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MTL - I Like This Dream!-v2 Chapter 122
It started with just a cold.
Colds are very common in this season. A herdsman sneezes a bunch, a student has frequent fits of chills, a hunter has a headache... The residents of Bungala always drink some hot soup to get over it and laugh at each other for not being strong enough. Even now that there are public buildings called hospitals, civilians who used to have serious illnesses and could only wait to die can get treatment, but it is still too exaggerated for people to spend money to bother doctors when they have a cold. How can civilians be so delicate?
It is impossible to test where it started. By the time the doctors found out, a large number of people had already collapsed. People who had "little colds" didn't get better with the special hot soup, they started to have high fevers, vomiting, and strange bruises on their skin. Patients popped up seemingly overnight, and within a day, they had half-filled the wards.
Medicines for high fevers and colds didn't work for them, and people admitted to the hospital couldn't explain how they got sick. Ask them what happened before their illness, and the answers are varied. "I probably didn't wear enough clothes", "I changed a quilt", "I drank raw water", "The big mouse I hunted was not cooked", "I saw a black cat", "There was no Wash your hands", "I didn't pray on time"... half of the answers reflect the results of the popularization of basic health and hygiene education, half reflect people's imagination, and more answers are "do nothing" or "I don't know".
The doctors began to look for commonalities in the patients' places of residence, work, and onset time. Before they could sort the patients according to the onset time, the earliest patients had already been separated from the crowd.
There were three people whose groins were all swollen high, and one of them had a swollen underarm so high that he couldn't even stick his hands to his side when he was lying down. They were three students, moaning in pain#, and being questioned repeatedly by the doctor, they admitted that they had been bitten by a wild animal when they ventured together in the forest about a week ago in the evening.
"It's a big, big monster," said the little girl. After being stared at by the doctor's stern eyes for a while, she changed her words timidly, "It's not that big...as big as a ground squirrel? But it's not a ground squirrel, we think catch it..."
"You go to the forest by yourself? And provoke animals that might be strange beasts?!" her mother roared angrily.
The little girl shrank her head and closed her mouth. Her little friend bit the bullet and argued: "Because we haven't seen that thing, I swear it's not a Bungalow animal! It has fur, scales, and big teeth. We think Trying to catch it, the result was bitten."
The three children held out their hands or rolled up their trousers to show the doctor the bite marks on their bodies. After a few days, the bite marks did not fade away, but festered deeper.
The doctors who had worked as assistants in the Tibes epidemic area smelled ominous, and they quickly submitted an application, requesting the deployment of more manpower, and became vigilant with the attitude of treating acute epidemic alerts. An Xu read the application form, jumped up when he saw the disease, decided to pass the highest level of security, and immediately sent an urgent letter to Alva.
The Black Death, An Xu can swear by the Plague Company that he played recently, is this symptom. This association of the first reaction made An Xu believe that what is happening now is a plague, and it is a plague (you think about it every day and dream about it at night). And even if it isn't, what's the harm in taking precautions? She didn't want to play the stupid lord who didn't listen to the doctor and ended up killing the whole city.
She recalled what she had learned before. There had been three large-scale plagues in the world. The plague required isolation, extermination of rats and fleas, burning dead bodies and clothes of the sick, but what about the treatment? How did the plague in ancient Europe end? She thought about it for a long time, and vaguely remembered that it was because of the cold weather and the death of all patients.
Bah, bah, bah, it won't be so miserable here! An Xu shook his head vigorously, thinking, don't we still have Alva, the medical golden finger? The not-so-typical plague of unfamiliarity was not cured last time.
All orders were carried out in an orderly manner, and the same set that was implemented in the old city of Tibes was repeated in Spring City. Anyone with the same symptoms in Bungalow must go to the hospital for isolation treatment. This treatment is free and mandatory.
So the hospital was full.
