Apocalypse: I Can See the HP Bar, Killing Monsters Drops Loot-Chapter 1521 - 636: The Changes in the Rift Water

"We were arguing about why the crack water became both salty and bitter... so it might have gotten a bit noisy..."

The man wiped the sweat from his forehead and answered cautiously.

Changhe Base has recently provided substantial subsidies for water transportation, attracting many people.

But Changhe Base doesn’t accept just any water; it has to be clean and non-toxic. If there’s an issue with the water, you won’t get the subsidy. ƒгeewebnovёl.com

Previously, the water from this rift had no issues; they had transported many loads and made a small profit.

But now, they suddenly discovered a problem with the water, which might mean they won’t get the subsidy.

Moreover, if it were just salty and bitter, that would be one thing, but they fear there might be more unknown issues, like poisoning or parasites in the water, which could be even more severe. They could even end up in prison!

So they definitely can’t transport this batch of water back unless they can find the cause and prove the water is non-toxic.

They were just discussing what to do about it. Whether to look around the rift for any clues or to just return empty-handed as if making a wasted trip...

Unexpectedly, during their argument, Wang Tao appeared.

Though Wang Tao usually doesn’t manage these affairs, he is still the highest-ranking and most powerful person in the base. If Wang Tao thinks they are inefficient or shirking their duties, that would be troublesome. So, they were all somewhat nervous.

"The water turned salty and bitter?" Wang Tao frowned, then looked at the man, "Is it just this area’s water that has turned this way, or is it all the water in the rift that’s affected?"

Hearing this, the man wiped the sweat from his forehead again.

"As far as we can tell, the water in this area has become salty and bitter. As for other places, they’re beyond the Legion’s protected area, so we dare not go there and are not sure of the situation..."

The rift is too large, and even the Six Major Legions can’t enclose the entire rift. So, they can only select a relatively safe and convenient place on the edge of the rift as a temporary water collection base. They can’t provide safety protection in other areas.

If a problem occurs within the protected area of their Legion, they could get some compensation from City Hall, as they are working for the Base.

But if a problem occurs outside of the Legion’s protection range, never mind compensation, if they die, probably no one would even look for them.

For safety’s sake, they dare not leave the Legion’s protection range. Without orders from above, they also don’t dare to move the temporary base...

Wang Tao glanced at the water carriers; their strength was very weak, not even a Level 3 ability user among them, the highest were just Level Two. And now, with zombies of the Fifth and Sixth Order frequently seen outside, they indeed had no ability to leave the Legion’s protective range. Not to mention the zombies, they were even struggling with the high temperatures outside, all sweating profusely...

Wang Tao then looked at the water they had just drawn; it looked very clear, did not seem toxic.

Wang Tao then looked at the few people who had drunk the water, and none of them showed any signs of poisoning.

Then, Wang Tao dipped his finger in the water and tasted it.

"Ptui ptui ptui!"

Indeed, as the man said, the water was salty and bitter, yet Wang Tao’s expression was somewhat strange.

"This taste... it sort of feels like seawater!"

Although Wang Tao had always lived inland, he had once been to the sea and accidentally swallowed some seawater while swimming; it had this same bitter and astringent taste...

But the issue is, they are currently inland, far from the ocean, and there are no salt lakes nearby either. Plus, the water in the rift actually comes from melted ice and snow... So it couldn’t possibly be seawater, right?

Wang Tao pondered for a moment and then told everyone:

"I’ll go check other places."

With that, a pair of huge wings suddenly unfolded from Wang Tao’s back, and under the awe-struck or admiring gazes of others, Wang Tao quickly disappeared from view.

About ten minutes later, Wang Tao reappeared before everyone.

"The water in other places... it’s all salty and bitter as well..."

After explaining a bit to Wei Zhenguo and a few others, he told the group of water carriers:

"You guys go ahead and transport this water back."

"Yes!"

The crowd was instantly overjoyed upon hearing that.

Since Wang Tao allowed them to transport it back, it definitely meant they wouldn’t just be working for nothing; even if there was a problem, Wang Tao would be responsible.

On the way back, Wang Tao had Ding Yuqin and others taste the water.

"Indeed, it’s like seawater..."

Everyone thought it resembled seawater, which was puzzling since this is inland. But considering it’s the Apocalypse, any situation that defies common sense didn’t seem that strange...

So Wang Tao told them to transport the water back and then have the Hope Research Institute test it to see if there were any issues with it.

If it really was seawater, it still could be used; it just needed to be purified a bit.

Soon, they arrived at Changhe Base.

Wang Tao let the others go back first, while he himself carried a large iron barrel to the Hope Research Institute, naturally filled with the water just scooped from the rift.

"You guys check this water out..."

After seeing Qu Shilin, Wang Tao directly reported the issue with the water.

"Eh? Water from the rift turning into seawater?"