Chapter 66: Selection of Zerg Units
Why are they called the Zerg?
Zergs that appear in the universe often have huge mouthparts, hard exoskeletons, and a terrifying insect-like appearance. Their biological forms and characteristics are also highly similar to insects, which is one of the important reasons they are called the Zerg. If all animal bodies were made the same size, then the insects would certainly be among the most powerful.
Under normal circumstances, the body structure of insects makes it difficult for them to grow too large, because their exoskeletons and muscles cannot support too large a body. However, the appearance of the RR virus turned this impossibility into reality. When other Earth creatures underwent evolutionary mutations, these insects also evolved and became one of the most terrifying groups of monsters. They often prefer to live in the vast wilderness, forests, and their presence in cities is not common.
Initially, to give the Zerg Race its first combat unit, Qin Mu chose the Tiger Mastiff. Later, to expand the scale and combat power of the swarm, he continued to absorb new monster genes. The monsters that appeared in the cities were often mutated from common dogs, pigs, cows, sheep, snakes, and other animals in the human world before the Great Nirvana. To better integrate into this environment, Qin Mu chose these most common monsters and then mass-produced them.
This choice allowed the swarm to blend well into the cities and remain undetected to this day. But this also greatly limited the development of the swarm.
When the swarm's tentacles extended into the wilderness and hunted extensively there, the swarm discovered more types of monsters, a considerable number of which were insect-like. These insect-like monsters were often more powerful than monsters of the same level, but for the sake of covert development, the swarm did not mass-produce them in the cities.
"Currently, in the Zerg gene bank, there are hundreds of thousands of monster genes above the Soldier level. The swarm is about to engage in a total war with the monsters, so there is no need to consider other factors. We only need to consider the strongest and most suitable Zerg units that can be incubated with the same amount of energy." Sitting on the rooftop of a ruined building in the city, Qin Mu pondered the structure of the swarm.
When strength was insufficient, the swarm's concealment and stealthy development were the most important. Now that it had developed, concealment was no longer the primary factor; combat power was.
"Nests, begin screening for the strongest Zerg units with the same amount of energy, focusing on the Soldier and Commander levels. Mainly consider the optimal and most reasonable arrangements for large-scale and group battles." Transmitting his will to the swarm, all the Nests immediately began to adjust the types of Zergs being incubated.
In City 023, the larvae around a Nest began to mutate. Fifteen minutes later, giant mantis-like monsters were hatched from one-meter-high cocoons.
This was a type of monster known as the Blade Mantis, with strength at the High Soldier level. Blade Mantises generally lived in forests, with a gray-green body, a slender build, nearly three meters long, a triangular-shaped head, short hind legs, long front legs, and front legs shaped like scythes. Simply put, they had scythes on their arms, with weapons and bodies combined, born with blades, fierce and aggressive.
After crawling out of the cocoon, the Blade Mantis shook its body, spread its two pairs of wings, and hopped along the Nest's channels, flying low and swiftly outside. Near a subway entrance, nearly a hundred Blade Mantises crawled out one after another. These Blade Mantises leaped into the air with a powerful thrust of their six legs, flapping their wings to fly and land on a building, pouncing on distant monsters. The flying ability of these Blade Mantises was not strong, only capable of low-altitude flight. But this was enough for them to dart through the city freely.
After leaving the swarm's territory, they soon found a group of about a hundred wild Tiger Mastiffs under the guidance of the Nest. These Tiger Mastiffs had no idea they were being targeted and were wandering around the city as usual, led by a Low Commander-level Tiger Mastiff.
One by one, the Blade Mantises swooped down from the surrounding buildings, their front legs shaped like scythes slashing easily through the fur of the Tiger Mastiffs, tearing their flesh and taking their lives. Most of the Tiger Mastiffs hadn't even reacted before their throats were slashed, with only a few battle-hardened Tiger Mastiffs managing to dodge the attack.
Some Tiger Mastiffs immediately counterattacked, but when their claws and teeth bit into the Blade Mantises, they were often blocked by the hard exoskeletons. In just one swoop, nearly half of the Tiger Mastiffs were killed or injured, with only three Blade Mantises injured by the counterattack.
