NOVPUBThe kitchen didn't require coal either.
However, he knew that a large supply of coal would definitely make life a little better for the people in the Pyeongseong Safe Zone.
Since they were already heading to Gokmul County, they might as well stop by the Starlight Armored Bug breeding facility.
The entire stretch of road leading to Gokmul County had been cleared of all obstacles.
The group left in the morning and arrived by noon.
In addition to Kim Haru, Go Okrim, Shin Woncheon, and Chung Hwangeun, the group of five also included Yoon Jongju from the Caeruleus Draco Squad.
Yoon Jongju's Aerial Vision ability was incredibly useful.
Although he needed to place his ability marker at a location first to observe that place, as long as the marker's energy didn't disperse, no matter how much time passed, once they entered the marker's radiation range, he could observe the situation inside through his ability.
Once they entered the Gokmul County area, the group first parked the car in the other half of the city, which had already been occupied and tidied up.
This area had been completely transformed into the territory of the Pyeongseong Safe Zone, with the patrol team arranged.
Now, the people here were not only responsible for the daily operations of the Starlight Armored Bug breeding facility but also gradually clearing out the zombies trapped in the ice.
Since the facility's work wasn't complicated—feeding and moving products—and even cleaning up the facility's hygiene didn't require their involvement, the Starlight Armored Bug were quite self-sufficient and loved keeping their living spaces tidy.
Kim Haru didn't let Go Okrim follow them to the other half of the city but allowed him to wander around freely.
After all, Go Okrim's previous activity area had been this half of the city.
Thus, the remaining four entered the area of the Antharion Giant Ants without any delay.
The Antharion Giant Ants do not proactively attack humans; to be more precise, they do not attack any creatures that enter their territory unless their buildings are damaged.
Thanks to the earlier reconnaissance by the Caeruleus Draco Squad, the group's mission went smoothly this time.
They quickly found the entrance to the underground palace and started heading in.
According to Yoon Jongju's Aerial Vision ability, the group had already reached the second level of the underground palace.
Moving further inward would bring them to the third level, where the queen ant resided.
"The defense along the remaining path is especially tight, so we didn't force our way through, we're afraid of angering them," Yoon Jongju said, halting here.
At this point, the Aerial Vision ability could still show part of the road inside, but as they got closer to the center, even Yoon Jongju's ability couldn't reveal anything beyond that.
"Mr. Kim, what should we do now?" Shin Woncheon and Chung Hwangeun both turned their gaze toward Kim Haru.
Their mission this time was to ensure Kim Haru's safety.
Although Chung Hwangeun was curious to see if he could defeat so many ants by force, he knew the limits and understood that this was not the time for recklessness.
Kim Haru stood still, watching the rows of ants ahead.
The ants on the ground were nearly all the same size, about two finger widths long.
They were larger than the ants before the apocalypse, but compared to the mutated creatures after the apocalypse, they were quite small.
At that moment, the ants were marching along the path in an orderly fashion, their backs carrying large clumps of soil.
In addition to the ants on the ground, there were also groups of ants operating on the walls around this passage.
Kim Haru observed closely and realized these ants were slowly carving sculptures into the walls.
Yes, these ants not only dug out a high enough passage for humans to pass through but were now also carving intricate sculptures around the passage's walls.
It wasn't just one ant doing the work, but a large group, each ant responsible for its part, resulting in a complete picture.
At this point, Kim Haru still didn't know what the ants were carving.
All he could make out were some strange buildings and large ant legs in the parts near the bottom that had already started to take shape.
Perhaps these ants were carving their own mythological stories.
Watching these focused ants, Kim Haru wasn't sure whether his journey would achieve its intended goal.
Up until now, he hadn't noticed any strange behavior from these ants.
Not even a single one had spared him a second glance.
Oh, wait, maybe an ant did look at him for a moment.
After all, given their size, even if they glanced in his direction, he wouldn't have noticed unless he was paying close attention.
His hand, which was in his pocket, brushed against the Ginseng Spirit.
The Gingseng Spirit tapped his palm twice with one of its roots.
That meant a negative response.
There were more people around this time, and Kim Haru didn't want the Ginseng Spirit to reveal itself so easily.
After discussing, he decided to keep the thicker part of the Gingseng Spirit hidden in his pocket and they agreed on a simple signal.
The signal was straightforward—one tap meant "yes," two taps meant "no."
The priority was to first confirm whether these ants could communicate before taking the next step.
As for situations that required the Ginseng Spirit to translate, Kim Haru would find another excuse to send everyone else out.
Right now, the message from the Ginseng Spirit was clear: these ants were not communicative.
This was problematic.
Shin Woncheon and the others were still waiting for Kim Haru's next instruction.
"Keep moving forward."
There was no choice but to proceed.
The worker ants couldn't communicate, so it would be up to the higher-ranked ants to see if they could. no𝚟𝚙u𝚋.c𝚘m
If even the queen ant couldn't be communicated with, then this colony of ants might require another approach—either abandoning this territory or driving them out.