People who had been bitten by strange animals were isolated, and the three children who were the first to suffer from the disease were placed in a high-grade ward. The attending doctor prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs for them. After taking them, the situation seemed to improve a little.
In the early morning of the next morning, the nurse who made the ward rounds found that the lumps on the three children's bodies had suppurated, and the ruptured tissue fluid oozed out of them, wetting their clothes and bed sheets. The children did not shout as much as before, because they all fell into a coma brought on by the high fever.
Physicians try to remove those lumps, exorcists drive away evil spirits, and healers allow wounds to heal. But by that afternoon, the healed skin was swollen and suppurating again, and the mass became horrendous within hours. When the exorcist Aiwen exorcised the children again, he suddenly found that there was no flesh and blood exposed under the festered skin, and there was something shiny in the wound.
Worried that a foreign object had fallen into the wound, he leaned closer and opened the wound with tweezers, clamping the thing that felt so hard that it didn't feel like skin. While comforting the child with closed eyes, he pulled the thing out—no pull, it seemed to grow on the child's arm.
what is this? Ivan thought strangely, it looked like... scales?
The child suddenly opened his eyes.
The exorcist who was approaching the wound was startled, "I'm sorry, it hurts, right?" He whispered, let go of the tweezers, and tried to touch the child's head, only to find that the whites of the child's eyes were cloudy, as if covered Reddened membrane. Her staring eyes made people feel a little guilty, and Ivan's hand froze in mid-air, and he couldn't touch it or let it go. He laughed dryly, instinctively wanting to withdraw his hands, the child in front of him suddenly rushed forward, and his teeth, which were stretched to the extreme, snapped together.
The screams of the exorcist alarmed the doctors and nurses. They ran into the ward and saw the sick child biting the hand of the exorcist tightly, blood pouring out of his hand. They tore the child apart in a hurry, and it took a lot of effort for the two adults to get her jaws open. There was a ho-ho sound in her throat, and with cloudy eyes, she struggled to bite the doctors and nurses.
They couldn't knock the child unconscious, so they had to tie her up in the end. Not long after, the other two children showed the same symptoms. They were **** in a room, biting the air tirelessly until they died of festering half a day later.
The news was reported to Earl Anna immediately, and An Xu's jaw dropped when he heard it. Dare to feel not only the Black Death, but also the plague plus biochemical crisis! She slammed her head against the wall with a dull face, and began to regret it. Anxu, Anxu, why do you want to clear all Resident Evil one to seven? Why are you still playing Plague Inc at the same time? It's all right now, the difficulty has risen rapidly!
Since that day, people have died one after another. People who are bitten by weird animals will bite people around before dying, and the death of others is not good. Those people suddenly had a high fever, coughed up blood, had weak breathing, and large purple-black spots appeared on their bodies. This made some knowledgeable people look pale, thinking of the black disaster a hundred years ago.
In another bad news, people inspecting water sources found dead animals in several wells.
A mouse, or something that used to be a mouse. Their fur festered, with reptilian scales growing out of their centres, resembling evil creatures sewn together by wizards in tales. Those wells were scattered all over Spring City. Obviously, animals would not jump into the wells and die in batches by such a coincidence.
This is not a natural plague, someone, is driving this.
Alva arrived in Bungalow in the early morning of the second day after receiving the dispatch, and the blue under his eyes was even darker than the last time we met. The medical officer who sent over several times overnight didn't catch up with anyone, just nodded to An Xu and plunged into the ward.
Then poked his head out again.
"Why are there so many alphas?" He frowned.
"To ensure safety." An Xu spread his hands helplessly.
In addition to doctors and nurses in the hospital, there is also a team of supernatural beings who are fully armed and wearing thick masks. The hospital is the most heavily guarded place in Wenjiao. In addition to invisible diseases, there are also semi-zombies with high physical attack power that need to be suppressed—let’s call it that.
