This temporary camp was crude, stark, built within a thicket of trees. Given what they had witnessed during yesterday’s thunderstorm, the decision to keep the camp nestled amongst the woods could only mean one thing: an attempt to evade threats from the sky.

Inside the camp, the scene was one of utter desolation. Only the synthetic humans were capable of standing or moving, and even they bore wounds of varying severity, leaking white oil and lubricant, appearing as if they might collapse at any moment—a clear indicator of their abysmal work efficiency.

Unsurprisingly, Fang Senyan’s three synthetics adopted defiant postures, their gazes sharp as they began scrutinizing the unfortunate survivors, likely already mentally cataloging which of their parts might be salvageable.

Hedi Kuli, Aziza, and the botanist Daldanian lay sprawled on the ground or leaned against the trees, utterly silent, their morale visibly shattered. Only the arrival of reinforcements brought a flicker of animation. Their injuries, however, were gruesome to behold: Hedi Kuli’s eyes were completely bandaged, the fabric faintly stained with seeping blood, giving the large man the appearance of a hulking Demon Hunter. Aziza’s arms were broken, yet her red hair still flew defiantly, retaining that wild, untamable spirit.

As for Daldanian, he lay prone on the earth, unconscious, occasionally spasming and emitting faint groans, seemingly entirely bereft of awareness.

Seeing this wreckage, the five newcomers, including Fang Senyan, were stunned. Yet, the questions tumbled out, each different: “Where are the rest?” “How did it come to this?” “What about Aldaris?” “What happened here?” “……”

Among the three survivors, Hedi Kuli and Aziza were clearly in no state to speak, and the botanist Daldanian was literally speechless. It took a chaotic flurry of effort before the truth of the matter finally surfaced.

It turned out that the serene and safe night Fang Senyan’s group had enjoyed was only partially due to the passing of the thunderstorm. The larger reason was that Mushroom Rock had already been claimed by a terrifying, swarming pack of beasts.

These creatures were known as the Horned Wind Ants. They possessed leathery, bat-like membranes, a single horn like a unicorn’s, and astonishing strength. They could hunt from the air or charge ruthlessly across the land.

This plain had been designated the Horned Wind Ants’ undisputed territory, and any beast daring to trespass was mercilessly exterminated.

These ants secreted two types of venom. One was a highly acidic compound that, after prolonged attack, could degrade even the thickest defenses as if they were mere paper. It was with this venom that the ants had successfully hollowed out numerous caverns within Mushroom Rock for habitation. In essence, while Mushroom Rock appeared as a massive lump, its interior top structure was honeycombed, much like a human skyscraper.

The second venom was far more malicious, targeting the victim’s nervous system directly, and possessing a seemingly sentient quality that inflicted continuous harm. The victim’s pain and flesh were transmuted into the venom’s energy.

This explained why the three individuals before them—despite being Colonizers or Awakened ones, and having access to advanced medical supplies—had not healed even long after the battle had ended.

Of course, the most terrifying aspect of the Horned Wind Ants was their inheritance of the ant family’s most formidable instinct: astounding strength, allowing them to move objects dozens, even hundreds, of times their own body weight, despite their bodies being as large as tigers or lions.

A coordinated group of just ten ants could move grubs or other food sources exceeding 5,000 times their collective weight. For ants weighing a few grams, this instinct might not raise alarm, but for Horned Wind Ants weighing several thousand pounds, this capability inspired sheer dread! Therefore, how the slaughtered giants found their way to the summit of Mushroom Rock was self-evident.

Led by the two main Tanks, they initially engaged the Horned Wind Ants in probing skirmishes. Those selected for this team were certainly not incompetent fillers, and since the ants didn’t deploy their entire swarm at once during the first contact, two of the creatures were successfully killed.

Fang Senyan had profited handsomely from dispatching the Cockatrice, so it was guaranteed that confronting such powerful creatures, capable of carving out territory on the planet Eplos, yielded substantial gains. Fueled by this imminent profit, the arrogance of the team immediately swelled.

The rest, naturally, needed no further detailing: the Horned Wind Ants attacked in full force, causing a quantitative change to become a qualitative one. Subsequently, the two captured Contractors were taken to the food storage chambers at the top of Mushroom Rock. Knowing they faced a fate worse than death, they simultaneously unleashed their final abilities—which was the fundamental reason for the violent geological upheaval Mushroom Rock experienced.

