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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Twelve: Power Station (Part One)
Bai Yudong kept an eye on the time, waiting for everyone to change into their dry clothes before he and the soldiers extinguished the campfire and continued on their journey.
With the moisture gone, everyone felt much more comfortable. The group walked in silence, closely following the footsteps of the person in front, crossing ditches and climbing steep slopes as they made their way toward the wind turbines at the mountain's summit.
Song Yao's expression was somewhat unnatural; her hand was firmly held by Jiang He. At first, she tried to break free, but seeing how naturally he held her hand, she eventually let him lead her.
The silence made the trek feel stifling. The sky was a brilliant blue, and the sun shone brightly. After trekking for a while, everyone began to sweat; just moments ago, they had been shivering from the cold, and now they wished they could jump back into the water to cool off.
As they approached the mountain top, vegetation became scarcer. The privately-owned Power Station showed little regard for environmental concerns; everything revolved around making money. The loess at the summit contrasted sharply with the lush greenery below. Bai Yudong and Chao Yifan forged ahead, guiding everyone through the last patch of low trees and onto the muddy mountaintop.
The air at the summit was not as fresh as it had been lower down; a burnt smell lingered in the wind. From where they stood, two rows of wind turbine towers lined up neatly, numbering over twenty. Most were still creaking and turning, with no signs of nearby maintenance personnel or facilities.
Although the mountaintop was bare of trees, it had been developed enough that the path was not difficult to navigate.
Most in the group had never seen a generator tower up close; the gray-white blades spun slowly, appearing precarious.
For safety reasons, Bai Yudong did not allow them to walk between the towers but instead led them along the edge of the slope. The incline was not steep, and looking down from the summit revealed a small round mirror where a deep pool had once been flooded by a mountain torrent.
The distant mountains appeared dark blue against a misty backdrop, and swallows could be seen darting through the valleys with twigs in their beaks.
Suddenly, Jiang He had a thought: building a house out of bricks right here on this mountaintop would be quite nice—growing vegetables, drawing water, raising cattle and sheep; it would make for a lovely pastoral utopia.
Seeing him grinning foolishly beside her, Song Yao asked curiously, "What are you daydreaming about?"
"Cough cough, nothing much—just imagining a rural life," Jiang He replied sheepishly, waving his hand dismissively as he hesitated to share his daydream.
Ming Junwei came up from behind and threw an arm around both their shoulders. "What rural life are you talking about?"
Jiang He's face turned red as he stammered, "It's nothing really; just some idle thoughts... Why do we have to squeeze into crowded places? There are no zombies up here on this mountaintop. Wouldn't it be nice to build a hut or dig a cave dwelling and live here?"
Ming Junwei nodded with interest. "It's not a bad idea; it's just not that simple. Besides... have you developed feelings? What are you planning? To settle down here with Xiaosong Yao and raise a family?"
Song Yao's cheeks flushed crimson as she pulled her hand away from Jiang He's grasp and hurried ahead to walk alongside Pan Luo.
Jiang He wore a face full of resentment as he complained, "You call yourself a hero? Do you get any pleasure from breaking up couples?"
Ming Junwei nodded proudly and said, "Who are you to talk? Ever since I teamed up with you guys, I've suffered so much!"
His comment was somewhat out of place, and both of them fell silent awkwardly.
After a while, Jiang He couldn't help but ask, "What do you think we should do once we get to the Power Station? Restore power for the whole country?"
Ming Junwei waved his hand dismissively, pointing at the flowing water below. "After soaking in cold water all night, don't you realize the importance of having a place to settle down? I wanted to discuss plans with you when I first discovered the Power Station, but then so much happened that it got delayed."
"What plans?"
"Something similar to what you did with Daydream, but more reliable," Ming Junwei wiped the sweat from his brow. "If we can occupy an empty Power Station, we won't have to wander around anymore."
Jiang He looked skeptical and asked, "Is the Power Station really that good? Does it have everything we need?"
Ming Junwei shot him an annoyed glance. "People like you are perfect candidates to be among the first victims of the Cataclysm. I really don't know how you've managed to survive this long."
Jiang He retorted defiantly, "I call it having a strong fate. Who knows, maybe I even had a Stone Guardian as my godfather when I was young."
"Stop joking around. Let's get serious. If the Power Station can provide shelter, would you rather stay there or keep running?" Ming Junwei suddenly became serious and slowed his pace, creating distance between himself and the others ahead.
Jiang He had never thought about this question and didn't know how to respond.
"Of course, you don't need to think about it now; the situation inside the Power Station is still unclear." Seeing his confused expression, Ming Junwei stopped pressing for an answer and patted his shoulder before catching up with the group.
Walking was naturally much faster than wading through water. As the sun began to set in the west, they finally spotted the large Power Plant a hundred meters away.
The slanting rays of sunlight bathed the two massive Cooling Towers in an orange glow, while four towering Chimneys reached high into the sky, no longer spewing smoke.
The group stood in a line, staring at the enormous industrial building from a distance, momentarily lost in thought.
Jiang He had never seen a thermal Power Plant before. From his perspective, a gray concrete wall blocked most of its appearance; aside from the Cooling Towers and Chimneys, he could only see a few rows of blue rooftops.
The side facing them lacked a main entrance, and since the Power Plant covered a vast area, if they circled around to the other side from halfway up the mountain, it might be completely dark by then.
Bai Yudong took off his hat and waved it lightly, saying, "Speed up, men to the front, load your guns."
Everyone perked up, checking their firearms.
Chao Yifan leaned over and asked, "Is there something going on inside?"
Bai Yudong didn't explain, only replied calmly, "Better safe than sorry."
The team quickened their pace and reached the base of the high wall just before the sun completely set. As Bai Yudong had expected, they could hear the distant roars coming from inside.
Initially, everyone was in good spirits, but the familiar sounds from within quickly brought them back to reality.
"Although we don't know how this mountaintop Power Plant got infected, there are quite a few long-term employees at this medium-sized Power Plant. We can't rush in," Bai Yudong adjusted his glasses and said. "We don't have many bullets left, so conserve them. The three of us will scout the main entrance first; you all stay put."
Jiang He and the others obediently followed orders, loading their guns as they moved away from the wall. Bai Yudong led two soldiers along the base of the wall, quickly turning into another side behind the high wall.
"Suspicious," Chao Yifan scoffed. "How many Zombies do you think are inside?"
"I'm more curious about why there are Zombies here... We clearly didn't encounter any on our way up the mountain," Pan Luo said nervously, pressing close to Song Yao. The Yellow Dog at their feet also timidly buried its head in its paws.
Ming Junwei sat down unconcerned and said, "Do you really think that the creatures from below would just stay down there?"
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