Interception

The commander at the front underestimated the Swarm's appetite; although he was on the battlefield and couldn't see it clearly, the Coalition Army reconnaissance ships providing support outside the battlefield saw the Zerg's intentions perfectly clearly.

The Zerg, who were originally pursuing the rear of the Coalition Army, took advantage of the Allied forces being intercepted by their Coalition Army on the other side, abandoned their pursuit of the defeated vanguard, and instead accelerated their flight, intending to circle around to the front of the Coalition Army to support the intercepting forces.

"The Zerg have quite the appetite; they actually intend to leave the entire central route of the Coalition Army intact!?" Defek was somewhat incredulous, because in his view, although the Zerg seemed to have a numerical advantage, the difference in individual combat strength was obvious. Overall, the Coalition Army Forces were actually stronger.

However, their complex and chaotic command system made it difficult for the Coalition Army to fully utilize their combat capabilities, while the Zerg's coordination was textbook-perfect.

In comparison, coupled with the fact that the Zerg initially held a slight geographical advantage, which snowballed, the current situation has emerged.

Although the Coalition Army suffered heavy losses, there are few strategies available in the Void. To wipe out the enemy forces in large numbers, only a head-on confrontation would suffice. Therefore, the Zerg also suffered significant casualties. While the Coalition Army no longer have the strength to continue their offensive, they can still launch another attack. The two sides remain evenly matched.

The current situation is that the Zerg are actively intercepting the Coalition Army's central lane, intending to wipe out this force entirely. With the Zerg's current military strength, this is practically wishful thinking.

In Defek's view, the Zerg would be better off organizing a superior force to pursue and achieve greater results. After all, the combat effectiveness and morale of a defeated pack of dogs and a desperate force with its retreat blocked are completely different.

But the Zerg must have a reason for doing this. Could it really be as Wheeler guessed? Thinking of this, Defek shook his head with a self-deprecating smile. It's true what they say, you become like those you associate with. How could that be? His own brain isn't working properly either.

The Zerg's somewhat reckless move is actually a good thing for the Coalition Army. It redefines the roles of attacker and defender, with the Zerg forces proactively positioning themselves to be caught in a pincer movement.

"The troops on both flanks, stop slacking off! While the Zerg are focused on preventing the retreat from the center, go up and take a good bite!" The Coalition Army Commander gave the order, directing his troops forward.

All troops were dispatched, and even Wheeler's disc flagship was incorporated into a foreign fleet and returned to the battlefield.

Wheeler didn't complain about this, but the fact that the foreign team he was following consisted of a group of younger brothers whose captains were just over two thousand meters tall made him a little uneasy.

The Zerg's relentless interception makes their formations and movements easy to predict. Coupled with being surrounded and having limited room to dodge, their casualties are rapidly increasing.

"Let those damned Zerg taste what it's like to be surrounded!" the commander of the vanguard shouted. They had been surrounded by the Zerg and suffered nearly 80% casualties, with many of their comrades left behind on the battlefield.

Seeing the Zerg's current predicament fills me with a strange sense of satisfaction. It's a pity they're not on the front lines of the attack; their firing angles have all been blocked by friendly forces, so all I can do is vent my frustration on them and take it out on the already dwindling number of pursuers.

The intensity of the war has increased again after it had subsided. The two flank forces, which had previously been in a rout, are now fighting quite well and inflicting considerable casualties on the Swarm.

In the void, warships were destroyed from time to time. Amidst the flames, a large number of lifeboats and survival pods rushed to escape. At the same time, more Space Octopus were torn apart by the artillery fire, and their biological tissues were blasted everywhere.

The war gradually intensified, with both sides losing troops rapidly, but the advantage seemed to be tilting towards the Coalition Army.

Just as the Coalition Army Commander Defek was fantasizing about leading his troops to victory in the first war against the insects, and thus being promoted and reaching the pinnacle of his life, devastating news suddenly arrived.

"Sir, a call from the rear: a massive Zerg army has suddenly appeared outside LKDW262! The estimated total number exceeds fifty million!"

"What!" Defek exclaimed, "How is this possible!"

A force of fifty million—this is not ancient times; such a large-scale troop movement cannot be concealed. The exact number of Zerg troops dispatched from star systems LKDW286, 287, and 288 was recorded by the Alliance's reconnaissance ships.

These figures might have some discrepancies, but they definitely wouldn't be off by more than fifty million. Could it be Zerg sent from another star system?

Defek immediately shook his head, dismissing the guess. The Alliance had deployed almost all of its reconnaissance ships and equipment to the border between the two sides. No matter which star system or direction the Zerg attacked from, they could not escape such a dense reconnaissance network.

Unless they send troops from within the Star Sea Alliance, but how is that possible?

If that's the case, only one possibility remains: they launched a legitimate attack, but changed their destination midway. Warp-speed units are inherently difficult to detect, and given the weakness of their internal reconnaissance network, it's entirely possible for Zerg forces to change course silently mid-journey.

So where did this force come from? The answer is obvious: the Zerg did send troops from the Koya Alliance, but the numbers matched up. So the only remaining possibility is the Zerg forces attacking the LKDW265 and 267 Star System.

But Defek was still somewhat unwilling to accept it.

To evade the Alliance's monitoring, the Zerg must send troops to a predetermined target, then enter the Alliance territory before turning back. However, that location is so far from the LKDW262 star system that even if the Zerg used warp drive at full speed, it would still take several years.

Just as he had told Wheeler, unless the Zerg had planned to do this from the very beginning, before they even had a concrete plan, then the timing wouldn't be right.

But how could the Zerg dare? This was already a gamble with their lives. What if the Alliance devised a different plan? Wouldn't all their efforts have been in vain?

Can the Zerg really predict the future?

"Have you found anything unusual with LKDW263?" Defek suddenly asked.

The liaison officer hurriedly bent down to operate the equipment, and after a moment, he looked up, his eyes filled with shock. "Sir, a large number of Zerg have also appeared outside the LKDW263 star system."

"Really!" While it sounded like a question, Defek's tone was more like a statement. The Zerg might have indeed used some means to anticipate the Coalition Army's plans; otherwise, they wouldn't have been so targeted.

One time might be a coincidence, but two times cannot be explained by coincidence.

At this moment, Defek finally realized just how terrifying the secret that could get the Epoch Clan to personally intervene was. The Zerg were like a bottomless pit, constantly throwing out their trump cards; you could never fathom or touch their limits.

Perhaps, the approach taken by the old rival, the Koya Alliance, is the most correct one.