Chapter 897: Insects [+1]
Chapter 897: Insects [+1]
The village on the island looked harmonious and lively, with the villagers extremely enthusiastic.
However, Zhang Yi always felt that something was off.
He never hesitated to suspect the worst in people's hearts.
If it had been in the past, encountering such a warm village might have made him happy.
But now, with the apocalypse approaching one year, resources were extremely scarce everywhere.
And the residents of this village were so warmly hosting them, which always made Zhang Yi feel uneasy.
However, his Echo of Time instinct did not detect any crisis.
Moreover, the fruit trees indeed had enough fruit for many people to eat. Perhaps the villagers were simply genuinely hospitable.
At present, Zhang Yi did not have much patience to continue drifting at sea.He had to quickly find a suitable place to settle the people on the ship.
So he did not rush to take any action but quietly told Zhou Ke’er, Old Tian, and the others:
“Don’t let your guard down. We’ve encountered too many strange things at sea. Let’s observe for a while first.”
“Let them help us test the waters.”
Zhang Yi’s gaze looked toward the passengers who had entered the locals’ houses.
Since landing on the island, Zhang Yi had not interfered with any of their actions.
He wanted them to help test if there was any danger on the island.
However, among so many people, some were cautious like Zhang Yi and his group. They had not eaten the fruit and did not dare to enter the unfamiliar villagers’ houses rashly.
Seeing this, several women came over to invite Zhang Yi and his group to eat.
Zhang Yi only said calmly, “Thank you. We have already eaten.”
The women repeatedly invited them, but Zhang Yi remained indifferent. The woman’s face showed a strange smile before she left without paying them further attention. s
While the others were eating, Zhang Yi took Zhou Ke’er and the others to casually stroll around the island.
This island was very peculiar. It was not too large, roughly the size of one district of Tianhai City.
The entire island was covered with strange fruit trees that actually extended from a single tree.
“What’s this?”
Zhou Ke’er suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
Zhang Yi followed her gaze and discovered a clear pond not far away.
This made Zhang Yi greatly surprised and cautious.
The temperature in this area had already dropped to about minus ten degrees Celsius. Forget about freshwater, even the seawater near the shore would freeze.
He kept his gun’s safety on and carefully walked over to inspect.
As he got closer, he smelled a strong sweet scent, almost sickeningly sweet.
The pond, about a dozen square meters in size, was crystal clear to the bottom. It was unclear how deep it was, but it was entirely filled with syrup.
“Could it be that the fruit fell and rotted into this?”
Zhang Yi muttered to himself.
But inadvertently, he saw something in the pond that immediately made his brows knit tightly.
In the clear water, a human skull was floating.
Zhang Yi’s expression suddenly changed drastically, and he quickly stood up.
“I knew something was strange about this island! We can’t stay here any longer. Leave immediately!”
He grabbed Zhou Ke’er’s hand and quickly walked back.
At the same time, he ordered Old Tian to notify all passengers on the island to return to the ship immediately.
Although it was still unclear what was on the island, Zhang Yi’s first intuition was always very accurate.
Seeing Zhang Yi’s serious expression, Old Tian and the crew did not dare to be careless.
They had sailed for many years and knew that many strange things happened at sea, so they would not be as negligent as the passengers.
The group returned by the same route and arrived at the village they had passed earlier.
Zhu Yunque had just handed Tommy over to a very warm-looking woman and now seemed relieved, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
“Everyone, return to the ship immediately. We are leaving!”
Old Tian shouted loudly through the loudspeaker.
Many people were still eating in the villagers’ houses.
They had not enjoyed authentic delicious food for a long time and were reluctant to leave.
Some cautious passengers heard this, and seeing Zhang Yi and the others leave hurriedly, immediately realized something bad was happening and quickly followed them out.
Zhu Yunque frowned slightly, not knowing what was going on, but she was not foolish. She hurriedly chased after Zhang Yi together with Su Nuanxi.
“Mr. Zhang, what happened?”
“Didn’t we say we wanted to find land to rest for a while before setting out again? I think this place is pretty good. Why not stay for some time?”
Zhang Yi said calmly, “This place gives me a very bad feeling.”
His gaze looked around. The huge fruit trees were dark and damp, with white fruits swaying overhead, creating a very oppressive atmosphere.
Zhou Ke’er couldn’t help but tightly grip Zhang Yi’s hand.
After Zhang Yi’s words, the others also felt that the atmosphere was somewhat strange.
After calling a few times, Old Tian grabbed his gun and retreated together with Zhang Yi.
At this time, some passengers were still inside the wooden houses, reluctant to leave because of the delicious food.
However, as Zhang Yi and the others began to return, they suddenly noticed the environment around them change drastically!
A strong wind blew across the island, passing through the dense trees, producing a terrifying sound similar to a woman’s laughter.
A passenger suddenly grabbed his neck, his face turning bright red, and he painfully knelt on the ground.
“Ah!”
His mouth swelled, and when he opened it, a long white maggot was spat out!
The maggot was over ten centimeters thick, almost bursting his mouth open!
His body was covered in sticky liquid. After crawling out of the passenger’s mouth, the maggot fell to the ground with a “plop,” its round body wriggling on the ground, then crawling toward the passenger again.
Zhou Ke’er quickly covered her mouth. If she were not a doctor with a stronger mental tolerance, she would have vomited on the spot.
Others were no better; many vomited immediately.
Some were disgusted, while others, like the first passenger, also spat out a huge white maggot from their mouths!
Zhang Yi shielded Zhou Ke’er behind him and said coldly, “I knew I shouldn’t eat random things outside!”
But before Zhang Yi finished speaking,
The white long fruits above their heads began to fall like rain with a crackling sound.
When they hit the ground, the fruit shells burst open, revealing white pulp inside and large maggots!
Only then did everyone realize why these fruits could survive such low temperatures. They were not fruits at all, but insect eggs!
And the entire island, the huge tree spreading everywhere, was clearly a mutated creature!
Zhang Yi held back his nausea and activated the Absolute Barrier Between Two Realms to avoid contact with the insect eggs.
These things were not very harmful but extremely disgusting.
Those passengers who had greedily stayed for food and had no time to escape were already transformed into maggot fertilizer. Large maggots crawled out from every orifice of their bodies.
Author's Note