An earthquake of this magnitude is extremely rare in the recorded history of Blue Star's civilization.
In human history on Blue Star, even magnitude 8+ earthquakes rank among the most significant events, let alone a magnitude 9 quake.
Earthquakes exceeding magnitude 9 are truly terrifying.
Blue Star's historical records only document a handful of such occurrences, all from the distant past.
When they strike, such quakes obliterate everything nearby, reducing entire surroundings to ruins.
The resulting tsunamis then sweep away anything left standing.
Against such colossal seismic forces, even the most earthquake-resistant structures built with current human technology cannot fully withstand quakes above magnitude 9.
Thus in this disaster, countless buildings across central and southern Saintaliga collapsed—walls cracked, roofs caved in, before being washed away by tsunami waves.
Critical infrastructure suffered massive damage: bridges, railways, highways, ports, airports—severely disrupting transportation and logistics networks.
Hydraulic and hydroelectric facilities were equally devastated.
Earthquake damage to water and power systems crippled water supply, electricity distribution, and drainage networks.
Equally critical, communication infrastructure was destroyed:
Power transmission systems, base station equipment, signal towers, fiber optic cables—all compromised.
With communication networks down, affected areas became completely isolated from the outside world.
This created enormous challenges for disaster response teams attempting to reach the affected zones.
The breakdown severely hampered rescue efforts.
Ongoing aftershocks continued causing destruction, putting rescue personnel at constant risk of casualties. Survivors of the initial quake might still perish in subsequent tremors.
The sheer scale and horror of this catastrophe sparked intense discussions across global social media platforms.
When news reached Great Xia, recently off-work citizens flooded video platforms' comment sections with reactions:
[My god, this is horrific.]
[Nature's power is terrifying—seeing thriving cities reduced to ruins in moments, then swallowed by the sea. Humanity must respect nature's might.]
[Without these videos, I'd never have understood how devastating a magnitude 9 quake could be.]
[How many casualties?]
[Previous commenter: International aid organizations estimate tens of thousands dead/missing, with millions affected.]
[That severe?]
[Absolutely. Death tolls would be higher if Saintaliga weren't so sparsely populated.]
[Rumors say the tsunami will impact dozens of countries/coastal regions, even some Far Star Union islands.]
[You mean the Xiaweier Islands?]
[Exactly. Now we can sit back and enjoy the show.]
[This isn't entertaining, child. It's a shared human tragedy.]
[Heh~~]
[Far Star dogs!]
Online discussions among compatriots grew increasingly bizarre, with some descending into arguments.
It can only be said that people's focus differs entirely, and so do their joys and sorrows.
The massive tsunami triggered by this magnitude-9 earthquake would swallow every island in its path—unless they were far enough away. Moreover, the earthquake would also influence the trajectory of the typhoon to some extent.
In some countries with strong religious influences, different opinions emerged.
For instance, followers of a certain sect claimed this was a sign of the apocalypse, a warning from God to humanity.
The end of days was about to descend upon mankind.
They then called on people to donate to their churches, claiming that doing so would earn them the protection of the one true God or the Almighty, allowing them to survive the impending catastrophe.
Surprisingly, many believed this—after all, national circumstances varied.
Freedom of belief meant people could believe whatever they wanted, and no one could stop them, right?
Beyond that, some rather outrageous charlatan prophets came forward, declaring this a punishment from nature upon humanity. They claimed the only way to avoid nature's wrath was to drink cow urine and eat cow dung.
Such bizarre statements immediately drew fierce backlash from netizens worldwide.
Comments like:
[You're the one who should drink cow urine and eat cow dung—your whole family should!]
[Is this guy's brain broken?]
[This is beyond stupid.]
[Unbelievable!]
[Dear God, please send someone to take this idiot away. The world doesn't need such foolish humans.]
[This guy's brain is dumber than the lowest life form.]
Yet, amid the global outcry, this charlatan prophet actually gained quite a following in his own country, with many buying into his claims.
In the Boro Ancient Country, there were indeed people who drank cow urine and ate cow dung. Some Boros even insisted it was "holy water," claiming it could prevent diseases and that bathing in it would boost immunity.
Mixing and consuming both, they said, would amplify the effects.
Before long, cow urine and cow dung became commodities traded for money in the Boro Ancient Country.
Damn, this guy actually turned it into a business.
What a business-savvy genius.
Soon after, videos of people drinking cow urine and eating cow dung began circulating online—utterly disgusting.
Some netizens from the Great Xia Republic, upon seeing this, quickly compiled the videos and reposted them across domestic platforms for everyone's amusement.
This was just too entertaining.
Blue Star truly had no shortage of oddballs.
With a population nearing ten billion, how could there not be a few eccentrics?
When the forest is vast, all kinds of birds will appear—this was hardly surprising.
And given the Boro Ancient Country's massive population, a few bizarre outliers were to be expected.
Dongjiang City, suburban villa.
Li Dong, who had just returned home, saw news of the St. Ligar earthquake playing on the 120-inch screen. His mother, Xu Yajun, was scrolling through related videos on her phone.
Seeing this, Li Dong knew she believed him now.
"Mom, I'm not crazy. Neither is Tiang. The apocalypse is really coming," Li Dong said as he walked over and sat beside her, his voice solemn.
"I know. I just... can't quite accept it yet."
Xu Yajun's eyes were slightly red as she looked up at him.
The earthquake in St. Ligar had shattered all her subsequent doubts. Now, no matter what Li Dong did, she would support him.
Besides, those meteorites hanging in the sky don't lie.
"Dong, whatever you two plan to do next, as long as it's not illegal, I'll support you. If you need connections or favors, I can help with that too," Xu Yajun said, leaning against Li Dong's shoulder.
If doomsday truly came, aside from Li Dong and Li Tiang, she really couldn't trust any outsiders.
Not just outsiders—sometimes even family couldn't be trusted.
Never underestimate the inherent evil and survival instincts in human nature.
And as a wealthy woman, she'd be an even more tempting target for evildoers when the apocalypse came—like having a buff added to her.
"Don't worry, Mom. Everything's going according to mine and Tiang's plans."