao's ants were completely transforming the environment and ecosystem of Terra, the servants of the Outer God Abhoth were also constantly multiplying their numbers in their occupied territories, stopping at nothing to achieve total conquest.

Of course, just as the ant colony had zero interest in Terra's native insects—which were as insignificant as dust to them—Abhoth's servants also didn't seem to feed on things like bugs.

Yet the changes to the environment itself were already a fatal blow to these tiny lives.

“If this keeps up, they might very well go extinct. Aren't we actually doing them a favor by protecting them like this?”

Hearing the merchant justify his smuggling activities, Lin Miao let out a bitter laugh. “...I just hope it doesn't come to that.”

In any case, since he himself had become an accomplice actively utilizing the man's services, he naturally had no right to judge.

Lin Miao simply hoped that what the merchant feared would not happen, if at all possible.

He would wait until the ant colony, growing continuously in the otherworld, finally possessed enough power, and until he could use them to launch a counteroffensive against the Outer God Abhoth. When that day came, those entities would no longer be able to continue invading Earth.

“Huh? An alarm?!”

Just then, a piercing siren suddenly rang out, enveloping the entire building in its alarm.

In this era of indiscriminate invasions by otherworld monsters, this sound was both incredibly familiar to everyone and capable of evoking an instinctive dread—just hearing it made one's skin crawl.

A broadcast blared: “A rift fluctuation has occurred, and emerging monsters are currently roaming the surrounding area. All citizens, please proceed to a shelter immediately, or remain indoors and do not go outside.”

“This is the first floor! Quick, evacuate to the underground shelter! Everyone, get out!”

The merchant turned pale in an instant, shouting for his employees and customers to seek shelter immediately.

Lin Miao also moved along with the crowd.

The compulsory safety education manuals he had studied since childhood made it perfectly clear: when such an event occurred, ordinary citizens had to head to shelters or hide in the deepest parts of indoor spaces.

'If it were a rift that was about to appear, it would vanish if I got close. But an already formed rift has nothing to do with my power. Is this just a pure coincidence?'

Amidst the noisy, panicked crowd, Lin Miao stood quietly, his gaze turning toward the direction of the rift where the explosion had occurred.

Just a few months ago, he had been no different from anyone else. But now, even with the piercing alarm ringing in his ears and the chaotic atmosphere surrounding him, his heart was remarkably calm.

He didn't know if it was because he had witnessed too much life and death during this period, or because he could clearly feel his own deity rank rising step by step.

Lin Miao even felt that even if he were to face those terrifying monsters that had once carved immense dread into his memories and emotions right now, he wouldn't even bat an eye.

After all, the monsters that had once terrified him so deeply were, in the end, nothing more than mere servants controlled by gods.

“Excuse me, sir. Although I'm not on duty right now, I am an Awakened. Please head to the underground shelter quickly. If you've dropped anything, it's fine to come back for it later. I will guard the entrance.”

Just then, someone suddenly grabbed Lin Miao's arm.

He turned his head and saw a young woman looking at him with an anxious expression.

“Ah...”

Just as she had said, she was holding an Awakened license in her hand. The Awakened—beings who likewise came into existence through systems created by the gods via the Divine Net—were also the servants of deities.

Once, Lin Miao had also admired these heroes who fought against monsters, but after learning the truth behind it all, looking at them now, his state of mind was completely different.

“Thank you. I'll head to the shelter right away.”

The moment she met Lin Miao's gaze, the woman suddenly froze in place. Though slightly puzzled, Lin Miao went ahead and walked forward. These people were the eyes and ears of the gods.

No matter how omnipotent those gods with vast territories and immense power across the universe were, it was impossible for them to monitor all prompts and situations simultaneously. Thus, Lin Miao did not want to expose his still-weak self to the gaze of other deities due to any abnormal behavior.

He stayed in the underground shelter for several hours. Only after the monsters that had emerged from the nearby rift were completely cleared did Lin Miao finally return home.

“I went to a lot of trouble to get this, so make sure you enjoy it.”

Recalling what had just happened, Lin Miao opened the lid of the terrarium and casually tossed the giant rhinoceros beetle inside.

【Elise is amazed by this massive prey and is filled with joy.】

Unlike the larvae he had introduced before, what he tossed in this time was an adult insect—a foreign Atlas beetle. In Lin Miao's memory, this kind of rhinoceros beetle was also known as the triceratops beetle, possessing three massive horns resembling a Triceratops and being a highly famous species.

At this moment, this rhinoceros beetle, with its massive body and extremely hard exoskeleton, began to resist the mutated ants closing in on it.

When he had introduced the wing-clipped dragonflies before, Lin Miao had weakened the prey, but this time he did not.

This was a trial he was giving them. They shouldn't just obediently wait to be hand-fed; they needed to show their skills and hunt for themselves.

【The servants are taken aback by the prey's strength.】

The strength erupting from this rhinoceros beetle was somewhat difficult to handle, even for Lin Miao's monsters, which could no longer be described as ordinary ants.

With just a sweep of its forelegs, it sent the massive venom-sting ants flying, and even the soldier ants clad in heavy barbed armor were flipped onto their backs by its brute strength.

【Elise is filled with anticipation at the prospect of transplanting this strength into the ant colony.】

But the ant colony, especially Elise, grew only more expectant.

They knew all too well that the stronger the enemy they devoured, the stronger they themselves would become.

Therefore, to them, a powerful enemy was simply another bounty.

【Elise trembles all over at the power of the Great One.】

Lin Miao had not weakened the prey, throwing in the rhinoceros beetle at its absolute peak.

Elise perceived this power in its entirety and actually mistook it for Lin Miao's own ability.

In her eyes, this rhinoceros beetle was a monster created by the Great One.

Seeing her make such a confident misunderstanding, Lin Miao didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and simply scratched his head.

And in just that brief moment, the ant colony had already used their signature swarming tactics to dismantle the living rhinoceros beetle in an instant.

'But today, there's more than just this one thing.'

Lin Miao looked down at his feet, where several unopened plastic containers still sat.

Today, he had deliberately purchased a large quantity of various large beetles.

In addition to the Atlas beetle he had just thrown in, there were also ordinary rhinoceros beetles native to the Dragon Nation, other famous rhinoceros beetle species, and a wide variety of stag beetles. Once Elise devoured all of these, she would surely create even more bizarre and powerful mutated species, which would eventually become unstoppable monsters on Terra.

"..."

Lin Miao watched blankly as the new prey he introduced were swarmed, dismantled, and devoured one by one by the ant colony.

Even if they could not yet fully understand his words, and even if they could not survive without killing and devouring, as he personally raised and strengthened these ants that were turning another world upside down and slaughtering countless intelligent lives, his own infamy was also growing along with them.

Just as the Outer God Abhoth had sent its servants to invade the world Lin Miao lived in, hurting the people around him and completely changing his life.

'This is really a dilemma.'

Lin Miao slumped into the chair in front of the terrarium.

Even if all his plans were successfully realized and all the gods were driven off Earth, this peace would still be bought at the cost of endless blood flowing in another world.

At least until the ant colony could fully understand his words, none of this would stop; even if one day they could obey his control and stop their indiscriminate slaughter, the karma already incurred would never vanish into thin air.