FGCT CH29.2

There are many things in the old master’s basement. Various antiques and gemstones were placed on the shelves, making it look like a small, luxurious, and expensive exhibition hall.

Gou Fugui spent nearly half an hour admiring everything from one end of the basement to the other. After taking it all in, he was struck by the sheer difference of people in the world.

“Little Fugui hasn’t made up your mind yet? Haha, take your time, you can pick whatever you like, as much as you want! I heard from Mantang that you like gemstones? That ruby ring of his is just a flawed piece. Come, take a look at this one, the ‘Sirius Star’!”

“This is the largest and brightest natural sapphire known in the world. It’s probably worth around 500 million. If you like it, take it!”

“And here’s a jade cat’s eye gem! An emerald that looks like a cat’s eye effect under light at night, absolutely stunning!”

“But we Chinese still prefer jade, don’t we? Over here is a set of imperial green jewelry! You can give it to your female friends, Little Fugui!”

And then the old master Jin proceeded to explain and introduce all the jewelry in the basement. Even the captain, who had seen a lot in his time, couldn’t help but click his tongue in amazement.

He, Lu Hu, and Song Sanchuan each chose a men’s ring or a gold bracelet to wear. The purpose was to bring these three items back to their own world and hand them over to the government for research, to see whether things from this world were the same as those in theirs.

They also wanted to verify what the consciousness of the world had previously told them: that it was indeed possible to bring items from this world back to their own.

So each of them only picked one item. But judging by the look on Fugui’s face, it seemed like he was tempted to pocket everything in sight.

In the end, though, Fugui didn’t take a lot. In fact, to Old Master Jin, he had taken surprisingly little—

He picked out a set of imperial green jade jewelry and took five gold bars from a nearby chest. That was it.

The imperial green jewelry added up to just over ten million yuan, and the five gold bars were worth maybe two or three million. That was quite unexpected for the old man.

“Fugui’er, aren’t you taking Sirius?” the old man asked. “You seemed to really like it.”

The beautiful Fugui paused for a second, then rolled his eyes at the smirking Xie Tianlang. “Sure, the gemstone is gorgeous and rare, but the name is just terrible. So forget it!”

Having one Sirius chattering beside him was annoying enough, why would he want a second one?

……Okay so.

In truth, he really did like that sapphire named “Sirius”, he had fallen for it at first sight. But the gem was simply too valuable. Even if Old Master Jin was willing to give it to him, he couldn’t actually accept it.

He figured that his fate with the sapphire was only to admire it from afar. Just looking was enough, no need to be greedy.

Old Master Jin seemed like he still had more to say, but Gou Fugui quickly turned and started walking upstairs.

So the old man held his tongue and turned to Xie Tianlang instead. “And what about you, young man? Take anything you like!”

Xie Tianlang also glanced at the sapphire called “Sirius,” then casually picked out a necklace inlaid with small, multicolored gemstones.

“This one will do. Yuanyuan will look great wearing it.”

Old Master Jin laughed in delight.

Opening the door to the basement had been both a gesture of gratitude and a test. Old Master Jin had witnessed the strength these young people displayed when they fought off the thugs, and now, he was testing their character.

The old man reached out and gave his grandson’s head a vigorous rub. “You little rascal.”

Sharp eyes, and not bad luck either.

Jin Mantang seemed to know exactly what his grandfather was about to say and grinned widely. “Of course!”

And so, Gou Fugui and the others ended up settling down at the Jin family’s agricultural base.

At the time, besides the seven of them, the base housed fifty workers responsible for planting and cultivation, nineteen researchers, and seven staff members who handled cleaning and cooking duties.

The workers and cleaners slept in the dormitory area near the plantation, while the researchers stayed in a few small independent houses next to the lab zone. Only the Jin family had the privilege of staying in the central storage area at the heart of the base, which was exactly what had given that researcher the opportunity to try seizing control of the base during the night.

But after that day, no one would ever be able to take over the plantation again.

Gou Fugui, Xie Tianlang, and the other two moved into the central villa with Old Master Jin. The police dog, Husky, Labrador, and the cats all had cozy little nests of their own in the villa’s main hall.

