Chapter 16: Sweeping Through
After easily annihilating more than a
dozen Iron-Furred Wild Boars, Qin Mu ordered some worker bugs to transport the boars' corpses back to the Nest. The remaining worker bugs continued to advance under his leadership.
"It's a pity that I only have one spearhead. With my spirit power, I could easily control more weapons."
Qin Mu shook his head regretfully. At the moment of collision between the worker bugs and the wild boars, one worker bug was hit head-on and trampled to death, while several others were severely injured.
Although the worker bugs were powerful, they were not combat units. Given the significant difference in size between them and the wild boars, it was normal for them to be at a disadvantage in a head-on confrontation.
"My spirit power is strong, but my control is still lacking. I aimed for the wild boar's eyes, but I hit its skull instead."
After the battle, looking at the spearhead floating beside him, Qin Mu summarized the experience of this battle. It was his first time using spirit power in combat, and there were indeed many issues. The solution was simple: more training and more practical experience.
"Next, I'll use you all to train." Surrounded by worker bugs, Qin Mu continued to push towards the villa area.
Inside the villa area, a Tiger Mastiff cautiously moved through the ruins, searching for prey. Suddenly, it stopped and sniffed the air, seemingly sensing danger. Before it could react, a spearhead gleaming with a cold light pierced its head.
The Tiger Mastiff, which Qin Mu would have previously struggled to defeat, now seemed insignificant.
A giant rat over half a meter long, with grayish-black fur, was caught by a worker bug's claws and torn apart. This rat could not be considered a monster, only a stronger-than-average beast.
A Shadow Cat hiding among the ruins was discovered by a worker bug and leaped up.
"Swish—"
The Shadow Cat darted out of the shadows and into a dilapidated room, trying to use the complex environment of the villa to escape.
However, in the next moment, a spearhead pierced its body, opening a large hole.
Its prideful speed was meaningless before the floating spearhead.
"There are about three hundred monsters in this villa area. I need to slaughter them before most of them realize what's happening." A hint of killing intent and coldness appeared on Qin Mu's face.
Yes, this was not a battle but a massacre.
Under Qin Mu's leadership, all the worker bugs pushed forward directly. When they encountered opponents that the worker bugs could not defeat, a spearhead would whistle through the air in the next moment, killing them.
Before Qin Mu, a spirit master with the strength of a mid-level warlord, these monsters, whose strongest were only mid-level beast soldier, were all killed in one hit, without any power to resist.
One by one, the monster corpses were transported back to the Nest by the worker bugs. The Nest's digestive organs worked frantically, digesting the various monster meats inside it.
As the cleanup progressed, some monsters noticed something was amiss. A portion of them charged at Qin Mu, only to become corpses even faster.
Under the interception of the surrounding worker bugs, not a single monster could get within twenty meters of Qin Mu. They were easily killed by Qin Mu manipulating the spearhead from afar.
Some smarter monsters, seeing the situation was not good, fled immediately. Unfortunately, even if they ran, where could they go? They were only delaying their deaths by a little.
In just an hour, most of the monsters in the villa area became corpses, and the dozens of worker bugs couldn't transport them all back.
After confirming that the monsters in the villa area were no longer a threat, Qin Mu returned to the vicinity of the Nest and ordered the worker bugs to clean up the remaining stragglers.
One by one, the monster corpses were thrown into the Nest's openings. The Nest's digestive ability worked at full capacity, digesting these bodies as quickly as possible and converting them into energy.
Returning to the Nest, Qin Mu discovered several injured worker bugs lying on the fungus carpet around the Nest. The fungus carpet produced tendrils like threads, wrapping around them and transferring energy through the threads to them. With the energy supplement, the worker bugs' wounds healed at a visible speed.
The Zerg race itself possessed strong vitality and regenerative abilities. As long as they were not killed on the spot, returning to the fungus carpet and consuming some energy would allow them to recover.
