149: ant eradication operation

Under everyone's gaze, the four security guards simultaneously experienced an issue.

Their eyes rolled back, revealing a large expanse of white, and their bodies began to convulse uncontrollably.

There was a problem, definitely a problem!

Even if a normal person reacted to the Hellfire Ants repellent, it would never be so exaggerated.

The only answer was that these people had already become hosts for the Hellfire Ants.

This was because the Hellfire Ants were reacting to the repellent.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Four gunshots rang out simultaneously, hitting the foreheads of the four hosts, piercing their brains.

Or rather, piercing the bloody worms hidden deep within their brains.

Blood continuously flowed from the wounds on their foreheads.

Everyone collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

Under normal circumstances, a human suffering such severe injuries would be declared dead.

But these hosts were different.

Their brains had long been completely devoured by the bloody worms.

The bloody worms had directly taken their place, becoming the new controllers.

And to think one could easily eliminate a bloody worm, an Awakened Beast, with a single bullet?

That would be far too naive.

Therefore, the hosts hit by bullets not only did not die,

but instead activated their survival instincts, erupting with terrifying strength.

They bared their fangs and claws, attempting to counterattack the enemies who had suppressed them.

However, their counterattack was destined to be futile.

Because the number of enemies was simply too many.

Under brute force suppression, they were completely unable to move.

Bang, ... countless more gunshots rang out.

It wasn't until the hosts' brains were completely blown to smithereens that they finally stopped moving.

Milosh, who was leading, also breathed a sigh of relief.

He was truly afraid that the enemies were unkillable monsters.

He immediately used his walkie-talkie to relay the intelligence he had gathered to other teams, saying:

"Other teams, please pay attention, other teams, please pay attention."

"Hosts are different from normal humans; they will not stop moving unless their brains are completely destroyed."

"Be careful and cautious; do not fall into a trap."

In fact, if not for the advantage in weapons and numbers,

with the terrifying characteristics of these hosts, these people would not have achieved victory so easily.

This led to some less careful teams immediately suffering casualties.

Especially after the first wave of battle broke out, the hosts had already been alarmed and became vigilant.

They did not intend to sit idly by, but instead chose to take the initiative to attack.

Using the bodies they controlled, they fearlessly launched attacks on the Research Institute members.

This battle was destined to be a war of Endurance.

However, victory would ultimately belong to Ismail Institute.

Having lost the advantage of weapons,

even if they disregarded death, these people couldn't stir up too much trouble.

The only thing to note was how to clear out the parasites hidden among the crowd.

In this situation, even suspected hosts who did not instinctively react on the spot were not spared.

Each of them was tied up.

Unless verified by the most advanced instruments that they had no problems whatsoever,

otherwise, the Research Institute would absolutely not let them go.

The battle on this side had already begun.

On the other side, it was also happening simultaneously.

Yixia roared angrily in Professor Si Te De's mind: "Sted, you betrayed me!"

"You should know what price you have to pay for betraying me!"

It was no wonder Yixia suspected Professor Si Te De.

Because apart from him, everyone else's brains had been completely devoured by the bloody worms.

And then replaced.

After all, these people were not in high positions, and acting a bit mechanically would not attract attention.

He was exposed?

Professor Si Te De was ecstatic.

Although this meant his death,

it also meant Yixia's death.

He had endured humiliation and finally conveyed the most crucial intelligence.

With a slight smile, Professor Si Te De said: "Betrayal? I was never yours?"

"There are many things in this world more important than death."

"Not to mention, you also tried to defile my beloved wife."

"Yixia, underestimating humans is your most fatal weakness."

"Let us perish together!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Professor Si Te De took advantage of Yixia's momentary dazed to directly press the button beside him.

Boom.

The laboratory where Professor Si Te De was located directly exploded!

The terrifying power directly knocked Professor Si Te De to the ground.

Even more terrifying tongues of fire erupted, attempting to completely engulf Professor Si Te De.

The instinct for survival forced the bloody worm to manipulate Professor Si Te De's body and begin to flee in panic.

However, the Research Institute was a confined space.

If he wanted to escape, where could he go?

Open the Research Institute's door?

As early as when Pato was preparing for action, he had already used higher authority to lock down Professor Si Te De's permissions.

Without Pato's permission, he couldn't go anywhere.

Finally, the flames surged, completely engulfing Professor Si Te De's body.

Although a room full of advanced instruments was sacrificed as a burial offering,

Professor Si Te De felt it was very worthwhile!

He, the creator of the Hellfire Ants,

was ultimately destroyed by his own creation due to carelessness.

Perhaps I never truly understood the Hellfire Ants.

With this last thought, Professor Si Te De completely sank into the darkness of death! —

Area C, underground!

Yixia's corpulent body began to move frantically, carried by countless Hellfire Ants.

Based on its understanding of humans,

the other party would absolutely not let it off so easily.

It had to escape to a sufficiently safe place in the shortest possible time.

However, it clearly underestimated the speed of human action.

Eight missiles had already streaked across the sky, about to hit the land of Area C.

