Chapter 57: Earth Crack (Part 2)
Under the threat of high temperatures, the people of Jiangcheng had no choice but to retreat to the underground city. After twenty days, good news finally came - the ground temperature in Jiangcheng began to drop, and has been hovering around 80 degrees in recent days. According to scientists' estimates, the temperature will continue to drop.
However, before the people had time to cheer, new bad news came.
Strange ground cracks began to appear.
The first crack appeared in the north area of the second floor. It was only a crack of two or three meters wide. The residents who fell into it were pulled out by the government rescue. However, soon, the crack began to spread. From two or three meters wide, it gradually became about five meters, and the latest crack has reached a full ten meters in diameter.
This ten-meter-wide ground crack opened in the north area of the second floor where the ground crack first appeared, and swallowed up a whole beehive. All the single cabins instantly fell into the abyss of the crack, and the people living inside didn't even have time to call for help. This bottomless crack was like a devil's sharp mouth, swallowing up more than 6,000 lives.
All residents in the North District of the Second Floor have now evacuated, and the area has become completely deserted. The underground city, which was originally limited in living space, has become even more crowded. In order to investigate the geological reasons, the authorities had to stop the construction plan of the underground city, fearing that further construction might affect the geological structure and cause more frequent ground fissures.
All residents are praying, hoping that the ground temperature will drop quickly so that they can return to live on the ground and avoid the ground fissure. The authorities have also acquiesced to this argument and tried to calm the public's anxiety. The radio broadcasts the ground temperature day and night. The ground temperature has dropped to 80 degrees in the past two days, which undoubtedly brings a glimmer of hope to the people.
However, what the people don't know is that the ground in Jiangcheng is not a shelter either. The observation equipment left on the ground has been
It was detected that several ground fissures had also appeared on the ground in Jiangcheng, but this news was suppressed by the authorities and strictly prohibited from being spread to the public. Once the last bit of hope was shattered, the people trapped in the underground city who had not seen the sun for a long time would probably erupt in great unrest.
The new office address of Noah Institute is on the south side of the first floor of the underground city. In this official office center, an area has also been set aside for Noah.
"Everyone, have you found out anything about the ground fissures?" General Xu asked. The ground fissures occurred one after another, engulfing tens of thousands of residents. Whether it was organizing rescue or suppressing riots, it was the military's responsibility. Because of these events, General Xu's usually capable face also showed fatigue, and even his temples were unconsciously covered with gray hair.
The ground fissure has almost driven the people of Jiangcheng to despair. Originally, everyone retreated to the underground city, believing that it was a safe shelter. Unexpectedly, after moving to the underground city and enduring the cramped and poor living conditions, they still encountered a new natural disaster. In Jiangcheng, there have been a series of suicides by residents, and there is even a trend of spreading.
If the ground fissure is allowed to spread, not only will many lives be lost in the underground city, but the order will also collapse in despair. General Xu was extremely anxious when he thought of this, and even came to the Noah Research Institute in person today to inquire about the research progress.
Those attending the meeting were all Noah's best geologists, but shame appeared on everyone's face, and they stammered, not knowing how to start.
Director Shi Hong had no choice but to step forward. "General, our research team has investigated all the ground fissures, but we have not found any geological problems. These ground fissures seem to have appeared suddenly. The original geological structure of Jiangcheng has not changed. We cannot scientifically prove any cause of the ground fissures."
"We also exchanged scientific research results with nearby cities. In addition to Jiangcheng, the neighboring Yangcheng, Shancheng, Guangcheng, etc., also encountered the same natural disaster, and Yangcheng was the most severely affected. However, everyone's research results were clueless. There was no problem with the geological structure of these cities, but the ground fissures still appeared."
"Is it completely impossible to prove it scientifically?" General Xu was also confused. He had been a soldier all his life and was known for his strong and decisive behavior. However, facing this natural disaster that was wreaking havoc on the people, he felt helpless for the first time. He did not question the geological researchers of Noah. The strength of these researchers had reached the top level in China. After the ground fissure appeared, they went deep into the ground fissure area with the military, regardless of the danger, just to find out the cause of the ground fissure.
Even if we replace a group of geologists, they will only come to the same conclusion as them.
"Science is no longer useful. Perhaps we can only wait for a miracle." General Xu sighed with a wry smile.
Everyone present was confused and distressed. When science has come to an end, what will guide humanity forward?
A vast open space was cleared in the underground warehouse where Aurora was located.
The underground warehouse is six meters high because it adopts a high-ceiling factory design. In the center of this open space, all the young golden falcons stand in a row.
Although they are young golden-feathered falcons, after being carefully fed by the Aurora Team for nearly a month, these young falcons have long shed their cub down and replaced it with hard feathers. Their body shape has also approached that of adult falcons. These days, with the company of their keepers, they are learning to fly with their mother.
