Chapter 109 – The Crisis of Humanity
At the rehabilitation hospital, they took a blood sample from Lin Jiu, with Si Xu personally overseeing the testing and ensuring the sample was destroyed afterward.
Fortunately, the results were clear—there were no signs of parasites in Lin Jiu’s blood.
Lin Jiu had been fairly sure he wasn’t infected since his fingers had no open wounds. Even if the parasite was real, it couldn’t have entered his body. He had just been grossed out.
Lin Jiu was the only one who saw the green light, while no one else could. He had just wanted to test if he could touch it, never expecting things to escalate like they did.
Once the results came back, Si Xu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
These parasites were incredibly small but could multiply rapidly once inside the human body, filling it entirely. It was hard to imagine the pain the infected must endure.
After dealing with the crazed person, Lu Yu and Shi Shuqing rushed over. Upon hearing that Lin Jiu wasn’t infected, they both relaxed.
Lu Yu asked, “What exactly happened? What did you catch?”
Thinking about the sensation, Lin Jiu’s face paled again. “It was that green light. When I grabbed it, did you see it?”
Lu Yu, recalling the scene, also felt a shiver down his spine. “I saw you grab something like a root or tendril. When you were pushed away, the tendrils snapped and retracted back into the person’s head… What the heck was that thing?”
Though they hadn’t seen the green light flickering at the person’s forehead, they had witnessed Lin Jiu pulling something out.
Si Xu was lost in thought. “It seems that the parasites inside the people who’ve woken up are still there—they’ve just taken on a different form.”
So far, no one—whether infected or awakened—had died. The medical team had only been able to detect the presence of parasites through blood and body scans. Without any bodies to dissect, they couldn’t investigate further. If they could dissect the brain, they might uncover something new.
But they couldn’t figure out why, if there was something in the brain, it wasn’t showing up in scans.
No one had any answers, so they could only wait for the test results.
The four of them went to check on the person who had been tied back to their bed. After waking up, the person had been calm, but now, after Lin Jiu had tampered with the “green light,” they were back to a crazed state.
Lin Jiu spoke up. “I’ve noticed something.”
Si Xu, Lu Yu, and Shi Shuqing all turned to him, waiting for him to continue.
Lin Jiu explained, “These awakened people, when they’re alone, seem to be in a dormant state. Their bodies don’t move, their gaze is empty, and their expressions are blank. But whenever they need to act like a normal person—to speak, walk, or show facial expressions—the green light at their forehead flickers first, like a switch being flipped.”
The three of them: “…”
Lin Jiu continued, “Now that I think about it, whether it’s the little boy I saw in City A or the person I saw on the surveillance screen with their face pressed against the camera, they were in the same state. No flickering, no movement. But once the green light flickers, they respond.”
Lu Yu furrowed his brow tightly. “Are they still human now?”
Si Xu asked, “Are the responses of these awakened individuals truly their own will, or is something else controlling their bodies?”
Lin Jiu, Lu Yu, and Shi Shuqing all felt a chill run down their spines.
Lin Jiu: “An alien invasion?”
Lu Yu: “…”
Shi Shuqing: “But aren’t alien invasions supposed to target marine life?”
The first infections had indeed started with mutated seafood, and humans only became infected after consuming the mutated sea creatures.
Lin Jiu: “Then these aliens must have pretty low ambitions.”
Lu Yu: “…”
Lu Yu: “Humans are already being wiped out, and that’s not ambitious?”
Si Xu ignored their debate about whether or not the “aliens” had ambitions. He walked ahead and stopped at a patient room, where an awakened individual stood facing the door. Si Xu looked through the small window in the door and saw the person standing there, motionless, with empty eyes and a blank expression.
After observing for a while, Si Xu’s black irises gradually turned silver. He knocked on the door.
The green light appeared at the person’s forehead, and their once-vacant eyes suddenly focused. They reached out, opened the door, and met Si Xu’s gaze.
