Press forward! Victory is certain!
Of course, the insects' minds weren't capable of forming such complex thoughts.
They only knew that in front of the Sovereign, All enemies shall be crushed! Devoured completely!
---------------------------------------
"The road..."
Following behind the swarm, Herta noticed that the surrounding scenery was becoming increasingly strange.
Although most of the nearby planets were barren, lacking not only civilization but even the slightest trace of plants, animals, or insects,
"That kind of thing can't fool someone like me." Herta softly hummed a tune, and with just a quick glance, could tell something was off about this place.
Wherever something passes, traces are left.
Herta immediately recognized traces of the IPC on the terrain, occasional remnants of "Garden of Recollection" and "Swarm Disasters," the latter probably just passed through.
The IPC was setting up here, how interesting.
A top-tier universal faction like the IPC quietly establishing operations in this desolate star system? That didn't look like proper behavior.
Of course, Herta knew best that those people in the IPC were never good guys to begin with.
What really caught her interest now was why the swarm would come all the way here from so far away.
What exactly had the IPC done to them that made them willing to cross countless star systems to get here?
...
At the same time, a massive research facility hidden among the stars.
Many scholars were staring in awe at the True Sting gnawing on a giant bear on the experiment platform.
"That wild bear was one of the few creatures capable of surviving in this star system. Both its power and resilience are top-tier. And yet, it was killed in an instant."
"You don't know the half of it, this bug once chewed off the limbs of a Doomsday Beast on a planet called Jarilo. The bear may be big, but its defenses are nothing compared to the Doomsday Beast."
Listening to the scholars' discussion, Brandon leaned on his cane, eyes gleaming with amazement.
"I've studied countless species, Void Rangers, creatures blessed by Abundance, insects of the Swarm Disaster, but I've never seen such a wondrous creature."
With his experience, he could tell this insect was a True Sting from the Swarm Disaster. But even so, there were anomalies.
The Swarm Disaster was a powerful calamity created by the Aeon of propagation, devastating half the universe.
Even though They had already fallen, the power of that path still remained.
To see a True Sting mutated to such a state was truly astonishing.
Because of this, he became even more intrigued by the being on Jarilo.
If possible, he truly wished to study what kind of influence could cause such a change.
That's how scholars were, facing the unknown, they pressed forward regardless of danger.
"Sigh." Shaking his head, he pushed aside such unrealistic thoughts.
Whether the IPC would even allow such reckless action was one thing, even if they did, his feeble old body wouldn't withstand a gust of wind from 'Them'.
Better to stay put and continue researching here. Maybe he could still uncover one or two key truths.
Or perhaps even discover how such beings come into existence at all.
Letting his mind wander, Brandon even fantasized about unraveling the mystery of Godzilla, earning praise and recognition across the universe, drawing the admiration of the Erudition, and standing shoulder to shoulder with famous geniuses like Herta, Ruan Mei.
"Doctor! Doctor!"
Panicked cries pulled him out of his daydream. Before he could understand what was happening, he saw scholars nervously watching the True Sting ramming the protective barrier.
Its wings flapped rapidly, sharp forelimbs scraped the barrier, emitting sharp screeching sounds.
Visible arcs of electricity danced across the net, and charred marks could be seen on the Sting's limbs, but it didn't care and kept going.
Brandon noticed its mouthparts vibrating rhythmically.
Rhythmically...
"Not good!"
His body reacted before his brain did.
He dashed straight toward the exit, surprisingly agile for someone his age, leaving the younger scholars stunned and speechless.
"What's going on?"
Someone asked, the next moment,
"Alert! Alert! Massive energy signatures detected! Prepare for combat!"
No more questions needed.
As soon as the alarm sounded, everyone jumped into action.
"Boom!"
The moment the last person left the room, the heavily secured containment chamber was ripped open.
...
"Impossible! How could there be so many bugs in such a desolate place?! What the hell is going on?!"
The person in charge was drenched in sweat, frantically grabbing his hair, completely lost.
The IPC had chosen this location specifically for its isolation.
Not only were there no interstellar tourists, even loners never came near.
After all, in such a lifeless place, it was hard to carry out any journey.
So where the hell did all these bugs come from?!
"Sir, could it be the True Sting that Director Lanner sent a while ago?"
"The True Sting?!"
Hearing this, he suddenly remembered, Lanner had sent over that True Sting recently.
But weren't its mouthparts damaged? How could it be sending signals?!
"Forget it! Prepare for battle immediately! Everyone and everything here belongs to the IPC. If anything goes wrong, we're all done for! Move!"
When it comes to personal stakes, no one's too cautious!
"Yes, sir!"
Naturally, the IPC wasn't unprepared.
On command, countless IPC mechas powered up, and a fleet of massive warships exuded a formidable aura of steel and might.