People who are bitten by monsters will bite people before they die, and people who are bitten by these people will become like them. I don't know if it is because of the second hand of the human body, the virus transmitted through biting becomes more suitable for the human body, and the person who is bitten becomes sick faster. Ordinary people will be infected if they are bitten, and supernatural beings are not completely safe. Half zombies will give priority to attacking supernatural beings, instead of eating brains, they will eat meat. People with no combat power, such as healers and exorcists, are likely to be eaten alive if they are thrown down by a half-zombie whose strength has become stronger than before the disease.
"I have the ability to protect myself." Alva said coldly, "Withdraw, the stench of Alpha affects my thinking."
After Anxu left the Tibes line of defense (some gossip said that since his beloved disciple split into an alpha), Alva's dislike of alphas seemed to have become more serious. An Xu touched his nose, took a small step back, and let most of the supernatural team composed of alphas guard the door.
The bad things are always one after another. Before Alva has researched any results, the Holy See suddenly issued a public declaration.
The pope said that what fell on the land of Bungalow was divine condemnation.
Whether the bishop disappeared before, or the evangelical church attracted more and more believers with a different theory from the Holy See, the Holy See in Alingu seemed to be deaf and blind. I have no interest in this frontier land. And just when this Wen Jialuo was caught in a predicament, they finally showed their fangs.
Those who fall on the land of Bungalow are condemned by God, the Pope said, because the false church here promotes heresy in the guise of Illuminati, and because the holy people here are unclean and dare to take off their white veil. This crime is unforgivable, and the city of the false church and the people who support the false church will bear the wrath of God.
There was news from Esther that this plague also appeared in the Gospel City.
The Holy See took advantage of the fire to rob Anxu, but the news should not have spread so quickly. The plague was blocked and isolated almost immediately. How did the Holy See get the news so quickly? And how did you come up with a provocative essay citing classics and making generous statements in such a short period of time? Esther's news and the pope's speech were almost at the same time. Did the pope make a prophecy?
Rather than taking advantage of the fire to rob, it is better to say that they set the fire.
Alva, who was buried in the patient and corpse, sneered, and he made a suggestion to Anxu. "I don't know how to cure it yet, but I know how to infect people." He said softly, "Since this is 'God's Scourge', look, how about throwing corpses and half-corpses into Alingu?"
An Xu thinks this is a great idea.
Chris thought it was so anti-human.
"You can't do this!" Chris blurted out, "There are tens of thousands of people in Alinggu! It's still unclear whether the matter was done by the Holy See, let alone the civilians are innocent! Even if you throw the body in, it may be the murderer's upper class You can hide in the castle, most of the high-level people with supernatural powers are unscathed, and only civilians suffer in the end!"
"The civilians in Alingu are not good people either." Alva said coolly, "If you burn one thing to death today and that one tomorrow, it's a reincarnation of heaven's law to die yourself."
"This is a plague, Mr. Alva..." Chris tried to persuade, "Like the beast, it is the enemy of all human beings. This is not a weapon that can be controlled."
"Our enemy has already done this," An Xu said.
"They don't care about the consequences, no matter how much catastrophe the spread of the disaster will bring, they are as shameless, cowardly and stupid as those who put alien beasts into the capital." The chief knight looked at them earnestly, "Mr. Earl, Mr. Alva , you are not such people."
Alva snorted, turned his head and left. An Xu thinks about it, this is like attacking a city with a map cannon. Although the territory is expanded, the flattened territory is useless.
Thanks to Mr. Paladin, who is basically a kind and lawful camp, the matter did not develop to the point where everyone used germ warfare to fight each other. An Xu is not really worried. Alva has already arrived. There are supernatural powers in this world. The plague will probably be the same as last time. If some people die, it will end.
On the seventh day, an exorcist attacked his colleagues.
The exorcist named Aiwen opened his cloudy eyes, and the light of spiritual wisdom had been extinguished from them. His teeth left a wound on a nurse and a doctor, who committed suicide the next day. As someone who works in a hospital, the nurse knew exactly what happened to patients.
