Heavenly Tribulation
Early in the morning, a GL8 drove into Chongyun Village.
After the car stopped, Zhou Rui, Mi Qiao, and Gao Shu got out, carrying their equipment, and began their ascent into the mountains.
Their destination was the area where the lightning storm had occurred the night before, but they didn't need a guide. They simply used the tablet computer provided by "Shenxing Technology" and followed the route indicated on it.
Upon arrival, the three began taking photos and collecting other samples according to their established plan.
They naturally had far more information than ordinary people who watched the news; they clearly located the place where the bodies of the two fugitives were found, and even had photos taken by the police at the scene.
Standing where the body was found, comparing it to the photos taken at the time on the tablet, Mi Qiao frowned and said, "Generally speaking, would being struck by lightning result in such a terrible outcome?"
Zhou Rui nodded. "It's possible to be struck by direct lightning... but the probability is quite small."
His attention, however, was not on discovering the fugitive's body or the marks of being struck by lightning, but rather on a patch of "pure land" not far away.
The area where the bodies of the two fugitives were found was the most heavily struck by lightning; almost none of the nearby trees were spared, leaving a scene of devastation, and the ground was covered with traces of lightning strikes.
This made it clear that the two fugitives were likely just victims of the lightning storm's area-of-effect attack; at that point in time, this place was a death zone.
But there was one small area that stood out from the surrounding area, remaining perfectly intact.
If this area were further away, Zhou Rui wouldn't have noticed it at all, because lightning strikes aren't like rain; they can't possibly cover every corner of an area completely. But the area where they were now, where the bodies of the two fugitives were found, was the most densely struck by lightning, almost entirely covered, as if something was attracting the lightning. It was rather strange that such an intact spot appeared in the very center of the lightning strikes.
Zhou Rui was walking over, preparing to lie down and observe carefully, when he suddenly noticed several insects flapping their wings and flying out of the ground.
He paused for a moment, his first thought being that those insects seemed to be the same kind of "flying ants" he had caught earlier on a pedestrian street in Tongshi Town.
Zhou Rui rubbed his eyes, thinking he was seeing things, but when he went over and squatted down, he found another insect crawling out of the ground.
He quickly grabbed it, and upon closer inspection, it really was the same strange "flying ant" he had caught on the pedestrian street before.
Zhou Rui knelt down on the ground, bending over to observe carefully. He found that the soil in this area was particularly loose, and although it had experienced heavy rain the day before yesterday, it did not seem to have been "washed away".
"What is it?" Mi Qiao and Gao Shu also came over, squatted down beside them, and asked in a low voice.
Zhou Rui showed them the "flying ant" he was holding, his tone slightly excited. "It's the same kind of 'flying ant' I caught in Tongshi Town the day before yesterday. It crawled out of the soil. Could this thing... be the same as the 'giant raptor' and 'invisible insect' we investigated before?"
"The same thing?" Mi Qiao frowned as she looked at the winged ant in Zhou Rui's hand.
The main reason they came to investigate this area today was because the lightning storm the night before last was very similar to the one that occurred earlier in Purple Huan Mountain. They wanted to investigate whether the "giant raptor" had also appeared in this area when that lightning storm happened. After all, the "giant raptor" had appeared in the Wushu Mountain area before the Lunar New Year, which is not far from here.
It's not impossible that other signs of "Blood-feeding Creature" might be found here.
The problem is that she knows far more about "Blood-feeding Creature" than Zhou Rui does, so she knows very well that if these ants were indeed "Blood-feeding Creature," it would be impossible for Zhou Rui to catch them so easily, let alone for there to be so many of them in such a small area.
Zhou Rui also sensed the doubt in her voice and quickly added, "These are very likely just worker ants! Special, flying worker ants! Our target is likely the queen ant that laid these worker ants! Or even... the 'invisible insect' that we were tracking down when it fought the 'giant raptor'."
"Remember when we didn't find a single ant on the main peak of Wushu Mountain where the 'invisible insects' appeared? It's very likely because the 'invisible insects' are a special kind of ant! They drove the other ant colonies out of their territory! But for special reasons... such as being chased by that 'giant raptor', the other worker ants 'moved' away first. It's just that the queen ant... which is what we call the 'invisible insect', was too big and didn't have time to leave. She was entangled by the 'giant raptor'!"
"That night, at Wushu Mountain, we saw the 'giant raptor' dig open the ground, grab the 'invisible insect' and fly away, but we don't know if there was any further fighting afterward, or if the 'invisible insect' broke free and ran away again."
"Perhaps it later ran to Purple Huan Mountain, and the 'giant raptor' chased after it, and now it's here again."
Zhou Rui excitedly explained his conjecture: when he saw flying ants coming out from this side, he suddenly imagined several enormous winged ants with black carapaces, like monsters from another dimension or the abyss, bursting out of the ground, flapping their wings and soaring into the air.
