Chapter 129

Since the torrential rains hit Longnan in 3028, animal deaths have continued across the nation. Acid rain corrosion, contaminated food and water, extreme global temperatures—these are just some of the causes behind the widespread die-off.

In August of 3028, a nationwide emergency rescue channel for endangered animals was launched. Thanks to the combined efforts of citizens across the country, Longxia has rescued over 30,000 critically endangered animals over the past two years. While temporary relief has been provided for rare wildlife in the wild, the sheer number of stray cats and dogs in urban areas has proven overwhelming. Despite the government’s best efforts, results have been less than ideal.

Early last year, Longxia Technology Group received a national directive: to develop a technological solution for housing and managing stray animals. With global temperatures on the rise, animal corpses have become breeding grounds for disease in cities. From the moment they received the task, the Technology Group threw themselves into researching a viable tech-based shelter system.

After a year of hard work, just two days ago in the afternoon, Longxia Technology Group finally unveiled their Intelligent Animal Rescue Unit. This smart device is a fully integrated indoor system with key features including: ventilation and cooling, energy-efficient temperature control, automatic waste disposal, standardized animal housing, and infrared detection for skin diseases like mange.

The smart unit was developed based on the existing [Useful Grain Depot] infrastructure and is designed for practical deployment.

“Good work,” Liu Wensheng said to Sun Yiping at 7 p.m. that evening.

“The credit goes to Tech Group Three,” Sun Yiping replied, rubbing his temples.

The Technology Group is divided into ten specialized teams, each handling different projects such as smart masks, filtration systems, and AI applications. The smart rescue unit was developed by Group Three. With temperatures soaring this year, Sun Yiping had been working closely with the R&D team, and exhaustion was clearly taking its toll.

“Submit a report later, and have your team take a week off,” Liu Wensheng said, pouring him a glass of water.

Sun Yiping was about to refuse, but thinking of the current state of Group Three, he nodded in agreement.

The smart unit consists of three main components: an air ventilation system (similar in appearance to an air conditioner), a smart animal dormitory (capable of housing up to 300 animals in isolated compartments to prevent cross-infection), and an infrared scanning harness. Each unit is designed to cover an area of 100 to 1,000 square meters, and due to its size, the Technology Factory produces 5,000 units per day.

After a brief discussion, Sun Yiping asked, “How many units do we need?”

Liu Wensheng thought for a moment. “At least 30,000.”

The government had released a document titled “Stray Animal Shelter Guidelines,” but questions remained: How many shelters should be built? How much funding is needed? How will they be maintained? Each detail required thorough planning. After careful consideration, the government decided to upgrade existing municipal shelters into fully functional stray animal rescue centers.

The plan includes: renovating public shelters in each city → providing basic medical treatment for strays → spaying and neutering → offering healthy, sterilized animals for low-cost adoption → requiring adopters to complete proper documentation.

All shelter renovations and oversight will be handled directly by the state.

“The government also plans to use this opportunity to crack down harder on pet abandonment,” Liu Wensheng added.

Aside from natural reproduction, many strays are the result of pet owners abandoning their animals. Stray animals have become a serious threat to urban environments. Longxia faced two options: 1) mass culling, or 2) rescue → sterilization → adoption. After a public opinion survey deemed mass euthanasia too cruel, the government chose to improve the rescue system.

Half an hour later, Sun Yiping went to inform Tech Group Three of their scheduled break, while Liu Wensheng headed to Jiangcheng Hospital.

According to the Biology Group’s protocols, the inspection team needed to undergo a 15-day quarantine. Today marked day ten.

…

“Long Xia News: The Longxia Government plans to deploy 30,000 intelligent rescue units, with an investment of 6 billion yuan.”

“On July 12th, Longxia will increase penalties for pet abandonment. Severe cases may result in 15 days of detention and a 2,000 yuan fine.”

“On July 12th, Longxia will release the ‘Pet Management Guidelines.’ Pet owners are urged to improve their awareness and responsibility…”

…

Over the next two days, Longxia rolled out a series of pet rescue and shelter policies. While the smart units can’t solve the nation’s pet crisis overnight, they can significantly improve shelter hygiene and help mitigate the problem.

“Last night the cats were crying nonstop. This morning, several of them didn’t make it.”

