pjbooks Chapter 231 Mysterious Big Explosion
Chapter 231 Mysterious Big Explosion
Chapter 231 Mysterious Big Explosion
Despite being stuck on the mission progress, Ma Jie did not give up.
Using the abilities granted by the [Infrastructure Maniac Iv3], I went to the wilderness to continue recording footage.
The main skill I showcased this time was camp construction, but because my skill level was too low, I didn't dare to build wooden houses and stone houses like the pros.
Instead, they took advantage of the favorable terrain and built a simple hut.
The specific process is also very simple: first, cut down a 2-meter-long log, place one end on the tree branch, and put the other end on the ground to form the ridge beam of the roof.
Multiple long branches are leaned against the main beam at an angle of about 45 degrees to form dense A-shaped "ribs," with the gaps between the ribs being as small as possible.
The final step is to collect a large amount of leaves, ferns, and moss to fill the gaps and spread them evenly on the roof from top to bottom. The thickness should be at least 30 centimeters to achieve the effect of windproofing and heat preservation.
The same applies inside the house; the floor is covered with tree bark and dry leaves to form a thick moisture barrier.
As for the entrance, the tree trunk can be used to form a natural barrier, and ferns can be used to seal the gaps in the door, leaving only a small opening for one person to pass through. According to the usual practice of a master craftsman, a small door made of wood would be made, but Ma Jieke does not have that capability yet. He has only made a simple tree branch door to make it look more like a "home".
To prove the practicality of this makeshift shelter, Maje even actually spent a night inside wrapped in a sleeping bag.
Overall, it felt pretty good. Although the living conditions here are completely different from those in the official competition, with even the temperature difference being tens of degrees, it was enough to handle the preliminary rounds.
At the Los Angeles television station headquarters, Grace sat listlessly at her desk, one hand adorned with precious gemstone rings supporting her rosy cheek, the other mechanically twirling a pen.
Outside the huge, transparent floor-to-ceiling windows, one could almost overlook half of Los Angeles, but she had no desire to enjoy the view. Not long after starting work, she began to yawn incessantly and had to get up to pour herself a cup of coffee to perk herself up.
I had just settled back into my comfortable office sofa and turned on the massage mode to relax my body when I heard a crisp bubble sound in my ear.
At the same time, a new email notification lit up in the lower right corner of the 32-inch MacPro office computer screen.
Grace didn't put down her mug. She sipped her hot black coffee while using her slender fingers to drag the mouse to open the email.
When she saw that the sender was Ma Jieke, she couldn't help but smile, and eagerly downloaded the email and opened her local media player.
"Hello interviewer, this is MaJack. I am currently in the Tungwa Valley. Next, I will complete a hunt independently to prove my survival skills."
In the video, Ma Jie appears, waving to the camera in a very friendly manner against the backdrop of an endless, pristine wilderness.
The clip, carefully edited by Valentina, is only about 17 minutes long. Most of the meaningless hiking footage has been removed, and with the addition of techniques such as speed-up playback, only the most essential parts are retained.
"Independent hunting? You're dreaming," Grace scoffed, sipping her coffee.
After a dazzling fast-forward, Ma Jieke is half-squatting in front of the camera, interpreting a path repeatedly trampled by animals, and boldly speculating that it leads to a rabbit's burrow.
The subsequent methods of spraying deer urine on themselves to mask the smell and judging the plants by the traces of grazing are also commendable.
When the video reached about 7 minutes in, and the plump cottontail rabbit was spotted, an outrageous scene unfolded.
In the video, Ma Jieke's action of drawing a bow and shooting an arrow is shown from a first-person perspective, creating a highly immersive experience.
Valentina exaggerated the process of the arrow flying towards its prey into a cinematic spectacle, using slow motion throughout and switching back and forth between first-person and handheld perspectives.
Ultimately, the arrow successfully pierced the rabbit's body, pinning it to the grass, and then gave the poor rabbit a close-up shot of its kicking legs.
Seeing this series of cool edited shots, Grace couldn't help but tremble slightly, and her mug was knocked over without her realizing it, spilling the steaming coffee all over her chest.
"Shit!" She quickly pulled out a tissue to wipe her clothes, but her eyes were reluctant to leave the computer screen.
