109: Chapter 109 The Expansion of the Empire and the Flood of Intelligence

Chapter 109: The Empire's Expansion and the Torrent of Information

In the following days, my path of 'conquest' proceeded with unstoppable momentum.

With the Ironclad Rat King and the Hundred-Eyed Centipede as the core 'generals,' my swarm army expanded rapidly, like a rolling snowball.

The Ironclad Rat King was responsible for commanding all the 'ground forces' living in dry pipes and abandoned areas—mutant rats, mutant Cockroaches, mutant ants...

As for the Hundred-Eyed Centipede, it commanded all the 'aquatic forces' living in damp, highly toxic environments—mutant leeches, venomous house centipedes, bloodthirsty mosquito larvae...

In just a few short days, the territory of my empire expanded from a single point into a vast network... covering the entire underground world of Jiangcheng!

Hundreds of thousands, even millions, of 'soldiers' began carrying out all sorts of tasks for me under the command of my two 'generals.'

They became my eyes and ears.

They presented everything happening in this city, every minute, every second, in the most direct and primal way... right into my mind.

However, a new problem soon followed.

There was... too much information!

So much that it reached a point... where I was almost driven to collapse!

"Buzz—!"

The instant I connected to the entire Swarm Network, my brain felt as if it had been stuffed with a universe-level supercomputer running at full power!

I 'saw'!

I saw a couple in a small restaurant in the eastern district arguing fiercely over a betrothal gift.

I saw a noble Persian cat lazily sprawled in front of a floor-to-ceiling window in a villa in the southern district, basking in the sun.

I saw a mutant rat and a mutant Cockroach in a sewer in the western district fighting fiercely over half a moldy steamed bun.

I saw a young boy in a school in the northern district being punished by his teacher to stand in the corner for failing an exam.

I 'heard'!

I heard the clamor of aunties haggling over a few cents in the wet market.

I heard the vibrant, loud cries of a newborn baby in a hospital.

I heard the clatter of keyboards and suppressed sighs from white-collar workers in an office building.

I heard... every sound emanating from every street, every building, every corner of this city!

Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of images, sounds, smells, vibrations... everything crashed down on me like the most chaotic, most violent tsunami, mercilessly shattering all my mental defenses and completely drowning my soul!

"Pfft!"

Suddenly, as if erupting like a volcano, I violently spat out a mouthful of 'blood'! That 'blood' wasn't real blood, but a symbol of the pain and despair I couldn't suppress deep within.

My body lost control, as if dominated by a powerful force, and began to tremble violently.

Each tremor made me feel my bones grinding against each other, my muscles twitching, as if my entire body was about to fall apart.

At the same time, my mind went completely blank; all thoughts and memories were instantly stripped away.

I couldn't think; I could only feel the endless pain and terror.

And my soul felt as if it were being sliced and torn apart by countless invisible, sharp knives.

Each cut brought unbearable agony, making me feel my soul was being ripped apart piece by piece.

This agony was so intense that I couldn't describe it with any words. It surpassed the limits of what human language could express, leaving me struggling in an abyss of pain with no hope of relief.

I felt I was going mad, and this madness wasn't just mental—it was the complete collapse of both body and soul.

I was about to be... literally burst apart by this endless, overwhelming torrent of information!