Chapter 21
7:30 PM.
Whoosh—Whoosh—
The wind grew stronger, howling with a series of sharp whistles. The pitch-black sky was completely obscured, but with the raging wind, the rain poured down as if someone were dumping buckets of water, pattering down with immense pressure.
The group chat was lively, filled with messages. Clearly, not many people could sleep through such a storm.
[Life is Impermanent: Damn, it’s raining again. Good thing I went out to buy groceries earlier, or I’d starve in this weather.]
[Riding the Wind and Waves: Yeah, I bought a lot of instant noodles and sausages. Smart move.]
[I’m a Genius: Ah, we have no food at home. If I had known, I would have gone out too. I hope it stops by tomorrow morning.]
[Monkey: If it doesn’t stop, it’ll really be the end of the world.]
[…]
Some were discussing the sudden storm, others were complaining. All sorts of conversations were happening.
Rows of messages scrolled by quickly. Song Xun was just using it to pass the time and distract herself, so she didn’t pay close attention.
Until someone posted a call for help, and a series of people followed suit.
[Yellow River Bridge: I’m on the first floor, the water’s already at my door. If this keeps up, what do I do if it comes in? Where’s property management?]
[Wei River Drinking Water: My place is flooding too, on the fifth floor. It’s seeping in through the windows. What do I do? Is there a repairman in the group?]
[Rounding Up: With this much rain outside, they probably can’t get here.]
[More Painful Than the Heart: My place is flooding too, from the windows, on the seventh floor. I’m going to die, I’m going to cry.]
[…]
Seven or eight families had spoken up. Hearing this, Chang Wan’s first reaction was to run and check the windows. And, oh, good.
Chang Fei said helplessly, “Don’t worry, they won’t leak. I was extra, extra careful.”
Chang Wan giggled.
The group chat was still blowing up, with everyone frantically tagging property management, but there was nothing they could do.
The wind didn’t stop, the rain didn’t let up. No one could fix it.
In less than an hour, all the first-floor residents in the group were reporting that water was coming in. Some even sent videos, asking for solutions.
But it was the same story: as long as the wind and rain continued, there was nothing to be done.
At 8:30 PM, suddenly, the lights went out, leaving only the faint glow of cellphones to illuminate the darkness.
While the group chat erupted in chaos, Song Xun and Chang Fei had already connected the pre-prepared backup battery, but they chose a dimmer, low-wattage light.
It wasn’t too bright, and with the thick curtains, the light wouldn’t be visible from outside.
Soon, a text message arrived.
[Due to continuous stormy weather, multiple power lines are down. Relevant departments are conducting repairs, but the time for power restoration is undetermined. Please do not panic and pay attention to your safety.]
Chang Fei raised the low-wattage light bulb, and the dim yellow light shone down on their heads, stretching the shadows of the group sitting together.
Chang Wan wasn’t looking at the group chat; it was all just the same complaints. She took out a tablet and scrolled through it.
Shi Tou craned his neck. “Did you download any horror movies? A horror movie would be perfect for this weather.”
Chang Wan glared at him. “Get lost. Horror movies? Don’t create a tense atmosphere. If you’re so bored, go race a tornado.”
Shi Tou was not to be deterred. “How about a disaster movie, then? Wolf Disaster.”
“Get lost.”
In the end, she found a comedy sketch compilation, and the sound of laughter helped to dispel the anxiety that had been building.
It was already dark outside, and now the power was out. They couldn’t see anything. The families whose homes were flooding couldn’t even block the water anymore and were desperately asking for shelter in the group chat.
But who would agree?
Although they were neighbors, some even living on the same floor, and the group chat was lively, they might not even recognize each other in person.
Small, harmless favors were one thing, but in this weather, with the wind, tornadoes, heavy rain, and power outage, no one wanted strangers in their home.
But no matter how much they complained, the power didn’t come back on. Anyone who wasn’t a fool could figure out that with this weather, repairs wouldn’t be easy.
