I Am The Swarm

Fortunately, during one of their attacks, the pterosaurs underestimated the weight of a Giant Mandible Soldier Ant, dropping it after ascending only five or six meters.

Luo Wen, monitoring the event remotely, immediately ordered the swarm to abandon the prey and retreat.

In the early stages of the swarm’s development, before the emergence of Brood Queens, every unit was precious—even the Modified Spider Combat Bugs were difficult to replace. Most importantly, any losses were irreversible, as there was no way to recover the corpses.

On one occasion, a Modified Spider Combat Bug climbed onto a pterosaur along with its prey. Although the pterosaur appeared to lack significant defenses, its keratinized skin was remarkably thick. The bug struggled to inject its venom, and by the time it reached the pterosaur’s wings, it managed a single injection after considerable effort.

The pterosaur, noticing the large bug on its body, lowered its altitude and attempted to eat the intruder. In the ensuing struggle, the Spider Combat Bug was dislodged and killed by the pterosaur.

Luo Wen watched the entire battle through a remote viewing perspective. The pterosaur’s neck, two to three meters long, was incredibly agile and struck with remarkable speed. Even with their advanced dynamic vision and echolocation, the Spider Combat Bugs struggled to evade such attacks.

When clinging to the pterosaur, the bugs could engage briefly, but once dislodged, they could not survive more than a few rounds of combat.

Luo Wen could not accept these unrecoverable losses, leading him to avoid the forest outskirts temporarily.

Afterward, the swarm entered a brief period of surplus troops. However, before Luo Wen could devise a battle plan, a new wave of territorial expansion began, leaving the swarm perpetually short on manpower.

Now, with the entire forest under control and the swarm in a period of recovery, Luo Wen finally had the time and resources to properly confront the pterosaurs.

The first priority was to capture a pterosaur and obtain its genetic material. Without it, the swarm would be at a significant disadvantage.

Due to their unique physiology, pterosaurs could fly at altitudes and speeds far beyond those of birds, let alone insects. Luo Wen’s current flying units were incapable of posing any threat to them, as the pterosaurs could simply ascend out of range to remain untouchable.

Fortunately, the pterosaurs were not particularly intelligent, making it relatively easy to set a targeted trap.

A Giant Mandible Soldier Ant dragged the carcass of a wild boar out of the forest. The “wild boar” was played by a Boar Insect Beast, which had seen little action since the emergence of the Triceratops Beasts.

Pterosaurs typically did not consume their prey on-site; instead, they carried it away to eat in an unknown location. Thus, the method of poisoning the prey, which had been effective against predatory fish, was ineffective here.

To address this, Luo Wen used the Boar Insect Beast as bait, hoping its spiral horn might inadvertently injure a careless pterosaur.

Pterosaurs’ exceptional eyesight allowed them to spot prey from thousands of meters in the air, provided there were no clouds obstructing their view. The abnormal scene on the ground immediately caught their attention.

Several pterosaurs descended, circling at an altitude of three to four hundred meters while screeching as if warning each other to stay away.

After some squabbling, the largest pterosaur appeared to claim the right to strike first. It tucked its head and folded its wings, initiating a dive.

The Giant Mandible Soldier Ant and Boar Insect Beast were both large targets, but the unarmored Boar Insect Beast was more appealing to the pterosaur.

Ignoring the soldier ant entirely, the pterosaur extended its wings to slow its descent at around thirty meters above the ground. It adjusted its posture and aimed its talons at the inert Boar Insect Beast.

To avoid startling the pterosaur, Luo Wen refrained from activating the beast’s spiral horn, as the likelihood of a successful hit was far too low. The Boar Insect Beast remained convincingly motionless.

Once the pterosaur gripped the Boar Insect Beast, it flapped its massive wings and began to ascend. With a wingspan close to ten meters, this pterosaur was extraordinarily large. Despite the Boar Insect Beast weighing nearly half a ton, the pterosaur managed to lift it off the ground.

Given the pterosaur’s own weight, likely just over half a ton, its strength was impressive.

At that moment, the Giant Mandible Soldier Ant activated its propulsion system.

Although the system’s acceleration effects were diminished by the ant’s heavy frame, overloading it produced a sudden burst of speed. The ant lunged forward and clamped its massive mandibles onto one of the pterosaur’s ankles, pulling it back down and forcing the Boar Insect Beast to fall back to the ground.

The effort came at a cost: the soldier ant’s rear leg joints sustained severe damage, likely irreparable. It would require reconstruction after the battle.

Even with its immense strength, the ant’s limited ground traction, supported by only four legs, reduced its effectiveness. The Boar Insect Beast began to lift off again.

However, the delay was enough. Hidden nearby, a swarm of Modified Spider Combat Bugs equipped with optical camouflage surged onto the pterosaur’s body.

This specialized unit, outfitted for covert operations, had been enhanced with five-centimeter-long stingers at the base of their abdomens. Designed specifically for pterosaurs, their stingers were thicker and longer to penetrate the creatures’ tough defenses. Large venom sacs were also added to their abdomens for maximum effectiveness.

The bugs quickly climbed onto the pterosaur, avoiding areas of thick defense already identified by a previous unit’s sacrifice. They reached the wings in moments. Despite the violent flapping, their hooked claws and adhesive hairs helped them maintain their grip.

Positioning their stingers, the bugs pierced the wing membranes, injecting venom into the pterosaur.

The pterosaur, attacked, immediately released the Boar Insect Beast and began ascending rapidly.

Without the additional weight of the beast, the wounded Giant Mandible Soldier Ant could no longer restrain the pterosaur. It was dragged off the ground before losing its grip and falling.

Freed from its confines, the Boar Insect Beast clumsily attempted to retaliate, but its sluggish movements predictably failed to strike the pterosaur.

Ascending higher, the pterosaur fled, but at least a dozen Modified Spider Combat Bugs clung to its body, providing Luo Wen with real-time visuals.

Tens of thousands of Type I Flying Bugs rose in pursuit, resembling a dark cloud sweeping through the sky. A few Blades mingled among them, directing the operation.

On the ground, hundreds more Modified Spider Combat Bugs with optical camouflage moved toward the anticipated direction of the fleeing pterosaur. Equipped with sufficient energy reserves, they could sustain prolonged pursuits.

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