69: Chapter 69: The Rainy Season

The atmosphere inside the captain's quarters of the Cloud Top Fortress was peaceful and serene.

Zhou An leaned back comfortably in his newly upgraded ergonomic chair, holding a glass of iced spirit fruit juice in his hand.

He took a gulp, and the rich spiritual energy melted down his esophagus, the refreshing sensation making him involuntarily squint his eyes in contentment.

On the holographic projection before him, the public chat channel of District 997 was scrolling frantically at a speed barely perceptible to the naked eye.

The two district-wide announcements from earlier were like a depth charge thrown into a calm lake, blasting everyone out of hiding.

"Damn it! What kind of trash game is this! I just finished gathering the materials to repair my airship and was about to go in and make a killing, but the system tells me the adventure ended early?! Refund!"

"Be content, you guy above! I barely lasted an hour in there before my defensive line shattered, three of my four teammates died, and I had to crawl my way out! That's no place for humans; it's better that it's closed!"

"Exactly, I didn't even see a shadow of a monster before my shields dropped. This difficulty is purely designed to get people killed!"

"Am I the only one concerned about the second announcement? Unknown biological invasion? What the hell is that?"

"What are you afraid of! If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up! The leaders of the major guilds aren't pushovers!"

"Exactly! And even if the worst comes to worst, this aerial world is boundless; we can just go around it. Our current vehicles can easily hit speeds of two or three hundred kilometers per hour. If we can't beat them, can't we just outrun them?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! As long as I don't go below ten thousand meters, the abyss can't catch me. Keep the music playing, keep on dancing!"

Watching the blindly optimistic remarks in the channel, Zhou An's action of drinking the juice paused slightly.

"How naive..."

He knew all too well just how terrifying those high-dimensional beings were. Two or three hundred kilometers per hour? In front of those bizarre entities, that was nothing more than a slightly faster tin can.

Zhou An didn't post in the channel but instead shifted his gaze to the regional survival count in the top right corner of the screen:

[Current regional survivors: 371,045 / 5,000,000]

Before the adventure began, there were over 400,000 people. In just a few short days, over 40,000 had simply evaporated! These 40,000 weren't the cannon fodder from the early days who lacked self-preservation skills, but elites who had survived four months of brutal elimination and even banded together to form guilds!

"A single large-scale adventure is just a high-powered meat grinder."

Zhou An set down the empty juice glass and let out a long sigh.

However, based on his past experience, once a high-mortality large-scale event ended, the system usually wouldn't immediately try to wipe everyone out. There should be a relatively long period of stable development ahead, allowing survivors to recuperate and digest the loot they had just acquired.

This was excellent news for Zhou An.

Muzi's 5,000-square-meter [Cultivation Space] had just finished upgrading, and those few Moon-Glitter Grade mother plants had also been planted; it was the perfect time for them to take root, sprout, and snowball.

However, no sooner had this thought crossed Zhou An's mind than the system's cold, ruthless synthesized voice rang out abruptly in everyone's ears once again:

[District-wide Announcement: Regional climate system is resetting...]

[Current phase detected as ended. A brand-new survival cycle—'Endless Rainy Season'—is about to begin!]

[Countdown: 24 hours.]

[Climate Warning: This 'Rainy Season' will last for two months. During this period, the sky will face continuous large-scale heavy precipitation, extreme hail, strong convective thunderstorms, and unknown cloud anomalies.]

[System Tip: Rainwater may carry traces of corrosive and spiritual energy disruption effects. Survivors are advised to ensure vehicle sealing and energy reserves. Wishing you all a smooth voyage through the wind and rain!]

After the system broadcast ended, the previously noisy public chat channel became even more heated, with everyone complaining about the system.

"Rain?"

Zhou An raised an eyebrow and sat up straight.

When surviving in the sky, what one feared most was harsh, extreme weather.

Two months of thunderstorms and heavy rain without seeing the sun meant that most low-level vehicles relying on solar power or simple wind power generation would completely lose their energy supply. And those survivors without enclosed cabins would have to endure sixty days in the cold, damp, and slightly corrosive rain!

"This game really doesn't let anyone have a moment of peace."

...

The long rainy season, just as the system had warned, arrived without mercy.

Outside the window was endless torrential rain; the lead-gray cumulonimbus clouds seemed to be pressing down on the fortress's protective shield, with pale lightning snakes flashing from time to time.

But inside the [Cloud Top Fortress], the climate control system locked the temperature firmly at a comfortable 24 degrees, and the air was even filled with the faint, fresh scent of spiritual herbs.

In the blink of an eye, half a month passed by in a rush.

During this period of voyage, which was almost completely isolated from the world, the team members were all busy with their own tasks.

Muzi spent all day immersed in the 5,000-square-meter plantation tending to those Moon-Glitter Grade mother plants; Zhang Ming and his wife were in the kitchen constantly developing new, high-grade recipes; and Luo Ning locked herself in the second-floor laboratory, where weird explosions and maniacal laughter could be heard every day.

As for Zhou An, he had recently become completely obsessed with fitness.

In the newly opened gravity training room on the fourth floor of the fortress, Zhou An was shirtless, performing extreme weighted squats.

His muscles were as sharp and defined as an ancient Greek sculpture, sweat sliding down his full pectorals, every inch of definition containing explosive power.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Boss, if you keep training like this, I'm afraid that before you even start fighting, your muscles will burst through your battle armor first."

Luo Ning passed by, biting on a nutritional paste, and leaned against the doorframe, making a ruthless remark.

"What do you know? No matter how strong a vehicle is, it's just an external object. One's own physical body is the foundation of everything."

Zhou An set down the equipment, the metal barbell hitting the floor with a dull, heavy thud. He picked up a towel to wipe off his sweat and replied testily, "It's not like I can call you to pilot the mecha to save me every time a monster gets in my face in the future."

...

By dinnertime, everyone gathered in the central dining room on the first floor.

Today's atmosphere seemed a bit strange. Zhang Ming and his wife, Lin Qing, sat at the table, facing a sumptuous dinner cooked with high-grade ingredients, but they were hesitant to pick up their chopsticks. Their expressions looked both excited and carried a deep sense of awkwardness and apology.

"What's wrong, Old Zhang? Did you not get the heat right for this pot of porridge today?" Zhou An pulled out a chair and sat down, asking casually.

Zhang Ming took a deep breath, suddenly stood up, and pulled Lin Qing with him, about to bow to Zhou An.

"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing!"

Zhou An was quick-witted and caught them both.

"If you have something to say, just say it; don't pull this kind of stunt."

"Boss..."

Zhang Ming's eyes were a bit red, and his voice trembled as he spoke.

"Qingqing… she's pregnant. We tested it ourselves with a test strip; it's already been almost a month."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire dining room instantly went quiet.