Chapter 530: Stone Forest Maze
Previously, they had speculated that the water and food in the cleanup area were problematic, and that ingesting them would cause people to become infected with pathogens, leading to symptoms like loss of voice, mental confusion, and eventually mutation into Mutants.
The recent behavior of Yi Mao and Wan Xiao further indicated that besides that, inhaling the air, or rather, the special odors released by certain plants, animals, and soil, could make people agitated.
However, the traces of battle where armed individuals had slaughtered each other were right before their eyes. The water bottles and some food on the corpses hadn't been taken, showing these people weren't just agitated; they had also become bloodthirsty and murderous, suspected of having lost their reason.
Of course, without witnessing it firsthand, one couldn't definitively conclude what had happened. But considering Yi Mao and Wan Xiao's earlier reactions, at the very least, this possibility could be confirmed.
"So, we not only have to deal with people who might come to rob water and food, but also guard against those whose minds aren't entirely clear?" Yi Mao looked around. "I was very agitated just now, but I didn't mistake people for Mutants. Could that really happen? Could it be that some people teamed up to kill others?"
"What would be the reason for killing?" Wan Xiao said. "They didn't even take the water and food. We aren't players; we don't have any decent items, and our ammunition reserves aren't large. Killing with such methods, aside from meaninglessly depleting both sides' ammunition, I really can't think of any benefit in doing this."
"For now, let's assume it's due to the special environmental influence causing Warriors to kill each other." In Xu Huo's view, this was the best current speculation.
"Water, food, and air are all problematic." Liang Song said gravely. "Weiping and I just killed some Mutants. According to Clown City's minimum baseline, in the event of special circumstances, even if we don't complete the cleanup area mission, we can still return to claim the reward."
"My suggestion is to turn back now. The jungle area just underwent the Mutant tide's baptism; perhaps we can pick up some valuable plants or Ore on the way back."