Vance asked, “Anthony mutated?”

An Zhe turned to look at Vance and saw that his eyes were a bit red.

An Zhe bowed his head. “I’m sorry.”

He was still alive but Vance lost two of his teammates.

“Sorry for what?” Vance reluctantly smiled. Those who go outside to work often die. We are used to it.” Perhaps the next one to die was himself.

Nevertheless, An Zhe felt guilty. Anthony was infected. An Zhe had found traces of suspected human blood on the ant shell at that time. If he had told Vance then they might’ve found that Anthony was infected in advance.

He bowed his head and told it.

Vance was silent for a moment before his voice lowered, “Anthony didn’t become an ant. He might’ve been infected before. We met a group of mutant wild mosquitoes before running into you.”

“Then… he was stabbed again?”

Vance looked out the window and spoke after a long silence, “The Second Plains pollution level is very small. It is two stars. If he was stabbed then such a small injury might not mean infection. However, anyone who says it will be left behind by the team. That’s why many people won’t say it after they’ve been injured.” His voice lowered. “…Because we want to go home.”

An Zhe wondered, “What about Horsen?”

If Anthony had been found to be infected early, Horsen might not have died.

“Don’t worry about it. Horsen is dead.” Vance lit up a cigarette and took a breath. “He did many wicked things and there are at least five lives under his hands. Anthony and I wouldn’t have worked with him this time if it wasn’t for the fact that there isn’t enough staff. What was he doing at the time? Bullying you?”

An Zhe didn’t speak and Vance turned to look at him.

In the twilight, the boy’s silhouette seemed quiet and peaceful, like a crystal clear waterdrop. This type of person appearing in the dangerous wilderness might have inexplicable difficulties but Vance didn’t ask.

Similarly, An Zhe didn’t know what to say to Vance. He was thinking about the scene before Horsen’s death Horsen seemed to have lost his mind briefly and didn’t wake up until he was stabbed.  What did Horsen do before that? He took a bite of the mycelium.

An Zhe frowned. He himself didn’t know if he was poisonous as a mushroom. Now he suspected himself to be a poisonous mushroom.

Along the way, the vegetation became scarcer. There were no creatures in the endless desert, only their armoured vehicle travelling alone.