Doomsday America.

Chapter 118 The Survival Path of Top Talents

Chapter 118 The Survival Path of Top Talents (10k)

Inhale...exhale...

After the enthusiastic voices rang out from the space station, the air in the manor's broadcasting room suddenly fell silent.

In the empty room, only the heavy breathing of the people could be heard.

But this silence lasted only a moment, and was quickly followed by enthusiastic cheers!

"Alas!"

"Ha ha ha ha!"

"Fantastic!"

"My God, the voice of an astronaut!"

"A sound from space!"

Hearing the cheers, Gavin took a deep breath, then turned on the communicator and sent his voice along with the cheers to the space station.

He spoke softly and calmly.

"I'm glad my name floats in space, my friends, but that can't compare to the news that you're still alive!"

"Did you hear everyone cheering? That was all for you! I'm so glad you're still healthy!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin released the communicator and waited quietly for the sound from space.

The people around also fell silent.

However, the wait was short; just 1.5 seconds later, the astronaut's voice came through again.

"Ah, Gavin, I recognize your voice! Two and a half months ago, I was watching your matches from Earth, but I watched your final from above, and it was absolutely amazing!"

At this point, the astronaut's voice disappeared for a moment.

Before Gavin could say anything more to them, the voice from the space station changed.

"I apologize for interrupting your conversation, but we have more important matters to attend to. Mr. Gavin, hello, I am Ivan Mikhailovich, Russian cosmonaut. I have a few questions. Please respond!"

"Received, please proceed!"

Gavin answered while exchanging glances with the other members.

As they locked eyes, Ivan spoke rapidly but as clearly as possible to Gavin.

"Received, Mr. Gavin. On behalf of the six astronauts on the space station, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to you. Since we lost contact, you are the only one who has made contact with us."

"No need to thank me, please ask!"

Gavin gave a brief reply, while Ivan continued to ask Gavin questions.

"Okay, Mr. Gavin, 89 hours ago, we completely lost contact with the ground. 82 hours ago, telemetry data from the ground completely disappeared, and the space station lost all data support. And 28 hours ago, we could no longer see any lights on Earth!"

"So, Mr. Gavin, I want to know what exactly happened to Earth and humanity!"

When Ivan got to this point, his tone became noticeably flustered.

In the background noise, one could also faintly hear a man sobbing and another man praying.

Such sounds plunged the broadcasting room into complete silence.

After a brief silence, Gavin pursed his lips and responded.

"When you were out of contact with the ground, didn't you try watching short videos?"

Upon hearing this, astronaut Ivan quickly replied.

"We do have plans to connect the space station to Wi-Fi, and we look forward to being able to use smartphones in space, but the plan may not be realized by 2015."

"So far, the only forms of entertainment on the ISS space station are traditional ones like television and game consoles."

Upon hearing this, Gavin couldn't help but take a deep breath.

He really disliked telling people who didn't know about the disaster; it felt terrible.

Even so, Gavin answered quickly.

"Alright then, I'm sorry to tell you this news, but the human world has been hit by an unprecedented and unimaginable zombie crisis. Human civilization is now on the verge of collapse, friends!"

At this point, Gavin couldn't help but take off his cowboy hat.

Meanwhile, on the space station.

The six astronauts floating inside the British communications studio all wore expressions of sadness, as if they had just known.

After swallowing hard, Ivan continued speaking to Gavin in a low but decisive tone.

"Although your news is far more outrageous than NASA being attacked by a nuclear bomb, the only thing that can silence all the lights on Earth is the end of the world."

"But I didn't expect that the apocalypse would be brought by zombies, those monsters from games and movies. As astronauts, we generally believe more in the theory of asteroid destruction, and even nuclear war and nuclear winter are safer than zombies."

At this point, Ivan clutched his head in anguish. Beside him, the Japanese astronaut burst into tears, embracing the British astronaut as he cried.

As for Gavin, he helplessly covered his forehead and then spoke to the astronauts.

"I'm sorry, friends in space, but we need to hurry because none of me or my companions in the survival camp know how to operate a radio!"

"So, how long can we approximately stay in touch with you? After this contact ends, is there any chance of reconnecting? What do we need to do to maintain contact? How much time can we spend in contact each day? I hope you can give me an answer!"

"Received, please wait!"

