I Am The Swarm-Chapter 772: Turning Back

Through meticulous calculations, the ship’s critical support points had been fitted with multiple explosive charges. As a result, when it detonated, the vessel was completely obliterated. The largest fragment left was barely five square meters in size.

This led to a vast number of fragments. And since the sudden self-destruction caught the Ji race off guard, many pieces shot through their blockade and scattered outward, despite several being intercepted by warships.

However, once they regained their composure, the Ji quickly dispatched ships to intercept the fragments, collecting them one by one. A large number of personnel were sent to inspect the wreckage.

It was an enormous task, but with the Ji race sparing no cost in manpower, the fragments were quickly processed.

“What? Still nothing? Impossible! According to Selina’s calculations, there was a 99.9% probability the target was on that ship. How could she not be there?!” A Ji officer roared furiously in the command room.

“Exactly. We were already certain she was aboard. The only reason Selina listed a 99.9% chance is because it never gives absolute certainty.”

“Could it be that the target, realizing escape was impossible, removed her bio-armor and blew herself up?”

“Impossible. Even if she did, this level of explosion wouldn’t change her molecular signature. Even if she were blown to bits, we’d still be able to find traces. Regrettably, while we did recover biological material at the site, none of it matches the target.”

“Then she must’ve escaped in transit.”

“Unlikely. While the target can use negative energy shields and weapons, she likely can’t achieve warp travel alone. If she left the ship mid-flight, she’d be left drifting in space, effectively dead. Besides, the ship was warping all the way. If she exited mid-transit, we’d have detected it. Even if they used some unknown method that left no traces, we’ve deployed countless probes along the route. Even stealth tech would struggle to evade detection at this level. Just to be safe, I’ve ordered a segment of the fleet to retrace the ship’s warp trajectory and re-scan the entire route.”

“There must be something we missed. Maybe another stealth ship intercepted her mid-flight.”

“Even more unlikely. That region was sealed. Any unidentified warp signature would’ve been flagged and investigated.”

“This is baffling. She never left our field of vision.”

“No, she did. Don’t forget—we had that brief phase where they escaped.”

“You’re saying she was transferred then?”

“Exactly. The target was picked up by a stealth vessel—but not stealth in the physical sense. Stealth in the sense of mental misdirection.”

The Ji commanders were momentarily stunned. Then, one by one, their expressions turned to realization. They understood: if the mysterious organization could incite mutiny on Ji warships, then it was very likely they had outfitted one entirely with their own agents—and used it to retrieve the Swarm Empress.

“Run a full audit on all ships that came within 0.1 light-years of the target’s vessel but didn’t show any abnormal activity!”

“If that ship was entirely manned by enemy agents, internal checks won’t help. Even if Selina uses mechanical units to investigate, without cooperation, the enemy could easily cover it up.”

“Then what do you suggest?”

“First, we need to corral them into a manageable zone, then bring in backup forces to assist in inspections.”

“Not ideal. That zone’s warships were specifically tasked with pursuit. Most of them would meet the search criteria. If we restrict them all, our control over the area will plummet. Maybe that’s what the enemy intended—to make us cut off our own limbs.”

“That possibility can’t be dismissed.”

“So what do we do? We can’t do this, and we can’t do that?”

“Have them halt and regroup at a designated point. Order them to conduct internal inspections. Let Selina review all surveillance logs on those ships. See if we can find any irregularities. If possible, request Lumina’s direct involvement. And send more ships there. The areas close to the Star Gate—we can restore manpower in no time.”

“That seems to be the only path forward.”

At that moment, the very Sarah they were desperately searching for had indeed used that brief escape interval to transfer onto a Ji warship.

That warship had suffered electronic disruption from nearby EMP detonations. Though its systems quickly recovered, the incident had not been serious enough to warrant inspection.

When one crew member discreetly informed Sarah that they had received orders to regroup at a specific location, she knew then that the Ji race had uncovered the mysterious organization’s plan.

Of course, it wasn’t hard to guess. There were only so many possible options.

Still, Sarah felt no pressure. She understood that after all the sacrifices the mysterious organization had made, and after doubling down multiple times, they would never give up now.

Sure enough, after confirming that Sarah could survive for a while in open space, the warship dropped her off mid-journey en route to the rally point. Once they arrived there, with too many eyes, ears, and surveillance systems, transferring her again would have been nearly impossible.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

If no rescue vessel had arrived, Sarah would’ve become exactly what the Ji commander had predicted: just another drifting ornament in the void. But that scenario never occurred.

Days passed. Because the Ji had recalled many warships from that region, even minor energy fluctuations caused by the frigid conditions of space didn’t alert them to Sarah’s presence.

Two weeks later, a disguised stealth merchant vessel passed through the area and retrieved her. Then it flew off at full speed. With the massive gap in the Ji’s net, they would go as far as possible, as fast as possible.

One month later, Ji reinforcements arrived and reestablished the blockade. Days later, they discovered warp signatures left behind by the disguised ship.

But by then, Sarah had already transferred ships five times. And with the growing number of vessels operating further from the blockade, her chances of escape increased dramatically.

Over the course of the following year, despite the Ji race’s ever-expanding lockdown, Sarah managed to evade capture at every turn thanks to the mysterious organization’s relentless investment.

Once they were sure the target had escaped far beyond the original encirclement, the Ji relaxed their blockade somewhat. What they didn’t know was that, after another transfer, Sarah had doubled back—intentionally re-entering the locked-down region.