136 Mystery of the End Times Part 1
Everyone was shocked as the horrifying yellow pupils in the video overlapped with the young boy’s eyes. They watched in horror as the boy’s tender white skin instantly developed countless fine cracks!
Tang Yanqiu rushed fiercely towards Xiao Wang.
In an instant, the originally over one-meter-tall boy’s body shattered, and numerous black insects squirmed out from his body, pouncing towards Xiao Wang, who was closest to them.
Before Xiao Wang could react, Tang Yanqiu had already spread his enormous wings and snatched him up into the air. Several insects had crawled onto Xiao Wang’s feet. Looking at the swarming insects on the ground, he turned pale with fear, desperately kicking his legs to shake them off.
Tang Yanqiu turned around and threw Xiao Wang onto Abu’s back, then pulled out an arrow, quickly rubbing it against a flint on his arm. The arrowhead burst into flames and shot towards the swarm of insects.
Liu Fengyu cursed loudly and swiftly rushed over, his slender right arm instantly transforming into a huge, crimson petal, slamming heavily on the ground.
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After a while, some people came out with water guns and sprayed them at the insects on the ground.
The water gun attack proved effective, driving the swarm of insects into the courtyard. The insects quickly regrouped and retreated like a tide, rushing back outside the main gate.
Zhuang Zhuang barked loudly and followed the group of insects, dashing out of the gate.
Cheng Tianbi and the others chased after them, and they saw Zhuang Zhuang had run quite far. On its back was a young boy with mutilated limbs, a terrifying sight. What was most horrifying was that black insects wriggled within the damaged limbs, repairing them. His wet, matted hair hung as he coldly stared at them, his pupils a terrifying bright yellow.
“Abu!” Cheng Tianbi roared.
Tang Yanqiu spread his wings and chased after them.
Abu also rushed out, and several people grabbed its tail, hopping onto its back. Abu swiftly flew in pursuit of Zhuang Zhuang.
Gasping for breath, they all fixed their eyes on the distant white spot, their faces filled with solemnity.
After a moment, Xiao Wang trembled and asked, “What is that?”
Cong Xia said gravely, “Insects, the insects from Xi’an’s Big Wild Goose Pagoda.”
Lying on Abu’s back, Xiao Wang didn’t dare to move, his voice choked as he said, “I’m actually… really afraid of heights…”
Liu Fengyu patted his head and said, “Close your eyes and hold on tight.”
Zhuang Yao said in a deep voice, “I didn’t expect that we hadn’t gone to find them, but they have come to us.”
Liu Fengyu said, “It seems like those insects have already broken free from the restrictions of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda?”
Zhuang Yao shook his head. “No, if that were the case, why haven’t we received any news from Xi’an? To monitor the movements of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, the communication lines in Xi’an have already been repaired. If there were any movements there, Beijing would know immediately.”
“So, the most likely scenario is that the insects have sent their human-like hybrids to gather intelligence?” Cheng Tianbi looked ahead and said heavily, “Can these insects transform anyone they choose?”
Fear gripped everyone’s hearts, and a great sense of dread spread within them.
The young boy they had seen a few days ago was just an ordinary human child at that time. If they further deduced, perhaps the reason the insects chose him was because their chance encounter with the boy had provided the insects with an unsuspected opportunity to infiltrate the Academy of Sciences. At least two things were certain now: first, the insects could choose targets for hybridization, and second, the insects possessed intelligence.
The insects’ intelligence likely comes from the human-like hybrids they create. The most terrifying aspect of these insects is their ability to retain human intelligence while stripping away their self-awareness, turning humans into their puppets. Such a capability is horrifying!
With so many people in Beijing, if they can freely hybridize with humans, then anyone around them could potentially be a monster capable of splitting into countless insects!
Faced with such an enemy, Cong Xia felt a sense of powerlessness, a feeling of being unable to defeat them. They were numerous, could infiltrate anywhere, hybridize with humans at will, strip away their self-awareness while retaining human intelligence for their own use, and even repair damaged limbs!
Zhuang Yao whispered, “Our preparations are not sufficient enough, but they have already come knocking on our door.”
Cheng Tianbi asked, “Has there been any progress in researching these insects?”
Zhuang Yao shook his head, “I’ve been too busy with other matters recently and haven’t kept up with it.”
Zhuang Zhuang ran very fast. Dogs ran faster, and Zhuang Zhuang’s smaller size and lighter weight made it even swifter than Abu. After a while, it had left them far behind.
Zhuang Yao said, “Don’t chase after them; we won’t catch up. Let’s go back.”
Deng Xiao called out, “Tang Ge, don’t chase after them.”
Tang Yanqiu, flying ahead, stopped in his tracks after hearing this, unwillingly glancing at the distant white spot before turning back.
Abu carried them back along the way they came.
