The suffocating jolts never stopped, stretching on endlessly.
Inside the air capsule, Gou Fugui saw many people screaming or crying because they couldn't withstand the violent turbulence. He also saw someone turn pale and faint during a series of tumbling.
Perhaps fainting at this moment would be a kind of happiness, after all, even he, who considered himself to be in good physical condition, was now almost unable to control the churning and nauseating feeling in his stomach.
The wealthy and beautiful woman couldn't help but make the comparison, thinking that they should now be the ones truly playing with wave pearls.
Thanks for the invitation. When waves get serious, not a single pearl can go down unscathed.
Gou Fugui pressed his hand firmly against his stomach and turned to look at Xie Tianlang. After all, if he was feeling unwell, seeing that others were also uncomfortable would lessen the pain, wouldn't it?
But the wealthy and beautiful woman was disappointed.
The werewolf in the capsule to his right was like a vampire lying comfortably in his coffin. Even as the entire ship was tossed and turned by the tsunami, he crossed his arms over his abdomen and showed no signs of discomfort or pain on his face.
Gou Fugui pressed his stomach again, feeling even more nauseous.
His gaze toward Xie Tianlang became even more resentful.
Perhaps it was the powerful force of a resentful gaze that caused Xie Tianlang, who had been keeping his eyes closed, to suddenly open them and look in his direction.
When their eyes met, Xie Tianlang saw the pale face of the wealthy beauty and smiled knowingly. Before she could get angry, he extended his thumb and middle finger into a claw shape and pointed it at a spot on the side of her neck.
At first, Gou Fugui didn't understand what this guy meant by choking him from a distance. Was it a provocation? Or a mockery?
But he quickly realized what was happening, raised his eyebrows slightly, and showed a look of doubt mixed with a hint of eagerness in his eyes.
Xie Tianlang, on the other hand, kept smiling.
Finally, because the nausea and vomiting in her stomach were too intense, the wealthy beauty followed Xie Tianlang's example and tried to find the location of the carotid artery to knock herself unconscious.
But after trying for three minutes, he gave up with a dark expression.
How could someone who hasn't undergone special training possibly knock themselves unconscious?!
However, he was determined not to vomit in the capsule like everyone else, so Gou Fugui closed his eyes and pondered the skills of the three adorable creatures he could transform into in this world. In the end, he simply activated the bloodline bonus of the sea otter Fugui.
Otter's third skill: Beginner Hammering Master.
Then Xie Tianlang, who had been keeping an eye on Fugui Yuanyuan's situation, saw his beautiful and lovely Yuanyuan pull out a golden brick from somewhere—yes, the same golden brick that chased him in the sea—and smash it hard against the side of his own neck!
Xie Tianlang couldn't help but twitch, but Gou Fugui was genuinely knocked unconscious by the blow.
Werewolf Xie: "..."
Well, in some ways, his Yuanyuan is actually quite the wolf in sheep's clothing.
When Gou Fugui opened his eyes again, the constant jolts and dizziness had mostly disappeared.
He looked at Xie Tianlang, who had opened the capsule door, pulled him out, and patted him awake, and was momentarily stunned, asking, "...What happened?"
Xie Tianlang smiled and said, "Congratulations on achieving the feat of reaching the shore unharmed. We've arrived in Qingchuan."
The wealthy beauty slightly widened her eyes and raised her hand to look at her watch: "Impossible, right? It's only been a little over three hours!"
When they came to Sichuan Province by giant ship, it took them more than five hours even with the wind and current. How could they possibly arrive in just over three hours by going against the current?
Xie Tianlang sighed: "Do you remember when we first arrived?"
Back then, a massive tsunami swept everyone up to the shore of Nanhai City overnight. This time, the giant wave clearly had a super-accelerating function, and they were quickly rolled to Qingchuan as they rolled around in the sea.
Gou Fugui was at a loss for words.
"Is the boat alright? Are the people on board injured?"
Xie Tianlang shrugged slightly: "Since the ship has reached the shore, there shouldn't be any major problems, but it's hard to say whether the people on board are injured."
Gou Fugui followed Xie Tianlang's gaze to the area outside the capsule, then silently shut his mouth, held his breath, jumped out of the capsule, and was about to leave.
However, when they left, several soldiers went to his capsule to check the situation and nodded to let them leave after confirming that it was clean inside.
Gou Fugui held his breath until he got off the boat, then took a deep breath.
"Perhaps preventing seasickness will become a major challenge in the future."
He had just glanced around the ship and found that almost no one in the capsules had vomited. Even the big cat, who was good at running and jumping, was gagging on the fishmonger's shoulder.
This shows the extent to which she fainted.
Xie Tianlang smiled and said, "It's not that difficult. You'll get used to it after a while, even if you keep feeling dizzy and vomiting."
