Returning to hometown to farm: The apocalypse system arrived ten years earlier?

Chapter 335 Water-adorned robes and wind-swept garments bring peace to the nine regions; waves wash away the turbid river, revealing a rainbow.

Lightning flashed and thunder roared, the sky seemed to have been torn open, and the torrential rain just wouldn't stop.

The temperature dropped sharply from fifty or sixty degrees to twenty-five or twenty-six degrees, which is considered a relatively pleasant climate. Naturally, the people of Lijia Village no longer needed to stay in the shelter to cool off, and they all returned to their homes.

The shelter was once again left idle, appearing rather deserted.

Previously, the villagers would stay in the shelter during the day and go home to sleep at night, but they didn't stay there 24 hours a day.

Although the rain was heavy, it posed no threat to Lijia Village.

The torrential rain gathered on the ground into rolling streams, which flowed into the surrounding ditches, rivers, canyons, and mountain ravines.

These areas had been dredged and reinforced by Li Xiang long ago, ensuring good drainage. Lijia Village is located on higher ground and is a rural area, so there's no way the floodwaters could reach their homes.

If places like Lijia Village are flooded, then cities in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the North China Plain, the Central Plains, and some southern cities probably won't be able to survive.

It's important to know that although Sichuan Province is a basin, its average elevation is as high as 2560 meters, ranking third in the country, after Tibet and Qinghai. Even the lowest point in Sichuan Province, the Yulin River Gorge in Wenwu Village, Linshui County, has an elevation of 188 meters.

With the Dujiangyan Irrigation System in place, the Chengdu Plain remains unharmed.

The dredging of countless waterways has put pressure on low-lying areas, such as plains in the east, south, central plains, and North China. Water flows downhill and eventually merges into the sea.

Instead of blocking, dredging is the best way to manage water.

The torrential rain lasted for more than ten days without stopping. Sometimes the rainfall would decrease, but it would soon come down again.

I was hoping for rain, but now I miss the previous heatwave. Even though it was hot, at least it wasn't this humid. Now, even clothes won't dry after washing. The humidity in the air is just too high.

Buying a dryer is essential.

Although some large cities have carried out sponge city transformation, there are still too many paved roads, and the drainage system may not be able to withstand the challenges.

Furthermore, many fourth- and fifth-tier cities, despite having made preparations in advance, were still caught off guard by this torrential rain. After all, many places were experiencing such an unprecedented "super torrential rain" for the first time.

Various regions have released records for the highest 24-hour rainfall, which are being broken day by day, with the highest exceeding 2000 millimeters.

The rainfall was too heavy and too sudden, and many cities are still experiencing severe flooding, with many areas submerged.

The number of vehicles submerged in water has increased. Residents have suffered heavy losses.

Many of Li Xiang's jade trading companies' directly operated stores were also affected by the disaster, and business naturally couldn't continue. Fortunately, the goods and personnel had already been moved in advance.

Some netizens found humor in the situation and posted a video saying, "We can see the sea right from our doorstep now."

"This isn't a drainage system, it's practically an underwater sightseeing tunnel!" - A netizen in a first-tier city uploaded a short video of a subway station turning into a "waterfall cave," jokingly commenting that the water level in the station hall had flooded the security checkpoints.

Although waterproof gates were prepared at major subway entrances, some still leaked.

Moreover, accidents can happen anywhere. In some cities, the water level on the streets might be too high, causing the road surface to suddenly collapse and flow into the subway tunnels. Fortunately, in such cases, the subway is already shut down.

On social media, videos about various floods are the biggest trending topic.

A car owner in Tianjin showed off his flooded car roof floating in the water, captioning it "A new experience of mooring a boat under the bridge"; while white-collar workers in Guangzhou's CBD posted a nine-grid photo of themselves kayaking to work in front of their office building, and the hashtag #CommutingToolUpgrade# became a trending topic.

"Wow, what kind of company is this? They haven't given us a holiday yet?" one netizen commented.

The other party replied: "We are on holiday, but the company's floor-to-ceiling window is broken. Heavy rain is blowing in, no, it's rushing in. The office is flooded and water is leaking downstairs. The boss asked me to fix it and offered me triple pay."

