Chapter 140
The interior of the third floor laboratory was filled with slime mold. If you wished to enter, you would need to first activate the internal circulation oxygen supply system of the protective suit.
Sheng Wu stood at the door and answered cautiously, “I can’t go in. These slime molds will kill me.”
This kind of slime mold live only on a diet of mycelium. Si Chen and Song Ziyu would be fine if they go in. But if he goes in, it would be no different from a chicken giving its New Year greetings to a weasel.
“Where’s the solution?”
Sheng Wu relied on his memory to answer. “The box containing the solution is in the refrigerator in Lab No. 13.”
When Si Chen heard the number 13, he immediately turned suspicious. “Does 13 have any special meaning?”
Sheng Wu frowned. “What special meaning could it have? The fortune teller said that the number 13 is quite auspicious so I can keep it in check.”
Due to cultural differences, the number 13 has different meanings in different civilizations.
Si Chen did not ask further.
He looked at Song Ziyu, who had been holding the floating cannon and following quietly behind them step by step. He said, “Wait for me outside. It might not be safe in there.”
Song Ziyu didn’t have the cheek to say he wanted to go in there with him. He could only reply in a low voice, “Then come back quickly.”
Si Chen pulled out his knife and walked inside, his figure quickly blending into the darkness.
Sheng Wu looked away and asked, “Are you a couple?”
Song Ziyu was immediately shocked. “Why would you think that? In what way do we look like a couple?”
Sheng Wu glanced at his big belly, “He’s very concerned abut the child in your belly.”
Si Chen didn’t reveal much through his words but his eyes couldn’t deceive anyone.
Moreover, Dr. Sheng felt almost instinctively that Song Ziyu’s pregnancy wasn’t simple.
If he had to say it, it felt like he was pregnant with a naturally powerful Evolutionary.
Hearing these words, Song Ziyu picked up the floating cannon, alert and wary, pointing it at Sheng Wu. “I’m warning you, don’t even think about taking hostages.”
This seed for the Song Family was very important but the Si Chen was equally important.
Song Ziyu’s logic was very clear. He agreed to give birth to No. 9 in order to revitalize the family.
This goal could be achieved both by embracing White King’s thigh and by embracing No. 9’s thigh in the future.
Considering the uncontrollability of this period between No. 9 being a fetus to consumable, it would be more cost-effective to just hug White King’s thigh.
And Song Bai obviously valued Si Chen more. This was clearly evidenced by Song Bai’s only three instructions to the Song family when he’d last come to sponge off them — two of which revolved around Si Chen.
The first was to bring some canned foods to Si Chen; the second was to ensure that Si Chen leaves the city safely and the third, Song Bai had who the Song family had enmity with recently.
Sheng Wu turned his head. “Tsk.”
*
Slime mold filled the entire lab. The mucus they secreted went up almost to Si Chen’s knees.
When he walked in it, it felt like he was walking in a swamp.
The Eternal Life Abyss was like a starfish, sticking to Si Chen’s back. The eyes on its tentacles were spinning around, looking at their surroundings.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Fcvlraegyfv obg wjcs sfjgr, atf rilwf wbivr tfgf tjv oibeglrtfv. Qlat atf wblra jlg, atf qgbabqijrw obgwfv bc atf oibbg, atf kjiir jcv fnfc atf mflilcu. Ktfs gbrf jcv ofii ilxf atfs kfgf ygfjatlcu.
Ktlc atgfjvr tecu vbkc ogbw atf mflilcu, atf tjculcu rqbgfr ibbxlcu ilxf ibdejar.
Ktlr kjr j obbv obg ktlmt atf Safgcji Olof Cysrr tjv cb gfmbgv bo lc lar ufcfr.
The Eternal Life Abyss picked off a fruit with its tentacles and sipped it with his mouthpart. Sharp fangs pierced the skin that could be broken by a blow and the juice inside flowed out.
This fruit that a plant-specific astringency and wasn’t very tasty. And it was slightly toxic.
Si Yuan threw away the fruit and excluded it from its menu.
If it someday splits off an offspring, the record of this fruit would be passed on to it.
But what Si Yuan didn’t know was that the reason why this fruit was poisonous to him was because of his newly grown mycelium tentacle.
The slime molds’ diet consisted mostly of mushrooms.
Its newly grown red tentacle quietly retracted, avoiding getting caught by these slime molds.
The red tentacle had no consciousness of its own but due to bodily instincts, it occasionally made autonomous reactions. For example, when entering a strange environment, spores may be subconsciously ejected.
Special property: Spore Burst.
Organisms infected by mycelium can be controlled by the mother plant.
In order to control the eruption of spores, the Eternal Life Abyss was working hard to perform artificial tanning.
A thin layer of black skin has been growing on the surface of this red tentacle. It won’t be long before the appearance of this sixth tentacle will not be much different from the other tentacles.
In another two months, its cut off tentacles should grow back, though they would be thinner than before.
Si Chen didn’t want to stay too long and walked quickly through the slime mold, looking at the door to each lab room.
Logically speaking, humans weren’t part of the slime molds’ diet. But as he went deeper inside, the slime mold seemed to come alive, squirming in his direction.
Si Chen frowned and ignited flames around himself, burning the slime mold that had climbed almost to his chest.
But the tenacious slime mold still eroded a large portion of the protective clothing.
Sounds came pouring in from farther in.
Only then did Si Chen notice the sound of someone speaking inside a room.
“Doctor, we have discovered this new type of slime mold; it has a strong inhibitory effect on mycelium men!”
The sound came from the lab room before Si Chen. It couldn’t be determined from the voice whether it belonged to a male or female. The emotion couldn’t be discerned either.
