under hope

"minister! An autopsy report was sent to the police station, saying that it was done by a sand beast."

A researcher stopped Minister Wang who was about to leave and handed him a report.

"Another sand beast? Was he killed there?"

He took the report as usual and looked through the contents.

"in the southern city"

"What! ? In the city?! Are you sure you're in the city?"

He was a little excited, holding the researcher's shoulders tightly with both hands.

"Yes minister, police said he was killed in an apartment building in the center of the city."

The researcher hurriedly replied

"How is this possible? Sand disease can only circulate with the help of wind and sand. Even if the protective shield is repaired, they cannot take advantage."

He let go of the researcher and returned to the experimental table to look at the sand beast specimen soaked in the Malfoy Forest.

"Could it be that erosion has penetrated the interior of the house?"

"erosion? Sand disease can only be spread through wind and sand. What about erosion? Is it a conclusion drawn from research?"

Listening to the researcher's conjecture, he asked unceremoniously

"You said it, and you also explained it at the Science Council."

The researcher was a little confused about his strange reaction.

"Giving a presentation at a science conference? In front of so many big guys? That’s what I said! ?"

He waved his hands up and down excitedly, feeling incredible at the researcher's words.

"Yes, Minister. Didn't you forget it after taking a break? There are still your research reports from that time in the filing cabinet."

As he said that, the researcher walked over and opened the filing cabinet, and took out a file bag from it under his astonished eyes.

He opened the seal, took out all the documents inside, and looked at the room with a little fragrance of ink in front of him. Paper, he was even more confused

"This is still handwritten. Although it is indeed my handwriting, I don't remember it at all."

He scratched his head and read the contents carefully.

"Has the pathogen mutated to become aggressive? Mutations? I remember Minister Li told me something similar. If it mutates, it proves that the virus will behave like this many times."

He read all the report content word for word. Although he has no memory of this aspect, the font and writing style are indeed his.

"Has the body been brought?"

He sealed the report again, turned to the researcher and asked

"At the morgue, I'll bring it to you"

"Well, by the way, does the dean know about this?"

He asked again

"The police came to us immediately"

"Okay, you go ahead."

The researcher left

"Sand beasts sneak into the city? This is so strange, these guys are so big, they are all yellowish brown, have three pairs of legs, and have such big sickle blades..."

He looked at the sand beast specimen in front of him and kept tapping the table with his index finger.

"Sand beasts are not good at climbing, nor are they good at lurking in cities. If they want to eat people, they can only break in through doors. But……"

He was imagining what might have happened at that time in his mind, and the more he thought about it, the weirder he felt.

"Even if he didn't find it, the sound of breaking the door was so loud, wasn't it enough to alert the android guards?"

He knocked on the table heavily, unable to figure out how he was killed.

"Minister, the body has been brought."

The iron door was knocked open by a stretcher bed covered with white cloth. The researcher pushed the body to him.

He put on protective clothing and lifted up the white cloth covering the secret.

"Oh my god..."

The researcher on the side who had just put on protective clothing immediately screamed.

"Tsk, are you really sure it was the sand beast that did it?"

He frowned, looked at the half-eaten legs and intact bones of the corpse, and confirmed to the researcher again.

"Indeed... it's a sand beast... Yes, the police autopsy examiner said that the same saliva components as the sand beast were detected in the wound"

"The sand beast's mouth has a wide jaw, and its bite force is enough to break the bones together. Will it give up its efficiency and switch to deboning?"

He pointed at the shell of the specimen jar with his finger. The researcher didn't know how to answer him for a moment.

"The esophagus was also stretched open? Rushing all the way to the heart...could it be the tail? But……"

He looked at the flat, wide tail in the specimen jar aside, his head filled with doubts.

"Um? Is there some liquid in your mouth?"

He used a syringe to extract a little transparent liquid from the corpse's mouth and handed it to the researcher on the side.

"Take it for testing."

