Wasteland Survivalist: A Scientific Guide to Post-Apocalyptic Survival

Li Liang paused for a moment, then continued.

"Infected individuals continuously release rabies toxins through sweat, urine, breath, and sebaceous glands."

When the concentration of rage hormones in the environment accumulates and exceeds a certain critical value.

Some of the infected individuals in this area will develop symptoms and enter a state of frenzy.

The concentration of berserker hormones will also increase dramatically, generating an uncontrollable urge to attack.

The more crowded and enclosed the environment, the more likely an outbreak is to occur.

Li Liang's few words deeply shocked Gu Lang.

"Why do infected individuals still speak after entering a berserk state? And why do they even use complex tools?"

"Do you know what a locust is? Grasshoppers and locusts are actually the same creature; the only difference is their numbers."

Li Liang suddenly pointed to the farmland next to him.

"When there are too many of them and food is scarce."

Grasshoppers prey on each other, releasing the volatile compound phenylacetonitrile.

When a certain concentration is reached, all the grasshoppers will become frenzied, their bodies will turn yellow, and they will gain the ability to fly.

The locusts must eat intensively to maintain their energy levels.

Weak locusts will also be eaten by other locusts.

Wherever the locusts go, the grasshoppers there are transformed into locusts.

"So you mean those guys who go into a berserk state are essentially no different from normal humans?"

"Yes, the Berserker possesses full consciousness and memory."

Intelligence and skills remain unchanged; they can think and communicate.

Although physical abilities were not enhanced, brain neural mutations occurred.

Unable to distinguish between pain and pleasure, they may kill others or even harm themselves.

Li Liang's words contained a great deal of information, which Gu Lang found difficult to digest at first.

"Can I return to normal after entering berserk mode?"

"Based on the data collected so far, it is not possible."

Reaching the critical point and entering a state of frenzy is an irreversible process.

Once this threshold is crossed, the brain and nervous system will be permanently altered and cannot be reversed.

If other infected individuals are exposed to the bodily fluids of a berserker, they will quickly enter a berserk state as well.

Can infected individuals in the incubation period be identified?

"Yes, but the concentration of fury hormones during the incubation period is not high."

A large number of individual samples need to be collected, and very sophisticated analytical instruments are required to capture and distinguish them.

Even under conditions prior to the outbreak of nuclear war, it would have been difficult to conduct large-scale testing; the cost would have been too high.

Furthermore, the data collection and analysis work itself can lead to large gatherings of people, posing a danger.

"How do berserkers distinguish between their own kind and normal people?"

"The berserker can smell the concentration of berserker hormones on people around him."

Below a certain level, it will generate a strong urge to kill.

They also have a strong urge to prey on the flesh of any uninfected individuals they kill or capture.

This appears to be part of satisfying physiological needs during a state of frenzy.

They are able to cooperate in an organized manner when jointly attacking targets that have not yet developed symptoms.

The more familiar people are with each other, the more efficient the cooperation will be.

When there are no normal people around, they will eat ordinary food in order to survive.

However, due to changes in taste, they will still prefer meat.

Berserkers can sometimes develop intense hostility when competing for resources or when provoked.

Intense mutual attacks may occur, and such internal strife is equally extreme and violent.

This likely stems from primal impulses in a state of frenzy, and may also involve a distorted logic of reducing competitors or "reclaiming resources."

"There's one more question: how many people have triggered the berserk state?" Gu Lang asked again.

"There are no accurate figures. The duration of the gathering, the degree of confinement, the intensity of the activity, and the metabolic state can all affect the results."

However, the lower limit of the number of people is not high, at least much less than I initially expected.

Judging from the situation in Hetuala, at least 15 people gathered in a room for about half an hour before someone fell ill.

I'm really sorry about what happened to your friend.

We never expected that such a small number of people would lead to the safe zone spiraling out of control.

Seeing that Gu Lang had put down his air rifle, Zhao Jinguan also put down his pistol and came over.

"Don't blame Director Li, he has been doing his best to disperse the people."

However, maintaining the base's normal operation is not so easy.

We both risked our lives to jump off the city wall and escaped.

"Never mind, this virus is just too terrible. This situation is beyond the capabilities of a small team."

Gu Lang sighed.

He immediately understood the sinister intentions behind the enemy's creation of this virus.

Once this virus spreads, it will be almost impossible for humans to gather in groups.

This means that large-scale production cannot be organized, otherwise there is a risk of it getting out of control.

The virus is asymptomatic during its incubation period, making it extremely difficult to identify.

This greatly increases the difficulty of screening.

After a nuclear war, all that's needed is to cooperate in releasing this virus.

What was originally a safe, enclosed shelter can become highly dangerous due to the gathering of people.

After all, most shelters simply don't have the capacity to operate independently for extended periods.

Someone always needs to go out to maintain the facilities and collect necessary supplies.

Even now that we understand the characteristics of this virus, there are almost no reliable countermeasures.

"Where do you plan to go next?"

"I have already submitted the analysis report and related data."

Li Liang pointed to the huge antenna of the vehicle-mounted radio behind them.

"What countermeasures does the government have?"

A glimmer of hope ignited in Gu Lang's heart.

"The higher authorities have no solution for the time being, and can only remind all regions to avoid gatherings of people."

Stay away from the rage and wait for a cure to be developed.

"I see. So where do you plan to go next? Have your superiors assigned you any new destinations?"

Li Liang fell silent, then shook his head.

"As a whistleblower, I have fulfilled my duty. Now I just want to go back to my state and find my family."

"As far as I know, all the major cities leading to the state of Jingzhou have been hit by nuclear weapons."

As a transportation hub, the state itself is also a key target for nuclear strikes.

There are also floods along the way, so going there now would be risky.

Survival is too difficult; you'll most likely die on the way.

Gu Lang frowned and warned the other party.

"No matter how difficult it is, I will go. Home is where my family is."

"And what about you?"

Gu Lang looked at Officer Zhao standing to the side.

"I'm from the same hometown as Director Li, though not from the same town. Since I'm no longer on duty, I'm planning to go back to my hometown to find my family. It would be good to have company if we went together."

"Is your hometown really that important? Can't you be more rational and seek refuge somewhere safer?"

Officer Zhao and Li Liang exchanged a glance and smiled wryly.

"That's my hometown, that's where I belong."

If my hometown is gone, I will rebuild it, building house by house.

I can die in peace when I can no longer build any more houses.

I left peacefully in my hometown.

Gu Lang, due to personal reasons, could not fully empathize with this kind of patriotism.

However, he could understand the other person's feelings, so he gave up trying to persuade them.