Chapter 228 - Stop This
Chapter 228: Stop This
Oraman covered the land of hope with a layer of Earth soil that was 10m deep. In it, he had planted many seeds they had brought from Earth.
The special glass could mimic Earth’s atmosphere and filter the sunlight to allow photosynthesis. The plants could absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen, which was the most important source of oxygen in Eternity.
Their oxygen storage was running low. The plants had to start working as soon as possible.
“We’re too weak to do anything…”
“Striking us with your whip won’t change anything…”
“I can barely walk. Carrying stones will kill me.”
“Oraman is an animal! I curse him forever…”
“I can’t move a finger. Please stop hitting me. You’re going to kill me…”
The soldiers mercilessly whipped the passengers, who were too weak to cry out in pain. They were exhausted, but they were still forced to do hard labor. It would only get them killed.
“Enough with the nonsense! We’ll give a slice of bread to each worker. Plus, the land of hope is full of oxygen now. It’ll do you good! We only need 100,000 people!” A soldier made the announcement as he waved his whip.
“What? A slice of bread?”
“Is there any water?”
“Oxygen? I want to go… If I have to die, I’ll die in the land of hope!”
“Don’t get in my way. I’m going.”
“Only 100,000? Count me in!”
The mention of bread, water, and abundant oxygen immediately cheered up the passengers.
“So, you’ve been pretending all along!”
The soldiers struck them harder. They seemed half-dead a moment ago, but now, they looked totally fine. They had stopped complaining about their hunger or exhaustion!
“You lazy bones! You won’t move unless you’re whipped!” The soldiers rushed the emaciated passengers to the land of hope like lambs.
The passengers breathed the fresh air as soon as they arrived. It had been four months since they breathed so freely.
It felt like heaven!
When someone was lacking oxygen for a long time, their head would get muddled, and they would feel exhausted. That was the case with these people.
The land of hope was vast. Green trees stretched out for miles and miles. They couldn’t remember when was the last time they saw any plants.
The excitement of seeing Mars for the first time was long gone. All that was left was fear and despair. They were scared of the dunes. They wished it was only a dream and that all the bleak scenes would be gone when they woke up.
They wished they would be lying in their own beds at home. However, they could only wish. They had woken up hundreds of times in disappointment. They had to face reality every single time.
The land of hope consisted of Cabins 50 to 90.
Each cabin could fit 10,000 people, meaning 41 cabins could accommodate 410,000 people. That was how large the place was. It was about the size of a county or a city on Earth.
That wasn’t a small area at all. Moreover, the region was filled with green plants. The passengers found it a very cheerful scene. It was as if they were back on Earth.
Tears welled up in their eyes, and they remembered their lives on Earth. They missed their home even more.
They had been on Mars for six months, and they had never missed Earth so much.
“Get moving!” The soldiers took them to a clearing.
The area only had a thin layer of soil, which was about 50cm thick. It was where the processing factory was going to be built.
“You’re going to build a stone pit here. Fetch the stone from outside. We’ll provide you with other metals.”
They had obtained quite a lot of metal from the removed hulls of the 41 cabins. It could be reused.
A soldier took out a blueprint. “Who knows how to read this? Are there any engineers? We’ll give them another piece of bread!”
Of course, there were engineers among the passengers.
Everybody surrounded the soldier and tried to get the job. They looked forward to going to the land of hope. The place also had electricity, which had been cut off in all the cabins.
Electricity was a precious resource. The passengers hadn’t switched on their phones for months. The next day, somebody brought their cell phone.
Back on Earth, they had all used the best phones in the world. Some phones cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and were equipped with technologies that couldn’t be anywhere on the market.
The phones were excellent products. Although they hadn’t been switched off for months, the batteries weren’t affected at all.
“I can switch it on!” A passenger was excited.
However, it wouldn’t make any difference. There was no service on Mars.
“Are you trying to get yourself killed? The soldiers are coming back from lunch soon! Put it away!”
“Shit! You brought your phone? Do you have a death wish? They’ll whip you to death if they find it!”
“Man, what are you thinking? Switching it on doesn’t mean anything. Do you think you can get a signal on Mars?”
“Put it away now, or you’re going to get all of us killed! We’re here to work, not to charge your phone!”
“Those bastards don’t treat us like human beings at all! Don’t set them off! Put it away!”
…
The passengers urged the owner of the phone, and some even started cursing him. The man was Shawn, a Moonian. He didn’t plan on using his phone as he knew where they were. Even if he had switched it on, he couldn’t possibly get any service signal.
However, he still had a tiny bit of hope.
But…
It remained a hope.
It was too unrealistic.
Between Mars and Earth was the vast universe.
Shawn didn’t feel too disappointed when he saw the “no signal” on the screen.