I Am The Swarm-Chapter 728: Concealment

Overall, although the Swarm Empress had not yet been captured and was still on the run, the Ji race had gradually taken control of the battlefield situation.

If the current situation persisted, they could undoubtedly complete their original plan within five days.

At this moment, Sarah Kerrigan, though still some distance away from the Ji squad blocking her path ahead, had already detected movements in the distance using the sonar system evolved from her echolocation system.

In fact, digging tunnels was one of the Swarm’s signature skills. As the Swarm Empress, even though Sarah might be reluctant, her bio-armor still concealed a remarkably powerful tunneling capability.

Thus, if she could dig a new passage on her own during her escape, she might be able to evade the Ji forces’ pursuit or at least buy herself more time.

However, her bio-armor had been marked by the Ji race using a special method. Without understanding the underlying principle, it was difficult for her to remove it by herself.

Without getting rid of the mark, the Ji race could locate her position at any time. If she attempted to dig her way out, she would only trap herself like a turtle in a jar.

Yet, every cloud has a silver lining. Though her bio-armor was indeed a limited edition, the quantity available was quite substantial.

As Sarah ran, her bio-armor quickly peeled off, revealing her “true form.” Subsequently, her muscles and skin began to tremble, with unknown substances surging through her veins.

Eventually, something unknown gathered at Sarah’s right shoulder, slowly seeping out of her skin to form a wriggling fleshy pod. The outer surface of the pod rapidly hardened, forming a tough shell that encapsulated it, halting its movement.

This was the initial version of the bio-armor. Sarah had actually shed her bio-armor. If the Ji race witnessed this scene, they would surely be astonished because the export version of the Swarm’s bio-armor was permanently bound to an individual once linked and could not be removed.

However, as the manufacturer, the Swarm could modify certain settings. For instance, the irreversibility was just a restriction added to the export model. Sarah’s personal use version naturally wouldn’t have such a limitation.

Since leaving the Swarm Palace in the neighboring star system, Sarah had continuously worn this bio-armor. Thus, the mark placed on her by the Ji race was only on this set of armor. By shedding it, she indirectly removed the Ji race’s mark.

With a delicate grip on the now initial-form bio-armor, Sarah slightly narrowed her eyes, seemingly performing some kind of operation. Moments later, the bio-armor reactivated but did not fuse with Sarah. Instead, it grew legs and feet, resembling a large beetle. Its front pair of digging limbs indicated strong excavation capabilities.

Sarah pressed it against the tunnel wall, and the large beetle swiftly moved its limbs, quickly disappearing into the soil surface. However, it didn’t stray far, waiting for further instructions. Meanwhile, another set of bio-armor began covering Sarah’s entire body.

As the Swarm Empress, it was reasonable for Sarah to carry multiple sets of bio-armor for contingencies, wasn’t it?

Once again armored, Sarah extended high-molecular claws from both arms and chose a direction opposite to where the armor beetle departed. After moving a certain distance, she plunged the claws into the wall.

The high-molecular claws were exceptionally tough and sharp. Unlike their usual attacking form, the claws were now longer, thicker, and more curved, making them highly suitable for excavating soil layers.

In mere moments, Sarah burrowed into the earth, taking care to roughly disguise her entry point. Though the cover-up was somewhat crude, in the pitch-black tunnel, unless the Ji race fired a few illumination rounds and conducted a thorough search, it would be hard to detect this trace.

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Relying on her “innate” talent, Sarah, though a novice in this field, quickly adapted and coordinated her actions. In no time, she had distanced herself from the area like a seasoned veteran who had practiced this skill for decades.

Meanwhile, the waiting beetle received new instructions and began burrowing deeper into the soil. Naturally, Sarah wanted to delay a bit longer, but they had lingered too long in one spot.

Even though the pursuing squad had hesitated to approach due to fear of ambush, they likely had already reported the situation. According to her sonar system’s detection, a large force had been dispatched from the interception team ahead to investigate. Additionally, there were sounds of K2N9s moving through the soil layers.

Thus, she needed to hurry the armor beetle’s departure to divert the Ji forces’ attention.

Simultaneously, Sarah halted her movements. The Ji race’s K2N9 had approached, equipped with large detection instruments. The nearby Swarm units had already been cleared by the Ji race; if she continued to dig, the unusual sounds emanating from the soil would inevitably draw attention.

Actually, both the Negative Energy Shield and the Negative Energy Blade could silently excavate tunnels. Although the K2N9 lacked a Negative Energy detector, the Ji race had already deployed related instruments on the surface.

Previously, with the beacon on her person, she had nothing to worry about, but now she couldn’t afford any carelessness. Therefore, Sarah concealed herself in the soil layer approximately fifty meters away from the main passage. Her armor slowly exuded liquid material to fill the excessive gaps between her and the soil layer to avoid anomalies detected by the scanning devices.

Moreover, this liquid could mask all her biological characteristics. Once the gaps were filled, the liquid transformed to resemble the surrounding sand and soil so closely that even touching it would hardly reveal any differences.

This was the Swarm’s mimicry system. It seemed reasonable for the Empress’s exclusive armor to have a few additional minor functions.

Meanwhile, on the Ji race’s side.

“The target has started moving!”

“What is she doing? Doesn’t she know she’s been marked? Is she still dreaming of launching a surprise attack?” One soldier from the pursuing squad couldn’t help but comment.

“Shut up. She deviated from her position. She’s digging through the soil layer herself! Quickly notify our teams!”

“No need. Selina has already shared the data with them. They should have discovered it as well.”

“The timing was perfect. As soon as the opposing forces moved, the target immediately followed suit. This indicates that the opponent has the ability to know our movements from a distance, though the specific method remains unknown. Secondly, the target must have done something there.”

“What else could she do? She probably realized there were people ahead and stopped running. When she found the forward team actively engaging, she started to act differently. But does she think she’s a Burrowing Worm? Although her speed is quite fast, it can’t possibly surpass the K2N9.”

“I don’t know. The Swarm Empress is no fool. She must realize that this move won’t help her escape and will cost her the only speed advantage she had. So, there must be a reason we don’t understand behind her actions.”