Hearing Gavin's question, Ivan turned his head and looked at the astronauts around him with their various expressions, then helplessly spread his hands.

"Guys, it seems Gavin's contact with us was just luck. We're probably not getting any help. The situation is worse than we thought."

"Enough talk, Ivan. Stay in touch with Gavin and let me answer his questions!"

Beside him, the American astronaut gently pushed Ivan aside, turned to the communicator, and spoke into it.

"Gavin, I'm Charlie Duke, the American astronaut, from Texas, and a huge fan of yours!"

"Now, write down the data I'm about to give you. Assuming your antenna and frequency remain unchanged, and there is no severe weather or electromagnetic interference, we can guarantee stable communication over a range of approximately 4,500 kilometers and an unstable connection over a range of approximately 13,000 kilometers."

"It would be clearer to describe it in terms of time. Within every 90 minutes, we can guarantee about 10 minutes of stable communication and about 28 minutes of unstable connection. If we enter an unstable phase, we can try communicating in Morse code. Does anyone here know Morse code?"

Upon hearing this, Gavin abruptly turned his head to look at his men.

Meeting Gavin's gaze, Eugene clapped his hands loudly.

"I can!"

"Charlie, we only have one person who knows Morse code, and I'm afraid it will be difficult for him to stay in front of the radio for extended periods!"

Gavin spoke quickly to Charlie.

Upon hearing this, Charlie paused for a moment before continuing.

"That's not important. As long as we can maintain stable communication for every ninety minutes, the earth is currently plunged into darkness, artificial electromagnetic interference has almost completely disappeared, our signal is even better than it was a hundred years ago, and the stable period is likely to be even longer."

"As for now, since we've completely lost contact, we can only rely on our eyesight, experience, and the space station's telemetry system to judge all the parameters. I think we have at least seven minutes left in this call!"

At this point, Charlie took a deep breath, and his feet involuntarily began to float.

Behind him, as Ivan moved his feet away, the Japanese astronaut floated closer and couldn't help but ask Charlie a question.

"Charlie, could you ask me if the Emperor is still alive? Is the Prime Minister still alive? Are my family members still alive?"

"Fake Squid, Xiaolin!"

Charlie shoved the Japanese astronaut aside in annoyance, then waited anxiously for a response from the ground.

The next moment, Gavin's voice came through their radio, and Gavin said...

"I will try my best to keep the radio station as it is now, so as to maintain communication with you. Even if we have to end the communication in seven minutes, we will meet again in ninety minutes."

"God may have abandoned humanity, but I will not abandon you, my friends."

"But before that, could you teach us how to use a radio?"

After he finished speaking, Gavin waited quietly for a response.

Charlie then spoke rapidly to Gavin.

"Radio is simple, but seven minutes is definitely not enough for me to explain it to you. You probably don't know how to transmit pictures using radio."

"Alright, let's summarize some radio-related knowledge over the next ninety minutes, and I'll try my best to explain it to you during our next communication!"

"But for the next seven minutes, I'd like to introduce each of us to you—this is just a personal matter of mine!"

"Because that way, even if the Earth is destroyed, even if humanity cannot survive, at least we won't be the first to be forgotten. This is our last solace. Please understand our feelings!"

At this point, Charlie rubbed his forehead hard, and even he felt like crying.

People are flying in the sky, and suddenly the Earth disappears.

As for family and country... I'm afraid those are gone too...

This is even worse than the Soviet astronauts. The Soviet astronauts were in the sky, but the Soviet Union was gone. At least they still had Russia.

In an instant, the space station was completely shrouded in low pressure.

Gavin, after a brief moment of thought, quickly spoke to Charlie Sheen.

"I will record your information, but I need you to describe your respective strengths and the time you will be on board the space station when you speak!"

"Besides that, are you sure none of you have mutated into zombies, right?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin waved to Winnie. Without needing Gavin to explain, Winnie ran off to find paper and pen.

Meanwhile, on the space station, the astronauts exchanged surprised glances after hearing Gavin's words.

Charlie then responded.

"I'm pretty sure none of us have turned into the zombies you're talking about. As for our information, please keep a record of it."

"The International Space Station currently has six astronauts: two Americans, two Russians, one British, and one Japanese."

"I, Charlie Duke, American astronaut, Texas, nuclear physicist, entered the space station 104 days ago."