They ascended to face the swarm.
"Chii-chii, "
The massive number of the swarm overlapped one another, their densely packed wings rubbing together, producing a deathly screech that sent chills down the spine.
The IPC's mechas and warships reached position and fired without hesitation.
"BOOM!!!"
Brilliant red light flickered and extinguished in the vast empty space.
The swarm was instantly blasted open by the surge of heat, creating gaps, but these were quickly filled by the bugs that followed.
Not only that, many of the attacked bugs began to split, and before long, another identical bug emerged from each one, indistinguishable from one another.
"This is... a propagation ability? It's been retained?"
Herta looked at the scene, deep in thought.
This kind of overwhelming splitting ability was undoubtedly a power of Propagation, and it was the fundamental reason the Swarm Disaster could sweep across half the universe.
Just imagine, an all-engulfing insect swarm charging at you, constantly splitting and expanding in size along the way. No matter how strong a civilization was, it would be destroyed under such relentless threat.
These bugs were originally Stings, just remnants left from battle, influenced by Godzilla, and thus remained on Jarilo.
Herta casually scanned one of the bugs. Sure enough, it stored an immense amount of energy.
"No wonder they didn't split on Jarilo, they were storing it. Now they're finally using it."
Clearly, with Godzilla suppressing them on Jarilo, these creatures had stored their energy. Now was the perfect time to release it.
"These guys can't stop them."
Herta looked at the mechas and ships fighting the swarm and shook her head.
It looked evenly matched for now, but upon closer inspection, it was clear the IPC's defensive line was being pushed back.
"Should I help out?"
With one hand on her hip, Herta watched the battlefield in front of her with interest.
If this was a real Swarm, she wouldn't mind lending a hand, and maybe asking the IPC for something in return.
But the insect swarm on Jarilo didn't travel across galaxies just to pick a fight with the IPC for no reason.
Besides, the IPC acting stupid wasn't anything new. If they were the ones at fault, what would it mean if she stepped in to help?
...
"Director, the frontline forces can't hold them off. Should we run? The IPC won't blame us in a situation like this."
"Yeah, Director, I have an eighty-year-old mother and a six-year-old child at home. My family can't go on without me."
Listening to the pleas of the surrounding employees, Brandon was equally panicked but trying to stay composed.
He cursed Lanner up and down in his mind.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up.
"Didn't the IPC recently transport a batch of new bio-mechas?"
"They did, but those bio-mechas are still in testing, are we really going to…"
"No 'are we' about it! Deploy all of them immediately! Then prepare the ships and bring all the scholars, we're escaping!"
With a big wave of his hand, he gave the order.
Was this the time to worry about testing mechas? Wait any longer and they'd be dead!
That bug-splitting ability terrified him. If they waited any longer, the entire star system might be crawling with bugs.
...
"Oh, something new again, let's take a look… huh?"
Herta raised an eyebrow as she looked at the newly deployed mechas.
Despite their heavy disguise, Herta immediately saw through their structure.
"Bioweapons made from Borisin's bodies? No, not just those, bioweapons transformed from Borisin…"
Her eyes narrowed slightly. She vaguely remembered Yukong contacting her not long ago, asking about some unusual Borisin.
At the time, she had neither the time nor a sample to investigate.
But now, she seemed to understand...
'Hey Yukong, that thing you asked me to look into? I've got a lead.'
...
Just relying on these bioweapons wasn't enough to stop the tide-like swarm.
It wasn't long before the biological weapon units fell one by one.
And Herta also saw the reason the swarm had come here.
A captured True Sting.
"To save a companion, they crossed galaxies and waged bloody war against the IPC, how…"
Shaking her head, Herta never imagined she'd witness such a dramatic scene today.
Such a scene reminded her of the real Swarm Disaster led by Tayzzyronth, which had swept across half the universe, an event that shook all civilizations.
But it wasn't over yet.
After rescuing their companion and devouring everything in their path, the swarm turned their attention to the ships frantically fleeing in the distance.
"Hurry! Those damn things are catching up!"
"Back to the IPC! Only the IPC can save us!"
"No! We're too far from HQ... the Wall! Seek an audience with the Amber King! Beg the Amber King to show divine power!"
"Right, right! Let's beg the Amber King!"
Though panicked, the evacuation was still somewhat orderly.
This star system was even farther from IPC territory, and it would be harder to find any forces capable of resisting the bugs.
At this point, the only viable plan was to send a distress signal to the IPC while seeking the Amber King. The IPC had stationed many people there for worship and tribute to the Amber King.
Even if those people couldn't protect them, the Amber King wouldn't sit idly by while the Tayzzyronth's offspring ran wild, at least according to them!
