Chapter 166: Full-Blown Outbreak
The insect plague erupted even faster than the extreme heat.
Yesterday, the sky had cleared after the rain, painting a vibrant, lively scene. Today, the outside world already belonged to the insects.
It wasn’t just outside. In homes where the windows weren’t sealed as well, insects would squeeze through all sorts of tiny cracks, constantly attacking and harassing the people inside.
Do you know what it’s like to kill dozens or even hundreds of mosquitoes with a single slap?
Moreover, according to entomologists’ research, most of these insects were newly emerged species. In other words, they knew nothing about them.
The few insects they were familiar with, like mosquitoes and flies, had also undergone varying degrees of mutation.
Thanks to the Insect Attracting Grass and fragrant spikes, Moira Lynch and the others didn’t have to worry about this.
To be safe, they took lit fragrant spikes and carefully fumigated the entire house, then used putty and glue to seal up any potential gaps.
In addition, they blocked up the water pipes, sewer drains, and toilets as well.
The water flowing from the pipes was now full of insect eggs and completely undrinkable.
As for the sewer drains and toilets, what if insects crawled up into their home through them? It was better to block them off.
As for the toilet situation, Moira Lynch had previously stockpiled a lot of cat litter. They just had to dispose of it promptly after use.
In short, they’d rather go through the trouble themselves than give the insects any opportunity whatsoever.
Moira Lynch watched the mosquitoes swarming outside and suddenly remembered a video she had seen before.
She took out her phone, found the video saved in her favorites, and on the screen was, surprisingly, a recipe for mosquito patties.
The sound from the phone attracted Kai York’s attention.
Staring at the dark cuisine playing on the phone, Kai York’s face filled with horror. "You’re not actually thinking of eating that, are you? It hasn’t come to that! It hasn’t! Moira, we’re not that desperate yet."
Moira Lynch rolled her eyes at him. "I never said I was going to eat it."
"If you’re not going to eat it, then why are you watching this?" Kai York asked.
"These insects could be a new food source."
Kai York’s eyes went wide as he stared at her. "You have some seriously heavy tastes."
Hearing this, Moira Lynch shrugged. "I’m just saying it’s a possibility. Besides, in many regions before the apocalypse, people specifically sought out insects to eat. Some bugs were even more expensive than meat."
"Well, I still can’t accept it. I’d rather starve than eat bugs."
Moira Lynch shook her head. "Saying something like that just proves you’ve never truly starved."
"What do you mean I’ve never starved? In the fourth round of the game, on the Crino Prairie, the boss and I were so hungry we were about to eat dirt, and we still didn’t touch those insects."
’Wasn’t it because you weren’t sure if those insects were poisonous that you didn’t touch them?’
At this point, very few people online were still discussing SoySauceDrunkard or the planet auction.
After all, such matters were too remote for ordinary people and regular players like them.
Right now, their biggest concern was the insect problem.
They had originally thought the extreme heat was over. Although the land contamination issue hadn’t been resolved, they believed that better days weren’t far off.
What they didn’t expect was that instead of better days, they were met with a crushing blow.
The overwhelming swarm of insects was even more ferocious than the extreme heat had been.
And this time, it wasn’t just the land contamination that needed to be solved—now the water sources were contaminated too.
Thanks to Moira Lynch, many people knew about the effects of Insect Attracting Grass and took it immediately.
After taking the grass, even though insects couldn’t get near them, it didn’t mean they were unaffected.
For everyone who had eaten the Insect Attracting Grass, a half-meter radius around them became a vacuum devoid of insects. But beyond that half-meter, a dense black mass of insects constantly swirled around them.
The chirping and the buzzing of wings never stopped, like a noise machine running twenty-four hours a day.
Although the insects couldn’t get close, people were still severely tormented.
Moreover, people soon discovered that while those who took the Insect Attracting Grass weren’t attacked by insects, the number of bugs that gathered around them was exceptionally large.
Some people went out specifically to test the grass’s effects. The result was that the Insect Attracting Grass was indeed effective, but they also brought back a huge, persistent swarm of insects with them.
The internet was now flooded with cries for help.
Just as Moira Lynch had predicted, in less than half a day, the base issued new regulations—specifically about the insects.
Research from entomologists indicated that the following several types of insects were edible, followed by pictures of said insects.
There were seven or eight different kinds in total, and mosquitoes were, surprisingly, among them.
In addition to pictures of the insects, there were also preparation methods included below.
Additionally, the base encouraged people to catch insects, both edible and inedible, for unified collection. Different weights of insects could be exchanged for different foods.
At the same time, the base also announced they had developed a nutrient liquid.
A small vial of this nutrient liquid, the size of an oral solution, could provide a person with all the energy they needed for a day.
Of course, this referred to ordinary people.
Talents required several times the energy of an ordinary person each day.
So, for convenience, the base specially released a "Nutrient Liquid Plus" version.
With the announcement of this new regulation, those who had been hiding at home mustered their courage and stepped outside.
After all, life had to go on, and they and their families still needed to eat.
Besides, with the Insect Attracting Grass, going outside only meant their ears would suffer; they themselves wouldn’t be in any real danger.
Most importantly, the rewards offered by the base were simply too generous.
They were not only short on food right now, but even finding water to drink was difficult.
Although experts said that people who had eaten the Insect Attracting Grass wouldn’t have problems drinking the water—that even if they drank the insect eggs, their bodies would expel them before long—still, no one dared to try.
Even if the water was boiled, few dared to drink it.
Because after boiling, the once-clear water would turn yellowish-brown, or sometimes even green. That wasn’t water; it was basically a bowl of insect egg soup. Who would dare drink that?
Moira Lynch and the others weren’t interested in the base’s rewards, but they still planned to go out and take a look.
They had already cleared the area around the house once, even sprinkling weed killer and quicklime to inhibit the growth of wild grass, but it seemed the effect wasn’t very good.
The moment they stepped outside, a buzzing swarm of insects immediately engulfed them.
Seen from a distance, the group looked like a moving cocoon made of insects.
After clearing away the newly grown weeds and Insect Attracting Grass around the house, they covered the ground with another layer of quicklime.