In the spacious room, the big golden falcon spread its wings and glided, and behind it, the young falcons were already flying like a pro. If it weren't for the height of the room that limited their performance, these young falcons would have been able to fly high into the sky with ease.
After a group of golden falcons warmed up and flew, they began to cooperate with the members of the Aurora Team. A riding seat was placed on the young falcons, and then the members of the Aurora Team turned over and leaned over the young falcons, completing multiple actions such as flying, gliding, and diving together.
After watching the training, Gu Nian finally felt relieved. She asked Chi Qin, "What is the maximum load these young falcons can carry?"
"In addition to the knight, each young falcon can bring another person." Chi Qin said.
It was similar to what Gu Nian had thought. To be able to rent to this extent in such a short period of time, it must be said that the Aurora Squad was already very powerful. If the ground fissure appeared, in extreme cases, at least the Golden Wing Falcon Squad could escape first and then provide rescue, so as not to be completely wiped out.
"The Aurora team has been divided into two shifts recently. They must be on duty day and night and be vigilant against ground fissures at all times. Pack up important items and be prepared to evacuate at any time. If we encounter a ground fissure, you will organize the Aurora team to evacuate." Gu Nian instructed Chi Qin.
Chi Qin nodded in agreement. The boss's arrangement was not groundless. You know, the ground fissure has already begun to appear on the first floor of the underground city. No one knows where the ground fissure will appear next time. People can only face it. In the face of natural disasters, there is no way to talk about victory. All you can do is persevere.
Tan Cang also came to see the training of the Golden Wing Falcon today. Seeing such a powerful flying mutant beast, Tan Cang was both scared and excited, but what he was most worried about was that compared with the manpower of the Aurora team, how would the employees of the Aurora factory evacuate?
Gu Nian assigned him six heavy trucks. After the natural disaster, the automobile industry had completely stopped, and these six trucks had become valuable assets that were difficult to buy even with credit points.
"These six trucks will assist the Aurora Factory in evacuating. According to the current situation, the ground fissure is at most ten meters wide. There will be a three-minute warning before it appears. During these three minutes, everyone must evacuate the ground fissure. Otherwise... once the ground fissure appears, there is no need to hesitate or think about rescue. Immediately organize people to get on the trucks and evacuate immediately."
After that, Gu Nian handed him a dark box. "This is a folding space box. You should put all the important information about Aurora in it. You must carry this box with you. There are only two cubic meters of space inside. Use it well."
Tan Cang nodded, and he cherished the inconspicuous black box tightly. With this, he could at least keep the necessary means of production for Aurora. With the boss's arrangement, he immediately felt more confident and started to complete the subsequent tasks.
The ground fissure was like the sword of Damocles, hanging over everyone's head. During this period, ground fissures occurred frequently, and the first floor of the dungeon had already appeared three times. As a subsidiary area of the dungeon, the Aurora Underground Warehouse was lucky not to encounter ground fissures, but no one knew how long this luck would last. The only thing Gu Nian could do was to make arrangements as much as possible, in case of ground fissures, how to evacuate.
Gu Nian logged into the forum again.
The evolved people on the Lihuo Gantian Forum are from all over the place, and many of them are foreign evolved people who have logged in. It is precisely because of this that the forum is filled with a lot of information.
The ground fissure that has recently terrified people in Jiangcheng has become a hot topic on the forum.
Many evolved people mentioned the ground fissures in their cities.
It is precisely because of this that Gu Nian noticed that ground fissures have appeared in cities surrounding Jiangcheng, and according to netizens on the forum, the city with the most ground fissures is Yangcheng.
Gu Nian suddenly had an idea. Perhaps Yangcheng, the city with the most ground cracks, was the center of this natural disaster. All the ground cracks were radiating outward from Yangcheng!
When mentioning Yangcheng, Gu Nian immediately thought of Lu Maoyan and the mysterious sect behind him. Judging from Qiu Yongkang's laboratory, this sect has malicious intentions towards humans. This natural disaster happened to be most severe in Yangcheng. Is it a coincidence or inevitability?
Gu Nian felt more and more that he must go to Yangcheng and investigate Lu Maoyan's Yongji Company.
The invitation letter that Yongji handed over invited Gu Nian to meet at Yongji Company in a week. Calculating the date, it would be within the next two days.
Gu Nian drove to the Jing family mansion. She carefully avoided the ground fissure area and arrived at her destination safely.
She found the moon book.
"Yongji Future Technology Company invited me to their company base. They want to cooperate with me to produce mutant animal food. I plan to agree and I'll take this opportunity to investigate this company." Gu Nian said straight to the point.
