I Am The Swarm

With setbacks in rocket propulsion research, some of the rat folk proposed building a space station in planetary orbit as a means of collecting data and conducting further studies. This idea inspired a subset of researchers to pursue related projects.

One article suggested creating a self-sustaining ecosystem chamber aboard the space station. Plants could absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen, while rat folk would breathe the oxygen and produce carbon dioxide, establishing a closed-loop system.

Although implementing such a system would be far more complicated than the article implied, the concept gave Luo Wen a new direction for his experiments.

Previously, Luo Wen had focused on directly harnessing cosmic radiation. He had made some progress—certain thermal radiation could provide large amounts of heat energy—but he had yet to find a method to convert that heat into biological energy, leaving him stuck in a dead end.

Now, he had a fresh idea.

Luo Wen already had the ability to integrate plant cells into his body, even incorporating chloroplasts. The ecosystem chamber concept seemed feasible for internal adaptation.

Driven by inspiration, he began working immediately. His body was already sealed into an airtight structure from prior experiments with survival in oxygen-deprived environments, making it a natural closed chamber.

He added numerous chloroplasts to his skin cells but quickly ran into compatibility issues. His optical stealth system and magnetic field generation system were also located in the skin. Adding chloroplasts risked disrupting their functions.

Unable to resolve this, Luo Wen relocated the chloroplasts to a lower part of his body. However, this introduced a new challenge: limited light exposure. He experimented with using the nanocrystals from the optical stealth system to reflect light to the chloroplasts’ new location.

This required creating dedicated light pathways and adding additional nanocrystals inside his body to enhance reflection. Otherwise, the small contact area would result in inefficient energy conversion—a highly inconvenient solution.

Luo Wen resigned himself to this approach until a few days later, when he came across another paper. It suggested that plants could grow under artificial lighting or bioluminescence.

The revelation hit Luo Wen like a bolt of lightning. Though he knew little about bioluminescence, this solution seemed promising.

While installing artificial lights inside his body was out of the question, bioluminescent organisms provided an ideal alternative. Many insects and deep-sea creatures naturally emitted light.

Luo Wen began experimenting immediately. Bioluminescent organisms typically contained a special gene that produced light cells. These cells housed two chemicals that reacted under specific catalysts, releasing energy almost entirely as light with minimal heat—a highly efficient illumination method.

Luo Wen relocated the chloroplasts to an internal cavity surrounded by light cells. He then modified his respiratory system to direct carbon dioxide into the cavity, where the chloroplasts absorbed it and released oxygen.

The result? Luo Wen became a glowing organism—or perhaps, a bio-mecha with built-in lighting.

This system was far more reliable than his earlier design but still fell short of a perfect cycle, requiring periodic replenishment of water and other materials. Thanks to his tail lard storage organ, however, this “periodic” replenishment could be measured in years.

Thus, Luo Wen had addressed almost every challenge posed by space travel. All that remained was acquiring a suitable vessel.

“Overlord, don’t you think our latest masterpiece is stunning?” Morgan asked, his tone full of self-admiration.

Luo Wen, observing the rocket remotely through Morgan’s perspective, replied via the Swarm Network: “Stunning? I’m speechless.”

“Your praise is most gratifying, Overlord.”

“That wasn’t praise, you fool. Can’t you tell I’m being sarcastic?”

“Perhaps it’s a limitation of consciousness communication; I cannot detect tone.”

Luo Wen briefly considered “retraining” the rat folk scientist before turning his attention back to the rocket.

Admittedly, the design left him astonished. The rat folk had devised a novel approach, strapping 36 secondary thrusters onto a single rocket. As a self-proclaimed intellectual, Luo Wen couldn’t help but criticize the design’s absurdity. The drag in the atmosphere alone would be monumental, and directional control seemed nearly impossible.

Regret bubbled within him—he had entrusted his body to this mission.

Yes, this was the vessel that would carry Luo Wen to the moon. It represented the pinnacle of rat folk ingenuity, resembling nothing more than a giant stick bound with over thirty grenades.

This was the rat folk’s first serious attempt to land on the moon. Even Empress Kerrigan had arrived at the command center to personally oversee the launch ceremony.

“Can this contraption really fly?” Luo Wen asked, skeptical.

“Rest assured, Overlord,” Morgan replied confidently. “We are highly experienced with strapped booster rockets. While the drag is indeed significant within the atmosphere, it becomes irrelevant once we breach it. Our calculations confirm that 36 secondary thrusters can definitely propel the rocket’s core to the moon.”

“Fine. Your verbosity convinces me.” Luo Wen felt a sliver of relief after Morgan’s detailed explanation.

Luo Wen’s body, secured under the guise of a “volunteer organism,” had been placed in a transparent box filled with observation instruments and loaded onto the rocket. Accompanying him were other equipment and an all-terrain rover.

Shortly afterward, Morgan confirmed via intercom, “Overlord, the special organism has been secured on the rocket.”

Luo Wen nodded, then remembered this was consciousness communication and replied, “Understood.”

The connection between Luo Wen’s main body and the Brood Nest remained his closely guarded secret. Even the most loyal and network-integrated rat folk had no access to this information.

It wasn’t a matter of mistrust but of caution. Luo Wen had long believed he wasn’t the universe’s only exceptional being. Who knew what other peculiar abilities might exist?

Better safe than sorry—paranoia was the ultimate survival skill.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!