Chapter 238 | Swarm: I Became a Cataclysmic Disaster

Elise trembled all over as she savored the power surging into her body.

She was now able to digest, if only partially, the food she previously could not consume.

She felt the microscopic organisms she had ingested, mixed within the water.

If not for the trait enhancement bestowed by her god, these tiny creatures would have been impossible to detect. They possessed characteristics entirely different from any food she had eaten before.

What if those capabilities, achievable only by microscopic bodies, could be applied to a massive and robust form through various methods?

In truth, this was precisely how the Great Devourer operated.

Due to their unique nature as vassals, they acquired physical structures and powers that would otherwise be impossible to possess.

The second offering was even more extraordinary.

Its form and cellular structure were vastly different from anything she had consumed up to this point.

This unique offering seemed as if it were born solely for war and combat, much like the mutants Elise designed and manufactured herself. She could gain a great deal from it.

【Elise finds this delicious. Although parsing it is difficult, she believes that with enough time to analyze it slowly, and with more of this food, she can completely deconstruct and analyze it.】

The creation of an Outer God thus entered Elise's belly, digested and absorbed.

Of course, with her current low Divine Status, it was impossible for Elise to perfectly parse and reverse-engineer a creation personally designed and manufactured by the Outer God, Abhoth.

But Elise had already seen the possibility.

She was certain that even if she could not fully parse it now, she would undoubtedly succeed if given just a little more time and nutrients.

Yes, just as it has always been.

And Lin Miao, the god who mattered most to Elise, also believed in her.

There was only one reason: the countless proofs Elise had shown him up to now.

“Begin the design and experimentation.”

Elise's eyes lit up as she began utilizing the newly acquired data to create new variants.

However, this task was highly unlikely to be completed in a short period, unlike their previous endeavors.

This was not a problem that could be solved overnight simply by devouring a few "offerings" that merely served as materials or clues.

Venturing into space was entirely different from expanding into oceans or skies already inhabited by countless organisms.

Even an existence like the Church of the Goddess of Light, recognized as a top-tier civilization, could not easily envision space travel.

To achieve this, they had to utilize not only the capabilities of the organisms they devoured, but also all the civilizations and technologies they had learned and absorbed so far—including magic, Spirit-Tech, and holy spell formulas—to maximize or modify those capabilities.

Furthermore, this was not something that could be done through calculations alone. It required actual experimentation, collecting missing data, and thorough verification, so it would undoubtedly consume a significant amount of time.

“All colonies, enter emergency status.”

Thus, Elise issued an emergency mobilization decree to all colonies.

This was to concentrate all the colony's strength on research, development, and survival for a time. It would allow them to survive under external threats, sharpen their blade of vengeance, and await the opportunity to counterattack.

“Emergency status for all colonies. The primary objective is to protect the Third Queen.”

Celia looked anxiously at the gathered Yordle representatives after receiving Elise's command.

For the Yordles, the starship that had descended from space was a disaster in its own right.

Even the seemingly unstoppable Great Devourer had been annihilated by the bombs dropped from the starship and vaporized under the bombardment of its main cannon.

If Celia hadn't told them it was a man-made machine, they would have surely believed it to be divine punishment.

“Is... is it really going to be alright?”

“We just need to hold on. We won't be easily broken by their attacks anymore.”

Celia glanced at Gaia's body, which was currently recovering.

Gaia's body, which had been destroyed without resistance under the enemy ship's bombardment, was now rapidly regenerating and repairing itself.

However, no matter how fast the regeneration was, its original body was simply too massive, and it required time.

World observation was an absolute necessity.

Otherwise, it would not be surprising if the Church of the Goddess of Light opened a gateway right into Cadia and invaded at this very moment.

The primary task of Elise's emergency mobilization decree was to protect Gaia, who had already taken root beneath Cadia's crust, no matter the cost.

For this reason, Elise's development and experimentation of the new variants were conducted on Terra rather than Cadia.

In the northeastern part of the Terra continent, near the nest of the Great Devourer, lay the former Holy Kingdom.

Today, it had been reoccupied by the survivors of the past wars, enjoying a delicate peace.

Count Merlin, who had ridden to the border on horseback, fell into deep thought as he watched the Great Devourers moving in a single file, and looked toward the northeastern unpaved lands where lightning crackled in the gloomy sky above the Great Devourer's nest.

Through the eyes of a mage, it was visible.

A colossal amount of energy was currently gathering and writhing there. This was the reason for the atmospheric instability.

The flow of magic power enveloping this world was centering on Gaia's body, which observed Terra, and flowing toward that location.

It was utterly impossible to predict what was happening there, or what was being created.

◆◆◆

“Captain! A transmission from Arcadia!”

At an altitude above the troposphere, far beyond the reach of the Great Devourers, Ryan, the vice captain of the Rum, ran toward Adian in a panic, holding something in his hand.

Adian picked up a communication orb—one he had brought with him when leaving Arcadia, the home planet of the Church of the Goddess of Light where the Goddess Hestia resided—and stared at it with a tense expression.

“Archbishop, what is the situation?”

“The operation was a success! According to our observations, the enemy is in complete disarray!”

From the communication orb, the Archbishop laughed heartily in high spirits.

“Please continue your mission. The Goddess is also highly pleased.”

