Chapter 12 Chapter 12 The big pendulum starts with one click.

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The Feng Yi dropped anchor at the port, and no one was left on duty at night.

The three people on the boat returned to their rooms early to rest and recuperate, but early the next morning, they met in the restaurant, each with dark circles under their eyes to varying degrees.

Yes, with volcanoes erupting and earthquakes breaking the ground, who can sleep peacefully?

After a quick breakfast, Meng Gaoyang and Liang Zhao went to the engine room and deck to check the ship's facilities, while Gu Mengran was responsible for checking and cleaning the rooms on the first and second floors.

The Wind Wing Pendulum is about to start. Furniture and appliances that can be fixed should be fixed as soon as possible, and objects that cannot be fixed and are prone to shaking should be vacated as soon as possible.

After two hours of hard work, Gu Mengran put back what he had taken out. The living room and room that he had carefully tidied up were suddenly returned to the days before liberation and became a bare model room again.

Using sweepers and floor scrubbers, Gu Mengran cleaned the Feng Yi inside and out again.

Doing housework in the summer is so sweaty that Gu Mengran's clothes were soaked after finishing all the work. The sticky sweat on his body made him uncomfortable. He just wanted to take a shower and rest for a while, but just as he stepped into the bathroom, the intercom rang again.

What a busy day!

Without even having the time to go to the toilet, Gu Mengran hurried back to the deck.

Gu Mengran had been wandering around the house today. Only when he walked from the living room to the stern deck did he realize that the fog today seemed to be so thick that it was a little scary.

The sky was dark, as if a huge rainstorm was brewing. The dark clouds hanging in the sky fell down, and the dark clouds enveloped the river and the deck, bringing with them a feeling of oppression and suffocation.

The vision is severely obstructed, and it is impossible to distinguish between humans and animals more than three meters away.

As soon as he stepped out of the door, a strong smell of sulfur hit his nose. Gu Mengran quickly put on a mask and groped his way towards the stern of the ship based on his memory, shouting as he walked: "Grandpa! Liang Zhao!"

"Here, be careful."

"Walk slower, little brat, and don't fall into the river!"

With one call and one response, Gu Mengran followed the sound and found his grandfather and Liang Zhao in the thick fog.

It was convenient to say it out loud. After successfully meeting with his grandfather and Liang Zhao, Gu Mengran no longer needed to hide anything and took out a large roll of waterproof tarpaulin from the space on the spot.

The waterproof tarpaulin was tailor-made according to the proportions of the Fengyi, and when spread out, it could just cover the entire upper structure. It was originally used to deal with the long rainy season in the future, but Meng Gaoyang was worried that the thick fog and volcanic eruptions would corrode the hull, so he insisted that Gu Mengran send a roll.

They are currently in Shaozhou. Gu Mengran really wants to tell his grandfather that the nearest active volcano is more than a thousand kilometers away from them. At most they will be affected by volcanic ash, so there is no need to worry too much.

But think about it, the old man loves the boat, and a roll of tarpaulin can make him feel at ease. Anyway, there are more than ten rolls in the space.

The fog was so thick that there was no difference between day and night, and the installation of the tarpaulin was particularly difficult. The old man stayed on the deck to direct the work, while Gu Mengran and Liang Zhao climbed onto the roof one after another, starting from the four corners and fixing them bit by bit.

All preparations were ready and it was noon.

The three of them were all sweaty, dishevelled and exhausted. After returning to their rooms to wash up, the three of them met again in the cab.

I was hungry, but Gu Mengran had already put away the pots and pans. I couldn't cook, so I had to eat some fast food, and some leftover salted meat from the previous day, which made my old man feel disgusted when he looked at it for even a second.

The tables, chairs and benches were also put away, leaving only a fixed captain's chair in the huge cab. The three of them finished their lunch standing in front of the cab, then packed up the garbage and crawled under the cab one after another.

To prevent the Feng Yi from being overturned by the river, someone must be on duty in the cockpit to steer the ship to keep it balanced. The other two were worried about leaving one person alone, so after a brief discussion last night, they decided to stay in the cockpit together.

The superstructure of a ship is usually made of steel decks, and the welding technology used means that as long as it is not hit hard, the superstructure will not necessarily fall apart even if the ship sinks.

Therefore, when avoiding earthquakes in the Wind Wing, there is basically no risk of building collapse, nor is there any worry about being injured by broken walls. It is safer than in a land building.

The risk will not disappear, it will only transfer. Once the boat capsizes, the risk factor will increase exponentially.

The driving platform is tall and the area underneath is spacious. Three people can hide underneath at the same time without feeling crowded, and there is still plenty of room for their hands and feet to move around.

But as Gu Mengran kept taking things out of the space like Doraemon, the spacious driving platform gradually became crowded.

"Come on, come on, each of you get a life jacket, put it on, put it on now. Quilt - come on, grandpa, Liang Zhao, you guys move to the side first, the floor is too hard, I'll spread the quilt on the floor."

"Each of you will have a gas mask. Hang it around your neck first, just in case. The self-inflating raft is placed here for use. There are also emergency dry food, medicine, and water..."

"Mengran, Gu Mengran!" Meng Gaoyang shouted, interrupting Gu Mengran's chatter.

Gu Mengran stopped and looked up blankly, "What's wrong?"

Something is wrong. Gu Mengran's condition is very wrong. The seemingly calm surface of the lake is surging with undercurrents, as if... as if he is arranging his funeral?