The researcher nodded and immediately followed the instructions.

"Hiss... There are holes arranged in a circular pattern on the chest, which are not like those cut by a sickle blade. There are also the same wounds on the waist, and there are more small holes and broken skin."

He reconstructed the scene in his mind, no longer using the sand beast as the prototype, but imagining the body details of the monster based on the appearance of the corpse's wounds.

"The wounds on the waist and chest should be to restrain the prey, and judging from the number, there should be three pairs of legs. The damage to the esophagus was caused by blocking the mouth with the tail."

He rubbed his chin, trying his best to bring these elements together.

"Three pairs of legs, a slender tail, multiple small holes prove that there are more fingers, and the wounds on the legs prove that the mouth is smaller, is it similar to the mouth of an insect?…"

"Minister, the liquid consisted of the saliva of the deceased and a large amount of ingredients similar to stimulants."

"Stimulants?! Why? If it is helpful for hunting, hypnosis or paralysis should be more effective."

He rubbed his head and fell into confusion again.

"Minister, the police said that what the family of the deceased saw was a black monster."

The researcher's words suddenly made him realize

"Yes, stimulants are not the point. The monster has more flexible fingers and a slender tail, and there are barbs on the palms for easier climbing."

He took a piece of paper, sketched out the limb shapes in his mind one by one, and then put them together.

"In order to be able to climb, it must have a smaller body and abandon the previous thick carapace. The body structure may be an exoskeleton, and the dark body color is more adapted to the night."

"Stimulants may be injected through the tail."

The researcher said, pointing to the monster he drew on the paper.

"That's right..."

He nodded, cut off a small piece of meat from the corpse's leg, and compared it with the existing sand beast saliva.

"It turns out to be really the same. So to say……"

The corners of his mouth couldn't stop rising. His expression didn't look like he was laughing or crying.

"They are variants of sand beasts. They have mutated in order to adapt to the city..."

This conclusion was undoubtedly shocking, and the researcher was stunned for a moment.

"Immediately notify the city police, let residents purchase rations that can last for three days while it is still light, and then cordon off the entire city before dark!"

He quickly recovered from the shock and gave serious instructions to the researcher.

"Okay, I'll notify you right away."

The researcher ran to make a phone call.

He lowered his head and wrote the report, feeling extremely heavy.

Soon after, he walked into the dean's office

"Dean, I have...not very good news."

He put the report paper in front of the man and said hesitantly.

"What's wrong?"

The man took the report paper and could tell. The moment he saw the content, the man frowned slightly.

"Sigh... I already knew it would mutate again, but I didn't expect it to be biological."

The man put down the report, his tone was not much surprised.

"Did you expect that?"

He was a little surprised

"We are all guys who have experienced all kinds of strange things, so how can we not know the scalability of mutation."

The man smiled slightly and pushed the report towards him.

"I understand your concern at that time, but the tone was not right. I think it was because of nervousness."

The man told him about the parliament again.

"ah?...Well, after all, in front of so many scientists"

"Haha, still young. Just do what you want, don't worry, I've already prepared it."

The man waved his hand towards him

"clear."

He bowed slightly, picked up the report and left the office.

In the corridor, he dialed the number of Director Li of the Department of Medicine.

"Minister Li, how is Captain Ye Qing recovering from his injury?"

"Already healed. Should I say that I was once a soldier? My physical fitness is not as strong as usual."

"That's great. Could you please tell her to come to our department?"

"I understand. Would you like to go see the exhibition of Seoul Holy Church together in the afternoon?"

"Well... in a few days, it lasts for a week anyway, I'll call you"

"Okay, hang up first then"

"Um."

A blind beep sound came from the other end of the phone. He put the phone back in his pocket and walked quickly to his office.

He didn't know if he could catch this variant. These monsters learned their lessons from the ruins. , and used the wind and sand to spread all pathogens

"It's okay, they can be killed as long as the firepower is sufficient."

He could only comfort himself in this way.