Sacre-D: Reborn as the Swarm's Apex | Chapter 118 | A New Trade Order | Novela.app

“Changing eras is hardly a joyous affair, is it?” the middle-grade female insect said with a grin. Kai rubbed his forelimbs together, following closely beside the white male without a hint of fear. Only when facing death directly would he exhibit the most primal terror of a living being; once he sensed the noose around his neck had loosened, he could become lively again in the shortest amount of time. “The Boss is truly incredible.” Letting out a slow, lighthearted chirp, he kept his head bowed half a step behind Ge La, adhering to his own standard of submission to a superior. Whether the other was a male or a female didn't matter; bowing to a gene-deficient species did nothing to wound his meager self-esteem. Showing respect to an existence that could decide his fate was the most profitable course of action. “I’ve heard all about it. He took down the entire Broad-winged territory, and now even the Pedipalp star sector has been devoured nearly clean.” Ge La caught the scent of sincerity from him. The other truly revered Sarkdi and exhibited unconditional submission to the strong. However, this submission came with a price; once the black core-gene species lost his strength and could no longer exert effective suppression, this cheap loyalty would immediately be transferred to another. Seeking benefit and avoiding harm was his most primal nature. In all his time surviving, the only time Kai had ever misjudged was when he chose to gather a crowd at the starport to provoke a newly arrived stranger. One failed challenge had cost him a quiet life of labor. Yet, compared to his companions whose heads had been snapped off, this price seemed bearable. Among all the insects who had made a move that day, Kai was the one who had decisively and swiftly dropped to his knees, and thus, he became the sole survivor. “Don’t mind the bloodiness of the scene. Compared to humans, we’re practically nothing,” the middle-grade female added, fearing that a male’s nature might cause Ge La to feel disgust. “Our old neighbors are far more formidable than us. Not to look too far back, but during the era of the White Emperor, almost all the mainline heirs of the Griffon I family were slaughtered to the last.” Sensing the male’s gaze shift toward him, Kai couldn't help but chatter on happily. “So, human Kings and Sub-Kings die too. Their progenitors or other lower-level subordinates are always ready to take their place. We aren’t really any different.” Ge La knew this part of history. Sarkdi had once told him the origin of his golden eyes, and afterward, Ge La couldn't help but scour all the records he had on the Griffon family, wanting to understand his partner better. After the *Fafnir* fell into Akasha along with the capital star Shavalle, the Mapuz Academy of Sciences—an institution known then as the Supervisory Court—had nearly exterminated all remaining members of the direct royal line. From then on, the Old Empire split in two, fracturing into a portion barely maintained by a puppet emperor and the Old-system Federation controlled by the Mapuz Academy of Sciences. It was a conventional schism. Just as the humans of the Old Earth could send Louis XVI to the guillotine or Joan of Arc to the stake, everything happened with lightning speed in the moment, making it difficult to define good or bad—like a surging river rushing toward a predetermined direction. However, old bloodstains were not so easily washed away. Even the Zerg had heard the name of the White Emperor from afar. There were few things in this world that the iron-toothed, bronze-fanged insect swarms could not chew or dared not bite—the White Emperor who crawled out of Akasha was one of them. Insects could not, and should not... bite such a lethal thing. Clearly, the Mapuz Academy of Sciences had not anticipated that their actions would release the most uncontrollable beast in the universe. A grotesque thing, freed from the shackles of the identity of "human," tore open the womb woven from deep, dark rifts and staggered back onto the ground to begin its feast. Even the first-generation starship *Fafnir* inherited the habit of picking up all sorts of things to stuff into its belly. The most famous example of something being forcibly stuffed onto the ship: the White Emperor’s partner, the Commander of the Golden Crow Fleet. But those were things of the past. Just as blood had washed over the ankles of the army when the Old Empire split and countless planets in the Little Rose Star Sector were incinerated, the opposition had paid a heavy enough price during the Reformists' rise to power. For instance, Arthur’s parents, or the remnants of Camlann. Those sparse recorded sentences allowed Ge La to glimpse that Sarkdi, as a human, was far more hardened and radical than the partner currently by his side. “You know these things quite well,” the male said. He looked at the enthusiastic middle-grade female, who rubbed his wings from time to time and seemed to have an endless supply of human gossip. This was quite rare among the Zerg. Aside from Clark, he hadn't seen any insect who knew human history like the back of their hand. “Can’t be helped. I have to do business,” Kai said. “You see, I’m happy to strike deals with females, males, core-gene tribes, or middle and low-grade species. Resources are never at fault, and ore doesn't care about high or low status. If the humans agreed, I’d even be willing to chat with them. If you want your trading partner to be satisfied, you have to learn more and see more. Everything you learn will eventually be put to use, if not today, then tomorrow.” Chuckling, Kai looked cunning and sharp. “I’m guessing the Boss called me over for some big move. Does he need me to finalize some