Water?

Traveling along the route hadn't been too problematic. After all, the outer city's dangers were relatively minor. For an empire that thrived on categorization and hierarchy, even the monsters were classified into S, A, B, C, and D rankings.

Currently, the outer city was home to only D-ranked creatures, which posed the lowest threat level. Unfortunately, the region was a tangled web of competing forces, making it difficult for the empire to develop the area, even if they wanted to.

Compared to the other three zones, the desert to the south was probably the simplest to navigate.

However, back when the natural disaster struck, tornadoes ravaged the cities, toppling skyscrapers and burying them under endless sandstorms. The result was today's desert—a landscape where humanity's past lay hidden beneath layers of sand.

While traveling through the outer city, it wasn't unusual to spot the remnants of old buildings, though only the occasional fragment would peek out from the sand. The majority remained buried, which was why so many chose to explore the desert. It was far easier to excavate than other areas.

The blistering wind carried grains of hot sand that stung like fire against the skin. Chu Ling adjusted her face covering, pulling it snug to shield her cheeks. Although traveling during the day was relatively safer, the desert's midday heat was nearly unbearable. The sand was so scorching that it could easily cook an egg.

Speaking of Liang Liang, Chu Ling couldn't help but feel the system was biased toward the female lead. Back when she first arrived, the timeline dictated that the female lead hadn't yet inherited the Apocalypse Survival System. In fact, the system had been installed six months after Chu Ling's arrival. Yet the system had deliberately assigned her something else at the time.

Now, however, complaining about favoritism was pointless. She could only resign herself to her fate and focus on selling instant noodles.

On the first day of their journey, they planned to pass by Chu Ling's personal camp to resupply before officially entering the no-man's land. What they hadn't anticipated was the sudden arrival of a sandstorm. As Chu Ling had warned, a tornado loomed in the distance, slowly closing in.

Ah Hu glanced at the darkening sky, muttering a curse under his breath. "Boss really called it. A tornado's actually forming."

Tornadoes were common in the desert region, though none had been as severe as the one six months ago. These days, most tornadoes were manageable as long as the team set up camp and braced themselves. After all, the natural disasters in this area weren't as catastrophic as before.

The no-man's land was a different story entirely. That area was perpetually blanketed by sandstorms, making travel nearly impossible. In comparison, the outer city only occasionally saw tornadoes and sandstorms.

Who would've thought they'd encounter one today? It was a smaller tornado with relatively limited power, but the sand it stirred up was enough to obscure visibility and hinder progress. Worse, it blocked their only route forward. They could either detour around it or risk charging straight through—though the latter came with significant danger.

As the convoy approached the tornado, Gu Jingbo grew anxious. He hurriedly contacted Chu Ling through the comms, urging her to change course. But Chu Ling had no intention of listening.

"We're going through."

"Are you crazy?!"

Ignoring his hysterical shouting, Chu Ling calmly hung up the communicator.

Gu Jingbo was livid. "That woman's insane! She actually wants to drive straight through it. Should've hired a different mercenary. At least they'd follow orders."

Chu Ling stared at the swirling vortex of sand just a dozen meters ahead. The tornado spanned roughly ten meters in diameter. After a brief glance at Qian Li, their eyes met in silent understanding.

"How long can you hold it?" Chu Ling asked.

"Five or six minutes."

"That's enough."

The conversation between the two left everyone else baffled. Qian Li suddenly fixed her gaze on the tornado ahead and raised her hands. As her hands spread apart, the tornado began to split down the middle. Following the movement of her hands, the swirling wind parted, opening a clear path through the storm.

Chu Ling immediately slammed on the accelerator, driving straight into the newly created passage. Gu Jingbo, stunned but quick to react, urgently ordered the rest of the convoy to follow. Miraculously, they made it through safely. No one had expected Qian Li's ability to manipulate the sandstorm, splitting it apart like that.

However, this was only possible because it was a small-scale tornado. If it had been any larger, even Qian Li wouldn't have been able to control it.

