Chapter 32: Pressing Onward, the Terrifying Panda Warrior!

"So, this little scepter is all it takes to command all the ant warriors of your Golden Ant tribe to serve me!"

At this moment, Su Mu sat high upon the jewel-encrusted throne that should have belonged to the Ant Queen, casually twirling the scepter—the symbol of power—in his hand.

"Yes, my Lord. Our ant tribe has used this scepter to command our warriors for many generations," the Ant Queen said softly, standing beside Su Mu. Having adapted to her status as a slave, she was now completely submissive to his every word.

As Su Mu had anticipated, a dark creature capable of being bought with spirit stones would never risk its life for the sake of the Dark World.

"I don't believe that. I've heard that even without the scepter, the Ant Queen can command her soldiers to fight. You aren't planning to wait until I fall asleep, only to order your soldiers to bite me to death, are you?" Su Mu turned his head and asked with a mischievous grin.

"By the Dark Lord!" the Ant Queen cried out, feeling aggrieved. "My Lord, you truly do not trust me. Since I have already submitted to you, why would I ever choose betrayal?"

"If you were to die, the power of our contract would kill me as well. That is a Level 5 slave pact; a slave must follow their master into death."

"It is good that you know." Su Mu smiled faintly, withdrawing his gaze, and continued, "Is what you said earlier about the Dark Tide true?"

"This news came from the Fallen Knight Wang Yu. It should be true. Our Dark World is already mobilizing its forces. It would be wise for you, my Lord, to prepare in advance."

"If you were to die in this Dark Tide, I would be finished as well."

Su Mu burst into laughter, rubbing his brow with a touch of helplessness. "Are you really that eager for me to die?"

"But rest assured, for me, Su Mu, this Dark Tide is nothing more than a harvest of experience points."

"Very well, it is time for me to go. After I leave, I want you to mobilize 20,000 ant soldiers to the Socrates Basin to guard my iron ore vein."

"That place is now my territory. If any other creatures dare to encroach upon it, have your warriors slaughter them all. Do you understand?"

"Rest assured, my Lord. Whoever dares to touch your territory, I will have my warriors gnaw them down to the bone," the Ant Queen replied, quickly putting on a sycophantic smile, for as a dark creature, she was well-versed in playing both sides.

"Good. Hand over my storage ring. The armor materials inside are all packed, right?" Su Mu said with a stern expression, extending his hand.

*Shameless human. That is clearly my storage ring! I had to earn so much merit to trade for it from Queen Natasha.*

*And those armor materials—that was a huge fortune.*

The Ant Queen complained silently, but she reluctantly slipped the sapphire ring from her finger and placed it in Su Mu’s palm.

"Rest assured, my Lord, all your armor materials have been placed inside your storage ring." She then offered Su Mu a sweet, forced smile.

"Good. You are a loyal subordinate. If there is any news, remember to send your ant soldiers to my territory to inform me."

Su Mu carelessly slipped the storage ring onto his finger and shouted, "Ba Dao Zhan, let's go!"

The two walked brazenly out of the Golden Ant tribe's nest.

As soon as Su Mu and Ba Dao Zhan’s figures disappeared, the Ant Queen smashed a golden vase on the ground in fury, collapsed onto her throne, and began to sob.

...

"Hahaha!"

"Did you see that, Ba Dao Zhan? I harvested over thirty thousand ant soldiers without spending a single spirit stone! These soldiers can even be upgraded into Golden Warriors later."

"Little Divine Dragon, we've struck gold again! Do you know about this storage ring? It only exists in the Dark World; we humans only have item cards. This kind of high-end gear would fetch a sky-high price in the human world. But I won't sell it—it's too useful to me."

"And those ant shells—they are excellent materials for forging armor. Tell me, if we sell all that armor, won't we make a fortune?"

Along the way, Su Mu chattered incessantly about his recent achievements, his face glowing with satisfaction. In front of his enemies, he might be a cunning, ruthless human lord, but in front of his companions, he revealed his true self: a passionate, exuberant youth.

Ba Dao Zhan could not speak and could only accompany him silently. The Little Divine Dragon grew bored after a while, flapping its wings to go hunting in the distance.

Yet Su Mu’s desire to talk remained undiminished. He said enthusiastically to Ba Dao Zhan, "Ba Dao Zhan, the Dark Tide is coming soon. By then, there will be countless monsters for us to level up on. After this great battle, I feel I can reach the Diamond rank, and you can reach Diamond 3. What do you think?"

...

Su Mu's team continued their journey in this pleasant atmosphere.

Finally, they reached the territory of the Panda Warriors. Su Mu, Ba Dao Zhan, and the Little Divine Dragon, each with a leaf on their heads, lay on the hillside and secretly observed two Panda Warriors sparring.

Both Panda Warriors were over four meters tall—colossal figures compared to humans—wielding two-handed greatswords, attacking without any defense.

*Clang! Clang! Clang!*

The two Panda Warriors clashed, sparks flying. Despite their massive size, they were not clumsy; their moves were open and sweeping, executed with clean, decisive strikes, and their mastery of the greatswords was so natural that they would be considered rare sword masters even among humans.

Surrounding them were four or five other large Panda Warriors, arms crossed, watching the battle and occasionally letting out cheers.

Suddenly, a blue halo bloomed around one of the pandas. Sword light, over an inch long, erupted from his blades, and with one strike, he sent his opponent rolling across the ground.

His opponent was not to be outdone; he surged up, a red halo erupting from his body as he charged back in. The battle between the two became even more intense.

"Battle Qi?"

"Sword Qi?"

Su Mu was stunned. He did not know what cultivation system these dark creatures used, but for the Eastern Dragon Kingdom, it was mainly about spending money on pills and techniques for self-cultivation. If one could have a famous master's guidance, that was even better.

Of course, everything was built on the willingness to spend Dragon Coins. As long as you had enough Dragon Coins, you were a cultivation genius. "Pay-to-win to become stronger" had essentially become the mainstream trend for all of humanity.

Out of curiosity, Su Mu used his Holographic Eye to check the detailed information of the two Panda Warriors, focusing especially on their martial arts section.

[Race: Panda Warrior (Note: Not a dark creature; a unique entity living in the Dark World)]

[Strength: Gold 6]

[Title: Apprentice Swordsman (Ranks: Apprentice Swordsman, Intermediate Swordsman, Advanced Swordsman, Great Swordsman, Sword Saint, Sword God)]

[Martial Arts: Panda Gale Slash, Battle Qi Armor-Piercing (When a Panda Warrior releases Battle Qi, their strength doubles, allowing them to defeat opponents two levels higher than themselves.)]