PSW - Chapter 73
Chapter 73
The Wasteland's high-temperature period had finally arrived. The temperature easily broke 50°C and was still climbing.
Before the apocalypse, the highest recorded temperature in this world was 58.3°C, and the highest within Ling Country was 51.7°C. This apocalyptic heatwave... one could only wonder what terrifying number the peak temperature would reach.
However, the high temperatures didn't just affect humans. The mutated animals and plants were likely suffering as well, and some forests might even spontaneously combust.
During this period, that special rain no longer fell simultaneously across the world. Instead, some countries and regions experienced torrential downpours, while others suffered from drought.
After a brief discussion, Humanity's Light Shelter specially selected and invited several ability users, forming a temporary squad led by Chu Yi and Yun Lingjian. They were heading to the Aochuan Dam to open the floodgates and release water. This was their main objective, but along the way, they would naturally pass several rivers, and with Yun Lingjian present, she could observe the water levels and other conditions.
With the extreme cold period having just passed, many shelters in Ling Country had anticipated this heatwave and made ample preparations. But when it truly arrived, how many ordinary people could be saved... they could only do their best.
Yu Yinan's tolerance for the heat was decent, but the modified vehicle and Zheng Yi couldn't adapt as well. Under the scorching sun, the inside of the vehicle became a virtual steamer. Zheng Yi had to frequently use her ability to create ice for cooling. Around noon, she had to stop after about an hour of driving to douse the vehicle with water and bring its temperature down.
Zheng Yi had considered completely encasing the vehicle in ice, but in the current extreme temperatures, the heat was simply too intense. The energy consumption for creating ice was immense, and it wasn't very efficient. No matter how powerful she was, she was still flesh and blood; even with a high mental limit, that limit still existed. It was impossible for her to maintain high-intensity ice creation twenty-four hours a day. Yu Yinan wished she could use her imagination to conjure the fantastical "ice-fire" from novels, but with her current abilities, it was far beyond her reach.
If only we'd known, we would have headed north. Maybe we could have reached the ice-and-snow-covered far north and built an igloo to live in. Even with extreme heat... it probably wouldn't get too absurdly hot there, right? No, not necessarily. This apocalypse was bizarre; many things happened without reason. Yu Yinan sighed. If they had gone north... would the melting glaciers cause floods? She wondered if the water levels would rise faster than the water evaporated. If things got that extreme, she didn't know if the far north would experience torrential rains.
"I hope this doesn't last too long..." The coldest period of the extreme cold had only lasted two or three days, but the unbearable low temperatures before and after had stretched for about a week. Now that the temperature had reached fifty degrees, she hoped it would start to cool down in a week.
Zheng Yi continued driving. She didn't respond to Yu Yinan's words, simply creating a small ice cube and popping it into her mouth before giving one to Yu Yinan. Although she couldn't maintain precise control to keep the vehicle coated in ice for long-term cooling, her ability made walking or driving outside in this heat no problem at all. "Chu Yi and the others stockpiled a lot of water. As long as water resources are sufficient and ordinary people don't work under the scorching sun, they generally won't die." As for ability users? Their endurance was naturally higher. It was just that, by comparison, they wouldn't be as comfortable and at ease as Zheng Yi and Yu Yinan.
They hadn't encountered any other ability users in Huikong. Now, having arrived in Zhongshan, they couldn't see a single living thing on the roads in this extreme temperature. By comparison, Zheng Yi found herself missing the extreme cold period; at least back then, some foolish mutated dogs had shown up to provide a bit of amusement.
"I wonder if there are any human camps in Zhongshan." Yu Yinan sighed, looking at the streets on both sides and comparing them to the map in her hand. She looked at Zheng Yi, hesitating for a moment. "Should we go look for one?"
If the camp was full of decent, well-behaved people... or even just average people, as long as they weren't too unreasonable, Zheng Yi's ability could provide some water resources and greatly increase their chances of survival.
But what if it was a small base like Yang Zhengming's? Even if they killed all the ability users, what would happen to the surviving ordinary people? Zhongshan was far from Pujie, and if there were too many people, it would be difficult to help them all survive the heatwave. As Yu Yinan thought about it, she realized that a base like Yang Zhengming's probably wouldn't care about the lives of ordinary people at all. If resources were scarce, they certainly wouldn't share their water with them.
"There are already zombies, mutated plants, and mutated animals... survival is already so difficult." Yu Yinan chewed on the ice cube in her mouth, completely baffled. "Why is there also this extreme weather? Those meteors... could meteorites alone bring about such a massive change to this planet?"
"Maybe this world just wants to destroy itself~" Zheng Yi said with a smile. "Otherwise, why would they call it the end of the world?"
"...Destruction just for humanity?" Yu Ynan paused, then added, "For ordinary people, I mean." Ability users... especially a powerful ability user like Zheng Yi, would surely be able to live for a very long time.
"Who knows?" The original novel was never finished, anyway. World incubation... the original author really had some nerve, creating a background setting like that. Weren't they afraid that by the end, everyone in the world would be dead except for the male and female leads, who would be left to fall in love?
[...That's why it had an unfinished, crappy ending.] Zero One weakly added.
