I Am The Swarm

Luo Wen led the migrating swarm to the safe route he had scouted earlier. After a bit of adjustment, the army began their descent.

At this stage, the Black Beetles were of little use. Luo Wen selected several large Worker Ants and positioned them around the Brood Nest. Each ant bit onto a corner of the nest, and together, they lifted it incrementally toward the cliff.

Luo Wen took the lead, acting as the base by propping the Brood Nest up from below with his body. Around him, seven or eight ants stabilized the nest, ensuring it didn’t tip over.

The rest of the insects began following suit, climbing down the cliff in an orderly manner.

As the swarm moved slowly along the cliff face, Luo Wen bore the immense weight of the Brood Nest with his mandibles and digging limbs. Despite his robust body and sturdy limbs, he found it increasingly difficult to bear the strain.

To make matters worse, as the swarm reached the midpoint of the climb, the previously mild winds began to intensify. The increasing wind pressure took a toll on the swarm.

The strong winds caused some ants to lose their grip, their mandibles releasing larvae or pupae, which were immediately swept away. Others couldn’t hold on to the cliff at all, plummeting into the abyss below.

Luo Wen couldn’t spare attention to the others—his own situation had become precarious. Two of the ants gripping the Brood Nest were blown away, while three others clung on with only their mandibles. Their bodies flailed helplessly in the wind.

The loss of several ants destabilized the Brood Nest’s center of gravity. The remaining ants, along with Luo Wen, struggled to keep it steady in the fierce wind.

The nest toppled backward off Luo Wen’s head. He clamped onto it with his mandibles, trying to catch it. However, the downward force of the falling nest pulled Luo Wen away from the cliff, and they plummeted together.

During the fall, the wind shifted their trajectory slightly. Fortunately, the combined weight of Luo Wen and the Brood Nest lessened the impact, and the drop was only about twenty meters. They landed in a dense thicket below, which cushioned the fall.

The Brood Nest, being naturally tough, sustained no damage. Luo Wen, with his experience from past falls, was also unscathed. Five Worker Ants that had been attached to the nest fell alongside it. Being lighter, they were only slightly disoriented and otherwise unharmed.

Luo Wen quickly dug a pit and buried the Brood Nest to protect it. He then started marking pheromone trails along the cliff base to guide the scattered insects.

By nightfall, Luo Wen had only managed to gather a few dozen insects, including two Black Beetles, one Burrower Ant, and several Worker Ants, along with a few larvae and pupae.

With no other options, he decided to rest for the night. The following day, he spent the entire time gathering more insects but only managed to find a few dozen more. Combined with the previous day’s count, the swarm now totaled barely over a hundred.

The cliff crossing had been devastating. While the week-long march through the desert had cost only a little over a hundred insects, the cliff climb had claimed several hundred in just a few hours.

Further searching was futile. Thankfully, the Brood Nest remained intact. After another night’s rest, Luo Wen unearthed the Brood Nest and set off toward the new nest location with the remnants of the swarm.

The reduced numbers weren’t entirely a disadvantage. The survivors were mostly robust adults, with only a few larvae and pupae. Luo Wen hauled the Brood Nest himself, supported below by Black Beetles and several ants. With fewer insects to slow them down, their travel speed increased significantly, and their smaller size made them less conspicuous.

Previously, Luo Wen had worried that the swarm’s size would make it difficult to remain hidden while traversing multiple ant nests to reach the central location. That concern was now moot.

The new nest site was only three to four hundred meters from the cliff. The streamlined migration party reached it quickly.

On the way, they encountered a few scout ants from an unknown nest. After Luo Wen demonstrated his “performance skills,” the scouts contributed their bodies to the swarm’s long-overdue feast.

Upon arrival, Luo Wen assigned two Burrower Ants to start digging. One had been found the previous day, and the other was located during the journey. The Worker Ants assisted by carrying the excavated soil outside.

Meanwhile, Luo Wen circled the new nest site, using his pheromones to mark the area as a no-trespassing zone. This precaution aimed to deter scout ants from disturbing the insects at work.

The excavation progressed rapidly once Luo Wen joined in. After all, he had previously managed to dig out a nest alone while hauling the Brood Nest. Now, with his significantly larger size and dozens of strong helpers, the work advanced even faster.

A small mound of soil began forming at the entrance, evidence of the soil being transported out. Due to the proximity to a water source, the soil was moist, and the underground environment was damp.

Luo Wen recalled observing the nearby ant nests, where he had noticed many areas lined with fine sand and wood shavings. He had even seen ants removing moldy shavings from their nests. At the time, he hadn’t understood the purpose, but now, as he dug his own nest, the reason became clear. He marveled at how these seemingly simple creatures had developed survival strategies passed down over countless generations.

Such knowledge was the crystallization of time. Luo Wen’s own experience as an insect was brief, so absorbing these accumulated lessons was the best way to build his foundation.

The pheromone barrier proved effective. By nightfall, no scout ants had ventured into the area.

The insects had dug a small chamber about seven or eight meters underground. They couldn’t go deeper due to water seepage, which made the soil unstable and prone to collapse. Even the current depth would require significant reinforcement to ensure safety. ℞ÃＮоᛒƐꞩ

With the main nest unfinished and uninhabitable, Luo Wen dug a temporary nest about a meter underground to house the Brood Nest. In case of an emergency, the Brood Nest could be buried quickly, and the insects would scatter to draw attention away, ensuring its safety.

Though an attack was unlikely, Luo Wen ensured all precautions were in place.

He ventured out again to “perform,” returning with a few more victims to feed the swarm and the Brood Nest.

By the following day, the simplified nest should be complete. After some basic reinforcement, it would be ready for temporary use. Once the Brood Nest resumed production, they could expand and fortify the nest further, including constructing transportation tunnels to link the surrounding ant nests—a task that would require a substantial workforce.

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