Chapter 200: Static Electricity (2/2)

The strength of the static electricity was inconsistent, causing the light in the cabin to flicker in unison. Occasionally, it triggered sparks in the air, which then disappeared quickly, emitting a crackling sound. A weak odor of ozone-gas then filled the air.

The situation in the transport plane cabin appeared to be rather tense, as everyone was worried sick and their breathing had become heavier too.

All their hair was standing stiff on its ends as a result of the static electricity, but nobody was in the mood to laugh. “Don't worry, we’ll be alright.” said Luo Yuan in dire attempts to comfort them, upon sensing their uneasiness.

Instead of only comforting the others, what he really was doing was indeed comforting himself too. He hated not being able to control his fate, and to surrender his life to luck. If he were to be on earth, he would at least be able to struggle out of this, instead of being incapable of doing anything but to rely on Lady Luck.

As the clock was ticking, their heart was palpitating according to the brightness of the light.

Then, the light blinked a few times, exploded with a few sparks, and turned off as though signifying something. The very next moment, a series of bangs were heard and all the lights immediately extinguished, and emanated a burnt smell. The cabin was engulfed in darkness with only a few weak lights flickering in the air.

The ladies were so frightened; they were screaming and their faces were white as sheet.

“Could you check if everything in the cockpit is alright?” Luo Yuan said to Commander Xia.

“I’ll go now!” the commander stood up quickly while fumbling for his torch.

“Wait a second; I want to check it out too.” Luo Yuan shouted.

“Ok!” Commander Xia nodded without any hesitation. This act was apparently against their discipline but he no longer had a care in the world now.

They briskly walked upstairs, and opened the door of the cockpit. The light had malfunctioned there too; only leaving the instruments radiating with light, as they were still working perfectly.

Commander Xia immediately asked, “What’s happening?”

“We’re unlucky this time, as we’ve ran into a strong electromagnetic storm. Fortunately, the destruction wasn't critical. The backup electricity still works fine, only undergoing some complications with the electrical circuit outside.” The co-pilot said with a shudder, “But the weather conditions are not any good. The storm from the universe is somewhat intensive – causing instability to the ionospheric layer above, which may affect us anytime. We are preparing to fly another 500 meters lower.”

Luo Yuan looked at one of the meters on dashboard with a number showing 5000m, clearly indicating the altitude. Through the thick glass, he looked towards the sky in the distance. With his extraordinarily sharp eyes, he could see that imperceptible flashes of light haphazardly lit up the pitch-black sky, some colliding to form a thick electric arc.

At times, a bright gleaming light would flash across the sky, causing it to glow periodically. It was, however, difficult to imagine what the view would be like at a higher altitude.

“Can’t we possibly fly lower?” Luo Yuan asked.

As the two pilots did not recognize his voice, they turned around and looked at Luo Yuan with utmost surprise. Without commenting, they emphasized, “No, that would be more dangerous. The loud noise of the transport plane would provoke the mutated birds, causing them to attack.”

“How far is it to the nearest runway for landing?” Luo Yuan asked again.

“It’s about 1,200 km or approximately 3 hours.”

………………

The malfunctioned air-conditioning unit had lowered the temperature in the transport plane very quickly.

In less than half an hour, the temperature had almost hit 0 degree Celsius. Everyone was already gasping, with visible clouds of vapor in their breaths

Due of the initially warm temperature, they did not have much clothes on their backs. They were still able to endure the cold nonetheless, thanks to their relatively good physical attributes, but not much can be said about the three kids.

They were freezing cold to a point where their lips had turned to purple, but they continued staying silent.

Huang Jiahui felt a pang in her heart and hugged Chen Jiayi. As she felt herself shivering, she requested, “Luo Yuan, get them some food!”

Luo Yuan nodded, walked towards the spot where they placed their parcels to pick up about half a catty of snake heart. He then brandished his Zhanmadao to cut it up swiftly in the air, and pieces as thin as a cicada’s wings fell onto a piece of the snakeskin. Then, he rolled up the snakeskin and returned to their side.

“Everyone, please have some to keep yourself warm.” said Luo Yuan, when he placed the snakeskin down.

They were already used to consuming raw food. Thus, they picked up a piece and put it directly into their mouths. Mu Wenwen, who had been silent this entire time too, picked up a piece naturally.

“This belongs to that giant snake, right? I can’t believe how all of you can bring yourself to stomach a raw piece of meat.” said Commander Xia, while sinking his teeth hard onto its strong muscle, failing to tear it apart with his incisors.

“Then, how else can we possibly eat it?” asked Huo Dong, swallowing it whole, without so much as chewing it at all.

“Eat it after grinding it into smaller pieces, of course! There’s no way to bite into it in this form at all.” Commander Xia was still unable to disintegrate it after several chews and munches. Knowing his efforts were in vain, he had no choice but to follow suit and swallow it whole.

“Such luxury is not possible given the circumstances. We’re already grateful to even have food to eat.” Luo Yuan also picked up a piece, put it into his mouth, and said with a smile.

“Yes, you are probably right!” Commander Xia ate a few pieces, before stopping midway, as it caused redness to his face.

Despite having half a catty of heart being rationed to so many people, there were still about seven to eight pieces left. Luo Yuan finished the leftovers and ended up eating more than everyone else did. However, everyone’s face was red and flushed, except for Luo Yuan’s, which was not in any way affected.

His heart was already saturated with the bioactive-rich nourishment; further consumption no longer yielded any reaction. In fact, he was growing increasingly ravenous, as his energy was inadvertently being absorbed by the substance.

Zhao Yali had a look of discomfort in her eyes, and swayed from side to side as if experiencing intoxication. Suddenly, she fell to the side slowly. Wang Xiaguang who was beside her, noticed her unusual behaviour and tried to helped her. She touched her forehead lightly, but withdrew immediately and said in astonishment, “She’s evolving soon.”