"Just give me the money, and be careful."

Faced with daily rainfall exceeding 2000 millimeters, Shanghai residents flooded their social media with posts: "The Huangpu River has overflowed into Nanjing Road, and the base of the Oriental Pearl Tower has become a waterfront platform!"

Residents of fourth- and fifth-tier cities felt even more helpless – a resident of a county filmed the floodwaters washing away temporary flood control sandbags, captioning it, "A defense line built in three days and three nights collapsed in half an hour."

According to the "Extreme Weather Work Stoppage Plan" issued long ago, enterprises have already stopped work and production and given holidays. However, many of them are just holidays, and wages will be deducted according to the number of holidays.

But this kind of thing can't be forced; it depends on the company's profitability and the boss's conscience.

Moreover, during heavy rainstorms, unexpected situations are inevitable, requiring immediate attention at the workplace. For example, in a certain development zone, a factory's warehouse was flooded, with large quantities of raw materials, intermediate products, and finished goods stored inside. If not addressed promptly, the losses would be enormous, potentially leading to the factory's bankruptcy.

Therefore, the boss urgently summoned the employees to rush back to "rescue the situation".

But with the road flooded, how could they get across? Everyone used their own ingenuity. Some rowed small boats, while others rode jet skis at breakneck speed, even performing a graceful "drift" as they entered the factory gate.

A medical rescue mobile cabin converted from a Type 056 corvette was moored in the Jiangcheng section of the Yangtze River. The Lijiacun rescue team, composed of Yao Yao, Zhao Xueqing, Lei Xiaohui, Lei Jiaming, Han Qifeng and others, disembarked from the ship and rowed seven or eight inflatable rubber boats to Jiangcheng for rescue.

Zhao Xueqing, having previously participated in the massive dredging project of thousands of waterways and served as the leader of the ecological restoration task force, has become a top ecological restoration expert in China. Based on this achievement, she was promoted to "Major," while Yao Yao remains "Captain," and Lei Xiaohui and Lei Jiaming are only "Lieutenant." Naturally, they are anxious, not because they are "career-obsessed," but because they are part of the same team and have always worked together, and they do not want to lose to Zhao Xueqing.

Therefore, they enthusiastically signed up and volunteered for this rescue team.

Li Xiang, on the other hand, acted alone. He was fast, had the Giant Whale Holy Armor, and could fly, making him more efficient at rescuing people when acting alone.

The water level of East Lake had already risen by seven or eight meters, flooding the vast Wuhan University campus. Luojia Mountain, which was originally on campus, now looked like a small island, "facing across the sea" from Guizi Mountain on the campus of Central China Normal University not far away.

Nearby, some residents were trapped inside a residential building. Yao Yao rowed a small boat to the bottom of the building and searched around. She found that the stairwell on the first floor was already flooded, and the apartments on the second floor were also flooded.

So she leaped up to the fourth floor, told the people inside to step back, then grabbed the security window with her slender hand, let out a sharp cry, and ripped it off. She then threw it down.

She slipped through the window and soon came out carrying an elderly woman in her eighties or nineties on her back. Then, she leaped and landed lightly on the small boat.

"Grandma, please wait for me on this boat for a while. I'll go get your wheelchair," Yao Yao said.

The old man panicked and grabbed Yao Yao's hand, not wanting her to leave.

Yao Yao comforted the old man, "It's alright, I'll be right back." She gave the old man a piece of candy, and then jumped up.

Soon, Yao Yao returned with the old man's wheelchair.

The old lady lived alone. She had prepared supplies at home, but not many. Due to the prolonged high temperatures and heavy rain, she had run out of food. She also had difficulty moving around. In the end, she had no choice but to wave for help from the window, and Yao Yao came to her rescue.

The entire rescue by Yao Yao was captured by CCTV's drone cameras. A CCTV reporter wearing a life jacket reported on the scene: "Captain Yao tore through the security window with his bare hands and rescued the elderly man in a wheelchair, bringing him safely to the makeshift hospital!"

