Chapter 21 Departure, Searching for Useful Items

Chapter 21 Departure, Searching for Useful Items

"Splash!"

The sound of someone entering the water was drowned out by the noise of the crowd.

Six days of torrential rain had caused floods that submerged the first-floor windows, allowing people to swim underwater inside.

Meng Ci carried an oxygen tank and wore swimming goggles, so he didn't need to surface for air, making it impossible for him to be discovered.

The route out of the residential area was firmly etched in Meng Ci's mind; there was no worry about getting lost.

The sounds of people arguing were swallowed by the heavy rain, gradually fading away until only the rushing water could be heard.

Once outside the residential area, Meng Ci took out a rubber dinghy from his space and put on a safety helmet, then paddled in the direction he had previously researched.

Along the way, various pieces of wood, clothes, and shoes floated on the water's surface...

Sometimes, fallen trees blocked the path, forcing Meng Ci to take detours.

After half an hour of paddling, when the area became sparsely populated, Meng Ci switched to a motorboat.

Raindrops hitting the helmet made a pattering sound.

Meng Ci squinted his eyes, trying hard to determine his direction.

He couldn't help but think how fortunate it was that he had worn the safety helmet; otherwise, the rain would have been painful on his head.

As he moved further into the outskirts, the number of floating objects decreased, allowing Meng Ci to travel faster.

It took nearly an hour for the motorboat to reach the entrance of the industrial park where the gas cylinder factory was located.

To avoid anyone inside the park, Meng Ci stowed the motorboat and put on a life ring around his waist, reducing the effort needed to swim.

The main gate of the industrial park still stood strong.

Meng Ci initially planned to climb over the gate but found no suitable footholds after searching for a while, so he gave up.

He then turned his attention to the nearby guardhouse.

Fortunately, the window of the guardhouse was slightly open, with rainwater already seeping in through the crack.

Meng Ci pushed the window open wider, jumped inside, and landed with a splash.

The furniture in the room was submerged, making it unrecognizable.

The security door was tightly shut, and Meng Ci couldn't open it due to the lack of leverage underwater.

Gradually losing patience, Meng Ci took out an electric saw from his space.

Without concern for the noise potentially disturbing anyone trapped in the park, Meng Ci cut a hole in the security door and crawled through.

The sound of the electric saw did not attract any attention, suggesting that the park was empty. Meng Ci then took out the rubber dinghy and continued paddling forward.

With the slow speed of the rubber dinghy, Meng Ci could observe the factories along the way.

Automobile manufacturing plants, chemical plants, garment processing factories...

This industrial park was vast, housing a wide range of industries.

In the heavy rain, Meng Ci couldn't see the names of the factories, but he vaguely remembered the locations of a few special ones.

He thought that after collecting the gas cylinders, if time allowed, he could try his luck and see if he could find anything useful.

Upon reaching the destination, the gate of the gas cylinder factory had been damaged by the flood, so Meng Ci simply paddled inside.

The factory doors required access cards to open, and even though the power was out, they remained locked.

Meng Ci approached a nearby window and took out a suction cup from his space, securing it firmly on the glass.

Holding onto the suction cup with one hand to prevent being swept away by the flood, Meng Ci used the other hand to take out a glass cutter from his space and cut a hole in the glass.

"Crash."

The glass fell to the factory floor, shattering.

The factory had excellent sealing, so not much water had entered.

Tying the rubber dinghy's rope to the suction cup, Meng Ci climbed through the hole, stepping on a machine.

Putting the rubber dinghy and suction cup back into his space, Meng Ci jumped down.

Stowing the helmet, Meng Ci put on a miner's lamp.

The factory was well-organized, making it easy for Meng Ci to find the storage area for gas cylinders.

Gas cylinders of various weights were neatly arranged, and Meng Ci collected them all into his space.

After wandering around, Meng Ci also found thousands of portable gas cylinders and many gas stoves, which he also stored in his space.

Satisfied that nothing was left behind, Meng Ci left the gas cylinder factory.

It was still early, so Meng Ci recalled whether there were any other factories nearby that might have useful items.

Not far from the entrance was a seed factory. With plenty of space available, although unsure if the seeds would grow, it was worth a try.

To the east was an automobile manufacturing plant, where he could collect some car parts in case the vehicles in his space needed repairs.

Of course, finding more vehicles would also make the trip worthwhile.

It seemed there was also a pharmaceutical factory. Meng Ci studied the routes for a long time before finally finding the place.

There were all kinds of medicines, vaccines, and even raw materials for traditional Chinese herbs.

Meng Ci didn't hesitate, loading everything, including various insulated boxes and low-temperature containers, into the space.

Since he hadn’t encountered anyone at several locations, he assumed the industrial park was empty and thus acted without restraint.

"Bang!"

Not paying attention to where he was going, Meng Ci's shoulder collided with a shelf, causing it to move a few centimeters.

Meng Ci, clutching his shoulder, winced in pain.

"Who's there?"

Rubbing his shoulder, Meng Ci suddenly heard a male voice and quickly hid behind a rack of medicines.

He thought that if someone approached, he would directly enter the space.

The reason he didn’t go in immediately was to assess the situation.

The sound of footsteps echoed in the enclosed space, and a light slowly illuminated the darkness.

"Who, who’s here?"

The man moved around the room, and soon, he discovered that all the Chinese herbs had vanished.

"The medicine, where is the medicine?"

"My medicine, where is it?"

The man’s voice broke down, gradually filled with sobs.

From the man’s incoherent muttering, Meng Ci learned that the reason this person hadn’t starved to death or ventured out for food was because he had been eating ginseng, wolfberry, fish mint, and other herbs.

"Thief, come out!"

"Come out!"

The man’s mental state had already collapsed.

In recent days, several of his colleagues had been swept away by floods because they couldn’t bear the hunger or refused to eat the herbs any longer. Their fates remained unknown.

Alone in the vast factory, the only sounds he heard were his own footsteps. His only means of communication with the outside world, his phone, had died and automatically shut off.

With no one to talk to and an abnormal diet, the man imagined the floodwaters crashing through the main gate, leading to his demise.

Now, with the last of his herbs stolen, how could he not break down?

Hearing the footsteps approaching, Meng Ci slipped into the space.

Inside, he found a box of shredded potato rice, opened a pack of spicy strips, and made a cup of milk tea to replenish his energy.

Then, setting an alarm, Meng Ci lay down on the bed, relaxed, and planned to rest for a while to recover his strength.

An hour later, after turning off the alarm, Meng Ci emerged from the space.

The man’s voice was no longer audible in the room. Meng Ci didn’t dare to retrace his steps, so he found a nearby piece of glass and used a glass cutter to slice it open, crawling out.

However, upon leaving, Meng Ci placed the cut-out piece of glass back inside the factory, then dove into the water and swam toward the outskirts of the industrial park.