Chapter 1 The Difficulty of Evacuation

Upon hearing Fang Senyan's words, Zi frowned.

"Such a request is too difficult. Evacuating the entire town sounds easy, but the key is we have no authority. How can we convince them to leave?"

"Besides, it's 4:40 AM. If you want them to evacuate, there needs to be a destination."

"Furthermore, when organizing the evacuation, we must consider the elderly, the weak, the sick, and the disabled. Any carelessness or rash action in this environment could lead to disaster."

Fang Senyan smiled.

"I, Old Charlie, and Black Bro will handle the evacuation."

"Zi, you manage a company with tens of thousands of employees. Who else could organize an evacuation better than you? Come with us first; the mayor is crucial to this operation."

"Kurutguo will pinpoint the evacuation location for us. Reef, you'll be the mobile force, organizing manpower, and the medical team will prepare for emergencies. Okay, let's move out!"

Zi rolled her eyes but didn't say much.

Fang Senyan's first task was to find the mayor. This loving father was still with his son in the hospital, making him easy to locate.

After finding the mayor, Fang Senyan didn't waste much effort in pulling him aside and saying,

"Mayor, according to reliable intelligence, the beautiful town of Forks is about to be submerged by a mudslide. We have, at most, forty minutes."

The mayor was stunned.

"Is that so? But I haven't received any notification from higher authorities. Forgive me, my friend, but rain like this occurs hundreds of times a year in Forks, and this town has existed for over three hundred and ten years..."

The chubby man clearly didn't believe him. Fang Senyan couldn't possibly tell him the world was ending and that his superiors were too busy to care about Forks, nor could he introduce Kurutguo as a mountain cyclops with unique abilities... Therefore, Fang Senyan opted for the simplest and most direct method of persuasion: violence.

Black Bro pressed the gun against the mayor's temple, coldly saying,

"Sir, sorry for the offense. With the lives of thousands of people in this town at stake, you must believe what we say."

Mayor Stellah was obviously not a brave man. He began to tremble violently, sweating profusely.

"Sirs, I can get five or six hundred thousand dollars in cash, plus jewelry. Please don't hurt me or my family!"

Fang Senyan raised his chin at Zi and said calmly,

"He's all yours. I have important matters to attend to."

Zi nodded.

"Okay, go ahead."

After Fang Senyan and Mogansha walked a dozen meters away, Fang Senyan thoughtfully said,

"The mayor doesn't seem to have much authority. He may not be able to mobilize everyone to evacuate. Charlie, any suggestions?"

Old Charlie followed closely, elegantly saying,

"Master, it's simple. I just looked at the town's architecture. It's not scattered but divided into five connected areas. For those unwilling to leave, we'll just have to force them out."

Fang Senyan looked at him with interest.

"How do you force them?"

Old Charlie said gently and coldly,

"Set fire."

"In this weather, with torrential rain soaking the houses, it would take at least an hour for the fire to spread and collapse a house. Therefore, the flames and smoke will only create a threat and panic. The mudslide should arrive before anyone burns to death. So, pouring flammable material and setting fires to force people out is a good choice."

"Do as you say," Fang Senyan said decisively. "Mogansha, starting a fire in this climate won't be easy. Let's find gasoline and get this done within fifteen minutes."

As Fang Senyan entered the town's only gas station, a piercing alarm blared across the town. The mayor's stammering voice was amplified many times through the broadcast, saying,

"Emergency orange alert from Mortgen City! Mudslide imminent! Mudslide imminent! Please note, this is not a joke or a drill! All residents, get up immediately and come to the road in front of the hospital as quickly as possible. We will set up a rescue escape route there! Repeat, this is not a drill; the mudslide could arrive at any moment!"

"Zi's efficiency is impressive," Fang Senyan nodded to himself, then yelled at the bewildered gas station employee,

"What are you waiting for! I'm here to inform you! If you don't want to be buried under forty feet of mud and rock, leave now! Also, prepare a tanker truck and drive it to the hospital immediately. Without materials to start a fire in this damn weather, everyone will freeze to death!"

The gas station employees panicked but seemed cooperative and didn't question Fang Senyan. Fang Senyan and Mogansha drove off in a high-displacement Ford Raptor. Its 280-liter fuel tank, when full, would be sufficient for their arson, not to mention Fang Senyan also hauled a full oil drum onto the truck.

