Chapter 145: The Disappearing Fungus Carpet

Chapter 145: The Disappearing Fungus Carpet

The appearance of the fungus carpet within the mist was an extremely dangerous sign.

The fungus carpet was a rare and special creature during the Abyssal Invasion, resembling bacteria but not entirely so.

If classified using Blue Star's biological categorization, it was challenging to place this organism into a single category.

However, the real danger lay in the fact that the fungus carpet often accompanied the emergence of high-level Abyssal creatures.

With their vehicle now out of commission, the team had no choice but to continue on foot.

The mist continued to spread, and there were only ten days left before it reached the Sulfur Valley Nuclear Power Plant.

If they couldn't locate the rift point within ten days, they would have to abandon the plant.

Without the plant, power supply issues would arise in the surrounding areas.

The lack of electricity would lead to the shutdown of many factories, impacting the entire industrial system.

While one nuclear plant might not bring the entire industrial system to a halt, mist had appeared worldwide.

If they couldn't save the Sulfur Valley plant, who could guarantee the safety of other nuclear plants?

Thus, it was imperative to address this mist crisis from a broader perspective.

The consequences of failure would be dire.

Moreover, Daxia was the largest industrial nation on Blue Star, and if its industrial system suffered a setback, it would mean that advancements in civilization's industrial technology would become increasingly difficult to achieve.

Don't assume that other nations outside of Daxia have the capability to save civilization.

Countries focused on finance only know how to suck blood, and in times of disaster, their first instinct is to flee to safer regions.

If Daxia's industrial system collapses, humanity will regress to the Stone Age.

Indeed, if they couldn't halt the Abyssal Invasion, it was only a matter of time before they were pushed back to the Stone Age.

The Banser Clan's situation was a clear example.

Whether it was the Banser Clan or the Black Iron Dwarves, their civilizations had once thrived, but eventually, the Abyss compressed their living space, forcing them into constant migration.

Although the Banser Clan still retained their forging techniques, compared to their prosperous era, they were almost in the Bronze Age, if not the Stone Age.

Humanity had no room for retreat.

Lu Heng and the leaders of Daxia were well aware of this.

That's why they dispatched two teams, adopting a saturation approach, ensuring that even if one team succeeded, the Sulfur Valley Nuclear Power Plant could be saved.

Lu Heng and Jian Qing initially decided to split up, each exploring half of the valley, to expedite the search for the Abyssal Rift.

However, this didn't mean Lu Heng was solely responsible for the eastern side.

If, after searching the eastern valley, they failed to find the rift point, and there were no signs of success from Jian Qing's team, Lu Heng would head west to search the other half of the valley.

With communication channels cut off in the mist, Lu Heng had no updates on Jian Qing's team.

In the worst-case scenario, if her team had been wiped out, Lu Heng's team would be the only one left to carry out the mission.

...

After equipping themselves with weapons and supplies, the team continued their journey.

Overnight, the fungus carpet had spread across the entire mountain range.

Lu Heng believed that the thicker the fungus carpet, the higher the likelihood of finding an Abyssal Rift.

Thus, the team had to move in the direction of the fungus carpet's spread, treading upon it as they advanced.

Walking on the fungus carpet felt like a mix of a blanket and snow, with a muddy sensation as if stepping into viscous flesh and blood.

The feeling was unpleasant, but they had no choice but to endure it.

Moreover, as they walked on the fungus carpet, it would spread onto their shoes, and if it reached their pants, cleaning it off would be a hassle.

Consequently, they had to stop periodically to clean the fungus from their shoes.

Fortunately, the fungus carpet was afraid of fire, and a quick scorch would make it retreat.

Electricity could also be used.

With many flame-wielding individuals in the team, they could advance while dealing with the fungus carpet.

If all else failed, they could light a torch and use it to burn off the fungus from their shoes after walking for a while.

...

Not only did the fungus carpet stick to their shoes, but the Mechanical Tiger couldn't escape it either. After walking for a while, its four claws would be covered in a furry layer of the carpet, resembling fur.

Su Muyu used flame arrows to disperse the fungus, ensuring the safety of the transported supplies.

Nearly half of the team's supplies were carried on the Mechanical Tiger's back, along with a machine gun.

Although referred to as a cannon, the main difference between the machine gun and the cannon was their caliber.

Daxia's domestically produced machine guns had calibers of 14.5mm and 20mm, making the 20mm cannon essentially a larger machine gun.

However, in terms of weapon classification, anything with a caliber exceeding 20mm was categorized as a cannon.

Don't underestimate the difference in caliber; the power of firearms lies in their caliber.

The 20mm caliber is considered a cannon due to its formidable power.

With a firing rate of 450 rounds per minute, it could shred an Abyssal Alien into pieces within seconds.

This was why Lu Heng had the Mechanical Tiger carry this machine gun.

...

For the next three days, the team explored the misty valley during the day and camped at night, taking turns to keep watch.

Initially, Lu Heng believed that the dense fungus carpet area held promise for finding the Abyssal Rift, but even after exiting the carpeted region, they still hadn't discovered the rift point.

Since Lu Heng wasn't personally conducting the search, he couldn't help but worry that the exploration wasn't thorough enough.

However, theoretically, three Seers working together shouldn't have missed the rift point.

Su Muyu repeatedly assured him that they had searched every pit and cave, but the Abyssal Rift remained elusive.

There was no news from Jian Qing's team either.

Both teams carried signal flares, and although electromagnetic signals were blocked, the flares could reach above the mist.

