Chapter 33 They always seemed to be searching for…
Inside the auditorium, people were still shouting "There are emotional scammers!", but the system's response was quite direct.
The students, though reluctant, received a notification that their favorability rating had reached 20% as soon as Fu Qing stepped off the stage.
With all the rewards piled up, she suddenly became very wealthy, with a balance of 1750 teaching points.
"I thought that this exam would remind them of the despair of being besieged by zombies, causing their favorability to drop," Fu Qing said, clicking her tongue in amazement.
During the exam, she deliberately observed the behavior of students who had died or been seriously injured in the previous exam. Compared to the more than 1,300 who had not died, their actions were indeed much more conservative, and their expressions were more fearful when they saw the horde of corpses.
Some chose to hide, while others, after a long period of hesitation and struggle, picked up their weapons again and charged forward.
Fu Qing made a note of the names of several students who had reacted strongly to fear, intending to continue observing them.
If they continue to behave this way, she will recommend they seek counseling once she finds a psychologist. If that doesn't resolve the issue, she will also consider their opinions and adjust their course schedule, prioritizing regular attendance.
Within a large shelter, facilities to alleviate psychological stress are essential, and Fu Qing believes that there will be professionals with similar expertise within the system's pool of cards.
The system internally replied: "Actually, it did have some impact; otherwise, your favorability rating should have exceeded 20% before the monthly exam."
Finally, the favorability rating surged because of that affirmation earlier.
This made the system somewhat emotional, as it realized that the students were actually quite easy to win over. If Fu Qing had always acted gently and kindly, perhaps her initial favorability rating wouldn't have been so low.
But when it imagined its host's smiling face every day, its entire body trembled.
Perhaps it is precisely because the host has always remained calm and objective, never forcing herself to try to please in order to complete the task, that her affirmation is so valuable.
The system convinced itself again.
Fu Qing was unaware of its many thoughts and shifted her attention to the balance.
She had already decided what to do with the points.
The favorability reward is a one-time event. A new favorability task has been refreshed, and as she expected, it requires reaching 40%, with the same reward of 1000 points.
Based on this calculation, when it reaches 100%, the total reward is 5000 points.
This is a fixed reward, and Fu Qing believes its purpose is to allow her to complete some necessary infrastructure projects.
Even if she doesn't explore the hidden conspiracies within the world or save students from additional crises, as long as she honestly follows the main storyline and plays the role of an excellent teacher to win the students' favor, she can obtain enough points to complete the basic renovation of the school and gain basic survival security in the apocalypse.
This is equivalent to a "minimum" reward.
Since it's a guaranteed minimum, it must have been calculated numerically. Fu Qing plans to follow the system design and invest most of her points in the infrastructure she hasn't had time to do yet.
[Cost: 200 Teaching Points]
[Received: Water Treatment System *1]
[Cost: 200 Teaching Points]
[Received: Waste Sorting System *1]
[Cost: 100 Teaching Points]
[Received: Waste Incinerator *1]
...
Both the water treatment system and the waste sorting system can cover the entire school.
The former includes rainwater collection and filtration, drinking water disinfection, and the recycling of domestic sewage in residential areas.
The latter is a fully automated waste sorting system. Non-recyclable waste is sent directly to the incinerator, while recyclable waste is left for further processing, such as being sent to experimental fields for composting.
Fu Qing noted that when farmland expands in the future and irrigation canal systems need to be built to connect rivers, it can also be connected to existing water treatment systems to filter and disinfect river water, removing potential viral contamination before using it to supplement domestic water use.
This is similar to a feature common in simulation management games, where having two facilities that meet specific conditions allows you to merge and upgrade them, adding a new function.
...
Fu Qing continued scrolling through the online store page.
Should solar panels be added to all buildings?
[Cost: 300 Teaching Points]
【yes】
In the post-apocalyptic world, industrial production will cease, environmental pollution will be significantly reduced, and sunlight will be much better than it is now. The numerous solar panels on the rooftop will be able to meet most of the electricity demand.
Fu Qing then spent another 100 teaching points to purchase a large battery pack for energy storage.
