Somewhere in the dry highlands, there is a small piece of land on the shady side of the sun. The remaining rainwater from the last rain accumulates in the crevices here, nourishing a small patch of wall moss, liverworts and ferns nearby.
Compared with the surrounding barren and arid land, this place is lush and green, like a small oasis in the desert, where various creatures shuttle and stay, and it is full of life.
There is actually no shortage of water in the entire highland, but the high terrain and thin soil layer make it impossible to store rainwater. Most of the areas are barren sand and rocks, which are not suitable for vegetation growth. Only such shady depressions with relatively thick soil have become the most prosperous places in the area.
On this day, the sudden intrusion of a black fire ant vanguard force broke the peace of this small oasis.
The foraging snail hurriedly retracted into its shell and blocked the mouth of the shell with a thin layer of wax. However, the snail pierced it with its mandibles and was taken out and eaten. The earthworms that had been hiding during the day huddled in the rock crevices, but were discovered by the ants and pulled out bit by bit. Only half of their bodies remained in the deepest part and survived. The rat woman curled up, but her carapace could not protect herself. The ants mercilessly opened it up and dug out the flesh inside...
The small oasis instantly became a large slaughterhouse, and the larger creatures sheltered in it suffered a catastrophe. The ants who lacked military food killed and ate almost all the living creatures they found.
Only the tiny springtails were not threatened. These creatures, which are less than half a millimeter in size, have bodies as green as emeralds, and a pair of big eyes as bright as black beans. They look very cute.
They are too small to be prey targets of ants, and they are very flexible. Once touched by an ant's tentacles, the projectile on the back of the body is activated immediately, and they can jump to a very high distance (equivalent to a person jumping over the Eiffel Tower), quickly disappeared from the sight of the ants.
Relying on this ability, large groups of springtails swagger around under the noses of ants, gnawing on plants and even the leftover meat left by ants. Some springtails do not shy away from performing their own unique courtship and mating rituals in public, as if the tragedy happening in their habitat does not exist at all.
Beside the water-logged stone seam, a black fire ant male lay down on the water's edge and plunged his entire head into the water to cool down.
He is the commander of this vanguard army and a member of the Black Fire Ant Kingdom King's Council. He is appointed by King "Black Coal" to command this army as a vanguard action.
Along the way, the unsheltered land allowed him to be baptized by the sun. The warmth was very comfortable at first, but after half a day, he only felt that his body temperature was a bit high and he was short of water.
Fortunately, the local assistant nest guide ant knew this place and led him over to have a rest. The male black fire ant quenched its thirst with water drops, and then used its tentacles and forelimbs to wipe the water drops on its head on its body to cool down, and immediately felt much better.
A harvester ant slave handed over a piece of fresh snail meat. The plump fat layer was very tempting, and the male ant swallowed it half-sucking and half-chewing.
A drop of meat juice slipped from the mandible, instantly attracting several small springtails. They also greedily sucked the juice, and their big eyes were still staring at the nearby ants, as if they were ready to jump away at any time.
Other black fire ant warriors also eat under the service of slaves. This legion is accompanied by hundreds of slave ants, responsible for taking care of these black fire ants who cannot take care of themselves and can only fight.
The ants only set out after having a full stomach in the local sub-nest before dawn, but the food will not be wasted. According to the guide, there will be very few larger oases on the way back, and you have to walk all the way down to the high ground. There is dense vegetation.
At the last larger supply point in the surrounding area, the male black fire ants issued an order to exterminate the creatures in the oasis, and this was the beginning of the scene.
When the black fire ant vanguard army was resting, parasitic flying insects kept passing by in the sky. Sometimes the opponent would descend to a very low airspace and look at the army in the oasis.
Since the day before yesterday, parasitic flying insects have been appearing frequently, which illustrates the problem.
The leader of the male ant army has already sensed that the army of fallen ants is very close, and a battle may break out at any time. He sent a messenger to report the matter to King "Black Coal", and the other party agreed very much. He began to close his formation and spread out his scouts as a precaution.
At this time, another black fire ant army and several ant squads approached the oasis, and their scouts made contact with the army that arrived at the oasis first.
Seeing that his army had rested and recuperated, the leader of the male ant army was ready to order the departure and let the water source be used by friendly forces. This place is too small, and it would be too dense for the two legions to coexist.
The leader of the male black fire ant army from the friendly army came to meet and exchange feelings in the black fire ant way, as well as exchange information about each other.
At this moment, the two army commanders noticed something unusual in the sky at the same time!
Several parasitic wasps that had been hovering over the oasis suddenly flew away, then circled in the sky not far south of the oasis and dived several times.
Soon a soldier came to report that there were several messenger ants in the south and were being chased by parasitic wasps.
In the information packet, you can see four black fire ant messengers nimbly moving around, using every stone, every ditch, and every gap to avoid attacks from the sky.
The two ants that did not escape were quickly pounced upon by the parasitoid, and were unable to escape under the dual pressure of the parasitoid's weight and flapping wings. When the parasitic wasp stings with its straw, the ants are quickly sucked into mummified bodies.
The remaining two couriers are still speeding towards the oasis. They carry information or orders to convey, and they cannot lose their lives in vain.
The two legion commanders also realized that the messenger must have brought an order, so they unanimously issued the order and sent a small team to respond.
Among them was a team of ants. After receiving the messenger, they took cover and sprayed formic acid into the sky to prevent the parasitic wasps from doing whatever they wanted.
The messenger was escorted to the two army commanders. The military order she brought was urgent:
The Chinese army was attacked by a large group of parasitic beasts during the march, and then a large group of parasitic ants came to cover up and kill them. The Chinese army was fighting hard! King "Black Coal" urgently ordered nearby troops to rush to support!
The two male ant army leaders were shocked when they heard the news. Although all signs showed that the fallen ants might attack at any time, the black fire ant army was not defenseless. The scouts were spread out far away and a wide warning net was set up. How could it still happen? Was raided, the Chinese army where the two-dimensional or "Black Coal" King was under attack!
Without any time to think about it, the first legion decided to move ahead and rush back for support. The subsequent legions quickly replenished their drinking water before setting off again.
Following the path they came from, sniffing the fresh pheromones along the way, this legion, like many other legions, is moving closer to the Chinese army on an anti-radiation trajectory.
At this time, half a day's journey south of the oasis, the Battle of the Highlands had already begun!
