Chapter 111: Waiting for a long time
No one present was spared from the fungal outbreak.
Fugo lost both legs, Mista had his neck bitten, Abbazi and Narancia each had an arm rotted away, and Giorno and Bucciarati could only helplessly cover their chests and abdomens, watching the spreading fungal blanket devour their abdominal muscles.
Li Qing seemed to be fine.
The fungal erosion seemed to be simply judged by the system as a "physical attack", and his digitized body would recover immediately after being injured.
Li Qing always maintains an intact body and full combat effectiveness, but this cannot change the fact that his blood volume is constantly decreasing.
This is undoubtedly a desperate situation.
"think!"
"There's not much time left... Think quickly!"
Li Qing gritted his teeth and encouraged his companions in this desperate situation:
There are natural differences in strength and natural differences in ability, but the human souls are absolutely equal.
As long as you never stop thinking, you will have unlimited possibilities to make up for the gap and reverse the strength.
At this moment…
Seven people, including Li Qing, were using what might be the last time of their lives to think about that question:
“Why are enemies immune to fungi?”
"Is it because the enemy's ability can achieve 'no damage to teammates'?"
Li Qing was the first to come up with an answer using in-game thinking.
However, Bucciarati, who had dealt with various Stand users and had learned many rules about their abilities, immediately objected:
"I don't think so."
"These fungi reproduce and spread spontaneously, with an almost unlimited range."
"If we can lock onto a moving target within such a large range and keep it from being harmed by fungi, how powerful would that control be?"
"From my experience..."
Bucciarati confidently analyzed:
"Stunt doubles are like athletes in the Olympics. They each have their own areas of expertise, but you can't be good at both."
"For example, a shooter may have great accuracy, but they cannot have the endurance and stamina of a marathon runner."
"There may only be one or two all-around athletes in the world who are at the forefront in terms of strength, speed, endurance, and precision."
"The same is true for stand-ins, like Fugo's Purple Smoke..."
"Stands with large-scale killing capabilities generally do not have high precision control capabilities."
The fact is just as Bucciarati said, Jocrat's stand panel data is "Precision E".
This level of precision is obviously not enough to perform the delicate operations of protecting teammates from harm amidst a huge enemy force.
An idea was temporarily rejected.
But everyone has already opened up their minds during this brainstorming session.
Soon , someone proposed a new possibility:
Is it that the "tights"-like stand-in that the other party is wearing has the isolation effect of a biochemical protective suit itself?
This conjecture was also quickly rejected because Psycho's "tights" were not fully covered, and half of his cheek was clearly exposed, which obviously had no effect of isolating the air.
So…
Did the other party inject some antifungal drugs in advance?
Is it possible that the other party has undergone human body modification and has formed some antibodies that are immune to fungi in the body?
…
“These ideas are useless!”
Seeing that his throat was about to be eaten away by the fungus, Mista shouted anxiously in his hoarse and weak voice:
"Even if these speculations are true... we have absolutely no way to replicate them."
"If this continues... the guy hiding in the soil will soon come up to collect our bodies."
Even if I think about it, I can't come up with an answer.
The atmosphere became increasingly solemn and dead silent.
At this moment, Li Qing suddenly seemed to have thought of something and patted his head:
"Hidden in the soil...Hidden in the soil..."
“The biggest difference between that guy and the others is that he keeps marching in the dirt.”
"Could it be that... the secret of immunity to fungi is related to soil?"
※※※
Underground.
In the "liquefied" soil layer, Psycho was swimming comfortably.
Butterfly stroke, breaststroke, dog paddling... he was like a tourist on vacation at the beach, changing various postures to enjoy the entertainment and relax his body and mind.
Because he no longer had to worry about the battle.
The previous action of Li Qing and others jumping from a high place to a low place had already activated the fungi that infected them.
The fungus will continue to multiply and spread until it has devoured every last bit of the enemy's flesh and blood.
If he came to the surface, the enemy might seize the opportunity to counterattack. All Sai Ke needed to do was to wait quietly in the soil, guarding against the enemies on the ground making any moves when they were dying, and preparing to collect the bodies of these dying guys.
What made him feel relieved was...
Li Qing and others on the ground seemed to have lost the courage to resist in this desperate situation. They did not move or run away. They just took two hurried steps, uttered a few wails, and then made no other noise.
