Chapter 572
The group of people looked back at the cave that was filled with the turbid dirty water. Everyone's face was carrying an intense expression of heartbreak. This might be their last time seeing that cave. If they ever returned here, it would be impossible to pinpoint the exact location under the miles of ice and snow.
Time was limited. The group of people did not dare delay themselves and as they carried their drenched luggage, they began to hurry to their destination.
The water level on the ground had risen to their hip region. Above them there was a storm and beneath their feet was the slippery ice layer ensuring that the journey was not an easy task. The group of men continued their journey, even though it was very difficult and their speed had been reduced as if they were walking tortoises.
The raging water prevented the mutated beasts from hiding underground in peace. Normally, there was no sight of any mutated beasts. They appeared every once in a blue moon, but the moment they had surfaced on the water, it was possible to spot a few mutated beasts struggling in the water while howling in fear.
When it was first witnessed by the group of people, their eyes gleamed causing them to be excited to the point that their facial expressions had been distorted. They began to hunt them down desperately but went numb quickly. Even if another mutated beast appeared at a location nearby, the group of people would treat it as if it was nothing.
To withstand the extreme cold after the Earth froze over, all these mutated beasts that survived showed an adaptive evolution. Most of them had thick furs and ample amount of body fat, yet these mutated beast were struggling on water. They were only panicking due to the sudden changes in the environment but they would not drown. Even if they were to be hunted by the group, they could swim faster than any human.
"Does anyone hear that weird water sound?" an evolved human suddenly asked
"I hear it. It sounds like a waterfall. Look, the flood is flowing forward!" an evolved human at the side listened closely and said. Shortly afterward, he followed with a doubtful voice and said, "But I'm sure that within a hundred miles radius of here was a flatland, there shouldn't be any differences in the topography."
This sound of a waterfall was there the entire time, it was only that the sound of the storm had overpowered it. Only when the group had reached their current position were they able to differentiate it clearly.
"Why do you care about this much? I'm still worried about getting through the night. If you have the strength to talk, move faster. The sky's getting dark." The discovery had not sparked anyone else's attention and was being ignored due to other people's frustration.
"Everyone, speed up. We're almost there." Ling Zhong-an heard the conversation, looked at the time, the urged them to move on, "Who cares whether it's a waterfall or not? Even if there's a waterfall nearby, when the rain stops and the night comes, it'll freeze over no matter how big it is."
Everyone thought that it made sense. If someone was to p.i.s.s outside in the night, it'll definitely be frozen into an ice pillar.
The cave's distance to the hillside was only a few kilometers. The group of people rushed there at top speed during the entire way. After traveling for about ten minutes or so, they had finally reached their destination.
At this moment, the water was flowing with turbulence. The water's surface was seemingly violent. Vortex after vortex, it was as if there was an endless abyss in front swallowing the billowing flood. As for the loud noise, it was as if tens of thousands of horses were galloping, the result was truly deafening.
However, everyone was ignoring such influences. Instead, they were shocked by the number of mutated beast residing in this area of the hillside.
The hillside was not big, the vertical height from the highest place's distance from the water surface was only six to seven meters high and its area was only one to two square kilometers. Disregarding all that, the entire hillside was filled with various types of mutated beasts. Although it had not reached the level where the beasts would be next to each other, but when you looked, your vision would be filled with thousands of beasts.
This hillside had become a nearby isolated island and became a refugee area for the mutated beasts.
Everyone looked at each other and they saw excitement and greed in each other's eyes. This was exactly like when you are close to starving to death and suddenly there was a pie smacked onto your face. No! Smacked into your mouth!
Only one of the mutated beast needed to be hunted, then it would be easy to get through tonight.
Besides being able to fill up their stomachs, the pelts could be used to warm one up. Its most important function was that its fat could be used to start a fire.
"No
While saying that, he was the first to walk towards the hillside. At this moment he noticed that the hillside ground area that was not submerged in the water had mostly melted away and if his memory served him right, this slope was quite low. However, the area almost became a right-angled cliff as of this moment.
Ling Zhong-an frowned a bit and a bad feeling began to rise, but he then discarded the nonsensical idea from his brain.
He stepped on the ice surface below and lightly stomped on it. The ice surface seemed as if a bomb exploded and caused a huge spray of water. Concurrently, his body shot up into the air and landed on the hillside.
Everyone else used various different ways to climb up the hill.
The sky gradually darkened and fortunately under the erosion of a warm rainstorm, the ice had not stayed solid. Under everyone's desperate digging, a simple and wide ice cave had been dug out before nightfall.
Seeing how the others were exhausted or maybe he was in the mood, the rarely generous Ling Zhong-an went out his own and hunted two mutated beasts, allowing the group of people to have a feast on. This meal allowed everyone to be filled up and satisfied.
The only flaw was that there were no dry branches to be found and they could only eat the flesh raw and drink its blood.
…
The sky gradually darkened. The rainstorm outside seemed never-ending and the deafening noise of the waterfall was seemingly becoming increasingly noisy. The unfamiliar environment and the coldness that could chill into one's bone caused an anxiety not allowing anyone to fall asleep.
