Typhoon Approaching

"Despite international condemnation, the island nation has now discharged 340,000 tons of contaminated water. Relevant personnel are assessing the potential harm..."

"Trace amounts of radiation have been detected in some aquatic products... exceeding safety limits..."

The wind howled outside as night fell. Xu Chen stared absentmindedly at the small television his roommate had brought into their dorm. The news was on, and he felt that life was almost a joke. He had transmigrated to a parallel universe, yet those Japanese had still followed him here to cause trouble.

"Old Xu, look at those Japanese. They really can't do a decent thing. A couple of days ago, the news reported high cancer rates along their coast, and people were protesting. They still haven't stopped, but the Japanese are discharging it anyway."

The speaker sounded indignant. Xu Chen looked over and saw his roommate in this new life, Song Tian, who had brought the television over for the time being.

After Xu Chen transferred to the medical program, he had been assigned to a dorm with only two people because the other rooms had already been allocated. The two of them weren't even in the same major, but despite that, they usually got along well. Their friendship had reached the point of "what's yours is mine, and what's mine is still mine."

Apart from their wallets and phones, they lost everything, and whatever went missing was sure to turn up on the other person's bed.

"Little Coward, you've got that wrong. They weren't human to begin with, so how could they do anything decent?"

Xu Chen didn't mince words. If he could get in a couple of insults, he certainly wouldn't be too lazy to open his mouth.

"But... honestly, I'm a little worried about how this discharge will affect our coastal and inland areas."

Song Tian was taken aback too, but then reassured him. "Don't worry. If it's all nuclear wastewater at this level, the contamination will be limited to the ocean and only affect the coast. As for the tritium that can enter the water cycle, I asked an upperclassman about it. Its impact is limited."

The news anchor suddenly paused and pressed a hand to his earpiece. His expression turned serious.

"Little Coward, look. Is something about to happen?" Xu Chen had kept his eyes on the television and seen everything the anchor did.

Song Tian glanced over, then fixed his gaze on the screen. "Looks like it. But tell me, with things the way they are now, what big event could there be?"

"Why bother guessing? Let's just keep listening."

The phone in Xu Chen's pocket vibrated, but he only touched it, his eyes still on the television.

"An emergency announcement to the entire nation. An emergency announcement to the entire nation."

"By government decision, our country is activating a level-one response to a major public health emergency. Our country is activating a level-one response to a major public health emergency."

At the same time, air-raid sirens began to sound outside the dorm. Xu Chen could sense the entire building stirring, and lights began coming on one by one in the dorm building that had been dark against the night.

From the voices of a few guys in the dorm building with powerful lungs, it was clear they were hopping around in a panic.

"What's going on? Who's launching an air raid?"

"Nukes are coming! Nukes are coming!"

"Awoo~~ Awoo~~"

They all looked as though they were hoping for chaos.

His phone was buzzing nonstop too, along with Song Tian's. Neither had stopped.

"According to investigations, the island nation unilaterally concealed the truth and discharged over ten thousand tons of untreated water. The Academy of Sciences and the meteorological authorities have stated that this will pose a major threat to public health in our country."

"The typhoon is making landfall..."

"Fuck, I knew it. They're worse than animals."

Song Tian shouted so loudly that he nearly drowned out the sustained wail of the air-raid siren outside. His voice drew Xu Chen's attention, and Song Tian looked angrily back at him.

"Old Xu, I was wrong just now. This is going to have a huge impact. If it's untreated water, and with a typhoon about to make landfall..."

"The tritium will enter the inland areas through the water cycle?" Xu Chen had heard about it and knew a little.

"More than that." Song Tian pointed to the coast on the map on the television. "Strong winds over the sea can produce radioactive aerosols that can be blown into every inhabited place on the coast."

Xu Chen understood why the level-one response had been activated.

If it wasn't handled properly, the coastal areas would be hard to save. Even inland areas reached by the water cycle would be heavily affected. To put it plainly, the risk of cancer would skyrocket.

Although he was a medical student who had only just enrolled and hadn't learned much, he understood how enormous and lasting a strain this would put on the country's medical care. It was no exaggeration to say that, if left unchecked, the healthcare system would certainly collapse.

"All residents should temporarily shelter in their homes, in major covered locations, or in civil defense shelters. Follow instructions and obey evacuation orders... Do not go outside in the rain, do not come into contact with rainwater, and do not eat food contaminated by rainwater..."

Xu Chen took out his phone. It was full of emergency text messages from national, provincial, city, and township authorities. One message wasn't enough; they had sent several in succession. There were even calls coming in. Xu Chen answered one, and it was an emergency broadcast too.

"Our country is taking mandatory measures to stop the island nation from further discharging contaminated water and to stop this disaster..."

"This is serious now," Song Tian murmured as he watched the television. "Old Xu, call your family. I have a feeling it'll be hard to get in touch with them or go back later."

Xu Chen thought about it and agreed. To be honest, although he had felt out of place when he was first born into this world, his parents in this life had no idea he was a transmigrator. Even though they were first-time parents, they had taken attentive care of him. He had long since come to see them as his family in this world and become a part of it.

Now that something so serious had happened, he was indeed very worried about their safety.

Fortunately, the emergency had come so suddenly that many people hadn't thought to contact their families. The phone networks weren't congested yet, so Xu Chen quickly managed to get through to his family.

"Ah, yeah, okay, okay. I'll listen to Grandpa Yang, so don't worry... Remember to tell my dad too..."

After hanging up, Xu Chen looked at Song Tian. "Little Coward, why aren't you calling?"

Song Tian looked at his phone and smiled. "There's no one I need to call. If anyone calls, it'll be them calling me."

Xu Chen was taken aback and didn't understand.

"My family situation is a bit complicated..."

Xu Chen nodded in understanding.

Although he didn't understand the situation, acting this way made him look wiser.

Before long, the campus loudspeakers began broadcasting again, repeating what had been said on the news.

As one of the foremost inland universities in the parallel universe, Central Comprehensive University had a comprehensive range of systems and facilities, including this warning system. Even though it had been built nearly a dozen years ago, it could still do its job promptly.

The university leadership also received the notice and called a meeting after working hours. A forward-thinking leader immediately contacted the campus cafeterias, shops, and suppliers to coordinate with them and keep supplies flowing onto campus.

It wasn't just the university.

The military and government also received orders and began making frequent deployments. Local authorities checked grain reserves and water supply stations and mobilized the militia to await orders to provide support. Transport hubs were placed under tighter control. Throughout the country, soldiers and civilians acted as one, countless orders were carried out precisely, and the entire country continued to function perfectly and methodically according to its emergency plans.

It seemed that this disaster was merely a small trial. The country might face setbacks, but it would ultimately overcome them.

Her journey had been rough and fraught with hardship and disaster. She had known glory and low points alike, but she had never bowed her head or stopped moving. With every trial, she was reborn from the ashes and strode forward.

Yet strange things were happening where Xu Chen couldn't see them. Whether they were good or bad, who could know?