Under the Cataclysm

The external changes are ongoing and it is unlikely that things will return to normal in the short term. Most of the air force bases located high in the mountains have suffered devastating damage.

In this celestial phenomenon, the Wind God were unable to fly at high altitudes, as the pervasive high-temperature dust would destroy their respiratory systems. In a short time, the Wind God suffered heavy casualties.

Left with no other option, Rowan ordered them to fly as low as possible and find a nearby underground base to hide in. However, due to their enormous size, no passageways had been built for them to pass through.

Rowan thought about it for a moment and then stopped worrying about it. The Swarm's infrastructure and logistics were now many times better than when he first woke up. Even if the Wind God's army was completely wiped out, it wouldn't take long to rebuild it.

Over at the experimental site, closer to the impact point, the falling fiery rocks ignited the forest. The experimental subjects produced by the Swarm, under Blade's command, were arranged to escape in unison. Now that there are no Wind God to serve as transportation, it is unknown how many of them will survive.

As for the wild individuals, although some followed the Swarm experimental subjects to retreat, many also managed to escape in the chaos. At this point, Rowan couldn't care less about them; if they ran away, so be it.

Most of the Insect Empress, Worker Ant, and Worker Bee survived, except for those in the core of the impact zone. They have been active in their underground base for years, thus avoiding the first wave of shockwaves and meteor showers. They are now digging tunnels downwards to extend their base deeper underground, while simultaneously transporting the Insect Empress there.

The Spider War-Bug and Flying Bug forces also began to move underground, but underground space was limited and they lacked digging capabilities, so Blade had to command them to see if they could find caves or similar places to take refuge.

Several days have passed, and the natural disaster outside shows no signs of abating. The sky remains dark and gloomy, and animals and plants are all howling in despair.

Since the Swarm took control of the land, the underground sections of newly built bases have been small, mainly used to house the Insect Empress and raise larvae. Those far from the impact point were manageable; they could be dug up quickly. But those closer to the impact point saw most swarms not receive timely housing. Some were lucky enough to find caves to hibernate, while others...

Due to the decrease in the number of insects active outside, Rowan's control over some areas of the continent has been reduced to a minimum. However, most creatures are now barely surviving, so whether he controls them or not is no longer of any concern.

More than ten days later, Rowan's new body hatched from the egg. His consciousness transferred and took over the new body. This body was only thirty centimeters long, much smaller than before. However, it had all the abilities it needed. After adapting for a while, Rowan found nothing unusual.

If Rowan wanted to regain his previous physique, he only needed to replenish his energy and regenerate his skin a few times, but he didn't want to do that.

There were just too many unexpected events. He thought he had become the Tribal Chief, but then disaster struck and almost took his life.

He now handles most of the Swarm's affairs online. He can also descend upon the Zerg at any time and take over their bodies. Since the Zerg, aside from lacking Efiash's talents, are not significantly different from his own bodies, his physical form doesn't need to handle everything personally.

Now that his physical form has shrunk, he has become more agile; for example, he can now squeeze into holes that he couldn't before. He decided to separate his physical form from the Mother Nest and hide them to avoid being wiped out in one fell swoop.

Because his original body can rebuild the Mother Nest, and the Mother Nest can also hatch his original body. As long as either of these exists, he can be reborn, and the Swarm will not be destroyed.

At the same time, he needs to put more effort into this area in the future. If the Insect Empress can also download his gene pool, does that mean that as long as any Insect Empress exists, she can also produce his body or Mother Nest?

Or he could find a way to produce more Mother Nest or spare bodies.

If he achieves a breakthrough in any of these areas, his survivability will be amplified infinitely. His consciousness will exist within the network, and his body will be able to regenerate infinitely, allowing him to achieve true immortality.

The natural disasters outside continued, and although Rowan wanted to separate from the Mother Nest as soon as possible, now was not a good time. He could only stay with the Mother Nest and command the Mother Nest and the two Insect Empress in the base to produce Excavator Ant and Worker Ant at full capacity.

These two types of units consume less energy, and Excavator Ant are excellent at digging burrows, Worker Ant can assist them and also tend to larvae and Creep, making them the most needed insects in the current situation.

This experience of being vaporized has made Rowan somewhat neurotic. He now feels extremely insecure, especially when he is in the same place as the Mother Nest.

Since we can't go out or move around, let's dig the hole deeper.

The Creep integrates multiple genes, and even without sunlight, its robust roots can penetrate hundreds of meters underground to absorb nutrients hidden deep underground. Moreover, it can directly decompose rocks and minerals to extract nutrients, making its methods extremely unconventional.

With the help of the Creep, the number of Excavator Ant and Worker Ant in the underground base has reached one billion in a short period of time. The two Insect Empress are the biggest contributors. These giant production units, which are up to ten meters tall, can produce tens of millions of microscopic Insect Egg every day.

The Mother Nest was somewhat sluggish during this period, possibly due to the excessive physical exertion from producing Rowan, or perhaps due to the limitations imposed by Rowan's physical size; it actually shrank from 60 centimeters to 50 centimeters.

However, the main task of the Mother Nest now is to produce the Insect Empress. Compared to the Insect Empress, the production capacity of other units is really negligible.

Thanks to the efforts of numerous Excavator Ant, the underground base had been dug to a depth of 500 meters. Although the environment at this depth was not ideal—it was stuffy and hot, and water seeped in some places—it gave Rowan a sense of security.

While he can survive in the Swarm Network as long as the insects exist, if he loses his original body and the Mother Nest, he will lose his talents and will be unable to add new genes. This means his potential will be locked.

Having just set his sights on exploring the stars, if he were to lose his talent now, he would be relegated to being just a "Tribal Chief," forever barred from the vastness of outer space. This would be the greatest blow to him.

Although he doesn't have much of a clue about how to travel through the universe yet, as long as his talent remains, he can wait until he can fly off this planet.

Moreover, this asteroid impact made him realize his own insignificance. His previous smugness about occupying a planet was shattered. There are just too many unexpected events in the universe. Even a planet seems extremely small in the grand scheme of things. Being a "Tribal Chief" is a high-risk profession.

If the Swarm remains confined to a single planet, it will be utterly defenseless against cosmic unforeseen events. Conversely, if it manages to spread its Swarm across the universe, virtually nothing can destroy Swarm.

At the same time, that would mean he would be safer.