Chapter 191 - 122: Influence

Chapter 191: Chapter 122: Influence

Birds? Mutated birds?

Xu Mo’s heart skipped a beat. He immediately walked out of the workshop and looked up at the sky.

It was afternoon. Under the gray, hazy sky, he could indeed see some black dots circling and gliding high above. Xu Mo focused his gaze and saw there were no fewer than a dozen of them. Their flight altitude wasn’t low, but they were still clearly visible above the open industrial zone. The size and flight patterns of a few were indeed different from ordinary birds—they seemed larger, even carrying a hint of ferocity.

’Have birds also started mutating and gathering on a large scale?’ Xu Mo’s brow furrowed. The threat of zombies had yet to be resolved. If the skies were also occupied by mutated avians, humanity’s situation would become even more difficult. The mobility of these birds and their attack angles from the air could pose a new threat to personnel on the ground, especially to fortresses with limited observation ports.

’Looks like I need to find a chance to get to some open ground or a high vantage point to specifically observe the movements of these birds.’ Xu Mo mentally noted this new development. The appearance of mutated bird flocks was perhaps another ominous sign. This industrial zone, it seemed, never lacked "surprises."

Returning to the fortress, Xu Mo took out his map and solemnly wrote in the blank space beside it:

[New Observation: Abnormal gathering of birds in the sky, including mutated individuals. Numbers are increasing, movements unknown. Caution is required.]

After writing this, Xu Mo once again looked out at the sky, which was shrouded by ruins and a faint haze. Those circling black dots were like an ominous ellipsis, foreshadowing more unknowns and variables.

Xu Mo withdrew his gaze from the circling black dots in the sky, but his mind couldn’t help but recall the shocking scene from a few days ago—a flock of birds that blotted out the sky, like a moving dark cloud, passing over the Red Star Industrial Zone with sharp, noisy cries as they flew toward an unknown destination.

The scale and intensity of that bird migration were far from ordinary.

’And these birds now lingering in the sky, showing clear signs of mutation—are they related to that mass migration? Are they "observation posts" left behind by the migrating flock? Or are they the "vanguard" attracted back by some unknown change in this area? Or was the migration itself a prelude to some greater change, and these that remained are part of that change?’

His thoughts yielded no answers, only more questions.

Just as Xu Mo was staring blankly, his thoughts drifting, he noticed the color of the sky seemed to grow more somber. The gray, hazy cloud layer pressed down even lower. Then, scattered drops of water began to fall, striking the cold outer shell of the fortress with a light PATTER, PATTER sound.

It started to rain.

The rain wasn’t heavy; it was a typical drizzle. Xu Mo’s gaze followed the falling raindrops through an observation port.

However, the scene that followed made him pause, then plunged him into deeper thought.

Down in the ruins below, some of the zombies that had been wandering aimlessly or standing idly actually reacted when the raindrops fell. They sluggishly lifted their heads. Some even opened their rotting, incomplete mouths, which dripped with viscous fluid, toward the sky, as if to catch the falling rainwater. Their posture faintly suggested a kind of instinctive intake.

This detail was like a key, unlocking a section of doubt in Xu Mo’s mind that had always been present but ignored.

’When these zombies don’t find prey, what do they live on?’

They can’t just photosynthesize like plants. Even their slow wandering, roaring, and maintaining the basic activity of their decaying bodies obviously consumes energy. Where does this energy come from?

Previously, Xu Mo might have subconsciously dismissed them as mere "undead creatures" or "virus-driven corpses," ignoring the fundamental law of energy conservation that they, as "active entities," must obey. Now, seeing their "rain-catching" behavior—though it might just be some residual instinct or new adaptive behavior driven by the virus—made this question incredibly clear.

’Do they really not need to "eat" at all? Sunshine? Some kind of radiation? Microorganisms in the air? Or does this polluted rainwater itself contain trace amounts of energy or specific substances they can absorb? Or perhaps, like some lower organisms, can they enter a state of extremely low energy consumption, a "hibernation" or "standby" mode?’

These questions touched upon the fundamental mechanics of the zombies’ existence.

Xu Mo believed that a large shelter like Jiang City, which had established order and possessed research capabilities, must have invested significant resources into studying zombies. They had likely already grasped some deeper information about the zombies’ energy sources, behavioral patterns, and even their weaknesses.

But this information was obviously highly classified, available only to top-level decision-makers and elite units performing special missions. A character like him, on the periphery, with the status of a mere "Observer" and "Civilian Hunter," was clearly not yet qualified to access this core intelligence.

"My rank isn’t high enough..." Xu Mo shook his head slightly, a self-mocking smile touching his lips.

In the apocalypse, information was closely tied to strength and status. To know more of the truth, to peer into the secrets behind the world, one had to stand taller, become stronger, or possess a unique, irreplaceable value.

Xu Mo pushed these currently unanswerable, grand questions to the back of his mind. For now, the more practical thing was to focus on what he could control and improve.

The rain gradually became denser, and the sky grew even darker. But for Xu Mo, this signaled the beginning of another important matter.

He gathered his focus, no longer paying attention to the zombies’ bizarre "drinking" behavior outside the window. He turned and walked to a relatively open and well-ventilated spot inside the fortress. Ignoring the drizzling rain outside, he slowly assumed the stance for Pile Training.

As his breathing gradually deepened and lengthened, the qi and blood surging through his body like a great river began to circulate faster.

Soon, familiar wisps of warm energy began to seep through the pores of his skin, drawn into his body by Xu Mo. They merged with his surging qi and blood, continuously nourishing and refining them. The warm current that had rushed out to replenish his energy during his breakthrough had made Xu Mo deeply understand the importance of accumulating energy through daily Qi Collection. It was not only the foundation of his cultivation but also one of his life-saving trump cards in a critical moment.

The fine rain tapped against the fortress, creating a monotonous and rhythmic sound. Inside, Xu Mo stood still as a pine tree, his breath long and steady, immersed in the profound state of absorbing energy. Outside, the zombies continued their strange and silent "survival" ritual in the curtain of rain.

Inside and out, one still and one in motion, they formed another ordinary afternoon in this land of death. But whether it was the mutated avians circling in the sky or the zombies’ subtle actions revealing deeper secrets, everything indicated that beneath this veneer of normalcy, an increasingly turbulent undercurrent was surging.