“It’s 45 degrees on average here. Feels like we’re living in an oven.”

“Save the ones we can. For the rest, give them a peaceful end.”

“Three cats died in our complex. Their bodies were crawling with bugs. The property management just finished disinfecting.”

…

Netizens reacted emotionally to the news. Whether due to ecological imbalance or something else, the death of stray animals seemed to be triggering a surge in pests like rats and insects. These rats had somehow survived the acid rain, and now, emboldened by the heat, they were openly rummaging through trash bins.

“Our school still uses fans. It’s so hot I don’t even want to go to class.”

“I’m a Sichuan chef, and I’m seriously thinking about quitting.”

“It’s only July… when will it finally cool down?”

“Ahhh! I need to get my hands on a Constant Temperature Pendant!”

…

On July 15th, the national average temperature hit 45°C.

The Dual-Core products were the ultimate summer lifesavers, but with the heatwave intensifying, they had become nearly impossible to buy.

Amid the global buying frenzy, at midnight on July 16th, Dongshan held a surprise product launch: the Dongshan Cold Wind Series.

Dongshan unveiled three new products: the Cold Wind Hat, Cold Wind Pants, and Cold Wind Sneakers. The Cold Wind Series uses the Fengshan Constant Temperature Chip, and all three products offer a temperature range of -30°C to 5°C.

The Cold Wind Series automatically adjusts temperature based on the user’s condition, but it cannot produce heat—this is a pure “cold air” line. Prices are set at 1,299 yuan, 2,699 yuan, and 3,699 yuan respectively.

Dongshan’s Cold Wind Series dropped with zero warning, catching everyone off guard. As the product shot to the top of trending searches, netizens could only exclaim: “Holy crap!”

“Weren’t they supposed to launch in October? How is it out already?!”

“Is this a budget version of the Fengshan Series?”

“I watched the launch event—totally in love with the sneakers!”

…

On May 25th, Fengshan Farm signed a strategic partnership with 21 tech companies. Industry insiders had previously reported that due to production line setup, the Constant Temperature Series wouldn’t be available until mid-October. Now, it had launched two months early!

On the afternoon of July 16, the head of Dongshan gave an interview: “We’re grateful for our strategic partnership with Fengshan Farm. Since finalizing the collaboration, Dongshan Tech has been focused on minimalist temperature control…”

The Fengshan temperature-regulating chip can be set between -50°C and 50°C, offering both cooling and warming functions. Building on the technical support provided by the farm, Dongshan Technology has concentrated on developing the cooling feature. It’s akin to the difference between a cooling-only AC and a full-featured air conditioner—strictly speaking, Dongshan’s cooling system is a pared-down version of Fengshan’s temperature-regulation tech.

“Please launch it early!”

“There’s a Dongshan store right downstairs from my place—can I buy it in person?”

“I want the full Dongshan bundle! Hope they start mass production soon!”

…

Dongshan’s cooling system is like an air conditioner in a furnace—everyone who saw the teaser was eagerly anticipating its release.

…

“Here.” While the entire country was waiting for Dongshan’s cooling system to hit the shelves, in Jiangcheng Hospital, Liu Wensheng walked into the room carrying a fruit basket. Inside were golden-yellow persimmons, looking crisp and delicious.

“They’re not astringent,” Liu Wensheng said as he handed one to Qin Yun.

“You didn’t have to go to all this trouble.”

Qin Yun looked a bit embarrassed. Over the past few weeks, Liu Wensheng had been dropping by every few days, always bringing a basket of fruit—pineapples, lychees, grapes… Even though Qin Yun was in quarantine, he was perfectly healthy, and the fruit always seemed almost too good to be true.

Just as Qin Yun finished speaking, Liu Wensheng waved it off. “They’re from the plantation.”

The plantation had been a reward from the farm’s last upgrade. Ever since acquiring it, the farm had been researching Acid Rain fruit trees. Now, they’d made a breakthrough, and these persimmons were homegrown from the plantation.

Qin Yun rinsed the persimmon under some water and took a bite. Normally, he didn’t like persimmons—they were too sour and astringent. But this one was crisp and refreshing. After two bites, he found himself finishing the whole thing without even realizing it.

“Well?” Liu Wensheng asked.

Qin Yun gave him a thumbs-up.

They chatted for a while, then Qin Yun opened the System Interface.