Of course, relying solely on solar panels is not stable enough, as there will always be times when sunlight is reduced in winter or there are continuous rainy days. Fu Qing plans to take it easy for a while and then purchase a wind power generation system.
The wind is strong near the mountains, so building wind power plants on the plains is an excellent choice.
Fu Qing once again discovered the brilliance of the system's site selection.
The entire process cost a total of 900 points, leaving 850 teaching points remaining.
Fu Qing felt at ease as the points she had painstakingly accumulated rapidly dwindled.
Having experienced the apocalypse, she especially understands the importance of energy and water resources. The power system, water treatment system, and waste recycling and sorting system gave her a great sense of security.
Even though there are still eleven months until the apocalypse, buying these facilities won't be a waste; they can save Fangzhou a lot of money on water and electricity bills.
Fu Qing certainly wouldn't let the system profit for nothing. She demanded these fees, confiscated them all, and set them aside for scholarships or teacher and student benefits.
The mooncakes distributed during the Mid-Autumn Festival were an extra expense she hadn't anticipated. Fu Qing had long planned to squeeze some more tuition fees from the system to deal with such unexpected situations, and she just happened to find the opportunity.
Since the money was saved from the originally projected expenses, the system couldn't say anything, remained silent for a moment, and then reluctantly approved it.
With the lagging infrastructure construction progressing rapidly, Fu Qing finally had the time and inclination to inspect the teaching facilities.
My eyes wandered across the dazzling array of product pages, eventually settling on one spot.
After clicking and reading the detailed introduction, she had an idea.
Should we purchase the "combat simulator"?
[Cost: 600 Teaching Points]
[Obtained: 20 Simulated Combat Pods]
The simulated combat pods are sold in sets of 20, with each set costing 600 points. The unit price of 30 points is not expensive, but unfortunately, they can only be sold as a bundle.
Seeing 600 points evaporate from her account, Fu Qing felt a pang of heartache and pursed her lips.
However, considering the function of the simulated combat pod, the price is quite cheap.
In Fu Qing's eyes, calling it a divine artifact wouldn't be an exaggeration.
The purpose of the combat simulator is to simulate a real environment, allowing users to engage in immersive combat and even enabling online multiplayer.
It's like a "holographic simulation" with no time limit, except that only one person can enter a machine at a time.
Its shape is somewhat like a "holographic game pod" imagined by humans. It is cocoon-shaped and can also be seen as a capsule. When using it, you need to lie down inside.
Because it was not small, Fu Qing found two empty rooms, ten units in each, and put them in.
At the same time, a notice was issued to all students on campus, stating that they could borrow the facilities by swiping their wristbands, with each person allowed to borrow a maximum of once a week, for a maximum of one hour each time.
If you're worried about not being able to secure a spot if you need to use it temporarily, you can reserve a time slot in advance on your wristband. With system monitoring, there's no need to worry about security issues; the combat cabin can be open 24/7.
After doing all this, I still have 250 teaching points left in my account.
Fu Qing looked at the number for a long time and felt that it was not quite right.
But it was too late today, so she decided to continue tomorrow.
*
The next morning, Fu Qing, having finished her morning exercise, met the five members of the publicity team on the road.
The other four surrounded Sun Wei, discussing something intensely. Su Huaijin was the first to notice her, and quickly stopped talking to greet her: "Good morning, Principal."
The others greeted him, and Fu Qing nodded. Su Huaijin then reported on the progress of the short video project, which had been stalled due to preparations for the monthly exam.
“We’re planning to do a series called ‘What if the apocalypse happens a year from now’ – I think this theme is super interesting.” She said enthusiastically, “From the perspective of an ordinary person, the apocalypse will not come; it’s just a group of college students making a big fuss. The more serious we are, the better the show will be, and at the same time, we can also educate people.”
“We did our research beforehand. There are many streamers on various platforms who specialize in post-apocalyptic survival and have a large number of fans, but the field of survival on campus for college students is still a blank. There are no big streamers doing this.”
"Moreover, there is a lot to discuss around this topic, such as what supplies are best to stock up on in the dorm, what weapons are readily available on campus, how to grow vegetables in the dorm, and how to survive for seven days using the existing resources in the dorm if there are zombies outside... There is no worry about not having videos to post in the future."