"Looking to seek help from Qlipoth? I guess that's one way. Just not sure if the guy with the hammer will bother with you." Shaking her head, Herta continued forward.
Following the path carved out by the Crimson Tide.
The IPC was at fault first, she couldn't be bothered to intervene.
And they weren't dead… yet.
As for punishment... once the situation here becomes known to the IPC, someone will naturally deal with those people. To provoke an existence capable of obliterating an Emanator, heh, they really have some nerve....
Meanwhile, at Luofu.
"What Madam Herta said is truly..."
Jing Yuan's expression darkened.
At this moment, inside the Divination Commission, Fu Xuan, Yukong, Feixiao, and Huaiyan were all gathered together.
They had all come because of the message Herta had just sent.
"If it's true, then the changes in the Borisin can be explained. The IPC, hmph!"
Huaiyan snorted coldly. Though he was old, he didn't reject external affairs. Even matters involving the IPC were within his scope of acceptance.
But that didn't mean he couldn't see through the IPC's ambitions.
Now the IPC was actually helping the Borisin, how could they still consider them allies in name?
"What are you planning to do? Go directly to the IPC to demand an explanation? Or spread it publicly and force the IPC to bow through public opinion?"
Feixiao looked at Jing Yuan and asked.
Among everyone present, she had the most interaction with the IPC.
There was even one battle that had been easily resolved thanks to the IPC's support.
Xianzhou Yaoqing's was influenced by the IPC to the point that it resembled a cyber-Xianzhou.
The younger generation no longer respected the Xianzhou traditions, and instead highly praised the IPC.
She had endured all of that, since it was just normal commercial activity and they operated in the open.
But if the IPC dared to collude directly with the enemy of the alliance, even if the IPC was the number one force in the universe, even if they could invite the Amber King, they'd still have to face them!
"Hmph, I've long known the IPC harbors the ambitions of wolves, a future calamity. And as expected."
Fu Xuan's expression showed anger, clearly displeased with the IPC's actions.
Even if the IPC had colluded with the Antimatter Legion, she could understand, as long as they weren't directly attacking alongside them, talks could still happen.
But of all things, it was the Borisin!
The Denizens of Abundance, sworn enemies of the Xianzhou!
Plus, the pain in her third eye flared up again, as if reflecting her suppressed fury.
Listening to the others' words, Jing Yuan fell silent for a moment, then spoke:
"Everyone, calm down for now. According to Madam Herta, the changes in the Borisin are still not fully understood. Besides, there are many factions within the IPC. Until we have clarity, it's best not to act rashly, otherwise, even a just cause can become an unjust one."
Hearing this, Yukong nodded slightly.
"The General is right. If the IPC refuses to admit anything and spreads rumors across the universe, it won't do us any good. Without concrete evidence, we should not make any sudden moves."
"So we're just going to let them act so arrogantly?!" Fu Xuan still hadn't calmed down.
The enmity between the Alliance and the Denizens of Abundance couldn't be explained in a few short pages!
"Lady Fu, please don't be agitated. We currently lack direct evidence linking the IPC to these Disciples of Abundance. If we can have Madam Herta suppress and deliver the proof to us, it would be a different matter."
But...
"If the IPC adamantly denies it, or if this is the work of one of their internal factions, Either way, the IPC can easily manage it. So..."
"So we might as well take this chance to gain the upper hand in negotiations with the IPC." Jing Yuan continued with a light smile.
"The Divine Foresight speaks wisely. Instead of getting fixated on the present, why not take a chunk out of the IPC while we can?" Huaiyan nodded in agreement with the two.
"In that case, I remember one of the IPC's Stoneheart Ten, Topaz, is currently on the Xianzhou. We could start by questioning her. If even she knows nothing, then we can guess whether this was the IPC's doing or an individual's action."
"And I will use this opportunity to take the upper hand in negotiations with the IPC."
Seeing that the others were in agreement, Fu Xuan nodded slightly and said: "Since it's decided, then I'll personally meet with Topaz and get to the bottom of this."
...
Aurum Alley.
Qingque was happily enjoying snacks courtesy of Topaz.
Stealing a bit of leisure from a busy life.
It wasn't just rare.
It was practically a proper vacation granted by the Master Diviner herself, and without objection!
Such days, her past self could never have imagined! Praise be to Miss Topaz!
Just then, a familiar ringtone rang again.
Qingque's nemesis in slacking off had sent a call request.
Cough cough! Huff, ah, Master Diviner!
Heh heh, no! I mean, yes!
I swear I'll finish that insane quota!
Patting her chest, Qingque sighed and looked at the confused Topaz beside her.
"Miss Topaz, our journey ends here."
"Huh?" Topaz blinked, utterly bewildered.
Why did it suddenly sound like she was about to meet her end?