16: Chapter 16 Strange Phenomenon: The Swarm Ranch is Discovered!

Looking at the dense, marching-like footprints before him, Su Yang's eyes sharpened.

"What is this!?"

"Insect Swarm?"

"The feet of the Stinger Bugs and Brain Bugs I've seen so far are all sharp, triangular shapes."

"It's impossible for them to leave footprints like this."

"Wild animals?"

"Animals in the Insect Hive Forest are basically scattered."

"It's impossible for such a regular path of movement to appear."

"Then what is it?"

"Could there be other species in the Insect Hive?"

Su Yang signaled Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu with his eyes, and the three returned to the forest.

After changing direction, the three moved through the forest, following the path.

Su Yang felt it was necessary to figure out this sudden, unknown thing.

The three moved stealthily and walked a long distance further.

The surrounding vegetation gradually thinned out, and hissing sounds could be faintly heard from the distance.

Approaching the source of the sound, Su Yang discovered that the noise was very dense, rising and falling.

This meant that the number of creatures making the sound was extremely high!

"Should we keep going?"

Su Yang hesitated in his heart.

"If this number belongs to a hostile force, relying solely on the two Armored Elite Soldiers, Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu and Armored Elite Warrior Zhao Zhang, would certainly not be enough to deal with them."

While thinking, Su Yang suddenly noticed sharp, triangular footprints appearing under his feet.

"Insect Swarm footprints!"

These Insect Swarm footprints were right next to the path, moving in parallel.

At first, the dense vegetation had obscured the footprints; they only became visible after the vegetation thinned out.

"Why would the Insect Swarm's footprints be right next to the footprints of other creatures?"

"Doesn't the Insect Swarm feed on all living things?"

Su Yang's thoughts raced as he quickly analyzed the scene before him.

"This is!?"

His eyes lit up; he seemed to have found the answer.

"This is very much like sheepdogs herding sheep."

"In the middle are the footprints of the flock, and on the side are the footprints of the sheepdogs guiding them forward."

"Could the Insect Swarm also be capable of herding!?"

Su Yang was startled by his own thought.

"Is the intelligence level of this Insect Swarm too high?"

Carrying his doubts, he commanded Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu and Armored Elite Warrior Zhao Zhang to continue forward.

As the hissing of the unknown creatures grew louder, they were gradually approaching that unknown Domain.

Finally, they stopped before the vegetation disappeared.

Pushing aside the last layer of plants, the end of the path appeared before their eyes.

There was a huge pit there, and all the surrounding vegetation had been cleared away.

The pit was about two meters deep, with a gentle slope leading down.

It was packed with a certain kind of sheep that had four eyes and four horns.

Outside, there was a squad of the Insect Swarm.

A few Stinger Bugs were patrolling around the pit under the sun, while a Brain Bug hid under the rock wall to cool off.

Not far from the pit, there was another cave entrance, identical in shape to the one from last night, but larger.

"It really is an Insect Swarm Ranch!"

Su Yang was shocked and slowly pulled his body back.

The surrounding vegetation was low, and observing for a long time carried the risk of being discovered.

Su Yang found it incredible; the intelligence of the Insect Swarm was beyond imagination.

While he was still commanding soldiers to hunt, the Insect Swarm had already learned to farm animals and follow a path of sustainable development.

No wonder he hadn't encountered any wild animals along the way; it turned out all the animals in this area had been taken away by the bugs.

While shocked, a thought surged into his mind.

"This ranch must be taken!"

After hunting for most of the day today, the soldiers' harvest was actually not much.

Of the six squads sent out, including his own, only two had encountered wild animals.

The harvest of these two squads was barely enough for one day's food for all the soldiers.

The harvest from hunting trips was uncertain, and as hunting increased, the wild animals around the base would surely become fewer and fewer.

If this continued, a food crisis would surely arise in the future.

Armored Elite Soldiers could hold out for a day or two without eating.

But if there was no food for a long time, their physical abilities would decline.

If they ate well, their spirits would be better, and their bodies could burst forth with more energy.

Food would ultimately affect the soldiers' combat power.

In the early stages, without farming skills, a stable food source was necessary.

And the Insect Swarm's ranch gave Su Yang a solution.

"Farm the animals instead of killing them directly."

"This way, while obtaining various animal resources, we can also have food reserves."

However, catching animals now, taming them, and waiting for them to breed would definitely be too late.

"The predecessors plant the trees, and the descendants enjoy the shade."

"As long as we conquer this Insect Hive and bring all the animals back to the base, we can have our own ranch."

"Your sheep are raised very fat, but they will soon be mine."

"This is a huge help!"

Su Yang sincerely thanked these kind neighbors in his heart.

However, taking the Insect Hive now was definitely not possible.

He had only brought two Elite Soldiers, Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu and Armored Elite Warrior Zhao Zhang.

There was an entire Insect Swarm inside the cave entrance; they could not act rashly.

Just as he was about to call for reinforcements, Su Yang suddenly realized an important problem.

"This place is too far from the base!"

After being upgraded, Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu and Armored Elite Warrior Zhao Zhang only had 40% of their energy reserves left.

If other soldiers had walked here, they would probably have less than 20% energy left.

This energy was simply not enough to conquer an Insect Hive.

To take this Insect Swarm Ranch, he needed at least a 10-man squad of Level 2 Armored Elite Soldiers.

"Upgrading 8 Armored Elite Soldiers costs 2400 command points."

"It seems I need to save up first."

Although his hands were itching, Su Yang knew this was not the time to act.

"The ranch is right here and won't run away; I'll come back to take it in two days."

Su Yang made a gesture to Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu and Armored Elite Warrior Zhao Zhang, preparing to head back.

It was very dangerous for three people to go deep into the enemy camp; they had to evacuate as soon as possible.

*Swish, swish——————*

Before they could take two steps, an eye suddenly poked out from the vegetation on the left.

After that eye saw the three of them, it slowly rose, and more and more eyes appeared.

Beneath the dense mass of eyes were connected sticky tentacles.

"A Brain Bug hiding in the vegetation to rest!!"

"They hadn't noticed it when they arrived!"

Su Yang's mouth twitched, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

"Hello."

*Hiss ah—————————*

The Brain Bug's tentacles all went taut in an instant!

They vibrated crazily!

A sharp, explosive screech rang out!

"Run!!"

Su Yang shouted.

Armored Elite Warrior Chen Wu drew his bronze sword, steam billowing out.

He pierced the Brain Bug with one strike.

Then he turned forward, hacking through layers of vegetation to clear the way.

Behind him, Armored Elite Warrior Zhao Zhang grabbed Su Yang, opened his steam power to the max, and charged forward.

The three fled through the dense forest at the fastest possible speed.

Behind them, the Insect Swarm, having received the signal, was equally frantic.

The Brain Bug's tentacles vibrated wildly, emitting waves of sound like a charge horn.

Stinger Bugs with brown stripes all over their bodies rushed out of the cave entrance, speeding after the uninvited guests.

The startled flock of sheep made buzzing sounds, constantly squeezing into the corners.

Mud, sand, and fallen leaves splattered, and the vegetation danced along with the chase.

The silent forest came alive.