The only male member of the team added: "I tried posting this title on several platforms yesterday and found that it was not blocked, which means it can be posted."
"Assuming the apocalypse is about to break out" is a common topic of discussion among fans of apocalyptic themes. It is not considered a clear prophecy and is not considered a violation in the eyes of the system.
Fu Qing was quite surprised that they could find a way to exploit the loopholes. In addition, they had done a good job in market research in a short time, figured out the selling points of the video, and even came up with a sustainable posting theme. They did a better job than she had imagined.
A person's energy is limited, and their strengths are different. Even if Fu Qing personally took charge, he probably wouldn't have done this well.
She increasingly believed that forming such a publicity team was the right decision.
In a group full of talented people, rather than having one person shoulder all the responsibility, knowing how to use people wisely is the way to development.
After encouraging the group to broaden their horizons and keep up the good work, Fu Qing bid them farewell. The five people who had received praise from the principal were now discussing things with even greater enthusiasm.
As they approached the dormitory building, Fu Qing's phone suddenly vibrated.
After her rebirth, almost all communication took place on campus. Very few people knew her phone number and would contact her in this way. As soon as Fu Qing saw the screen, she guessed the caller's identity.
Officer Chen.
I took out my phone, and sure enough, it was him.
When the call connected, the voice on the other end sounded somewhat grave.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Officer Chen got straight to the point: "The interrogation of Liu Yong is temporarily over. His mental state is not very stable. During the questioning, he repeatedly said things like 'the end of the world is coming' and 'everyone has to die.'"
Logically, Officer Chen shouldn't have revealed the contents of the interrogation, so he must still have something to say.
Fu Qing's mind raced with thoughts. She dutifully played the role of a normal bystander, someone caught up in the chaos while trying to help others. After a moment of silence, she asked in a tense tone, "What does this mean? Has he gone mad? Otherwise, why would he say something like that?"
“No, he’s not necessarily crazy,” Officer Chen said. “Do you know about the Heaven’s Gate case in the US?”
When Fu Qing was posting online in the past, he had actually seen posts about this on forums.
She thought for a moment and said, "I know. There was a cult that claimed a UFO was about to arrive, and that the cult leader was an alien sent to save humanity. He could take them to 'ascend to heaven,' but the followers had to give up everything, donate all their money, abandon all worldly relationships, and even relinquish their desires and physical bodies. I remember that the incident ended with 39 followers committing mass suicide to board the spaceship..."
She knew what Officer Chen wanted to say.
Since there are people who believe in UFOs, there may also be people who believe in zombies. To uninformed passersby, both are just fanatical fantasies of cultists.
Clearly, Liu Yong has also been classified into this category.
Officer Chen hummed in agreement on the other end of the line: "Extremist organizations that promote doomsday theories are common in history. We initially suspect that Liu Yong may have come to believe in a new organization that came from abroad or has grown up locally."
"Everything he said was nonsense, but there are indeed people who would harm society because of these absurd remarks. These people are extremely crazy and uncontrollable."
Officer Chen sternly warned Fu Qing: "If all of this is not a simple act of revenge against society, but an attack planned by an extremist organization, then your situation may be somewhat dangerous."
He finally got to the point.
“Be careful in your daily activities and pay attention to anything suspicious or that wouldn’t normally happen. Contact us immediately if necessary. We will assign personnel to protect you.”
“Of course, there is currently no evidence to suggest that you have come into their sights—in fact, the very existence of that organization is still unknown.” After a pause, Officer Chen softened his tone and reassured them, “Please trust that the police will do everything in their power to protect innocent civilians, and don’t worry too much.”
Officer Chen's reminder represented both police protection and personal concern. Fu Qing expressed her gratitude sincerely and then said, "Isn't there any more information about that possible organization? You know, there are many students where I work, and this isn't just a matter of my safety... I want to know more."
Her tone contained just the right amount of hesitation.
Fu Qing's request was reasonable. Officer Chen paused for a moment before finally relenting: "Not yet. From Liu Yong's remarks, we can infer that there is an instigator behind this operation, but we haven't found out how they contact each other yet. They may have a covert way of exchanging information."
