I Am The Swarm-Chapter 717: Deployment

Due to the anti-air defenses of the Swarm, which had been thoroughly neutralized by the cooperation of the near-orbit fleet and unmanned fighter drones, any surviving installations were now in stealth or mimicry mode, too afraid to fire recklessly. As a result, the Ji race had temporarily seized control of the planet’s airspace. With the help of unmanned fighter drones, any Swarm units still surfacing on the ground were being systematically eliminated.

New novel 𝓬hapters are published on ƒreewebɳovel.com.

The negotiation grounds, once an important battlefield for both sides, were now in ruins. The conference buildings constructed by the Ji race had collapsed, and it was the Ji race itself that caused this destruction.

Inside the venue, the Swarm forces engaged in combat had nearly been wiped out under the relentless aerial bombardment. A few survivors remained but were already under Ji control.

Amidst the battlefield wreckage, Ji soldiers celebrated as if it were a festival. The spoils from this operation were immense, particularly the thousands of armored Swarm bodies.

Although some speculated these armored bug-like humanoids were merely biological weapons, many within the Ji race believed them to be intelligent Swarm entities, true members of the Swarm species.

These specimens were invaluable for experiments. After exhausting their previous stock of over three thousand Swarm researchers, various secret laboratories had long lacked materials to conduct further tests. Now, even though most of these specimens were dead, they could still serve numerous purposes, with some believing they might unlock the mysteries of the Swarm.

Besides the armored Swarm members, the Ji race also recovered several remains of Red Fang Breakers. Frankly speaking, in the eyes of many Ji researchers, these held far greater value than the armored Swarm members. After all, they were advanced Swarm units capable of utilizing negative energy. Gaining insights into their workings could provide significant breakthroughs in miniaturizing negative energy devices along their mechanical research path.

Thus, the Red Fang Breakers received the highest level of treatment, each stored in a separate sealed cryogenic chamber.

As for other units like the Modified Spider Combat Bugs, the Ji race showed little interest. These were primary combat units of the Swarm, encountered and killed in vast numbers before. Even now, tons of their corpses are still piled up in many Ji laboratories.

However, the internal planetary versions of these units might have slight differences, so they were collected as well — though their treatment was nowhere near as meticulous as that of the Red Fang Breakers.

The soldiers on site were jubilant, not only because the fallen enemies counted towards their merits but also because they had important tasks to complete and had just finished intense fighting. They were therefore spared from entering the perilous underground tunnels, which naturally brought them joy.

In contrast to the soldiers’ elation, the mood at the rear command center was somber. Both the commanders and their advisory staff wore grim expressions.

This gloom was due to a major blunder during the recent operation. The delegation led by Elder Ambros of the Ji race had altered their evacuation route without authorization and failed to communicate promptly with military headquarters. As a result, they were mistakenly identified as enemy forces and subjected to devastating bombardment.

Although the command center quickly realized this blunder, the attack efficiency of the unmanned fighter drones was simply too high. Apart from a few representatives from Outer-ring and Mid-ring civilizations, the entire team — including all Ji elders and Inner-circle civilization leaders — perished in the assault.

While the unauthorized change of the evacuation route was the primary cause of the accident, it was unimaginable that such a basic error in identification could occur given the technological prowess of the Ji race.

Nevertheless, the commanders and advisors responsible for orchestrating and overseeing the battle had to bear undeniable responsibility for this incident. The concentrated deaths of over ten Ji elders were unprecedented in the history of the New Ji race.

Faced with such a grave accident, the Ji Council of Elders responded swiftly, albeit with somewhat ambiguous attitudes. They issued a few mild rebukes to the command center, then demanded they capture the Swarm Empress to redeem themselves. Otherwise, they would face cumulative penalties.

B5 bombs were not standard armaments of the Ji fleet and didn’t even qualify as conventional weapons since they rarely encountered situations like the present one.

Fortunately, the strategists had accounted for nearly every variable when simulating the battlefield. To address these variables, they even reintroduced some long-obsolete weapons into their arsenal, with the B5 bomb being one of them.

At this moment, unmanned fighter drones carrying B5 bombs had reached their designated positions. Whether the slate would be wiped clean, merits and faults balanced, or their crimes compounded depended entirely on this next move.

Despite the minor, negligible errors committed earlier by the Ji race, their technology was still reliable. Under the control of artificial intelligence, the unmanned fighter drones executed precise drops onto the target location.

The B5 bomb fell from an altitude of twenty thousand meters, using its unique structure to penetrate three hundred meters underground. A muffled explosion followed, shaking the earth, and raising clouds of soil and dust from the blast zone.

However, these visuals were not what the Ji race cared about; they were concerned about their target.

“How’s the situation?”

“The target’s beacon has stopped moving. It appears we’ve succeeded.”

“Success can’t be confirmed yet. Unfortunately, our beacons cannot verify the target’s life status.”

“How far is the nearest squad to the target? How long will it take them to reach her?”

“The closest squad is currently 5.1 kilometers away from the target. The exact time needed cannot be estimated.”

“Why not?”

“Because the conditions inside the underground tunnels are extremely complex.”

“The near-orbit fleet should have K2N9 units. Deliver them to the marines immediately. Time is of the essence.”

K2N9 was a versatile underground vehicle equipped with a three-meter-wide high-speed alloy drill. Its special design allowed it to compress the loose soil excavated ahead and push it behind, enabling rapid movement through subterranean environments.

However, due to its operational mechanism, the K2N9 couldn’t create stable passages underground. It was suited only for transporting small teams for special operations.

“It’s too dangerous. If the K2N9 ventures alone, it might be destroyed by the Swarm before reaching the target position.”

“Deploy a few squads above the target area on the surface. From there, they can directly descend using the K2N9.”

“This method is feasible. The distance from the surface to the target is just over five hundred meters. Moreover, due to the effects of the B5 bomb, the soil layers in this region have been compacted. Any Swarm units likely would have been crushed to death. For them to retake this area, they’d need to dig new tunnels.”

Due to the complexity of the underground tunnel environment, despite the leading forces having penetrated two to three kilometers deep, a large number of Ji soldiers remained stranded at the entrance, waiting to enter.

With the new orders issued, several teams waiting to enter the tunnels were redeployed. They would execute a new mission.