Chapter 1584: Fungus
The Game Government had already obtained detailed information about D07-013, and the fungi there should have been thoroughly studied, hence the existence of such complete records.
According to this information, Zone 013 was a place with many rainforests and waters. The entire zone's land was scattered, accounting for only one-tenth of the total area, and most of the land was dominated by rainforests, humid and hot. Many places were quite unsuitable for human habitation. Coupled with the massive and rapid evolution of various fungi in this environment, in extremely few places, one simply couldn't enter without wearing a gas mask.
This highlighted the advantage of scattered land, because the evolution of many fungi or mutant animals and plants hadn't stopped due to the increase in the number of players. The endless growth had encroached upon many areas that once belonged to humans, and bodies of water served as the best natural barriers.
Regarding books on fungi, even the table of contents alone was a thick volume.
It was impossible to read all the books in a short time, so he only selected the Highly Toxic section and the Bizarre section to understand.
The Highly Toxic section wasn't hard to understand; it covered fungi with violent toxicity. Unlike the commonly known poisonous mushrooms used for food or the metabolites produced after parasitizing food, these were more extensive and bizarre. Besides those visible to the naked eye, there were even more that were invisible and harder to guard against. After evolution, some could even survive in extremely harsh environments, drifting with the wind or attaching to tiny objects for long-term survival.
In this section, there was a highly toxic fungus named "Fish-Eating Fungus," which could lodge in the internal organs of live fish, traveling across oceans via fish to regenerate on another land—this was a real tragedy that had occurred. Due to the invasion of this fungus, the overall environment of that land had changed, some fungi there had mutated, many people died, and it ultimately ended with the surviving humans having to abandon their homeland.
It was worth mentioning that the technology in this zone was not advanced. It didn't even have some of the well-known weapons found in Zone 014, and aviation conditions were very poor. Travel between lands basically relied on ships.
But this didn't mean ocean voyages were safe. The weather at sea was violent, and there were endless mutated sea fish lurking in the ocean. The mortality rate for ordinary people crossing the sea was very high. It could be said that unless absolutely necessary, no one would travel between lands.
If evolved players were strong enough, they might be able to change the situation in Zone 013. However, children born here were poisoned starting from the womb. Even if they managed to grow up after birth, their lifespans wouldn't be long. As a result, this zone had once produced many talented players, but only a few actually managed to survive to B-level and A-level.
Logically, in such a zone, with human health in this state, the total population should have plummeted in a very short time. But surprisingly, after only five years of population decline, the people of Zone 013 tenaciously survived and even evolved a certain degree of toxin resistance—some people could allow various fungi to mutually restrain and coexist on their bodies.
Initially, the Game Government was interested in this special evolution. But after extensive research, they discovered that although the people of this zone had no major problems in reproducing offspring, the fetuses eroded by toxins in the womb were not better adapted to symbiosis with fungi than their parents. This meant that even if these people could survive or extend their lifespans somewhat compared to their parents, they still wouldn't reach normal human standards.
Having lost interest in the people of Zone 013, the Game Government became more meticulous in their statistics on fungi. At least this zone contributed 127 entries to the S-grade fungal toxins currently existing in the game.
127 types of S-grade highly toxic fungi—one could imagine how many people had died here.
The Bizarre section mainly annotated some fungi that could cause strange changes in animals and plants.
For example, a fungus called "Red Cloud." After lodging in a living body, it would quickly occupy the host's digestive tract and produce a large amount of gas. However, when the host expelled gas, it would bring the fungi out. Because the quantity was so large, scenes would occur where burping caused red mist to spray from the mouth.
This type of fungus itself didn't threaten human life in the short term, but its color and smell particularly attracted a mutated bird called the "Head-Turning Bird." This bird's neck could rotate 360 degrees without blind spots. It wasn't large, but its beak was sharp. It could drill through a person's mouth into the esophagus to peck, quickly boring through the intestines and stomach. Many people died because of this bird, leading to a long period where people and livestock in areas with Red Cloud fungus growth had to wear metal muzzles.
There was also a fungus called "Skin Fungus." After infection, it could cause a person's skin to completely fall off within a year—this one-year record came from the only person who survived until the day all their skin fell off. Most people died within half a year due to various infections.
In short, many fungi in the Bizarre section didn't have the ability to kill quickly. Some could accompany a person for several years or even a decade, but they would exhibit symptoms beyond ordinary poisoning. Things like "Red Cloud Fungus" and "Skin Fungus" weren't even the strangest. Some fungi could parasitize the uterus, causing women to show signs of pregnancy and even childbirth. Ultimately, what was born was actually a fungal corpse carrying a large number of spores.
But the process didn't end after "childbirth." This type of fungus would cause the woman to continue the cycle of pregnancy and childbirth until she died.
Seeing a small part reveals the whole. From these fungi, one could understand the harshness of the living environment for the people of Zone 013.
The only thing to be grateful for was that it was hard to find another place in the game as suitable for the reproduction of these fungi as Zone 013.
Xu Huo flipped to the last page of the book, where a researcher had written a passage:
"We have tried various methods to solve the predicament of Zone 013: massive irrigation with sterilizing agents, cultivating fungi that devour their own kind, altering the climate and environment... But none of these methods could effectively curb fungal growth."
"This is a place suitable and only suitable for fungal growth. Without humans and animals, they could even survive on plants, soil, and rocks until all matter is consumed."
There was nothing after that. It was unknown what kind of people the Game Government had sent out. In any case, the final result of these people was to collect a large number of fungi for experimental research, then compile them into data and books.
The Game Government had no further interest in this place.
"You're looking at the information on Zone 013 too?" A young man who seemed outgoing and cheerful came over and pointed at the seat opposite Xu Huo. "Mind if I sit down?"
Xu Huo made a "please" gesture and followed up, "Are you going to D07-013 Zone?"
"Yeah," the other party gave a hearty smile, revealing a row of white teeth. "Let's get to know each other. My name is Chi Xian."
(Chapter End)