"Because of his appearance, Liu Yong doesn't like to go out and socialize. He prefers to stay at home and surf the internet. So we initially believe that the other party contacted him through the internet. The cyber police are still investigating. I will let you know when there is a conclusion."
Knowing that Officer Chen had no more information, Fu Qing said sincerely, "I understand. There are all kinds of people online. I will consider holding a lecture on campus later to discuss how to surf the Internet safely."
"That's wonderful!" Officer Chen seemed to wish he could hold her hand through the phone line, and his concern about revealing information lessened considerably.
After chatting for a couple more minutes, Fu Qing hung up the phone.
She certainly didn't need Officer Chen's protection; on the contrary, if the police really sent a small team to Fangzhou, it might cause her trouble.
Fu Qing was unsure whether allowing people from outside the school to stay on campus for an extended period would trigger the system's "blind spot" and make them aware of Fang Zhou's suspicious behavior.
So she plans to investigate on her own from now on.
However, the call was still fruitful.
At least it confirmed for her that there was indeed a group of people hiding behind Liu Yong, and they were very likely communicating online.
Through the internet...
Fu Qing put his phone back in his pocket, fell into deep thought, then opened the system page and sent a message to Su Huaijin, instructing them not to use Sun Wei's original account and not to show their faces when filming videos.
According to Fu Qing's previous idea, it would be best if they could leverage the influence of Sun Wei's existing account to avoid the process of creating a new account.
Sun Wei didn't need to mention Fang Zhou; she could simply pretend it was just a new topic. There are many bloggers online who work on apocalyptic themes, so she wouldn't arouse any suspicion.
But now that she knows there might be a group of people lurking online who are following news related to the apocalypse, Fu Qing has changed her mind, feeling that it is still a bit risky.
Su Huaijin quickly replied with an "OK".
She had great trust in the principal and, without asking many questions, chose to carry out Fu Qing's decision directly.
After finishing all that, Fu Qing quickly took a shower in the bathroom with its own shower in the teachers' dormitory, her mind racing.
Since the zombie followers communicate via the internet...
Is it possible to lure them out using the internet?
The thought that there was a group of people like her, possibly preparing for the end of the world—except that they were preparing in the opposite direction—made Fu Qing unable to suppress her inner turmoil.
She desperately wanted to know what kind of conspiracy the other party was hiding.
To hasten the end of the world?
No, the system said that the apocalypse could only happen in a year; this is the "destined" time.
What was the reason for that...?
Realizing the anxiety rising in her chest, Fu Qing reached out and lowered the water temperature. The cool water washed over her muscles, which were still hot from exercise, and calmed her feverish mind.
There was more than one enemy, and besides herself, the others on her side were either deceased teachers who were unable to move freely outside the school, or students who were still growing up, with no combat experience, and were naive and vulnerable.
Even when baiting, one may encounter a counterattack and find oneself at a disadvantage.
What she should do is pretend she knows nothing, secretly develop her strength, and wait until her side is strong enough to rival the enemy.
Or at least, be able to protect yourself.
Otherwise, it will only bring about new deaths.
Fu Qing turned off the tap, shook the water droplets off her hair, and watched them fall, gradually forming a small puddle on the tiles at her feet.
After a long while, she finally ripped off the bath towel hanging to the side.
*
After changing his clothes, Fu Qing mentally called out to the system: "System, what serious problems might arise if we temporarily leave the zombie believers unattended?"
She has to have double insurance; if the system's answer is yes, then she will revise her plan.
The system quickly replied: "No, not for now. Theoretically, my purpose in binding you is simply to help you complete the main quest, which is to build the campus."
In other words, the system believes that building a good campus is enough to save humanity.
Fu Qing pointed out: "But you said, 'not for the time being'."
[Some changes have indeed occurred within the timeline, but these changes are still under control.] The system said, [Currently, its biggest impact on you is that it has raised the standards for mission completion. For example, originally you only needed to train 100 S-rank students after one year to complete the mission. But now you may need to train 130 or 150.]