Meanwhile, Lei Xiaohui, with her agile skills, rescued a mother and daughter, along with their pet hamster, trapped in the attic unharmed. The mother hugged her daughter, choking back tears, and repeatedly expressed her gratitude. This was also reported by CCTV reporters.

Besides Yao Yao and her team, countless other rescue teams were mobilized across the country; however, not everyone had the opportunity to appear on CCTV. There were also countless unsung heroes.

In a residential community in Zhengzhou, firefighters used their bodies to form a bridge to transfer a paralyzed elderly person, as turbid floodwaters washed over the reflective strips of their orange rescue suits; a Suzhou garden manager rowed a wooden basin to rescue a national first-class ancient tree, posting on social media, "The wisteria planted by Tang Yin cannot be broken in my hands."

In Jiangcheng, in a high-lying area, a Sichuan restaurant was unaffected by the disaster. The owner, along with more than ten employees, set up ten large pots at the entrance to cook ginger soup. In a short video, an iron ladle is seen banging on the edge of the pot: "Free refills with your rescue certificate!"

In addition to ginger soup, the owner also provides free meals as a small token of his appreciation.

When "#Highest Rainfall Records Across Regions#" and "#Rubber Boat Manufacturer's Stock Hits Daily Limit#" simultaneously trended on social media, a blogger compiled a "Survival Guide for Heavy Rain": making simple buoyancy devices from sealed refrigerator boxes, tying yoga mats together to form temporary life rafts... Dozens of self-rescue methods, showcasing folk wisdom, were widely praised by netizens.

A factory in a certain development zone.

The warehouse was leaking, and the boss organized employees to rush to the rescue, but the warehouse unfortunately collapsed, trapping them inside and requiring emergency rescue.

Li Xiang happened to be nearby, so he flashed and appeared next to the warehouse.

With a force of 700,000 jin (350,000 kg), they easily moved the collapsed wall, creating an escape route. The people inside were extremely excited after being rescued.

"So it was the mysterious armored man."

"Thank you so much."

"Thank you for saving my life. Great hero, may I have the honor of taking a photo with you?"

Whether they were the boss or the employees, once they reached a safe place, they couldn't help but gather around Li Xiang. Several people had been injured and suffered fractures when the warehouse collapsed, but Li Xiang had already taken them to a nearby makeshift hospital, and their lives should be safe.

"The flood situation is urgent, I still need to rescue others." Li Xiang flashed away, stepping on the waves.

The boss and employees all took out their phones to film. Wow, this is real light-footed water walking!

In reality, walking on water is nothing; he could even travel to space.

Li Xiang went to Suzhou to find Luo Feifei. Her villa was located on higher ground and was unaffected by the disaster. Luo Feifei's mother was watching TV in the living room on the first floor. When she saw Li Xiang, she naturally gave him a warm welcome.

"Feifei went out to participate in disaster relief," Feifei's mother said proudly. She was also very happy, after all, her daughter had finally stopped isolating herself. She had always worried that her daughter was troubled by love, and what if she developed depression?
Although they are superhumans, superhumans can also suffer from depression. What if they suffer from qi deviation during cultivation because of it? Wouldn't the consequences be unimaginable?
Fortunately, seeing the severe disasters across the country, my daughter finally couldn't sit still.

Luo Feifei also taught her mother a breathing technique and shared some spiritual medicine with her, but Luo Feifei's mother made no progress.

"Then I'll go and get busy too. I'll come see you again next time, Auntie." Since Luo Feifei wasn't there, Li Xiang didn't want to stay any longer. He flashed away and arrived in the severely affected urban area.

Watching Li Xiang leave, Luo Feifei's mother couldn't help but sigh again. If Li Xiang were unmarried, he would really be a good match for her daughter. After all, he's so handsome and the most powerful man in the world.

……

Li Xiang posted an announcement in the fan group, saying that anyone who needs help can ask for it in the group as soon as possible.

In the past, his aunt, who was the top student on the student list, had been kind to him and had given him strong support when he was struggling. Li Xiang had always remembered this and was very grateful. So, he went to visit his aunt.

With his speed, he can arrive anywhere in the country at any time.