One worker bug had its limbs severed, yet they were still growing back at a visible speed. For the Zerg race, regenerating limbs was a very simple matter.
"To have such powerful regenerative abilities." Qin Mu's expression was one of surprise and joy.
"I wonder if it can heal human injuries? If so, Uncle Qing's arm might have a chance to be restored." Seeing this scene, Qin Mu immediately thought of Uncle Qing.
Not only for Uncle Qing, but this ability was also important for Qin Mu himself. Because if this ability could be used on him, wouldn't he not need to fear getting injured in battles?
Qin Mu connected his consciousness to the Nest and conveyed this idea. The feedback from the Nest made Qin Mu's heart leap with joy.
The answer was yes.
Ordinary injuries could be healed directly, while more severe injuries like limb regeneration would require the prior analysis of the target's genetic information, followed by targeted recovery.
"It just needs the analysis of genetic information? That's too simple. It's not difficult to analyze Uncle Qing's genetic information; collecting some hair or nails will do. But should I bring Uncle Qing into the wilderness and have him recover in the Nest? OThat's not very realistic. I still need to plan this out."
Although there were some difficulties, Qin Mu was still very happy.
Because the genetic database of the larvae was incomplete, and much knowledge about the bug race, even common sense, was lost. Qin Mu could only explore slowly.
However, the fact that the Zerg race could heal injuries and regenerate limbs was an undeniable surprise.
"It's time to hatch the Evolution Chamber. With only one type of auxiliary worker bug, it's impossible to support the expansion of the swarm. The bug race needs a real combat unit."
Qin Mu's thoughts returned to the development of the swarm.
"In the villa area, we hunted more than two hundred monsters. After digesting them all, we should be able to gain at least 3,000 to 4,000 energy points. Different monsters, due to their size, body structure, strength, and other factors, convert into different amounts of energy.
Taking the primary beast soldier level as an example, the largest Iron-Furred Wild Boars, even the smallest adult ones weighing over 1,000 pounds, generally convert into more than 20 energy points. Monsters like the Tiger Mastiff generally convert into around 10 energy points. The Shadow Cat, due to its small size, generally provides around 6 energy points per conversion. There will be some fluctuation based on their strength."
"Currently, the Nest has four types of beast soldier-level monster genes that can be analyzed. TTiger Mastiff, Iron-Furred Wild Boar, Shadow Cat, and Black Ring Snake."
Often, people's understanding of the Zerg race is that they are various giant insects. In fact, this is not the case. The Zerg race can take any form as needed. It's just that bug-like appearances often possess greater combat power.
Qin Mu obviously did not have the conditions to breed bug units, so he could only make do with the monster genes he had collected.
Among them, the Tiger Mastiff was a suitable choice as a basic combat unit for the swarm.
The Tiger Mastiff had excellent capabilities in all aspects, with strong power and speed, and no obvious weaknesses. As a canine monster, it had a keen sense of smell and was good at cooperative combat.
Moreover, the potential of the Tiger Mastiff was not bad. Although most of the Tiger Mastiffs in the villa area were at the primary beast soldier level, with a few reaching the mid-level, this widely distributed monster could actually reach the warlord level in strength. Qin Mu had even seen rumors of lord-level Tiger Mastiffs on the HR Alliance platform.
As for the Iron-Furred Wild Boars, although they were strong in power and defense, they were not flexible enough and were too large and clumsy.
Compared to the Tiger Mastiff, they were inferior in every aspect. Of course, as tank units, they were still good and could be hatched in small numbers. They would be effective against some large-sized monsters.
The Black Ring Snake specialized in poison and was not suitable for large-scale battles.
The Shadow Cat, with its small size, quick reflexes, and extreme speed, was obviously a good candidate for a reconnaissance unit.
After a careful analysis, Qin Mu decisively ordered.
"Hatch the Evolution Chamber and prioritize the research on the Tiger Mastiff."