[Actually, our store has a lot of technical blueprints! According to the original plan, the host was supposed to perform saintly good deeds, spread their reputation, and let everyone in the Wasteland know of the Saint's existence. By doing good and saving people, you would surely gather a large group of rescued individuals who would willingly follow you. Once you'd saved up enough Saint Points, you could have established a shelter directly.] Zero One explained its initial plan. [In the name of the shelter, you would protect even more people, eventually rebuild cities, repair defensive measures, and preserve the flame of humanity!]
'It's been over four months since the apocalypse began,' Zheng Yi's mental voice was ice-cold. 'There were over eight billion people before the apocalypse. How many do you think are left now?'
'Doing a good deed gets one Saint Point. The efficiency of gaining Saint recognition for good deeds is extremely low, and it's hard to make others feel grateful from the bottom of their hearts. If it were your previous host, do you think they could have established a shelter before humanity went extinct?'
[...Okay, I'm not so sure.] Zero One grew dejected. Its previous host? Its previous host's mission was a failure! As for the few successful hosts, none of them had been thrown into a world with such a terrible, unfinished story.
[As expected, Host! It's so great that I met you and bound to you!] Zero One suddenly became excited again, feeling like it had truly struck gold. If some other system had randomly bound to a person and come to this world, they would have been completely clueless. They might have run into Zheng Yi before they even got started and been killed on the spot for acting strangely or failing to conceal themselves properly!
'...' Zheng Yi clearly had no desire to engage with Zero One's comment. If she were a more emotional person, she might have even rolled her eyes.
"Zheng Yi, can I take a cold bath tonight?" Yu Yinan rested her chin on the dashboard, no longer thinking about things she was powerless to change. She looked at Zheng Yi, who was driving, and asked.
Ever since that time in Huikong, Yu Yinan had found a bit more courage in her interactions with Zheng Yi. She would directly express her thoughts and desires. She never made any excessive demands, and Zheng Yi almost always granted her normal requests.
"Mhm," Zheng Yi responded. She checked the time and stopped the car. The moment she opened the door, a wave of heat washed over her. Raising a hand, she let the water mist evaporate before quickly using her ability to give the armored vehicle's exterior a thorough rinse, then cooled down the engine.
In just that short time, fine beads of sweat had formed on the tip of Zheng Yi's nose. She casually used her ability to wash them away before getting back in the car.
"I'm sorry, I can't help at all." Seeing Zheng Yi get back in, Yu Yinan felt a pang of guilt. With such frequent use of her ability, she didn't know if Zheng Yi was feeling unwell or if her mental energy was being overtaxed. Although her face was expressionless, Zheng Yi was always accustomed to putting up a front, so Yu Yinan couldn't be sure if this calmness was just an act.
...Yu Yinan was already doing her best to refine her flames, but while pursuing higher temperatures and constantly breaking her current limits was manageable, making them cooler was simply too difficult.
As for putting the vehicle away, finding a house to take shelter from the heat, and waiting for the high temperatures to pass before continuing their journey... that wasn't a bad idea, but Zheng Yi felt it wasn't necessary at the current temperature.
The modified vehicle continued onward until, as they passed an intersection, Zheng Yi heard pleas and cries coming from an alley. They were chaotic, faint, and filled with terror and despair.
In this heat... Zheng Yi hesitated for only a moment before deciding to go check out the commotion. She hit the brakes and turned to Yu Yinan. "Do you want to come?"
"Of course." Yu Yinan quickly got out of the car. By the time Zheng Yi had pulled out the key, Yu Yinan had already closed her door, run over to the driver's side, and opened it for Zheng Yi. She looked at Zheng Yi and held out her hand.
[Yu Yinan seems to have become a bit more lively.] Was it because she'd figured some things out, or was it because of Zheng Yi's attitude? Zero One thought: Being a little more energetic like this seems pretty good. It's better than being listless and prone to tears like before. No, it's happier.
Zheng Yi lowered her gaze slightly, placed her hand on Yu Yinan's, put away the key, and got out of the car. She still ignored Zero One, but its occasional musings didn't require her response anyway.
Lively?
Zheng Yi studied Yu Yinan but didn't see anything particularly lively about her. After getting out of the car, she went to pull her hand back, but Yu Yinan tightened her grip instead, asking tentatively, with a hint of apprehension, "Can I hold your hand?"
"No." Zheng Yi expressionlessly yanked her hand away. Just as she was about to conjure a stream of water, two men walked out of the alley. Their clothes were soaked with sweat, their hair was dripping wet, and beads of perspiration rolled off them like rain. Their short-sleeved shirts and faces were spattered with blood. The moment they came out and saw Zheng Yi and Yu Yinan, they glared menacingly and barked,
"Mind your own damn business. We don't want any trouble with ability users, so get lost!"
During this extreme heat, and after so long in the apocalypse... it was normal that no one immediately assumed they were ordinary people. By this point, there were far fewer idiots who lost their minds at the sight of a woman.
"And what if we insist on getting involved?" Yu Yinan took a step forward and conjured a flame in her hand. She stared at them coldly. "What were you doing in that alley? And what is it that we're not supposed to see?"
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