Chapter 143

“Right at the village entrance, next to the bus stop.” On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Zhou Hai answered the phone excitedly.

On November 17, after the approval of the Longbei Protective Forest Reconstruction Project, Longbei began a massive deforestation effort. Due to heavy snowfall, the application of Vitality 01 had to be postponed until after the New Year. Now that the snow had melted, the Forestry Bureau rushed to resume work at the first opportunity.

It was 8:10 a.m., and Zhou Hai had been waiting at the village entrance since early morning for the workers to arrive.

At 8:20, twenty heavy-duty soil tillers approached from the distance.

“Over here!” Zhou Hai waved quickly.

The tillers came to a stop, and one of the workers got out. “This place was hard to find.”

“It just snowed, the roads are still slippery,” Zhou Hai said, offering the worker a cigarette. Half an hour later, both sides headed to the first phase of the Changluo project. This phase was located on the southern side of Changluo Township. The trees had already been felled and the land leveled, leaving only a stretch of open, snow-covered ground.

“Let’s begin,” the engineering team leader said directly.

All twenty tillers roared to life at once. To allow Vitality 01 to integrate more effectively into the soil, the ground would first be thoroughly tilled. Once the surface was completely turned over, Vitality 01 would be sprayed. The entire project was expected to take about a month.

On February 15, the spraying for the first phase in Changluo Township was completed. Next came the tree planting. Longbei planned to plant cold-resistant species such as Korean pine, larch, Manchurian lime, and red willow. To minimize the risk of errors, 3,000 saplings were planted in the early stage in Changluo Township. Given the heavy workload in Longbei, the Forestry Bureau assigned three staff members to the township, and Zhou Hai was officially promoted to Protection Team Leader.

By February 25, all 3,000 saplings had been planted.

“Team Leader Zhou, where should I put these?” That afternoon, Xiao Zhang approached with a toolkit. Xiao Zhang had graduated from university last year and had just been assigned to the forestry station.

Zhou Hai glanced around and said, “Just leave them here. We’ll still need them tomorrow morning.” The saplings were supported by wooden frames, but the frames weren’t very stable. He planned to reinforce them the next day.

Half an hour later, the workers left. Zhou Hai wandered through the newly planted forest. Some of the saplings had just begun to sprout, with only two tiny green buds poking out. After making a full circle, he stopped in front of a walnut tree. It was a fresh Juglans mandshurica sapling, about as thick as a bowl. He stood beside it for a while, then pulled a folded soft tag from his pocket. The tag was labeled: A201.

Zhou Hai tied the tag to the walnut sapling.

Every new tree in the Protective Forest had a code. A201 was the same code as a tree he had planted five years ago with Wang Xiangdong. After the devastating blizzard in Longbei, most of the trees in the Protective Forest had died. He had found this tag two days ago while preparing the land. The walnut sapling now stood exactly where A201 had once been.

“Grow well…” Zhou Hai murmured, filled with hope for the Protective Forest as he secured the tag.

…

[March 1: Longnan plants 30,000 acres of Vitality Protective Forest. Major progress in the national protection project.]

[Long Xia Daily: Luo Hai completes Vitality 01 implementation across the entire city.]

…

Over the following week, television news was filled with reports about Vitality 01.

…

On March 5, Qin Yun opened the System Interface.

Host Name: Qin Yun

Current Mission: Plant 1 billion acres of Off-site Seeds (87% complete), restore 10% of national green coverage to pre-disaster levels, restore national soil to normal conditions (57% complete)

System Points: 1.7 billion

…

Current Off-site Seeds progress: 87%. National soil restoration: 57%.

“It’s almost May now…” Liu Wensheng sighed as he looked at the System Interface. Currently, Vitality 01 had been deployed across 57% of the country. Due to the limited number of locusts available for dispersal, the spraying was expected to be completed by May.

After chatting for a while, Liu Wensheng asked, “Any new missions lately?”

“No,” Qin Yun shook his head.

He had been closely monitoring the mission progress. At the moment, only the Off-site and Soil Restoration missions were active. Beyond that, [The Beginning of a Disaster] was still marked in red.

“Ugh, and the Grouper Substance is stuck too…” Liu Wensheng sighed.

A month ago, the Arctic Biological Station had discovered a substance in animal corpses called Grouper Substance. It could suppress the Hugua Virus, but it was toxic. Over the past month, scientists around the world had been working together to study it, but so far, they hadn’t been able to isolate the compound.

“We’ll have to wait for the Virus Laboratory,” Liu Wensheng said with a wry smile. The Virus Laboratory was a national reward for soil restoration. Right now, it was like trying to cook a gourmet meal with a recipe but no knife. The Virus Laboratory was that sharp knife.

“Cough, cough!” After a few more words, Liu Wensheng was seized by a fit of coughing.

“Do you want some water?” Qin Yun asked quickly. Liu Wensheng had been suffering from Acid Rain Sickness for the past two years and had never fully recovered.

“The dust storms have been bad these past couple of days,” Liu Wensheng waved him off.

It was March 5. Several regions in the southwest of Jinghe had already experienced sandstorms, with visibility dropping to as low as ten meters. Spring had arrived, but with it came an unavoidable reality: the sandstorms were back.

…

“Everyone, secure the support frames and cover them with dustproof sheets!” On the afternoon of March 5, in Flying Sky Ancient City, Gan Province, Fu Mingshu stood beneath the Flying Sky Pagoda, directing the preparations. Two days earlier, Gan Province had issued a severe sandstorm warning. Strong sandstorms were expected between March 7 and March 10.

