Chapter 176 | Swarm: I Became a Cataclysmic Disaster

Of course, the current Kerrigan showed absolutely no trace of her past form as the monstrous chimera.

Even so, Grimgor instinctively felt it.

He knew exactly whose intense hatred and killing intent were directed at him, and how they had come to be.

“It is the Realm of Martial Zenith!”

When the blazing cyan flames enveloped Kerrigan's body, Grimgor trembled.

If she were merely an empty shell without a heart, it was a realm she could never have reached even after eons of cultivation, yet Kerrigan had stepped into it.

‘No. It is different. What on earth is that?’

However, as Grimgor watched Kerrigan charge forward wielding four gleaming swords, he quickly realized that this was completely different from his own Realm of Martial Zenith.

The Realm of Martial Zenith embodied the honor of a warrior.

It was born from a respected, elderly beastkin warrior who had trained for many years and finally achieved enlightenment after receiving divine protection.

Because of this, the Realm of Martial Zenith was righteous. It was as powerful as it was righteous.

But the realm Kerrigan displayed now was far from righteous.

For honor, reputation, nobility, and a warrior's heart were completely incompatible with the Great Devourer colony.

It was a sheer intent to slaughter the opponent, a deep-seated hatred, and the resulting obsession and madness.

Kerrigan's realm was born precisely from this—something an ordinary intelligent lifeform could never comprehend.

“Ugh...”

Grimgor exerted all his strength to swing his sword and block her blazing strike, blood gradually spraying from his body.

Neither of their bodies could withstand the sheer power of their clashes and the resulting shockwaves.

The problem was that while Grimgor's muscles tore and his skin cracked, Kerrigan could fully unleash the cellular regeneration ability she possessed from fusing with the symbiotic carapace ant. Even if her exoskeleton was crushed and her blades shattered, she could continuously regenerate and fight to the very end.

“No!”

Finally, one of Kerrigan's swords severed one of Grimgor's arms.

At the same time, prepared to lose his arm, Grimgor thrust his sword forward, impaling Kerrigan through the abdomen.

Begrun, his eyes squinting against the surging shockwaves, paled in shock at the sight. But before he could intervene, Kerrigan swayed, and a long tail extended from her lower back. Curving like a scorpion's tail, it instantly pierced through Grimgor's chest.

“Foolish...”

Impaled by Kerrigan's tail, Grimgor's feet left the ground. He coughed up blood, his face contorted in pain.

After the fierce battle, half of Kerrigan's helmet was shattered, revealing part of a beautiful woman's face with glowing red eyes.

In Grimgor's eyes, that face looked incredibly young.

Yet, there was a difference between beastkin and humans.

Though she was a monster, she had unleashed an astonishing talent through her innate abilities and willpower.

“There is no end to the realm of martial arts, nor is there a correct answer. Do you intend to fight forever, living such a meaningless life?”

Grimgor sighed. The pitiful Sword Demon possessed such power and talent, yet like a malevolent specter, she only knew how to harbor hatred, repeating endless battles and conflicts.

For he knew that at the end of hatred and revenge lay nothing but emptiness and futility.

In truth, having lived over a hundred times longer than Kerrigan, who was barely over a year old, he was well-qualified to speak such words.

“Mm.”

But Grimgor spoke this way because he did not truly understand what kind of existence the Great Devourer colony, including Kerrigan, actually was.

When one's goal was to devour everything in the world, and even the entire universe, emptiness and futility were essentially the same thing to them.

Grimgor was rendered speechless with shock as he watched her casually reply “Mm.” Just then, Kerrigan raised her sword, intending to finish off her captive impaled on her tail.

“?!”

At that exact moment, Begrun intervened with all his might.

Leaping into the air, he spun and swung his sword, severing Kerrigan's tail in a single stroke and rescuing Grimgor.

Kerrigan grimaced in annoyance, her eyes locking onto him, but Begrun had already leaped back, carrying Grimgor with him.

“Retreat! All units, retreat!”

However, even though Grimgor's life was saved, the front line had already collapsed.

The migratory colony fused with Kerrigan had already demolished the coalition army's defensive line and was continuing the slaughter.

Beastkin, dwarves, and humans alike could no longer endure it and turned to flee.

Everyone realized that continuing to fight would only result in total annihilation.

“Kill!”

The furious Kerrigan ordered her colony to pursue the fleeing enemies, killing every last one of them.

“We must retreat to the tribes. Once those strengthened monsters regroup and swarm us, we won't be able to hold them off on the plains anymore.”

Grimgor, who had barely survived with the help of his subordinates, gritted his teeth as his vision blurred.

The sacred land and their homes were right before them; they had to reclaim them.

Yet they were ultimately defeated right in front of it and forced to flee once more.

And this time, they could run no longer. The likelihood of a forced, decisive final confrontation was higher than ever before.

【Elise judged that the time had come】

Relying on Kerrigan's awakening, the migratory colony had crushed the two invading coalition forces.

The threat on the western front was resolved, and they now possessed the perfect conditions for a counteroffensive.

This also meant Elise and the main nest colony could dedicate their full strength to the ongoing war against the elves.

Above all, the new variant, the Lictor, had demonstrated its true power, which was their greatest harvest.

Elise had gathered sufficient data through Kerrigan's migratory colony and planned to use it to crush the elves desperately defending the front line.

As long as they shattered the defensive line, gradually seizing and occupying their lands, the elf-centric empire would eventually collapse, and most of the continent would fall into the hands of the Great Devourers.

“But they have already established a way to communicate with each other. They will surely take precautions against the magic used by the Lictors in some manner. Not to mention, they have already suffered massive losses from the magic our forces used.”

Celia pointed out the concerning aspect of this plan.

The elves had already suffered terribly from the magic cast by mages infected with Cordyceps. That blow had been devastating enough to wipe out over half of a legion.

Furthermore, they had undoubtedly learned of the defeat of the beastkin and dwarven coalition army through their gods.

Since the elves were far more familiar with magic than the others, Celia felt that these new recruits, whose strength lay in magic, might not be as effective as expected.