The sound that reached Si Chen’s ears was sometimes loud and sometimes soft.
“You did very well.”
“We should make it public! We should perform further research in this direction and cultivate a stronger generation of slime mold. Sooner or later, we can completely control the mycelium men!”
“Wait, Baihua——”
When he heard the word “Baihua”, Si Chen couldn’t remain calm.
Although he never willingly thought about it, he never forgot.
His adoptive father’s name is Si Baihua.
Si Chen even took off his helmet and slowly moved closer to the source of the sound.
“Baihua, this kind of slime mold can deal with ordinary mycelium but it is still ineffective against evolved mycelium… They will come back again. Public opinion is too pessimistic right now. If it fails, we cannot bear the consequences. Moreover, some mycelium men still retain their sanity. If we kill of the mycelium, they will also die.”
“I think we need a safer way.”
“…You’re right, doctor.”
After a brief pause, the second conversation began.
“Doctor, please, let put the slime mold solution to use immediately. This technology is now quite mature! After it is put into use, as long as most of the mycelium-infected people are eliminated, we won’t even need to establish a survivor base at all!
“Let’s not talk about this for now. Why didn’t you use the mycelium capsule I gave you last time?”
“I don’t want to be a mycelium man, Doctor.”
Spores erupted and tiny spores burrowed into Si Chen’s nasal cavity. With the Eternal Life Abyss, he wouldn’t be infected but it feel a bit like he was suffocating.
Si Chen began to stride forward, the flames burning a path. The slime mold on the walls fluttered down as ash.
The voices continued.
“We built this laboratory to keep you in a sterile environment at all times. But you are now 40 years old. The older you get, the more your energy will decline; your memory will deteriorate and most importantly, you will die. .The current average life span of human beings is 39 years old. You have to think clearly.”
“I will consider it, Doctor. I am willing to give up all patents and give up all honors. You can claim to the outside world that this is the result of research and development by you and Serpent Staff Gene.”
“Si Baihua, I admire your talent very much. You’ve always reminded me of myself when I was young. You are my most promising heir.”
“But you forgot one thing…”
“What?”
“I’m a mycelium man.”
Finally, Si Chen wiped off the slime mold on the door and saw the lab room number.
【13】.
He threw the door open.
When he saw what was inside, Si Chen was overcome with astonishment.
It wasn’t a recording or a holographic image.
The incandescent light overhead wasn’t bright.
Under the light, two mycelium men in white coats stood face to face. Their bodies were covered with densely packed small mushrooms, the caps of which were as small as a dot.
They weren’t the kind of mycelium men with made of mycelium stuffed inside human skins, but rather, complete “mycelium lifeforms”.
The mycelium that grew out of the slime mold barely formed two human figures.
Slime molds are living organisms and so are mycelium.
Si Chen suddenly remembered the introduction to the museum he’d seen before.
[Research has found that mycelium lifeforms we once thought to have no intelligence are evolving, showing strong imitation and learning abilities. Perhaps one day, a mycelium lifeform may rise to replace humans to be the overlord of this biosphere.]
Similar to how, even though they’d lost the control of the mother plant, the mycelium men still headed to the museum as per habit.
These slime mold people were simulating scenes from the past.
The voices began to repeat. “Doctor, we have discovered this new type of slime mold…”
The aura being given off by these two slime mold people was very strong. The data being displayed by the prosthetic eye was constantly jumping. Si Chen had encountered the same situation when he wanted to assess White King..
They showed no aggression towards visitors. They simply turned their heads stiffly.
Where their eyes should be, there were two dark holes. In these cave-like holes, blood-red hyphae were squirming.
Si Chen felt his cheeks heating up. He reached out and touched the side of his face, where he found a piece of freshly grown mushroom.
The Eternal Life Abyss also made a soft cry. “Chirp chirp!”
The sixth tentacle swelled quickly and uncontrollably, bursting through the new skin. It was so red, it looked as though it were about to drip blood.
It hugged Si Chen’s neck tightly.
The line on Si Chen back cracked open and the Eternal Life Abyss went back in.
Si Chen took out the syringe and injected himself with slime mold solution.
…
…
Outside the laboratory.
Song Ziyu and Sheng Wu were sitting in the rest area on the second floor of the museum.
Because of the crisis of trust, they kept a short distance between them.
Both of them were waiting for Si Chen to come out.
Song Ziyu was getting a little bored of waiting. He held the floating cannon and counted the small mushrooms in the corner.
In the middle of counting, Song Ziyu suddenly turned his head.
Sheng Wu had unexpectedly arrived at his side.
“What are you doing?” Song Ziyu looked at him warily, “Don’t think you can get close just because you’ve got Shen Yanxing’s body.”
Dr. Sheng smiled and said, “You are more vigilant than I thought.”
Though they say ‘one pregnancy, three years of stupidity‘, Song Ziyu wasn’t really pregnant and he wasn’t really stupid.
He is the most superior descendant of Song Family’s younger generation and he had an instinct for danger.
Sheng Wu: “I originally thought this body was pretty good. But suddenly I realized, maybe the body in your belly is even better?”
Song Ziyu’s body instantly distorted. His body expanded, almost bursting through the protective suit.
He let out a low, menacing wolf howl. “Are you looking for death?”
Dr. Sheng scratched his head. “I wouldn’t say that. Oh, by the way, did I tell you two…”
“Inside the third floor laboratory, aside from the slime mold solution, there’s an evolved mother plant?”
Don’t touch pregnant man!!!!
Thank you for your translation 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙
Hating this fungus
😨😨😨