The Swarm deployed its units in small groups of a few hundred, each consisting of Scout Bugs, Soldier Ants, Small Soldier Ants, and Worker Ants. Every squad was accompanied by a Transport Bug, tasked with patrolling around the enemy forces to intercept and annihilate their foraging teams.
A foraging team of approximately 500 ants had ventured less than 50 meters from their main force when they were intercepted by two mobile Swarm squads.
Five hundred versus one thousand, and with the smaller group possessing inferior individual combat power, the outcome was a foregone conclusion.
Each Red Ant had to face at least two Worker Ants. Although the Worker Ants relied on superior numbers and size, their primary tactic was to engage in prolonged skirmishes.
The Red Ants’ stinger attacks were indeed formidable, capable of defeating targets significantly larger than themselves.
However, stinger strikes had a critical weakness: to target an armored opponent, the Red Ants needed to climb onto the enemy, secure themselves, and find vulnerable spots like armor joints to pierce with their stingers.
The Worker Ants countered this by remaining highly mobile. Every time a Red Ant curled its abdomen in preparation for a stinger attack, the Worker Ants would dodge out of reach. Even if a Red Ant managed to grab hold of one, nearby Worker Ants would promptly intervene, pulling the Red Ant away.
Despite the effectiveness of these tactics, unexpected events still occurred. Some Worker Ants were caught and stung during the battle.
Nevertheless, the Red Ant coalition fell faster than the Swarm sustained losses. Combining the efforts of the Soldier Ants and Small Soldier Ants, the Swarm prioritized eliminating the weaker Black Ants.
Once the weaker opponents were dealt with, the Soldier Ants surrounded the Red Ants still entangled with the Worker Ants.
The Red Ants, which had barely held their ground moments ago, began to fall rapidly. Their defeat snowballed, and in the end, only about 50 Red Ants managed to break through and flee back toward their main force in panic.
The previously idle Transport Bugs now sprang into action, chasing down the fleeing Red Ants. Along the way, they eliminated over a dozen more before turning back, stopping about 20 meters from the enemy’s main force.
With their long legs and superior speed, the Transport Bugs retreated effortlessly.
During the skirmish, the Swarm lost two Small Soldier Ants and over a dozen Worker Ants. Their bodies, along with those of the enemy, were quickly loaded onto the backs of the Transport Bugs.
The squads then retreated to a hidden location, where they uncovered a passage concealed by a leaf. The Worker Ants carried their spoils into the tunnel and delved deeper into the earth.
This tunnel was one of the concealed entrances to a branch base. Luo Wen, ever cautious, had constructed over a dozen escape routes even when he was operating alone. Now, with a decisive battle underway, there was no way he would rely on just one entrance and exit.
The tunnel used for the enemy’s invasion was deliberately designed as a trap to lure them in.
Similarly, the plan to flood the coalition’s Brood Nest had been formulated after Luo Wen observed that their nest had only one entrance: the so-called “volcano mouth.”
The devastation he witnessed at the nest further reinforced his belief in the importance of having multiple escape routes.
After a short while, the Worker Ants emerged from the hidden tunnel, climbed onto waiting Transport Bugs, and swiftly departed.
Once they left, several Spy Bugs crawled out of the tunnel, erasing pheromone traces left behind. They then resealed the entrance.
In addition to the Spy Bugs, numerous Burrower Ants were stationed inside the tunnel. Their task was to collapse the passage and bury it should the enemy discover it, ensuring the safety of their allies within.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, a mobile Swarm squad was leading a 2,000-strong coalition force on a wild chase.
Just ahead, ten more mobile squads lay in ambush, waiting for the coalition forces to arrive.
Two thousand versus 5,500—the result was inevitable. The only question was how many of the coalition forces would survive to retreat.
Thanks to their superior mobility and visual range, the Swarm’s mobile squads maintained the advantage of fighting outnumbered enemies, steadily whittling down the coalition’s numbers.
Faced with constant harassment and the continued loss of their foraging teams, the coalition’s main force finally grew restless. They began regrouping to sweep the surrounding areas.
Luo Wen quickly detected their movements and issued orders for the Swarm blocking the tunnel entrance to retreat, leaving the passage open. Immediately, the coalition forces trapped in the tunnel surged forward, pouring into the massive underground chamber.
As their numbers grew, Worker Ants hidden along the chamber walls and ceiling assumed their acid spray formation.
Acid rained down like a torrential storm, drenching the unprepared coalition forces. The attack was devastating—those fortunate enough only lost their antennae, while the less lucky had their exoskeletons corroded, dying instantly.
After the acid downpour, the Giant Mandible Soldier Ants resumed their positions, sealing the passage once again. With much of the coalition force cleared from the tunnel, the Soldier Ants now found themselves with a rare moment of respite.
The Small Soldier Ants and Worker Ants charged into the chamber, finishing off any survivors and carrying their bodies deeper into the nest.
Initially intending to eliminate the Swarm’s harassing squads, the coalition hesitated when they found the tunnel unexpectedly cleared. Torn between attacking the nest and continuing their sweep, they eventually chose to press forward into the tunnel.
Once again, waves of coalition forces flooded into the passage, only to face renewed acid attacks and countermeasures from the Swarm.
Whenever the coalition forces grew impatient and prepared to withdraw, Luo Wen would order the tunnel to be reopened, allowing more of them inside—just in time for another acid barrage.
Fortunately for Luo Wen, the Red and Black Ants lacked complex strategic thinking. They fell for this simple tactic repeatedly over two full days.
During this time, the underground nest became a graveyard for over 100,000 enemy soldiers. Meanwhile, the Swarm’s mobile units annihilated at least another 50,000 coalition troops. However, the Swarm itself lost more than 10,000 of its own.
The Swarm converted the fallen into protein reserves, temporarily achieving self-sufficiency through “sustenance via combat” at the forward base.
Instead of transporting food to the forward base, the Transport Bugs now redirected supplies to nearby hive bases, where 50 Queen Ants worked tirelessly to produce Small Soldier Ants.
Additionally, the 100 other hive bases across the territory were no less busy. While their genetic libraries couldn’t be updated, they focused entirely on producing Worker Ants and Giant Mandible Soldier Ants.
The reinforcements were then transported by Transport Bugs to the vicinity of the front lines.