Under the mayor's hoarse shouting, the town descended into chaotic disarray. At this moment, Zi began to demonstrate her exceptional organizational skills. Banners recruiting volunteers were quickly hung up, and volunteers wearing the hospital's readily available white coats were divided into groups of three and deployed to areas prone to traffic congestion to assist or direct people towards evacuation routes.

Old Charlie was responsible for driving cars, parking one every hundred meters to use the bright headlights as streetlights, guiding the way to safety. Fortunately, the safe area Kurutguo found was less than two kilometers from the town.

At this point, Zi could no longer monitor the mayor. However, she frankly told the mayor,

"The mudslide will happen in half an hour at most. I'm swamped and don't have time to watch you. You can have the sheriff monitor all my actions. Do you think I'm running here to amuse you?"

"Or, Mr. Stellah, you can now overturn everything you said and reveal the truth, letting the townspeople return to their homes. But half an hour later, you will be tormented by the tragedy for the rest of your life. You will spend the rest of your days in repentance and suffering!"

At this moment, the mayor also felt an indescribable pressure emanating from the surrounding mountains. He turned pale and silently nodded, choosing to cooperate. He was not a man of strong character, and Zi's words put immense psychological pressure on him, leaving him with no choice but temporary cooperation.

Reef also selected several people from the volunteers and formed a temporary patrol team to set up a temporary camp, building as many rain-proof tents as possible.

Compared to Zi's smooth operation, Fang Senyan and Black Bro began pouring gasoline on the houses. They tried to soak one area at a time and then silently waited. The ignition time couldn't be too early or too late.

Too early would cause panic among those willing to evacuate. These people were already frightened birds. Adding the threat of fire on top would be too much.

When the countdown reached fifteen minutes, the number of evacuees began to dwindle. Black Bro took a deep puff of his cigar and flicked it towards the nearby gasoline drum. Instantly, a raging fire spread, following the gasoline and quickly covering a large area. Correspondingly, several house doors suddenly opened, and people fled in a panic, cursing loudly!

Seeing this effect, Fang Senyan and Black Bro exchanged smiles and headed to the next area to set fire. The sudden flames stunned people. Some wanted to turn back and put out the fire.

At this moment, a tremendous sound suddenly echoed from deep within the mountains. It sounded like a giant beast swallowing something, or like ten thousand brittle bones breaking at once. The sound was long and terrifying, and the ground vibrated clearly. Even the trees were wailing in fear!

Hearing this terrifying sound, the fleeing residents were horrified. Many began to cry loudly, including some volunteers, and some were so frightened that they collapsed on the ground.

Those who wanted to put out the fire immediately fell silent. Many dropped their buckets and ran towards the assembly point! Many with weak psychological endurance even screamed as they fled, as if to release the fear in their hearts.

Several elderly couples with heavy suitcases, as if going on vacation, were reluctant to abandon their belongings, but fear made their limbs weak and powerless. They could only collapse on the ground and wail in despair… The situation immediately became more chaotic.

Zi waited a moment, knowing that these were ordinary people and needed time to process.

At this moment, a girl who looked only sixteen or seventeen years old stood up. Her rain-soaked auburn hair clung to her forehead, giving her a special air. She bravely stood out and shouted at the fleeing crowd,

"You cowards! They need help! They're not strangers, they're your neighbors, friends, family!"

The girl shouted these words over and over until her voice was hoarse. She began to help those who had collapsed, persuading them to abandon their bags and encouraging them to walk. At that moment, the girl's thin body and pale skin radiated courage to the fullest!

Inspired by her example, more and more people turned back to help. Zi smiled. This girl did what she wanted to do, and even better. She grabbed the mayor and asked,

"Who is she?"

The mayor now deeply believed Zi's words and was hurrying to prepare for evacuation. He looked up and gasped,

"Isabella Marie Swan. She moved to our town from out of town. I didn't realize she was so brave."

Hearing this name, Zi's face changed.

"Isabella Marie Swan... Forks! Could this be… Oh God! Seaman and AK are setting fires; they might run into unexpected trouble!"