[sliverstorm]

If insects have no sentient attributes like mercy, how can they slaughter others mercilessly?

Easy. Since they lack attributes like mercy, they slaughter without it. That is to say, they slaughter mercilessly.

And, really, In the context of creatures without mercy, such a phrase can alternatively be viewed as a literary device comparing how the ants act to how a human acts. I'm not sure what the term would be... personification? E.g., "The trees wept".

[philsnow]

anthropomorphism