The sky was iron gray, and the heavy rain poured down, stinging people's skin.
The murky river water was like a pot of boiling yellow mud soup, churning and roaring, its surface almost level with the embankment beneath our feet. Wave after wave crashed against the earthen embankment, splashing up turbid foam.
On the embankment, figures moved about like a swarm of ants. Jiang Chan was among them. She wore a tattered linen jacket, soaked through, clinging to her body, chilling her to the bone.
The sandbags weighing on my shoulders felt like mountains, the rough edges of the burlap sacks had chafed my skin, and rainwater mixed with blood was flowing down. The mud beneath my feet was as rotten as a swamp; every step required all my strength to pull my legs out of the mud, my shoes long since lost.
The air was filled with moisture and the smell of mud.
"Hurry up! What are you dawdling for! Do you want to be fish food?!" A thunderous roar rang out overhead, followed by the sharp crack of a whip tearing through the air.
Snap!
A searing pain exploded on Jiang Chan's back; the whip tore through the soaked burlap, leaving her skin ripped and bleeding. Her body lurched to the side, nearly falling over.
An old man carrying a sandbag next to him groaned and fell into the muddy water, the sandbag rolling away.
The foreman, mounted on his horse, had a fierce face hidden beneath his oilcloth hat. He brandished a wet leather whip, rain streaming down his contorted face. "All of you, hurry up!"
Jiang Chan gritted her teeth, let out a low growl, and used all her strength to pull her feet out of the mud. She then carried the sandbags and continued to move forward.
Every step felt incredibly heavy.
Rainwater blurred my vision, and I couldn't tell if it was sweat or rainwater flowing into my mouth; it tasted both salty and astringent.
All around me were heavy breathing and coughing, along with the overseer's incessant cursing and the muffled thuds of whips striking bodies.
The floodwaters had breached the dike... She had to leave as soon as possible...
Jiang Chan carried sandbags, trudging through the mud to a spot where a small breach had just been breached. Several river workers were frantically piling sandbags up there.
The slippery mud beneath her feet was vibrating, whether from fatigue or something else, she couldn't tell. She threw the sandbag heavily onto the edge of the gap, and straightened her aching back.
Sudden!
Less than ten steps ahead of her, the section of the embankment repeatedly battered by the turbid waves emitted a series of teeth-grinding "crack-crack-crack!" sounds, like bones being crushed!
Jiang Chan's pupils suddenly contracted!
So fast?
Before she could react, a huge, twisted black crack spread across that section of the dam as if it were alive!
Immediately afterwards, an indescribable torrent of yellowish-brown water, carrying an aura of destruction, burst forth from the weakest point of the crack, like a prehistoric beast breaking free from its restraints, with a deafening roar!
The murky water, carrying stones, rotten wood, and mud, crashed violently against the inner side of the dam!
It’s over!
"The dam has burst—!"
A piercing scream, so intense it was almost distorted, tore through the rain, instantly igniting the deathly silence and despair on the embankment!
"Run—!"
"mother--!"
"child--!"
The crowd went completely mad! The river workers who had been numbly carrying sandbags just moments before abandoned everything and, like headless flies, cried out and desperately fled towards the inner side of the embankment!
Pushing! Trampling!
Some people were pushed to the ground and instantly trampled into the mud by countless feet, unable to even scream. The foreman's horse was also startled, neighing and turning around to gallop wildly, knocking down several people.
The floodwaters surged down, turning the low-lying areas inside the dike into a vast swamp in the blink of an eye. People fleeing the flood were swallowed up by the turbid torrent like dumplings being dropped into boiling water. Screams and cries were drowned out by the deafening roar of the water.
The moment the crack appeared, Jiang Chan's body tensed up instinctively.
Her mind was unusually clear:
Running towards the dike? Dead end! Below is a low-lying area; the floodwaters will wash over it into a swamp! A stampede would be even more deadly!
Jump over the levee? The floodwaters are below; you'd be feeding the fish!
My gaze locked on him instantly!
On the side facing the direction of the breach and the gushing water, near a section of the dam foundation that has not yet completely collapsed, there is a huge, relatively intact gate base protruding above the water!
That was the only thing in the vicinity that could be seen and wouldn't be swept away in an instant!
Without any hesitation, amidst the panicked rush of the crowd fleeing inwards from the embankment, she used all her strength to lunge towards the cold, moss-covered stone base!
boom--!
A huge wave crashed down behind her! The icy, powerful floodwaters instantly engulfed her!
The current was so violent, it felt like countless hands were tearing her apart! Her mouth and nose were instantly filled with muddy, murky river water, and a feeling of suffocation overwhelmed her! She was swept towards the stone base like a leaf!
Bang!
Her body slammed heavily against the hard stone, the excruciating pain causing her vision to blur. Driven by the instinct for survival, before losing consciousness, she used her last ounce of strength to dig her fingers deep into the rough moss and crevices of the stone base! Her fingernails split instantly, blood mingling with the murky water.
Another wave crashed in, its immense force nearly sweeping her away! She was pressed tightly against the stone wall by the current, her chest feeling like it was about to explode!
The cold, murky water kept pouring into my mouth and nose, and the suffocating feeling of death was incredibly clear!
No! I can't let go!
Just as she felt her fingers go numb, her strength was about to be exhausted, and her body was about to be completely torn apart from the stone base by the torrent, a strong will erupted in her mind!
A bright orange rubber hovercraft, fully inflated, appeared out of nowhere in the rapids beside her! It was instantly tossed about by the current!
Chance!
A fierce will to survive blazed in Jiang Chan's eyes! She didn't know where the strength came from, but with the force of another wave crashing in, she suddenly let go of her grip on the crevice and lunged towards the orange-red floating object that was bobbing up and down!
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