I Am The Swarm

The most important revelation for Luo Wen was that he had discovered a true method to enhance his power. The Rat folk civilization, serving as the Swarm’s first production base for Intelligent Entities, had a lineage rooted in Swarm node units and had supplied the Swarm with numerous Intelligent Entities over the years.

Previously, Luo Wen only selected the best candidates, rejecting many spiritual entities that sought to join. However, he now realized this practice was a significant waste. Regardless of the quality of a spiritual entity, all contained an essence of pure, concentrated energy—albeit in varying amounts.

Even those unqualified to become Intelligent Entities could have their essence absorbed by Luo Wen to strengthen himself. The process was simple for him, requiring only the separation of the first half of the Intelligent Entity creation process from the rest.

Beyond this, Luo Wen could also improve his method of absorbing energy from the universe.

He discovered that the growth of the Swarm—through an increased number of node units, expanded territory, and broader network coverage—accelerated his energy absorption rate from the universe. While the increase was minuscule, it was tangible, and as the Swarm continued to expand, this rate would inevitably rise further.

Luo Wen had a premonition that as he grew stronger and the Swarm Network’s coverage reached a critical threshold, he would gain the ability to exert more dimensional influence over the universe—perhaps even altering its fundamental rules.

However, such possibilities lay in the distant future. For now, Luo Wen had to focus on the present and overcome the immediate crises.

Although he now understood himself better, Luo Wen realized that even if the Swarm were entirely annihilated within the universe, he would not perish. His true essence existed outside the universe. However, the Swarm’s extinction would mean losing his anchor within the universe. At that point, he might become lost in the dimensional chaos, drifting into a deep sleep. For Luo Wen, that fate would be no different from death.

Meanwhile, the construction of the Riken civilization’s Trade City progressed smoothly, without any unexpected complications. The two Ji vessels remained stationed in low orbit around Riken’s homeworld. Perhaps due to the unique circumstances, the Ji crew did not enter their usual hibernation state. However, this prolonged waiting was incredibly monotonous.

With permission from the Riken, some Ji crew members connected to the Riken’s internal network using specialized instruments. They began to immerse themselves in the alien culture, discovering that their appreciation for art had much in common with the Riken.

As for the language barrier? For a civilization as advanced as the Ji, overcoming it was a trivial matter. The Ji held the philosophy that the more time a civilization’s children spent memorizing knowledge, the less time they would have for creative thinking, which was essential for progress.

Using a specialized cognitive-enhancement device that stimulated the brain, the Ji were able to achieve forced memorization within hours. Theoretically, they became fluent in the Riken language and script in a single session, leaving only practical application to refine their newfound proficiency.

Since the end of the war, the Riken had relaxed their restrictions on free speech. Freed from the burden of heavy military expenses, the standard of living for their citizens had improved significantly. With newfound leisure time, they began pursuing spiritual fulfillment.

The Riken’s internal network became their most affordable source of entertainment. It hosted an abundance of variety shows, movies, and dramas—enough to captivate the Ji crew. On the network’s trending topics, the top ten were mostly related to joining the Interstellar Technological Confederation.

“These Riken have some rather peculiar thoughts,” one Ji crew member remarked.

It wasn’t without reason. In his view, a country being invited by another to join an alliance was often a source of animosity. Yet, the Riken harbored surprisingly little resentment toward the Swarm. Instead, they exhibited an oddly accepting attitude toward the prospect of joining the Confederation under the Swarm’s invitation.

The reasons behind this phenomenon primarily stem from three factors:

The Riken had fought against the Swarm for many years, with the exception of a single victory on Planet Raze, which was later suspected to have been intentionally allowed by the Swarm.

This placed the Riken in a constant position of psychological inferiority, especially since the Swarm ultimately subdued them without any actual conflict. This earned the Riken’s respect for the Swarm as a symbol of strength.

After their victory, the Swarm refrained from making any excessive demands. Many Riken realized that even if they were in the Swarm’s position, it would be difficult to exercise the level of restraint the Swarm displayed. This further fueled their admiration for the Swarm.

Over the years, Intelligent Entities disguised as Riken leaders subtly guided public opinion, shaping perceptions of the Swarm in a favorable direction.

After joining the Interstellar Technological Confederation, the Swarm did not exploit the Riken’s resources or manpower to the extreme, unlike many other civilizations. As the Riken learned more about the Confederation’s inner workings, they felt grateful for the Swarm’s restraint.

Additionally, the Riken’s exposure to the Confederation’s realities made them realize that survival, even within an alliance, was dictated by the law of the jungle. As a smaller civilization, they recognized that without a powerful backer, they would be at the mercy of the larger, older civilizations.

While joining smaller organizations was an option, those groups charged exorbitant “protection fees” without guaranteeing actual protection during critical moments. By contrast, the Swarm was not only powerful but also displayed a kind temperament, making them an ideal ally.

The Swarm’s proximity as a neighbor, combined with its prior conduct and reputation, made it even more trustworthy than the unfamiliar members of the Confederation.

For the Ji crew members, however, these reasons elicited little more than casual banter. A small, backwater civilization’s mindset wasn’t worth their deeper consideration.

“Hmm? They actually have something like this?” The Ji who had been critiquing the Riken’s mindset suddenly widened his eyes in surprise. His tone was filled with excitement.

This Ji resembled the “blue-haired monkey” from earlier, who had been involved in security inspections. Were it not for the slight difference in their voice, one might have thought they were the same individual.

It seemed that the blue-haired monkeys might belong to a significant species, as multiple members of their kind were present within this small Ji fleet.

“What did you find?” The colleague next to him tilted his head curiously.

Lately, such exclamations had become a common occurrence in their room, though the source was usually some bizarre video or similar content. Despite differing aesthetics across their home species, certain things seemed to spark universal interest.

Before the colleague could finish speaking, his eyes fell on the screen in front of the blue-haired monkey. The display was vibrant and detailed, with text and images providing an introduction to a particular product.

While his curiosity dimmed slightly—text descriptions were rarely as engaging as videos—he couldn’t resist leaning closer to see what had caught his colleague’s attention.

“What?! Is that real? How could they have something like this?” The colleague’s exclamation seemed to ignite a chain reaction, as more Ji crew members hurried over, crowding around the screen.

A hubbub of excited chatter filled the room as the blue-haired monkeys and their colleagues marveled at the discovery, their collective interest clearly piqued.

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