Upon learning the whole story, Fang Senyan actually relaxed. Aldaris was far too cunning; unless he stumbled into an ambush or anything involving "Shi," he possessed the character to exploit any advantage and flee from any disadvantage, and with that Blood Evasion technique for protection, it was highly unlikely he was in any real trouble.

However, the immediate problem at hand was this: the three severely injured men were all permeated by the Horned Wind Ant venom. Clearly, this venom acted like a parasitic life form, one that would persist unless physically removed. Unfortunately, none of the present company seemed to have any experience with surgery.

After much deliberation, the task ultimately fell to Fang Senyan. He was, after all, the one who handled potion formulation and specialized in support, thus having at least a tangential connection to healing.

Fang Senyan showed no hesitation, stepping forward with an air of acceptance—he, of course, didn't mind; it wasn't his flesh being cut. Moreover, the patients' constitutions were incredibly robust; severing two or three major arteries or veins, or removing a few sections of spleen or kidney, wouldn’t kill them. Thankfully, none of the injured could read minds, or they would have preferred to take the knife themselves rather than allow Fang Senyan near them.

As the sky began to dim, Bokhan, Paul, and Vasily hurried to set up defensive perimeters for the camp, while Fang Senyan sharpened his tools, facing the three tragic test subjects.

The first to be used by Fang Senyan to gain surgical experience points was Daldanian. Although he had many wounds, none were critical, nor were they too severe. When Fang Senyan sliced open the wounds, he saw that the venom was truly vile—a dark green, mercury-like substance that burrowed through flesh like an earthworm.

Upon cutting open the tissue, Fang Senyan found the venom had corroded channels two or three centimeters deep beneath Daldanian's skin. It was fortunate the substance moved randomly; if it had focused purely on the internal organs, even the constitution of an Awakened one would have resulted in a near-death experience!

After all the procedures were complete, Fang Senyan collected all the extracted venom and carefully poured it into the campfire to burn. At that moment, he noticed Aldaris sitting serenely against a nearby tree, deep in thought. His three synthetics were nearly collapsed beside him, loaded down with bags and bundles as if fleeing a disaster, clearly having secured a significant haul.

The instant Aldaris spotted Fang Senyan, he sprang up, baring his teeth. “Potions, potions! Ten bottles right away! Also, I hear you just performed surgery on them—I took a hit to my back too. Damn these ants are a headache.”

Fang Senyan immediately kicked him. “Ten bottles of potion? You think it’s soda? Look at you, weighed down with bags—did you strike gold?”

Aldaris immediately and generously split half his spoils with Fang Senyan.

It turned out the most valuable part of the Horned Wind Ant was its gland. The secret to its ability to move objects dozens or hundreds of times its body weight lay in this gland’s secretion of a specific, miraculous hormone—the source of the ant’s power. Humans could also extract trace amounts of this hormone.

However, 99.99% of those capable of hunting Horned Wind Ants were military personnel, making this hormone exceptionally rare and difficult to obtain on the open market.

Then, one day, a product suddenly appeared on the Cosmic Taobao network with the slogan promising astonishing effects for an astonishing price. It was later revealed that the main component was this very ant hormone. Everyone knew that anything successfully marketed in connection with kidney function or sexual prowess would appreciate in value faster than prime real estate in the core city ring. If this substance actually worked, the profits could only be described as obscene.

Now, even on the Cosmic Taobao network, fresh Horned Wind Ant glands were impossible to find, because the sheer number of wealthy buyers meant they were swept up the moment they were listed.

Still, Aldaris’s generosity had its reasons. While the ant glands were valuable, they took up considerable space. Aldaris’s own spatial capacity was completely filled, and he couldn't possibly reserve no space for combat or living necessities, nor could he completely exhaust his synthetics, as the main quest still needed completion. It was better to grant Fang Senyan the favor.

Fang Senyan, in contrast to Aldaris, possessed not only his personal space but also a massive team space, which could comfortably accommodate a Hornet gunship and still have room to spare. He accepted the offer without hesitation.