Unfortunately, when I arrived, the door to my aunt's house was locked, and no one answered when I knocked, so she was obviously not home.

Li Xiang called his aunt, who was ranked first on the list, but naturally no one answered.

Then, he also sent a message to ask if the other party needed help and if they were short of supplies.

About half an hour later, the aunt who ranked first finally replied: "No shortage, thank you. I've moved, so you don't need to worry about me. If you have time, please help out other fans."

Li Xiang: "..."

He had a feeling that his aunt, who was ranked first on the money list, seemed to have become more distant. Of course, he figured it might be because of the text messages. After all, text messages are different from face-to-face phone calls; the emotions conveyed between the lines could be misinterpreted.

Since his aunt, who was ranked first on the list, was alright, he was relieved, replied, and then went to attend to other matters.

Yangcheng.

Some fans were trapped upstairs, lacking food and clothing.

“I told you to prepare more, to prepare more, but you wouldn’t listen. Now look what’s happened, we have nothing to eat.” His wife complained, looking at the empty refrigerator.

The daughter was also crying for milk nearby.

"How about we borrow some from next door?" the fan said, feeling ashamed.

"You're not allowed to go!" his wife said angrily. "Xiaoqian next door and I really have nothing going on, we're just ordinary friends." This fan knew that his wife was afraid he would use this excuse to chat with his female neighbor, Xiaoqian.

"You're kidding me! If you go there to borrow grain, don't come back!"

"But we can't just starve to death, can we? Maybe I should ask the community for help." Just as the fan was about to take action, he suddenly saw an announcement posted by Li Xiang in Li Xiang's fan group. He then excitedly shared the information with his wife.

The fan said, "I've given Xiang Ge a lot of gifts before, so it's not shameful to shamelessly ask for some in return."

His wife, holding their daughter, tried to comfort him, but refused to believe it: "Isn't he in Sichuan Province? That's a million miles away from us. A distant solution can't quench our immediate thirst!"

"Uh, look, there's another message in the group. Brother Xiang said it himself, that he can deliver for free to your door. As long as you're on Earth, it can arrive within 24 hours. However, there are too many fans, so there might be a delay. Delivery will be made on a first-come, first-served basis. If you're out of supplies, you'll be given priority."

"Then give it a try." Although his wife didn't believe him, she still urged her husband to sign up quickly, since there was no harm in giving it a shot.

The fan explained their situation in the group chat, saying it was very urgent.

About ten minutes later, someone knocked on the door.

The fan immediately went to open the door, but there was no one there. Instead, there was a large bag of supplies on the ground with a note on it that read: "Greetings from Brother Xiang."

The fans were stunned, then overjoyed, and shouted into the house, "Wife, wife, come and move the things! Brother Xiang really brought some things over!"

His wife came over and was also stunned: "My goodness, he's amazing! So fast?"

They brought the items in, unpacked them, and carefully inspected them. The contents were plentiful, including fresh beef, fresh vegetables, snacks, bottled water, emergency medicine, rice, flour, oil, salt, and even seafood.

Overjoyed, the two didn't cook or eat first, but immediately took photos and posted them in the group chat: "Thanks for the treat, Xiang-ge! This is such a wonderful surprise!"

This fan didn't take Li Xiang's supplies for nothing; he tipped Li Xiang a corresponding amount of money in the video on Li Xiang's account.

Like this fan, many other fans also shared photos, saying they received "Xiang Ge'er's treat" and were very grateful.

With Li Xiang's speed, supporting fans across the country is a piece of cake; he could even go to the space station to provide assistance. Of course, the space station won't lack supplies or experience flooding. However, other unexpected situations might arise, but that's a matter for later.

Some astute fans recalled previous rumors and were quite skeptical that the information was true. It was a rumor from an overseas website claiming that Li Xiang was the mysterious armored man.

Otherwise, how could it be so fast?

Li Xiang didn't bother to explain. The apocalypse was fast approaching, and his strength was more than enough to cover his identity. However, he didn't need to admit it personally; he simply remained silent on the rumor.