Not to mention the combat strength of the five, Gou Fugui the badger and the werewolf among them, just watching the police dog leading the pack of five dogs on serious daily patrols around the plantation gave Old Master Jin a deep sense of security. And ever since the cats arrived, the mice in the plantation had fallen into disaster.

The old man was particularly fond of Badger Fugui’s blunt and straightforward nature. He would often chat with Fugui’er, and Fugui would then take him on daily workouts around the plantation, while also sneakily stashing away food supplies and seeds into the basement, storage rooms, and their large backpacks. All under the noble-sounding pretext of “being prepared for anything.”

Meanwhile, Xie Tianlang and the other three finally had the time to explore and understand this world. Every day, they would head out to look around, search for the world’s core, and do what they could to help along the way.

Before they knew it, a month had passed, and the global rainfall still hadn’t stopped.

“Boss! Someone finally responded to the messages I sent!” Song Sanchuan said excitedly as he looked at the screen of his supercomputer. “It’s Dengzi and Zhuozi! They’re respectively with Old Four and Old Nine! They’re heading toward Qingchuan now too!”

Nothing could bring more joy than knowing that their brothers and comrades were still alive. But his expression quickly fell again: “Still no word from Old Niu or Old Ma.”

Lu Hu patted Song Sanchuan on the shoulder. “It’s alright, Xiao San. The worst this place gets is nonstop rain and rising sea levels, it’s not like you step in and get hit with something deadly. You know how skilled Old Niu and Old Ma are. They’re definitely still alive. They probably just haven’t seen your message yet.”

Song Sanchuan nodded. That’s the only explanation he can take right noe. Then he glanced at the next message, and his expression grew serious.

“Boss! There’s a reply from the government too.”

At that moment, Xie Tianlang was sitting by the window, munching on sunflower seeds. These were fresh—newly harvested from the old man’s agricultural base. His eyes drifted lazily through the glass, watching Badger Fugui teach the old man a workout routine in the greenhouse below, clearly in a good mood.

“What’d they say?”

Song Sanchuan rolled his eyes at his boss, who only seemed interested in eating sunflower seeds and looking at beauties, but still reported dutifully: “Same as before, asking who we are, how we got the intel, whether the info is reliable, if we have any more detailed data, that sort of thing.”

“Ugh, all useless answers… Wait, hang on, the last one’s a little different.”

Looking at the last message, a hint of joy finally appeared on Song Sanchuan’s face. “This one was sent half a month ago. It says that no matter who we are, the state will take the information we provided seriously. And that the government has already taken corresponding measures… related technological development is underway.”

“They told us to closely follow the nightly news broadcast…?”

Xie Tianlang raised an eyebrow. “What day is it today?”

Song Sanchuan glanced at the calendar. “September 26th.”

“The old man watches the news every night like clockwork,” he added. “But aside from urging everyone to evacuate to the Qingchuan Plateau and daily reports on rescue and relief efforts, there hasn’t been anything particularly new.”

Most mobile communication was now down, and there were only a handful of news broadcasts still operating. Only a few channels were able to get information out to the public.

Xie Tianlang popped another sunflower seed into his mouth. “That’s because the country wasn’t ready yet. Now… if they still don’t say anything, then there’s probably nothing left to say.”

They had already been on the Qingchuan Plateau for a full month, and the global rainfall still hadn’t stopped. In that time, sea levels had risen at a terrifying pace, submerging nearly all of the world’s islands and more than half of the continents.

就Even Huazhou wasn’t spared. In just a month, the only land left above water was the Qingchuan Plateau.

Old Master Jin, Gou Fugui, and the others stayed within the plantation base, shielded from the chaos and death outside. But every time they went out, all they saw were more survivors arriving, faces blank, eyes hollow, expressions filled with fear and despair, as well as an increasingly overcrowded Qingchuan.

Everyone knew the plateau wouldn’t hold out forever. Rumor had it that 60% of the Antarctic ice sheet had already melted, and the rate of melting was accelerating. Even the snow-capped mountains near Qingchuan were beginning to thaw.