The Scout Eagle was visible, but so far, no signal flares had been spotted. This was a good sign, indicating that Jian Qing's team hadn't encountered any insurmountable dangers.

The possibility of encountering an overwhelmingly powerful Abyssal Being that didn't even allow them to launch a signal flare was relatively low. After all, Jian Qing was a renowned Metahuman in the future, and it was unlikely she'd be defeated so quickly that she couldn't even launch a signal flare.

...

Day 5 in the Mist.

Lu Heng's team of ten continued their journey, exploring the last region of the eastern valley.

According to the original plan, if they didn't find the Rift Point after searching this area, they would have to move on to the western valley.

This region was a sandy area with sparse vegetation.

After entering this area for about two kilometers, the team spotted a skeleton, an animal skeleton.

"This looks like a wild boar's skeleton," Chen Zihan said, though he wasn't entirely sure. But judging by the size, it did resemble one.

The skeleton was stripped of all flesh, leaving only the white bones.

Lu Heng walked behind the skeleton to examine the vertebral column, which was bitten through.

The bitten vertebral column was a characteristic of Abyssal Alien attacks on animals.

"Was it killed by an Abyssal Alien? How could the larvae eat the animal's body so cleanly?" Chen Zihan also noticed the wound on the spine, which resembled the animal carcasses they had seen before.

Lin Zeyu crouched down and scraped the bones with his dagger, saying, "This is too clean, isn't it? Not even a trace of flesh left. Does that thing eat so cleanly?"

Lu Heng shook his head and corrected him, "This wasn't eaten clean by an Abyssal Alien, it was the Fungus Carpet that did this."

"The Fungus Carpet ate it clean?" Everyone immediately looked confused.

"Yes, the Fungus Carpet eats meat. It covers the animal's body and devours all the flesh and blood, leaving only the bones, which is why it's so clean," Lu Heng explained.

"But I don't see any Fungus Carpet here," Chen Zihan said, turning to look around, and indeed, there was no sign of the Fungus Carpet.

Lu Heng had already noticed that there was no Fungus Carpet nearby, but the presence of a skeleton licked clean by the Fungus Carpet meant only one possibility.

"The Fungus Carpet is moving. It must have appeared here, and after consuming everything edible, it left this area," Lu Heng analyzed.

Upon hearing this, everyone felt their hair stand on end.

"That's disgusting. I'm glad I wasn't covered in that stuff," Lin Zeyu said, patting his clothes as if to ensure he hadn't come into contact with that terrifying substance.

Strictly speaking, the Fungus Carpet wasn't particularly dangerous.

Its spreading speed wasn't fast, and its corrosive properties weren't high either.

Even if humans came into contact with it, they could immediately wipe it off and burn it with fire to clean it thoroughly.

But the problem with this substance was that once it appeared, it would cover an area of tens of kilometers, making it impossible to clean up due to its sheer size.

Chen Zihan pondered and raised a concern, "What if the Fungus Carpet continues to spread and occupies all the land on Bluesphere? Where would humans live then?"

According to his worries, if the Fungus Carpet did spread to cover all the land on Bluesphere, it would indeed be difficult for humans to survive.

Lu Heng explained, "The Fungus Carpet can only exist in the Mist because the Mist is acidic, and the Fungus Carpet can only survive in the acidic environment of the Mist.

"If the Earth's land were completely shrouded in Mist, it would be over, and there would be no saving it."

This was also the reason why the Mist had to be cleared.

In fact, even without the Fungus Carpet, any area shrouded in Mist would be uninhabitable for humans.

A world with visibility less than ten meters, where Abyssal Monsters could emerge from the Mist at any moment, was undoubtedly a challenging place to survive.

Lu Heng looked ahead at the Gobi Desert, furrowing his brows in thought.

Initially, Lu Heng believed that the denser the Fungus Carpet, the higher the likelihood of finding an Abyssal Rift.

This was because the Fungus Carpet usually spread from the Rift, so its center was often the Rift Point.

However, after searching the Fungus Carpet area thoroughly, they hadn't found any Rift Points.

Lu Heng had previously suspected that they might have missed something during their exploration, but now it seemed that it wasn't a matter of oversight; the Fungus Carpet had moved.

In other words, the original location where the Fungus Carpet first appeared was no longer within its current coverage area.

This Gobi Desert, which once had the Fungus Carpet, now had none.

Therefore, it was likely that the Fungus Carpet had spread from within the Gobi Desert.

Continuing forward, there was a high probability of finding the Rift Point.

However, why had the Fungus Carpet left this Gobi Desert?

Lu Heng continued leading the team with this question in mind, venturing deeper into the Gobi Desert.

"Stay alert, as the area ahead is likely where the Fungus Carpet first appeared, and the Rift Point may be nearby."

Everyone became more vigilant and continued their journey.

After walking for two kilometers, the team felt the temperature rising.

"Do you guys feel it getting hotter?" Lin Zeyu tugged at his collar and fanned himself with his clothes.

"The temperature is indeed rising. Have we entered a hot springs area? But it's not marked on the map," Wu Weibing said, looking at the map with a puzzled expression.

Lu Heng had a vague sense of what was happening; the rising temperature likely indicated they had entered the territory of a powerful Abyssal Being, and this being was fire-attributed.

However, they hadn't even seen this Abyssal Being, and the temperature was already rising. What level of being was this?

No wonder the Fungus Carpet had fled this area; it was to avoid the Flame Creatures here.

...

My mom got a call from a telemarketer and opened a messy account. I've been dealing with canceling it all night, so I can only guarantee two chapters tonight.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end