Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 342: Chapter 332: Searching for an Exit

For the next few days, Tang Mo kept busy organizing the packages at the bottom of the canyon. She had no idea how long she’d be stuck here, so it was best to make sure her supplies were well-stocked.

While sorting through everything, Tang Mo also studied the surrounding terrain, trying to determine if waiting for military rescue was truly their only way out.

After many days, she finally figured it out. The mountains formed a complete circle, enclosing them.

They were now inside this ring of mountains, with no path leading to the outside from the lower elevations.

And climbing up and over to the other side was an utterly impossible task. The mountains were simply too high. Setting aside their steepness, the temperature and thin oxygen at the summit were more than any normal person could withstand.

Before all this, the government had developed the area as a tourist destination by blasting a tunnel through one of the mountains. They had carved it straight through the mountainside, building a road that led to the other end before winding its way down.

But due to the earthquake, that road had completely collapsed. Carving out a new one would be no easy feat.

Tang Mo even felt that since no one was sending supplies anymore, they had likely been completely abandoned.

’The apocalypse is here,’ she mused. ’Do people on the outside really have the spare energy to rescue us?’

Tang Mo had seen the completely collapsed road. ’Restoring it to its original state is absolutely impossible.’

’If we want to get out, we’ll have to bore a new hole through a thinner part of a nearby mountain.’

’As long as we can make an opening, even without a winding road, I can get down the mountain and head home with my spiritual power.’

But...

Tang Mo stared at the mountain, thinking long and hard. ’This isn’t a task I can accomplish alone.’

’Boring through a mountain isn’t easy. I may have spiritual power to help, but this can’t be done with brute force alone.’

’It’s a matter of architecture. A tunnel has already been cut through this mountain once. Even though it collapsed, that section’s load-bearing capacity is gone.’

’If we start digging in a random spot, it could compromise the stability of the entire mountain.’

’The mountain may look immense, but this is something we can’t afford to be reckless about.’

’The location will determine if a tunnel can even be made, and how difficult it will be. In short, it’s not something I can figure out on my own. A job for a professional requires a professional.’

’But where am I supposed to find a professional now?’

The packages in the canyon were almost all sorted. The cave was completely stuffed, with no room for anything else.

With nothing else to do, Tang Mo started spending her days sitting outside, feeling the wind on her skin and basking in the sun, lost in thought. She wondered what other ways there might be to escape.

’What on earth has happened to the outside world? And have the parents really abandoned their children here?’

’In an apocalypse... abandonment is probably a common occurrence.’

Everyone at the school had long since grown used to Qiao Jin’s odd behavior. At this point, even if she did something crazy, it would seem perfectly in character.

People automatically kept their distance from Qiao Jin, which suited Tang Mo just fine. No one bothered her while she was lost in thought.

In truth, no one had the energy to bother Qiao Jin anymore. After all, the food supply had been cut off for over a week. The school’s reserves were nearly gone, and they were already down to one meal a day.

"Xiao Jin, what are you thinking about?"

Teacher Chen sat down next to her. She was probably the only person here who cared about Qiao Jin.

"Teacher, is there anyone here who knows about architecture?"

"Why do you ask?"

Teacher Chen looked at Qiao Jin. ’This girl has been getting stranger and stranger these past few days,’ she thought. ’It’s different from her usual introversion. There’s a... depth to her now that’s hard to read.’

"It’s nothing. I was just wondering, if people from the outside come to rescue us, where would they dig the tunnel from? It’s a pointless thought, I know, but it’s nice to have something to hope for."

Teacher Chen understood immediately. ’Xiao Jin is just like everyone else; she wants to get out. That’s why she’s been acting so strangely.’

’But...’ she recalled. Just a few days ago, the teachers had discussed it in a meeting. They had all probably been abandoned by the outside world.

’We can’t get any information from the outside. We’re trapped in here like crickets in a jar, just waiting to die.’

’But we can’t possibly tell the children that. They’ve never experienced any real hardship. If they heard news like this, they’d probably break down.’

"Our school’s principal comes from a family of architects. When he was young, he majored in the subject at Q University."

"The principal..."

’So there actually is someone who knows about architecture!’

A surge of joy went through Tang Mo, and she was about to ask for more details when a sudden commotion cut her off.

"We’re all starving! Why does the principal get to eat such a lavish meal!"

"It’s not fair!"

"Yeah! It’s not fair! We want to eat too! Two meals a day, or nobody eats!"

Amid the chaotic shouts, Tang Mo quickly pieced together what was happening.

It turned out that it was the principal’s lunchtime, and as usual, a teacher was bringing his meal to his room.

The teacher carried a large tray, laden with four or five plates and a bowl. Each dish was covered with a lid, hiding the contents from view.

Ever since they’d discovered the road had collapsed, the principal had eaten like this every day—three meals a day, without fail.

In the beginning, when food was still plentiful, no one had raised any objections.

But now, with everyone unable to even get their fill from a single daily meal, they could no longer tolerate this blatant abuse of power.

Finally, hunger had caused the conflict to erupt completely.

"We want to see the principal!"

"Yeah! We want to see the principal! We want him to give us an explanation."

Once someone started, the rest of the students were instantly emboldened. All their pent-up dissatisfaction was unleashed as they swarmed the door to the principal’s room.

Seeing the students begin to riot, Teacher Chen and several other teachers rushed over to block the doorway to the principal’s room.

"Go back! Have you all eaten your fill? Got nothing better to do?"

"Anyone who doesn’t go back now won’t get a single meal tomorrow."

The teachers formed a tight blockade in front of the principal’s door, as if they had planned this in advance.

In the end, the students were still just kids. They were still getting one meal a day, so things weren’t completely desperate yet. After being threatened by a few teachers, they didn’t dare say anything more. One by one, they hung their heads and trudged back to their rooms, muttering under their breath.

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