524 Dismay and Ambush, The Empty Storehouse and the Ambush at the Road (1/2)

Day 128 - 10:29 AM -Edward Wuillermin \u0026 Sons Farms, Hammonton Township, New Jersey, United States of America

Mark stood by the door of the greenhouse, looking at the abomination at the center of the greenhouse. He could not tell if the infected could detect him or not. Although there was movement, he could not see any kind of aggression.

Taking out his phone and turning off the flash, Mark took out some pictures.

It had been his hobby since the outbreak started. Every time he could, he would take pictures. If not, he would engrave the appearance of the infected in his mind and draw an illustration later.

In fact, the database about the infected and evolved animals inside his laptop was growing fast.

That was the difference of this outbreak from what Mark knew from video games and movies. The number of possible branches that the infected could mutate to because of Mutagen was infinite.

Of course, there was some rarity among the mutations. Similar catalysts would mutate the infected the same way.

And the more common the catalyst for the mutation was, the more likely that an infected mutated by it would appear. It was like the Dozers, the infected that had fat, bloated bodies that would release methane when injured. A lot of them were among the infected everywhere.

The catalyst for the mutation of Dozers was already confirmed. It was the high amount of fat in the bodies of the infected before turning. Since obesity was common around the world, it was easy to find Dozers almost everywhere.

It was the same with other mutated infected.

Now, Mark had seen a new one. And it was a very rare plant-based mutation.

Thus, he could not help but feel interested.

After taking photos, Mark switched his phone to video recording and started to record the interior of the greenhouse as he entered.

From outside, what could only be seen was the vines and strange bulbs sticking out of the broken panels of the roof. Inside, however, rather than a garden, it was like a small jungle.

Vines covered the walls and the ground. Large, green leaves filled the place.

No one would think that it was a mutated infected unless they look at the center.

At the base of the vines, a man stood still, with his arms outstretched.

The base of the vines stuck out of the person's body. As if the entirety of it grew from inside him. From his eyes, nose, ears, and his widely opened mouth. The vines even stuck out in front and the back of his hole-ridden pants.

In a short glance, anyone would think that he was dead. However, with the infected man releasing that creepy moans from his disfigured throat, there was no doubt that this infected was still ”alive.”

Mark looked up, he saw something.

”Fruits?”

That was what anyone would think at first.

At the thickest parts of the vines above, several large things were hanging.

However, each one was not only as large as a human. It was also pulsating disgustingly. With its fleshy appearance, it looked more like a cocoon than a fruit. Nevertheless, there was no doubt that these things were hanging connected to the vines.

Out of curiosity, Mark took out his sword. With a jump and a slice, he opened one of the ”fruits.”

SPLAT!!!

Mark immediately retreated as disgustingly smelling liquid burst out of the fruit. As the contents fell to the ground, Mark could not help but frown.

The rotting and gastric smell spread across the greenhouse, making Mark retreat outside.

Even for him, that was already used to encountering rotting corpses everywhere, the smell from that thing he sliced open just now was unbearable.

If he did not retreat, even if he did not touch that thing, the smell would definitely stick to his clothes.

Despite his quick retreat, he saw what fell out of that ”fruit” clearly.

It was a pile of digested human body parts.

Those things hanging from the vines were not fruits but food. Then, if those things were all food for this mutated infected...

As Mark had thought of that, the vines started to move like snakes. Sure enough, what he did alerted the infected inside of prey lurking around it.

CRASH! CRASH!

More glass panels broke as the vines surged out of the confines of the greenhouse.

Then, the bulbs on the vine started to open, revealing huge flowers filled with barb-like teeth.

Seeing that, Mark tried something.

Mark ran, heading towards a corpse of an infected animal that he encountered while searching the greenhouses.

Picking up the corpse, he threw it into one of the widely opened bulbs.

As the bloody carcass entered the bulb, it closed. The vine that was connected to that bulb also retreated inside. Then, from the broken parts of the greenhouse, Mark was able to watch what happened inside.

That vine that retreated moved and hanged itself on the roof with that closed bulb hanging on it.

”What a unique way of eating.”

Mark murmured.

However, he also noticed something.

The vines were moving everywhere, looking for him. It was even though the direction the vines were moving to was the opposite way.

”It can't see.”

That was what Mark concluded.

A vine came towards him. But when he stepped aside, the vines continued moving the same direction and passed beside him.

Mark returned his phone into his pocket. With a wave of his hands, black flames burst forth, igniting the whole greenhouse.

”It is a pitiful infected, but it can't be left alone.

Mark murmured as he went back.

”Gege, did you find any?”

Mei asked as Mark returned. Mark could only shake his head. He found nothing that they could plant. And as if they would plant an infected like that in his base.

On the other hand, the others seemed to want to ask something as they glanced at the direction Mark came from repeatedly.