"What?" Old Jin felt a buzz in his head. He stumbled, almost falling, but Xiao Guang quickly extended his hand to support the teacher.
"What's going on? How long has it been? What happened?" Xiao Guang hurriedly inquired.
"Let's talk inside," the young woman replied politely.
"Alright," Xiao Guang answered.
The three followed the young woman carrying a child, walking ahead for about two minutes until they reached a cave entrance. The young woman called softly inside, "Someone's back."
In an instant, a small group of people emerged from inside, around eleven or twelve individuals. They looked at them with hopeful eyes, yet like the young woman earlier, they held a mix of relief at seeing their own kind and a tinge of sadness.
An indescribable ache filled Xiao Guang's heart as he saw these people. Among them were elderly men, elderly women, young women, several children, and two young girls. Notably absent were young men. This scene evoked a sense of foreboding, causing both Old Jin and Jun Ya's hearts to sink.
"This is Old Jin. They were attacked by giant rats over a month ago and were taken away by eagles. Now they're back," the young woman explained.
"Ah, Old Jin."
"Yes, yes. The dean intended to organize a search afterward, but things got delayed."
"Yeah, there were too many things happening."
"...," a few elderly people sighed.
Old Jin was gradually recovering his composure. He observed that most of the people here were elderly, weak, or infirm. "Could you please tell us what happened after we left?" he inquired slowly.
One elderly man across from him, evidently holding a certain authority among the group, began narrating, and the three came to understand the sequence of events.
Since the trio had been taken away by the eagles and giant rats, the dean and the commandos had worked to clean up the aftermath, tend to the injured, organize the cave, and guard against attacks from large wild creatures and nocturnal predatory insects. Crucially, the residents' food and sustenance were of paramount concern.
Upon their arrival, everything needed to be built from scratch. Despite the presence of many technicians and experts, the rushed circumstances hindered immediate progress. The number of military personnel responsible for protecting the town was limited, and the few hundred individuals had to both defend and hunt. In this unarmed, primeval jungle, with humans dwarfed by the size of ants, hunting became an enigma—what to hunt and who would be the hunter?
The dean and a few commandos found solace in their relatively decent luck. Apart from the giant rats that came on the first day, there hadn't been other predatory animals. Yet, the challenges came in the form of limited and monotonous food options.
People researched edible plants, identifying protein-rich options like beans. After a few days of rest and consideration, the scientific teams estimated that the low-lying areas to the south would be unsuitable due to flooding. Turning their attention to the northern mountains, they deemed it safer and more suitable for establishing a base. Thus, they prepared to move there as a whole. Criticizing the idea of camping in trees with just a small group was valid, but with thousands of elderly, weak, women, and children, surviving in the treetops seemed unreliable from the start.
During this period, the dean redistributed and reorganized the manpower. The young and strong formed the reserve team, led by biologists and geologists to investigate resources and gather food. The elderly, weak, women, and children were assigned tasks like processing food and clothing. Xiao Guang noticed that some were wearing simple linen-like garments, indicating they had discovered raw materials suitable for making clothes.
The limited number of soldiers were employed for guarding and reconnaissance. Due to the lack of tools, everything relied on manual labor. Soon, the strain on personnel became evident, to the extent that the plan to send out a team to search for and rescue Old Jin and the others became temporarily infeasible. Furthermore, due to consecutive days of sleeplessness, the dean fell ill with a fever. The shortage of medicine meant that many patients couldn't be quickly treated, making the situation increasingly dire.
On another front, benefiting from the strength of their collective effort, despite lacking the experience and perspective of soaring through the skies, scientists like Old Jin deduced, based on the nearby vegetation and climate, that this was likely an island.
Utilizing their abundant wisdom, the scientists endeavored to create the simplest civilization possible using nearby resources. However, no matter how great their mental acumen and knowledge, it was impossible to leap from an era devoid of technology to suddenly surpassing it. This was a truly savage land, and even if you possessed abundant knowledge, you couldn't instantly forge a gun. First, you needed iron ore, then machine tools, instruments, and so on—everything based on industrial materials, none of which were available here. The only fire they could discover and utilize was from burning wood, as they didn't even have charcoal.
The challenges were immense, yet with the synergistic effect of organized efforts, everyone was brimming with confidence. They believed that once they solved the issue of survival, they would surely find a way back home. Besides, the outsiders must be diligently searching for them; hope persisted until the arrival of the rainy season.