……

Even though we have dredged thousands of waterways across the country before, the pressure of flood control remains immense.

The entire middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River are in a state of emergency.

The turbid river water was almost level with the embankment, churning up white foam under the force of gale-force winds, carrying tree trunks and livestock carcasses washed down from upstream and crashing into the flood control sandbags.

Tens of thousands of soldiers are building defenses with robotic arms and their own flesh and blood, while temporary embankments made of quick-setting concrete are crumbling and crumbling under the crashing waves of the river.

"The water level has exceeded the 1998 record by 2.37 meters!" The alarm at the hydrological monitoring station pierced the rain. More than 20 leaders braved the rain to inspect the dangerous section. When the beams of their waterproof flashlights swept across the river, they could clearly see the floating roof debris—the last traces of the tributary town that had breached its dike not far away.

One leader lamented, "With such a high water level and turbulent currents, if it weren't for General Li reshaping the main channel of the Yangtze River, opening twelve underground flood diversion tunnels, and reinforcing the dikes, the dikes would probably have breached long ago."

In fact, without Li Xiang's dredging, the Yangtze River, the Yellow River and other major water systems would have collapsed long ago and would never have lasted until now.

This can be seen from the disasters in other countries.

International news reports are filled with tragic scenes unfolding in India's Ganges River basin: towering, brownish-yellow torrents tear through riverbanks, ten-story religious buildings collapse like building blocks, pilgrims in the holy city of Varanasi struggle in the flood, and floating corpses entwined with prayer flags are swept into the Bay of Bengal along with Ganges crocodiles.

98% of towns in the Mississippi Delta are flooded by saltwater intrusion; a 30-meter-high "wall of water" in the Brazilian Amazon is swallowing up rainforest; and century-old wineries on the banks of the Danube are turned into whirlpools by changes in surface runoff...

Similar scenes are countless around the world, and are far more tragic than those in China.

However, China is currently preoccupied with its own problems and naturally has no spare capacity to provide global assistance.

Furthermore, even though Li Xiang issued a warning more than a year in advance, the other side was still not adequately prepared, so there was really nothing that could be done. Some countries are just going through the motions and don't really care about the needs of the underprivileged at all.

At the mouth of the Yangtze River, Luo Feifei rode on an ice crystal phoenix, her electric phantom armor shimmering with eerie blue ripples amidst the thunderstorm.

The girl, with a cold and melancholy expression, formed mysterious hand seals. The Qinhuai Water Spirit Pendant burst forth with a beam of azure light that pierced the heavens and earth, and the Yuanhai King's Seal floated above her head. The surging tides even caused the raging river water to freeze.

"All under heaven heed my command!" As Luo Feifei's fingertips pierced the rain, the Yangtze River's veins transformed into a three-dimensional meridian diagram in her pupils. Hundreds of millions of tons of floodwater suddenly defied fluid dynamics and began to swirl backward, forming twelve spiral waterspouts with diameters exceeding one hundred meters at the river's mouth.

These water dragons roared to the sky, carrying towering waves straight to the East China Sea, and along the way, they released all the industrial pollutants deposited at the bottom of the river, which condensed into black ice crystals in the sky and fell down.

On the embankment, the soldiers watched in shock as the water level dropped at a rate of 3 centimeters per minute.

In the Jinling section, a giant whirlpool suddenly rose in the middle of the river, and a Ming Dynasty shipwreck that had been sleeping at the bottom of the river for 600 years was lifted to the surface by the gentle water; at the site of the Dragon King Temple in Jiangcheng, a group of startled finless porpoises were safely transferred while enveloped in a shimmering blue halo.

When Luo Feifei finally pressed the Royal Seal onto the river surface, the powerful water system laws directly connected to the East China Sea Eye, and the entire Yangtze River returned to its gentle state as if smoothed by the hand of a god. The remaining water vapor bloomed into a rainbow bridge spanning five provinces beneath her feet.

"Feifei, you've reached the Saint Rank?" Such a commotion naturally alerted Li Xiang, who flashed to Luo Feifei's side and asked.

Luo Feifei snorted and continued casting her spell, ignoring him.