This was not because Ismail Institute thought Yixia's danger level was higher than Lin Tianwei's.

That's why more missiles were launched.

Area C was covered in Hellfire Ants.

If every corner couldn't be covered, this destructive strike would be a ridiculous joke.

Bang!

Violent explosions echoed one after another.

Terrifying energy directly erupted.

Even melting the sand directly into reefs.

Especially the area where the queen ant was located, it was the key target area for the missiles.

A total of four missiles were launched.

The terrifying energy, even through the sand, transmitted a large portion underground.

The queen ant immediately stumbled, shaken.

Its obese body rolled several times before heavily crashing into the wall.

Fortunately.

The thick layer of fat allowed it to offset most of the damage.

Humans are nothing more than this!

It was hidden underground.

Even if human missiles were powerful, they could only kill the Hellfire Ants near the surface.

They couldn't cause it any harm at all.

What a foolish act!

Just as Yixia was secretly congratulating itself on having survived,

it smelled a disgusting odor permeating the air.

It was like some strange chemical substance, making it instinctively feel nauseous.

This was the Hellfire Ants Inhibitor!

Even though the queen ant had Awakened, it still couldn't resist the effect of the inhibitor.

It immediately lost most of its mobility.

If the queen ant was like this, those Hellfire Ants were even worse.

They could only prostrate themselves on the ground, minimizing the effect of the inhibitor on themselves as much as possible.

Not only that, but along with the inhibitor came terrifying incendiary agents!

Since Area C was built as a haven for the Hellfire Ants, it was impossible not to have a backup plan.

These inhibitors, these incendiary agents, were the backup plan.

When the critical moment arrived, bursting forth, they could completely block the escape routes of these Hellfire Ants.

These things were the ultimate killing blow!

And the missiles in the sky were merely a diversion.

Or rather, a method to seal off the escape route through the sky.

In Yixia's horrified gaze, the incendiary agents permeating the ant tunnels grew more and more numerous.

And the Hellfire Ants, due to the effect of the inhibitor, were unable to move.

If this continued, once the incendiary agents were ignited,

only death awaited them.

It had to do something to secure a path to survival from this terrifying inferno.

At least to allow its will to be passed on.

Thinking of this, the queen ant unhesitatingly activated its Talent: Directed Modification (Supernatural)!

It was by virtue of this terrifying Talent that the queen ant achieved Directed Modification of its offspring.

Granting them various unique and independent abilities.

However, although this Talent was powerful, it consumed a considerable amount of energy.

Under normal circumstances, the queen ant would never do such a thankless task.

But now, it was a matter of life and death.

If it didn't make an effort, the entire Hellfire Ants colony would be erased from Blue Star.

Energy.

A large amount of energy.

All the energy throughout the queen ant's body began to converge into its body.

This is the fear consumption for activating this Talent.

Combined with the Queen Ant's egg-laying ability, it can Directed Modification its offspring to possess special abilities.

Fire Resistance!

Inheriting its own ability!

Flight!

Mimicry!

Most importantly, intelligence!

In this battle against humans, the Queen Ant lost, but it didn't completely lose.

At least it realized the importance of intelligence.

With the terrifying reproductive ability of ants,

as long as there is enough food, it can completely achieve the ability of one ant becoming an army.

So it is not yet at its wit's end.

It still has a chance to turn the tables.

Under the effect of Talent: Directed Modification (Extraordinary), all the Queen Ant's energy began to converge at one point.

Finally, at the moment the fire ignited, its ovipositor tremblingly produced an ant egg.

Blood-red.

An ant egg carrying terrifying energy.

The Queen Ant's body, completely hollowed out, collapsed weakly to the ground.

Allowing the raging fire to burn and consume it completely.

Just like Professor Si Te De once did.

And that ant egg, which barely came into existence after absorbing all of the Queen Ant's energy,

not only was unharmed by the high temperature of the raging fire but also underwent a miraculous change.

The energy substances contained within began to condense, and soon a new life was born.

It was actually absorbing energy from the flames!

What a terrifying Talent.

Under the catalysis of the raging fire, this ant egg quickly hatched.

Hatching a blood-red ant.

An ant covered in a thick Carapace.

Although this ant was small, its teeth were sharp, and its stinger was like a steel spear.

Each leg was incredibly sharp.

Capable of easily piercing an enemy's body.

If it weren't for the fact that this ant was only the size of a normal ant, almost imperceptible,

this would absolutely be a terrifying killing machine.

To acquire so many terrifying Talents, this ant also paid a considerable price.

Its minuscule size was its greatest sacrifice.

However, in the current situation, a smaller body might be more conducive to hiding itself.

Scorched by the great fire, the mucus on the ant's body instantly dried up.

A pair of transparent wings also unfurled.

With a gentle flutter, it actually flew up amidst the flames.

Its flexible antennae constantly swayed.

As if possessing some kind of sensory ability, allowing this ant to avoid all obstacles.

Finding a way out for itself.

Something terrifying happened.

Just like Lin Tianwei's Water Stealth Talent,

bathed in the flames, this ant's body also changed.