The next scene, showing the processing of rabbit meat and roasting wild rabbit, was accompanied by a Chinese-style background music track taken from the documentary series "A Bite of China."
The cheerful and melodious tune, paired with the fresh and juicy game, whetted Grace's appetite, and she couldn't help but drool.
Immediately afterwards, she eagerly checked two more pieces of material: building a shelter and making a simple trap.
Upon seeing the final result, she decisively dialed Ma Jie's cell phone and informed him to come to the TV station for an interview in a week.
For Ma Jieke, this was expected, but it was impossible for him to be unhappy.
"What's going on? Max agreed to play a friendly match with you?"
Seeing the uncontrollable smile on his face, Jimmy, who was sitting on the street corner sunbathing, asked curiously.
"Dude, can't you think of anything else?" Ma Jie gave him a playful tap on the neck, proudly boasting, "Let me tell you, I've passed the audition for the 'Wilderness Solitary Life' program. I'm going for an interview next week. Do you know what that means?"
"That means you'll be a runner-up." Jimmy rolled his eyes, his words full of sarcasm: "That's a wilderness survival competition, not a street survival challenge. Have you ever seen a master hunt musk oxen? Have you ever seen a big shot take down a bear with a hand axe?"
Instead of wasting time eyeing that million-dollar prize, it's more practical to stay home and dream about it.
"Get lost!" Ma Jie dismissed this cold water as nonsense. After all, so far, only Valentina had stood by his side. Others either mocked him or simply didn't care.
"Haha, I'm kidding you." Jimmy said, standing up. "Do you have any plans for this afternoon? If not, come with me to Santa Monica Beach. I met a girl on Facebook, and we're meeting at the Ferris wheel."
"You're chasing girls, and you want me to be a third wheel?"
"What do you mean by 'light bulb'? I'm just thinking about safety. What if the other person is using a fake photo and their real identity is a 300-pound, fat black man?"
Damn... what kind of twisted brain do you have? You're afraid of this and that. You deserve to be single forever.
Just as Ma Jieke was trying to cure his "persecution complex", a huge sound suddenly came to his ears, and the whole ground shook twice.
Even more outrageous, the windows of all buildings and cars within sight were shattered in an instant, and vehicle alarms blared throughout the entire street.
Holy crap, an earthquake?
That was everyone's first reaction, but as thick smoke billowed up in the distance, everyone finally realized that it was a massive, destructive explosion.
"What?" Jimmy's face turned pale with fright. "What the hell?"
"Don't just stand there!" Ma Jie instinctively grabbed him and pulled him away from the potentially collapsing buildings. Together with the other panicked citizens, they ran to an open square.
The incident happened without warning, and no one knew what was going on. Just as Ma Jie was about to make a call, his phone rang by itself.
He glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Valentina; he immediately answered the call.
It was very noisy on the other end of the line, with people running and shouting for help.
"Hey, Jack, waaaaah, Jack, I'm trapped..."
The girl's incoherent voice reached my ears, mixed with sobs that she couldn't hold back her tears due to extreme fright.
Ma Jie felt a chill run down his spine as he looked toward the suspected explosion site located in the commercial district.
"Where are you now? Are you hurt?"
"Say something! Stop crying! Tell me where you are..."
Just as he was pacing anxiously, a familiar voice came from the phone again: "Jack, this is Max."
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"Max? You're with Nana?"
"Yes." Max's voice trembled slightly, but he made it clear: "I accompanied Miss Valentine to Warren Department Store to purchase some supplies. Something suddenly exploded outside, and now the mall is without power. There are injured people everywhere outside. We are trapped in the elevator, and we don't know which floor it is."
"Calm down, Max, I'm coming right now to save you. Keep...feed? Hey, can you hear me?"
A piercing electrical buzzing came from the other end of the receiver, and when I dialed back, all I heard was a busy tone, indicating that the signal was being interfered with.
"What's going on?" Jimmy asked from the side.
"There's been an explosion at Warren Department Store. Max and Valentina are trapped in the elevator. I'm on my way to rescue them."
"Wait for me, I'll go with you."
Ten minutes later, the two arrived at the explosion site, and what they could see was nothing short of hell on earth.
