Chapter 151: The Ground Collapses, Fleeing the Scene

Chapter 151: Chapter 151: The Ground Collapses, Fleeing the Scene

"What’s wrong?"

Xu Qingsui was watching the lively crowd when Shen Yan’s question sounded in her ear.

Xu Qingsui’s brow furrowed. She scanned the bustling crowd again, a feeling that something was wrong nagging at her.

But the feeling was strange this time, and she couldn’t pinpoint the source of her unease.

The crowd was acting normally, and there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Did you notice something?"

Shen Yan noticed Xu Qingsui’s reaction and began to survey their surroundings as well.

Still finding nothing, Xu Qingsui could only shake her head helplessly in response to Shen Yan’s repeated questions.

"It’s nothing. I just suddenly feel like something’s off, but I can’t quite put my finger on what it is."

Hearing Xu Qingsui’s words, Shen Yan looked around again but still found nothing.

"It’s fine. It’s probably just my imagination. Let’s keep looking around."

Since they hadn’t found anything, there was no point in looking any longer.

But as she spoke, she still glanced around one more time.

Shen Yan nodded and continued to walk around with Xu Qingsui.

There were some performances in the plaza. To the beat of thumping music, men and women danced joyfully.

After buying a sugar figurine, Xu Qingsui joined Shen Yan to watch the dancing.

As she was watching the performance, that strange feeling returned.

Xu Qingsui scanned her surroundings. Everything was lively and bustling, with no visible problems.

But the strange feeling inside her grew stronger and stronger, finally cresting into a wave of danger that washed over her.

Not knowing the source of the problem, Xu Qingsui couldn’t say anything. She could only grab Shen Yan and pull him away from the plaza.

Shen Yan looked confused but still followed Xu Qingsui without asking what was wrong.

Just as Xu Qingsui pulled Shen Yan out of the plaza’s bounds, a tremendous RUMBLE echoed from behind them.

Mixed in with it were countless shrill, terrified screams.

They both froze and turned to look back at the plaza.

The plaza, which had been brightly lit and bustling with people just moments ago, was now a pitch-black void. Not a single person or stall could be seen.

In the moonlight, they could see a massive hole had opened up in the ground.

Seeing this, their eyes both widened in shock.

Some people who had luckily avoided being swallowed by the giant hole stood frozen in place, staring at the disaster site.

Shen Yan was the first to react. He shook off Xu Qingsui’s arm and sprinted toward the massive hole.

Xu Qingsui turned and followed close behind.

As the two of them ran past the others, it snapped the dazed crowd out of their stupor, and they all began to run toward the massive hole as well.

Shen Yan’s heart was racing with anxiety. He ran full tilt to the edge of the hole without slowing down, and unable to stop in time, half his body shot out over the abyss.

Just as his body was suspended over the hole, Xu Qingsui grabbed his arm and yanked him back.

Shen Yan took a deep breath and shot her a grateful look before turning to peer into the chasm.

Because the vendor stalls had collapsed along with the ground, the lights from the stalls completely illuminated the scene inside the hole.

They could see the people who had fallen scrambling to their feet.

The drop from the edge of the hole was only a few meters, and since it was a gradual collapse, there weren’t any major casualties.

Shen Yan shouted down into the hole a few times and quickly got a response.

After confirming that everyone was mostly all right, he quickly contacted the survival team to begin the rescue.

He also made a call to the lab and soon had some construction vehicles dispatched.

Once the construction vehicles and rescue personnel were in place, the people in the hole were quickly brought up.

Fortunately, the injuries were only some scrapes and bruises; there were no major casualties.

Once this was confirmed, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Only then did Shen Yan have the presence of mind to introduce the head of the survival team to Xu Qingsui.

"This is Captain Chu Tian from the 27th District’s survival team. And this is Guide Xu Qingsui."

"I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s a shame I never found the chance to pay you a visit, Guide Xu. Please don’t hold it against me."

Xu Qingsui exchanged a few polite words, and Chu Tian turned his attention back to Shen Yan.

"Boss Shen, what’s your take on this?" Chu Tian asked, his eyes full of confusion as he stared at the massive hole.

Although it was a frightening incident, it ended without any serious consequences.

But for such a large hole to suddenly appear and trap so many people, an official explanation would be necessary.

Otherwise, it would cause public unrest and create a very bad image for the safe zone.

In response to Chu Tian’s question, Shen Yan subconsciously glanced at Xu Qingsui. She had been acting strangely before the incident; it seemed the reason lay with her.

But with Chu Tian present, Shen Yan didn’t want to drag Xu Qingsui into it in front of him.

"For now, the best outcome is that there were no major casualties. First, announce to the public that it was a normal land subsidence. Pacify the crowd, and we’ll investigate the specifics later."

Chu Tian nodded. For the time being, that was the only way to handle it. Without wasting any more time, he left to make the arrangements.

After Chu Tian left, Shen Yan didn’t say anything to Xu Qingsui right away.

He watched the rescue efforts for a while longer, and only after confirming there were no further issues did he signal for Xu Qingsui to head back to the dorms.

On the way back to the dorms, Shen Yan finally spoke. "I’m sorry you had to go through that. I originally just wanted to show you the local culture of our 27th District and let you experience our nightlife. I never expected something like this to happen."

Xu Qingsui shook her head. "You don’t have to apologize. This isn’t something anyone could have predicted, and besides, nobody wanted this to happen."

"That’s true. But would you mind telling me, did you sense something before it happened? You were acting a little strange, and then you pulled me away from the scene. If it weren’t for you, I’d be down in that hole right now too."

After the incident, Xu Qingsui knew Shen Yan would ask her about it.

There was no reason to hide it, so she told him the truth.

"I just suddenly had a strange feeling, but I didn’t know why. That’s why I was looking around everywhere."

"Thinking back, I was only focused on what was happening on the surface. I neglected the possibility that the problem could be underground," Xu Qingsui said, a hint of frustration on her face.

Ever since she activated the system and became a one-in-a-million Super Guide, her spiritual perception had become much more sensitive.

It was because of this ability that she had been able to evade disaster in time.

But this time, she hadn’t been able to sense where the danger was actually coming from.

In retrospect, perhaps she had been too focused on the surface and had ignored the situation underground.

Fortunately, thanks to her perception of danger and her trust in her own abilities, she had escaped the catastrophe.

"While we were watching the dancing, the feeling got stronger and stronger, but I still couldn’t tell where the problem was. When that sense of crisis hit, I couldn’t take any chances, so I grabbed you and ran."