I Am The Swarm-Chapter 761: Interception

Once the star gate’s shield protection was deactivated, even the highly durable composite materials used in its construction couldn’t withstand the full bombardment of three squadrons’ warships.

The warship carrying the Swarm Empress was now only about ten thousand kilometers away from the star gate’s transmission ring. At its current inertial speed, it would take at least twenty seconds to pass through the star gate.

With the Ji race’s firepower, just two rapid-fire volleys—less than ten seconds—would be enough to destroy the C03 energy node. Even though the star gate had a backup energy system and could switch automatically, the instant loss of power would shut down the transmission. Reopening would take several minutes at least.

“Hmph, a bunch of rats trying to hijack under my nose? Overconfident fools,” the Ji commander sneered as he saw the situation under control. “After this mission, we need to clean up our ranks. These rats have become too brazen.”

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But before he could continue, the battlefield situation changed once again. The thirty-six warships that were firing suddenly erupted with electromagnetic pulses from within.

Most of the systems and circuits on dozens of warships were instantly destroyed, and the main cannons preparing for the second volley fell silent. It seemed the number of personnel from the mysterious organization was far greater than the Ji commander had imagined.

Seeing this scene, the Ji commander’s eyes bulged, inwardly cursing their predicament. Still, he tried to salvage the situation. “All units, target the star gate’s direction—fire indiscriminately!”

Unfortunately, the event occurred too suddenly. By now, the target warship was less than ten seconds away from crossing the star gate. Many Ji warships receiving the command began adjusting their cannon angles.

However, the nearest squadrons’ ships were already disabled, and the distant ones required time to adjust their aim, gather energy, and fire—even if fully automated, it still took several seconds.

A few seconds might be nothing more than blinking twice in normal circumstances. In space battles lasting days or even months, such intervals usually went unnoticed.

But in this critical moment, every wasted second counted.

Scattered energy beams streaked across the sky. Since each ship fired independently upon readiness, the scene lacked the usual coordinated beauty of synchronized volleys.

Nevertheless, the Ji equipment was still formidable. Without calibration, the energy beams perfectly hit their preset targets. The reaction armor in the C03 area of the star gate, weakened by the previous volley and now facing scattered attacks, was teetering on the brink. Once breached, the fragile central conduits inside would be directly exposed to firepower.

However, the bow of the warship carrying the Swarm Empress had already disappeared into the star gate, with more of it continuing to enter.

Finally, the armor plating of the star gate was blown off, and the subsequent shells struck the energy core. The powerful main cannon shells instantly destroyed it.

“Good!” Cheers erupted both in the rear command room and on the frontline warships of the Ji race.

With the crucial energy core severed, large sections of lights on the ring-shaped star gate went out. The previously rippling mirror-like surface vanished, revealing the starry expanse beyond.

Moments later, the star gate’s lights came back on, energy automatically gathering to reopen the gate according to prior settings. But the controller had already been changed; the gathered energy dissipated, and the star gate was completely shut down.

Back in the Ji command room, however, the celebratory atmosphere turned grim again. All the warships in Squadron 0599, except JZJ18982192798, were occupied by the Ji race. Unfortunately, the traitors who had defected had already taken their own lives, leaving no clues behind.

As for JZJ18982192798, the most crucial target ship, only about two-thirds of the hull remained. Its front third had already crossed through the star gate.

“Board immediately! Check if the target is still on board.”

“No need to worry too much. According to the loading diagram provided by Selina, the target’s storage location is in the medical bay at the rear of the warship.”

“I’m concerned they’ve moved it. But let’s wait; we’ll know soon. Selina, have you found where they transmitted to?”

“Based on transmission records, they are headed to the XM768 star gate.”

“Any abnormalities there?”

“Part of that star gate has been hijacked, using methods very similar to here. Lumina has broken through their obstruction and regained control of the star gate. Records show that the front section of JZJ18982192798 appeared at that star gate three seconds ago.”

“Damn it, lucky bastards!” the Ji commander cursed under his breath. The sudden shutdown of a star gate posed extremely high risks—not only could objects being transmitted be cut in half, but they might also be sent into spatial turbulence, torn apart by explosive gravitational forces.

“What’s the damage to the bow?”

“According to remote image comparison, excluding the area severed when the star gate closed, the remaining integrity of the bow is 95%.”

Hearing this, the Ji commander cursed again. Ninety-five percent integrity meant the bow had almost perfectly transmitted over. However, he inexplicably felt a slight relief. If the target had been moved to the bow, it likely survived, meaning their mission still had a chance of success.

“Send over the relevant video signals from there.”

Soon, the large screen in the command room displayed the situation at the XM768 star gate.

“1,021 camera views related to this incident have been selected.”

Among the numerous video windows, explosions and signs of combat were visible around the XM768 star gate. Clearly, the enemy had prepared a reception there, which was expected.

“Enlarge windows 375, 720, and 1001.” Through these specially highlighted camera angles, one could see that the bow had indeed crossed the star gate in excellent condition.

At this moment, two vessels resembling merchant ships were docked against it, likely having already sent people inside to search. Unlike the XM1209 star gate, the numbering indicated that the XM768 star gate was built earlier.

This was a densely populated mid-ring civilization area, with nearby civilizations producing interesting specialties that sold well. To expedite delivery to those in need, the Ji race had built the star gate there long ago.

Due to its early construction, the XM768 star gate’s facilities were highly complete, with a large starport not far from the star gate.

“Where are the garrison forces of the star gate and starport? Why are unknown ships allowed near the target?”

“The two stationed forces suffered internal EMP bomb attacks 67 seconds ago and temporarily withdrew from the battle.” Though he didn’t expect much, the Ji commander felt a surge of frustration upon hearing this news.