Yue Jian clasped his hands calmly, "Yongji? It's the company that sent people to attack you, me, Cai Ji, Zhuo Huai, and Wei Rui, right? It's normal for you to investigate, but it's not easy. Yongji is the local boss of Yangcheng."
"You are safe now in Jiangcheng Underground City. If it is just for that attack, I suggest you take a long-term view."
"Do you remember that laboratory? I found a clue that the backer behind the laboratory is Yongji." Gu Nian said seriously. "I want to try my luck and see if I can find any clues about the Bethida sect in Yongji."
Bethida sect.
Yue Jian remembered the strange statue in the laboratory. The moment he saw the statue, his inspiration warned him to stay away. Because of this, Yue Jian has been tracking clues about the laboratory, but even he couldn't find any clues about the supporters behind the scenes.
Unexpectedly, Gu Nian got the clue instead.
Just as Yue Jian was thinking, Gu Nian misunderstood that he was against going to investigate, so he simply raised the stakes: "This sect is likely related to the natural disaster. I need your help, let's go and find out together."
If she wanted to investigate Yongji, Gu Nian would just go there to deliver food, so she would naturally need some help. In order to ensure that Yuejian would be on her ship, Gu Nian did not hesitate to lie. Of course, it cannot be said that she lied completely, as she did suspect that this sect was related to the Earthshattering Disaster.
Yue Jian had no doubts. After all, no one believed in the divinations of their ancestors more than he did. If Gu Nian was indeed the ray of hope, then he should believe her judgment on natural disasters.
"Okay, I'll go." Yue Jian said cheerfully, "Do you need any other help?"
Gu Nian quickly calculated the manpower and replied, "You can bring another one, but he must be an expert."
Seeing that the matter was settled, Gu Nian did not delay. She said hello to Yue Jian and left. She still had to go find Yu Ziqiu.
She and Yu Ziqiu made an appointment to meet in a public bathroom. There were no coffee shops in the underground city now, so it was difficult to find a place to talk. The public bathroom had a very large area, and there were some leisure areas for people to sit and have a drink, and there was air conditioning. That was why many people would meet in the public bathroom.
Seeing Gu Nian, Yu Ziqiu smiled in surprise: "Long time no see!"
The two of them tacitly found a corner away from people.
Yu Ziqiu knew that Gu Nian had taken the initiative to ask her out, so he must have something to discuss, so she took the initiative to ask, "Is there something?"
Gu Nian asked, "Did you find out the results of the investigation into the assassination at my villa?"
Hearing Gu Nian mention this, Yu Ziqiu apologized and said, "I really haven't found anything. We also investigated the assassinations of Cai Ji and Zhuo Huai, but we also didn't find any clues. The other party was very professional."
Gu Nian was not surprised by this result. "I found a clue that the mastermind behind the assassination was Yongji Future Technology Company."
Yongji Future Technology Company? Yu Ziqiu was surprised. Of course she knew this company. It was a branch of a famous consortium in Yangcheng. It was no exaggeration to say that it controlled the economic lifeline of Yangcheng. Why would such a company want to kill Gu Nian, Cai Ji and Zhuo Huai? It might even be the murderer of Wei Rui?
If someone else said this, Yu Ziqiu might be skeptical, but she and Gu Nian were comrades who had gone through life and death together. Such friendships don't require time, only experience to build trust. She believed that Gu Nian was not someone who acted without purpose.
Yu Ziqiu was still digesting the news, but Gu Nian dropped another bomb right after.
"I also found out that the laboratory was established with the support of Yongji."
Yu Ziqiu took a deep breath. Noah had been tracking down the laboratory's backers. After all, in the depths of the wilderness, without support, how could Qiu Yongkang have built a complete laboratory alone? However, all the clues were erased. There were only a handful of forces that could do this, but Yongji was indeed one of them.
Yu Ziqiu quickly realized that if, as Gu Nian said, the laboratory was built by Yongji, then the motive for hunting down Gu Nian and his group who caused the destruction of the laboratory was completely justified. Revenge is always the number one motive for murder.
"Do you have any evidence?" Yu Ziqiu frowned. This kind of accusation cannot be made without evidence.
"My clues are not convenient to be made public. But if you trust me, I would like to borrow a signalman from you, and also some information about the Yongji base." Gu Nian said: "I will go to investigate recently, and then I can share the results of the mission with you."
In order to successfully investigate the Yongji base, intelligence work is essential. It is best to retrieve Yongji's relevant information in advance, and breaking into Yongji's monitoring system also requires professional hackers.
Yu Ziqiu hesitated for a while, and quickly agreed: "Deal." As the leader of the action team, she had the obligation to find out who was planning to attack and kill her team members.
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