"These should be vines. What's going on? I don't remember any plants growing inside the base."
The entire base had been treated. Only in some dark and damp places would moss occasionally grow, and those were always promptly cleared as soon as they were discovered.
Therefore, it was impossible for such thick plants to grow inside the base.
"Ah, that's because of another change outside."
"What other changes? Are there other monsters?" Commander Sun pointed at the vines spread across the open space in front of him and asked.
"Mm, the plants outside have mutated too, but not this severely. They haven't developed consciousness yet.
These plants are actually being controlled by me."
"You're controlling them with magic?" Commander Sun was somewhat disbelieving. He had seen magic performances at some events in the military region before, but they weren't this extraordinary.
"It's not magic. We survivors outside discovered a crystal inside the zombies' brains. After humans absorb this crystal, their bodies also change."
"No way, you've turned into a zombie too, haven't you?" Someone hiding behind cover couldn't help but ask.
It was understandable that these people would have such doubts, as their comrades who were attacked and scratched by zombies had turned into monsters right before their eyes.
"No, although our bodies have changed, our minds still belong to us. This is the biggest difference from zombies.
You must have noticed that your companions who were turned into zombies have lost their self-awareness. They attack any living being indiscriminately."
"Indeed."
"By absorbing the energy from the crystals, we humans have evolved. We call ourselves ability users, and there are different levels of ability users. We don't know what the highest level is yet."
"What kind of abilities? Controlling vines?"
"There are several categories. Nature-based abilities can control various energies in nature, and there are also physical abilities, such as those that develop strength and speed."
Lu Heng took half a cup of water and drank it. This was his first time doing this kind of科普. These people in front of him were like elementary school students. Before they encountered these things, he had to explain them. It was truly tiring.
"You'll gradually understand in the future. I've told you quite a lot about the general situation."
"Thank you for clarifying things for us."
Although he knew what had happened in the outside world, Commander Sun's heart suddenly felt as if something important had been lost.
He felt that something he had always adhered to had disappeared, and he suddenly didn't know what to do.
Lu Heng smiled. He had been reading the thoughts of the people here all along. Sensing the old commander's mindset, which seemed to have aged considerably, he knew this was just a process, an indispensable part of growth.
"I sense that there are no ability users here."
"You can sense that?" Commander Sun was somewhat surprised to hear Lu Heng's words. Many things he had heard today had refreshed his understanding countless times.
"Yes, higher-level ability users can sense the attributes and levels of lower-level ones. We haven't figured out why this is the case, but it's just a natural understanding that has become a consensus among survivors."
"You mentioned the crystals in the zombies' brains. What are they?"
Before, after they had killed the zombies and the injured people who were attacked, they had only buried them. At that time, no one thought of splitting open the zombies' brains, as they were still comrades of many years.
It was probably for this reason that no one here had evolved into an ability user.
"This." Lu Heng threw a level one crystal to Commander Sun. He didn't have many low-level crystals on hand. These were all low-level crystals he had collected when he occasionally killed high-level zombies. He was too lazy to sort them, so he kept them all in his spatial storage.
Commander Sun saw something faintly glowing thrown by Lu Heng and instinctively caught it.
Holding the hard object in his hand, he looked at it carefully for a long time but couldn't discern anything special.
"This thing doesn't melt when exposed to fire, so even if you burn the zombies, you can still retrieve the crystals in their brains."
"It's that hard? Then how do humans absorb its energy?"
In fact, as he held the crystal, Commander Sun could already feel a certain substance within it that was attracting him.
"Eat it. This thing is strange, but when you put it in your mouth, it disappears."
"You're digging these out of zombie brains, and people outside have started being so wicked?"
"How is it wicked? If you don't consume this, you can't become an ability user, and you can't kill zombies. Then you'll be assimilated by zombies and become one of them.
Also, those who are no longer human are called zombies. They have no human consciousness anymore. You must not forget this, or you will be the next to die.
Besides, being assimilated into a zombie, is that what you so-called normal humans aspire to?"
It had to be said that Lu Heng's mouth was sometimes indeed mean and venomous, but there was no other way. For a group of old fuddy-duddies, such an approach was sometimes effective.
After speaking, Lu Heng also took out a crystal and put it into his mouth in front of everyone. However, he didn't use a low-level crystal; he absorbed a level six crystal.
This level six crystal was more conspicuous than the level one. The light emitted by the high-level crystal was more intense than that of the low-level one.
Seeing Lu Heng put a similar substance into his mouth in front of them, Commander Sun was about to put the crystal in his hand into his mouth to try as well.
However, his action was "ambushed" by a figure who suddenly jumped out. The crystal in his hand was snatched away by that person, who quickly consumed it.
"Commander Sun, you are our leader here. How can you try this? Let me try. At worst, I'll be a soldier again in my next life..."
"Old Li!!"
The person who jumped out, judging by his voice, was also a middle-aged man. He looked as if he were about to face a heroic sacrifice. However, under everyone's gaze, he stood beside Commander Sun, and there was no sign of him mutating into a zombie.
"I'm not dead? Something seems different in my mind just now."
"I think if you want to try, you should try thoroughly. These are enough for you to reach Tier One. I'll pay for your bravery."
Lu Heng threw a small bag towards the middle-aged man. Of course, this was not a spatial bag; these were not things they could come into contact with yet.
"What do you mean? You... you want me to eat more?" The middle-aged man, after his impulsive act, finally calmed down and felt a hint of fear for his actions just now.
"Why else? You just used one, and you didn't die, did you? You need to try a few more to feel it."
Only by reaching the level of an ability user Tier One would his mind naturally comprehend the difference.