Apocalypse Survival: Starting with a Shelter

The next day, temperatures outside continued to rise. By midday, the thermometer read 55°C.

Through drone surveillance, Su Wu observed that nearly all wild plants and crops in Jianghe City and its surrounding areas had withered, facing imminent extinction. The surface-level agricultural collapse meant large-scale crop failures and a grim future for food supplies.

"The situation outside is dire. Thankfully, most people here seem to have made it to shelters without major issues."

In the doomsday group chat, Su Wu shared the drone footage. The barren streets and desolate farmlands sparked widespread commiseration.

"We've all moved into the official shelter here too," someone said. "But the rules are strict. We couldn't bring much, and it's eight people crammed into one room. It's worse than my old dorm."

"All I can do is scroll through my phone all day. There's nothing else to do."

This complaint came from someone in an official shelter. Though safe, his quality of life had plummeted, with most possessions abandoned in his surface-level home. Su Wu thought about how he would have faced the same fate without the survival system.

"I've got it a little better," another said. "I got into a small private company's shelter. I have my own bedroom, and I could bring as much as I could fit."

"But everything costs money—water, electricity, everything. The company's wages don't cover it, and I have to barter just to get by. I don't know how long I'll last."

This person had better living conditions, with photos showing a private room equipped with a washing machine, fridge, and television. However, private shelters were profit-driven, unlike official shelters, which had a baseline of government support. The higher cost of living came with increased vulnerability; a single raid could spell disaster.

"Your drones are amazing, boss," someone interjected. "I sent out three drones today, and all three broke down from overheating."

Many in the chat were fascinated by the photos Su Wu had shared. Having access to real-time information about the outside world was a rare privilege, marking him as someone of significant means. Those asking questions clearly had some authority themselves; ordinary people wouldn't even have permission to use drones during such times.

"You need drones with better cooling systems," Su Wu replied casually. His interest piqued. The rising temperatures were starting to affect electronic equipment.

Switching to the shelter's 3D map, Su Wu noticed signs of wear in the construction team's vehicles, particularly the micro transport vehicles frequently traveling between the surface and the shelter. Some internal components were beginning to overheat and malfunction.

The high temperatures were clearly taking a toll on the automated equipment.

"It looks like I'll need to upgrade the cooling systems for the vehicles. And that geothermal generator on the surface—it needs to be moved underground. If the heat keeps rising, it's only a matter of time before it fails."

Faced with these challenges, Su Wu began brainstorming solutions.

Adding new cooling systems wasn't difficult. The AI assistant had downloaded comprehensive schematics for such systems, and the engineering robot could handle the modifications quickly. The challenge lay in the cooling systems' energy demands. The vehicles' batteries would require frequent recharging.

"To fix this, I can use the high-energy battery pack's wireless charging feature. All I need to do is equip each vehicle with a power receiver to integrate with the system."

After some thought, Su Wu finalized the plan.

Wireless charging technology in this world was highly advanced. While not as impressive as the upgraded high-energy battery pack's 100-meter range, the principle was the same. Adapting it for vehicle power receivers was straightforward.

With the construction team's equipment issue addressed, Su Wu turned his attention to refining the shelter's overall design.

A survival-oriented shelter needed to meet three fundamental requirements: water, air, and safety.

For water, the shelter already had a system for sourcing, filtering, storing, and distributing water. However, this wasn't enough. A complete water cycle also required drainage, wastewater treatment, and quality monitoring.

This meant constructing a separate drainage system and multiple specialized wastewater treatment pools to handle domestic, industrial, and laboratory waste with tailored filtration processes. Each stage of the water cycle would also need electronic monitoring to detect contaminants like unknown viruses or radiation.

For air, the shelter had an upgraded air purification system, which worked well in theory. However, it was a passive device installed at the shelter's ventilation points, meaning it reacted with some delay.

If a breach occurred—such as a crack in the shelter's walls allowing toxic or radioactive substances to flood in—the purification system might not act quickly enough to prevent catastrophic contamination.

To address this, Su Wu planned to install a network of sensitive air quality monitors throughout the shelter. These would detect abnormalities and automatically seal off affected areas, providing a critical safety net.

For safety, once water and air issues were resolved, the most significant remaining threat was fire.

Fortunately, fire prevention and suppression systems were relatively simple. The AI assistant's database already contained numerous mature solutions, eliminating the need for costly upgrades.

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Satisfied with his plan, Su Wu initiated the cooling system upgrades for the construction vehicles and began preparations to move the geothermal generator underground. As he worked, the oppressive conditions outside only reinforced his de

termination to fortify his shelter against the challenges ahead.