Combat Training, Part One

The rest are various mammals and dinosaurs.

Mammals are in a somewhat awkward position, mostly occupying the lower to middle of the food chain. Even the stronger ones, like Leopard, primarily hunt small birds and various rodents.

However, there is one creature that deserves special mention: an animal that resembles a wild boar. They are about two meters long, about ninety centimeters tall at the shoulder, with sturdy limbs, large ears, and a short tail. Their bodies are covered in black fur, with a row of stiff bristles on their backs, and layers of bristles below the back, while only the fur on their bellies is softer.

It is worth emphasizing that they have a pair of thick, sharp fangs on either side of their mouths, which, combined with their robust physique, make them extremely powerful attackers when charging.

At the same time, they will roll around in the mud to smear themselves with various kinds of mud, thus enhancing their own defense. Moreover, they mostly travel in groups, with a group of wild boars ranging from a dozen to hundreds.

Although their diet is very broad, consisting mostly of various plant branches, leaves, fruits, and roots, they are still considered the dominant species in the forest, and are much stronger than Leopard.

As for the other beasts, they were basically weaklings and didn't need to be mentioned in detail.

The remaining dinosaurs, some of which were powerful, occupied the top of the food chain in this forest.

Rowan saw from afar two dinosaurs, each about fifteen meters long, engaged in an unusually fierce battle for some unknown reason.

The two dinosaurs are entirely bluish-black, resembling the Tyrannosaurus from the movies. They are about six meters tall, with their heads alone being nearly two meters long. Their enormous heads and unique jaw structures give them a terrifying bite force, reaching an astonishing ten tons, with the bite force at the end of their mouths even reaching twenty tons.

In addition, its crisscrossing sharp teeth form its most powerful weapon. Furthermore, its body is muscular, its two hind legs are exceptionally thick, and its tail is also thick and powerful. However, its two forelimbs are atrophied and very short, which spoils its overall ferocious appearance.

Even so, its weight is estimated to be over ten tons, even heavier than the 30-meter-long Diplodocus.

In addition, its body is covered with a thick layer of keratin, which adds to its defense. The scratches and bite marks on it are crisscrossed, showing that it is a seasoned fighter.

Its opponent was a creature entirely red with black ring-shaped markings. It was even larger than Tyrannosaurus, but slightly slender. Its head was rather long and thin, and judging from its shape, its bite force was weaker than that of the Tyrannosaurus's sturdy head.

However, it was more agile than Tyrannosaurus. Although it also stood on two legs, its forelimbs were not as atrophied as those of Tyrannosaurus, and its sharp claws at the front end gave it considerable attack capabilities.

Overall, the Tyrannosaurus Rex was stocky and powerful, but its only weapons were its teeth and tail. The Red-Striped Dinosaur, on the other hand, was agile and nimble, and had one more weapon than the Tyrannosaurus.

For a time, the two sides fought back and forth.

Rowan, who had already gotten close, thought he could make a killing. But to his surprise, the two big guys, who seemed to be fighting desperately, actually stopped short of each other, each suffering minor injuries, and then parted ways amicably. Rowan, who was waiting to pick up the scraps, was left disappointed.

The two powerful figures possessed astonishing combat strength and voices that were equally loud, yet after fighting for a long time, few dared to even come and watch the spectacle. This made Rowan, an outsider, realize that these two powerful figures must be the pinnacle of combat strength in this forest.

Living in the same territory, they will inevitably become obstacles to the development of the Swarm in the future. But Rowan was not too worried about this, because given their size, the amount of food they consume must be staggering.

Perhaps there are only three or four creatures of this caliber within a radius of a hundred miles. And for creatures with superior individual strength but no numerical advantage, the Swarm has plenty of ways to turn them into nourishment.

After wandering around for a while, the base had long since completely taken over the Big-Headed Ant Nest. However, the small amount of fungal crops produced by the Ant Nest was not enough to support the continued growth of the Swarm.

Fortunately, the first batch of one hundred Spider War-Bug has matured and grown to the point where they can fight.

So, two days later, after Rowan returned to base and rested for a night, the Swarm began its first large-scale hunting expedition in the forest.

The force deployed consisted of one hundred Spider War-Bug, twenty Flying Bug Type I, and fifty Flying Bug Type II. The total number of less than two hundred made this operation seem rather meager.

Rowan knew this was a completely new war experience. If the new combat system worked successfully, the Swarm would be free of constraints for a short time, and its power would snowball.

Rowan personally commanded this operation, with all the Ant Queen observing and learning through the Swarm Network.

A buzzing sound arose, and seventy Flying Bug set off from the air force base, joining the Spider War-Bug on the ground, and headed into the depths of the forest.

Twenty Flying Bug Type I broke away from the main force and dispersed forward in a scattered formation. The ultrasonic waves emitted by their wing vibrations formed an invisible ultrasonic net, clearly revealing everything within its coverage area.

As the large net was extended, the combat troops located their prey.

This is a group of creatures resembling Small Dinosaur, numbering more than a dozen, but they look more like some kind of bird. Generally over a meter long, they have striking red combs on their heads. They have long necks, extremely short tails, and their bodies are covered with fine hairs. They stand on two legs, and their two forelimbs have sparse feathers that look more like decorations.

At this moment, they were unaware of the impending danger. They continued to huddle together in twos and threes, digging at the soil with their hind claws, searching for insect larvae hidden in the ground.

With aerial vision aided by their ability to quickly locate themselves, the Spider War-Bug swiftly found their positions. A few seconds later, a dozen or so Small Bird-Dinosaur were attacked almost simultaneously.

The space above was a blind spot for the Small Bird-Dinosaur. Although they reacted quickly when these 30-centimeter-long spiders were about to approach, it was too late.

The Spider War-Bug' claws and sticky hairs at the front of their Walking Leg allowed them to firmly grip the back of the Small Bird-Dinosaur.

The Small Bird-Dinosaur, which had been thought to be helpless, twisted its slender neck at an incredible angle and launched an attack on the Spider War-Bug behind it with its sharp beak.

But the Spider War-Bug wouldn't fight them. Their eight multi-jointed Walking Leg allowed them to maneuver and dodge attacks from the sharp beaks on the not-so-spacious back of the Small Bird-Dinosaur.

At the same time, its true trump card was revealed.

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