Chapter 322 - 271: Strange Pheromones
Zhang Su didn’t have time to dawdle in Kuanzhuang; delivering the message would suffice, and the rest was up to Lei Youliang to figure out on his own.
What he needed to think about now was how to reinforce the defenses of Celestial Horse Island and how to handle the mess left by the Cyan Dragon Corps!
Based on the situation when leaving Qing County, and the feedback in his mind regarding the number of troops, it could be determined that the Cyan Dragon Corps was already doomed, but he couldn’t just let it go because the corps was overrun by zombies.
Though many people in the Cyan Dragon Corps had been killed by zombies, there were still plenty of resources, equipment and weapons left, even if there was some loss. Especially tanks; zombies couldn’t dismantle tanks, except for 004…
“Brother Su, do you think those guys in Kuanzhuang will abandon this little girl?”
Lu Yubo was a bit uneasy and muttered, “We should have captured a few more people just now, that way we’d have more leverage!”
“Bozai, we’re not officially at war with Kuanzhuang; it’s mainly about interests, understand, interests!”
Zhang Su curled his lip; the material resources of Kuanzhuang were one aspect, and the human resources were another concern of his.
The casualties in the Cyan Dragon Corps left him with a heavy heart. From the information gathered earlier, it seemed that there were probably less than a thousand survivors in the entire Qing County, and suddenly two hundred were dead!
This made him realize the importance of the population…
Problems like attracting zombies and internal strife could be solved through management, power, or suppression, but if there were no people…
Imagine the whole area of Qing County, or more exaggeratedly, even Qin City being virtually empty, with Celestial Horse Island as the only camp. At that point, they’d be facing a massive zombie attack alone!
“Hey, really, I think that guy with the surname Lei is very cunning. Would he just leave you alone?” Zhang Su turned to look at Su Xiaoya.
“Definitely not!” Su Xiaoya answered, clenching her fist, “Uncle Lei isn’t that kind of person!”
“How well do you know what kind of person your Uncle Lei is? Anyway, I’m not feeding you for nothing. Starting tomorrow, you’ll work in the fields, or you won’t have anything to eat. When Kuanzhuang comes to redeem you, you can stop working as labor.”
Zhang Su said leisurely.
“Humph.” Su Xiaoya didn’t argue, thinking to herself that she would just work.
“Hm?!”
“What now?”
Unexpectedly, Su Xiaoya just snorted lightly, but it triggered a strong reaction from Zhang Su, who had been lounging, suddenly sat up straight, his face full of utmost seriousness!
Lu Yubo also found it a bit strange. He knew Zhang Su well enough to know he wouldn’t get angry with the little girl for such a thing.
“It’s nothing, I just suddenly wanted to go to the restroom!”
Zhang Su replied nonchalantly to the surprised looks of those around him, then glanced at the direction of Qing County from the rearview mirror.
Just now, the number representing the population of the Cyan Dragon Corps had started to drop again, and it was decreasing very rapidly. Even during the brief disruption caused by Su Xiaoya, it had dropped by ten people in less than thirty seconds!
Moreover, the decrease hadn’t stopped. In less than two minutes, it had fallen from over a hundred to fifty-two…
At the same time, the leading number “1” suddenly turned into “3”, 3/52.
Suddenly, an evil thought flashed through Zhang Su’s mind: if everyone in the Cyan Dragon Corps was wiped out except for Xin Qi and two others, wouldn’t the challenge task be effortlessly completed?
From the current trend, there was indeed that possibility…
“It really is a click-and-get.” Zhang Su couldn’t help but think to himself.
A short while later, the convoy returned to Celestial Horse Island.
Zhang Su jumped off the vehicle and saw the camp guards approaching with camping lamps. He immediately said, “Starting from tomorrow, initiate the second phase of defensive enhancement planning. The walls, weapons, protective gear, and trenches should all be on the agenda. Old Yu, Xiaoliu, check what materials are needed and write them down, this must be expedited!”
“Huh? Oh, alright!”
Liu Tianji thought he could relax a bit after returning to the camp, didn’t expect to receive such urgent tasks right off the vehicle.
Yuwen didn’t speak, just nodded solemnly; he could see the urgency in Zhang Su’s expression.
After witnessing the Cyan Dragon Corps being besieged by zombies, Zhang Su felt an indescribable sense of urgency.
