Finally, the soldiers safely evacuated the mushroom forest, while the workers had only cleared over a kilometer of area today. However, the fungi in the cleared areas had been killed using sewage.
Fungi are also living organisms, and their survival depends on the environment. In harsh environments, many fungi cannot grow. Currently, the soil was polluted, making it impossible for the fungi to survive. The white mycelia that were originally underground also withered.
It could be said that at the current pace, clearing one kilometer of area per day, it would take a month to reach Ruili.
However, to advance at this time, the first priority was to solve the problem of mutated beasts. The mutated beasts that had attacked the army were not simple wild animals. According to Shen Feng's speculation, these mutated beasts were at least Tier 4, corresponding to Tier 4 ability users. Compared to evolved humans, these mutated beasts also possessed enormous size.
After bringing the wild yak and the reticulated python back to the camp, they explained the situation. Qian Bufei took it very seriously and immediately said, "Send them to the researchers for dissection immediately. Also, no one is allowed to eat the meat of these mutated beasts until the situation is clarified."
Everyone nodded quickly. In this situation, who would dare to casually eat mutated beast meat? After all, the fearless attacks of these mutated beasts were still terrifying.
Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan also went to the area where the researchers were to see what was going on, and why there were mushrooms on the heads of these mutated beasts.
The researchers immediately directed others to use a chainsaw to open the head of the wild yak. Even to remove the mushroom, they had to wear gloves to avoid touching anything they shouldn't. Shen Feng immediately saw a shocking scene.
The mushroom on the yak's head, which was initially thought to be growing on the outside, was actually deeply embedded. Yaks have thick fur and live in high-altitude mountainous regions, so their fur often contains mud. It was not impossible for mushrooms to grow in such conditions. However, after cutting open the yak's skull, it was discovered that the mushroom's mycelia had already penetrated the brain. Countless fine mycelia were rooted in the brain like stems.
Upon seeing this, Shen Feng was greatly astonished and asked, "This mushroom is too terrifying! How can it grow its mycelia into an animal's brain?"
After carefully examining the yak's brain, the researchers concluded, "No, it's not that the mushroom is rooted in the brain, but rather that the mycelia developed within the brain and then grew out from it. It didn't grow from the outside in, but from the inside out. There's no doubt about this."
Chu Chaoyan quickly asked, "You mean the mushroom grew from the brain and then drilled through the forehead? How is that possible? The skull is very hard. Otherwise, why are the fossils left by dinosaurs mostly bones? How can such a soft mushroom break through the skull?"
"While that's true, bones are indeed very hard. However, there are also sutures in the skull, especially in young children where the skull hasn't closed, and there are even fontanelles. As long as there's a gap, it's a weakness. The mycelia slowly grow through the sutures, gradually widening the skull." The researcher explained earnestly at this point.
Many animal skulls are not a single piece. Even bulls and sheep, which like to charge, are like this. The skull was originally a single piece, and only later in development did it become a whole. Although it closed, there are gaps between the skull bones. Normally, the closed skull is very tight, and it's impossible for ordinary people to separate the skull.
At this moment, Shen Feng had a new question: "Wait a minute, even if you say the mushroom grew from the mycelia inside the head, how did these mycelia get into the brain?"
The question Shen Feng was asking was very important because at this moment, others also had the same question: Why were the mycelia present in the yak's brain?
The researcher could only shake his head helplessly and say, "I don't know why. Perhaps the yak accidentally ate the mushroom. Besides the mushroom, it's also possible it ate the mycelia or inhaled spores, and these spores developed into mycelial masses within its body."
Shen Feng and Chu Chaoyan continued to observe with the researchers, as they were also worried about mushrooms growing on their own heads. Just thinking about mycelia slowly widening the skull sutures and then growing a mushroom made them shudder.
The researcher, while directing the dissection, said, "The central nervous system of many animals is the brain. For example, after the brain of a zombie is damaged, it becomes completely foolish. These mycelia grow directly in the animal's brain. In this way, these mycelia might truly be able to control the behavior of the infected animal. That's why this wild yak continued to fight until the end, even knowing it was going to die. The yak couldn't control its actions and could only fight to the death."
Chu Chaoyan touched her head and asked, "Can this kind of mushroom grow on a human head?"
The researcher shook his head and said, "I don't know. So far, there have been no cases of parasitic fungi found. However, now that even yaks have been parasitized by fungi, if it's humans' turn, the outcome might be the same."
Afterward, they dissected the golden reticulated python, and similarly, there were many mycelia in the python's head.
