Chapter 152 Changes at the Research Institute
The military sent people to escort a special zombie.
The zombie was transported into the research institute in a sealed box. As soon as it saw the light of day, it began to struggle wildly, twisting and turning at the people around it, trying to break free of the chains that bound it and tear at the fresh humans nearby.
However, this ferocious zombie with a hideous face kept repeating in a hoarse voice:
"You love me...I love you...xxxxxx sweet..."
Lin Xi wasn't surprised, but the others were seeing a talking zombie for the first time, and they all surrounded him in amazement.
"The first time I've ever seen a singing zombie."
"It retains some physiological functions? Does it also retain human consciousness?"
Some people even tried to talk to the zombies.
Besides repeatedly chanting this line, the zombie could also say a few words, but it repeated the same five lines over and over, and its answers to the researchers' questions were completely irrelevant.
Lin Xi: "It's just repeating what he often said in life; it doesn't necessarily mean that you can control his body with your mind."
Lin Xi had seen zombies like this before. Apart from being able to talk to lure the rescue team closer, their other physiological functions were no different from ordinary zombies, and they were not very dangerous.
But Lin Xi also wondered, do zombies have consciousness?
Lin Xi herself became a zombie. After being infected by the virus of three different zombies three times, she was conscious in each infection. She could hear, see, and even feel pain because the zombie virus had infected her brain and her nerves were still active. However, she could not control her zombie form.
But Lu Wei said that he died after turning into a zombie and then restarted directly.
Do ordinary zombies have consciousness?
Like Lin Xi, the entire research institute was also curious, and they sent the "chattering" zombie into the imaging room for scanning.
However, the results showed that, like most zombies, all organs had atrophied, and only the brain had been infected and shaped like a zombie's brain. The area in the lower left hemisphere of the left brain that controls speech was slightly more active than that of other zombies.
The rest of the body did not show any obvious changes.
After discussion, Song Heng concluded that these talking zombies could not be considered mutated zombies for the time being, because their internal structure was largely the same as other zombies. They might have had incomplete brain infection or some special substance.
Song Heng plans to study the zombie's left brain, extracting the virus and left brain tissue to study the infection status, as this zombie may have some special antibodies.
Lin Xi was always preoccupied with the enemy she couldn't face in her previous life—the hardened zombie.
If we bring that zombie over for analysis, we should be able to scan out a different skeleton.
She took the opportunity to ask Song Heng privately, "In your experience, do zombies mutate?"
Song Heng: "It's hard to determine, but I think based on the current observations of the zombies' brain states, the possibility of them mutating on their own is not high."
Lin Xi pondered, "Then how did the zombies with hardened bones mutate?"
Song Heng didn't seem to care much: "Skeletal hardening? Have you been watching too many movies?"
"No, I was just wondering how zombies get their bones to harden."
Song Heng didn't take it seriously. After all, bone hardening is not very related to the brain, and in his eyes, this situation was unlikely to happen.
Just as Lin Xi was engrossed in her new research, Song Heng suddenly pulled her into an empty office.
The usually stern mentor, who had been looking at Lin Xi with newfound respect for a long time, suddenly revealed a very stern expression: "Xiao Lin, your idea just now was very dangerous."
Lin Xi: "...You mean the bones of zombies harden?"
"No matter what, zombies are still transformed from human bodies, and I don't think that zombie mutations would naturally lead to bone hardening."
Lin Xi: "So osteosclerosis is a result of human intervention and mutation?"
Song Heng nodded, scrutinizing Lin Xi: "Are you really not a spy?"
It turned out that after hearing Lin Xi's idea, Song Heng mistakenly thought that Lin Xi was considering methods to intervene in the mutation of zombies.
Lin Xi quickly waved his hand, trying to find a reason to justify his words: "It's really not, teacher. My loyalty to the research institute is as clear as day! I saw a post from a netizen in Xinchuan saying that the hardened zombies are hard to kill because their bones seem to be hardened."
Song Heng looked at her suspiciously, then seemed to believe her.
In his eyes, Lin Xi was once a very serious student but not very talented. She studied hard and had a spirit of research. Scientific research requires this kind of attitude and perseverance, so Song Heng was willing to give her the opportunity to enter the research institute.
Until the zombie outbreak, this previously unknown female student suddenly revealed her talent and fighting skills. Not only was she skilled in martial arts and brave in fighting zombies, but her analysis of the zombies was also insightful. Song Heng's praise for Lin Xi increased accordingly. In addition, the research institute was suddenly poisoned, resulting in the deaths of many experts. Lin Xi's surviving students filled the vacancies in the research group.
However, the poisoning in the laboratory led Song Heng to have other ideas. Even though he continued to devote himself to research, he also harbored some suspicion and wariness towards his colleagues.
Lin Xi was the first to discover the zombies at the hospital, and later at the research institute, she was the one who proposed the milk infection and protected everyone. Logically, she should be the least suspicious person.
However, her question about how hardened-boned zombies mutated revealed some malicious intent, making Song Heng wonder if Lin Xi's actions were a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
However, this idea was quickly dismissed.
Firstly, although he hadn't been with Lin Xi for long, he couldn't sense any ill intentions from the student, and there were also military forces stationed outside.
Secondly, he is Lin Xi's mentor, and if Lin Xi does these bad things, he, as her teacher, will not be able to escape either.
Thirdly, we can't win...
Let's continue with the research together, as usual, with Fu Ci and Zi Xiao.
-
Shortly after the power outage, the rainy season in Nanhua was nearing its end, and the water supply was cut off.
Following Lin Xi's advice, Xiang Xin released water into the research institute for several days, filling all available water storage areas with clean tap water.
The research institute is located far from residential and commercial areas, and the surrounding area is relatively quiet. As a result, the zombies in the city have not affected the vicinity of the research institute. Occasionally, a few wandering over are cleared out by the military.
That day, the first group of uninvited guests arrived—Ding Yan, who had previously said she needed to take care of her family and wanted to reunite with them during this extraordinary period, drove back to the research institute with her entire family.
The guards' duty was to protect the research institute and check suspicious individuals. Ding Yan was an employee of the research institute and, in principle, should have been able to pass the check, but she brought her family...
Ding Yan pleaded with the soldiers and researchers: "The power and water have been cut off outside. The virus can't withstand high temperatures, but we can't drink the water without electricity to boil it. Please let me come back. I will continue to work..."
One colleague was not satisfied: "You didn't expect to come back to work without the power and water shut off, did you?"
Ding Yan: "My family needs..."
"Don't we have family? You didn't come back because you really wanted to work. You just brought your family here to freeload because you know the research institute has water, electricity, and guards."
As a key institution, the research institute has been guaranteed these basic survival supplies for the time being.
Lin Xi watched their argument with a sense of helplessness. Aside from her special circumstances, everyone has family and friends, and wanting to reunite with loved ones during a disaster is understandable. She simply hadn't prioritized the research institute…
Ding Yan silently endured her colleagues' words and finally promised: "My family will stay in her dormitory room, and they will only use her portion of food and water. They will not take up any more of the research institute's resources."
Since she said that, her colleagues at the research institute couldn't very well kick her out.
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