The mutated fruit flies were extremely vile. Under normal circumstances, fruit flies subsisted on fruits. After a few days, any fruit left at home would quickly reveal tiny worms around it. These small flying insects were, in fact, fruit flies, and there were many species of them in the world. However, in the apocalypse, after undergoing mutation, their bodies had grown considerably larger. The energy obtained from eating fruit was no longer sufficient to meet their needs, so these fruit flies began to target humans.
If a fruit fly discovered a human, it would immediately fly to their side. These fruit flies were very small, about the size of mosquitoes. Although their size had increased significantly compared to before, such tiny insects were difficult for people to deal with. Ordinary people would simply swat them to death, while most others would ignore them, believing these insects posed no threat. However, this was a grave mistake.
Even before mutation, these insects possessed formidable flight capabilities. They could penetrate the skin of many fruits to lay eggs inside, causing the fruit to rot. Now, once these fruit flies landed on humans, they would lay eggs beneath the skin. These larvae would then develop within the human body, and upon maturity, would bore a hole through the skin and fly out. The nutrients they obtained during development came entirely from the human body.
Therefore, if an ordinary person was parasitized by these insects, within a few days, their body would develop numerous holes, from which more tiny worms would emerge.
It would have been one thing if ordinary people died after such an attack. However, many people managed to survive for a period after being attacked. During this time, they would endure endless suffering until they were tortured to death.
Many people watched helplessly as worms gnawed a hole through their skin and flew out. The sensation was akin to someone constantly drilling inside their body, causing not only physical damage but also a severe mental blow.
After a few days, human bodies would resemble beehives, appearing mangled and riddled with holes from which insects could emerge at any moment.
The simplest way to counter these insect attacks was to cover oneself completely. This way, the insects would find no place to land and could not detect human skin, thus preventing them from laying eggs. Seizing this opportunity, people could then fight back against these fruit flies.
When a patch of black mist appeared in the distance, people knew that the mutated fruit flies had arrived. These damned insects had set their sights on them.
Fruit flies possessed incredibly keen senses of smell. Even if someone ate a fruit on the 20th floor and discarded the core, fruit flies hundreds of meters away could detect the scent of the fruit and fly to the location to find the fruit remnants for reproduction.
In the apocalypse, the sense of smell of these insects had been further enhanced. However, they now used their enhanced sense of smell not to find fruit, but to locate humans in the forest.
When humans exerted themselves, they secreted a significant amount of sweat. This sweat had a distinct odor in the air. Most people could not detect the smell of sweat, but many animals with keen senses of smell could discern human scent and track them.
Now, people wore gas masks to protect their heads, wore gloves, and even wrapped their legs with gaiters inside their shoes, ensuring that their skin was rarely exposed.
"The high-pressure gas cylinders have been retrieved. Should we open them now?" a soldier asked after retrieving the cylinders.
Shen Feng then said, "Quickly open the valves of these cylinders. Since everyone is wearing gas masks, in the upcoming battle, you must stay alert and stick together. No one should be separated!"
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately sprang into action. Many soldiers opened their personal high-pressure gas cylinders. These cylinders were very heavy, each weighing several hundred pounds. They contained compressed toxic gas, specifically created by Chu Chaoyan.
"Hiss," as the valves of the high-pressure cylinders were opened, countless yellow-green gas erupted. People quickly moved away from the gas, but the unsuspecting insects in the air were drawn towards it. The insects were not large, only the size of mosquitoes, and one by one, they plunged into the yellow-green gas.
The fruit flies were clearly unaware of the dangers of the toxic gas. All insects needed to breathe, and generally, their respiratory systems were composed of organs. These insects did not possess lungs like humans or other mammals, but they had numerous organs that simplified their respiration.
However, chlorine gas specifically targeted the respiratory system. It could cause the respiratory organs of humans or other animals to fail in a short period. As for these insects, their small size made them even more vulnerable to the toxic gas. After entering the gas, they fell to the ground one after another in a short time, clearly dead.