"Richard Golden, American astronaut, Los Angeles native, biologist and geneticist, entered the space station 104 days ago."

"Ivan Mikhailovich, Russian cosmonaut, power engineer and mechanic, entered the space station 156 days ago."

"Sergei Krikalov, Russian cosmonaut and chemist, entered the space station 156 days ago."

"Edwin Buzz Aldrin, English astronaut, mathematician, entered the space station eighty-four days ago."

"Shinya Kobayashi, a astronaut and botanist, entered the space station 68 days ago."

Charlie Sheen recited all their information in a simple and concise manner with almost no need to think.

Because he never thought Gavin would be a fraud.

If some con artist were to turn off all the lights on Earth for more than a day just to fool six people on a space station...

Charlie wouldn't mind being thoroughly fooled by a conman.

How could someone with that kind of ability be a fraudster?

They are clearly the masters of the earth and the true rulers of humankind!

Are they lying to me?

That's to get me on the chariot of a new era, okay!

Meanwhile, Winnie had retrieved the paper and pen.

Before Gavin could speak, Nikita came to his side and bent down to take notes in her notebook.

Her writing speed was as fast as ever, and she quickly recorded the information of the astronauts.

As she was about to finish her sketch, Gavin spoke to the astronauts.

"It is an honor to know your names, and your appearance has revealed to me that the disaster facing humanity today will come to a head in as little as 68 days."

Upon hearing this, Richard suddenly came to Charlie's side inside the space station, took the communicator, and spoke to Gavin.

"Gavin, I'm Richard, a biologist. Can you briefly explain the situation of the viral outbreak, the initial proportion of humans mutating into zombies, and how humanity only lasted less than three days in the face of this disaster?"

"I'm sorry, Richard, humanity didn't last three days. Humanity only lasted a moment. At three o'clock in the morning four days ago, in my villa, there were nearly three hundred people, and less than five screams were heard. Everyone turned into zombies!"

Gavin replied regretfully, his words causing Richard to swallow hard.

Then, Richard picked up the absorbent towel he had crumpled up and pressed it heavily against his eye sockets.

While pressing his eyes, he continued speaking to Gavin.

"In the next ninety minutes, I will conduct relevant tests on all crew members on the space station to determine as many of us as possible whether we are suspected of being infected with the virus, but I do not know the specific type of zombie virus."

"However, if the virus spreads globally within 66 days, incubates until a unified outbreak occurs, and the outbreak is so rapid that governments cannot react..."

"Given the rapid and widespread spread of the virus, we probably don't have many options left."

"There's a very high probability that the virus is an RNA virus that spreads through the respiratory tract. Besides that, I also have some news to share with you: it's likely that nothing on Earth will survive; even the lights in Iceland have gone out!"

"Therefore, within 68 days, this virus spread and incubated at a speed I've never heard of before, affecting the entire globe, even including regions with extreme terrain and climate. The only things capable of achieving this are water, the atmosphere, and light radiation!"

"Wait, Richard, there aren't many viruses that can do what you're saying. Viruses are most likely plant fungi. Only fungal spores can spread so widely and rapidly across the globe via water and air."

Beside him, Kobayashi Shinya leaned closer to Richard and spoke to Gavin.

"Of course, Gavin, this is just my guess. I can only conduct on-site testing once we have the opportunity to return to Earth!"

His words naturally reached Gavin's ears as well.

Upon hearing this, Gavin was slightly taken aback. He immediately wanted to share his conjecture from that afternoon with the astronauts—the idea that zombie behavior was more plant-like.

Just then, Kobayashi Naoya, who had just spoken, paused slightly, then grabbed the communicator and continued speaking to Gavin.

"Gavin-kun, this is Naoya Kobayashi. It's an honor to speak with you. I'd like to know if you and your survival camp currently have the capability to capture live zombies?"

"If so, please culture the living zombies and the dead zombies separately. If it is indeed a plant virus spore transmission route, and humans are indeed a spore breeding ground, then spore-forming plants grow extremely fast, and we can probably reach a conclusion in less than five days!"

"Algae, mosses, ferns, fungi, lichens—you can quickly determine the source of the spore virus by simply observing whether these plants rapidly appear on the surface of the zombie and in the surrounding environment."