“No, you’re still at the eighteenth level.” Li Xiang carefully examined the girl and realized that she had used treasures such as the Qin Huai Water Essence Pendant and the Yuanhai King’s Seal to unleash strength no weaker than that of a Saint.

After all, Luo Feifei's eighteenth level was extremely solid, and with the improvement of her strength, she could unleash even greater power from treasures such as the Qin Huai Water Essence Pendant and the Yuanhai King's Seal.

Both of these treasures are high-level Saint-rank extraordinary items.

Luo Feifei ignored him, her figure flashing as she activated her Lightning Phantom Armor, unleashing a speed of eight or nine Mach, and rushed towards the mouth of the Yellow River. There was still a great flood in the north, and her support was needed.

She is proficient in water and ice-based supernatural abilities and has reached the eighteenth level, just one step away from the Saint level. She can exert a more powerful rescue ability than Li Xiang.

The Lightning Phantom Armor is a transcendent item of the 26th rank. If fully activated, it can unleash a speed of Mach 10. However, at this moment, Luo Feifei has not yet advanced to the Saint rank, so she can only unleash a speed of Mach 8 or 9.

Li Xiang dodged lightly and caught up with her, running alongside her.

"Don't follow me," Luo Feifei said coldly.

"I'll help you." Although Li Xiang wasn't good at water-based superpowers, he could channel his spiritual energy into her body, allowing her to unleash stronger "magical power" and have greater endurance.

Luo Feifei spat, and seeing that Li Xiang was still shamelessly following her, she ignored him but did not chase him away again. The two walked side by side to the mouth of the Yellow River.

The north lacked experience in flood control, and the disaster was more severe there. Fortunately, Luo Feifei and Li Xiang arrived.

Li Xiang placed his hand on Luo Feifei's shoulder and channeled his spiritual energy into her. Luo Feifei did not resist, and the two worked together. In less than half a day, the water level in the north was greatly reduced.

Because the major waterways had been dredged and drainage was smooth, the floodwaters receded quickly after the torrential rains stopped.

The whole country rejoiced and celebrated.

The hashtag #MiracleOfYangtzeFloodRetreat# suddenly topped the Weibo hot search list, and drone photos of the riverbank comparison went viral: just three days ago, the Jianghan Customs House clock tower in Wuhan was still submerged in turbid waves, but now only a few strands of water plants sway on the columns.

The top-rated comment, posted by user "@JiangchengFishingOldMan," showed the water level on their balcony: "From flooding up to the second-floor windowsill to being able to go downstairs to buy hot dry noodles, it only took 18 hours—is this drainage speed like having a turbocharger installed in the sewer?"

The "Moment of Flood Retreat" challenge on Douyin has produced some amazing videos: a woman from Nanjing danced to "The Waves of Honghu Lake" on the newly exposed boardwalk of Xuanwu Lake; a man from Chongqing used a high-pressure water gun to wash away the silt in the Jiefangbei business district, captioning it "Scrubbing the back of the monument"; and the official account of Zhengzhou Fire Department posted a live stream of the "Human Bridge Rescue Team" eating braised noodles together, attracting over a million viewers.

In a Zhihu post titled "How to evaluate the flood control system of this major flood," a user certified as a "water conservancy engineer" analyzed news footage of Luo Feifei controlling a waterspout frame by frame, estimating that the amount of her supernatural power released was equivalent to the total flood discharge of the Three Gorges Dam over three days, sparking an academic debate about the "synergistic paradigm of supernatural power and national engineering."

Of course, because Luo Feifei was wearing an electric illusion armor, her true face was not revealed, and ordinary people did not know her identity. However, CCTV's drones were following her. After all, Luo Feifei is a "lieutenant colonel".

Across the country, a variety of celebrations were held to commemorate the survivors.

The Humble Administrator's Garden in Suzhou has opened a themed garden party called "Lotus Rebirth After Sorrow". Workers retrieved shared bicycles that had been swept into the pond by floodwaters and transformed them into an installation art piece called "Iron Lotus" by artists. Visitors can ring the bicycle bells to pray for blessings.