This was a dream he had last night, which he still remembered clearly after waking up. However, when he first woke up, he didn't think too much about it, assuming it was just because he had seen that "invisible insect" before and caught a very peculiar ant the day before yesterday, which was why he had this dream.
But at this moment, in the middle of this area ravaged by the lightning storm, looking at the place that looked like an ant nest, looking at the "flying ants" he had just caught, and recalling their earlier investigation of the lightning storm that occurred at Purple Huan Mountain in Citong City, and recalling the video provided by the information department that showed what appeared to be a "giant raptor," those images from his dream suddenly became an inspiration that lit up his thinking, leading him to these conjectures.
These conjectures filled him with both excitement and fear.
He was probably more excited than anything else, since he had always liked ants and studied them, and he never imagined that he might discover a species of ant that was unprecedented and could be described as magical.
Mi Qiao frowned and said, "But we didn't find any trace of these ants in the area of Purple Huan Mountain where the lightning strike occurred."
Zhou Rui said, "The area we investigated and sampled before was relatively small, and because of the appearance of those two policemen, there were many places we missed, which may have been overlooked."
Mi Qiao could sense that Zhou Rui had an inexplicable confidence in his conjecture, as if he already believed it to be true.
"You mean, the lightning storms that occurred in Purple Huan Mountain and here are the way that 'invisible insect' uses to defend itself? It can control lightning?" Based on Mi Qiao's understanding of "Blood-feeding Creature," even if a "Blood-feeding Creature" mutates to a great extent, it is impossible for it to single-handedly trigger or control such a powerful force as a lightning storm.
"It might not be control... It's possible that in certain states, their physical characteristics change, making them exceptionally conductive, thus affecting the point of impact of direct lightning strikes and attracting lightning storms. By the way, our folk tales often mention that after cultivating, spirits and monsters undergo heavenly tribulations... I'm not suddenly becoming superstitious, what I mean is... could our ancient legends describe similar creatures? It's possible that these very special lightning storms are the reason for the appearance of unusual creatures, including 'invisible insects' and 'giant birds of prey'?" Zhou Rui said.
Mi Qiao recalled Zhou Rui's earlier analogy using Godzilla, knowing that his childish fantasies were igniting again, so she didn't respond. But she also felt that Zhou Rui's conjecture wasn't entirely absurd; the lightning storm that occurred at Purple Huan Mountain and here might indeed be related, and the winged ants that Zhou Rui discovered had been confirmed to be different from ordinary ants and other hymenopteran insects, so there was definitely something wrong with them.
She looked at the patch of soil in front of her that Zhou Rui thought was an anthill, which looked a bit loose, and asked, "You mean, the queen ant is down there right now?"
"Possibly." Zhou Rui paused, then said something that made Mi Qiao frown, "But it's also possible that he was struck by lightning and reduced to ashes the night before last."
Zhou Rui and Mi Qiao naturally couldn't find the queen ant in that "suspected" ant nest, because Xiang Kun hadn't "arranged" for the queen ant to be there at all. The so-called ant nest was actually just something that Xiang Kun controlled with a few beads to help some worker ants make in the soil, mainly to remove the traces he and Lao Xia had left there.
However, he was indeed guiding Zhou Rui to connect the lightning storm with the ants, as well as the previous "mutant ants" and "mutant birds".
Previously, on the pedestrian street, he deliberately let Zhou Rui discover the "flying worker ant" so that he could use the equipment and personnel of "Shenxing Technology" to study the specific characteristics of the "flying worker ants" produced by "Zero Zero Two" and then obtain this information directly through Mi Qiao or Zhou Rui. At the same time, he also wanted to see the process of "Shenxing Technology" in dealing with and handling this suspected "Mutated Creature".
Today's further guidance of Zhou Rui serves two purposes: first, to mislead "Shenxing Technology's " focus on the two lightning storms; and second, to set up a scheme, fabricating a relatively powerful "Mutated Creature" to test how "Shenxing Technology"Mutated Creature would deal with it, and even what kind of reinforcements would be sent if Mi Qiao's team couldn't handle it, and whether it could attract "Mr. Liang" or other people with higher authority and more information.
Of course, he wouldn't set up the "testing ground" in the Chongyun Mountain Region, since it's relatively close to Chongyun Village, which is the territory he plans to develop in the future.
As for the "bait," it won't be ants like "Zero Zero One" or "Zero Zero Two," which are already directly associated with him and have entered the "Super-Sensing Item System."
He planned to have "Zero Zero Two" produce some new colonies, give birth to some new queens, and cultivate one or more secondary colonies to serve as "bait".
However, for the time being, the queen ant laid by "Zero Zero Two" does not meet Xiang Kun's requirements. He needs to further train and cultivate "Zero Zero Two" to make it understand the type of secondary queen ant and ant colony it needs, and find a way to give the secondary queen ant more abilities through "Zero Zero Two".
At this moment, Xiang Kun and Xia Libing were standing on their rooftop, looking at the GL8 parked in the distance beside the mountain path.
"Are you going into the mountains?" Xia Libing asked.