It began to merge with the flames, disappearing into the flames.

This raging inferno, on the contrary, became its best disguise.

This is the terrifying ability of Mimicry!

Perhaps only an ant with such terrifying abilities could be called a true Hellfire Ant.

Following the pre-scouted exit,

under the cover of the flames, the Hellfire Ant quickly flew outwards.

Finally, unbeknownst to anyone, it flew out from the ground.

The next step was how to evade human detection and successfully escape from here.

Should it directly rush through the checkpoint, gambling that humans wouldn't discover its existence?

Or should it play it safe, biding its time and looking for an opportunity?

At this moment, the importance of intelligence became apparent.

It did not directly rush the checkpoint, gambling on the chance of humans being blind.

The Hellfire Ant, relying on its small size, directly started raking up the surrounding sand.

Before long, it had hidden itself with the already melted sand.

One day and one night!

The great fire burned for a full day and night.

And the Queen Ant, even earlier, lost its life not long after the inferno began to rage.

Exhausted, it had no way to escape the burning flames.

The moment the Queen Ant died, the blood-red worms that had an invisible connection with the Queen Ant also experienced problems.

The feeling of this connection being pulled from their minds made them agonizingly frantic.

For a time, countless more stragglers were discovered.

The troops led by Pato instantly emptied their bullets.

Seeing that the situation had stabilized, Pato also breathed a sigh of relief and asked Professor Yanos:

"Professor Yanos, do you think there are any oversights in our plan to eradicate the Hellfire Ants this time?"

"Especially how should we deal with those who are suspected of having come into contact with the Parasitism?"

"You are more professional than I am, and I hope to get your advice."

In fact, Pato was able to formulate the action plan so quickly thanks to Professor Yanos's help.

As Professor Si Te De's old rival, Professor Yanos was quite familiar with these Hellfire Ants.

Naturally, he thought of using a repellent at the first opportunity to throw the blood-red worms into disarray.

"Investigate, not a single one can be let go."

"Do not let any potentially existing Parasitism survive."

Professor Yanos said decisively: "Cut the grass but not the roots, and it will grow again with the spring breeze!"

"This time, we gained the upper hand and wiped out the Hellfire Ants in one fell swoop."

"If you are afraid of trouble and let some stragglers escape,"

"wait until the next disaster brought by the Hellfire Ants breaks out."

"I hope you still have such good luck."

"By the way, I have something else to do, so I won't chat with you anymore."

After speaking, Professor Yanos directly hung up the phone.

The Reinforcement project for the Clone Tiger had reached its harvest time.

He had no interest in playing childish games of exterminating ants with Pato.

These Clone Tigers were the powerful source of the Ismail Institute!

After Professor Yanos's reminder, Pato also realized that he had been happy a little too soon.

These ants were not to be trifled with.

This time, they had to be thoroughly checked before they could be completely eradicated.

This check was crucial, and problems were immediately found.

Among those seemingly normal contacts who were not affected by the Queen Ant's death, a great terror was hidden.

Ant eggs were discovered deep within their brains after scanning.

Because they had not hatched, they had escaped the previous two rounds of clear-up.

But once they hatched, they would become humanity's most terrifying nightmare.

Regardless of the creature, the brain is the most crucial part.

Not only in the brains of these people,

but also in their residences, large numbers of ant eggs were hidden.

As soon as the time was ripe, they would hatch and become the sharp blades that would stab the Ismail Institute in the back!

Pato's face turned ashen, and he shouted angrily: "Search, search for them!"

"Not a single ant egg can be missed."

For such a thing to happen right under his nose was a great mockery of himself.

Soon, a large number of unhatched ant eggs were found.

This war without smoke finally came to a tentative end.

Next, they only needed to destroy the Hellfire Ants hidden in Zone C to completely eliminate these scourges.

This time, Pato personally led the team to encircle and annihilate the remaining Hellfire Ants.

Even if they had to dig three feet deep, they would completely eliminate these scourges.

Stepping on the soft earth, Pato and his team, equipped with special instruments, began this punitive battle.

Protected by safety ropes, these elite soldiers would not fear the potential dangers of the sandy ground.

Searching inch by inch, not letting any possible life on this land escape.

It must be said that the vitality of these Hellfire Ants was truly tenacious.

A full day and night of fire still failed to completely eliminate them.

Enveloped in sand, like roasted chickens,

a small number of Hellfire Ants still managed to cling to life.

However, their ultimate fate was still destruction!

Only, no one noticed that a clump of black soil had silently stuck to the sole of an elite soldier's shoe.

Hidden within it was that Hellfire Ant with terrifying potential.

This ant extermination operation continued for another day and night.

It didn't completely end until noon the next day.

It's no exaggeration to say that so many people basically plowed the land in Zone C.

Finding and completely eliminating every possible Hellfire Ant or ant egg.

Not enough, this is still not enough!

Pato even planned to use great effort to directly render this land harmless.

Professor Yanos's words were very true.

They could not bear another disaster of this magnitude, capable of destroying the entire Research Institute.

For this, spending a little more manpower and resources was unavoidable.