18 Floors Above the Apocalypse

Facing his younger sister's confusion, Jasper explained, "The sun is hidden behind the clouds."

In this post-apocalyptic world, lightning was an uncanny phenomenon. For safety's sake, Stella decided not to use the solar lamp and instead lit up an old kerosene lantern she'd kept from Arcadia. The light was dim and yellow, but it was a beacon in the darkness.

Rosie was curious, "Stella, what's this?"

This was an antique from a bygone era. Stella started to tell her about the hardship of the old days.

Rosie nestled in Stella's arms, while Cooper, frightened by the thunderstorm, sought refuge in the arms of his trainer, whimpering.

Rosie had claimed his owner!

The thunderstorm lasted half an hour, eventually subsiding along with the heavy dark clouds. Bright light returned quickly, but the heavy rain continued relentlessly. The temperature of the rainwater began to drop. It was no longer scalding hot, but rather carried a refreshing chill.

Rainwater collecting continued. The siblings were responsible for gathering water, while the dog joyfully ran in the rain, making Stella almost want to abandon him.

In the refugee camp, not many people had belongings left. Driven by thirst, they rushed into the rain, drinking water from the sky and washing their bodies, "It's raining. Finally it's raining."

There were those who laughed, those who cried, and those who spun in the rain, seeming almost mad.

Rosie crouched in front of the plant pots, her face full of worry, "Stella, will the sweet potatoes survive?" "They should. We'll know by tomorrow."

The initial rain was indeed scorching hot, but they were shielded by a tent. The plants likely wouldn't be scorched to death.

What was disturbing was that once the rain stopped, the heat from the ground started to rise again, turning the environment into a sauna. The sticky humidity was incredibly uncomfortable.

Back in their room, they turned on the air conditioning. Just as they were about to rest after turning off the lights, Jasper moved closer, "Did you get burned?"

Stella touched her face, "No, it's just a bit red."

Stella stayed indoors, Jasper took his sister to teach class, and Cooper took himself for a walk. He ran around Eastwood Eden twenty-odd times before coming back, even climbing a tree to help catch a runaway mouse, nearly getting bitten in the process. At noon, the siblings returned with Cooper.

Jasper washed his hands before the meal, "Stella, it doesn't seem as hot today."

"Really?" Stella was in her temperature-controlled clothes enjoying the air conditioning and hadn't noticed.

At first, Jasper hadn't noticed either, but Cooper's reaction was more obvious. His tongue wasn't hanging out as much.

Stella decided to measure the temperature on the balcony. It was 58 degrees. It had indeed dropped, even if only by 2 degrees.

After a heavy rain, it was normal for the temperature to drop a bit.

In the evening, after being cooped up inside all day, Stella came down with a bucket.

The underground water level had risen significantly after the deluge. Water was now bubbling up from the ground, available in unlimited supply. So, Stella made several trips.

For those in the refugee camp who needed things to store water, Mark gathered a collection of pots and pans that had been found during the earthquake relief and sent them over.

Several metal buckets had been crushed, but they could still be used after being beaten back into shape.

The temperature continued to drop, about one or two degrees each day. When it dropped to 55 degrees, the survivors who had been enduring temperatures around 60 degrees for a long time were much more comfortable. Human life truly was resilient. They miraculously survived, and with several consecutive days of ample water, their health significantly improved.

Some even formed teams to go out and collect resources from nearby collapsed buildings or villages, bringing back clothing or bowls.

The high temperature persisted, but the water level wasn't dropping as noticeably as before. Government officials started to organize manpower to dig wells again. The large-scale water retrieval project from Lincoln was temporarily halted.

After the earthquake relief efforts ended, city planners began to plan anew and announced to all citizens - the city would be rebuilt. After surveying and exploring, it was determined that Hope Bay was the least affected by the earthquake and would become the new town for Griffith.

Hope Bay was near Swan Hill, about forty kilometers from the old city area. It was a semi-developed remote area.

Stella was curious, "Is Hope Bay the new town?"

In her previous life, she'd heard about the reconstruction plans, but she was brutally murdered before the project had even started.

Jasper nodded, "It is, but it's only about one-fifth the size of the old city area. However, it's close to Swan Hill's new town, so they can support each other."

One-fifth? That was actually not bad.

After enduring three years of the disasters, less than 30% of the population had survived, and many of them had gone to the base. But even so, not everyone was eligible to settle in the new town.

The announcement of the reconstruction was just the first step. The government encouraged survivors to collect building materials in exchange for points. These points could be exchanged for food, and if they accumulated enough, they could exchange them for a housing slot. However, the needed materials and corresponding points had not been announced yet.

At the same time, the Agricultural Science Institute was hiring again, with priority given to homeless refugees.

Don't underestimate the Agricultural Science Institute. Their frantic indoor and outdoor farming efforts had accumulated a lot of food, especially dried vegetables. The food balls that refugees ate every day were thanks to their efforts.

Giving the refugees priority in hiring not only solved the employment issue but also remedied potential security risks. If they weren't given something to do, they would inevitably cause trouble.

For other survivors, the Agricultural Science Institute also made a plea. With the global environment in continuous chaos and a long recovery period expected, humans needed to prepare for a long battle.

Typhoons, floods, extreme cold, extreme heat, earthquakes, and potentially acid rain or alkalinization in the future, all required humans to store as much food as possible under limited conditions to withstand unpredictable natural disasters. In simple terms, they needed to farm and store food.

The Agricultural Science Institute made a promise to distribute seeds to the survivors as soon as possible. Stella guessed that there weren't enough seeds.

After the earthquake, there would be several months of calm, normal seasonal weather.

She asked Jasper, "What's after that?"

"Two years of polar day, three years of polar night, then smog, acid rain..."

Stella couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, "Polar day isn't too bad. The light can accelerate crop growth, giving the survivors two years to breathe."

But Jasper's expression was off.

"What's wrong?" Was there a catch with the polar day?

"The temperature difference is significant during the polar day, reaching up to forty degrees Celsius during the heat and dropping to minus ten degrees Celsius or more in the cold."

Stella felt that was bearable. After all, they had endured extreme cold and extreme heat, and human bodies had become more adaptable.

"It all happens within a day."

Stella, who wasn't fully aware of the situation, was stunned. Alright, she was too naive due to her lack of experience. So, she needed to cherish the peaceful months ahead.

Jasper reminded her, "The smog carries bacteria and weak acids that corrode and cause severe damage to the liver and lungs. Many people got sick from it and ended up even coughing out pieces of their lungs." Thinking about coughing up pieces of her lungs, Stella felt a chill down her spine, "Is there any medicine for that?"

"It took a while for the scientists to figure it out, and the effects weren't immediate."

"Do you know what kind of remedy it was?"

Jasper wasn't a scientist, he wasn't sure about the specifics of the recipe, but they'd once gone deep into the woods to forage for ingredients, he could remember a couple of them. "Do you still recall?"