Extreme germ phobia

Chapter 71 Core Area
The only thing Ou Yang had studied seriously that had anything to do with kung fu was military boxing.

Garrison was stunned for a moment. "You mean, you haven't become a disciple yet? I heard that in your place, you have to be tested as a disciple for a few years first. Only after passing the test can you learn real kung fu!"

Ou Yang wanted to cry. Where on earth did this guy learn all this nonsense?
"No, no, no, I mean, if Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan are math professors, then I'm the baby who just learned that one plus one equals two and doesn't even know what one plus two equals. Baby, do you understand?"

Garrison looked at me for a moment before he said, "Okay, baby, I'll just be an embryo. I just need to learn one plus one."

Ou Yang didn't want to talk anymore.

Forget it, I won’t explain anymore, just do whatever you want!
"Okay, I'll teach you!" he said.

Garrison smiled brightly and gave a strangely awkward bow: "Wipe the tiger!"

The pronunciation was extremely strange, but Ou Yang understood it.

The others followed suit, clasping their hands and shouting in a chaotic manner.

Ou Yang was overwhelmed and suddenly felt like he was being forced to be the boss. He hurriedly explained and finally convinced these old men that he would only teach them kung fu and not call them master.

Lao Mi was also very stubborn and refused to agree, saying that he would never learn real skills if he didn't call him master. It was not until Ou Yang brought up the excuse of accepting disciples on behalf of the master that Garrison backed down, but he could not refuse the title of senior brother.

Ou Yang was racked with anxiety. How could he teach these people? Like in the movies, starting with the basics of horse stance?

Then he would just do horse stance. Anyway, this thing takes many years to practice. By the time he becomes proficient in it, he would have returned home long ago.

A pit? It was indeed a pit, but he was forced into it!

Worried that Garrison would continue to pester him, Ou Yang took the initiative to change the subject: "Where are we going?"

"Carry out the mission." Garrison avoided the main point and shifted the focus. "After completing the mission, we will send you to Jones Stadium, which is an official shelter. There is plenty of food and water. If you are lucky, you can wait there until the epidemic is over."

refuge?

Ou Yang thought for a moment and asked, "Are there many people there?"

"There are only a few hundred people, most of whom are mildly infected. There are only a few dozen people who are immune like you."

"What about those who are not infected? Are there any?"

Garrison shrugged: "Those who are not infected are basically hiding at home and dare not go out, let alone contact with outsiders."

"Is that so?" Ou Yang nodded thoughtfully.

Garrison added, "Brother, if you have any difficulties, just tell me and I will do my best to help."

Ou Yang's eyes lit up, and he lowered his voice like a thief: "Is there any way to contact the outside world? I want to let my family know I'm safe."

He explained his experience selectively and embellishedly.

Garrison immediately shook his head: "International long-distance? Impossible."

Ou Yang didn't give up: "What about the embassy?"

"That won't work either." Garrison continued to shake his head. "The US military has been blocking communication signals. Not only civilian frequencies, but even military frequencies are blocked by interference. The communication equipment we use is provided by the military and is only effective in urban areas. We can't communicate with the outside world."

"Is that so?" Ou Yang hadn't held out much hope from the beginning, so he wasn't too disappointed. "What about the consulate? Can you help me contact them?"

Garrison's expression suddenly relaxed. "That's no problem, but we belong to the central area and are not sure about the situation there. I'll ask later."

Ou Yang couldn't wait: "Can't I ask now?" Garrison showed a helpless expression: "Sorry, only headquarters can contact other districts."

"ok, I get it."

The convoy continued to move forward, but Ou Yang lost interest in talking.

The further they went, the more dilapidated the nearby buildings became. Some had burnt exterior walls, some had large black holes blown out, some had half of their sides collapsed, and some had even completely collapsed. The ruins blocked the streets, forcing the convoy to take a detour.

Ou Yang suddenly remembered the night when the plane flew across the night sky.

Could this be the place that was bombed?
As we continued forward, we saw more and more corpses. Human outlines could be seen everywhere, including vehicles, roads, and grass.

Yes, the outline.

The bodies of the infected were parasitized by fungi, and were either exposed and huddled up in the scorching sun, or hidden in the shade, with mushrooms of all sizes growing all over their bodies.

Could this be the legendary corpse mushroom?

If the distance is close, the two mushrooms will actively look for each other and eventually grow into one.

The mushrooms themselves are not a big deal, but the thought that there is a corpse under each mushroom is very uncomfortable.

There are even some remains that have been completely hollowed out by fungi. Due to the lack of sufficient nutrient support, the mycelium and mushrooms are completely dehydrated and hang on the empty skeletons like spider webs.

Ou Yang also saw a bunch of irregularly shaped corpse mushrooms on the street, which seemed to be the shape that would appear if they were flattened by a person.

There are corpses of ordinary people, but their number is extremely small. Most of them are parasitized by fungi after death and become soil for mushroom growth.

Only a very few escape the fate of being parasitized, becoming rotting corpses that give ordinary people nightmares at the mere sight of them.

Ou Yang believed that he had grown a lot during this period of time, but after seeing a rotten corpse covered with insects and flies up close, he still couldn't help but feel shocked and didn't want to look at it again.

It is a rejection and disgust that comes from the heart, from instinct, and even engraved in the genes.

Ou Yang couldn't help but ask, "These bodies are just thrown here, and no one cares?"

He was not being too sanctimonious and insisted on giving the bodies the final dignity. He simply felt that if left unattended, every body would become a breeding ground for fungal growth, which would be detrimental to controlling the epidemic.

Garrison was silent for a long moment. "We have limited manpower. We can barely take care of the living, so how can we take care of the dead?"

After a moment's thought, he added, "Also, this is the most dangerous place in the entire epidemic zone. The spore density is terrifyingly high. Even if we wear a full set of protective gear, we won't be able to hold out for long. With so many corpses, how are we going to collect them?"

"Unless it's burned down."

"You could just drop a nuclear bomb."

"Do you think Mi Gong doesn't dare? The epidemic is getting worse and worse. Who knows, at any moment, a nuclear bomb might be dropped from the sky, wiping the entire Brown Bear City off the map with a bang!"

"Whether infected or not, all of them will die!"

A few Americans were talking to each other, but there was not a single word of optimism or positivity from their mouths, and they had no hope at all for controlling the epidemic.

Even Lao Mi’s guards are so pessimistic about the situation. How bad is the situation?
After everyone calmed down a bit, Ou Yang asked, "If it's so dangerous, why did you come here?"

Garrison said darkly, "Investigate the source of the infection."

(End of this chapter)