The old man frowned, looking at Gu Mengran with a worried look in his eyes, "The person is still here, and we are not separated. Why are you in such a hurry to dig out the family assets? Save it for yourself and take it when you need it."

"How can that be possible?" Gu Mengran immediately retorted: "Once an earthquake occurs, it is not up to us to decide whether to separate or not. What if the Fengyi accidentally flips over and we are forced to separate? What if I faint? No, you must bring more--"

"Okay, Gu Mengran."

The old man patted Gu Mengran on the shoulder and said softly, "Don't be too nervous. We are well prepared, and the Wind Wing is not that fragile. Nothing will happen."

"But--"

Gu Mengran was about to argue with his grandfather when his wrist was suddenly wrapped in warmth.

This time it was Liang Zhao who interrupted him. Liang Zhao gently grasped his wrist, his firm eyes shone with gentle comfort, "Master Meng is right, don't be too nervous, if we keep holding hands we won't separate, isn't there still room?"

Liang Zhao's eyebrows moved slightly, and he blinked at him calmly.

Space... yes, there is still space!

Liang Zhao's words were like a spring breeze, easily blowing away Gu Mengran's panic. The fog in his head dissipated, and his chaotic brain began to work. Gu Mengran gradually sobered up and calmed down.

Unlike the previous life, they had a boat, plenty of supplies, and space as a last resort for survival. He would not lose his grandfather or Liang Zhao again. He had the ability to protect the people he wanted to protect and lead them to live in peace and stability.

This life, the ending must be different.

Time passed by, but no disaster happened.

I only know it's this afternoon, but I don't know the exact time. There's nothing I can do except wait.

The sound of snoring gradually filled the quiet cab. Meng Gaoyang, wearing a life jacket, curled up on a quilt, half of his head resting on Gu Mengran's thigh, happily meeting Zhou Gong.

Having not slept well last night, Gu Mengran began to feel sleepy as soon as he relaxed.

He and Liang Zhao leaned side by side at the other end of the driving platform, their hands clasped together, their chins nodding.

His eyelids were getting heavier and heavier. Liang Zhao whispered in his ear, "Go to sleep, I'll watch you." Gu Mengran closed his eyes peacefully and his consciousness gradually faded away.

“Boom boom—”

A shocking roar broke the sky, the river trembled, and the Fengyihao shook continuously.

Meng Gaoyang was suddenly awakened from his sleep. He sat up with a start, completely forgetting that he was still curled up under the driving seat. His head made direct contact with the driving seat, making a loud "clang".

"Grandpa, are you okay?" Gu Mengran was awake all of a sudden. He quickly took his grandfather's hand and asked with concern.

"It's not a big deal." The old man rubbed his dizzy head and looked around cautiously, "Was that... an earthquake? Did it start?"

The deafening roar was like a muffled thunder, lingering in the ears for a long time, but the Fengyi stopped shaking and the river surface gradually calmed down.

The explosion brought inevitable panic, and the atmosphere was more or less tense. At this time, Liang Zhao, who was frowning and thinking, shook his head and said softly: "It should be just a volcanic eruption."

"Volcano?" The old man frowned. "Didn't Meng Ran say that the nearest volcano is more than a thousand kilometers away? How could it be so loud?"

Moreover, the nearest active volcano is just a small and unknown volcano, so it shouldn't be so powerful.

Gu Mengran had experienced it once personally and already had the answer in his mind.

He tensed up at a speed visible to the naked eye. He tightened his hands with his grandfather and Liang Zhao, and trembled his lips: "It's Mawson, the Mawson volcano has erupted."

Mawson is located in the western part of China, about 2,500 kilometers from Shaozhou. It is as famous as the Yellowstone Volcano and is one of the largest existing supervolcanoes in the world.

The explosion could be heard 2,500 kilometers away, so you can imagine how powerful it was.

It was this loud noise that, at this very moment, magma at a temperature of 1,000 degrees Celsius was gushing out of the crater of the Mawson volcano. The flames and magma turned into high-speed rotating bullets, spraying in all directions, ruthlessly destroying the surrounding cities and villages.

Smoke and dust were everywhere, and large amounts of toxic gases mixed with volcanic ash rushed straight into the sky.

Hundreds of thousands of people will die in this disaster. The energy released by a supervolcano is equivalent to 200 million tons of TNT, which is no less than a small meteorite hitting the blue planet.

After brewing for thousands of years, it burned out all its life in one eruption, and its huge power directly razed the entire volcano to the ground. It was unwilling to die alone, and before dying, it let out a sad cry, determined to drag humans to perish together.

Someone gently pinched his palm, and Gu Mengran gasped, pulling himself out of the nightmare-like memories. Seeing Liang Zhao looking at him worriedly, his heart warmed, and he pinched the back of Liang Zhao's hand with his index finger in response.

Ten minutes later, the river surface returned to complete calm, without a single ripple, as if the huge roar just now was just a collective hallucination.

The tense and solemn atmosphere in the driver's cabin eased a little. The old man yawned continuously, leaned weakly against the inner side guardrail, and almost fell asleep again in a daze.

"You have such a big heart." Gu Mengran complained quietly and shook his grandfather's arm hard, trying to wake him up.

But just as he raised his hand and shook it, suddenly, a short and rhythmic "buzzing" sound came from the quiet cab.

"Whose phone is ringing?" Meng Gaoyang asked casually before he fell asleep.

On the ground, the gas masks placed in front of several people jumped and collided on the floor, making a sound very similar to the vibration of a mobile phone. Gu Mengran frowned tightly, and before he could speak, the sky and the earth shook, and the big pendulum started with a button.