Initially, he thought Celestial Horse Island could comfortably withstand attacks from a thousand-headed zombie horde, but now he thought differently.
Over time, though the global number of zombies was indeed slowly decreasing, scattered zombies were also slowly coming together, forming large hordes.
In the future, people might not easily encounter stray or small groups of zombies. Once they did, it would be overwhelming…
Of course, by that time, as humanity advanced and more firearms were re-deployed, their ability to resist zombies would also be strengthened!
The premise is…
Never again should there be a mutant like 004 being created.
Just like in the era before the outbreak, uncontrollable technology should always be sealed in laboratories; once released, it spells disaster!
Zhang Su couldn’t imagine the burden a monster like 004 would bring to humanity if it got out of hand, and he felt a bit concerned.
All the way back, he hadn’t thought of a good method to deal with 004, maybe setting it on fire was the only reliable way, but it would come at a heavy cost.
And this was just one; this was only in Qin City. Forget about the global scale; even nationwide, it would be a negligible corner among thousands of such cities. Who knew how many mad scientists like the Cyan Dragon Corps’ Edge Squad were researching and developing zombies!
“I hope humanity doesn’t continue to self-destruct…”
Zhang Su couldn’t help but pray.
Initially, he planned to talk with Xin Qi and the others, but feeling a bit tired and with some matters weighing on his mind, he decided to lie in bed and think about how to resolve the Cyan Dragon Corps’ issues.
As he was heading back, he noticed the container holding 003 wide open and empty inside.
“Ah!”
Zhang Su shouted, startling those around him.
“Where is 003? The giant zombie?”
Zhang Su pointed at the container truck, asking urgently.
wasn’t as powerful as 004, but when it went berserk, it was enough trouble for Celestial Horse Island!
“Over here, Mr. Zhang, don’t panic.”
Fu Weijun’s voice came from the other side of the container truck.
Zhang Su then realized that 003 had been moved out of the truck and was leaned against the other side of the carriage. He hadn’t noticed earlier because of the busy crowd.
“Brother Zhang, don’t worry, we got the gear ready. If it dares to riot, we’ll zap it directly with the electric cannon!”
Duan Wuhu walked out from behind the carriage, shaking the electric shock device in his hand.
Wang Xingui was also beside him, but his expression was noticeably less relaxed than Duan Wuhu’s, as dealing with such a formidable being wasn’t an easy task.
“Dr. Fu, any progress?”
Zhang Su walked closer, looking at 003, which looked like a pile of slime, slightly furrowing his brow.
“Yes!”
Fu Weijun was quite excited; though it was already eleven at night, he showed no signs of fatigue.
“I found the threshold to put it in a state of suspended animation, 180 volts!”
“Hmm…” Zhang Su wasn’t very interested in this data. Anyway, they always used very high voltage to ensure absolute control over 003. He asked, “Do you know what the pheromone is composed of?”
After acquiring the pheromone, Zhang Su had saved some for Fu Weijun to research. If it couldn’t be deciphered, then 003 would remain in a state of suspended animation forever.
“Ahem… It’s quite interesting.”
When Fu Weijun heard Zhang Su’s question, he displayed a rare strange expression.
“Interesting? What do you mean?”
Fu Weijun’s peculiar expression piqued Zhang Su’s curiosity.
“If my analysis is correct, the so-called pheromone should be… um… dried human male reproductive cells, commonly known as sperm.”
??
The expression on Zhang Su’s face instantly froze; Duan Wuhu and Wang Xingui were also taken aback.
“Pfft…” A moment later, Zhang Su couldn’t help but laugh, with a peculiar expression, “Dr. Fu, are you sure?”
“I participated in a reproductive-related project before, studied it thoroughly, I remember that smell…”
Fu Weijun spread his hands, saying.
“That’s really something…” Zhang Su gave a thumbs-up, “Zombies sure have peculiar hobbies!”
Knowing what it was sufficed, and it was quite easy to procure. As long as there was pheromone, 003 would be a formidable weapon.
“By the way.” Zhang Su’s mind again conjured the image of 004 in a fiery battle and quickly said, “Dr. Fu, could you research some fire-resistant fabric? 003 doesn’t need these bulletproof armor; it’s more reliable to give it a set of fireproof clothes!”
“Alright, I’ll figure something out.” Fu Weijun agreed fully.
Novel Full