[Of course, if you can effectively attack the zombie believers without harming yourself, you can lower the difficulty. However, if this affects the tutorial or even puts you in danger, it's not worth it. Therefore, I've listed it as an extra reward, not a main quest.]
Your primary focus should be solely on nurturing students and managing the school.
After a two-second pause, the system said: [Host, you must trust me, and you must also trust yourself.]
Knowing that it was just a "side quest" did reassure Fu Qing a little, but the system's last sentence made her pause in surprise.
She pursed her lips and said, "I understand."
System: [Upon hearing of the existence of the devout... your emotions seem to have been affected.]
Fu Qing rubbed his wet hair with a towel: "Anyone would react this way if they met an enemy."
The system fell silent.
Fu Qing continued drying her hair until there was a knock on the door.
Zhao Yunxiao's voice came from outside the door: "Principal, are you there? I saw that the school has introduced some new machines and asked us teachers to help out. I came to ask about the situation..."
Fu Qing suddenly realized that she could ask others for information about the devout believers.
Zhao Yunxiao and Hao Zhenye have both lived long enough, especially Zhao Yunxiao, who has official channels and may know more!
When the door was opened, Fu Qing still had a towel around her neck, and the damp ends of her short hair clung to her neck. Zhao Yunxiao, standing outside the door, was taken aback: "Did I disturb you?"
"No, I just happen to have something to ask you." Fu Qing ushered him into the room.
She revealed everything about the Liu Yong incident.
The summoned teachers are 100% on Fu Qing's side. As long as she terminates their employment, they will return to their original world, and there is no possibility of betrayal.
She didn't need to hide anything from them.
Before her rebirth, Fu Qing had been acting alone for a long time. She was not used to asking for help, so much so that she never thought of consulting anyone.
Zhao Yunxiao's expression darkened upon hearing this: "How could this be... Isn't it still a long way from the virus outbreak? How could they know?"
He glanced at Fu Qing's expression, then shut his mouth and tried to recall: "Now that you mention it, it seems like there really is such a thing."
“At that time, the virus outbreak had been going on for less than a year, and many shelters were still in operation. Some of them had even stabilized. But one day I heard the terrible news that a traitor had appeared in one of the shelters, which led to the fall of the entire shelter and the deaths of thousands of people.”
"It's common for shelters to fall into chaos due to undetected infected individuals, but it's extremely rare for humans to turn to zombies and actively seek extinction, so it left a deep impression on me."
“I remember that after that, two more shelters fell in the same way, and then a year later, the virus got worse and there were no shelters left. I haven’t heard anything like that since.”
Fu Qing's heart stirred, and doubts arose.
She thought that it was common for zombie believers to sacrifice their entire shelter to the zombies, since she had encountered one herself. But Zhao Yunxiao said it was "rare".
"Only three shelters fell for this reason?" she repeated.
Zhao Yunxiao said with a bitter face, "Three isn't too few, is it..."
Fu Qing then asked if he remembered the location and number of the shelter. Zhao Yunxiao thought for a moment and then recited them one by one.
Sure enough, one of the shelters was the very one where Fu Qing had briefly stayed years ago.
It's too much of a coincidence that she could encounter something with a one-in-three chance.
Fu Qing frowned unconsciously, recalling the frequent major cases that had occurred recently.
There are many cases, but it seems that no media outlets have reported that the perpetrators in some cases are involved in cult beliefs. The only clear case is that of Liu Yong, which happened to occur near the car dealership where she was originally located.
...Was this really just a coincidence?
Fu Qing suppressed her doubts and continued to ask, "Can you remember anything else? Anything is fine."
Zhao Yunxiao racked his brains: "And, and... Oh, I remember the soldier who was in charge of protecting me said that they had captured a few crazy people who were causing trouble. They would try to escape whenever they had the chance and put themselves into the mouths of zombies. They couldn't stop them. These are the zombie believers you mentioned, right?"
"My older brother said that whenever they're lucid, they're basically going crazy, looking for ways to escape, or preaching in a mystical way. But occasionally, there are times when they don't speak and just quietly space out..."
He said that at those times, they always looked like they were looking for something.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
