I Am The Swarm

The surface temperature of the Great Dawn Planet remained around 50 degrees Celsius year-round. Combined with its oxygen-rich atmosphere, fires were likely a common occurrence.

The flora had evolved advanced fire-resistant systems. Those that hadn’t adapted had already been eliminated by time.

Thus, although the fire caused by the Swarm Meteors appeared overwhelming, with flames towering high and an intimidating presence, it didn’t burn much. The dark red trunks and fiery red branches valiantly resisted the blaze, secreting copious amounts of water to avoid ignition.

Soon, after consuming the dried leaves and branches mixed in the soil, the fire began to lose momentum, eventually dwindling and extinguishing.

In the end, aside from a few severed and ignited trees, most of the forest withstood the blaze.

Hours later, the forest had only gained a small patch of charred ground. The usual sounds of life returned among the trees.

At this point, the Fungal Carpet had fully absorbed the contents of the Spore Capsule. From the crater left by the meteor, a purplish-gray mass emerged.

Earlier, during close-range observations in space, the Swarm had confirmed that the Great Dawn Planet’s orbit showed no signs of artificial constructs. Furthermore, while passing through the atmosphere and surveying thousands of kilometers of surface terrain, no evidence of advanced civilizations was found.

A subsequent data analysis reaffirmed that the Great Dawn Planet lacked any traces of advanced civilizations.

Additionally, Great Dawn Planet’s atmosphere filtered out significant amounts of harmful radiation, sparing the Fungal Carpet from the need to build magnetic field generators for self-protection.

Under such favorable conditions, the Fungal Carpet began growing recklessly, no longer needing to hold back.

Amidst the dark red and fiery tones of the landscape, an incongruous purplish-gray hue began to spread.

Days later, in an underground cavern, the Brood Queen’s egg had grown to a size of three meters. Although it was still relatively small, under Sarah Kerrigan’s orders, it cracked open prematurely.

The forest harbored many dangerous creatures. Coupled with the oxygen-rich environment, the fauna here grew to massive sizes.

For instance, a species resembling short-haired monkeys typically grew over two meters in adulthood. Their agile figures leaped effortlessly between towering trees, their long, powerful arms easily grabbing branches and vines.

Their fiery red fur allowed them to blend seamlessly into the similarly colored forest.

Moreover, these large monkeys were highly curious.

While most creatures had fled in terror following the Swarm Meteor’s impact, too frightened to return, these monkeys, driven by curiosity, came in groups only two days later, emitting strange calls as they approached the Fungal Carpet.

They were intensely curious about the purplish-gray Fungal Carpet in the crater. The monkeys tested it with various methods—throwing sticks and stones. Finding no immediate danger, they eventually began tearing at and biting into the carpet.

Though tender and nutrient-rich, the Fungal Carpet contained toxins, albeit only mildly poisonous.

However, these alien toxins inflicted severe consequences on the native monkeys.

Within minutes, the monkeys that consumed parts of the Fungal Carpet began showing adverse reactions such as bloating, nausea, and vomiting.

Several gluttonous monkeys succumbed to their ailments within a dozen hours, while the others were left utterly drained by the ordeal.

Two days later, the monkeys recovered. Fueled by a strong sense of vengeance, they launched frenzied attacks on the Fungal Carpet.

Without additional modules, the Fungal Carpet only possessed its innate weak toxins and lacked other defensive mechanisms. It could only endure the monkeys’ assault. Fortunately, while they destroyed the surface layer, they were powerless against its subterranean portions.

Observing covertly, Luo Wen shook his head. “Sarah is still too inexperienced. If it were me, I wouldn’t dare to expand the Fungal Carpet so boldly without amassing a thousand troops underground first.”

However, he refrained from intervening. Some lessons were best learned through failure. As the Swarm’s territory expanded, he wouldn’t be able to handle everything personally. It was crucial to nurture capable subordinates.

Sarah faced a significant setback in her first practical mission. Consequently, the three-meter-tall Brood Queen was deployed prematurely.

The Fungal Carpet began channeling maximum nutrients into it. While developing itself, the Brood Queen also diverted energy to produce additional eggs.

The Swarm Meteor carrying this Brood Queen was among the earliest launched, having spent over a century in space. Its genetic library was severely outdated.

It lacked advanced electromagnetic propulsion systems and bio-ship templates, not even equipped with hydrogen-oxygen propulsion devices. Apart from basic ecological circulation systems and radiation shields, most of its genetic makeup came from primitive lifeforms of the Genesis Planet.

Yet, these genes represented billions of years of evolution on a single planet. Even as the Swarm advanced into the space age, many of these genes remained in use.

Back when Luo Wen was hiding in the ocean and secretly guiding the Ratfolk civilization over centuries, he had plenty of idle time. Without games to distract him, he entertained himself by creating biological templates.

Sadly, these templates never saw the light of day, as the Swarm quickly advanced beyond their scope, rendering them obsolete.

Perhaps fate had other plans. An unknown higher-dimensional force gave these templates a second chance to shine.

While insignificant in the vastness of space, they seemed more than sufficient to handle the primitive creatures on the Great Dawn Planet.

Although Luo Wen had boasted during games with Sarah about the superiority of his creations, her actual experience proved frustrating. The selection of templates was too limited. It wasn’t that Luo Wen hadn’t created enough but that his designs were tailored for the Genesis Planet. These creatures excelled in that environment but were ill-suited for Great Dawn Planet’s challenges.

With surface temperatures averaging 50 degrees Celsius, the conditions didn’t bother the current Swarm. But for Luo Wen back then, such an environment was extreme.

Although he had considered scenarios requiring templates for high and low temperatures and had created some for these conditions, their proportion was minimal.

After thorough analysis, Sarah and her advisors determined that the available templates could manage the current situation. Luo Wen’s designs often featured integrated unit systems, ensuring that even with limited numbers, each unit type complemented the others.

Learning from her rashness, Sarah decided to proceed cautiously. Days later, flying insects emerged from underground caves, dispersing in all directions.

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