research

"Now I should first get some ant carcasses to study their body structure." Deng Ru now needed some research material to investigate where divine power could flow through in ants. Getting ant carcasses was not difficult. Many had died in the previous battle between these small ants and the few mice. These small ants had no concept of burying their dead, leaving the carcasses exposed in the living room, available in abundance.

Deng Ru came to the living room, took out a broom, and swept the tens of thousands of ants into a dustpan.

"Oh my god, what is the god doing? Is he collecting the bodies of our brethren? Could it be that our corpses will make the god stronger?"

"Earth, shut up. If we provoke the god, we will all die."

"Earth, do not presume to guess the god's intentions!"

On a distant table, three ants stood, frantically communicating. They had originally come to this battlefield to mourn their deceased relatives and friends, but they were shocked to see this scene. Their shock was akin to that of a Chinese person witnessing the Jade Emperor descending to earth to dig graves.

This scene naturally caught Deng Ru's attention. In an ant colony, where the average IQ is comparable to that of a two or three-year-old child, they lack the concept of mourning deceased relatives and friends. To them, death is death, and there is no point in mourning. They would not know what it means, nor would they return to the battlefield to specifically view the corpses of their fallen comrades.

"This is interesting. It seems they have taken the most important step towards civilization, having the foundation of imagination. Then, civilization will truly begin." Deng Ru looked at the three ants, marked them with divine power, and listed them as key objects of focus. He then continued to sweep up the ant carcasses on the ground. Although tens of thousands sounded like a lot, they were only tiny ants, so it didn't take long to clean them up.

Compared to the development of ant civilization, Deng Ru desired ant fanatics who could cultivate divine power even more. After all, the development of civilization would only benefit gods in the very late stages, whereas fanatics could provide gods with far more faith than other believers in the early stages. For Deng Ru, who urgently wanted to become stronger, it was easy to see which was more important.

Deng Ru carried the dustpan of ant carcasses into the kitchen of the rented house. He lit the stove, grabbed a handful of ant carcasses, and threw them into the fire, watching as wisps of smoke rose, leaving nothing behind.

"Hmm, it seems that these ants are still made of carbon-based materials and can be burned completely. They don't have powerful electronic brains or anything like that," Deng Ru muttered, looking at the rising smoke. This was good news, as it meant that their bodily structure was not too different from that of humans, making things easier than if one was carbon-based and the other silicon-based.

Initially, when Deng Ru saw how intelligent these ants were, he even wondered if their tiny brains were filled with micro-quantum chips or something similar. Otherwise, it was hard to explain how such tiny creatures could possess intelligence that even cats, dogs, and other animals lacked. However, the current results were quite different from his initial speculation.

"Now that we know their composition, we can try to dissect some of them for further observation. But these ants are so small; it will be troublesome to dissect and observe them. At least, we need the ability to observe in detail, which is possessed by county-level gods."

"Fortunately, I am now a mid to upper-level county god." As Deng Ru spoke, his divine power condensed into a thin, needle-like knife. He manipulated the divine power, grasped a few ant carcasses, and cut them in half, revealing their internal organs.

"As expected, there are no meridians, but there are intestines and some sacs with unknown functions. Perhaps these ants can cultivate divine power starting from their intestines and sacs?" However, this idea was quickly rejected by Deng Ru himself.

"Damn it, am I stupid? Such a hard shell can't even withstand divine power, let alone more fragile body organs. It seems that only invisible pathways like meridians can cultivate divine power."

"Meridians seem to only exist in primate life forms. Many gods have conducted experiments on other species, such as monkeys, chimpanzees, tigers, wolves, and so on, trying to make them develop intelligence and become believers, but they have all failed."

"And meridians, which are essential for cultivating divine power, are only found in primates. Although monkeys and chimpanzees have meridians, they rarely develop the intelligence needed to believe."

"If all creatures with meridians can cultivate divine power, can I draw meridians for these ants based on their body structure?" Deng Ru had a bold idea at this moment.

The so-called meridians are just invisible pathways followed by energy from the heavens and earth as it flows through the human body. They serve as a kind of protection, guidance, and limitation, similar to the relationship between a river and its water. Just as humans can artificially dig canals, perhaps gods can also artificially create meridians.

Deng Ru couldn't help but admire his own ingenious idea. He burned these ant carcasses in the stove as a proper way to show respect for the remains of intelligent beings. Far away, the three ants marked by Deng Ru as key observers witnessed this scene.

"What is the god doing? Earth, you are the smartest among us ants. Can you understand what the god is doing?" One ant asked another named Earth, who had previously been ordered to stop questioning.

"I saw the remains of our brethren being thrown into a vast inferno by the god. It seems that eternal flames burn within, and our brethren turn into wisps of smoke that rise upwards. Is that their souls?"

"After we die honorably in battle, our remains will be burned by the god in the inferno, and then our souls will be freed? Is that it?" Earth's two antennae waved slowly, as if engaged in speculation and guessing.

"Although I don't quite understand what you mean, Earth, are you saying that as long as we die bravely, our souls will be freed and accompany the god?" Another ant stood stupidly on the table and asked.

"Well, if my speculation is correct, that should be the case," replied Earth, whose two antennae continued to wave rhythmically and slowly, as if burdened by the weight of its thoughts.

The exchange on the table was naturally overheard by Deng Ru. He couldn't help but shake his head and smile, with a hint of indulgence towards a naive child. It was not mockery but amazement at the imaginative powers of this ant named Earth, which were comparable to those of a six or seven-year-old child.

As for any talk of souls being freed or guided to a god's realm, that was purely Earth's own wild imagination and invention. To receive the souls of believers, there were at least two requirements: the god must be at the provincial level for their divine realm to accommodate living beings, and the believers must be fanatics capable of absorbing divine power, or else their souls would dissipate quickly.