"Everyone, hold onto whatever is nearby. I'm about to use my abilities," Shen Feng said.
Upon hearing this, people rushed into the nearby woods and tightly embraced tree trunks. They knew that when the City Lord unleashed his abilities, it would create earth-shattering movements, with sand and rocks flying everywhere. If they didn't hold onto nearby objects, they could easily be blown into the sky.
The fruit flies in the air, upon reaching the vicinity of the human army, began to fly in all directions, flapping their delicate wings, searching for human skin. As soon as they found exposed skin, they would land and lay eggs. This was their primary method of reproduction. However, after flying for a long time, these insects found that no human skin was exposed.
Humans were excellent learners. Once they identified their weaknesses, they would immediately rectify them, making themselves stronger. Thus, the methods that proved effective for humans the first time would no longer work the second time.
Shen Feng took this opportunity to unleash his abilities. If he wanted to drive these insects away, he only needed to use "Vast East Wind," and these insects would be blown away. However, Shen Feng did not use this ability at this moment; instead, he was using "Eye of the Hurricane."
This technique was the first Shen Feng had learned. At that time, he could already use whirlwinds to clear zombies. Now, Shen Feng had become the only eighth-tier ability user on Earth. With his current power, the moment he unleashed his ability, a massive tornado would appear on the ground.
Thousands of high-pressure gas cylinders were opened simultaneously, and countless yellow-green gases spread through the air. The soldiers, already equipped with gas masks, no longer needed to breathe external air. The tornado appeared in the air and immediately gathered the surrounding toxic gas, directing it towards the distant black mist.
The black mist appearing in the sky in the distance was clearly composed of countless insects. As these insects appeared in the air, they began to spread. From afar, the individual insects were no longer important, as they gathered together like a fog, shrouding the entire forest. Even powerful mutated beasts, upon encountering these insects, could only flee in disarray, lacking any courage to resist.
However, soon, a colossal pillar appeared in the air. This pillar was formed by toxic gas, and its color was yellow-green. Countless fruit flies in the vicinity were drawn into the wind pillar. As long as a fruit fly was caught in it, within a few seconds, its respiratory system would be destroyed, and it would instantly die.
Chu Chaoyan, witnessing this scene in the sky, could not feel happy. She understood that this powerful move was contingent on her continuous production of toxic gas. This attack could only be executed once, as all the toxic gas in the high-pressure cylinders had been released.
"Now I have to get busy. What a sin!" Chu Chaoyan couldn't help but sigh.
Yu Renshu quickly comforted her, "It's alright. As long as we find the fruit flies' nest and drop poison there, these insects won't survive. We just need to hold on a little longer."
"Finding the insects' nest is easier said than done. We still have to cross the Jinsha River, Lancang River, and Nu River, and search carefully in the vast mountains. Although the insects' nest is quite large, it cannot cover the entire mountain range. Traveling is the most difficult part," Chu Chaoyan complained.
When the tornado appeared in the mountains, countless trees and plants were swept up. It was autumn, and many trees had already shed their leaves. The fallen leaves and branches were carried into the air, continuously flying around, severely reducing visibility. The impact on the people was also significant. Many people tightly held onto nearby objects, no longer caring about the insects, because if they let go, they would surely be swept into the sky.
Those who did not manage to grab onto trees began to huddle together, truly banding together. Twenty to thirty people clung to each other. Their combined weight made it difficult for them to be easily swept away.
Shen Feng flew into the sky, controlling the tornado to engulf the fruit flies. After half an hour of battle, all the fruit flies were eliminated. The ground was covered in flying sand and rocks, with much of the dust mixed with the fruit fly corpses.
"These ignorant fools, see if you dare to attack us again!" Xu Xing couldn't help but curse.
After waiting for another 10 minutes, the dust and leaves in the air slowly settled, and the tornado ceased its swirling. The ground was left in a state of disarray. Many people were blown about haphazardly. Some had their gas masks covered in dust, unable to see their surroundings, and could only ask blankly, "Is the battle over?"