Chapter 283: Air Raid Shelter
Chapter 283: Air Raid Shelter
The scientist typed briefly on his laptop before standing to explain the data projected onto the large screen.
"After collaborating with the monitoring department, we discovered that several super earthquakes have occurred worldwide over the past two months. However, because these earthquakes took place deep in the ocean, we didn't detect their impact until recently." "Tectonic plate movements have caused the seabed in certain regions to rise while some land areas have begun to sink. During this process, viruses, bacteria, and previously unknown ancient sea creatures were exposed to the ocean's surface."
"Additionally, the extreme global heatwaves have accelerated the melting of ice in the Arctic and Antarctica. Many ancient viruses and bacteria were frozen within the ice, and now that it has melted, these pathogens have been released to the air, land, and water."
"Most of these organisms returned to the sea, infecting marine life, but rare strains scattered in the wind. When inhaled by humans and animals, these strains triggered mutations and changed the DNA's structure."
The middle-aged man paused to show images of mutated animals and plants, then concluded, "This is all the information we have gathered so far."
After hearing the report, Gao Shuwei leaned back in his chair, lost in thought. Minutes passed before he said, "Closely monitor the mutation process. Notify me immediately if you find any mutants with deformed bodies."
The scientist was confused by the request, but he still nodded and calmly said, "Yes, Sir."
With nothing to discuss further, Gao Shuwei dismissed the meeting, "Return to your research."
"Yes, Sir." With that, everyone stood, gathered their belongings, and left the meeting room.
Now alone, Gao Shuwei turned his chair to face the floor-to-ceiling window. He gazed out with a deep frown, deep in thought.
He sat in silence for a long time before murmuring, "Everything is beginning to spiral in unpredictable ways. Is she really the only one capable of stopping the catastrophe, or have I been betting on the wrong person all along?"
As his thoughts deepened, the sun slowly shifted toward the western horizon.
Meanwhile, Long Yu and Yao Ran finally arrived at the air raid shelter. What should have been a four-hour journey had become over fifteen hours due to the terrible road conditions and encounters with mutant animals along the way.
Arriving at the air raid shelter, Long Yu and Yao Ran carried Ling Yi and Yuan Rihui through the disinfecting room before transferring them to the infirmary.
After Long Yu placed them on the hospital beds, Yao Ran examined their wounds. Noticing that their conditions hadn't worsened during the journey, she administered IV drips and fed them a few sips of lake water.
When she finally left the infirmary, Long Yu had already returned after activating the central system and ensuring no intruders were present.
Noticing it was past noon, Yao Ran suggested, "Let's eat first."
Long Yu nodded in agreement, and the two headed to the dining area. Too exhausted to cook, Yao Ran retrieved prepared food from her storage. Thanks to the time flow in the warehouse, the food in the container was still hot and fresh when she opened it.
She took out spicy stir-fried crawfish, fried dumplings, grilled chicken, fish head soup, and cold noodles and placed them in front of them.
Seeing the delicious food, Long Yu said, "Ran Ran, I didn't know you had street food in stock."
Handing him a cup of cold sour plum juice, Yao Ran replied, "I bought these foods before the typhoon so I could still eat them when I wanted to after the natural disasters arrived."
When he heard her words, Long Yu smiled. He then picked up his chopsticks and began eating. Watching him devour the food quickly, Yao Ran smiled and focused on her cold noodles.
After their late lunch, Yao Ran went to restock the warehouse while Long Yu inspected the water source and air control system. By the time they finished their tasks, it was already nighttime.
Seeing that nothing urgent needed to be done at the time, Yao Ran and Long Yu went to the infirmary to check on Ling Yi and Yuan Rihui.
She removed their IV drips, fed them a little lake water, and reexamined their wounds and pulses. After drinking two glasses of lake water, their injuries were fully healed.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
Standing beside her, Long Yu asked, "How are they doing?"
"Their internal and external injuries have healed, but they still need more rest." Yao Ran replied while washing her hands.
As she dried her hands with a towel, she turned to Long Yu and asked, "Is the water usable?"
Shaking his head, Long Yu replied, "No. It smells sour and rusty. Using it could corrode the metal parts of the shelter."
Frowning, Yao Ran said, "If we can't use the groundwater, we will have to rely on the water I produce for daily use and dilute lake water for consumption."
Long Yu sighed and nodded, "Mhm. That's our only option for now."
After a moment of silence, Yao Ran looked at him and said, "A Yu, I need to fill the water tanks. You should take a shower and rest first."
Long Yu remembered that he had filled over fifty water tanks when he first bought the air raid shelter, but he also bought additional water tanks. Since those empty water tanks need to be refilled, he replied, "Alright."
While Long Yu headed to his room to take a shower, Yao Ran went to the water storage room. Opening the door, she saw over two hundred large water tanks connected by pipes to supply the entire shelter.
She marveled at Long Yu's foresight when she looked around the water storage room. If she hadn't known he'd prepared this shelter for his comrades in the army, Yao Ran might have suspected her boyfriend intended to use it as a base to dominate the end of the world.
After looking around the water storage room, Yao Ran took out a ladder from her space and placed it next to an empty water tank.