Most people had a flashlight or something at home, and a few families had them.
And so it continued until the next morning, the 30th.
The wind was still strong, the rain was still falling, and the sky was still gray.
Song Xun hadn’t slept all night, but she felt relatively good. She couldn’t sleep, so she had been organizing the things in her space with her consciousness while listening to the comedy sketches Chang Wan was playing.
Heating and cold-proofing items in one pile, cooling items in another. Water, rice, flour, oil, coal, and prepared meals were all separated.
It was a good thing the space was large, giving her plenty of room to work. If it had been smaller, it would have been a real hassle.
She couldn’t be idle. If she was, her mind would start to wander.
Finally, after overusing her mental energy, her head started to ache, and Song Xun stopped. She opened her phone to pass the time. Still 99+ messages. Clearly, many people hadn’t slept well last night either.
Complaints about the weather, people saying they had no food, and some even posted disaster photos or videos from who-knows-where: trees uprooted, cars swept away and exploding, power lines down, and even people being swept away…
It was a frightening sight.
And so it continued until 8:40 AM, when the wind and rain subsided a bit. By now, some people had realized something was wrong and were planning to go out to buy things.
Shi Tou pulled back the curtains and could see people below, braving the wind and rain, some alone, some in groups.
But there were still people in the group chat clamoring about not going out.
It was a matter of personal choice. But in this weather, even if you went out, you might not be able to buy anything. Most places were closed.
Companies were closed, factories were shut down. The entire city seemed to have come to a standstill.
With the power out, the water would probably be next. The internet was still working for now, but it was probably only a matter of time before it went down too.
Official videos showed a series of repair operations, with workers being blown about by the wind, fixing one place only for another to break.
Everyone knew that as long as the wind and rain continued, the repairs would be futile.
At 10 AM, the power was still out, but another text message arrived.
[Due to the impact of the storm, repair operations have been repeatedly obstructed. An emergency city-wide power outage has been implemented. Repairs will resume when the wind and rain subside. Please wait patiently, do not panic, and pay attention to your safety.]
This time, it was a city-wide blackout.
The signal was still normal. News reports showed that abnormal weather was occurring in various places. Although the specifics were different, it was happening everywhere.
Jingbei City was not near the coast or the mountains, so it was relatively okay.
In coastal areas, tsunamis were occurring. In mountainous areas, there were landslides and collapses. The videos were heartbreaking to watch.
And it kept raining, with no sign of stopping.
When asked when it would stop, the experts didn’t dare to say a word, only giving vague answers. The comments below were filled with mockery, as if that was the only way to vent their anger and anxiety.
The doomsday talk grew louder. This wind and rain, would it ever stop?
At 1 PM, the dogs woke up.
After sleeping for several days, they were finally awake. The two of them rushed out of the room and pounced on the group sitting on the heated platform.
Two large black shadows charged at them. In the dim light, if it weren’t for the sound, it would have been terrifying.
Ru Hai was the fastest. He lifted his front paws to pounce on Song Xun. She couldn’t see his features clearly, but the large black shadow was unmistakable. She felt her hair stand on end and quickly held up her hand to stop him before he could pounce.
Ru Hai stopped, looking aggrieved. Shang Tian followed behind him.
Chang Fei shone a flashlight on them to get a better look and was almost scared out of his wits. The two dogs had been sleeping in Song Xun’s room, and after she had said they were fine and probably just mutating, he hadn’t gone in to check. Now, seeing them for the first time… damn, they were a whole size bigger.
Before, when they sat down, they only came up to his waist. Now, they almost reached his chest.
Shi Tou and Chang Wan were also shocked.
“This is mutation?”
“A genetic mutation, right?”
But they didn’t know if it was just the two dogs, or… all of them?
Ru Hai was still his goofy self, but Shang Tian was much more aloof. He walked over and nipped at Song Xun’s sleeve. She understood what he meant. After sleeping for so long, they must be hungry.