Si Xu confirmed his suspicion: it wasn’t just Lin Jiu who could see the green light—he could see it too, but only with the eyes of the Demon Spirit clan. This meant that Lu Yu and Shi Shuqing couldn’t see it, only he and Lin Jiu could.
Expanding on this, ordinary people and other ability users likely couldn’t see it either—perhaps only those of the Demon Sea lineage could.
If that were true, were these parasites truly creatures from Earth?
Si Xu doubted the system’s explanation.
The three others had already run through various alien invasions from sci-fi movies in their minds, but nothing resembled these parasites. They wanted to ask Si Xu’s opinion, but when they turned around, they saw him nearly face-to-face with the awakened individual.
All three rushed forward.
Lin Jiu pulled Si Xu back a step, lowering his voice. “What are you doing?”
Si Xu looked at Lin Jiu. “I can see the green light too.”
Lin Jiu froze, noticing Si Xu’s silver eyes.
Si Xu said, “Let’s try again. I want to see if I can pull that thing out with my ability.”
Lu Yu and Shi Shuqing were bewildered—having two such reckless people working together was far too dangerous!
This time, all four were prepared. If the awakened individual went mad again, they wouldn’t be caught off guard.
They called over medical personnel to be on standby, ready to intervene in case the awakened individual needed immediate treatment.
When the medical staff heard that there was something in the awakened person’s brain and that Si Xu was going to attempt to extract it, everyone’s faces turned pale.
As they prepared, the awakened person stood at the door like a wooden post, their once-focused eyes turning vacant again.
Si Xu instructed the medical staff to back away, just in case the awakened individual went berserk and hurt someone.
Lu Yu and Shi Shuqing stood by the door, while Lin Jiu held a glass jar with a lid, ready to capture whatever came out.
Once everything was in place, Si Xu asked, “What’s your name?”
The green light flickered at the person’s forehead, seemingly activating their bodily functions. Si Xu used his ability, grabbing the green light from a distance and pulling!
Everyone’s eyes widened in shock—
They saw numerous thin strands being pulled from the pores of the person’s forehead, some thick and some thin, like roots stretching out. The widened pores began to ooze blood.
As soon as the green light was grabbed, the awakened individual went mad. Lu Yu and Shi Shuqing acted quickly, restraining the crazed person to prevent them from struggling and snapping the strands.
Si Xu pulled carefully until the person’s face was covered in blood, and finally, he extracted the entire green filament!
The green strands suddenly contracted into a small ball-like body with countless thin, hair-like tendrils wriggling beneath it. Si Xu swiftly placed the object into the glass jar, and Lin Jiu hurriedly sealed it, nearly throwing the jar away in disgust.
The green mass inside the jar squirmed, climbing the inner walls and scurrying around. Lin Jiu couldn’t hold back and tossed the jar, but luckily, Si Xu was quick to catch it in midair.
“Doctor! Hurry, help him!” Lu Yu shouted.
The once-rampaging awakened individual collapsed to the floor unconscious after the thing was removed, their breathing weak.
One of the medical staff who had witnessed the whole thing turned away to vomit. It wasn’t a matter of professional endurance—anyone who saw this would be scared stiff. The remaining staff members, pale-faced, rushed forward to provide emergency care.
Leaving the scene to the medical team, Si Xu took the jar and Lin Jiu to the South Sea Research Institute, where many experts were working on the mysterious parasites.
Si Xu handed the jar to the head researcher, explaining the origin and extraction process of the creature inside.
The researchers all looked uneasy, struggling to comprehend how such a solid entity could be pulled from someone’s pores.
The green mass was about the size of an egg, with its writhing, spindly tendrils stretching out in all directions, making anyone who looked at it feel like they were losing their mind.
The head researcher glanced at the jar and then at the test results on the table, feeling a bit disoriented.
Si Xu noticed the researcher’s confusion. “Have the test results come back?”
The head researcher wiped his face. “Yes, they just came in. The green liquid tested as belonging to the plant kingdom, but the thing in the jar seems more like an organism.”
Whether it was plant or animal didn’t matter at this point—what was crucial was where it had come from.