The Low Commander-level Tiger Mastiff roared in fury and lunged at a Blade Mantis. The Blade Mantis, targeted by the Commander-level Tiger Mastiff, showed no fear. It raised its pair of saw-toothed forelimbs and, as the Tiger Mastiff pounced, chopped down on it like two large knives.
The hard fur of the Low Commander-level monster was unable to withstand the saw-toothed scythes. At the moment the Tiger Mastiff's claws hit the Blade Mantis, the Blade Mantis nimbly dodged to the side, with only one hind leg injured and broken by the Tiger Mastiff's attack.
But in the next moment, the Blade Mantis, which had crossed paths with the Tiger Mastiff, spread its wings and flew into the air.
In one exchange, this High Soldier-level Blade Mantis actually matched the Low Commander-level Tiger Mastiff, each sustaining injuries.
The other Tiger Mastiffs were not so lucky. Facing the Blade Mantises, they were inferior in speed, reaction, and far inferior in attack to the saw-toothed scythes of the Blade Mantises. Even their defense was inferior to the exoskeleton-covered bodies of the Blade Mantises.
These Blade Mantises could fly. Once injured, they would immediately fly away to avoid attacks.
When the other Tiger Mastiffs were killed by the Blade Mantises, the Low Commander-level Tiger Mastiff was also cut into pieces by the overwhelming attacks of the Blade Mantises. Without the leadership of a Commander-level Zerg, and with numbers almost equal to the Tiger Mastiffs, and the Tiger Mastiffs led by a Commander, the Blade Mantises won completely.
In another battlefield, a group of giant beetles with jet-black bodies, scythe-like mandibles with large teeth, and a thick, wide body covered in a shiny black shell crawled out of the subway. These beetles were five meters long, with a pair of asymmetrically gigantic mandibles at the front that were one-fifth the size of their body.
These giant beetles were also recorded in the military's database, suspected to be mutated from the Tiger Beetles before the Great Nirvana.
Under the guidance of the Nest, these Giant Tiger Beetles soon encountered a group of tall and sturdy Wild Bulls. When both sides began to fight, the Giant Tiger Beetles with their thick armor easily withstood the impact of the charging Wild Bulls. The Wild Bulls were helpless against the terrifying mandibles nearly a meter long of the Giant Tiger Beetles. Even their thick leg bones would be easily severed by the mandible attacks!
Not only the Blade Mantises and the Giant Tiger Beetles, but more insect-like monsters also appeared in various cities.
Some Nests incubated large numbers of scorpions, these scorpion-like monsters were heavily armored and had venom attacks. In battles with monsters, they, with their two claws and stingers, three types of attack weapons, often had an absolute advantage.
Some Nests incubated monsters with long-range attack capabilities. That was also a type of giant beetle, capable of spraying a high-temperature toxic liquid from its tail, with a range of up to several hundred meters. This liquid had astonishing lethality. Once hit, it could easily kill High Soldier-level monsters.
There were also groups of ant-like monsters with armored bodies, which, with their excellent group combat abilities, slaughtered in all directions among the monsters. Besides the ground units, some flying insect-like monsters were also hatched and joined the selection process that would determine the main units of the Zerg Race for the future.
Among them, the most attractive to Qin Mu was a Commander-level monster with a wingspan exceeding ten meters, the Thunder Dragonfly. Dragonflies are one of the earliest flying animals on Earth and are also the most adept at flying among insect-like monsters.
Under the evolution of the RR virus, they became an exceptionally terrifying monster.
The Thunder Dragonfly had two pairs of wings, each pair capable of working independently and changing angles at will. This unique structure allowed them to fly forward and backward with ease. In fact, they could fly in any direction, even backward, and could stop rapidly and rotate 180 degrees. There were almost no maneuvers they couldn't perform.
When their body size exceeded ten meters and their speed surpassed the speed of sound, they became the most terrifying airborne reapers.
A Thunder Dragonfly hovered above the ruins of the city and suddenly, its body plunged down, darting across a street. The targeted Commander-level Single-Horned Wild Boar didn't even have time to react before a bloody wound appeared on its head, instantly killed.
There were also giant poisonous bees with a wingspan of nearly two meters. They flew in groups in the sky, emitting a buzzing sound. Their tail stingers could easily sting monsters to death, and they could even spray venom like snakes. This venom was highly corrosive.