This incident caused everyone to be in an uproar. The team of supernatural beings who had no fear of the strange half-corpse before soon fell to the point where their morale was on the verge of collapse. The Exorcist is a psychic, and for the first time ever, a psychic is also infected by the plague.
A terrible fact is presented to people: this plague can infect people with supernatural powers.
Chris decisively withdrew the superhuman team and replaced it with the frontier army. When everyone has the same chance of infection, the psychological quality of soldiers is better than that of people who are used to relying on supernatural powers. Many people with supernatural powers were isolated because they were bitten while taking care of patients. These people who thought that people with supernatural abilities would not be infected have been at the forefront in the past.
The quarantine area expanded a bit, and Chuncheng was shrouded in an unprecedented haze. But thanks to An Xu's prompt decision and the efforts of the doctors and nurses, the shadow of the epidemic was kept within the quarantine area.
The atmosphere in Bungalow is quite gloomy, but it is far from what the promoters of this disaster imagined. The residents are not controlled by fear and despair. The short-lived plague that occurred on the border of Tibes was like a drill, or a vaccine, which trained a group of experienced responders for Anxu. They know how to deal with disease, they know how to guide citizens, they know how to make themselves hopeful, because disease is not invincible, they have overcome it once.
The pope's announcement did not slap the evangelical church to death. The power of the new church is far inferior to that of the old church, but its influence among the common people is beyond the expectation of the upper class. The little commotion in Gospel City quickly subsided. Esther delivered a short but powerful speech, in which she in turn declared the pope a shameless scum who stole the gods' mortal authority, the devil's advocate.
"Brothers and sisters, look at the dead! Look at their painful faces! Look at the black ulcers on their bodies! Is this what our gods will do to us?" She opened her arms at the highest point in Gospel City Arm, "No! Our God loves us, He gave us the opportunity to come to this world, and gave us the healthy senses to experience this world, and only the devil who is jealous of human beings can steal it away with this cruel method!"
"Only the devil!" The people who had been terrified by the plague for many days shouted as if venting their anger.
"Brothers and sisters, think about our deceased relatives and friends. Are they bad people? Are they sinners? What unforgivable crime did they commit? No!" Esther pressed her hand down to stop Excited people. Her face was covered with pity, and she folded her hands in a prayer pose.
The Patriarch said: "Lord, if I have sinned, punish me directly. If my opinion is against your will, if my presumption displeases you, send thunder and fire on me. I will not be reborn forever. And if you are willing to let forgiveness and grace fall on my head, I will continue to spread your gospel, and I will fight to the last moment with the righteous people who slander you in your name!"
Naturally, there was no thunder and fire falling from the sky, only the bright sunlight sprinkled on the Patriarch's white turban, and the halo made her holy like an angel.
From this date, the Evangelical Church officially split from the Old Church.
The deterioration of Bungalow's condition and disease, after reaching the current level, has stalled and reached a stalemate. Also because the expected effect was too far away, some desperate people began to jump over the wall in a hurry.
On a certain night, the power grid at the Wenjialuo farm was cut off.
Shadow deer are basically domesticated, bighorn sheep are very docile, and only ground squirrels need power grids. Even ground squirrels with ADHD, most of them have been conditioned to learn to stay away from the grid. Outside of feeding time, the ground squirrel area with power grid is the most relaxing place, especially in this special period, when no one is in the mood to pay attention to the farm.
Therefore, no one knows when the superintendent of the power room died, when the switch was pulled, or when the ground squirrel population went into a frenzy.
The last one actually happened earlier than the first two. The colony of ground squirrels became restless and changed in appearance, but it was difficult to see clearly in the dim light. From a certain time, they began to slam into the power grid tirelessly, were charged back, and continued after a while. When the barbed wire lost power, the sharp teeth began to punch holes in the net.
