I Am The Swarm

Luo Wen painstakingly orchestrated this situation of overwhelming numbers, not for a fair fight, but to crush the Big-headed Ants decisively. With the swarm’s 2.2 million-strong army versus the Big-headed Ants’ 500,000-strong force, fairness was never on the table.

In reality, each Ultra-Giant Soldier Ant on the Big-headed Ants’ side faced at least three opponents of equivalent size and strength. This was only because Luo Wen’s swarm had just 200 Ultra-Giants—not due to a lack of desire but the lengthy growth cycle of these massive units.

Additionally, both the Ultra-Giants and the Giant Soldier Ants were products of new genetic templates. Before their creation, the more than 2,000 Queen Ants already in service were incapable of producing these specialized units.

These 200 Ultra-Giants and 500 Giants were only developed after the Brood Nest completed the production of 500 additional Queen Ants. It worked overtime to produce and nurture these massive units to their current size before deploying them to the front lines.

Thus, in sheer numbers of ultra-sized units, the swarm might still lag behind the Big-headed Ants. However, such disadvantages could easily be mitigated with tactics, as demonstrated here.

The massive combat units of both sides locked horns immediately upon engagement. The smaller units perched atop these giants used their bodies as bridges to attack the enemy.

Unfortunately for the Big-headed Ants, their individual unit strength was already inferior to that of the swarm’s counterparts. Adding to this, they were vastly outnumbered, and to make matters worse, the swarm’s Small Soldier Ants employed venom!

Perhaps in favoring size and muscle during their evolution, the Big-headed Ants had forsaken venomous variants among their combat units. While their experience with Red Ants made them less vulnerable to venomous foes, they were unprepared for this scenario. Red Ants lacked comparable giant units, and these titanic Big-headed Ants were always well-guarded by smaller auxiliaries, preventing venomous foes from getting close.

Now, however, they finally tasted the terror of venomous stingers.

With their auxiliaries too few to intercept the swarm’s venomous Soldier Ants, the Big-headed Ant Ultra-Giants could only watch helplessly as the stingers found their way into the gaps in their armor.

Ironically, while the stingers penetrated the cracks in their dorsal plates, their short length prevented them from reaching the internal muscles—a hidden advantage of their massive size.

However, while their dorsal armor proved impenetrable, their joints were far more vulnerable. Under cover fire from their allies, several venomous Soldier Ants quickly scaled the Ultra-Giants’ legs. Although the giants kicked violently, sending some attackers flying, it did little to prevent the inevitable.

Stingers pierced into the joints, injecting venom. Within moments, the unarmored muscles began to liquefy. The Ultra-Giants’ colossal bodies wavered, their legs twitching uncontrollably.

Already at a disadvantage, these behemoths became easy prey once immobilized. The swarm’s Ultra-Giants seized the opportunity to swiftly subdue, kill, and dismember them.

With the loss of these frontline titans, the morale of the supporting Big-headed Ants crumbled. Without their anchors, they began retreating in disarray.

Elsewhere, the swarm’s Scorpions handled the Ultra-Giants with brutal efficiency. Taking advantage of the locked engagements, the Scorpions used their massive pincers to clamp down on the comparatively narrow waists of their opponents. Ignoring the attacks of the supporting Big-headed Ants, the Scorpions exerted tremendous force, splitting their prey in half with a gruesome spray of fluids. Their efficiency was unmatched.

However, the Scorpions’ shortcomings were equally apparent. Their large pincers excelled at targeting massive units but proved cumbersome against smaller, more agile foes, rendering them clumsy in such situations.

Ironically, the Big-headed Ant Ultra-Giants faced similar limitations.

Through this battle, Luo Wen gained a clearer understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of his forces.

The Ultra-Giants were specialized for taking down large prey. Without venom or auxiliary support, their enormous mandibles could effortlessly dispatch and dismember such targets. However, they were practically useless against smaller foes. Their head-mounted weapons were even more unwieldy than the Scorpions’ pincers. Without assistance from smaller units, they struggled to kill smaller targets efficiently.

In short, the Ultra-Giants had very limited utility.

Take the current battle, for example: after eliminating the enemy’s Ultra-Giants, the swarm’s Ultra-Giants were far less effective at clearing out smaller units than even the Transport Bugs, another large combat unit.

The Transport Bugs, with their powerful and lightning-quick legs, combined with exceptional dynamic vision, were deadly accurate. A single strike often resulted in a kill, and even when it didn’t, the sticky hairs on their claws would capture and immobilize their prey for a finishing bite. Their efficiency was astounding.

However, Transport Bugs struggled against larger combat units, which were rarer. Overall, their cost-effectiveness far surpassed that of the Ultra-Giants.

As the saying goes, “Practice makes perfect.”

This battle served as a valuable test of the swarm’s current unit roster. Luo Wen now had a clearer idea of which units were suitable for development, which should be phased out, and which could be improved. For instance, while the Ultra-Giants might suit the Big-headed Ants’ mode of survival, they were less fitting for the swarm.

“Perhaps adding adhesive hairs to their joints might address their weakness against smaller units,” Luo Wen mused. Despite their low cost-effectiveness, he admired the Ultra-Giants’ imposing appearance and considered producing a limited number with improvements.

Even as he pondered, Luo Wen kept a close eye on the battlefield.

With the Big-headed Ants’ giants nearly wiped out, the swarm’s encirclement tightened. Soldier Ants climbed atop the remaining Ultra-Giants, spraying formic acid at the center of the battlefield.

“Well, there’s another use for Ultra-Giants—they make great artillery platforms,” Luo Wen quipped sarcastically.

Meanwhile, the Worker Ants leapt to the ground, consolidating spoils and finishing off any wounded Big-headed Ants left behind.

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