ocean-life Chapter 73 Flooded Town
Chapter 73 Flooded Town
Xu Mo, inside his room, peered through the peephole at the devastating scene outside, his face grave. The intensity of this downpour would undoubtedly accelerate the melting of the snow and push the potential for flooding to its peak.
His sanctuary, like a lone boat in a raging storm, is undergoing its most severe test.
The world outside the window seemed to have been forcibly pushed into the murky water by an invisible hand.
According to my watch, there were still several hours until sunset, but the sky was already darkening rapidly. This wasn't because night had fallen, but because of the incredibly dense downpour, which was frantically swallowing up all light. Visibility had dropped to a minimum, and the boundary between day and night had become blurred in the face of this violent force of nature.
Xu Mo stepped out of his bedroom and stood at the top of the stairs leading from the second floor to the first floor, his brows furrowed. The beam of his powerful flashlight dispelled the darkness below the stairs, and the scene before him made his heart sink.
It had only been raining for a short while, but the water depth on the first floor was already over a foot deep. Floating on the murky water were withered branches and leaves, plastic waste, and other debris whose original shape was no longer recognizable, washed in from all directions. The water was visibly spreading and eroding upwards along the staircase steps, one by one.
Aside from the incessant, deafening roar of the torrential rain outside the window and the occasional thunder and lightning tearing through the sky, the only human voices that could be heard were the Jiangcheng Shelter broadcasts, accompanied by rapid static, coming from the radio Xu Mo was holding.
"Urgent Notice! Heavy rain continues. All survivors in low-lying areas must immediately move to higher ground! Repeat: immediately move to higher ground! Beware of flash floods and mudslides! Prepare for emergencies, store drinking water, and keep warm..."
The announcer's voice sounded intermittent amidst the thunder and rain, but the sense of urgency was clearly conveyed.
Xu Mo remained calm, standing silently at the second-floor entrance, watching the murky water, like living tentacles, slowly but steadily swallowing up step after step leading to the second floor.
The heavy furniture that Xu Mo had originally used to reinforce the doors and windows on the first floor from the inside and to seal the gaps—such as the old sofa and several wooden frames—had long since lost its foundation and was now floating on the water like a clumsy boat, swaying and drifting.
Even some smaller pieces of furniture were carried away by the surging water, drifting out of the open doorway and disappearing into the white rain and water outside, seemingly embarking on a spontaneous long journey.
The water surface on the first floor had become a gathering place for floating objects, with all sorts of odds and ends bobbing on the waves, creating a mess.
This terrifying downpour lasted until around 8 p.m. Then, just as abruptly as it began, the rain suddenly subsided and then abruptly stopped.
After the torrential rain stopped, the world fell into an eerie silence. Only the distant, seemingly unwilling rumble of thunder and the ubiquitous "drip-drip" of water droplets falling from above testified to the reality of the catastrophe that had just occurred.
Xu Mo shone his flashlight on the stairs again. The water was still rising, but it was no longer visible to the naked eye. The water level was now only five steps away from the second-floor corner platform.
After observing the situation on the first floor, Xu Mo walked to the third-floor window and looked outside. In the dim light filtering through the clouds after the rain and the beam of his flashlight, he could see that the orange inflatable boat he had previously anchored outside was now completely floating on the water. The snow and frame that had supported it had long since been submerged or washed away. The boat swayed gently with the waves, only held together by a few sturdy ropes to prevent it from being swept away.
Xu Mo looked around again. The surrounding water was covered with a lot of debris, almost covering the entire street as far as he could see. Qingsongling Town seemed to have turned into a muddy yellow swamp.
Seeing that the water had not reached the corner staircase platform and that the inflatable boat was safe and sound, Xu Mo's tense nerves finally relaxed a little, and he let out a long sigh of relief.
That night, Xu Mo did not choose to rest on the second floor. Although the second floor was not flooded, dampness filled the entire space, and it was too close to the water.
The rain has stopped, but the floodwaters haven't stopped rising; they're just rising at a slower rate.
Xu Mo didn't want to wake up to find himself floating on the water, with all his supplies gone in the current. That would be a real disaster.
Xu Mo began moving his supplies, deciding to spend the night on the third floor. Although most of his belongings had already been stored in his private space, he still had an emergency escape backpack, some everyday items, weapons, and most importantly—the security door marked "private storage room" and serving as the space's anchor point. All of these things needed to be moved.
The situation on the third floor was also not optimistic. Due to the various changes before and after the Eternal Night, the windows of the rooms on the third floor were largely damaged. During the rainstorm, rainwater inevitably poured in, making the rooms quite damp, and there was even a small area of standing water on the floor.
Fortunately, Xu Mo had foreseen this and closed all the doors to the rooms on the third floor before the rainstorm arrived, which kept the public corridor area on the third floor relatively dry.
Xu Mo carefully carried his various supplies and the crucial "door" to the stairs leading to the rooftop. This was the highest point, and there was a platform at the corner of the stairs where he could place items; it was dry and relatively safe.
Finally, Xu Mo spread out his sleeping bag in a relatively dry and well-ventilated spot in the stairwell. Although the environment on the landing at the stairwell was simple, it was a rare and safe place compared to the second floor, where the water could flood at any moment.
After finishing all this, it was already late at night. Xu Mo crawled into his sleeping bag, feeling the hardness of the floor beneath him and the lingering dampness in the air. He could still faintly hear the distant, incessant rumble of thunder and the dripping sound of water from various parts of the building.
But at this moment, Xu Mo felt unusually calm. There were no more important supplies on the second floor, the assault boat was ready, he was at an absolutely safe altitude, and the greatest threat had passed. In this reassuring state, he quickly fell into a deep sleep, oblivious to the faint sounds of thunder and rain outside.
At night, Xu Mo vaguely heard the sound of rain and thunder in his sleep. But none of this could wake him. In this night filled with white noise, he slept exceptionally well.