Once the convoy had passed, the split in the tornado sealed itself, and the whirlwind continued on its original path. However, the surrounding sandstorm showed no signs of abating. Visibility continued to drop, and for safety reasons, Chu Ling decided to halt the journey temporarily. Fortunately, they were nearing her camp—just a short distance beyond this stretch of land.

Even with the sandstorm still raging, the sight that greeted them as they arrived was enough to leave the highborn members of the convoy in awe. For the first time, they witnessed a patch of green in the desert.

It was like a splash of vivid color suddenly breaking through a dull, gray world—a dazzling green oasis!

Chu Ling's small camp was set up right next to the oasis. Around the oasis, the intensity of the sandstorm was noticeably weaker. Gu Xiyan, who had only read about oases in books, found herself mesmerized. Even though this oasis was small, just a few meters across, it stood as a unique and vibrant spectacle in the desolate desert.

What a beautiful sight. This little patch of green—a resource no one had paid attention to in the past—had now become a priceless treasure in a world of scarcity.

The convoy parked near the oasis. Chu Ling's camp wasn't large enough to accommodate everyone, so Gu Jingbo and his team began setting up a temporary base. Until the sandstorm subsided, they would have to remain here. It was an unfortunate bit of bad luck that their journey had been interrupted after just a single day of travel.

Technically, they could keep moving—after all, the no-man's land was perpetually engulfed in sandstorms. However, they needed to wait for the winds to weaken slightly. Besides, it was nearing nightfall. Even if they planned to resume the journey, they would have to wait until dawn.

Gu Xiyan stepped out of the vehicle. The pristine white fabric of her clothes was quickly dusted with sand, and the heat made the air shimmer, but her attention was entirely captured by the oasis. It was a small pool of water, only two or three meters in size, flanked by two resilient palm trees that stood proudly amidst the storm. The sight of these trees, standing firm against the relentless sand, filled her with awe.

Unbeknownst to her, Chu Ling had silently approached. Nearby, Ah Hu and the others were busy securing chains to their vehicles, worried that their less advanced cars might be blown away by the wind. Unlike the empire's high-tech vehicles, theirs were much more vulnerable to the elements.

"Pretty amazing, isn't it? The way an oasis forms,"

Gu Xiyan had only ever read about oases in books. An oasis was said to form naturally in deserts where water was abundant. But this desert wasn't natural—it was once a bustling city, now buried beneath endless sand. How could an oasis still form here?

As if sensing her unspoken question, Chu Ling began to explain. "The natural disaster destroyed humanity's world, but it didn't destroy nature. This oasis, this water source, has continued to grow naturally even after 60 years of devastation. Maybe… maybe the disaster wasn't meant to destroy the planet. Maybe it only wanted to destroy humanity."

Chu Ling's words hung in the air as Gu Xiyan mulled them over.

"There are many oases scattered across the outer city," Chu Ling continued. "The larger ones have all been claimed by powerful factions. All we could manage was this tiny one. But it's enough to solve our water problem."

This was pure, natural water—something the empire no longer had. The empire once relied on a large lake to provide its water, but that lake dried up years ago. Fortunately, ten years ago, the empire solved its water crisis by developing artificial water sources. Now, all the water in the empire was synthetic, manufactured by advanced technology.

Suddenly, Gu Xiyan's system chimed in with a question:

[Is this natural water truly uncontaminated?]

Gu Xiyan was naturally a curious soul, eager to learn about the unknown. When she asked about the oasis water, Chu Ling, ever accommodating, answered without hesitation, "Of course. We've always drunk the water from the oasis."

As she spoke, she picked up the half-empty water bottle that Ah Hu had tossed her earlier and handed it to Gu Xiyan. But as the bottle reached Gu Xiyan's hands, Chu Ling paused, feeling it wasn't appropriate. "Miss Gu, I've already drunk from this bottle. How about I get you a new one?" Despite being used to a more casual lifestyle with her team, Chu Ling felt it necessary to observe some formality with Gu Xiyan.

To her surprise, Gu Xiyan took the bottle without any objection and quickly typed a response on her tablet.

[It's fine. This bottle will do]

Gu Xiyan then opened the cap and took a sip.