Zhuang Yao remained silent all the way, deep in thought. Everyone’s mood was heavy; their peaceful life had barely lasted for a month, and the threat was already at their doorstep. Although they knew this temporary calmness wouldn’t last long, they didn’t expect it to end so quickly.
Back at the Academy of Sciences, many people were clearing the corpses of the insects in the front yard and had captured quite a few live ones. The ones currently being experimented on in the lab were taken from Yao Qianjiang previously and were all larvae.
This was the first time they had caught adult insects, and their method of feeding was likely different from the previous batch in the lab. They were all plump and round, about the size of a walnut, but flatter.
The Academy of Sciences was under martial law, and even the external areas were no longer open to casual visits.
Cong Zhenzhong and Tang Tingzhi came to the scene, discussing matters with solemn expressions.
Seeing Abu return, Cong Zhenzhong looked up. “Are you all okay?”
Cong Xia replied, “We’re fine.”
They slid down from Abu one by one, and when Cong Zhenzhong saw that they were all unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief. “Come inside with me.”
The group returned to the laboratory in Zone Three. Cong Zhenzhong picked up a Petri dish containing a larva.
Gently using forceps, Cong Zhenzhong lifted the insect and showed it to them. “This type of insect does not belong to any species we have documented. It could be a previously undiscovered species, or it might have undergone complete metamorphosis. However, the most likely possibility is that it is a new organism. Judging from its physiological structure, it falls under the phylum Mollusca, class Gastropoda, and family Limacidae. Take a look; they have sixteen pairs of very tiny legs, hidden within their plump bodies. You can barely see them unless you look closely. These extremely small legs can support such a large body, and their crawling speed is not slow. If we were to draw an analogy from architectural mechanics, it’s like sixteen electric poles supporting the Big Wild Good Pagoda—such a marvelous life form.”
Everyone carefully examined the larva’s abdomen, indeed noticing numerous tiny black legs, almost as thin as hair, retractable into the flesh. No wonder they had always assumed these insects had no legs. The darkness in the Big Wild Goose Pagoda certainly caused visual impairments, but the minuscule size of these legs made them difficult to detect.
Cong Zhenzhong continued, “These insects are bloodsuckers. We haven’t detected any toxicity for now, but when they feed on human blood, they release a neuro anesthetic that numbs the pain. In small numbers, they may not pose a significant threat to humans, but when their numbers increase, they can easily drain a person’s blood. Generally speaking, these insects are not as fast as humans, and in small numbers, they don’t present a major danger as long as people are careful and avoid them. However, things are different now. These insects have evolved the most terrifying ability—to manipulate humans.”
The image of the young boy’s body shattering into countless insects flashed through Cong Xia’s mind, causing goosebumps to form all over her body. The scene was too shocking, too horrifying. It was as if… as if the young boy was assembled from insects—able to disperse and come back together. Moreover, the insects they killed were part of the boy’s body, and when they regrouped, they could repair themselves…
Did these twisted creatures really just recklessly intrude into their territory? Thinking back to their rash actions at that time, Cong Xia felt a sense of fear.
Cheng Tianbi said, “That child we saw a few days ago didn’t have any energy fluctuations before. It’s evident that he was hybridized recently. This means that some insects have already infiltrated Beijing.”
Cong Zhenzhong replied, “I’ve already sent people to investigate the Samoyed hunting dog. It has a clear target, so it shouldn’t be difficult to find. At the same time, I’ll be searching for suspicious individuals throughout the city. Among the three people hybridized in the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, two are from Jiujiang County, and one is from the 14th Army Group. We have their information and can locate their relatives. Perhaps through these clues, we can track them down if… they come back.”
Zhuang Yao asked, “What’s the situation in Xi’an?”
Cong Zhenzhong shook his head, “We’ve made contact, and there’s nothing unusual at the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. However, more and more people are disappearing in the city—both mutants and ordinary people. The last sighting locations are not far from the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. No one dares to approach it now. I’m afraid those insects are mass-producing their puppet people in large numbers.”
Deng Xiao frowned and said, “It’s so disgusting.”
Cong Xia sighed, “It’s so frightening. At this rate, how many puppet people are they going to create?”
Zhuang Yao speculated, “I believe those insects cannot leave the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, but once they’re inside a human body, they can leave. They can even come as far as Beijing. Perhaps it’s their instinct driving them or it’s because they’ve hybridized with humans and gained human intelligence, leading them to come up with such a revolting method.”
Tang Tingzhi’s voice was solemn, “Regardless of the reasons, the insects are here. Before they spread on a large scale, we must completely eliminate them; otherwise, Beijing will be doomed.”
Zhuang Yao suggested, “Let’s bring forward the plan to go to Xi’an. No matter how many insects we exterminate in Beijing, it won’t be enough. The insects in the Big Wild Goose Pagoda are the root of all evil. Only by removing that puppet jade and stopping their unrestricted evolution can we thoroughly solve this insect plague.”
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