"However, even if we find the source, we probably can't avoid the spores. Although the size of the spores can be shielded by protective equipment, the channels through which spores spread far exceed those of bacteria."

"Especially when the entire human population is infected, then every corner of the air would probably be filled with invisible spores. I'm sorry to have put you under pressure!"

"Besides that, Gavin, I'd like to ask you a question: do you know the approximate timeframe for when humans infected with this virus transform into zombies?"

"this……"

Faced with Kobayashi Naoya's question, Gavin swallowed hard and then explained to Kobayashi in a heavy tone.

"Mr. Kobayashi, because the initial mutation rate of zombies is too high, I have not personally witnessed the entire process of any living person turning into a zombie, nor have I had the opportunity to record the exact time of infection."

"But I have even worse news for you: perhaps everyone still alive on Earth is already infected."

"Because I've personally witnessed a person shot through the heart rise from the ground and turn into a zombie just seven seconds after dying!"

As Gavin spoke, a faint sense of despair began to creep into his heart.

Not to mention the astronauts on the space station...

Upon hearing Gavin's words, even though every astronaut knew they had to save time, they were stunned for a full ten seconds before Kobayashi Naoya, suppressing his sobs, continued to speak to Gavin.

"Gavin, if a human corpse can be completely controlled by the virus within seven seconds, it means that the virus can completely take over the human nervous system and generate muscle electrical signals within seven seconds, replacing the corpse in performing nerve reflexes."

"From this point of view, we can see that the virus has almost no characteristics of light radiation mutation or RNA viruses. The interaction time of the above viruses is longer and the infection time is longer. Just like in the Resident Evil, it takes tens or even hundreds of minutes after infection to completely mutate."

"Therefore, spore-forming fungal viruses are probably our only remaining option, because spore-forming viruses themselves have hallucinogenic properties and the basic conditions for comprehensive and rapid invasion of the nervous system."

"And that's why, after you told me about the sudden global zombie crisis, I immediately thought of plant spore fungal viruses... I..."

"etc!"

Just as Kobayashi Naoya was speaking, biologist Richard suddenly appeared and snatched the communicator from Kobayashi Naoya's hand.

Richard then continued speaking to Gavin.

"Mr. Gavin, I am Richard. Although plant spore fungal viruses can take over the nervous system quickly, they do not have the ability to instantly and completely manipulate the human sympathetic nervous system."

"If a human were to instantly turn into a zombie, for the first half minute to three minutes, it probably wouldn't have completely mutated into a zombie, but would merely be trapped in a hallucination. The hallucination would transmit false signals to deceive the body and release adrenaline, just like mushroom poisoning."

"In short, my personal guess is that after a healthy person is infected with this virus, it will take at least twelve to thirty-five seconds for the state to completely change. This number will fluctuate depending on the size of the experimental subjects."

"In addition, the undead may mutate faster than the living within a certain size range, simply because the undead do not need to simulate the living environment of the living and gradually take over the nervous system and muscle electrical signals, but directly take over the nervous system, which is naturally faster."

"Just like snakes and other creatures with relatively stable nervous systems, they can maintain neural reflexes for a considerable period of time after death."

"Furthermore, as you said, since survivors also turn into zombies upon death, your bodies have clearly become breeding grounds for the virus. When survivors are harmed by zombies, they are not experiencing infection, but rather a deep activation of the virus within the breeding grounds!"

"Therefore, even if you manage to develop a vaccine, you will likely have to choose between clearing the breeding grounds and preventing deep activation. Considering the inherently high transmissibility of the zombie virus, the vaccine can only focus on strengthening the human body, that is, altering the human body's environment!"

"What?!"

Upon hearing this, Gavin suddenly exclaimed in surprise, and he shouted at Richard in disbelief.

"Richard, what do you mean by enhancing the human body? What kind of technology are your scientists hiding? Are you saying we can evolve?"

"Huh? What evolution?"

Richard was taken aback by Gavin's words, and then offered a helpless explanation.

"Gavin, didn't you learn in tenth grade that human body temperature changes over time? What I mean by strengthening the human body is something like actively raising the body temperature and creating a simulated fever environment in order to try to make the human body a breeding ground that is not suitable for viral activation."

"There are many similar methods. Have you seen World War Z? It's a Brad Pitt movie. They contacted me when they were making the movie, seeking some scientific background assistance."

