bookrandom Chapter 57 Never Give Up
Chapter 57 Never Give Up
The girl loved to laugh, so even now, recalling that painful experience, Liu Baichuan still unconsciously smiled.
Qi Te understood this detail and couldn't help but be moved.
Liu Baichuan composed himself, his expression slightly grim, and said, "So, Chen Jin's fourth ventricle has developed red spot lesions?!"
"No. It's just that his crazy behavior reminded me of Zheng Xinjian," Qi Te explained before asking, "Teacher, what exactly is that illness?"
"Alice syndrome, however, is commonly known as erythematous erythematous disease in our Long County."
Liu Baichuan lowered his voice and said, "Back then, the federal government did not release clear data on the number of patients."
"At that time, there was a science popularization website that built a private domain. Based on the information provided by group members in various cities, I roughly estimated that at least 60 million people worldwide died from superhuman ability loss caused by erythrodermic disease."
"Many netizens online have collectively referred to these events as the 'superpower outage wave'."
"Over sixty million!" Qi Te's pupils dilated in shock. He asked incredulously, "Then why can't I find anything about it online?"
"The bigger the event, the less trace it leaves. Isn't that exactly what the Federation excels at?"
Liu Baichuan made a sarcastic remark and continued, "The group owner of that private domain group believes that the reason the Federal Government is cleaning up the internet and erasing all records globally is to cover up the incompetence of the authorities and the inadequate response, or even inaction, of most major cities."
"Some group members think it's to avoid causing public panic. Everyone is afraid of dying from the surge of superpowers going out of control, so they're staying home and not going out. Without work, there's no productivity, and it won't be long before the major cities come to a standstill."
"Some group members also pointed out that human nature is inherently evil, and once the news spreads, a large number of criminals will take advantage of the chaos to commit theft, robbery, murder, and other crimes, which will quickly lead to the collapse of order."
Qi Te listened and nodded, "What they said makes a lot of sense. The members in that private group are all very insightful."
Liu Baichuan seemed to recall something amusing and chuckled self-deprecatingly: "They're all self-important guys. I remember the name that group owner gave to the private group was '[Genius Council]'."
'This name suits Cao Yingchong perfectly, so cool!' Qi Te thought to himself, then asked, 'Does the teacher still keep in touch with those group members from back then?'
Liu Baichuan shook his head: "Private domains and group chats have been deleted. The group owner did create a new one, but I didn't join it."
"Discussing the purpose of the federal government's information blockade is pointless. Individuals cannot confront the government machine; it's better to put time and energy into useful things."
"For example, to prevent a second, or similar, strange disease. And this is one of the important reasons why I study genetic engineering."
"Back then, no solution was found. As the erythema gradually disappeared, the three major companies, including Oasis Technology, abandoned their research. The federal government and various cities quickly resumed operations. And as time went by, the people who experienced that supernatural disaster gradually forgot everything that had happened."
"However, in human history, there has never been a single instance of a large-scale disease occurring only once. Therefore, I have never given up in the past thirty-seven years."
"Unfortunately, all data and files on the erythroderma have been sealed. Apart from the federal government, the three major biotechnology companies should have retained samples."
"This collaboration with Oasis isn't just because those rich bastards are offering a lot. If we can collect rare biological samples this time, the professor can use the test data to exchange for samples of erythroderma."
Of course, Zite knew that his mentor was a world-renowned biologist and a top expert in the field, but it was only at this moment that he truly realized that the man standing in front of him, who was over fifty years old, was one of the greatest humans on this planet.
The weak lament, the strong remain unyielding.
Liu Baichuan's figure appeared taller than ever before in Qi Te's eyes.
.........................
The next morning, at 7:00 AM.
Most of the members of the collection team were woken up by their alarm clocks. One by one, they received their supplies on time, still groggy and dizzy, and wished they could crawl back into their sleeping bags and take another nap.
Unfortunately, Xu Chang, the burly man who looked like a double-door refrigerator, brought bad news.
"Weather satellites indicate that around 3 p.m. today, the border area where we are located will experience widespread freezing rain. After nightfall, snowfall with a pollution index exceeding the normal value by 2.8% will occur."
Xu Su looked at Liu Baichuan, his expression stern, and said, "Professor Liu, the timing of weather forecasts is not always accurate. The freezing rain may be delayed, or it may very well come earlier. My suggestion is to suspend data collection this afternoon."
Liu Baichuan immediately nodded in agreement. Freezing rain is also corrosive, just not as severely as snow, but the students still shouldn't be put on the risk.
Therefore, the collection work could only be concentrated in the morning. Although Lao Liu did not specify how much each person had to complete each day, everyone has a competitive spirit.
The senior students were incredibly frustrated by Qi Te yesterday. Even though he has visual perception abilities, he achieved in just over three hours what they had collected in two days. It was like he was rubbing the faces of these veteran team members into the ground.
