radicalducati Chapter 78 Flood Peak 1
Chapter 78 Flood Peak 1
The chaotic, urgent, and often fleeting distress signals in the radio waves made Xu Mo, while remaining vigilant and waiting, also turn his attention inward and engage in profound introspection.
Looking back on his experiences since his transmigration, Xu Mo realized that if he hadn't possessed that "door" that could open every 48 hours, leading to a world where time stood still, he probably would have perished from the high fever and lack of supplies at the beginning of his transmigration. If it weren't for this cheat ability that allowed him to reliably obtain food, medicine, weapons, and fuel, he would never have been able to build a relatively safe shelter and single-mindedly cultivate the Thirteen Bodyguards' Body Technique until he broke through to the Bull-Skin Realm.
"If I didn't have this ability..." Xu Mo asked himself, "What would I be like now?"
The answer seems easy to guess. Most likely, after struggling to survive in the early days of the town, they realized the difficulty of surviving alone and ultimately chose to join a passing group of survivors. They followed them through hardships to the Jiangcheng shelter. Then, they became ordinary members of the hundreds of thousands, or perhaps more, of survivors. They toiled daily for basic survival, lived in crowded dormitories or makeshift tents, and adhered to the shelter's strict rules, struggling to survive in a relatively safe environment but with most of their freedom lost.
Xu Mo might have survived that kind of life, but he would never have had the independent residence, abundant resources, free time, and opportunities to continuously improve his personal abilities that he has now. He certainly wouldn't have had the leisure to analyze social phenomena or contemplate humanity and order in this isolated building surrounded by floodwaters.
"When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they are well-fed and clothed, they know honor and shame." This ancient saying still holds true in modern times.
If one is struggling to survive, barely able to feed oneself, and constantly teetering on the brink of death, where would one find the time and energy to pay attention to distant conflicts or to contemplate seemingly "ethereal" social structures and human choices? All mental and physical energy would be consumed by the most basic needs for survival.
His sense of "detachment" and "leisure" was precisely built upon a foundation of security far exceeding that of ordinary survivors. Having grasped this, Xu Mo felt less judgment and more understanding towards those survivors who appeared "shortsighted" or "passive" on the radio. Under extreme environmental pressure, not everyone has a choice.
Xu Mo also transformed this self-reflection into a deeper vigilance. His golden finger was his greatest reliance, but he must never become arrogant because of it and must always remain clear-headed and cautious.
During a routine inspection of the surrounding waters, Xu Mo noticed some ominous signs.
About two or three hundred meters away from his building, in the town's former commercial street area, came a muffled, continuous rumbling sound. A four-story brick-and-mortar building, already showing obvious cracks, finally succumbed to the weight of the floodwaters. Large chunks of plaster and bricks began to crumble, splashing into the water and creating huge sprays. Then, as if losing its support, the entire building slowly but irreversibly tilted and collapsed to one side!
"Boom—!"
The deafening sound reached Xu Mo's ears clearly. He saw the building crumble like a toppled block, layer by layer, until most of it was submerged in the water, creating a large splash and murky mud. Only some broken steel bars and the highest remnants of the structure remained above the water, proving that a building had once stood there.
Xu Mo's mood grew heavier. The main reason for the building's collapse was likely due to years of neglect combined with the softening of the foundation by floodwaters. After more than a year in the apocalypse, the lack of maintenance had already made the building quite fragile.
To Xu Mo's slight relief, the rain that had lasted all day gradually stopped after nightfall. The dark clouds seemed to have dispersed somewhat, and a few dim stars could even be seen occasionally twinkling through the gaps in the clouds. The whole world seemed to have gained a moment of tranquility from the hustle and bustle of the past few days.
However, the water level is still rising.
With the help of the faint starlight and the beam of his flashlight, Xu Mo carefully observed the markings on the second-floor wall. The water level had already surpassed the new mark he had made that afternoon, and was still slowly but steadily eroding upwards.
The continuously rising water level indicates that the massive amount of water from the dam breach further downstream is pouring down and gradually reaching his area.
This means that the most dangerous moment may not yet have truly arrived. The real test may be in the next few hours, or even within a day.
As night deepened, the silence after the rain only intensified the unease. Xu Mo knew all too well that with the flood peak potentially arriving at any moment, sleeping was tantamount to surrendering his life to uncertainty. He fought off sleep, grabbed a powerful flashlight, and fixed his gaze on the water's surface, which gleamed faintly in the darkness.
Every ten minutes or so, Xu Mo would use his flashlight beam to scan the engravings on the second-floor wall, precisely recording each tiny rise in the water level. The murky water, like a living monster, was silently and greedily devouring everything in its path.
To prepare for the worst-case scenario, Xu Mo even wore a life jacket. The leather armor granted him immense strength and defense, but it didn't grant him the ability to breathe or swim underwater. Before the power of nature, individual bravery seemed so insignificant. If he fell into the water, facing undercurrents, debris, and potential water monsters, the life jacket would at least offer him a sliver of hope and buy him precious reaction time.
Time passed slowly under Xu Mo's intense tension, and the water level rose steadily, little by little, under Xu Mo's unwavering gaze.
The murky water overflowed the steps, and finally, near midnight, the cold water touched and slowly submerged the landing between the second and third floors.
Xu Mo gripped his weapon tightly, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the dark waters outside the window and the rising water level beneath his feet.
Around 2 a.m., it is the time when the night is darkest and people are most tired.
Suddenly, Xu Mo felt a very faint but continuous tremor coming from the floor beneath his feet. At the same time, the previously relatively calm water outside the window began to emit a deep, rumbling sound, like a stampede of ten thousand horses. The sound grew louder and louder as it approached from afar, as if a vast army was sweeping in from upstream.
The flood peak is coming!
Almost instantly, the water level rose at an alarming rate! It was no longer the slow erosion of before, but rather as if it had been suddenly pushed upwards by an invisible giant hand!
The turbid floodwaters, carrying large amounts of mud, sand, and debris, slammed violently against the building's walls like a moving wall.
Xu Mo steadied himself, his powerful flashlight beam locked firmly on the water at the stairwell entrance. The water level rose rapidly, visible to the naked eye. Various debris floating on the surface surged in, swirling in the narrow stairwell.
In just a few minutes, the floodwaters had submerged the third floor. The cold, murky floodwaters instantly soaked the soles of Xu Mo's shoes.
Just after the water level rose another foot or so on the third floor, the rising momentum of the flood suddenly stopped, and the water level remained fixed as it surged in the room.
After a while, Xu Mo saw the water level beneath his feet begin to drop extremely slowly.
"Phew~"
Xu Mo let out a long breath of stale air; the flood had passed.