"The reason why the zombie virus does not attack people with specific diseases in World War Z is because the diseases make the human body an environment that is no longer suitable for the reproduction and existence of the zombie virus. This is a hypothesis with academic support."

"It could be a subtle difference in body temperature, or a subtle difference in body hydration during a viral outbreak."

"In short, all of you survivors on Earth probably didn't survive because of antibodies, but because at some point during the virus's full activation and outbreak, your bodies were in an environment unsuitable for the virus's survival!"

"If I could return to Earth alive, I could conduct some experiments and try to summarize my findings, but I know I can't go back."

"Gavin, my friend, perhaps you are the future of humanity. I... I'm sorry... Hiss..."

At this point, Richard rubbed his eyes hard, trying hard not to choke up.

After finally managing to control his emotions, Richard gritted his teeth and anxiously continued speaking to Gavin.

"Mr. Gavin, I know that it is unwise to let you get close to zombies under these circumstances, but I sincerely hope that you can take some risks for the future of humanity and capture zombies and animals to conduct some relatively simple experiments."

"The survival of civilization rests in your hands. We... at least I will provide you with knowledge assistance as much as possible. That's all I can do. Please, please don't confine yourselves to what you perceive as a safe environment. Be bold and go out to investigate and try!"

"I know my words might be a bit difficult for people, so this isn't a request, it's just a suggestion, I...!"

"Alright, Richard, stop saying things that make people uncomfortable!"

Before Richard could finish speaking, Charlie snatched the communicator from him, turned it on, and then spoke to Gavin.

"Gavin, this is Charlie, the nuclear-powered fanatic, your biggest fan!"

"I want to confirm whether the ground environment is absolutely incapable of rescuing us, and whether it is absolutely impossible to restore communications and transmit a series of telemetry data, such as atmospheric wind direction, to the space station within ninety days!"

After he finished speaking, Charlie waited silently for Gavin's response.

Upon hearing this, Gavin took a deep breath and then spoke to the space station.

"Charlie, in the past four days, I have witnessed tens of thousands of zombies, but I have only encountered fifteen survivors. Twelve of them survived and joined me to form our current survival camp."

At this point, Gavin doesn't need to say anything more; the comparison of these numbers speaks for itself.

What can thirteen people do?

Could they fight their way to NASA, locate the spacecraft, perform maintenance and repairs, and then fully restore all of NASA's functions to help the space station crew return to Earth?

Are you kidding me!

So, after hearing Gavin's explanation, Charlie helplessly raised his head and looked at the other astronauts beside him.

"Guys, it looks like we're doomed..."

He chuckled wryly and muttered something, and as soon as he finished speaking, the Russian kinesiologist Ivan floated over and grabbed the communicator.

Ivan didn't contact Gavin immediately. Instead, he gripped the communicator tightly and spoke to the five people around him with a determined look.

"We might still have one way out, or perhaps more than one!"

After finishing speaking, Ivan turned on the communicator and began to speak.

"Gavin, this is Ivan. Could you provide me with basic parameters about the area around your camp, including atmospheric conditions, altitude, temperature, humidity, and so on?"

"If so, what is your maximum detection range, and are there any medium to large bodies of water around you, such as lakes, that act as buffer zones?"

Upon hearing Ivan's words, Gavin turned to look at everyone behind him.

Everyone exchanged confused glances, and then Eugene stepped forward and spoke softly.

"I... I should be able to provide some data, but my data is all classified as battlefield data, so I don't know if it's the same as their aviation data."

Upon hearing this, Gavin patted Eugene on the shoulder and then responded to Ivan.

"Ivan, the only one we know about this is a retired army sniper."

"Ah, that's enough to provide the basic parameters. We can't ask for more, can we?"

Ivan couldn't help but laugh with excitement, and then continued to explain to Gavin.

"Gavin, I have good news for you. There are two return capsules on our space station. One is the Russian return capsule that I plan to use in twenty-two days, and the other is the American return capsule that I plan to use in thirty-one days."

"Of course, good news is always accompanied by bad news."

"Because the space station has completely lost contact with the ground, we cannot receive any telemetry data and can only rely on basic monitoring data from the space station and manual calculations to estimate the survival arc that could allow us to land successfully!"

"Besides, most of Earth's current environment does not support our landing; we can't very well land ourselves among zombies."

