RIACMET chapter 237

 

The Crystal Core Nuclear Power Station officially went into operation. The base-wide electricity supply increased to eight hours per day.

If you wanted 24-hour access to electricity, you could purchase it using points.

It was late November, and although the temperature was still around 30 degrees, the days were noticeably shorter.

Those who had barely made it through the scorching heat were now faced with the polar night and had no idea what would happen. Many were anxious, wondering if they could survive the polar night after making it through extreme heat and cold. Compared to that, zombies almost didn’t seem so frightening anymore.

The sun rose later and set earlier. Eventually, sunrise was delayed to the point where it disappeared altogether.

Then, the wind began to blow and gray-black dust covered the sky. The base sounded the alert, instructing everyone to take dust precautions.

After a few days, daylight dimmed to a constant state of twilight.

Then, twilight became night, and finally, utter darkness.

On December 10, an official broadcast announced that the polar night had arrived.

The darkness of the polar night was different from the regular cycle of day and night. It felt heavy and suffocating, like a thick black fog blanketing the Earth. Even under daylight-grade lighting, visibility was drastically reduced.

The lab collected air samples and found nothing abnormal. Jiang Nian and Gao Xuyang took turns using their superpowers to test for anything unusual, but there were no strange reactions.

Other than the darkness, everything seemed normal. Yet, everyone felt that something lurked in the dark—something they couldn’t see.

Even Cheng Jing and Jiang Nian, who had experienced the polar night in their previous lives, felt uneasy.

Now that Jiang Nian’s superpower was public knowledge, he was much more relaxed and no longer hid it. Sometimes, he would perform large-scale purifications across the planned farmland areas, as if doing good deeds for fun.

In addition to running to the lab daily to assist Gao Xuyang with “special treatments,” the radius of his power had grown to 800 meters.

In his past life, the maximum range was only 200 meters, according to the predictions of the “dog doctor,” and it was achieved very quickly.

Once the limit was reached, his purification energy would peak and stabilize.

Because darkness triggers a natural fear in people, the South City Base raised its alert level to the highest level, both inside and outside the base. In addition to guarding against unknown threats beyond the base walls, they also had to watch out for anyone inside trying to stir up trouble.

All public lighting facilities stayed on 24/7.

As for everyday electricity needs, there was enough supply for everyone, even those who didn’t purchase extra usage.

In short, although the South City Base couldn’t exactly shine like daylight during the polar night, the crystal-core reactor still allowed survivors to live relatively normal lives.

This was far better than other bases.

Now that the outside world had learned that the South City Base was collecting zombie crystal cores to generate electricity, all the major bases had dispatched exploration teams to search for medium-grade crystal cores. Unfortunately, none have been found so far.

Because of this, some so-called “righteous and smart” individuals proposed that:

The medium-grade crystal core currently in the South City Base should be used on a rotating basis so each base could share the energy source.

Fortunately, Minister Wang wasn’t representing Nancheng Base alone. Other official base leaders immediately criticized the idea of equal resource sharing and instead proposed:

Each base should contribute resources based on its capabilities to support South City Base in developing more detox serums and future antiviral vaccines.

In return, South City Base would distribute the serums proportionally according to the level of support received.

Some supported the proposal, while others opposed it.

In response to the world’s increasing demand for medium-grade crystal cores, South City Base began paying close attention in hopes of finding more.

There were a few clues:

Some witnesses claimed to have seen individuals with the superpower to absorb others’ superpowers. However, those people had all died early on after being killed by their own teammates when their powers were discovered.

The medium-grade crystal core itself wasn’t powerful; it simply absorbed and released energy. But this very trait made others fear it. Even teammates would become wary of such people, who were easy to eliminate.

Team 017 held a meeting. After reading Chu Yi’s investigative report, Jiang Nian sighed.

“It’s just like my purification power. If you’re not careful, you’ll end up in a lab. Threatening but non-aggressive powers are the easiest way to get killed.”

Everyone nodded. That was the truth. Even now, there were still people who wanted to strap Jiang Nian to an operating table.

Zhao Lei agreed.

“Unless you’re extremely cautious or know from the start that you’re special—like awakening a space-type power and using it to quietly store things without telling anyone—it’s best to let your teammates know as soon as possible.”

Showing your abilities, whether alone or on a team, is a powerful bargaining chip for survival in the apocalypse.

Jiang Nian was cautious and aware of his uniqueness. Not only had he saved himself, but he had also helped those around him.

“Woo—”

The base sirens blared; the meeting had just ended. Everyone left the conference room and began a new round of work.

Heavy weaponry was deployed at every entrance and exit of the base, as well as around the detox testing warehouse located outside the protective walls.

South City Base had the best resources, which naturally drew envy, jealousy, and hatred. This only made the troublemakers look even more foolish.

Since animals are more alert in the dark, all the military dogs on the base were released to work with the armed forces.

Security checks for outsiders arriving during the polar night became even more stringent.

Cheng Jing and his superpower unit worked with Li Sheng to strengthen internal security across the base.

Xiao Qi essentially followed Li Shuhui around full-time, becoming a competent partner and bodyguard.

Inside or outside the base, saboteurs or anyone engaged in suspicious activity could be shot immediately. Whether they were killed or merely wounded depended on the situation.

Experience had proven that South City Base’s cautious approach was the correct one.

Within just a few days of the polar night’s arrival, satellite broadcasts from central command began reporting riots in bases with looser rules and more “freedom.”

Civil wars broke out among superpowered factions. Some took advantage of the darkness to steal supplies and commit murder. Others simply wanted to take over the base.

This is what happens in a world without order—people turn on one another for personal gain.

Even at South City Base, some people wanted to cause chaos, but they were unable to do so.

The army maintained firm control. After all, they were their own people. If a situation could be resolved peacefully, it would be. If not, they’d minimize deaths as much as possible and recruit more “volunteers” to carry bricks.