…

Host Name: Qin Yun

Current Mission: Cultivate 1 billion mu of Off-site Seeds. (67%)

Random Mission: Sell 50 million Temperature Control Units and 50 million Purification Masks. (22%)

Unlocked Scenario: The Beginning of a Disaster (Yellow)

…

Currently, the farm had two main missions: Off-site Seeds and the Dual-Machine Series. After reviewing them, the two turned their attention to the [Unlocked Scenario]. The Beginning of a Disaster was marked in yellow, but had no description.

“A mysterious teaser,” Liu Wensheng joked as he looked at the scenario. Though he called it mysterious, he’d been closely monitoring the Hugua Virus for the past two weeks.

According to the Shuilan Alliance, as of July 15, there had been 725 confirmed cases of Hugua patients worldwide. Symptoms included headaches, fever, and shortness of breath, but most recovered within 36 hours. With the Alliance’s report, global anxiety had shifted to a more relaxed attitude.

Hugua Virus was a minor, treatable virus—one that didn’t seem to pose any real threat.

Longxia Bio Institute confirmed that the Hugua Virus hadn’t mutated, but The Beginning of a Disaster loomed like the Sword of Damocles. The Longxia Team remained on high alert. In recent days, they had ramped up inspections of imported seafood, determined to nip any potential threat in the bud.

At 3 p.m., medical staff took Qin Yun for a physical examination.

After a thorough and professional check-up, Qin Yun and Xiang Qingchuan, along with the others, were found to be in good health. By 5 p.m., they were officially discharged from quarantine.

“Nothing beats the weather outside.”

The moment they stepped out of the hospital, everyone felt an overwhelming sense of relief. They’d been isolated for half a month—it had been a stifling, dreary time. Now, the sunlight outside was dazzling.

At 5:20, the group returned to the farm.

“How was the Arctic?”

“Was it cold?”

…

In the farm’s conference room, the staff greeted them warmly. Because of the hospital quarantine, only Liu Wensheng had been allowed in and out. It had been nearly a full month since they’d all seen each other.

“The Arctic was fine. The hospital, though—way too stuffy.”

“I saw the news online. That wandering AI device looks awesome.”

…

After chatting for a while, Qin Yun opened the System Interface and navigated to [Farm Wishing Pool].

The Wishing Pool was an annual, proactive mission. Qin Yun reviewed it briefly, then typed in his desired reward: Virus Laboratory.

The Wishing Pool allowed for wishes, but the system had strict criteria. The [Virus Laboratory] was a proposal born from discussions about the Hugua Virus and The Beginning of a Disaster.

Once he submitted the wish, everyone watched the System Interface nervously. Just as they thought the wish would be rejected again, the system flashed—and presented three options:

[Basic Virus Laboratory]

[Intermediate Virus Laboratory]

[Advanced Virus Laboratory]

Three choices. One reward.

Everyone stared at the [Advanced Virus Laboratory] in stunned silence.

Based on past experience, the [Virus Laboratory] should’ve been on par with the [Seed Laboratory] or [Technology Laboratory]. The [Seed Laboratory] had only become [Intermediate] after an upgrade. But now… there was an Advanced option right off the bat?

This was the first time since the farm had been bound to the system that a high-level building had appeared.

Half an hour later, after discussions with the Longxia Team, the farm made its decision: the chosen reward would be the [Advanced Virus Laboratory].

“Ding! Congratulations, Host, for selecting the Wishing Pool Mission. System refreshing—”

…

Host Name: Qin Yun

Wishing Pool Reward: Advanced Virus Laboratory

Wishing Pool Mission: Restore 10% of the nation’s greenery to pre-disaster levels and return all soil nationwide to normal condition. (Before the year 3028)

…

The Wishing Pool Mission was brief and to the point.

“Is this a linked mission?”

“A follow-up to the Acid Rain Soil mission…”

…

The Wishing Pool Mission was straightforward. After a moment of stunned silence, everyone realized something crucial: according to the Wishing Pool requirements, there was a possibility that the nation’s soil could return to normal!

In 3028, after the Harma Acid Rain, the nation’s soil had been corroded. The farm had developed Locust Fertilizer and Improved Fertilizer as necessary countermeasures. Although this was just a Wishing Pool Mission, everyone saw a glimmer of hope.