RBCT Chapter 178 This isn't a school, it's a mushroom petri dish
Chapter 178 This isn't a school, it's a mushroom petri dish
Principal Zhang Yucai's office is on the top floor of the administration building, offering an excellent view overlooking the entire campus.
The office layout was very uncomfortable – all the windows were covered with heavy blackout curtains, and even though it was broad daylight, the room was lit by cold-toned incandescent lights, making people's faces look pale.
In the corner sat several huge potted plants, not the common money trees, but a kind of deep purple fern. The leaves made a rustling sound as the air conditioner blew, sounding like countless insects crawling.
"Dr. Wang, what exactly did you mean by the sound of reciting earlier?" Zhang Yucai sat behind the large mahogany desk, his hands clasped together, his knuckles white from the force.
He didn't pour tea for Wang Minyu, nor did he even offer him a seat.
Wang Minyu didn't stand on ceremony and walked to the sofa to sit down, even crossing his legs.
Su Qing stood behind him, still holding the tablet in her hand, like a secretary ready to record data at any time.
"Principal Zhang, let's not beat around the bush." Wang Minyu pointed to the strange plant. "This thing is called 'Purple Abyss Fern.' It likes shade, it's a rotten plant, and it especially thrives in environments with high concentrations of negative emotional energy. Are you trying to kill yourself by keeping it in your office, or are you just trying to lose more hair already?"
Zhang Yucai subconsciously touched his smooth forehead, his face turning even uglier: "This...this was given to me by a leader from the Education Bureau, who said it can purify the air."
"Purifies the air? It's purifying your yang energy, isn't it?" Wang Minyu sneered. "If I'm not mistaken, there should be something buried under the roots of this thing. Like... some kind of black fungus?"
Zhang Yucai's eyes flickered, avoiding Wang Minyu's gaze: "I don't understand what you're talking about. If you're just here to sell flowers and plants, please leave."
"I'm here to save lives." Wang Minyu suddenly stopped smiling, leaned forward, and his eyes, like a scalpel, dissected Zhang Yucai's pretense. "That meditation room, you approved its construction, didn't you? The so-called 'introduction of advanced foreign technology'? It's actually just a fungal culture dish connected to the underground. You thought those students were 'meditation'? They were being drained. Their anxiety, fear, and desire to win were all sucked away by that room and fed to something underground."
"And you," Wang Minyu pointed to the pen on Zhang Yucai's chest, "as the gatekeeper of this 'valve,' you've also benefited, haven't you? Like... the thrill of controlling everything? The satisfaction of watching all the students turn into obedient machines?"
"Shut up!" Zhang Yucai slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly. The black fountain pen slipped out of his pocket and fell onto the table.
Strangely, the pen did not make a crisp metallic clanging sound, but instead made a "plop" sound, as if a ripe fruit had been crushed.
The pen barrel cracked, and what flowed out was not ink, but a dark red, viscous liquid.
The liquid writhed on the table and slowly coalesced into tiny eyes, staring intently at Wang Minyu.
Su Qing gasped, nearly dropping the tablet in her hand.
"Looks like I was right." Wang Minyu remained calm, even taking a closer look with interest. "Is this a token bestowed upon you by the 'Master of Fungi'? It's quite unique."
Looking at the pool of "ink," Zhang Yucai's expression shifted from anger to terror, and finally to a twisted fanaticism.
"What do you know...you don't understand at all!" he roared hoarsely. "This school is doing this for their own good! The competition is so fierce these days! Just sit in that room for a while, and all those distractions disappear! They don't want to play on their phones anymore, they don't want to date anymore, they don't even want to sleep! All they can think about is studying! Only grades! What's wrong with that? The parents are all grateful to me! If the college entrance rate goes up, I can also..."
"You can get promoted and make a fortune?" Wang Minyu interrupted him. "What's the price? The price is turning them into soulless mushrooms? When that underground fungus fully matures and breaks through the soil, these thousands of students will be the first sacrifices."
"No...no way..." Zhang Yucai clutched his head, seemingly fighting against some voice. "It promised me...that as long as that 'container' was full...it would leave..."
"Container? What container?" Wang Minyu keenly caught the key word.
Just then, a commotion suddenly broke out outside the window.
It was a long-lost, vibrant, and lively noise that belonged to young people.
"What's going on?" Zhang Yucai was stunned. Since the meditation room opened, the campus had never been this noisy.
Wang Minyu walked to the window and pulled back the heavy curtains.
Although the sunlight was weak, it still stubbornly pierced into the dark office.
The once lifeless lines on the playground downstairs have become disordered.
Beside the dilapidated bread cart, Guan Shan was holding a megaphone, shouting like a night market vendor: "Come on, come on! Free fried chicken! Eat it and you'll get a perfect score! One for everyone, you fat guy, don't push! Everyone gets one!"
Pierre was handing boxes of freshly fried chicken nuggets to the hesitant students.
That fried chicken, containing trace amounts of "ghost umbrella" ingredients, exudes an irresistible allure.
It is not only fragrant, but more importantly, it contains a alkaloid that can temporarily block the mind control of fungi.
One student took a bite.
His eyes lit up.
The long-suppressed taste buds were instantly activated, and even the blocked cerebral cortex generated a slight current.
"Holy crap...delicious!" he exclaimed.
That swear word, in this deathly silent campus, was more beautiful than Beethoven's symphony.
More students gathered around.
They started grabbing, chewing, laughing, and even smearing ketchup on each other.
That neat and uniform order crumbled instantly under the onslaught of carbohydrates and fats.
In his office, Zhang Yucai watched the chaotic scene downstairs, his whole body trembling.
"It's over...it's all a mess...everything's a mess..."
The pool of dark red liquid on the table suddenly began to boil violently, and those eyes, filled with resentment, emitted a piercing scream.
"Sizzle—"
All the purple ferns withered at the same time, their leaves turning to ash in an instant.
"Looks like your 'master' is angry." Wang Minyu turned around and looked at Zhang Yucai. "That container isn't underground; it's in that meditation room, right?"
Zhang Yucai slumped into his chair, his eyes unfocused: "In...in the clock tower on the top floor. That's...that's the 'brain' of the entire school."
"Su Qing, tell Guan Shan to stop selling fried chicken." Wang Minyu straightened his cuffs. "Have him take that crowbar and come with me to the clock tower. We're going to give this school a 'brain surgery'."
Suddenly, a piercing static crackled from the radio, followed by a mechanical, emotionless female voice:
"Warning. Order has been breached. Warning. Emergency evacuation procedures activated. All students, stop eating immediately. All students, assemble on the playground immediately..."
On the playground, the students who had been celebrating suddenly stopped. The fried chicken in their hands fell to the ground, their eyes began to glaze over again, and dark lines appeared faintly on their necks.
"Damn, that was quick." Wang Minyu cursed, grabbed the stainless steel tea mug and threw it out.
"The Wi-Fi signal at this school is too strong; I need to unplug the network cable!"
A tug-of-war between reason and madness has only just begun.
And the "container" hidden in the clock tower is thirstily waiting for its final charge.