Natural Disasters Strikes: I stockpiled like crazy!
Chapter 234 - 234: Green Algae

The road leading to the Crystal Water Facility was narrow, damaged by the recent heavy rains. Mud pits and slopes had formed, making it impossible for their cars to pass.

Nanzhi brought out the motorcycles from the space ring, and they rode in pairs toward the facility.

Surrounding the Crystal Water Facility was a four-meter-tall fence, weathered but still standing.

"Let's be careful," Nanzhi reminded quietly.

Everyone knew what she was referring to. During the drive here, she had already briefed them about the strange creatures Lan Fuyou and the others had fought last night.

As she spoke, Feng Ran suddenly remembered something. "You know… I once played a horror-action game. In that game, these things would attach themselves to people's brains, turning them into puppets—mindless and unafraid of pain. The scariest part was, they acted just like normal humans. You'd never know until the end that they weren't human at all. I only survived because an NPC showed up at the last second to save me."

Yu Baoyin was intrigued. "How did the NPC beat them?"

"By blasting their heads off," Feng Ran said, a shiver crawling down his spine. "Those things only stayed alive as long as the host's brain was intact."

His words echoed eerily with what they'd seen the night before—the headless bodies of the five men.

"Is there really no other way?" Yu Baoyin frowned. "What if we remove the parasite? Maybe there's a way to save the host?"

"I believe they were already dead when we found them," Lin Weihao cut in. While everyone had been focused on Zhi Zhi last night, he had been observing the others—and certain signs pointed to that conclusion.

"So you're saying... those parasites only prefer dead hosts?" Yu Baoyin thought with disbelief. But if the brain is dead, how do they still move? It makes no sense...

Then again, in this world where humans awakened supernatural abilities, what was "logical" anymore?

"Perhaps," Nanzhi said with a slight frown. "Or perhaps not."

Her expression darkened. She remembered the large search team in her past life that had been wiped out under mysterious circumstances. There was now a high chance that they had encountered the same kind of creatures as Lan Fuyou's team did.

Back then, that incident had taken place two months from now.

But last night, those strange, tadpole-like creatures had slipped past her mental exploration until they began attacking. That troubled her deeply.

They had even managed to utter a single word—"help"—before they attacked.

If these things evolved further… if they learned to mimic humans completely…

And if they reached Pearl City...

Nanzhi couldn't help but imagine the worst. Her lips pressed into a thin line.

These parasitic vines tadpoles—she had no knowledge of them from her previous life. She had never ventured into this part of Jade City before. There were no memories she could rely on.

The same was true for Lin Weihao. After winter, they had left Jade City early and headed to Amber City. Never once did they encounter or even hear news of such creatures.

Now, after Nanzhi's earlier warning about the possible heat wave and drought, the Military Base had issued a wide-scale recovery mission targeting key water treatment and production facilities. These sites, near rivers and streams, were critical for the coming dry season.

If something like last night happened at the military base—where his family was—Lin Weihao couldn't bear the consequences.

"If what you say is true, this is more serious than I thought. I'll warn the others to be alert. If anything happens, I'll contact you immediately," Colonel Tang's voice came through the satellite phone.

Lin Weihao gave a low hum of acknowledgment before ending the call.

—

As they neared the facility, a putrid smell wafted toward them—like fish left to rot under the sun for weeks. It was sharp, stinging their noses and triggering alarm in their minds.

They stopped.

Nanzhi calmly pulled out face masks, sprayed them with alcohol, and distributed them to the others to reduce the stench.

Even as she moved, her mental exploration ability remained active, scanning ahead for any danger.

They were prepared for battle. But surprisingly, the journey remained quiet.

Still, no one relaxed, not even when they reached the tall iron gates of the Crystal Facility.

The Crystal Water Facility—being the only one of its kind in all of Jade City—was vast, occupying a large hillside. From their position, they could see the towering filtration tanks and sprawling pipelines, now overrun with moss and rust after months of neglect.

The facility had drawn its water from an uphill stream. Clean water would be channeled through pipes into the reservoir, and any excess was discharged into the Qiangde River below.

But now, there were no tire tracks. No footprints. Nothing that suggested recent human activity.

Nanzhi remembered what one of Lan Fuyou's subordinates had said the night before—something about supplies.

She quickly pulled up her Virtual Map.

Sure enough, several small factories were marked nearby. Perhaps the group had diverted there first?

The front gate to the facility was a collapsed mess of twisted, rusted metal. A broken sign hung from one post, its faded red letters barely visible: Authorized Personnel Only.

Too quiet.

Nanzhi's brows furrowed as she swept the surrounding area once more with her ability. No signs of beasts.

"Stay here first," she ordered calmly.

She and Lin Weihao entered the facility first, checking every corner thoroughly.

The Crystal Water Facility was divided into zones: water treatment, water distribution, and water storage. Each area housed enormous basins still holding untreated water. Even scanning half the site took them nearly an hour.

Eventually, they discovered the source of the foul, rotting smell.

It was the storage pools.

The closer they got, the more unbearable it became.

Dark green algae floated thickly across the surface, obscuring anything below. As Nanzhi used her ability to clear a section of the water, something tugged at her senses.

Clusters of weak mental signals flickered beneath the surface.

She knelt down, her gaze sharp.

Something was attached to the algae.