As they walked and talked, Gou Fugui keenly noticed that the port seemed to have undergone some changes.
It seemed that some buildings were in different locations than when he came a few days ago, and some buildings he remembered had disappeared.
The reason is actually quite easy to figure out; it's simply that the massive tsunami triggered by this earthquake accelerated the process of seawater invading the land.
"Please follow me, both of you."
Halfway there, a young soldier from a ship found them, his face showing a smile and admiration.
"We need to transport those three machines to the Qingchuan Research Department. The two of you who complete the mission can come with us to collect the mission reward."
This was something that had been agreed upon beforehand, so Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang naturally wouldn't refuse. They followed the young soldier for more than ten minutes until they saw a row of tall armored vehicles parked by the muddy roadside.
This prompted the wealthy and beautiful woman to sigh, "The nation is still the nation."
Most of the time, the people of Washington can trust their country.
The armored vehicle drove for more than an hour through the wind and rain to reach the Qingchuan Research Institute. The institute was obviously a temporary structure; although it was spacious enough, it lacked a certain precision and rigor.
But in such special times, we must discard some things and retain as many as possible.
The researchers at the institute were delighted to see the three machines, as each of them could produce an additional 300 materials per day to synthesize survival orbs.
The three machines together make nine hundred. Being able to save at least nine hundred more families every day is a cause for celebration no matter what.
"Thank you all for your help and contributions. Here are nine survival orbs. Please keep them safe."
A middle-aged scholar with graying hair gave nine survival orbs to Gou Fugui, Xie Tianlang, the pearl diver, and the man from Sichuan and Tibet. Then he took out one of the survival orbs and said:
"I'll give you four a brief explanation of how to use the Survival Ball."
"Actually, the survival ball is very easy to use. Just press the red button on the ball in an emergency, point the red button directly at yourself, and the survival ball will expand and envelop you."
"The expanded survival sphere is about three cubic meters in size, and its special synthetic skin can provide oxygen for up to four people."
"In other words, the maximum number of people protected in the survival sphere is four. If there are more than four people, they are very likely to suffocate and die from lack of oxygen in the survival sphere."
At this point, the middle-aged researcher sighed slightly, seemingly dissatisfied with the survival sphere in his hand: "The disaster left us too little time for research... Even with everyone's combined efforts, this is the best we can do to create such a survival sphere. To protect as many people as possible."
"Moreover, this is not a finished product yet."
The pearl diver and the Tibetan man, seeing the scholar, who was clearly exhausted, speaking in such a manner, opened their mouths to offer words of comfort. However, the middle-aged scholar seemed to have sensed their emotions, gently shaking his head and smiling as he interrupted them:
"This survival ball has one major drawback. Once it's opened and used, it can't be closed and restored manually."
"After all, we used super compression technology to shrink this survival ball to the size of a grapefruit. Without the super compressor, it would be impossible to recompress and reuse it by hand."
"So please remember, everyone, this survival orb can only protect you once. Don't think that having a survival orb means you're completely safe."
"However, once you board the ship, each super-giant should be equipped with a super compressor. As long as your survival ball remains intact, you can take it to the super compressor to be recompressed. This way, you can reuse the survival ball."
Gou Fugui and the others nodded to indicate they understood. Only then did the researcher, whose eyes were bloodshot, nod and leave. He walked hurriedly, his brows furrowed, and even the hot water and bread his assistant brought him were only eaten hastily while walking before he plunged back into his research.
In the face of disaster, everyone is doing their best.
It was past nine in the morning when Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang returned to the Jin family's plantation. At the entrance of the plantation, Gou Fugui was surprised to see a familiar armored transport vehicle.
He raised his eyebrows and walked inside, first being pounced on by an excited husky and a Labrador, then seeing Grandpa Jin and Jin Mantang at the door, along with several cats and dogs and a bald parrot that had finally grown a little feather.
"The beauty is back! The beauty is back!" The silly bird flapped its wings and flew around the wealthy beauty once. After being glanced at by the beauty, the clever silly bird changed its tune: "Welcome home, boss! Welcome home, boss!"
Only then did the eldest son, Fugui, smile with satisfaction.
Jin Mantang hadn't seen his brother Fugui for four days, so he was very happy to see him again.
"Fugui, you're back? How did the mission go? This morning I heard on the radio that there was a sudden tsunami in your province. Grandpa and I were worried that it might affect you."
The wealthy and beautiful woman, accepting the kindness of her brothers, smiled and said, "Things went fairly smoothly. What are you all up to?"
Jin Mantang sighed and said, "We'll just have to pay the grain tax."
"???"
Then Jin Mantang was beaten by Old Master Jin.
"The sea level has risen too fast this past month, and the tsunami that hit your province early this morning caused a lot of flooding in Qingchuan. I thought my plantation probably wouldn't last much longer."
"But I still have so much food and seeds in this base... I can't let them get flooded too, can I?"