Xiang Kun knew she was asking him whether he should go and spy on Mi Qiao and Zhou Rui's investigation progress in the mountains, as well as the situation of the "flying worker ants" they had arranged.
"No, we can just ask Mi Qiao or Zhou Rui about the progress in their dreams later. Anyway, today is just 'planting a seed,' and we haven't determined exactly where it will sprout yet."
Xiang Kun spoke, he glanced at the number "Zero Zero One" on Xia Libing's palm beside him. The large ant was lying Zhengyi School, seemingly asleep.
"Zero Zero One" has molted seven times, its body growing from small to large and then back to smaller, becoming smooth and shiny all over. It is not only different in size from the "flying worker ants" produced by "Zero Zero Two", but also in appearance, resembling a "mecha warrior" in the ant world. These changes are all to adapt to Xiang Kun's "modification needs". However, these changes still do not exceed the genetic limits of ants, or rather, Hymenoptera.
Xia Libing had been trying to establish a special connection with the ants associated with Xiang Kun, similar to the connection with Coin and Black Circle Graffiti, but she had not been able to succeed.
Although Lao Xia couldn't establish a connection or deep relationship with these ants like Xiang Kun could, and couldn't give them commands, they still had a kind of closeness to Lao Xia that was different from other creatures.
Just like now, "Zero Zero One" can stay motionless and very comfortable in Lao Xia's palm. The previous queen ant "Zero Zero Two" could also be picked up by Lao Xia for inspection and photography without resisting, flying away or attacking. Moreover, this was not because of Xiang Kun's order, but because of their own initiative.
Actually, at the beginning, neither "Zero Zero One" nor "Zero Zero Two" had this awareness, but later Lao Xia tried a special method - she fed the two ants cakes that she "manifested".
Of course, Xiang Kun couldn't yet confirm whether "Zero Zero One" and "Zero Zero Two" were being affectionate towards Lao Xia because they had been fed the cake, or simply because they had gotten used to Lao Xia's scent after spending so much time together.
After all, ants cannot be tamed or raised by humans; their cognitive abilities are much, much narrower than those of cats or birds.
For the time being, Xiang Kun only has two associated ants, "Zero Zero One" and "Zero Zero Two", and no other associated ants for control experiments. As for the other "flying worker ants" and "small worker ants", they all have the same behavioral pattern towards Lao Xia because of the influence of "Zero Zero Two".
Xiang Kun looked at the "Zero Zero One" in Lao Xia's hand and said, "I'm going to the mountains today to try to establish an ant colony, embed it into a small ecosystem, and adjust its morphology and abilities. I'll be back before the blood-drinking period. If Zicheng or Deputy Director Liu contact me, please handle them for me. I'll leave my phone with you." He was going into the deep mountains for an overnight, continuous experiment, so Lao Xia naturally couldn't come along.
"Should we prepare some rabbit meat first?" Xia Libing asked.
"If I'm not back by Sunday morning, please get everything ready for me," Xiang Kun said.
Thanks to the new leader Que Shiyi, and thanks to the following book friends: go2go, 20171120215554764, Qingfeng Fuyue, Shuaiqi de lkj, Zongzai Huiyi lai Cai Kande Qing, Qingjin Yi Nian Yuan Qiong Nian, Xiao Zhizi, 20191209032800467, Fangting, Shen Shang Bing, Nan Gong Tu, Shi Guang Dai Dai Ni Wo, liskyrim, Damon·, Hezi de Mao, Xing Zhan, ABC Theory, Da Gu Qiu Jian, Mo Du Rensheng, Shui Chengcheng, Hongxiu Tan Chen, Wo de Mu Zi Qu Na Le, Caiji Zhong De Feiji, Yaoshou La Sha Ren Sha Fang Huo La, Yu Qianmeng, 20190930182738159, Du Ni Die, Feng Yu Hua Xi Yang, Kang Ri Xiao Ying Xiong Yun Lai, wZhen Qian Bu Jue Qing Shen w, Long Tao Ge 66, Yi Dongyue 0 Pioneer, Xia Mi ai Yue, Reader 1192721358939283456, I am the Black Dragon King Nidhogg, Love, the sky will brighten, Wan Qiang, Wuwei AIR, Tokyo Emotional Radio, City Culture Chrysanthemum, Bei Yu, Sheng Xiao Yi Xi, Du Gu Yu, Li Mo Jie, Yuan Meng Die, Right White Mouse, wtong, Heaven's Tears, Little Elegy, Mo, _Sleep Again in Summer_, Lu Ye, Xing Chen Ming Hua Yang, l Mu Yu l, Old Driver Going to Kindergarten, Happy Rural Child, Xun Li She Ji, DM Chi Wen Yao, Bookworm Starving Because the Author Delays Updates, Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong Chong, Da Qin DQ, Next Door Bear, Pillow A, Crazy Awkward, Zi Qiong, Shining Mushroom, Italily, He En, Human Strange Reward.