“Go get your bowls.”
The two dogs turned and ran, quickly returning with their food bowls.
The bowls were large stainless steel basins, and they made a crisp sound as they were placed on the floor.
Chang Wan took out a bag of dog food from the side of the heated platform and opened it, pouring it into the bowls. After being hungry for so long, and being so much bigger, they would probably eat more.
She poured half a bag for each of them. It was a large, 20-kilogram bag, so that was 10 kilograms, or 20 jin, for each dog.
Chang Wan thought that would be enough, but, well, the dogs lowered their heads and started eating, and in less than half an hour, it was all gone.
They looked up and barked, clearly still hungry and wanting more.
Chang Wan was dumbfounded, but she opened another bag.
Chang Fei and Shi Tou were also stunned. “Big Sis…”
“Hmm?” Song Xun looked up.
“If they eat like this, will we have enough dog food?”
“It’ll be enough for a few years.”
Song Xun had planned for this when she was hoarding. It was within her expectations that the dogs would eat a lot. Although the timing was a bit earlier than she had anticipated, and this was only the initial stage of their mutation. When they truly mutated, they would probably eat even more.
She ruffled Shang Tian’s head. “It’s fine. It’ll be enough for a while. Later, when the plants and animals start mutating on a large scale, they can hunt for themselves.”
“That’s true.”
They couldn’t always rely on being fed. It would diminish their ferocity, which would only be harmful to them.
The water downstairs was starting to rise. In some of the lower-lying areas, it was said that the water was almost reaching the second floor.
The internet was a cacophony of voices. Some were posting about their windows being broken. Calls for help were everywhere.
It was impossible to read them all, and Song Xun didn’t bother.
The people in the group chat were also calling for rescue, especially the residents on the first floor whose homes were flooded. They couldn’t make calls, no one was coming, and they had nowhere to stay, so they were now living in the hallways.
And the second-floor residents, watching the water rise, were also growing anxious.
The residents on the lower floors of the group were all getting restless, but the wind and rain outside showed no signs of letting up.
At 2 PM, the water was cut off.
Not only the water, but the internet was also becoming intermittent. It would probably go down completely soon.
Probably because the power had been out for a long time, most people’s phones were dead. Even the number of people complaining in the group chat had dwindled.
Song Xun was just passing the time, so she didn’t mind that no one was talking.
The few who were still online were showing off their hoarded goods, gloating. They were utter fools.
They had no idea what price they would pay for this later.
At 3:30 PM, the internet completely collapsed.
Well, now the phone was useless except for listening to music, watching movies, or playing offline games.
At 5 PM, the wind and rain intensified again, and the tornadoes came roaring back. Under the dim, gloomy sky, Song Xun watched as a hundred-meter-high tornado howled, picking up a half-wrecked black car and throwing it straight at the building opposite them.
Boom!
The entire window was instantly shattered, and the car smashed right into the building.
Perhaps because they were close, even though their vision wasn’t very clear, Shi Tou and the others standing by the window were still startled.
Chang Wan hugged her arms and shivered. “Brother, are you sure this window can hold?”
“…” Chang Fei.
Suddenly, he wasn’t so confident anymore. “Probably.”
“…” Chang Wan.
She was on the verge of tears, but before she could complain, Shi Tou let out a startled cry that almost made her jump out of her skin. She turned to look.
A tornado was howling straight towards them. Although it wasn’t a direct hit, half a van was thrown their way.
Chang Wan’s face turned pale, and she screamed, her voice cracking, “Ahhhhhh—”
Boom!
A loud crash that even the wind and rain couldn’t drown out. Chang Wan could even feel the floor beneath her feet tremble.
But Song Xun was quite calm. She even calmly calculated the height. “Probably the ninth or tenth floor.”
She didn’t know whose apartment it was, but that was… quite tragic.
.