The huge group of ground squirrels gathered in the farm, as if attracted by something, rushed towards the hospital under the cover of night.
The patrolling border army found shadows on the road, and the sentries were overwhelmed by rats before they blew their whistles. The sharp whistle pierced the quiet night, and the frontier army began to line up to defend against the enemy, but found that the enemy was difficult to stop.
Under the lights, one could see the strange bald spots and scales on the body of the ground squirrel, and the most valiant soldiers could not survive such an onslaught unscathed. These fighters who dared to fight the big beasts had no way to block the rats all over the ground. It could be said that the attack was meaningless, and they could only slow down their steps a little.
The officers here made a decision immediately.
"Soldiers from the Second Battalion!" she shouted, "Stay tight! Let the doctor go first!"
This command was faithfully carried out.
The signal flares for help have been sent out, important documents were quickly brought up, and the doctors were escorted by the soldiers to evacuate first. Alva was studying slices next to the newly deceased patient when a team rushed through the door. He was taken aback by the uninvited visitor and quickly understood that an emergency had occurred. The sentries frequently looked at the corridor. The soldiers were about to leave with the chief medical officer. Alva broke free from them and shouted: "Take the corpse with you!"
"What time is it!" the sentinel said anxiously, "The rats are coming! Three of us died before we got here..."
"Shut up!" the captain scolded, "Stowe, let's carry the corpse on our backs, let's go!"
The big man in the team carried the corpse on his back, and the team ran out surrounded by Alva. They ran halfway down the corridor, and a scalp-numbing chirping sound suddenly appeared in front of them. The team immediately turned around and fled to another side road. Obviously, this was not the first time they heard the sound of urging them to die. Alva was carried by a soldier, resisting the nausea of being too close to Alpha, and glanced back.
The hallway floors are black.
The floor of the hospital is light yellow, but now there are densely packed small black spots. These little dots are chasing after each other, getting closer and closer.
"Damn, why are you still following!" The sentinel exclaimed, "Didn't they all get rid of it before?"
"That's because we are not supernatural beings!" The captain said angrily.
Now with me as a supernatural being, it's like running with bait. Alva added in his heart.
The corridor is getting narrower and narrower. This is a shortcut leading to the hospital's teleportation room. Patients who are not easy to move can come through the small teleportation array, and doctors can go to other places through it. As long as you get there, you can go out safely. The team gathered all their strength and ran on the trail that only allowed one person to pass.
But the colony of ground squirrels is also getting closer.
Someone asked if they could drop the corpse to block it, but the captain flatly refused. After the last team member was chased by rats, someone asked him again. The captain told him to shut up with a livid face, and he was not allowed to ask this question again. Not long after, the penultimate team member stopped, turned around, and swung his long sword vigorously at the oncoming rats, and her figure was quickly swallowed up. This bought a few minutes for the person in front and opened the distance from the rat group again, so the third person from the bottom followed suit.
Alva said nothing, startled by the soldiers turning around and wondering when they would leave the body, and then him. He has seen many alphas like this, who flaunt their bravery but choose to attack the weak when they encounter a strong enemy, in order to survive by themselves. Alva had traveled through most of Yamenan, and he had seen enough.
But that never happened.
There were fewer and fewer people, only the captain carrying him and the team member carrying the corpse remained. The teleportation room was close at hand, and they rushed over ecstatically, only to find that there was no door to the teleportation room.
The captain's face was blank. He looked back at the group of rats that had run over again, and his expression became firm again.
"Doctor, we'll block it for you later, and you drive the teleportation array yourself," he said.
"Aren't you leaving?" Alva said in astonishment, "There are five teleportation arrays."
"Not safe." The captain said simply.
The big man Stowe put the corpse on the teleportation array, and the taciturn soldier said, "It's up to you to see a doctor, doctor."
They drew their weapons and blocked the narrow door of the teleportation room.