Si Xu asked, “Is it due to ocean pollution, or something else?”
The head researcher shook his head. “It has nothing to do with ocean pollution. Based on our research, there must be a parent plant in the ocean. The microscopic parasites we’ve found are likely its ‘seeds.’ These ‘seeds’ were eaten by the mutated seafood and became parasitic inside them. When humans ate the mutated seafood, the parasites entered their bodies. Once they encounter flesh and blood, they rapidly multiply. The reason the parasites seem to vanish after reaching a certain stage is that they don’t disappear—they either merge or transform into another form. This form likely has a camouflage ability, which is why it doesn’t show up on brain scans.”
The person in charge stared at the green creature crawling around inside the jar. “Remember what this thing looks like. You’d better search the ocean to see if there’s a similar mother plant. That’s probably the source of the disaster.”
After leaving the research institute, Si Xu contacted Lu Yu and Shi Shuqing, passing on the message from the director. They were the main people in charge of the South Sea situation, while Si Xu was just assisting. Ultimately, it was up to them to decide what to do next.
Given the current situation, no one dared to even touch mutated seafood, let alone go near the ocean water, for fear of infection.
After China was the first to report issues with mutated seafood, several other countries followed suit, announcing that similar infections had appeared within their borders. This showed just how widespread the infected seafood and ocean pollution had become.
The problem wasn’t just about removing the parasites from the infected humans but also about eliminating the parasites from the oceans. If the oceanic parasites couldn’t be eradicated, humanity would lose access to ocean resources entirely.
This wasn’t just a national disaster—it was a global crisis. These parasites were even more dangerous than unknown radiation, for which solutions still existed. So far, there was no better solution for dealing with these parasites.
The “Special Security Department” sent more personnel, all waiting for orders from higher up.
Fu Xi was also dispatched. To test his hypothesis, Si Xu took Fu Xi to conduct an experiment. Fu Xi, who had fully awakened his Ruta Tribe bloodline, could also see the green light.
Now there were only three of them who could see it, and Si Xu was almost certain that these parasites were related to the Demon Sea dimension.
At this point, neither Lin Jiu nor Si Xu dared to act recklessly.
The awakened individual from whom Lin Jiu had pulled some green fluid had gone mad for a day but then calmed down again. The one from whom Si Xu had fully extracted the green parasite was still unconscious, and his brain scan results shocked everyone. Compared to the scans taken when he was awake, his brain structure had become incomplete, as if large portions of it had disappeared.
This revelation left the medical personnel drenched in cold sweat. They had a bold theory—that once the parasites reached a certain level of growth, they would consume the brain tissue and integrate themselves as part of the brain!
This explained why brain scans hadn’t shown any abnormalities. Once the green parasites were removed, the infected individual’s brain would show tissue loss!
The research institute quickly received this information, and everyone was deeply concerned.
If these parasites fully took over a human brain, that person’s actions would no longer be their own, and their body would be completely controlled by the parasite!
Other countries soon shared their research findings, although they lagged behind China. They had not yet discovered that the parasites could camouflage themselves.
In fact, if Lin Jiu hadn’t impulsively pulled at it, no one would have realized that these creatures could hide in plain sight!
Once countries began exchanging and consolidating research, they all raised their threat levels to maximum alert.
No one knew what would happen if these parasites, once they gained full control of the human brain, could adeptly manipulate human bodies. If these parasites infiltrated human society, they would be nearly impossible to detect because ordinary humans couldn’t see the green light on their foreheads!
China quickly isolated all infected individuals in rehabilitation hospitals, ensuring none could leave.
The experts’ worst fears soon came true.
On Lin Jiu’s fifth day at the South Sea, a family caused a scene at the rehabilitation hospital. Their child had supposedly recovered and called them to say they were well and wanted to go home. The overjoyed family arrived to pick up their child but were blocked by soldiers stationed at the hospital.
The parents’ love for their child was undeniable—they would do anything for them. So, they gathered a group of relatives, determined to break in and take the child away.
