86: Eat it raw?

Suddenly, a knock at the door interrupted the conversation between Ai Yue and the others.

Opening the door, they found staff from the Safety Tower distributing insecticide—one bottle per person. Since Ye Rui was an outsider and was only staying at the base temporarily under Mo Li's guarantee, she didn't get a share. Ai Yue's family received three bottles.

Ai Yue casually handed a bottle of insecticide to Ye Rui. "Take this for self-defense."

"No, no, no, you and your parents should use it, Sister. Don't worry about me."

"I told you to take it, so take it. I still have more here."

"Thank you, Sister."

Ye Rui hugged the insecticide tightly to her chest and gave Ai Yue a sweet smile.

Before long, Ai Guosheng and Li Shilan woke up one after another.

"Mom, Dad, how are you feeling? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?" Ai Yue asked.

The couple moved their bodies and sensed their condition carefully. "We don't feel anything different; it's the same as before!"

"Then try focusing your attention?"

Just then, an alarm blared throughout the base, its long, piercing sound echoing through the entire Safety Tower.

This signaled that something extremely dangerous was about to happen.

The group looked at each other, no longer concerned with what abilities Ai Guosheng and his wife might have developed.

"Quick, block the cracks in the doors and windows. I'll go to the bathroom and kitchen. Dad, you stay in the living room; Mom, you go to the master bedroom; Ye Rui, go to the second bedroom. Let's do a thorough check."

"Okay," the three of them said in unison.

Safety Tower Command Center.

"Young General, the entire base is currently surrounded by Bloodthirsty Worms. Furthermore, some worms have already appeared in the residential areas, mostly crawling out from toilets and sewers."

Yan Li pushed open the door to the Command Center and reported the latest situation to Gu Xiheng.

"Are there any casualties?" Gu Xiheng asked while putting on his gear to arm himself.

"None for now, but many people were caught off guard and had their blood sucked by the Bloodthirsty Worms."

Gu Xiheng nodded and asked further, "Are the flamethrowers ready?"

"Everything is ready! We're just waiting for your command."

"Good! Let's go. We're going outside the base to clear out those damn bugs."

Gu Xiheng fastened the last buckle and quickly walked toward the base entrance with Yan Li.

The walls of the entire base had already been sprayed with insecticide, so the Bloodthirsty Worms hadn't climbed the walls and were kept outside.

Fortunately, when the Safety Tower was built, the entire ground was paved with the hardest stone; otherwise, the base might be crawling with Bloodthirsty Worms by now.

The Bloodthirsty Worms had already caught the scent of fresh human blood. They crowded outside the walls, their sharp mouths open in silent shrieks.

Anyone seeing the boundless tide of insects for the first time would turn pale and start cursing; it was just too damn disgusting.

Who could imagine the sight of those large, dark, fleshy worms tangled together, squirming and writhing?

Watching it would surely cause nightmares at night.

This scene challenged the nerves of every person present.

"Young General... this..." A hint of fear showed in Yan Li's eyes. Were they really going out there in a moment? He was terrified.

Gu Xiheng was expressionless, showing no sign of fear, though the veins beneath his helmet throbbed, revealing his inner turmoil.

"Third Squad, Fourth Squad, go clear a path," Gu Xiheng said with solemn sternness.

"Yes!" Two ten-man squads quickly shouldered large tanks of insecticide. Their faces were pale but determined as they walked out of the base without the slightest hesitation.

As the insecticide was sprayed, the Bloodthirsty Worms retreated unwillingly from the treated areas.

Soon, a path five meters wide was revealed.

Gu Xiheng led the soldiers out of the Safety Tower along the cleared path.

Switching on the flamethrowers, massive waves of fire blasted toward the piles of insects.

Instantly, a series of 'crackling' sounds accompanied the smell of charred burning.

If one smelled closely, there was actually a strange fragrance. Those who caught the scent couldn't help but swallow their saliva.

Gu Xiheng smelled it too. He narrowed his eyes, and having formed a plan, he immediately instructed the person beside him, "Go catch a few worms and send them to the lab. See if they're edible."

"Yes." That soldier moved quickly, pulling out an entrenching shovel from his back. He lightly tapped the pile of insects, knocking several unconscious. With a quick scoop, he put them into a metal box he carried, then turned and ran back into the base.

The results of their operation were obvious; wherever they passed, the Bloodthirsty Worms were turned to ash!

But the Bloodthirsty Worms were endless, crawling forward one after another in waves.

They didn't know how many Bloodthirsty Worms they had killed.

The soldiers were nearly buried by the ashes floating in the air.

Just then, the Bloodthirsty Worms collectively dove into the soil. In an instant, they all vanished!

Gu Xiheng looked at the thousands of holes in the ground. Fearing a sneak attack by the Bloodthirsty Worms, he hurried the soldiers back into the base.

Sure enough, before they could fully retreat, the Bloodthirsty Worms shrieked and bored out of the ground where they had just been standing. Fortunately, the smell of insecticide still lingered on the ground.

As soon as they poked their heads out, they were driven back underground by the pungent smell.

From then on, the Bloodthirsty Worms didn't come up again.

"Have everyone in the Safety Tower increase their vigilance. A large number of Bloodthirsty Worms might crawl indoors through the pipes," Gu Xiheng said to Yan Li.

"Yes," Yan Li replied and left to carry out the order.

This could be considered a victory. As long as they found the right method, these terrifying insects weren't hard to deal with. This was all thanks to Ai Yue.

If she hadn't discovered the weakness of the Bloodthirsty Worms in time, dealing with them wouldn't have been this easy, and casualties would have been inevitable.

A hint of tenderness flashed in Gu Xiheng's eyes, and his favorable impression of Ai Yue deepened. The more he interacted with her, the more he felt she was mysterious in every way, as if covered by a veil that tempted him to pull it away.

It seemed that for a short while, the Bloodthirsty Worms would not gather outside the base again.

Gu Xiheng left men on guard and went to the underground experimental base.

"Academician Wang, are the Bloodthirsty Worms edible?" Gu Xiheng asked as he arrived at the Life Sciences Research Institute underground.

"Xiheng, you've come at the right time. The research results just came out." Academician Wang's expression was a mix of complexity and joy. "Research shows these worms are edible, and their nutritional value is extremely high."

Gu Xiheng was overjoyed to hear this. Since the worms were edible, no matter how formidable they were, they wouldn't be a problem—they could just eat them all. The ordinary people in the base hadn't had meat for a long time; this was a perfect chance to supplement their protein.

Academician Wang continued, "Bloodthirsty Worms are ancient life forms from billions of years ago, traceable back to the early stages of Earth's formation. They've been sleeping deep underground since ancient times. I don't know what disturbed them this time, causing them to swarm out."

"No matter the reason, as long as they're edible, it's fine," Gu Xiheng said dismissively.

"There's one more thing. While these Bloodthirsty Worms are edible, they can only be eaten raw!"

"What? Eat them raw?" Those large fleshy worms that were black on the outside and green and gooey on the inside had to be eaten raw?

As someone who had eaten raw rats and snakes, he truly couldn't stomach the thought of eating such a disgusting creature.

No wonder Academician Wang's expression was so complex when he said they were edible.