"In addition, our original landing points and corresponding geographical parameters are no longer useful, because you are our only support now, and we must change our landing points to be near you!"

"In short, this calculation requires a considerable period of time. Even with the help of the five of them, it would be difficult for me to complete the calculation within a month."

"In addition, the space station is descending at an altitude of nearly 100 meters every day. Without ground telemetry data support, I have been able to rely on past data records for the past four days to manually adjust and briefly start the engine to restore the space station's trajectory to the state it was in four days ago."

"So from now on, we will keep moving along a fixed route every day. I will use this route as a basis to seek parameter correction and calculate the return formula."

"During this time, I need you... and I earnestly request that you point out suitable landing sites and relevant geographical parameters to assist me in the calculations."

"The success rate of doing this is not high, probably less than 15%, but at least we won't starve to death on the space station."

"And even if we die, at least we should die on Earth, on our home planet!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Ivan turned around and looked firmly at the other five astronauts.

Meeting Ivan's gaze, Charlie raised his hand and gently tapped Ivan's chest.

"Do as you say, buddy. The country behind us is finished, so our relationship should be on track."

Charlie, trying to find humor in his predicament, played a joke on Ivan.

Ivan nodded heavily, then gripped Charlie's hand tightly.

Meanwhile, Gavin heard Ivan's explanation.

He couldn't help but swallow.

He then quickly turned on the intercom and spoke.

"I'll say it again, Ivan: even if God abandons all of humanity, I will never abandon you."

"Although I can't offer you much more help, I will do anything you need that I can, and... at any cost!"

"But I need to know now how much time we have left to conceive and complete your plan, and how much longer you can stay on the space station!"

After speaking, Gavin took a deep breath and waited for a response from the radio station.

After Gavin asked his question, the space station erupted in cheers as Charlie hugged Ivan and shouted.

"Did you hear that, buddy? Listen to my idol! He's more reliable than the fucking president!"

Even if God abandons all of humanity, we are not an island apart from Earth; there are still people on Earth waiting for us!

"Even if we lose contact with our families, even if we lose the support of our respective countries, we do not lose the response from our race; humanity has not simply disappeared!"

"I fucking love this kid. Screw it, I should have bought his sweat-stained autographed jersey from the three-peat Finals two years ago. It only cost me a little over nine million dollars back then."

"Damn it, now all my money is gone, but I'm still alive, haha~"

As soon as he finished speaking, Charlie excitedly picked up the communicator and said to Gavin.

"Gavin, this is Charlie. I'm here to give you an update on the current food situation on the space station."

"The two of us and the two Russians each took only two tons of supplies to the sky, the English took one ton, and the Japanese took 0.8 tons."

"It sounds like a lot, but we've almost used it all up. According to the original plan for the space station, within the next two months, our American and Russian manned and cargo spacecraft will be launched one after another to exchange our original two people and carry new supplies to replenish the stockpile."

"As for us... at least until humanity is wiped out, our astronauts from different countries don't share resources; we all do our own thing."

"Forgive me for being so excited and talking a lot. God, my mood has been constantly changing over the past two days, and now, my heart is about to explode."

"Anyway, we've tallied up our supplies over the past few days. Kobayashi Naoya's really not eating much. Our supplies should only last the six of us about ninety days at most. Remember, ninety days at most… *sizzle*"

"We...zzzz...don't worry...zzzz...home...zzzzzz...Gavin...zzzz...Chambers...zzzz...Livingston Lake...zzzz..."

Ok……

Hearing this, Gavin gritted his teeth reluctantly.

Clearly, the radio signal has become unstable.

After the radio went completely silent, Gavin pressed the intercom to send a few words back to the space station.

However, the other party did not respond, presumably because they were aware of the gradually decreasing signal.

Nikita glanced at his watch and whispered to Gavin.

"Sir, we've been communicating with the space station for a full sixteen minutes!"

"Really? Sixteen minutes!"

Upon hearing the number, Gavin's reluctant expression faltered slightly, before revealing a visible joy.

Sixteen minutes is enough for the space station to travel 8,000 kilometers!

He clapped his hands loudly and then laughed.

"Guys, it seems there really isn't much electromagnetic interference on Earth anymore. Charlie thought we could only chat for seven minutes straight, but we might actually be able to chat for about twenty minutes out of every ninety minutes!"