Soon, the surroundings became completely quiet.
"Nothing happened..."
Sai Ke listened carefully to the movements on the ground , and suddenly found that he could no longer hear any sound:
"Dead... They should all be dead, right?"
“Hahahaha…reward, I can get Joecrat’s reward!”
He looked like a dog in heat as he kept his nose up and stuck out his tongue, talking to himself.
But this did not affect his wild animal-like sharp and cautious instincts.
Sai Ke first found a safe place far away from Li Qing and the others and carefully floated to the ground. Then he squinted his eyes and carefully observed their current appearance:
fear.
The appearance of Li Qing and others can only be described as horrifying.
The green and white fungal mat has completely covered their bodies from top to bottom and from head to toe, making them look like rotten and moldy citrus fruits that have been placed improperly.
They lay sprawled on the ground, their eyes wide open, like evil spirits seeking revenge.
The breath was so weak, as weak as a candle in the wind, and could be extinguished at any time.
even…
The health bar above Li Qing’s head disappeared.
He seemed to have been tortured by the fungus to the point of losing consciousness, and even his "stand ability" could no longer be activated.
“Success!”
Psycho shouted excitedly.
It was obvious that Li Qing and the others had entered the final stage where their entire bodies were parasitized by fungi:
The skin was festering and turning green, the muscles lost control, the organs were failing and decaying, and the consciousness was blurred. Although he was still holding on to his last breath, it was only that one breath.
In this situation, they no longer have any ability to resist.
Sai Ke subconsciously wanted to move forward, but stopped cautiously due to the beast's instinct:
"No...be careful..."
"Maybe they still have the energy to move, and are just lying to me?"
“Hehehe…”
"Then let me give it a try!"
He suddenly scooped up a handful of soil from the ground, and then stuffed it directly into his mouth without being bothered by the dirt and smell, and started chewing it as if it were chewing gum.
The rock and soil were liquefied into mud because of Psycho's stand ability, and became more delicate and plastic under the friction of his teeth.
final…
Sai Ke gathered all his strength and used his mouth, which had a firing power comparable to that of a pistol, to spit out the mud violently upward and forward.
The mud was sprayed above Li Qing and others, and soon turned hard as it was far away from Sai Ke, and condensed into sharp "rock needles" under the action of gravity.
Just like that...a rain of needles suddenly fell from the sky.
These hard, sharp and dense rock needles like rain mercilessly pierced the bodies of Li Qing and others from above.
Their bodies covered with green and white fur were suddenly pierced with countless holes, and scarlet blood overflowed.
But even so…
Li Qing, Giorno, Bucciarati... None of them moved because of the pain.
“As expected…hahaha…”
"Are you unconscious already?"
Psycho grinned, feeling relieved immediately.
The next task is simple, it is nothing more than finishing off the enemy and collecting the bodies.
He completely let down his guard and approached without any precautions.
Finally, Sai Ke boldly emerged from the ground completely and raised his feet high towards Li Qing's face covered with green and white mold.
However, just when he was about to crush Li Qing's head...
“Ali ali ali ali ali!”
In front of the "dying" Bucciarati, a steel chain finger suddenly appeared.
An extremely sharp fist shadow suddenly exploded from the side of his body that Sai Ke had not even noticed, just a few inches away.
There is no hiding, no escaping it.
By the time Sai Ke realized that he was attacked, the fist with steel chain fingers had already hit him hard.
Neck, shoulders, thighs, knees...
The zippers on several important parts and joints were instantly unzipped, and Sai Ke's body immediately fell to the ground uncontrollably, no longer able to resist.
At this moment, in his surprised, shocked and puzzled eyes, Giorno, Bucciarati and others all stood up from the ground as if nothing had happened.
Li Qing went straight into data mode and showed his health bar in the game:
After a long wait, the health bar not only did not drop, but it was restored to its full state.
With his health bar full, Li Qing kicked Sai Ke's body, which was already unable to move, with disdain:
"I've been waiting for a long time, idiot."
"How, how is it possible?"
Looking at the green and white fur that almost covered the entire body of Li Qing and the others, Sai Ke shouted in disbelief:
"The fungus has clearly broken out..."
"Why…why are you guys okay?!"