The evolved human who was unlucky to sleep on the edge of the ice cave's entrance had covered it up with a mere few pieces of animal pelts to avoid being frozen to death in their dreams.
He originally estimated that today would be tough, but as time moved on, a doubt crept into his heart.
He noticed that the wind that blew from the outside was not cold, rather it carried a warm feeling. Was it not supposed to be the coldest winter? Why was it warmer outside than in the ice cave?
"Boss, have you slept?" A woman could not help but ask in a light tone.
"Talk!" Ling Zhong-an hugging his two women, answered in a deep voice, who obviously had not fallen asleep yet.
"It seems like outside is not cold at all!"
"You don't need to worry about it. The warmth was brought by the rain and when the rain stops, it will go back to being cold!" Ling Zhong-an replied in dissatisfaction.
Time had pa.s.sed until midnight, the rainstorm remained nonstop. Ling Zhong-an suddenly woke up after hearing the beasts howling one after another. It seemed as if they were wailing.
After surviving in the wild for so many years, he was extremely sensitive to danger. This type of scene with hundreds of beast wailing was undoubtedly a bad sign.
"Wake up! Looks like something's happening!"
Surviving in the wild, everyone had extreme alertness. After hearing Ling Zhong-an's sudden loud warning, the group of people quickly stood up. In their semi-conscious state, they could feel that the Earth's surface was slightly shaking.
"Another earthquake?" An evolved human said.
Before the voice died down, a crisp noise kcha was heard. The entire hillside was shaking as if it was being dropped from a high place. With its drop of over a meter, except Ling Zhong-an and a few people that could manage to stand steadily, the rest were unable to stand.
Luckily for everyone's sake, these type of intense tremors only happened once. The follow-up tremors on the Earth's surface would be a lighter aftershock.
During an earthquake, staying within the ice cave was dangerous. The group of people stood up and ran out from the ice cave. The rainstorm had seemingly become stronger, causing them to hardly be able to spread their eyes open.
However, the persistence of the earthquake was surprisingly long. The group of people remained under the rainstorm for half an hour and the ground continued its tremors.
"I don't think an earthquake would behave like this?" An evolved human suggested a difference.
Men and women looked at each other, an uneasiness rose from within their hearts. After all these years, they had witnessed a hefty amount of earthquakes, but this was their first time witnessing one of this scale.
Ling Zhong-an quickly looked around for a while but before his eyes were nothing except for a white haze. He quickly summoned Xiaohu, "Xiaohu, look around the area and inform me of its status."
"Okay, Boss." Even if it was not requested by Ling Zhong-an, Xiaohu had already subconsciously activated his ability, causing his eyes to turn dark like a black hole, absorbing everything, causing people who looked into them to become horrified.
He looked for a while, then screamed and started mumbling, "It's no good. Hillside. No, the ice that we're standing on has been melted off by water. Now we're flowing off with the water!"
"What?"
"How is this possible?"
"Are you mistaken?"
The group of people looked shocked, along with a face of disbelief.
Xiaohu as if discovering something suddenly screamed again, "Not good! In front of us is a great waterfall!"
…
Luo Yuan's body was flickering with light as he quietly overlooked Earth. With an infinite calculating power, he could overlook and manage the entire Earth's hydrological data.
The waterway and lake that were opened up by him had already surpa.s.sed the natural formations of Earth. A simple river was a few ten kilometers wide. The depth, even if the ice layers were not taken into account, was still about five to six hundred meters deep. Adding the rainstorm and the melting of ice layer's water volume, the results were shocking.
He must constantly overlook the entire Earth's hydrological data constantly while modifying various areas' future hydrological trends, digest and separate the pouring of floods. Manually controlling the water to be under a dangerous level.
However, this task had expended significant energy. He still had a great amount of remaining strength and thus modified the sporadic parts on the ocean surface to create small islands on the ice layer that would melt soon. At the same time, several frozen dead plants had been revived by him.
The dried dead trees, dying gra.s.s, and lush shrubbery seemed to have had been reborn. Small green shoots were growing at an extremely fast pace that could be observed with the naked eye. Within a few minutes, a forest of a hundred square meters had been formed.
As for Luo Yuan who can control neutron-level micro-material at will. Reviving the dead was an automatic process as simple as eating and drinking.
Of course, this action had a complex calculation that would shock most people. Even if he was actively working on it, it was not easy. Small islands had gone through modification one by one, it was impossible to modify the entire Earth in a short timeframe.
These small islands were a separated refugee areas for the different mutated beasts. Some mutated beasts that were in danger had been transported by him and temporarily placed in there.
The group of lucky survivors made Luo Yuan pay close attention.
When he saw them for the first time, he was slightly surprised. He would have never thought that after so many years, there would still be Human survivors around and within them, there is someone he knew.
As of now, they saw that they were going to be washed off into the river. Luo Yuan immediately had a thought and these dozens of evolved human, along with thousands of all kinds of mutated beast, were instantly carried by a formless force. With about ten times or so of supersonic speed, he rapidly sent them towards the ocean's island.
As of now, he could only temporary leave them there.
They had been living in such harsh conditions for over forty years, they would not mind spending another few more days of that lifestyle. Compared to their previous conditions, this island would at least not lack food resources.