“W-Wait a moment. Our armaments are starting to run low. Although the enemy's level is low and there is no danger, we still need resupply. A single starship cannot control every area!”

Adian was taken aback to hear that they were to continue fighting.

In truth, their current armaments had reached their limit.

“The Goddess does not expect anything unreasonable. In any case, those monsters cannot catch you. It is enough to simply keep harassing them so their supply lines and connectivity cannot function properly.”

The Archbishop requested that Adian perform mobile warfare rather than any grand maneuvers.

As Gaia's body, which tuned Cadia, suffered severe damage, the nutrient supply system and reinforcement support of the Great Devourer colony had fallen into extreme chaos.

Because of this, the migratory colony currently operating in the Pioneering Zone was practically isolated.

Hestia saw through this and intended to dispatch reinforcements to the Pioneering Zone to annihilate the isolated migratory colony.

“Mmm...”

Hearing the Archbishop's words, Adian could not bring himself to flatly refuse.

After all, he wasn't being asked to do anything grand. They simply wanted to seize the upper hand and resolve the issue completely, which was why his cooperation was requested.

“Captain, it would be great if we could collect a bit more data.”

“We don't have many weapons left anyway. Why don't we just blow them all away and have some fun?”

Unlike their initial worry and fear, the crew members had gradually grown greedy, wishing to continue the operation.

Elena, a former researcher, argued that collecting more data and records on the Great Devourer would allow them to sell it for a high price upon their return.

Meanwhile, Karake, the security chief with a military background, expressed his desire to have a satisfying battle and expend all the remaining weaponry.

“Fire! Destroy their nests!”

In the end, Adian issued the sortie order once again today.

It was an airstrike. Looking down from high altitude, they located the weak points in the Great Devourer's defenses, dropped bombs, and conducted precision strikes with the ship's cannons.

This is incredibly satisfying.

With each explosion of a bomb, a massive shockwave would ripple out, causing a nest the size of a village or even a small city to vanish instantly.

Adian immediately climbed to a higher altitude, scoffing as he watched the display on the screen.

This kind of operation had been going on for several days now.

By now, Adian and his crew thought nothing of it, treating the Great Devourers like ants they used to step on for fun as children.

Just as Elise had felt the joy of anticipated victory before their airstrike, a similar sense of arrogance was now gradually taking root in their hearts.

“Captain, those things are growing that terrifying monster tree again!”

“Then let's head over and destroy it directly.”

Just then, their radar detected that Gaia was recovering.

Adian piloted the Rum, slicing through the sky in an instant.

He saw Gaia's body slowly rising in the distance.

Seeing the Rum approaching from afar, Gaia was gripped by sheer terror.

That starship was the embodiment of terror itself, having instantly burned and crushed its body before.

“Please, do not worry.”

Yet, right before Gaia, Celia spread her wings and took flight, gently comforting it.

What is that?

Before firing the main cannon, Adian stared at the magnified image of Celia on the screen and swallowed hard.

Though she wore a mask, her fluttering silver hair and the curves of her body made her stand out distinctly from the other individuals around her.

“Prepare to activate the formula.”

But while their attention was drawn to Celia, the actual mutants had already quietly gathered around them.

These mutants possessed a highly unique shape.

Their bodies crawling on the ground resembled walking sticks, but their abdomens were raised high into the air.

The raised abdomen was encased in a thick, hard exoskeleton, resembling a hermit crab's shell or a bagworm's nest.

The towering, specialized carapace was tall and thick enough to easily surpass a three-story building.

Their name was the dung-shell ant, and they were created for one purpose only.

To serve as living cores to form a massive spell formula.

“Fire!”

The Rum's light cannon fired.

This ether light cannon was powered by the starship's amplified energy. Once it hit, its destructive power was so immense that ordinary means could not block or dissolve it.

Indeed, the Great Devourer had previously attempted to block it with dozens of overlapping defensive barriers, only to fail miserably, resulting in the humiliation of Gaia's body being destroyed.

Yet, at that very instant, the biological cores of the dung-shell ants lit up and began to function.

These mobile biological cores, filled with the holy power they had collected over time, resonated in unison, funneling all of their energy into Celia, the caster of the formula.

“...Hmm?”

At the exact moment the main cannon fired, the crew of the Rum were shocked to see a massive magic circle unfold in the air, centering on Celia.

This new formula, built upon a holy spell formula and modified by Celia, perfectly replicated the power to warp natural laws through holy power.

“Evade! Immediately!”

The moment their fired light cannon collided with the formula, Adian screamed out of sheer reflex.

In a flash, the ether light cannon that struck the formula was reflected, flying straight back toward them with pinpoint accuracy.

“Aaaaah!”

The crew members shrieked and fell as the starship shook violently. The ether shield they desperately tried to deploy was instantly shredded and dissipated.

Alarms blared continuously throughout the vessel.

What on earth is going on?

Even as Adian tumbled to the floor, he was gripped by absolute panic.

The Great Devourer had never possessed such power before.

Just days ago, they had been completely defenseless against their bombardment, helplessly torn to shreds.

But now, the Great Devourer had learned how the Church of the Goddess of Light dealt with space-faring forces like them. Having acquired the necessary conditions, they had launched a precise counterattack.