Mr. Jin's expression was rather complicated.
"Rather than letting this food be flooded, it's better to send it to where it's most needed. I didn't contribute much when the disaster struck, but I'm donating this food so that at least the soldiers and researchers fighting on the front lines can have enough to eat for a few more days."
Gou Fugui looked at the bags of grain and seeds being loaded onto the armored vehicles and felt a deep respect for the old man. He knew that during times of disaster, the most important and valuable resource was grain, which was difficult to obtain in a short period. Old Man Jin's act of sending away the entire grain supply from the plantation was tantamount to giving away immeasurable wealth.
But apart from a somewhat complicated expression, the old man showed no remorse. In fact, Gou Fugui saw a gentle yet resolute light in his eyes.
So, Gou Fugui also made a decision.
At 3 p.m., the soldiers finally carried away all the grain stored in the entire planting base.
But one armored vehicle remained.
"Mr. Jin, the higher-ups are very grateful for your donation. They have decided to have me inform you that you should prepare to board the ship tonight, and we will come to pick you up tomorrow to board ahead of schedule."
Grandpa Jin was taken aback by these words, then sighed. He hadn't donated the grain to get on the ship early, but given the scarcity of resources, he also had to consider his grandson's life.
But what about the researchers and students at his research base who can't go home after he and his grandson are gone? What about Xiao Fugui and Xiao Xie, who have been protecting them and helping them solve several problems over the past month?
"Rest assured, the government will announce the early boarding plan tonight. Starting the day after tomorrow, all survivors from all areas of Qingchuan will board the ship in an orderly manner according to their contribution ranking."
"Your plantation has made a special contribution, and the people at the plantation will register with you two and board the ship ahead of time."
Only after hearing this did Grandpa Jin feel relieved and gave the soldier a grateful smile.
"Okay, okay, that's good. Then let's pack our things tonight."
The soldier saluted Mr. Jin and said, "Thank you again for your donation! We will pick you up here at nine o'clock tomorrow morning."
Being able to board the ship ahead of schedule as a special contributor was naturally a source of great joy and gratitude for the researchers remaining at the research base and the few homeless planters.
Even Xie Tianlang felt that they had benefited from the old man's influence, which saved them a lot of trouble.
That evening, everyone was packing their luggage, making sure to take the most useful things and traveling light.
Then Jin Mantang secretly called Gou Fugui to the old man's basement.
Gou Fugui had no idea what this kid was up to. He followed him to the basement and discovered that the old man was also there.
Moreover, judging from the old man's expression, he seemed somewhat conflicted and complicated.
Gou Fugui: "???"
"Little Fugui," Old Master Jin said, handing Gou Fugui a tightly sealed, yet surprisingly lightweight, alloy box.
"What do you mean by this?" Gou Fugui looked at the box, somewhat puzzled.
Grandpa Jin didn't keep them in suspense and said directly, "This is the core research result of our planting base. I submitted one copy, and I wanted to keep this one for myself. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that my old bones won't be able to protect it, so I thought I'd take advantage of you and ask you, Fugui, to keep it for me."
"This contains soilless cultivation technology developed by our planting base, ten high-yield grain crop seeds that have been selected through multiple rounds of breeding, ten cash crop seeds, and one kilogram of high-yield synthetic soil."
As he spoke, Grandpa Jin chuckled and shook his head: "So to be honest, these seed technologies aren't anything valuable to ordinary people. At most, they'd be worth a hundred yuan, right? But for us agriculturalists, they're priceless. They represent the culmination of my life's work."
"Perhaps... when the clouds clear and the rain stops, and the sky is clear again, if the earth is still there, these three pounds of seeds can become new hope."
As Grandpa Jin spoke, his eyes reddened slightly. He gripped the handle of the small box tightly, and even though he had handed it to Gou Fugui, he didn't let go.
He knew all too well his and his grandson's capabilities. Under normal circumstances, the two of them could manage, but when disaster dragged on and things reached an extreme, people were capable of anything.
He didn't want the seeds in the box to become food for those who coveted them. They might only feed one person for two meals, but they could bring endless possibilities in the future.
Therefore, he wanted to entrust the box to the most reliable person.
He initially intended to give the box to Xiao Xie, after all, that young man was strong, calm, and capable enough. No matter what extreme circumstances he encountered, he would likely be one of the survivors.
But his grandson insisted on handing the box over to Xiao Fugui.
"Grandpa, sometimes you can't just look at appearances. Luck, wisdom, and your own choices can all overturn the expected outcome at crucial moments."
"Brother Xie is indeed very strong, but I think Fugui is more likely to survive to the end."
So, the small silver metal box was handed to Gou Fugui.
As the long-haired youth looked at the small box in front of him, he suddenly felt for a moment that perhaps, maybe, he had seen the most important thing in the world.
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