The military had strict orders. No one, aside from designated personnel and medical staff, was allowed inside, and no patients could leave.
To avoid mass panic, the government hadn’t released the information that fully infected people, whose brains had been overtaken, could blend in with humans. So, the family didn’t understand the situation. They believed their child had recovered but wasn’t being allowed to go home, leading to all sorts of dark theories and conspiracy rumors. Some even claimed the hospital wanted to experiment on their child, further stoking the already tense atmosphere in the South Sea.
To maintain public order, the local police had no choice but to detain the parents to let them cool off.
After the ban on mutated seafood, the unknown radiation threat began to resurge, and global death tolls from radiation were climbing daily. In response, countries were forced to deploy a radiation-blocking serum that was still in the experimental stage.
This serum was derived from mutated sea creatures and could block the effects of the unknown radiation on the body. However, supplies were limited, and the formula was unstable, so it wasn’t ready for widespread use.
Faced with disaster, governments had no choice but to release the serum to calm the public.
However, those in the know were aware that the serum was far from perfect. Not only was it unstable, but it also required mutated sea creatures that were safe to harvest, which were all collected before the parasite outbreak. Now, no one dared to venture into the ocean, let alone search for safe mutated sea creatures.
Lin Jiu’s “MoYu Shop” had also temporarily closed due to the parasite crisis. The authorities had ordered all mutated seafood shops to shut down, and since Lin Jiu wasn’t at the store, he didn’t mind.
No mutated seafood was allowed anywhere now. If Lin Jiu wanted to reopen, he would need to explain where his energy-infused seafood came from. Without a clear explanation, no one would dare eat it, and the government wouldn’t allow him to reopen. Since he couldn’t explain the source, he decided to stay closed.
Watching the news broadcast of people flying from all over to line up for a chance at the serum, Lin Jiu could only sigh.
Earth was truly a place of endless disasters!
As he sighed, Lin Jiu also had the urge to pull out the system and give it a good beating. Didn’t it say the upgrade would be quick? How many days had passed, and it still wasn’t done?
While Lin Jiu was waiting for the system to finish upgrading, the official orders from above finally arrived: to go out to sea and search for the source of the parasite infestation.
Unless the mother parasite was eradicated, the parasite disaster would never be resolved.
Each country was searching its own territorial waters first, before considering expanding their search to other areas. Even the Sea Demon clans no longer dared to enter the ocean, as they didn’t know if they might get infected. The safest method was to avoid the sea altogether. All those going out to sea were wearing full-body suits with hoods, ensuring that no seawater could touch them.
They weren’t diving into the ocean but using equipment aboard large ships to scan the seabed. This made the process much slower and riskier, as they were vulnerable to attacks from giant sea monsters. Solving the parasite disaster was incredibly challenging, but no one would give up just because it was hard—everyone was doing their best.
Finding the mother parasite wasn’t something that could be accomplished in a day or two. Si Xu didn’t let Lin Jiu join the crew on the ship; instead, he personally led the team to search at sea.
With nothing else to do, Lin Jiu immersed himself in the smart kitchen, making intermediate-level magic meals.
Si Xu still hadn’t used the advanced gene enhancer. According to the Chef God System’s warnings, Si Xu’s half-human body wasn’t strong enough to handle the shock of the advanced enhancer, and he needed to improve his physical strength. Otherwise, using it could be life-threatening.
Currently, low-level magic meals weren’t much help to Si Xu. Intermediate and high-level magic meals would be more effective. However, Lin Jiu could only make intermediate-level magic meals and magic wine, as he couldn’t obtain the materials needed for advanced magic meals, even though he had acquired advanced Demon Hunter Chef skills.
While preparing intermediate magic meals and wine, Lin Jiu also made a lot of low-level magic wine.
Since his MoYu Shop could no longer sell seafood, and more people were dying from unknown radiation in the country, Lin Jiu felt anxious. He decided to sell low-level magic wine instead.
While energy seafood was banned, perhaps energy fruit wine could still be sold?
