Chapter 19: High Temperatures

The mosquito’s head must have fallen off and been crushed by a car wheel.

But this mosquito-like creature was clearly the size of two adult palms!

In Jiang Yan’s memory, mosquitoes couldn’t survive extreme heat or cold.

Normally, when the temperature rises above thirty degrees Celsius or drops below ten, mosquitoes stop breeding and die.

Could this be some new species she didn’t recognize?

Jiang Yan took out her phone and snapped a photo from a distance. After scanning the area to see if there were any more of them, she quickly got into the car.

She closed the doors and windows in one swift motion.

The young man finished his phone call, grabbed cleaning supplies and a few bottles of mineral water from the trunk, and quickly washed the bloodstains off the windshield before hurrying back into the car.

“Sorry for the delay, ma’am,” he said, wiping sweat from his forehead and apologizing before starting the car quickly.

Jiang Yan replied, “It’s fine.”

She had just run the photo through an online search, and the results showed that the creature had the physical characteristics of the Aedes genus.

Aedes mosquitoes are notorious for spreading yellow fever, dengue, and encephalitis.

But in reality, mosquitoes never grow this large.

The world’s largest mosquito is the Toxorhynchites speciosus, which only reaches about 35mm and feeds on nectar, not blood.

Yet the amount of blood just now was at least 500cc.

If this really was a mutated mosquito, then humanity could be facing a catastrophe.

After all, if mosquitoes have mutated, other creatures might not be far behind.

Jiang Yan found nothing useful after searching for a while, so she simply posted the photo anonymously online:

#HelpNeeded #UnknownCreature #SpottedAGiantMosquito, does anyone recognize this? She also tagged several science influencers and the official science academy.

“Ma’am, that bug really did look like a mosquito, but there’s no way a mosquito could get that big, right?” the young man said, still shaken. Suddenly, he exclaimed, “Huh? That’s weird, why is the temperature still going up?”

Jiang Yan looked up at the dashboard.

Sure enough, the external temperature was already showing 40°C!

And it was only around five in the afternoon—not even the hottest time of day.

Online, discussions about the heat and the rising temperatures were exploding.

If even Anming, known for its mild climate, was like this, those cities called the “Four Furnaces” must be even worse.

It looked like the apocalypse was going to arrive sooner than expected.

Jiang Yan rubbed her temples and closed her eyes, thinking over what preparations she still hadn’t finished.

*

She got back just in time for rush hour, and the roads were more congested than usual.

By the time Jiang Yan returned to Qianshui Bay, it was nearly seven o’clock.

Not far from the main entrance of the complex, an ambulance and several police cars were parked, their red and blue lights flashing.

A crowd of anxious residents—men, women, old and young—had gathered, discussing in alarm.

The entrance to the underground parking lot was cordoned off.

With the rising temperatures, the whole scene felt even more unsettling.

Jiang Yan got out of the car early.

The air outside was stifling.

Even though she was fully equipped, Jiang Yan found it hard to breathe after walking quickly.

As she approached the entrance, she heard the crowd talking loudly.

“Oh my god! It’s terrifying! I heard the whole person was sucked dry!”

“There was a bloody hole in her body, as big as my son’s fist!”

“I heard it was bitten by a mosquito the size of a human face—the blood was all gone!”

“Don’t exaggerate. An adult has at least 4,000ml of blood. How could it all be sucked out?”

“The key is, it wasn’t just one, bro—it was a whole swarm!”

“A swarm?! These mosquitoes—could they have mutated?!”

“Damn, I heard only female mosquitoes suck blood. What if they lay eggs inside after sucking someone dry?! Oh god, that person was from Building D. I’m never going near there again!”

“Heavens! Is the apocalypse really coming? Look how hot it is today! I don’t remember Anming ever being this hot! Oh, I saw a post warning about this—wow, that person was right!”

“Where’s the post? That’s amazing, show me!”

“I think it was posted by a foreigner, really impressive. Let me see if it’s been deleted.”

...

Even though everyone was sweating buckets, they were still gossiping excitedly.

Jiang Yan felt a chill run down her spine.

So, the bloodsucking mosquito she’d encountered earlier wasn’t an isolated case.

Soon, several fully-suited medical workers, escorted by the property manager and security guards, quickly carried a stretcher out of the complex.

The person on the stretcher was completely covered by a white sheet.

Behind them were a few community police officers and a short-haired woman who looked like an official.

The short-haired woman scanned the crowd with a serious expression and called out:

“Residents, it’s too hot out here—please don’t stand around chatting. Go home! Remember to keep your doors and windows closed! Also, tell your parents not to come out for square dancing these next couple of days.”

Outside the main entrance of Qianshui Bay, there was a large plaza in front of the fresh food supermarket.

Usually, at 7:30 every evening, the square dancing music would start right on time.

“Ma’am, what exactly happened? Was it really a giant mosquito that sucked the blood?” someone in the crowd shouted.

The short-haired woman dodged the question. “Sir, nothing happened. It’s just the high temperatures—be careful of heatstroke! Please go home!” Then she added,

“Everyone, let me remind you: don’t spread rumors, don’t believe rumors, and don’t make up rumors! If there’s any official news, we’ll announce it through official channels as soon as possible!”

Jiang Yan didn’t listen to the rest. She dragged her suitcase and hurried back to Building A.

If bloodsucking mosquitoes had appeared in the complex, it was clearly unwise to stay exposed outside.

But most people were still clinging to a sense of luck, thinking it was just an isolated incident.

The blood mosquito was found in Building D.

That entire building was now sealed off, with staff in protective suits and carrying disinfection equipment rushing in and out.

The entrances to the other buildings looked normal.

Most people wouldn’t immediately become vigilant just because of a sudden heatwave or the appearance of bloodsucking mosquitoes.

Jiang Yan was one of the few exceptions. She went straight up to the 32nd floor without stopping.

She lived in 3201. Before entering, she habitually glanced at her neighbors’ doors.

3202 next door was still tightly shut, as if no one lived there.

The door to 3203 was half open, with two cases of Tianya beer stacked outside, empty bottles scattered inside.

She could hear the sounds of men and women chatting and clinking glasses.

From the sounds, it seemed like they were celebrating a child’s birthday."