The inland lakes and rivers around the Qingchuan Plateau had already started to flood. And with the water level rising, more and more people were crowding into the area surrounding Qingchuan City.

The only thing that could barely be called “good news” was that, perhaps due to the constant rain and rising sea levels, the climate in the region had begun to mellow. Even the usual high-altitude oxygen deprivation on the plateau seemed to have eased.

“Let’s see what tonight’s news has to say,” Xie Tianlang finally said.
“Maybe there’ll be something good.”

Just as Xie Tianlang had predicted, the September 26th evening news broadcast finally delivered a few pieces of truly uplifting news.

[Due to the global-scale climate catastrophe… within the next month and a half, over 90% of the Earth’s landmass will be submerged by seawater. Humanity will lose its homeland, there will be no place left to stand.]

[But the nation will not abandon a single citizen. Ten massive ocean liners, each capable of carrying 100,000 people, have already been completed, with another ten still under construction. The current plan is to begin boarding citizens in about a month.]

[In addition, every capable city on the Qingchuan Plateau is urgently manufacturing emergency survival boats, life vests, and other essential sea survival equipment… We are fighting for our survival.]

[Finally, the country has developed a new emergency sea survival device: the “Survival Sphere.”]

[Constructed using advanced composite materials, the Survival Sphere is pressure-resistant, stormproof, and fully waterproof. It can also extract trace amounts of oxygen from the surrounding water to maintain breathable air inside the sphere, preventing suffocation.]

[Once deployed, the Survival Sphere can withstand waves and hurricanes equivalent to a Category 10 tsunami. Even if temporarily submerged, it will automatically float back to the surface quickly, protecting the life inside.]

[Over the next month and a half, the nation will prioritize the production of “Survival Spheres,” significantly reducing or even halting other forms of manufacturing. After that, distribution will be based on each citizen’s regional location and their contributions during this period.]

[However, due to the scarcity of the specialized equipment required to manufacture the spheres, it will not be possible to distribute them to every individual. We ask for the understanding of all citizens. For detailed information, please consult your local emergency management and rescue teams.]

That night’s news filled every surviving citizen of Huazhou with a surge of hope, they had finally heard good news.

A month and a half of relentless rain had drowned their homes, forcing them to make the difficult journey westward. And aside from directing them to the Qingchuan Plateau, assigning temporary jobs, and providing basic shelter, the government had seemed silent, doing little else in the face of this catastrophe.

Many had begun to believe that even the state was powerless against such a disaster.

But now, after a month and a half of unceasing downpour, the nation had finally revealed its strength.

Massive ships that could withstand storms and waves.

And high-tech “Survival Spheres”!

A miraculous device that, once activated, could protect a person through deadly hurricanes and towering waves.

With its top-tier pressure resistance, waterproofing, and storm defense, while still allowing air circulation, the Survival Sphere was essentially a personal, short-term fortress as long as you have enough food.

Who wouldn’t want a lifesaving device like that?! Unfortunately, it was clear that only the truly powerful, influential, or those who made major contributions would get their hands on one. Ordinary people? They could pretty much forget about it, at least for now.

But the beautiful and sharp-tongued Fugui watched the broadcast footage introducing the Survival Sphere and gently rolled his wrist.

A thing like this? Obviously, a must-have in any sea-bound apocalypse starter pack. He figured getting eight or ten of them was the bare minimum to make things worthwhile.

So the next day, after holing up for a whole month, Fugui finally followed Xie Tianlang and the others to the Qingchuan City Central Mission Hall. And right there—under the gaze of everyone present—he accepted the highest-rated task on the bounty board:

Enter the submerged Sichuan Provincial High-Tech Research Facility and recover a top-tier material synthesizing machine.
(Note: This machine is essential for the production of Survival Spheres.)

The moment he took the mission, many people around him turned to look.

The staffer stationed by the board gave him a warning:

“Brother, this isn’t a job just anyone can take. We don’t provide diving gear, so unless you can hold your breath for a long time, you’re on your own. A bunch of people have already tried for those contribution points, but most came back empty-handed—some nearly passed out from holding their breath too long.”

When Fugui heard this, he laughed.

“If I can’t do it,” he said lightly,
“then nobody else can.”