Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
It turned out to be a flock of ostriches that were surprisingly loyal. Besides that, their low level meant they were only useful as food if sacrificed. Touched by their loyalty, Gao Peng decided to spare them.
âGao Peng, Gao Peng, since youâre going to be the godfather of these Dragon Ants after their mother died, do they have a villain for a father now?â Silly remarked scornfully.
Gao Pengâs face darkened. âWhat rubbish! Iâm not the one who killed their parents. They should find that Six-Armed Giant if they want revenge. Weâre just transporters.â
âOh, I see.â Silly slowly drifted away while trying to act like an adult. Unfortunately, a small pink jellyfish drifting in the air with its tentacles trailing behind looked too cartoonish. It was as if a three-year-old was trying to act mature, only to come off as goofy instead.
The Dragon Ants gathered together and looked at Gao Peng warily.
âWhere are your parents?â Gao Peng asked in concern.
âDunno,â one said
âThey went out,â another added.
âYouâre lying. Theyâre not out!â said one of the Dragon Ants as it smacked the one next to it. âDonât tell the bad guy that our mom went out.â
âAll right,â answered the remaining Dragon Ants in unison.
Gao Peng was speechless. âKids, how old are you?â
The seven Dragon Ants just gave him blank stares, as if asking what he meant by such a question. They were quickly driven into a panic over this unknown term and began running around in circles.
âI mean, when were you born?â Gao Peng asked with a smile, as if he was a friendly old man. What a cute bunch of innocent little things.
The antennae on the little Dragon Ants swung back and forth as they began their little discussion.
âAh, heâs asking for our age! Mom said that we should never tell that to any monsters, especially humans.â
âShould we tell him that we were born six months ago?â
âDonât tell him. Heâs a bad guy.â
âYeah, heâs an absolute pervert.â
âI fell on my butt because of him. Letâs not tell him anything.â
It seemed like they were finally done with their discussion when they turned around and yelled in unison, âNot telling!â
Gao Peng kept quiet. It would be easy dealing with these kids. âSilly, come here.â
Silly flew over and said, âWhat?â
âJust looking for something.â Gao Peng shoved his hand into Sillyâs internal space, looking for something.
He pulled out an aromatic, red, marble-sized meatball. It was made of nutritious essences of flesh and blood. Especially for a monster, it was a very nourishing food source.
The Dragon Ants were stunned when they saw the flesh and blood essence and kept their eyes fixed on Gao Pengâs fingertips. An audible gulp could be heard from one of them as they all tried not to drool.
âAnyone want some?â Gao Peng asked temptingly.
The Dragon Ants kept their eyes locked on the essence, but none of them said anything. After a while, one of the ants decided to step forward. âLetâs not be fooled. This human is definitely trying to trick us so that he can cook us up and eat us,â the ant declared with indignation.
âBig Brother is right.â
âListen to Big Brother.â
âHeâs the smartest, so he definitely wonât lie to us.â
The ant that had spoken walked up and gave Gao Peng a proud look. âI donât want it.â
âThat wonât do. I insist that you eat it,â Gao Peng urged.
The little Dragon Ant answered slyly, âIf you insist.â
After eating the essence, the Dragon Ants began to lower their guard and open up to Gao Peng.@@novelbin@@
Gao Peng decided to give it a name. âYou have big eyes and thick brows. Iâll call you Elder Baby, then.â
The little Dragon Ant paused for a moment before retorting in frustration, âI already have a name... My mom named me Yi Jin...â
âYour name is Elder Baby now!â said Goldie in a commanding tone. Not taking ânoâ for an answer, Goldie walked up to the ant.
The little Dragon Ant was stunned. It had never seen a duck bully an ant. It suddenly missed its mother. If its mom were still here, she would never have allowed a weirdo to bully them.
âBut my name was...â
âNo âbuts!ââ Goldie lifted the little Dragon Ant up like a little toy. âKid, donât tell me you donât like this name?â Goldie said in a slow, suggestive tone.
The little Dragon Ant heard the thinly veiled threat from the duck and decided not to talk back anymore. âWhatever you say, then,â replied the little ant unwillingly.
âYes, good boy,â said Goldie, satisfied. How can I be the only one with a mundane name like Goldie while you guys get cool names?
âGao Peng, can I name our future comrades?â asked Goldie excitedly. It seemed to think this was a fun thing to do.
As expected, Gao Peng rejected its proposal. Looking at the dumb little duckling, Gao Peng suddenly felt a sense of guilt. He reminisced on how cute and innocent this yellow duckling had once been. What could have moved an innocent duck to this horrible state?
This suddenly reminded Gao Peng of that tall creature lost in movies and TV shows... This memory stirred a tinge of sadness into Gao Pengâs heart, âYou canât name any new comrades we find later. But you can name the remaining six Dragon Ants, appropriately.â
Goldieâs face lit up. âThanks, boss.â
Moneymaker ran over and hugged Gao Pengâs legs. âMaster, thereâs still treasure inside,â Moneymaker said as it pointed at the Dragon Antâs nest.
Gao Peng asked it to describe the grade of the treasure inside. Moneymaker scratched its head before saying, âAbout three that are super heart-throbbing.â
Moneymaker described the grade of treasure using a scale of âheart-throbbing,â which started from âheart-throbbing,â then âsuper heart-throbbing,â and finally, âsuper super heart-throbbing...â Its grading system was marked by the number of times it said âsuper.â
Usually, a âheart-throbbingâ grade treasure was equal to Normal or Elite-tier monsters. And by that assumption, it didnât seem like its taste had improved, but Moneymaker could hold more surprises now that it had leveled up. The three âsuper heart-throbbingâ items were likely treasure or materials that could be used by King-tier monsters. Since the monsters under his possession could probably use it, Gao Peng brought a few monsters to collect the materials in the nest.
Gao Peng decided to leave the little Dragon Ants behind. It wasnât exactly ethical to pick their home clean in front of them.
âGao Peng, Iâm done naming them,â said Goldie happily, the seven Dragon Ants following right behind it. The one trailing behind walked listlessly, its face filled with despair.
âThis is Elder Baby, Second Baby, Third Baby... this is Sixth Baby, and Baldie.â Goldie felt happy. This little Dragon Ant will be called Baldie instead of me. Iâm a genius! Sigh. I guess this is the pain of growing up. I never expected to become a cruel and unfeeling duck one day.