Abyss Summoner-Chapter 135 - 133: Soul Thread Worm

In the quiet room.

A wail broke the silence.

"Ugh..."

A man wrapped in bandages lay on the ground, his face unnaturally pale, perhaps due to pain, even his voice had become extremely hoarse.

The infected was not very old, around twenty, slender in build, and appeared quite spirited, but now, his eyes were bloodshot, veins of blood densely scattered throughout.

As for his shoulders, there were two lumps, dark purple in color, looking at them for too long made one’s stomach churn.

"Sir, this is Zhou Xianhe. A few days after his return, first there were some pea-sized bumps on his body, but now, these bumps cover his entire back."

Wei Xun bowed slightly, standing quietly in front of Chen Feng, explaining the changes in the other man.

Chen Feng studied the man’s body with some suspicion, as if recalling something.

It wasn’t corpse poison.

If infected with a zombie virus, the body would appear gray, not this sickly pale.

However...

The tumors on his back were not a good sign.

"Cut open his skin." The man’s appearance yielded little information, Chen Feng needed other clues.

Hearing this, Wei Xun, though puzzled, took out a knife he kept with him and sliced a wound into the man’s shoulder.

Green!

Unexpectedly, the man’s blood was not red, but light green, and the plasma emitted a fishy smell.

"This..." Wei Xun’s eyes widened. How could human blood be green, this was beyond his comprehension.

"Cut open the lumps on his body too." Chen Feng’s expression grew grim.

Suppressing his revulsion, Wei Xun slashed open a lump, and aside from the rotting blood, a cluster of bugs tumbled out.

These bugs resembled a tangled mass of threads, intertwined, and as they hit the ground, they separated and attempted to burrow back into the infected’s body.

Witnessing this, Chen Feng conjured a fireball in his hand and with a flick, engulfed both the man and the bugs, ending their lives.

There was no saving him.

Death is sometimes a relief.

"It seems so!"

Watching the scene earlier, Chen Feng felt a jolt inside, as chaotic memories swirled in his mind, he finally could determine what had happened to the man.

It wasn’t corpse poison.

It was insect poison!

The man’s body was parasitized, and even his blood had mutated.

The soul thread worms had begun to proliferate.

This was a sign of the impending arrival of the Insect Race!

The soul thread worms were slender, about three centimeters long, the adult worms dwelling in rivers, ponds, and decaying corpses; these were parasitic worms, burrowing into humans or beasts through wounds, continuing to develop inside the host’s body. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Soul thread worms themselves have no offensive capabilities, yet they possess incredible vitality, able to survive in extremely low or high temperatures.

Their thin bodies can freely traverse through blood vessels, slowly moving towards the brain from the entry wound, and once they occupy the host’s brain, they merge together.

Most horrifying is that they control the host’s life, but the host retains their own independent consciousness.

Unlike Insect Demons, completely controlled by larvae, or zombies, who are mindless servants of flesh, a human parasitized by soul thread worms retains the ability to think, yet their consciousness turns from human to that of an insect, devoid of emotion.

Standing there, eyes solemn, Chen Feng murmured: "Are the soul thread worms emerging already?"

"During the parasitization process, the human body exhibits some rejection symptoms."

"However, once fully parasitized, these rejection symptoms fade, appearing from the outside as if recovering from a serious illness."

"After which, they become taciturn, almost wooden."

Chen Feng frowned, struggling to recollect, but it was all a disguise; when the Insect Race laid siege, these parasitized humans acted like madmen, attacking those around them.

Internal sabotage.

It was precisely due to the ambush by these human-insect hybrids that humanity’s defense system was severely damaged, accelerating the Insect Race’s assault, and in less than three days, the main city had fallen, tens of thousands of humans becoming the insects’ food.

During the parasitization process, the damage to the host was significant, reducing their lifespan to around three months, after which the flesh would rot, killing both the host and the worms within their brain.

The Insect Emperor’s manipulations were undoubtedly behind this.

This was a conspiracy against humanity.

Who would have expected that as survivors struggled to endure, the insects infiltrated in this manner, a catastrophe akin to a biochemical attack.

It was unexpected that [Order] had an instance of soul thread worms.

"Check his hands, see if there are any wounds," Chen Feng commanded coldly.

Feeling something was amiss, Wei Xun quickly turned over the man’s hands and spread them before Chen Feng: "Sir, look!"

In the man’s right palm was a deep cut, evidence he had been part of the search team, the wound clearly incurred during that mission.

Soul thread worms parasitize in dead bodies.

In the supermarket occupied by the Mountain Fiend, untold numbers had perished, with some body parts even hastily buried behind the store, likely attracting the soul thread worms.

During the transport of supplies, the soul thread worm entered the man’s body through his wound.

The mystery unraveled, yet Chen Feng’s mood was extremely heavy.

"Gather everyone involved in the supermarket mission, for blood and skin tests, and upon discovering any abnormalities or blood mutations, quarantine them all!"

"Besides those individuals, even their wives, children, parents, and friends must be examined. Tell Xu Zhe to take full charge, and ensure results are obtained in the shortest time possible!"

Having said all this, Chen Feng reached into his chest pocket and took out a glass vial filled with royal jelly, far more pure in color than ordinary blood honey, resembling crystal, more radiant than sunlight.

With a flick of his wrist, he tossed the royal jelly into Wei Xun’s hands.

"Sir... you..." Wei Xun was surprised, he of course understood the value of royal jelly.

"You performed a noteworthy service this time; this is your reward," Chen Feng said coolly.

"Thank you, sir!" Wei Xun shouted, unable to conceal the excitement in his eyes.

"The insects are stirring, first the Insect King, now the soul thread worms; the power of the Golden Tier is not to be underestimated. Who knows what other plans the Insect Emperor might have!"

Chen Feng’s gaze flickered, quickly replaced by resolution.

"There’s no point worrying about these troublesome matters, what I must do now is enhance my own strength; with power, I won’t fear those petty schemes."

"Wei Xun, are there any other substantial forces in the vicinity?" Chen Feng suddenly asked.

"There are still four factions with five hundred people marked in the notebook. Previously, you instructed me not to act rashly, so those factions haven’t been contacted," Wei Xun reported truthfully.

Hearing this, Chen Feng declared loudly: "Lead the team, Inferior Demon and Undead Mage will accompany you, along with the entire Skeleton Legion from the camp. Bring all the leaders of those factions here, tell them I have matters to discuss! Remember, I want everyone to come to see me!"

The Economic Development Zone must be unified, for the Insect Emperor’s schemes must be anticipated, and Chen Feng must prepare his plans accordingly!