I Am The Swarm-Chapter 693: The Arrival

“The Swarm’s actions are underhanded. They’re clearly doing this on purpose.” Although most of the live footage from the venue had been cut off, the Confederation had anticipated various scenarios before the meeting.

The Swarm using electromagnetic shielding to block communication signals at the venue was a highly probable option, and the Confederation had naturally prepared for it. In addition to the standard communication devices, the Confederation team had brought two small quantum communication devices.

These devices, resembling briefcases, were one of the pinnacles of Ji technology, miniaturized equipment that would normally be installed on warships.

Although both quantum communication devices were equipped with anti-EMP systems matching their advanced technology, a portion of their circuits were still fried during the Swarm’s first electromagnetic pulse attack.

However, within seconds, their backup circuits activated and took over the damaged sections. The subsequent electromagnetic interference field deployed by the Swarm couldn’t block quantum communication, a unique transmission method.

Thus, the live feed in the Confederation’s rear command center, though glitching for a few seconds, quickly returned to normal. While the hundreds of camera angles were reduced to just two, it was enough to prevent them from being completely in the dark about the situation on the ground.

The video feed was restored quickly, allowing them to witness Marlene’s subsequent actions. Some of the staff officers were visibly indignant.

“Indeed, their petty tactics are beneath them.”

“I don’t think it’s a big deal. Using various means to unsettle the opponent before a meeting to create favorable conditions is normal, isn’t it?”

“But this is just a signing ceremony. The terms and the agreement template have already been confirmed.”

“Regardless, their use of such tactics indirectly shows how seriously they’re taking this meeting. It seems the Swarm empress has indeed arrived. Switch all Eagle Eye feeds to the main screen!”

The so-called Eagle Eyes were reconnaissance teams deployed by the Confederation around the venue. To avoid provoking an excessive reaction from the Swarm, they were positioned more than ten kilometers away from the venue.

Since the venue was located in a flat area with almost no tall vegetation, their visibility was excellent. By slightly raising the altitude of their small drones, they could capture clear footage of the venue. However, due to the distance, their feeds only provided visuals without audio.

Their purpose was to provide additional perspectives to compensate for the limited angles from the two observation devices at the venue. Audio information didn’t need to be redundantly captured.

However, the clear visibility also meant there were few hiding spots around them. Even lying on the ground, the few centimeters of grass couldn’t conceal their presence.

Fortunately, the Ji had prepared for this. Both the Eagle Eye team members and their equipment were coated with a special nano-layer.

This protective layer functioned similarly to the Swarm’s early stealth technology, using nanocrystals to reflect light similar to the surrounding environment, thereby deceiving optical observation.

Although the Ji couldn’t dissect the Swarm, the ability to use nanocrystals for stealth was observed in various native organisms on life-bearing planets. Given the Ji’s technological prowess, understanding and replicating this mechanism wasn’t difficult.

“Screen five has a discovery!” The Confederation had deployed numerous Eagle Eye teams, and when their feeds were connected to the main screen, it was divided into over a hundred small grids.

This immediately scattered the staff officers’ attention, as most of them could only simultaneously observe and process information from twenty to thirty screens. However, a shout drew everyone’s attention to screen five.

Screen five’s feed came from Eagle Eye Team 31, which had set up observation equipment about thirteen kilometers southeast of the venue.

Their angle provided a direct side view of the Swarm’s recently landed Mito formation, so their feed was prioritized and placed on screen five.

In their footage, the side of the Swarm’s Mito formation slowly split open, and a group of humanoid beings with distinct Swarm characteristics emerged one after another.

“The Swarm empress is really here!” a voice filled with excitement rang out.

Until this moment, the Confederation hadn’t been certain whether the Swarm empress would actually attend the signing ceremony. Their plan had been too straightforward, and it was obvious to anyone with a keen eye that their target was the Swarm empress.

Although the terms of the agreement were highly tempting, and the Confederation, bound by reputation and face, would likely honor the agreement in the short term if it were signed, they weren’t sure if this bait would truly lure out the Swarm empress.

But now, seeing the Swarm’s grand display, they were almost certain their initial plan had succeeded.

The number of intelligent Swarm members present was staggering—over five thousand had already appeared.

Although the Swarm’s combat units were numerous, the Confederation had long understood that these were merely mass-produced bio-weapons. The true core of the Swarm’s power lay in the humanoid intelligent Swarm members.

However, the intelligent Swarm were extremely mysterious. Apart from the period when diplomatic relations were established, during which the Confederation knew that large numbers of intelligent Swarm appeared in the Swarm’s royal court, they were rarely seen in the outside world.

According to the Confederation’s records, the largest gathering of intelligent Swarm occurred during the first exchange of research personnel for points. While other races typically exchanged over a hundred thousand personnel, the Swarm only sent three thousand. This was the only recorded instance of more than two hundred intelligent Swarm appearing simultaneously. These three thousand individuals had long since been depleted due to various incidents over the past thirty years.

Thus, the Confederation hadn’t seen such a large gathering of intelligent Swarm in a very long time. Through complex mathematical models, Confederation experts estimated that the number of intelligent Swarm might only be in the tens of millions. Some even speculated, based on rumors that the Swarm originated from the Ratfolk, that the Swarm might not have a civilian population at all.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fгeewebnovёl.co𝙢.

If this variable were added to the model, the number of intelligent Swarm might only be in the millions, or even fewer. Compared to civilizations with histories spanning tens or hundreds of thousands of years and populations in the hundreds of billions or trillions, the Swarm could indeed be considered a rare species. The five thousand Swarm gathered here might seem insignificant to those races, but for the Swarm, this was undoubtedly a large-scale mobilization.