Fear of food

Chapter 130: Pollution Escalates, Surrender to the Enemy Again

After running all the way out of Jinghai Medical College, Chen Qi encountered no further obstacles.

The moment he stepped out of the medical school gates, all four people on his body slowly woke up.

Zhui Feng and the others quickly gathered around and took their respective relatives.

When family and friends reunite after a separation of life and death, it is natural to be excited.

However, the scene was not as harmonious as imagined. Only the couple, Gan Shui and his wife, were tightly embracing each other, while Da Bing's father and Coffee seemed somewhat indifferent.

Big Pancake rushed up and hugged his dad: "Old man, if I set the dogs on you, you won't hold a grudge, will you?"

Daddy Big Pancake paused for a moment before awkwardly returning the hug.

Coffee felt she should be overjoyed to see her old friends again, but she could only manage a forced smile.

Needless to say, as for Zhui Feng's younger brother, he was completely indifferent as soon as he woke up, and there was no ripple in his eyes when he saw Zhui Feng.

These are all manifestations of a lack of humanity. All four individuals exhibit varying degrees of this lack of humanity, and the ways they express it differ.

The mildest symptoms were seen in the wife of the swill patient, who had been parasitized for a relatively short period and exhibited less dehumanization.

The father of the pancake was next, while the situation with the coffee was more serious.

However, aside from being a little aloof, the three of them can live normal lives without any problems. They can also distinguish between friend and foe and do not pose a threat to those around them.

Zhui Feng's younger brother could only be sent to a mental hospital to be locked up, otherwise he would definitely commit crimes if left outside.

Regardless, they were rescued and freed from the Nightmare Clan's parasitism.

"Biscuit, thank you so much!" The swill cried tears of joy.

Seeing his teammates looking at him with gratitude, Chen Qi quickly interrupted. He wondered if it was because his humanity was gradually fading, but he was finding it increasingly difficult to empathize with such scenes.

"Enough of that, you should go back now."

Zhui Feng understood the implication: "Aren't you coming back with us?"

Before Chen Qi could answer, the sky suddenly darkened.

Xu An'an, who was facing the entrance of the medical school, narrowed her eyes and subconsciously took several steps back. She then warned everyone, "Be careful!"

Chen Qi turned back to look at the medical school, his face showing shock. The medical school seemed to have come alive, with decaying flesh growing on the buildings.

At the corner of the wall, thick, root-like, elongated things kept emerging, their scarlet color and fleshy texture making it seem as if the building itself had grown into a fleshy extension.

These strips continued to grow and spread, encircling the entire building like a thicket.

On the wall, layers upon layers of blood vessels, like a spider web, covered the surface, obscuring the wall's original color and revealing only a dense network of crimson lines...

Not only the buildings, but even the cement roads were covered in rotting flesh and blood. The banner at the school gate was soaked and slowly dripping blood. The artificial lake in the school had become a pool of blood...

The students have changed even more!

In the dream, the students in the dormitory were all binge eating, but in reality, the students at least seemed normal before; they went to class every day, studied in the library, and exercised on the playground...

But now, all the students in the medical school have lost their minds. The students walking on the street seem to be controlled by a field, their eyes lifeless.

After a moment of stunned silence, they rushed to the building, gathered at the corner of the wall, and began to tear and swallow the bush-like tentacles!

A food-grabbing frenzy erupted in the cafeteria, with students breaking windows, rushing into the kitchen, and frantically looting all sorts of bizarre foods.

The cafeteria staff stopped serving food and joined the students in grabbing food.

Everyone went into a state of binge eating!
They mechanically devoured everything they could find, and when food was scarce, they tore at the rotting flesh that was everywhere.

The entire school is in complete chaos!

In an instant, the entire medical school changed. Gone was the youthful vitality of the campus; it was filled with bloodshed, eeriness, and terror, as if it had turned into a living hell!
"What...what's going on?" Zhui Feng swallowed hard, his throat trembling uncontrollably.

Chen Qi's expression turned grave. As if struck by a thought, he said, "The pollution may have escalated."

"Pollution is escalating!"

Is food contamination entering its second phase?

This was their next big goal, and they didn't expect it to be achieved so quickly.

After the "Jinghai Foraging Group" partnered with the government, their shared goal was to force Jinghai City to upgrade its pollution levels as soon as possible.

Now, Chen Qi alone has achieved this goal.

But when that day actually arrived, looking at all the changes around me, I couldn't suppress the fear that was growing in my heart.