Currently, to continue advancing in the mushroom forest, they had to wait for heavy firepower to be delivered. Only with heavy firepower could they suppress the enemy in the forest. If they could bombard the area before scouting, it would be even better. Even a giant wild yak like the one encountered today couldn't withstand artillery shells.
Shen Feng's camp immediately entered a defensive posture. Historically, the Yunnan Army was known for its positional warfare. Back then, at Tai'er Zhuang, the victory was inseparable from the Yunnan Army's tenacious defense of Yuwang Mountain. At this time, the Yunnan Army had also inherited the construction capabilities of their predecessors. Outside the mushroom forest, there were three layers of low walls, and behind the low walls were trenches. The three trenches were connected by ditches. This was not just to deal with mutated beast attacks; even if they had to fight an army, the defenses here would definitely hold.
Tens of thousands of people began to rest. Due to the day's combat, the temporary hospital immediately began treating patients. In just one day, there were over a hundred injured, and these injured were mostly wounded by the mutated wild yak. Lying on the hospital beds, many let out painful groans.
In the evening, strange sounds suddenly came from the camp. Dozens of soldiers crawled out of their tents and rushed towards the hospital, clutching their heads as they ran and painlessly saying, "Help me, my head feels like it's going to explode, help me."
The doctors and nurses in the hospital were already exhausted, but they didn't expect more patients to arrive at night. They all complained of headaches. Could it be food poisoning?
"Did you eat anything you shouldn't have recently? Otherwise, why would you all have stomach pain?" Seeing the situation, the doctor immediately began to inquire. With so many people falling ill at the same time, food poisoning was the most likely cause, and these people were all together, dozens of them from the same company.
The soldiers, clutching their heads, painfully replied, "No, how dare we eat indiscriminately? We've been in the camp all this time and haven't dared to eat anything carelessly."
The soldiers' answers made the doctor confused. If they hadn't eaten indiscriminately, it was unlikely they had eaten something they shouldn't have.
Helplessly, the doctor prepared to perform CT scans on those with headaches. It was then discovered that some root-like structures had appeared in their brains at some point. The sight of these structures, like a tangled mess in their heads, shocked everyone. Recalling what was discovered during the day, there was only one explanation: these people's brains had been parasitized by fungi.
"Something is wrong, very wrong. Why are there so many fungi in your brains? Did you secretly eat mushrooms?" The doctor was shocked at this point. Upon arriving here, he had already notified everyone not to eat anything carelessly. Now, there were mycelia in everyone's brains. Wouldn't the next step be mushrooms growing on their heads?
When the soldiers heard this, they were almost scared out of their wits. They had seen the frantic appearance of the wild yak and the golden reticulated python during the day. These powerful mutated beasts were ultimately controlled. If mushrooms grew on their heads, wouldn't they be controlled in the end?
"Doctor, we really didn't eat mushrooms indiscriminately. We all know mushrooms are poisonous, so how dare we eat them in this situation?" The soldiers quickly protested their innocence.
"Exactly. We are soldiers after all. The army repeatedly warned about the dangers of these mushrooms. How could we dare to eat them carelessly in this situation?"
"Doctor, will we eventually lose control of ourselves?"
For a moment, many soldiers were in a panic. They hadn't been injured during combat, but now they were parasitized by fungi. This feeling was worse than death.
The doctor also felt that it was abnormal. It was unlikely these soldiers had eaten mushrooms. The workers were mostly responsible for transporting the mushrooms, and no workers had fallen ill. Logically, the soldiers shouldn't have either. What exactly had happened?
"Think carefully, have you done anything special? Everyone, recall, don't miss any details," the doctor earnestly instructed.
At this moment, there were already cases of parasitic infection in the camp. If this matter was not resolved, it would definitely cause panic among everyone. Therefore, this matter must be resolved immediately, at least to understand how these people were infected.
While enduring the severe pain in their heads, the soldiers thought back. Finally, they recalled something: more than fifty of them had previously patrolled the eastern area to observe the terrain. As for other things, there was nothing in common.
Some soldiers said, "I found two wild fruits there and ate them, but these wild fruits are clearly edible."
Another soldier said, "I saw the camellias blooming there and just smelled them. I didn't do anything special."
Another soldier stammered, "I found a beehive there and smoked away the bees, and ate the spring honey."
"This area must be the problem. You stay in the hospital and get an IV drip. As for the effect, well, we'll see," the doctor, upon receiving this news, immediately decided to report the matter, hoping that the higher authorities could handle it.