The scientific team led by the dean couldn't have been oblivious to this, but they analyzed that the rainy season wouldn't flood this area. Moreover, the likelihood of large predatory animals passing through was almost nonexistent—what happened with the rats that day was an exception.
The scientific team's assessment was correct, yet one thing couldn't be foreseen: luck.
Initially, the continuous rainy season didn't affect them much. Aside from the somewhat limited food stores, people believed they could endure the rainy season. Sometimes, watching the rain from the cave entrance even became a form of entertainment.
Until one day, the day of the heaviest downpour. It began with the sound of distant combat capturing everyone's attention. Two rats were engaged in a fierce battle on a distant hillside. Covered in mud, they appeared exceptionally ferocious. Before long, their fight brought them onto a giant rock. The caves people chose were concave, designed to prevent water from entering diagonally even during heavy rain. The largest cave could accommodate several thousand people. The claws of these two giant rats fought relentlessly. Their size far exceeded that of regular household rats in the real world—perhaps as big as small cats.
After a thrilling bout, one rat was defeated. Perhaps the food stored in the cave had attracted them, but the victorious rat surprisingly turned its attention to the cave. With a few digs, the cave couldn't hold, and panic spread among the people inside. The overhead stones began to fall, causing injuries and even fatalities. The scene resembled a catastrophe.
People had previously set up crude, large crossbows both inside and outside the cave, but most were destroyed by the rats before they could be fired. In this critical moment, at the command of the commandos, soldiers and young men were mobilized. However, many were washed away by the rain, disappearing without a trace. Ultimately, after great sacrifices, they managed to draw the crossbows and hit the rat, which fled injured.
The old man spoke in a calm tone, but his words were heart-wrenching. Though his voice remained steady, Old Jin sighed repeatedly. Xiao Guang remained silent, while Jun Ya had already started weeping softly. Those around them had reddened eyes, as if remembering a moment they'd rather forget.
"Tell us about the losses," Old Jin prompted after a pause. It was the most crucial topic at hand.
"After the giant rat attack, around several thousand young people and soldiers were swept away by the flash floods. Only a small fraction managed to return to the cave. Most of those left were the elderly, women, and children. About half were injured. The cave was on the verge of collapse, with cracks everywhere, leaking water. Dean Mi had a persistent fever that never receded. After he got injured during the event, he collapsed and never got up again. The mayor and a group of administrators, too, most..."
"Dean Mi," Old Jin clenched his fist, his seated form swaying, as if about to fall.
Xiao Guang hurriedly supported him. "Teacher, take it easy!" As he helped Old Jin steady himself, Jun Ya quickly stopped lifting the water jug. "Dad, don't scare me. Have some water, don't rush, okay?" Her voice quivered with tears.
Old Jin took a deep breath, glanced at the concerned faces around him, and said, "It's okay. Please continue. What happened next?"
"Later, despite patching things up, we managed to endure the rainy season. Due to the shortage of medicine, some injured individuals suffered. The cave began leaking, growing damp, and ultimately couldn't hold up any longer. Many children were among those who didn't make it to the end," the old man's tone grew increasingly heavy.
"Subsequently, we finally made it through the rainy season. We deliberated anew and decided to leave this place. The majority headed north, to higher ground, in a bid for survival. So, we packed our belongings and departed together." After finishing his tale, the old man closed his eyes as if profoundly fatigued.
After listening to this tale of tragedy from the old man, there was a long silence before anyone spoke.
Xiao Guang was the first to break it. "Why didn't you and a few others leave?"
"We wanted to wait. Those taken away by the floods, whenever they have a chance, they'll surely return."
Xiao Guang glanced at these elderly, women, and children. From their expressions, he discerned their resolve.
Jun Ya had already cried to the point of tearful exhaustion. Without a doubt, these elderly, women, and children were waiting for their sons, husbands, and fathers.
The old man lifted his head, looking at Old Jin. "We chose to stay voluntarily. The organization talked to us many times, urged us to leave, but we made our decision and won't change it."
"There's a lone surviving scout with a very small team. Initially, they would come here periodically. Considering the timing, today should be their last visit. The lack of manpower everywhere is dire, and they need protection too. Plus, the journey itself is perilous; they can't afford losses along the way."