difficult deal?” It had to be said that Sarkdi always had excellent taste in choosing people—and insects. Ge La realized this fact once again. When they first lived on the Energy Star, Kai still carried a cowering air in his every movement, appearing cautious and timid just contacting a few black market traders. However, as time passed and his mission autonomy increased, this insect fully displayed his talent for making money. He was a moray eel—slippery and hard to catch, but capable of quickly stirring a stagnant pool into life. Before any other insect, this smooth-talking sycophant had used his commercial intuition to sense the scent of a new opportunity. Opening a new trade zone and establishing a stable trade route with humans—this proposal was known only to Clark and Ge La; even the leader of the Armed Species had yet to receive definite news. Yet Kai’s sensory feelers had already reached where they needed to, and he understood it all beforehand. “You will follow me for the time being,” the white male said, quickly finishing his deliberations and maintaining a calm tone. “There is a... human partner I need to introduce to you. You need to become familiar with him as soon as possible.” Ge La had discussed this issue with Arthur and sought Sarkdi’s opinion. In the field of opening a new trade zone, Arthur was the most suitable candidate. The core-gene species would handle the tug-of-war negotiations with the current Emperor, while Ge La would be responsible for paving the way in the early stages. “I would be delighted.” Upon first hearing this proposal, the human had crinkled his blue eyes and shook his head with a smile. “Please don't worry; I will take care of explaining things to Clark. Your partner hopes to use this opportunity to get me a legal identity within the Empire, and I am very grateful for his kindness. However, more than that, I would be happy to see Clark’s foundation stabilized—the Grey Wings have endured too much conflict, and the other core-gene tribes are waiting for an opportunity to tear him apart. Reaching a cooperation with humans at such a time might be a good thing. After all, they’ve all heard the story of the Red Tai Sui charging into the Old King’s Nest.” Purely cooperating with humans carried great risk; one might be labeled a traitor by other tribes. The brilliance lay in the fact that the Red Tai Sui didn't follow the usual path, instead running straight to the King’s Nest for a "one-day sightseeing tour." Thus, the rumors had taken on a subtle new flavor. After being embellished by the Broad-winged and Pedipalp species, it had evolved into the absurd claim that: “The Grey Wing tribe’s Sub-King directly summoned that red ghostly thing to escort him. Whoever fights the Grey Wings today, the humans will knock on your door and raze your nest tomorrow.” Consequently, the other core-gene tribes shifted from "attack him, attack him" to a wait-and-see attitude: “Internal fighting is fine, but if we accidentally draw out that red ghostly thing, it’ll be a huge problem. Look at the Pedipalp and Broad-winged species who interfered in their civil war—didn't they end up in a miserable state?” Currently, the insect swarm was in a state of extreme chaos, just as humanity was in a recovery period. The fragmented tribes were groping in the dark for a new order; their reproductive patterns had been drastically changed, and their social structure had been completely upended. Thus, the species exhibited a trend of being "hard to kill and very scattered, but fighting fiercely amongst themselves." Before this, the Zerg had actually gone through different developmental periods. The earliest King Insect stage was not smooth sailing either; splits and mergers occurred frequently, and there were times when two King Insects existed simultaneously, leading their respective swarms in mutual slaughter for dominance. At that time, the Broodmother, as the primary bearer of reproduction within a single swarm, could lay an uncountable number of eggs at once. Every hatched larva was its child. However, this method of reproduction meant singularity and lack of variation, which meant a lack of sufficient error tolerance for a mutating survival environment. So, they began a long transformation, seeking a more stable way to evolve. The price of their trial and error was the total annihilation of other biological species. By the time they encountered humans, the King Insect was still the core of the species. The eggs of the direct line all came from the King, while a large number of middle and low-grade females were also engaging in unrestrained, more complex, and casual free reproduction. Males had already been born by then. This led to a "wall-like" difference in combat power between the core-gene tribes and the middle-to-low-grade species; the next generation of non-direct Zerg showed a trend of genetic degradation. Low-grade insects had terrible mimicry, were burdened with various jumbled defects, and were routinely used as expendables. But now, a new structural order was quietly being established. The pitch-black core-gene species was kneading this group of fragmented entities back into a single whole. “We will engage in long-term and stable cooperation with humans,” Ge La said, his pale eyes watching Kai, who was trembling slightly with excitement. The other was falling into a state of euphoria because of this sudden news. “So, during this time, you need to thoroughly learn the human common tongue.” The white male smiled, looking at the middle-grade insect who had stiffened, his face written all over with the words: *Here we go again, the grind is starting again.* “I can act as your external tutor.” “You can do it, right?” This was the most cold-blooded, "kind" smile Kai had ever seen, and it made his head ring. “Can you?” ***