The night wind was biting cold. Zhou Haorui walked quickly on the cement road outside the dormitory building, chasing after the crow flying in the sky. His neck and shoulders were aching from the strain, and his hot breath turned into mist in the dark night.
He didn't know what was happening right now. He didn't even know if it was real or not.
He had asked the crow what was going on, how to cure this petrification, and the crow had asked him to follow.
Even though it was night, and the crow was black, it seemed to have a strange glow, and the darkness could not hide its figure.
At this time, it gradually flew down from the sky and flew into the forest behind the dormitory building.
Zhou Haorui ran for a while, and stopped in front of the forest. The cold wind blew, and the old electric poles swayed slightly, pulling on the messy wires. The shadows in the forest were heavy, and there was the sound of the wind, as well as the sound of the leaves being blown.
Maybe every university had its own urban legend, and Da Hwa Institute of Technology had an urban legend, which was that someone had died in the forest behind the dormitory.
A couple had an argument, and the girl committed suicide.
Zhou Haorui did not believe this legend before, and the reason was simple. It was hard to find a girl at Da Hwa Institute of Technology. There was only one girl in his class, and in other schools, she would be a normal girl, but here, she was a goddess, loved by many boys. How could she commit suicide?
But now, Zhou Haorui had goosebumps all over his body, and the small forest in front of him was like the barren land in his dreams.
As for what that crow was, he had no idea at all …
While he was hesitating, a strange pain flashed across his shoulders again. The adhesion of the shoulder bones was getting worse, and the bulging bone seemed to be getting bigger.
Zhou Haorui remembered the autopsy pictures of the skeletons with Progressive Musculoskeletal Disease. The back of the shoulder and back were not just a frame, but a whole piece of bone … He did not want to become like that. He made up his mind, and walked into the forest.
The rustling of the wind and the rustling of the leaves became louder. The old trees, which were not very tall, gave off a chilly feeling.
Zhou Haorui's heart was beating very fast. Suddenly, he felt a chill. He turned his head and saw that on a big pine tree, the crow was perched on a branch. It folded its wings, its claws were steady, and its eyes were calm and sharp.
"He … hello." Zhou Haorui didn't know what to say.
A crow that could speak, this must be a supernatural power … But was it really just a crow, or something else …
Crow's voice was calm as he said, "Progressive muscle ossification. The mutation of the ACVR1 gene causes the 206 codon in the ACVR1 protein to change from arginine to histidine. This causes the connective tissue and muscle tissue to turn into heterotopic bone. It also causes the endothelial cells to turn into mesenchymal stem cells and then into bone."
Although Zhou Haorui did not really understand, these physiology theories were current medical research, and he had seen them when he was looking up information.
"But petrification is not Progressive Muscle Ossification, it is not Fibrous Dysplasia and it is not McCune Albright Syndrome."
The crow went on to explain the other two diseases. This time, Zhou Haorui was completely clueless. It continued, "Petrification is built on their foundation. If we allow it to spread, if we allow it to spread, it will cause hundreds of millions of people around the world to turn into stone. They will suffer a fate worse than death and the world will enter an apocalypse. "
'Hundreds of millions?' If Zhou Haorui heard this from someone like Li Hui, he would have scoffed.
But now, this crow's words seemed to have the power of prophecy. The calmness and certainty in its voice chilled Gu Jun's heart.
"This, this …" He stammered, "Is it like the legionella pneumonia?"
Until now, the shadow cast by the legionella pneumonia still lingered in the world.
For someone like Gu Jun who did not experience the mysterious sandstorm at Mo Bei, who did not have a newborn child and was not a public figure, even though he had been exposed to various occultism and conspiracy theories, the first thing that popped into his mind in his panic was still the legionella pneumonia.
Furthermore, Zhou Haorui's hometown was De Rao City, which was not far from San Hai City — that was one of the main epidemic areas for legionella pneumonia. At the time, De Rao City was also affected.
He had heard the lockdown alarm and seen the Phecda vehicles. There was a saying that if the epidemic had continued for another few days, De Rao City would have been destroyed.
"It is much more difficult to deal with than legionella pneumonia." The crow explained, "The legionella pneumonia spreads very quickly and so does the fatality rate. It will devastate an area in no time but other areas that have not been affected will be completely unaffected. This is very similar to Ebola. When the dark force behind the legionella pneumonia is removed, it will become a disease that is slightly more difficult to treat than the normal legionella pneumonia but it is still manageable. But petrification was different.
It was a genetic disease that changed the human physiology. It was incurable. Furthermore, it would not cause quick death, the sufferer could live for several years in pain but it would exhaust medical resources and require the time and energy of their family to take care of them. This was not just 1 sufferer, it was not just 800 or 1000, this was a pandemic. Once it broke out, within a few months, there would be more than 10 million sufferers. They would not be able to live normally, they would not be able to move, they would not be able to do anything. Petrification will drag down the affected cities and countries. It will turn this world into a sicker world until it completely collapses. "
Zhou Haorui was startled and his heart chilled …
If 90% of the people in a society were afflicted with petrification, unable to live or die, that would be … an unimaginably scary situation.
No place could withstand that kind of pressure, all order would crumble …
"How do you know that?" He asked hesitantly.
The answer to this question was very important. What was the purpose of this crow and what was its stance?
Could it be a dark force … The crow had always been a symbol of misfortune …
Zhou Haorui took a step back involuntarily. The thought of turning to run out of the forest flashed across his mind …
He wanted to call Phecda's hotline. He should have called Phecda's hotline when he was at the hostel but he was distracted at the time. He needed to call Phecda and tell them about his situation, the crows and petrification so that Captain Gu could deal with it … That way, he might still be saved …
'Damn it, I forgot to bring my phone when I ran out earlier …'
"Phecda can't save you." The crow said as if it could read Gu Jun's mind, "But I can."
The pair of bird eyes glowed. Zhou Haorui stopped moving and asked with confusion, "What are you?"
"Crow." It added, "Crows hate sickness."
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