Too many insect-like monsters appeared in one city after another, appearing in places where they originally did not belong. Sensing the increasing number of Zerg units competing in hunting, Qin Mu was also moved.
"No wonder this race is called the Zerg Race. Insect-like monsters incubated with the same amount of energy are far more powerful than monsters of the same level."
In actual combat, a High Soldier-level Blade Mantis and a similarly High Soldier-level Tiger Mastiff were not on the same level in terms of combat power. When one's speed, attack, defense, and even neural reaction speed were all inferior to the opponent, how could one fight? The most desperate thing was that the Blade Mantis could fly. This gave the Blade Mantis an absolute advantage in battle.
Not only the Blade Mantis, which was on par with the Tiger Mastiff. There were also Giant Tiger Beetles, which were on par with heavy units like the Unicorn Wild Boar, Bloodthirsty Tank, and Wild Bull. The strength of the Giant Tiger Beetles also caught Qin Mu's eye. These insect-like monsters, with a minimum strength at the Low Commander level, displayed super strong combat power. The killing power of those gigantic mandibles was simply unmatched among their peers. Even monsters known for their defense, like the Bloodthirsty Tank, could not resist them. Even some higher-level monsters were no exception.
Compared to their lethality, their defense was equally astonishing. That layer of black shell was extremely hard, like metal. Qin Mu witnessed a charging Wild Bull ram its horns directly into the shell of a Giant Tiger Beetle. As a result, although the Giant Tiger Beetle was knocked flying for more than ten meters, it simply flipped over on the ground and got up to continue fighting.
Moreover, although the Giant Tiger Beetles could not fly, they had a common ability that many insect-like monsters possessed: burrowing. Even the concrete-filled ruins of the city could be easily penetrated by them.
"Too outrageous. The energy required to incubate a Commander-level Giant Tiger Beetle is comparable to that of a Commander-level Single-Horned Wild Boar, yet the difference in combat power is more than several times."
Besides these two, after witnessing the beetles with long-range attack capabilities, Qin Mu did not hesitate to list them as a key unit of interest. Although the method of attack was somewhat unseemly, its practicality was very strong.
After checking the military's database, Qin Mu also learned that this was a type of insect known as the Bombardier Beetle before the Great Nirvana. After mutation, its long-range attack ability was enhanced.
After this test, the vast majority of the originally incubated Zerg units were almost all facing the fate of being eliminated. Not only the main land combat units, but also those in the sky.
Currently, the most numerous flying monsters in the swarm were the Gray Sparrows, but their gap with their insect-like flying counterparts was equally huge. Among the dozens of flying insect-like monsters comparable to the Gray Sparrows, almost every one surpassed it. In terms of combat power, the sparrow-type monsters really couldn't rank high.
Among these flying monsters, what caught Qin Mu's attention the most were the Thunder Dragonflies. This Commander-level monster was one of the insect-like monsters that the Nest used to compare with medium-sized flying units like the Golden Vulture.
Too smooth. The way they flew was too smooth. In Qin Mu's eyes, the flying ability of the Thunder Dragonflies was akin to art. Not only were they faster than the Golden Vultures, their agility also far surpassed any Zerg unit.
For flying monsters, when the opponent is faster, more agile, and of similar size, It means the opponent can toy with you at will. The outcome of the battle would only be despair.
"Continue the tests, pull out all the combat-capable units from the gene bank and compare them. Conduct practical combat tests. I want to select a batch of the most powerful units." Qin Mu transmitted his will to the entire swarm.
Previously, to hide in the cities, too many powerful units had been shelved. On the very first day, so many Zerg units that surprised Qin Mu emerged.
"Such tests should be kept and conducted regularly." Qin Mu pondered.
This selection was limited only to the Soldier and Commander levels, and only to land and flying units.
The reason there were no Horde Leader units was that the swarm currently had too few types of these monsters, only a few dozen, and which ones were powerful was obvious at a glance, making testing unnecessary.
The aquatic monsters were the same; there were not many truly combat-capable ones, but once the swarm entered the ocean, similar selections would certainly be necessary. Compared to the ocean, there were too few types of monsters in the land lakes.
"Once the selection of Zerg units is completed, mass incubation can begin. But before that, I need to contact Jia Yi." Sensing that, under the surveillance of the swarm, a military team seemed to have decided to risk entering the subway to investigate, Qin Mu muttered to himself.
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