The new team members initially approached the game with a "just participating" attitude, but after Qi Te's performance completely blew their minds, they all became incredibly excited and set a goal for themselves.
Regardless of whether it can be completed or not, let's set a small goal first.
Old Liu was right. Oasis was indeed very wealthy. Not only did they hire the Blue Shield security team at a high price and provide ample collection equipment and wilderness survival supplies, but they also thoughtfully prepared a blast heater.
With this thing, you can have plenty of hot water even in freezing temperatures of minus thirty degrees Celsius.
The entire team quickly took their medication, hastily washed their faces, and some of the girls took advantage of the time while queuing for the restroom to put on some makeup.
Ji Chenyu looked at Qiao Yi with a puzzled expression and couldn't help but ask curiously, "You just crawled out of the tent and you already have smoky makeup on. Don't tell me you got up half an hour early to do your face, then I really have to admire you as a man."
"Get lost~" Joey rolled her eyes and pulled a powder compact from her coat pocket: "Country bumpkin, never seen one before, have you?"
"Tch, it's just loose powder. It's not like I've never had a girlfriend before. I'm experienced. Who do you think you are?"
Qi Te glanced at Ji Chenyu speechlessly. This guy has been single since birth and still dares to brag about anything.
"What loose powder? This is the OE one-click makeup applicator, you know?"
Joey opened the powder compact, clicked on the mirrored display, and scanned Ji Chenyu's face from top to bottom.
"Hmm, this looks much better."
Qiao Yi put the lid back on with satisfaction, and Cao Yingchong and Yue Wanwan couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Hey, what are you two laughing at? What did I do?"
Ji Chenyu didn't bring a mirror, so he couldn't see that he was wearing shiny black smoky makeup, with blush that looked like a monkey's butt, paired with purple lipstick, making him look exactly like a perverted gay guy from a horror movie.
"Special"
Qi Te waved his hand calmly: "It's alright, everything's fine, let's go."
This stuff is printed on his face, so it might not wash off with water. He doesn't have time to wait for this thing to be removed.
..........................
Qin Yun wanted to continue teaming up with Qi Te, but he had already spoken with his senior when he got up and found that his team was full, so they could team up again next time.
The 18 team members, including Assistant Instructor Ding, were divided into 6 groups of three, plus two security personnel.
Whether it was intentional or coincidental, Zit's group was once again paired with the dwarf uncle, plus the talkative G4.
When choosing a collection point, Ji Chenyu and Yue Wanwan tacitly handed over the decision-making power directly to Qi Te.
Based on yesterday's experience, Zite chose a hospital five kilometers away from the stronghold.
Because the streets are full of abandoned vehicles and broken building walls, it is not convenient to drive there; you can only get there on foot.
They hurried along and arrived at their destination in less than twenty minutes.
Uncle D3 is a defensive type, and G4 is an earth type in the elemental sequence, but both of them have received professional training and assessment, making them much faster than ordinary people.
Ji Chenyu remained calm and composed. As a speed-oriented person, this level of difficulty was nothing more than a joke to him.
Qi Te and Yue Wanwan were panting heavily. Fortunately, their breathing masks had a built-in defogging function, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to see the road.
There are more than a dozen steps in front of the hospital gate. They are very wide, but they are not completely covered by vegetation. Instead, there are irregular dark red patches.
"What is this thing?" Ji Chenyu asked.
G4 immediately began his dutiful explanation: "Red lichen periodically emits toxic gas with hallucinogenic effects. In addition, if there are wounds on the skin, poisoning will occur within two minutes once the toxins enter the bloodstream."
"In mild cases, patients may experience hallucinations for one to six hours; in severe cases, they may vomit incessantly, leading to suffocation."
The five people quickly crossed the steps, but the hospital gate was long gone.
The layout of the lobby is immediately apparent, with a reception desk, pharmacy, and waiting area all readily available. Numerous signs are scattered on the floor; although the painted lettering is long since faded, their sheer number suggests this is a very large, comprehensive hospital.
Qi Te glanced left and right, and through the mottled walls, he could see everything.
There aren't many species with high collection value on the first floor, and the situation is similar on the second floor.
Soon, Qi Te turned his gaze to a certain direction on the third floor.
The elevator is no longer in use; we have to take the stairs.
The stairwell was filled with thorny vines, as well as countless insects and small reptiles hiding among them.
Most of these creatures are in a shallow hibernation state and are easily awakened. A swarm of insects dancing wildly is a minor matter, but if there are too many insects running around, they may disturb the abnormal creatures that are in a deep hibernation state.
"Wait outside."
Uncle D3 tossed out a sentence, handed the shotgun to Chit, pulled a cylindrical black tube from his back, and pushed open the door to enter.