The social structure of the Zerg was once remarkably stable, until they became neighbors with humanity, at which point the situation changed completely.
The restructuring of their tribes had left their entire societal mechanism in a fractured, overlapping state. While the direct lineages had established the broad framework of a new structure, the specific details remained a chaotic mess.
A precipitous chasm separated the living environments and social resources of the high-level Zerg from those of the mid-to-low levels. It was not just an impassable trench; the disparity in elevation was stark.
The practice of designating long-term habitats in specific star systems had broken the race's ancient tradition of sustaining war through further war. During the era of the Swarm Queen, the Zerg were more like space-faring nomads, devouring adjacent star systems one by one. Once existing resources were insufficient to support their continued growth, they would initiate a mass migration.
This migration process weeded out the old, the weak, the sick, and those with genetic defects. Those who survived were the formidable beings who remained standing through war and fresh hardships, quickly adapting to new environments.
But now, with the King Class extinct and the distribution of power undergoing a massive reshuffle, this transient species lacked the habit of establishing sound industrial chains or laying foundations for long-term settlement. This led to a situation where the high-level star systems controlled by the core genetic tribes had completely shed their primitive forms, becoming saturated with high-end technology, while the peripheral low-level planets continued to grow wild, dependent entirely on natural whims.
They had become the Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Shudras of the space age.
This was an ideal time to intervene. By interfering before the new system fully solidified, one could exert maximum influence on the future development model of the race. Otherwise, once the direct lineages finished tidying up their own territories and established a brand-new management system, any attempt to break or change the existing mechanism would require a solo challenge against every core genetic tribe.
The only thing lacking was time.
The black core-species had lived two lives. In his first life, there wasn't enough time; after opening his eyes again, time was still in short supply.
Thus, Sarkdi moved with lightning speed to excavate a large number of defeated tribes of all varieties. Among the Zerg sold to Ja, there were a few males mixed in; without even a second glance, he tossed them directly to Gera.
After Kata’s departure, Gera had fully taken over the management of the entire Angon Information Nest. He was currently in a state of extreme desperation, stretched thin by a severe lack of labor.
Xiao’s condition was gradually recovering, though he still struggled to speak. Every day, he followed the white male like a little larva, making Sarkdi wonder if Zerg also experienced some kind of imprinting effect.
However, Xiao still felt terror whenever he saw a black female Zerg. Aside from Gera, only Selin was allowed within three paces of him. Consequently, Sarkdi simply let his partner take Xiao along to handle the work at the Information Nest.
This work involved internal information sorting and did not require much contact with outside females. Furthermore, the mental strength of males was generally higher than that of females of the same rank, making it a perfect position for someone with social anxiety.
Along with the newly acquired males belonging to various defeated tribes, Sarkdi sent them all to the Information Nest.
At first, those males had no idea what was happening and exhibited immense fear. When they were being delivered, some resisted frantically, some tried to curry favor with the black core-species directly, and others fell into hysterics, lying on the ground and refusing to move—it was a veritable gallery of performance art.
Sarkdi beat a hasty retreat, leaving the task to Kai. He had always been poor at handling the encirclement of the opposite sex... or what passed for the opposite sex here, and he had no more time to waste on entanglements.
Gera was startled by the pile of males sent his way, and then further startled by Kai’s disheveled, soot-covered appearance.
Thus, when Sarkdi merrily dug up a few Mandible-species females skilled in construction and returned to the nest humming a tune, he was greeted by the white male’s solemn face.
"We need to talk," Gera said.
By now, he truly no longer feared the core-species.
It turned out that even the best-tempered Zerg could become irritable when faced with a mountain of work. Sarkdi often saw the gentle short-winged males acting with extreme politeness when cooperating with traders, only to go mad the moment the clients left, closing the doors and erupting into a frenzy of hissing curses.
Gera was no different.
He didn't want the things Kata had taught him to become a pile of useless junk, so he had proactively taken over the Information Nest. As a result, the massive volume of data nearly caused the male—who had never held such a major responsibility alone—to explode. Every time he disconnected from the Information Nest, he felt his head buzzing.
Originally, several of Angon’s administrators were truly incompetent and had been replaced by Sarkdi, while another portion continued to maintain the current Great Ritual Ground. With the workload diverted to both sides, the maintainers of the Information Nest, including Gera and Xiao, numbered fewer than five.
Three of the original management Zerg were sent to handle external liaison and summarization, while the true core of the nest was held firmly in the white male’s hands.
Xiao was a novice and a mid-level species whose mental strength was inferior to Gera's, so Gera spent a vast amount of time slowly teaching him.
Who could have known that just as he had finished training one subordinate, his dear, sweet prospective mate would shove seven new Zerg onto him all at once?
It was enough to make Gera’s vision go dark.
Not to mention that those males were terrified and restless; the scene had spiraled out of control into a chaotic mess. It was like trying to push down a floating gourd only for another to pop up. He had wasted nearly half a day just pacifying the terrified victims of this "bulk delivery," performing basic classification for the new members, and setting their short-term schedules.
His own work progress hadn't moved an inch.
What a terrible vicious cycle.
"Next time you send new Zerg over, at least give them a basic explanation. Every single one of them was scared out of their wits when they arrived."
Gera pressed his forehead, his two pairs of eyes closed from exhaustion.
"And try to send fewer at a time if possible... I have to spend time training them. Those males have no experience and can't handle Information Nest affairs at all. I have to teach the fast learners first so they can tutor the slower ones."
