Not only Jiang Zhi noticed that the signal had been restored, but many other people whose phones still had power also noticed it.

The city gradually began to interact.

Jiang Zhi occasionally sees some people posting on the forum.

"The telecommunications company is working overnight to repair the signal towers. They have a strict order from the government to restore the signal. The power plant is also being repaired gradually as the sun has moved past. Power may be restored soon, but water is a problem. The solar radiation is too strong. In just a few months, West Lake has dried up. I live right next to West Lake and I have witnessed it with my own eyes."

"Power restoration my ass! The water levels of several major rivers have dropped significantly, and we mainly rely on hydropower. Restoring power is probably harder than climbing to heaven."

"The snow-capped mountains have melted, and all the ice and snow are gone."

"It's so tragic. I feel like I've witnessed countless historical events in my life. So many people have died in our village."

"Waaah, there are dead people everywhere... They all died alive from the heat."

“My grandfather also passed away, and my father is still in a coma due to heatstroke. We can’t get into the hospital at all. The hospital is a real hell on earth.”

"There's a monster! I saw with my own eyes a dying pet dog's body rapidly swell up, its face becoming hideous and ferocious. It was killed by several people working together. The dog also bit several people, and they all died."

"Animal mutations aren't happening, are they? So this is the end of the world, it won't end, God is taking people away, humanity is doomed..."

"I heard that monsters have been spotted at the base in Jiangcheng..."

Despair washed over me.

Most people, lacking electricity, are completely unaware of what's happening in the outside world.

The Survivalist Forum used to be incredibly lively, but now it's deserted with only a dozen or so posts.

The system is unmaintained and occasionally crashes.

Just then, a post popped up. Jiang Zhi saw that it said: "There's a rumor that the temperature will drop in October. Everyone knows what will happen after the extreme heat, right? Take advantage of the opportunity to quickly stock up on supplies, especially things to keep warm in winter. Let's escape to the mountains or other safe places. This time, even Nuwa might not be able to save us."

This post contains a lot of information: October is coming and temperatures are dropping, so we're getting ready for winter. It's about a sudden drop in temperature.

Another option is to escape to higher ground.

The story of Nuwa patching up the sky is a metaphor for the sky about to pour boiling water down, which even Nuwa couldn't stop.

In my past life, it was also a massive rainstorm that left thousands of miles of ice and snow.

But this time it's been brought forward, to October.

Based on the information received via satellite phone, Jiang Zhi had to change her plans and make more preparations.

After the signal was restored, cars were able to move freely again, but the roads were difficult to navigate. The asphalt had melted in the sun, and some sections had even cracked from explosions, so everyone had to stay in the basement for the time being.

Seeing that the food was almost gone, Zhou Heng decided to risk going out at night to find something to eat.

He passed by Jiang Zhi's house and saw her looking at something with binoculars on the roof. Was she looking at the stars?

Shaking his head, Zhou Heng rode away on his bicycle.

Jiang Zhi had noticed him long ago, but since they weren't familiar with each other, she ignored him.

Jiang Zhi picked up a hoe and a shovel; she was going to dig a drainage ditch outside her house.

In the future, when there is a major flood, it can divert the water elsewhere.

Jiang Zhi lit the oil lamp. This time she didn't use kerosene because it smelled too bad; she used palm oil instead.

The Liu Donghua couple next door were puzzled when they saw Jiang Zhi digging a ditch. But when they saw the oil lamp, they suddenly felt like they had left modern society behind.

"Why did she dig the ditch?" Yang Meili asked Liu Donghua.

Liu Donghua shook his head and said, "No matter what, we'll dig. I have a feeling that following her is definitely the right thing to do."

Yang Meili didn't ask why, but turned to get a shovel. She was grateful for the renovation, which provided them with iron tools.

Yang Meili glanced at the remaining food and sighed silently.

There was a drainage ditch outside Jiang Zhi's house, which was completely sealed with cement, making it impossible for an ordinary person to break through.

But she was no ordinary person. She wanted to redirect the water flow to a low-lying artificial lake, and then open an opening in the artificial lake to direct the water to an even lower-lying drainage system.

In addition, there is a mountain behind her house. Although there is a buffer flat area in the middle, the possibility of a landslide cannot be ruled out.

She needs to find some time to go up the mountain and take a look.

Digging a ditch was a huge undertaking. Jiang Zhi dug from dusk till dawn before going inside. If she had stayed any longer, the temperature would have been deadly once the sun came out.

Around noon, Jiang Zhi noticed that the water coming out of the tap was less than usual, and in less than ten minutes, the water was just dripping.

After a while, no more water will come out.

It seems their water supply has been cut off.

Jiang Zhi turned off the tap.

It was still night when Jiang Zhi left the residential area and made her way to the Jiangcheng Museum, where she took all the cultural relics that were still in the display cases.

These things are priceless in times of peace and prosperity.

She went down to the warehouse and smelled a foul stench. Jiang Zhi sighed silently.

After she had hurriedly stored all the artifacts away, she found the source of the stench: two unrecognizable corpses crawling with maggots.

Judging from their attire, they were likely museum staff. After the extreme heat, they did their utmost to move most of the museum's valuable collections into storage to prevent widespread damage.

However, they both perished there.

Jiang Zhi did this for the future. If humanity survives this natural disaster, these treasures of human history will be among the most beautiful memories.

When she got home, it was almost dawn. Jiang Zhi dug a ditch for a while, then carried her tools back to the basement.

Opening a bottle of ice-cold cola, the cool bubbles stimulated Jiang Zhi's taste buds.

She suddenly wanted to eat hot pot today.

Jiang Zhi flashed into the space, took out a hot pot, put in the hot pot base, poured in an appropriate amount of broth and tea, and then added some scallion segments and crushed ginger.

As for hot pot ingredients, she has them readily available.

I recently snagged a deal at a store that specializes in hot pot ingredients. Although it was much more expensive than buying groceries myself, the advantage was that all the ingredients were pre-prepared, exactly the same as when ordering at a hot pot restaurant.

She ordered a hundred portions of each of her favorite ingredients.

It's so convenient to cook hot pot myself now.

Jiang Zhi took beef, beef aorta, tripe, chicken feet, and beef rolls from the steel frame hot pot section, as well as vegetarian dishes such as lotus root slices, potato slices, wide rice noodles, chrysanthemum greens, and dried gongcai (a type of vegetable).

After arranging the ingredients, Jiang Zhi prepared a dipping sauce and the water in the pot boiled.

She likes to eat meat first, then vegetables, with beef and tripe going in first. She prefers the tripe to be cooked a little more thoroughly; just barely cooked through doesn't suit her taste.

The beef is tender and smooth, and paired with Jiang Zhi's secret dipping sauce, it's simply amazing.

As the spiciness of the hot pot kicked in, Jiang Zhi's forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat.

Jiangcheng is not in Sichuan Province, and its cuisine is not particularly spicy, so Jiang Zhi's tolerance for spiciness is limited.