Chu Ling's gaze unconsciously fell on Gu Xiyan's lips. Her rosy lips, delicate and soft, moved gracefully as she drank. Even something as simple as sipping water seemed refined when Gu Xiyan did it. The water trickled down her throat, carrying a faint earthy taste mingled with a subtle sweetness. It reminded Chu Ling of a famous saying 'Spring water tastes slightly sweet'.

As her eyes lingered on the water bottle, it suddenly struck Chu Ling—did this count as an indirect kiss? The realization made her feel a little flustered. For someone who had never been in a relationship, Chu Ling's first kiss naturally hadn't happened yet. But Gu Xiyan, calm and focused as always, appeared utterly indifferent, treating the water as nothing more than a subject of study.

Chu Ling quickly shook her head, pushing away the absurd thoughts that had begun to sprout in her mind.

[This water is delicious]

"You upper city folks don't drink water like this?" Chu Ling curiosity piqued.

Instead of answering, Gu Xiyan gestured for Chu Ling to follow her and led the way to their makeshift base. In the desert, water was the most precious resource, and of course, the convoy had brought their own supply. After years of research, water regeneration technology was now fully developed in the empire, ensuring a steady supply.

For the first time, Chu Ling saw the empire's artificial water generator. It was a two-meter-tall glass cylinder, where water continuously flowed from the center, filling the entire tank before being transported through pipes to other parts of the base.

At the very center of the glass cylinder, Chu Ling noticed the core of the generator—and what she saw made her skin crawl.

The core was shaped like a baby, a translucent water-like entity that constantly emitted bubbles, as if peacefully sleeping. But there was something deeply unsettling about it. The tubes connecting to the generator resembled umbilical cords, feeding into the baby-like figure at its core.

Chu Ling stood frozen, staring at the eerie contraption. The entire setup reminded her of a test-tube baby, the tubes acting like life-support systems.

Sensing Chu Ling's discomfort, Gu Xiyan tugged lightly at her sleeve. Chu Ling snapped out of her trance and looked at her. Gu Xiyan's tablet displayed a question.

[Did it scare you?]

"No, just a little… shocked. The baby-like figure—it looks so lifelike,"

Gu Xiyan turned her attention back to the glass cylinder and calmly explained.

[All artificial water generators look like this now. However, these are just smaller units. The largest generator is located in the empire's central lake. It's a product of research from ten years ago. I don't fully understand the principles behind its design]

Just as Gu Xiyan finished her explanation, a deep, muffled voice echoed from the tank.

"Help me…"

The sound was low and eerie, like a whisper emanating from the depths of the water, interspersed with the soft pop of rising bubbles.

Gu Xiyan's body stiffened, and she instinctively turned to Chu Ling. But Chu Ling remained calm, showing no reaction. That voice—who had spoken?

"What's wrong?" Chu Ling asked, noticing Gu Xiyan's sudden change in expression.

[Did you hear that?] Gu Xiyan typed hurriedly.

"Hear what?" Chu Ling asked, confused.

"Can anyone hear me? Help me…"

The voice came again, this time louder, clearer, and unmistakably coming from the tank. It sounded like a desperate plea, accompanied by the faint gurgle of water bubbles.

Gu Xiyan's eyes widened, her gaze locked on the baby-like figure inside the glass cylinder.

It seemed… as if it was the one calling for help.

Chu Ling watched Gu Xiyan, puzzled by her strange behavior. "What's going on?"

Instead of answering, Gu Xiyan pointed toward the glass tank, her expression a mix of shock and fear.

Confused, Chu Ling placed her hand on the glass surface, trying to sense whatever had unsettled Gu Xiyan.

The moment her fingers made contact with the glass, her vision was overwhelmed by an unexpected image.

In the depths of the water, a woman appeared. Her body was tightly bound with countless chains, wrapping around her arms, legs, and torso. Even her eyes and mouth were sealed, and an oxygen tube was forcibly inserted into her mouth. Bubbles of air streamed from her as she floated in a void of endless darkness, submerged in the oppressive abyss.