A year ago, a powerful sandstorm had struck Flying Sky Ancient City, toppling half of the Flying Sky Pagoda. The tower still hadn’t been fully restored, and now another sandstorm was on the way.

“Tighten that corner!” Fu Mingshu shouted. Just then, Wu Qian walked over from a nearby path. Wu Qian, now sixty-three, was a veteran professor in Flying Sky Ancient City and had worked in the ancient city for thirty-seven years.

Seeing him, Fu Mingshu quickly asked, “What brings you here?” Wu Qian was his restoration mentor and had been on leave in the ancient city recently.

“I’m fine,” Wu Qian said, holding a cup of tea and watching the protective work closely.

At five in the afternoon, reinforcement scaffolding was installed outside the Flying Sky Pagoda. The scaffolding was wrapped tightly in blue tarpaulin, leaving no gaps for air or light.

The Flying Sky Pagoda stood seventy-two meters tall. Earlier that year, the ancient city had considered building a ring of structures around the tower. However, such construction would have compromised the surrounding soil structure. After repeated surveys and assessments, they had no choice but to preserve the tower’s current state, at least temporarily.

“Let’s hope nothing goes wrong,” Wu Qian sighed as she looked up at the Flying Sky Pagoda.

By seven in the evening, the reinforcement work was complete. Wu Qian and Fu Mingshu headed to the unit’s cafeteria. Since dinner hours had passed, only a few researchers remained, scattered across the tables. Everyone wore masks, their expressions and movements reflecting a weary familiarity with the routine.

Wu Qian sat down with a bowl of rice porridge and pulled off her mask. “Still can’t take these off, huh?”

Ever since the Hugua Virus outbreak last year, wearing masks and observing isolation protocols had become part of daily life. Thanks to the fully sealed restoration efforts, the Flying Sky Ancient City had been relatively spared, but masks were still mandatory for meetings and even meals. Dining tables were spaced out, with one left empty between each occupied one.

After Wu Qian spoke, Fu Mingshu took a bite of her bun and said, “Maybe it’ll just fade away like the Cockroach Disease…”

The Hugua Virus had been spreading for eight months. Many international media outlets speculated that Hugua H1 was a mutated strain of the Cockroach Disease that had emerged eight hundred years ago.

The Cockroach Disease originated from Pisente and, like the Hugua Virus, was linked to Arctic organisms. But while the Cockroach Disease had claimed thirty million lives, the Hugua Virus had caused 720,000 deaths in its early stages. Since the widespread adoption of Hugua Masks, the death toll had steadily declined. By February, global fatalities had dropped below ten thousand.

The Cockroach Disease disappeared on its own after three years. Many now hoped the Hugua Virus would do the same.

After Fu Mingshu finished speaking, Wu Qian thought for a moment. “The Cockroach Disease died out because of global cooling. Hugua Virus is different.”

From December to January, the world experienced the most extreme snow and ice conditions in recorded history. But instead of killing the virus, the cold seemed to fuel its evolution. Twelve new Hugua variants emerged globally during that period.

“Yeah, true…” Fu Mingshu scratched her head.

“Don’t dwell on it. Let’s just focus on our work these next couple of days,” Wu Qian said.

…

Over the following two days, the team at Flying Sky Ancient City worked overtime to reinforce their sandstorm defenses. On the afternoon of March 7, after covering all the vehicles with protective tarps, a massive sandstorm swept in from beyond the city walls. Dense, dark clouds of dust filled the sky, and by 3 p.m., daylight had all but vanished.

This sandstorm was far worse than the one from the previous year. News outlets across the country issued sandstorm alerts. By the evening of March 8, Flying Sky Ancient City lost all signal reception. With no internet or communication, everyone stayed indoors, counting the days by the sound of the wind.

On the morning of March 10, the sandstorm finally subsided. The moment it was safe, people rushed outside.

A meter-high layer of sand had piled up at the door. Workers used bulldozers to clear the way. Wu Qian and Fu Mingshu were among the first to climb to the top of the ancient city wall. From their vantage point, they looked toward the Flying Sky Pagoda. All that remained visible was a sagging sheet of blue plastic. The tarp leaned precariously to one side, weighed down by thick layers of dust.

“Do you think it’s okay?” Fu Mingshu asked.

“No idea,” Wu Qian replied, shaking her head.

The Flying Sky Pagoda had tilted 73 degrees last year. After enduring such a severe sandstorm, neither of them said it aloud, but both felt a deep sense of unease.

…

“Global Daily: Massive fish die-off discovered in the Campesheng Strait. Widespread degradation of Campesheng seaweed beds…”

“This degradation is linked to the recent extreme snowstorms and rapid global warming.”

“Shuilan Alliance: As of March 3031, global seaweed coverage has declined by 37% compared to 3027.”

…

While Wu Qian and Fu Mingshu were concerned about the Flying Sky Pagoda, the rest of the world was focused on another crisis: the rapid decline of marine plant life.

“My dad’s a sailor. He says the Mali Sea is full of dead fish and kelp now, and some of the seaweed is starting to rot.”

“It started a couple years ago. With the weather getting weirder, it’s only gotten worse.”

“Oh no, is kelp going to get more expensive?”

“Not just more expensive.”

“What else?”

“You’ll be out of breath!”

…

Online, discussions about the shrinking seaweed coverage were everywhere. The decline was far more aggressive than anyone had anticipated. By March 30, according to monitoring from the Shuilan Alliance, the global loss of seaweed had risen to 42% due to recent climate shifts.

And finally, people understood what “out of breath” really meant…

Oxygen levels were dropping.