The fear of food in the first stage was already overwhelming for them, so how should they cope with the second stage? The fear in their hearts actually stems from the unknown future.

Thinking of Corning City, which is also mired in the second stage of pollution, hundreds of official ability users have remained asleep until now.

Meanwhile, the symptoms of eternal sleep in Jinghai City have already begun to appear, and it is likely that they are "binge eating".

The entire city may be engulfed in a state of binge eating!
"You should leave as soon as possible. It would be best to hide outside Jinghai City and observe for a while," Chen Qi said to his teammates.

Peanut nodded and reassured everyone, "When the pollution in Corning City escalated, hundreds of official ability users happened to be in the polluted area and close to the source of the pollution, which is why they were instantly hypnotized."

"Afterwards, only ordinary people who enter Corning City will fall into a state of eternal sleep, while those with abilities will remain conscious in Corning City."

"So you don't need to worry too much. As long as we don't enter the contaminated area, we won't be in too much danger, and getting out of there shouldn't be any problem."

After the pollution worsens, ordinary people are the ones most affected.

The food-related pollution zone, covering the entire Jinghai City and some surrounding cities, will affect all ordinary people, turning them into tireless eating machines.

Those who consume pica and dream thieves have a much stronger resistance to pollution than ordinary people. As long as they do not enter high-level pollution areas such as Jinghai Medical College, they will generally not be directly affected.

"Aren't you coming with us?" Xu An'an asked, frowning.

“I still have some things to do, especially this newly upgraded contaminated area. Someone needs to go and explore it.” Chen Qi smiled. “Don’t worry about me. Even if I die, I can be resurrected.”

As he spoke, he met Peanut's gaze for a moment, and Peanut urged, "You guys should get in the car quickly."

Urged on by Peanut, Xu An'an and the others boarded the car one after another. Through the car window, the teammates kept reminding Chen Qi to be careful.

Chen Qi nodded slightly and watched the two cars drive away.

He turned around and stepped into Jinghai Medical College again.

At this moment, Menglong, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "What exactly do you want?"

He had a vague sense of unease.

"You've achieved all your goals this time, so why are you going back?"

Although he said there were still things left to do, Chen Qineng had actually done everything he could, successfully rescuing his teammates' families and even coffee.

The only regret is that I couldn't save my mother. But even if I went back to the medical school now, it wouldn't help in saving her.

Chen Qi smiled and reassured him, "Don't worry, I won't abandon you. Besides, you have something on me, so what are you worried about?"

Menglong felt slightly relieved, but still advised, "Leave as soon as possible. With the pollution escalating, the Nightmare Clan's abilities here will also increase, and you may not be a match for them, unless our Chang Le City also undergoes a pollution escalation."

"Then why not?"

Chen Qi also wanted to personally experience the combat power of the second-stage parasites.

As a newly integrated parasite, he already possesses formidable combat power. If the pollution in Chang Le City escalates, his strength will increase accordingly.

"It's not yet time."

Menglong paused for a moment, then said, "I have said before that we Nightmare Clan have never regarded you humans as enemies. Our only enemies are other Nightmare Clan members. Humans are merely the vessels of our power."

"In the early stages of this struggle, our goal was expansion! We will not stop expanding unless other key factors influence us."

Chen Qi had heard similar things from both the Nightmare Eater and Monroe.

All of this disaster seems to be just the prelude to a civil war between different types of Nightmare Clan.

For example, the Nightmare Clan in Corning City and Changle City, although belonging to two different contaminated areas, both belong to the Nightmare Clan. They are more like two squads of soldiers under a general, competing with each other but also able to unite and cooperate.

The relationship between Nightmare and Nightmare Eater is purely antagonistic.

As for humans, because they could bear the power of the Nightmare Clan, they became the vessel for their power and the tool for the battle between the two sides.

Chen Qi observed that the anomalies within the medical school were rapidly growing and spreading; the grass on the lawn had all turned into tiny fleshy buds, and various pulsating organs were growing on the trees…

Furthermore, this anomaly shows a tendency to spread beyond schools.

First, the pollution in various large and small areas escalates, and then it spreads from these areas to the entire city...

Everyone he encountered along the way was eating voraciously, and no one paid any attention to Chen Qi as he passed by; they didn't even bother to look up.

Most people are feeding on the decaying flesh and blood growing in buildings and green belts, and that decaying flesh and blood is like chives, it grows back after being eaten, one crop after another, and it can never be finished.