The entrance to the mall had been bombed and collapsed, and pedestrians who had no time to react were hidden beneath the rubble-like ruins.
The vehicles parked in the parking lot ahead were also not spared; they were all ignited in the explosion, forming a large sea of fire. Some people were burned alive before they even had a chance to get out of their cars.
The iconic giant GG LCD screen on the exterior wall is now just a distorted, sparking black hole.
The air was thick with the pungent smell of gunpowder, and billowing smoke rose into the sky, visible from any point in the city.
"This is a terrorist attack."
Jimmy covered his mouth with his hand, completely unable to believe it was real. He often saw such scenes in games, but in reality, he had only seen photos and videos of them.
In the distance, a large number of police cars, fire trucks and ambulances were rushing over with sirens blaring. No one knew what had happened; the only thing to do was to save lives first.
Ma Jie did not act rashly. While observing the situation from a distance, he called Sandy and asked her to bring two things.
First, Max's personal clothing; second, Bruce, who can act as a search and rescue dog.
"Jack, I'll go with you."
The three of them went around to the staff entrance at the back of the mall, where Jimmy offered to go in and help.
"I'll go too, there's strength in numbers," Sandy said, echoing the sentiment.
"No." Ma Jie shook his head firmly: "The situation inside is very complicated. The more people there are, the more chaotic it will become. You should go and gather manpower now, and join the rescue efforts with other citizens. Save as many people as you can, but remember, you must not take any risks. Your own safety must be the top priority."
"Okay, be careful too. We'll wait for you to come back."
Without time to give any further instructions, Ma Jie resolutely turned and walked into the building, which was full of unknowns.
The building's power supply has been cut off, but fortunately it's daytime, so it's not completely dark. Plus, with the added vision from [Eagle Eye], the visibility isn't too bad.
"Listen, buddy, my best friends are trapped in an elevator. Please help me find them, please."
As Ma Jie spoke, he spread out Max's underwear, and Bruce put his nose to it and sniffed it hard before immediately launching a search and rescue operation.
Since they didn't know exactly which floor the two women were trapped on, Ma Jie adopted the most conservative approach: a thorough, door-to-door search.
The building has 29 floors and two elevators on each side. First, climb up the stairs, check one side of the elevator, then run to the other side, and then go up the stairs again, repeating the search and rescue steps.
Although this is extremely physically demanding, there is really no better way to avoid any mistakes along the way.
Under the influence of his animal companions, Bruce's comprehension skills are quite mature, and he can thoroughly carry out his instructions.
This human-dog collaboration method can also maximize the success rate, because the environment in the mall is very chaotic, and there are many injured people waiting for rescue, making it difficult to accurately identify them by sound alone.
Ma Jieke is alright; he's a physical prodigy to begin with, and with the extra stamina from the [Working God Body], sustained high-intensity running isn't a problem.
But Bruce is just a dog after all. Dogs cool themselves through their tongues, and their stamina is far inferior to that of humans with their well-developed sweat glands.
Seeing that it was panting heavily but still persisting in the search and rescue, Ma Jieke simply acted as a human vehicle, carrying it and running back and forth until it regained its strength before putting it on the ground.
After going back and forth like this for more than 20 minutes, the little guy really did his job and finally found a clue on the 19th floor.
"Woof, woof." (Master, you're nearby.)
Bruce was so exhausted that he stretched out his limbs and lay flat on the ground, his tongue lolling out listlessly.
Ma Jie immediately knocked on the elevator door to send a signal inside.
"Someone's coming! Help! Help!"
Max's voice sounded hoarse; after all, there was no other way but to shout for help in this situation.
It's important to know that an elevator is an enclosed space. When the power is forcibly cut off, a safety mechanism is triggered, which activates the electromagnetic brake to prevent the car from falling rapidly. The ventilation system will also continue to operate, providing valuable time for rescue.
However, this kind of malfunction caused by an explosion cannot be compared with normal situations. The longer it drags on, the greater the risk to the trapped people.
"Max, it's me, Jack."
Hearing her cries for help, Ma Jieke finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Are you alright? How is Nana?"
"She's passed out, but she's still breathing. You need to find a way to get us out of here quickly."
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