At this point, Gavin tapped the table slightly, then continued.

"From today onwards, the broadcasting room will be a permanent post, and someone must be stationed here at all times to await communications from the space station!"

"On the one hand, we can't just leave them to their own devices. Since they have their own return capsule, if it's just a matter of providing data, then we should definitely do it!"

"On the other hand, just sitting here and maintaining contact with the space station, we can learn so much from them. Maybe they can even teach us how to restore the regional power grid and maintain hydroelectric power stations!"

"Besides, listen to their conversations; they are all talented individuals, top-tier talents!"

"Once they can return safely, they will bring us so much, so starting today, afternoon field operations will be reduced to around 4 p.m.

"After four o'clock, we will escort Eugene to collect nearby environmental parameters, including the depth and area of ​​the lake."

At this point, Gavin suddenly remembered something, and then he frowned and said softly.

"And didn't Charlie just mention Livingston Lake?"

"Indeed, Lake Livingston is more than three times the size of Chambers Reservoir, and the lake is also more regular in shape, closer to a circle, making it more suitable for their return landing."

"However, Livingston Lake is closer to Houston, about 280 kilometers away from us. To get there, we would at least need to use helicopters to attract and disperse the pursuers along the road."

"Or, if they manage to return successfully, we can pick them up directly by helicopter!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin took a deep breath, forcibly pulling himself out of his excitement.

If Gavin saw hope for the survival of the human race by successfully returning to the farm and gradually gathering more survivors.

Today, after contacting six astronauts in one go and receiving news that they might return to join the camp,...

Gavin saw a glimmer of hope for reshaping human civilization!

Survival is a challenge that the brave must undertake, while civilization is where the wise contribute their strength.

With the current population in the camp, it would be a miracle if they could even pass on high school mathematics education to the next generation. The rest can only be hoped for the emergence of true geniuses who can master advanced mathematics and other related professional knowledge through self-study.

But what if the camp had six more astronauts, each with at least a doctorate in their respective fields...?

At that moment, even Gavin couldn't help but pray for the astronauts.

You all absolutely must come back alive, or at least a few of you must survive!

Even just one would be great!!!

Thinking of this, Gavin frowned slightly.

Gavin raised his hand and glanced at his watch; it was a little past ten.

Gavin took a deep breath and then waved to the crowd waiting around him.

"Guys, go to sleep. I'm in charge of the broadcasting room tonight. Madison, come with me to move a set of beds over in a bit."

"No matter how much we look forward to astronauts, they are far away in the sky and cannot help us fill our stomachs or help us fight off zombies."

"Steve, thank you for taking my night shift tonight. You've worked hard."

As soon as he finished speaking, Gavin stood up decisively and made a gesture to drive the crowd away.

Seeing this, everyone nodded and left the broadcasting room in small groups, returning to their own rooms.

Gavin and Madison found an empty room and moved a bed there.

While carrying the load, Madison couldn't help but ask Gavin a question.

"Boss, do you think what those people in the sky said is true? Can they really make a drug? Even if that drug can't prevent us from getting infected after being bitten, it would be amazing if it could just prevent us from turning into zombies after we die!"

"Also, do you really think movies are worth referencing? Does getting a serious illness really grant us immunity to zombies?"

At this point, Madison looked nervously at Gavin.

Gavin chuckled and shook his head at Madison.

"On the one hand, as long as we have the ability, we must try things that lead to the future. Even if they don't work, they will at least boost morale."

"On the other hand, even if a serious illness could, like in the movies, prevent us from being attacked by zombies, given our current conditions, what kind of serious illness do you think we could survive?"

"I've figured it out. Old Bert's medical skills are definitely not low, but he's definitely a surgeon. Do you think he's absolutely capable of treating acute illnesses like meningitis?"

At this point, Gavin carried the bed into the broadcasting room and then pushed Madison out.

"Old Mike, go back and get some rest. Remember to find something that can record audio tomorrow morning; we might come across it when we explore Richard Town."

"That's it, time for bed. Let's go, hurry up!"

After saying that, Gavin told Madison to go back to sleep, while he himself lay down alone in front of the radio.

I squinted as I rested, anxiously waiting for the radio to pick up the voice.

We eagerly awaited the approach of dawn the following day.

(End of this chapter)