Noticing that Chen Qi was heading straight for the first cafeteria, Menglong couldn't help but ask, "Are you going to destroy the S-level food source?"

"That's right," Chen Qi readily admitted. "What else could I do?"

“I thought you came back to explore the morgue again, but I didn’t expect you to be eyeing the food source. I advise you to give up quickly!” Menglong’s tone became somewhat serious.

"Why?" Chen Qi didn't seem to care, and even quickened his pace.

"The pollution upgrade not only strengthens the Nightmare Clan, but also upgrades the food source, making it more self-defense-oriented. If you're eyeing the food source, you'll be facing both the upgraded S-grade food source and the upgraded second-generation Nightmare Clan parasites. You're no match for them now!"

"We have to give it a try, what if it works?" Chen Qi remained unmoved. "At worst, I'll just die once."

He still remembered his conversation with Monroe before he left Changle City.

Chen Qi: "After merging with Nightmare, I'm basically a pure parasite, so I can be resurrected after death, right?"

Marilyn Monroe: "Of course."

Chen Qi: "If I die in Jinghai City, can I be resurrected?"

Monroe: "That's right. The one you merged with is the most noble generation of the Nightmare Clan in Chang Le City, so no matter where you die, you will be resurrected in Chang Le City."

This is Chen Qi's biggest trump card in his solo foray into the medical school!

Menglong angrily retorted, "Being able to revive doesn't mean you have to die once! We are the noble Nightmare Clan, and reviving once takes a long time and consumes a lot of energy."

"If you had died to save your mother, I wouldn't have said anything, but what do you mean by this?"

In his view, Chen Qi is now making trouble out of nothing and creating unnecessary complications.

To deliberately throw his life away to destroy an S-level pollution source is neither in his interest nor in Chen Qi's logic, unless Chen Qi has other intentions.

Chen Qi chuckled and said, "I didn't mean anything by it. Wasn't this already agreed upon in our deal? Do you want to go back on your word?"

In his deal with the Nightmare Clan, Chen Qi had complete control over this trip to Jinghai City, and Menglong had to fully cooperate with Chen Qi to achieve his goals.

The Nightmare Clan is suspicious, whether it's the Nightmare Eater or the Nightmare Dreamer.

Menglong gritted his teeth: "Are you having an affair with the Nightmare Eater, or doing something behind my back?!"

"No, don't misunderstand."

"You're clearly hiding something!" Menglong warned. "Stop right there and leave immediately, or don't blame me for turning my back on you!"

Chen Qi completely ignored him.

But then, Chen Qi suddenly stopped, and something unusual began to appear on his body.

A vertical eye appeared between his eyebrows, and then eyes began to grow all over his body. The pupils of those eyes were swirling, and the black and white swirling pupils were eerie, as if looking into them would draw one's consciousness into them.

Chen Qi felt that taking a step was becoming difficult, knowing that Meng Long was fighting him for control of his body.

Although Chen Qi still dominates his body, Meng Long's forceful intervention can still affect him.

For example, movements become clumsy, steps become slow, and eyelids blink uncontrollably.

"If you do that, don't blame me for defecting to the enemy," Chen Qi threatened.

Then he shouted at the top of his lungs, "Nightmare Eater!"

A Nightmare Eater suddenly appeared out of nowhere; clearly, this guy had been spying on Chen Qi all along.

"If I merge with you, can you get rid of that thing inside my body?" Chen Qi asked directly.

The Nightmare Eater was taken aback for a moment, then laughed and said, "Of course! I've already upgraded to the second stage. If we join forces, we can easily devour him!"

"Fine, fine, fine!" Menglong laughed in extreme anger. "You never intended to genuinely cooperate with my Nightmare Clan in the first place, did you?"

That's not unfair to Chen Qi.

Once his fusion with Menglong began, it couldn't be stopped.

If he doesn't want to become a puppet of the Nightmare Clan in the future, he has no choice but to seek help from the Nightmare Eater Clan.

From beginning to end, Chen Qi understood that he could only have a chance of survival by oscillating between the two races, using their strengths to fight each other, and borrowing their strength to fight back.

That's why he turned back to Jinghai Medical College.

"Heh... despicable humans." Menglong gritted his teeth. "Since that's the case, let's die together!"

As long as Chen Qi dies, he will be resurrected in Chang Le City, and the situation will be in his favor.

The next moment, the eyeballs that appeared on Chen Qi's body exploded one by one...

(End of this chapter)