I Am The Swarm-Chapter 692: A Show of Force

Although the material of the building’s canopy appeared unremarkable, it was actually an advanced Ji technology capable of withstanding orbital cannon fire and even large-scale kinetic impacts.

The structure was supported only by pillars, with no walls, providing an open view to allow for quick evacuation in case of an emergency. The fifty-meter-high space between the pillars was even large enough for large gunboats to fly in and pick up personnel.

The reason for such a design was the mutual distrust between the two sides. And rightly so—trust had never existed between them.

“Report, the Swarm’s Mito is approaching the venue.” Although no monitoring devices were allowed on the building due to mutual demands, the highly advanced Confederation could still observe the surroundings from high altitude.

In the planet’s low orbit, a Ji observation vessel was performing synchronized movements. The pinnacle of technology in this star region allowed their observation equipment to clearly see the antennae of insects on the planet’s surface from such a height.

At this moment, more than a dozen teams on the vessel were simultaneously observing and monitoring different areas of the ground. When a Mito emerged from underground 500 kilometers outside the venue, it was immediately spotted by one of the teams and reported.

Although the optical instruments showed nothing unusual in that area, the Ji’s targeted locator detected anomalies there.

The targeted locator was a Ji device that combined several technologies to specifically counter the Swarm’s stealth and mimicry tech. Its debut demonstrated its effectiveness.

The Swarm’s stealth technology had been exposed for years, so it was manageable. However, their mimicry tech had only been revealed a few years ago. The fact that the Ji could develop a countermeasure so quickly without dissecting Swarm combat units showcased their formidable technological reserves.

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As for the Mito, it was a newly exposed unit before this meeting. Due to the structural limitations of the space octopuses, which couldn’t descend to low altitudes on the planet, the Mito served as a replacement.

They used the planet’s magnetic field for pseudo-anti-gravity flight, taking on transportation duties. Since they had already been exposed and their data recorded by the Ji, even in stealth mode, the Ji could accurately identify them. The Mito was the code name given by the Confederation, while the Swarm had a more down-to-earth name for it—Breadworm…

“Numbers?” a voice came through the communicator.

“Ten! There are other stealth units around them, but there’s no matching data in the database, so we can’t identify what they are,” the soldier quickly reported.

The information was swiftly relayed upward, soon reaching the staff office.

“It seems these are the Swarm’s escort units. Have any other Swarm forces been spotted in other directions?”

“No related reports. It looks like this is the only Swarm team.”

“Can we confirm if the Swarm empress is among them?”

“No way. Detecting their location is already our limit. Should we attack?” The top strategists from various races gathered to plan for this grand event.

Given the current situation, sniping the Swarm empress before she reached the venue would be the simplest and most convenient method.

“No. If she’s not among them, all our preparations would be wasted. Moreover, our goal isn’t to kill her but to capture her alive if possible. Even if we can’t capture her alive, we must bring back her body!”

“Alright, I was just suggesting.”

On the Ji observation vessel, when the Swarm’s presence was detected, the responsible officer assigned three additional teams to monitor the Swarm unit while keeping the other teams’ tasks unchanged.

With four teams and dozens of Ji personnel, they ensured no detail of the Swarm unit’s movements was missed.

The 500-kilometer distance was covered in an instant. The Mito revealed itself just as it entered the shaded area of the venue’s canopy.

“Report, the target has entered the venue. We can no longer observe them.”

“Continue monitoring the surroundings of the venue!”

“Yes!”

Although the venue’s structure blocked orbital surveillance, this didn’t stump the Ji. Everyone at the venue carried concealed cameras, transmitting multi-angle real-time footage to the fleet above.

Unfortunately, these feeds were soon lost.

“What’s going on?”

“Unknown. The transmission signal was interrupted. We’ve lost contact with the protocol team!”

“Bring up the footage from the Eagle Eye team!”

“Yes!”

—

Ground-level meeting venue

“What are you doing?!” a furious roar echoed.

Just moments ago, a series of faint popping sounds was heard, followed by crackling sparks from their bodies. A few unlucky individuals even had their electronic devices explode, causing significant injuries. Medical personnel rushed to carry them away, though their expressions were a mix of pain and joy—perhaps they had suffered brain damage.

The others were left disheveled, their electronic devices mostly fried, and their neat suits torn and scorched. Even the devices that had miraculously survived the initial attack soon stopped working.

Furious, they loudly questioned the Swarm personnel present. The Swarm’s representative was none other than General Marlene, a familiar face to the Confederation.

“My apologies, everyone. There was a minor mishap just now. I intended to clear out the hidden electronic devices you brought, as our empress doesn’t appreciate being watched by so many cameras. I didn’t expect you to carry so many on your persons. We the Swarm don’t carry such things,” Marlene said, her tone dripping with mockery, further infuriating the Confederation representatives.

“You!… Couldn’t you have warned us beforehand?”

“That was indeed my oversight. My apologies again. Since I don’t carry many electronic devices myself, I overlooked your customs. However, I’ve corrected the mistake by setting up an electromagnetic interference net around the venue. Your devices will temporarily stop working, but they’ll function normally once you leave.”

Marlene’s “sincere” apology did little to calm the Confederation representatives. Instead, it only added fuel to the fire.

Why not just activate the interference net directly? Using an electromagnetic pulse to fry their devices was clearly intentional.