A "Resilient City" achievement exhibition was held in Xiong'an New Area in northern China. The model of the underground utility tunnel, which was submerged in floodwater for 72 hours but still functioning normally, became the focus. Engineers demonstrated the compressive strength test of the crystal vein waterproof layer designed by Li Xiang.

Various recovery efforts are underway in the wake of the disaster, including ecological restoration, restarting people's livelihoods, and economic recovery, covering all aspects.

In the emergency ecological restoration, Zhao Xueqing took the lead without hesitation. For example, she led her team, the original special task force, to release genetically modified fast-growing reeds, rebuilding the vegetation barrier of the Dongting Lake wetland within 72 hours. Drone monitoring showed that migratory birds had returned to forage.

Not only in this place, but in many other places, she is needed.

After a major flood, a major epidemic is bound to follow. The National Health Commission launched the "Blue Shield Action": Yao Yao led a team to distribute self-heating traditional Chinese medicine sachets to the hardest-hit areas. Combined with Jiang Cai'er's research results at Tsinghua University, namely the "nanoscale virus detection instrument", the goal was to achieve zero spread of the epidemic.

Regarding economic recovery, the central bank issued 5000 billion yuan in special loans for "resilient reconstruction," and local governments introduced a number of measures to stimulate the economy, such as issuing consumer vouchers and doubling the subsidies for "trade-in" of home appliances and automobiles.

Promoting "New Infrastructure+": 5G base stations, data centers and other facilities are planned in sync with water conservancy networks, underground utility tunnels integrate optical fibers and sensors, and the construction of underground cities in various regions is accelerating and starting construction at full speed.

Tax exemptions and refunds: Disaster-stricken enterprises are exempt from property tax/urban land use tax for 3 years, and the amount of VAT credit refund is increased to 150%.

Manufacturing equipment upgrade subsidies (up to 40% of the purchase price), and agriculture's "three subsidies and one guarantee": subsidies for seedlings, fertilizers, and agricultural machinery, and a guarantee for purchase prices (such as a 15% increase on the minimum purchase price for rice).

Grandpa Yuan's high-yield rice began to be promoted nationwide in preparation for food reserves in the apocalypse. At the same time, underground farms were also being developed.

Tourism Industry "Off-Season Revitalization Plan": Scenic spot reconstruction integrating AR guided tours and metaverse virtual tours. Free highway tolls on weekends, buy-one-get-one-free scenic spot tickets.

Work-for-Relief 2.0: Recruit 1000 million temporary workers nationwide to participate in the construction of underground cities, with daily wages 20% higher than the market price.

Skilled worker transformation plan: Train 10 construction workers to master BIM modeling and robot operation skills.

Flexible employment support: "gig insurance" for the platform economy, government subsidies for occupational accident insurance for couriers, ride-hailing drivers, etc.; issuance of "skills upgrade vouchers" (amounting to 5000 yuan per person, for training in fields such as AI and green energy).

……

Unfortunately, just as the nation was celebrating, bad news arrived: due to the combined effects of global torrential rains, accelerated melting of polar ice caps, and crustal movements, global sea levels are rising at a rate of 1.03 meters per day.

In just a few days, the sea level rose by more than three meters.

Tuvalu consists of nine small atolls, eight of which are inhabited, with Funafuti as the main island. The total land area is 26 square kilometers, and its highest point is only 3.4 meters above sea level, with most of the land area almost at sea level.

Now, with sea levels rising by more than three meters, this is undoubtedly the first country to be submerged. Fortunately, its population is small, only a little over ten thousand, and refugees have already fled to Australia and New Zealand.

The Netherlands faces a similar predicament. Not only is it the country that has reclaimed the most land in the world, but it also has the lowest average sea level, at a paltry 1.2 meters.

Except for some hilly areas in the south of the Netherlands, the entire country is almost entirely lowland, with a quarter of the land less than one meter above sea level and another quarter already below sea level.

These places have become a vast expanse of water.

However, the Netherlands has an advantage because it is located on the European continent, making it relatively easy for people to move to other European countries. Unlike Tuvalu, which is isolated overseas.

(End of this chapter)