Life was becoming more hectic by the day. Most terrifyingly, the black core-species was a man of his word; he hadn't relaxed Gera's training or exams in the slightest.
Thanks to the intense training he had been "forced to eat" during this period, Gera was still a weakling in the eyes of mid-to-low-level females, but when facing males of his own gender, he could now easily pin one down with each hand. He was nearly half a head taller than the sallow, emaciated "merchandise" from the defeated tribes.
It even allowed him to have the energy to chat with Sarkdi for a while after finishing his training and dealing with a mountain of mess.
A few short cycles ago, he would lose consciousness every night because of the other's devilish training, lying motionless in the nest like he was dead even while his wings were being massaged.
In a way, this was a stroke of luck-driven evolution.
The Zerg did not tilt resources toward the weak. A large reason for the differentiation of males was that females needed to alleviate their own reproductive burden. They needed to maintain a firm grasp on reproduction—the core ability for building a tribe—but simultaneously wanted to transfer the negative factors brought by reproduction elsewhere, ensuring their own combat power and competitiveness remained at their peak.
Therefore, as contributors of biological information, incubators of eggs, and soothers for high-level species, males had never obtained sufficient resources to give them a chance to evolve or develop.
Only the black core-species, with his abnormal way of thinking, would take an unconventional path, spending great effort to cultivate a male with genetic defects.
Abundant, high-quality food, dual instruction in physical fitness and skills, and wave after wave of pressure caused Gera to absorb resources like a parched sponge.
This also made Gera gradually realize that shackles could be broken.
Kai had once defined him as the "Core-species' Mate," but when the new males were sent to the Information Nest, Kai had added the label of "Information Nest Manager" to that original definition.
the chain around his neck that had caused him long-term fear was gradually loosening.
Even though they had acquired all of Angon, they still lived in that original, tiny nest.
Under the dim light of the luminous minerals, he saw Sarkdi smile. It was a smile of kind-hearted teasing.
"The newly appointed manager has finally learned how to get angry. It seems leading new Zerg feels pretty good."
Gera couldn't maintain his serious face and laughed helplessly along with him. Following his long-standing habit, he found a comfortable position in the other's embrace and touched tails with the black female.
"I'll provide an explanation next time." Sarkdi stroked the other's wings. "Those males aren't suited to stay on my side. Being surrounded by too many females would only increase their fear."
Gera’s wings barely shed any scales, making them much nicer to pet than his own rock-hard wing-cases. The entire Zerg also smelled sweet.
"Among the defeated tribes transported to Ja this time, I found a few Mandible-species. I remember you saying this variety is very good at construction."
"Only for primitive types of construction."
Gera had already mastered Sarkdi’s focus and offered a direct explanation.
"If you mean the complex functional construction projects of the high-level star systems, Mandible-species who haven't acquired the relevant knowledge will likely be unable to handle the task."
"It's enough for now."
Saying this, the black core-species unceremoniously hefted the other, looking very satisfied. "A bit heavier than before. Very healthy."
Then he returned to the topic at hand: "If they don't know how, they'll learn. Those Mandible-species have plenty of time to practice the results of their studies."
This reminded Gera of the "work-until-you-die" attitude Sarkdi had shown when they first met on the scavenger ship.
Learning a foreign language in seven days—even a Zerg expert would call it a medical miracle.
Even if a core-species' memory capacity far exceeded that of mid-to-low-level species, the whole thing was still absurd.
The man was not only ruthless to himself but even more so to other Zerg, fully embodying the fine tradition of "if there's a loss, we all share it" and "good brothers, hand in hand; whoever lies down first is a dog."
The white male couldn't help but laugh out loud, his wings making a light, rhythmic rubbing sound.
The core-species couldn't resist pinching the happy little male’s wings and tail, shifting into a face-to-face position.
"I’m going to renovate all of Angon, expand a batch of training grounds, mechanical warehouses, and enclosed training halls."
His golden-brown eyes shone brightly.
"Kai has gone to contact black market suppliers. I’ve commissioned him to get some special goods. I don't know if those suppliers can bypass the supervision of the Armed-species to bring the items in."
"Is it something very dangerous?" Gera asked, reaching out to touch the other's eye. Eyelashes swept quickly across his fingertip.
His sensitive mental perception allowed him to detect that the female was in high spirits, which meant the danger level of these goods was likely not low.
"Will it make Clark and the others target you?"
"They’ll target me sooner or later anyway."
With a snort of laughter, Sarkdi wore a look of lazy relaxation.
"The core genetic tribes don't even need a reason to move against Ja right now. We can't keep avoiding them forever. I think Clark’s bottom line is quite flexible; it’s worth a try."
"Besides, those items are being shipped separately. Even if a specific batch is intercepted by the Armed-species, it won't be a major problem."
"When the things arrive, I’ll try to make a new gift for you."
As he spoke, he ruffled the other's hair.
Gera’s pale eyes looked at him, filled with happiness. The golden ore the core-species had given him was still sitting on the table in the nest, reflecting a soft light.
"What is it? Will it be as beautiful as the stone from last time?" he asked.
"Much better than that."
There was an unidentifiable meaning in Sarkdi’s gaze, like a smile, yet also a difficult-to-discern emotion mixed with danger and contradiction.
His fingers gently stroked the white wings, combing along the elegant patterns as if touching the softest cloud.
"It’s a key," he said in a low voice, like a sigh.
"A key to open Pandora's box."
***
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Sacre-D: Reborn as the Swarm's Apex | Chapter 31 | A Key to the Box | Novela.app | Novela.app
