Chapter 78: Thread

In June, the rainfall grew heavier each time, and a strong wind picked up outside; the raindrops rhythmically pounded the windows and door of the storage room.

No wonder that little kitten didn't come.

Cats dislike water, and they are probably more sensitive to weather than humans, so the kitten is likely taking shelter from the rain in some corner.

These days, Chen Mu has grown accustomed to having a cat keep him company while he works; the only difference is that he stays inside while the cat stays outside, the cat occasionally scratches at the door and meows twice, and if Chen Mu feels like it, he will also knock on the door panel—though the sound is faint, the cat's keen hearing should still pick up a bit.

So.

Thus, the person and the cat occasionally communicate in this way.

After waiting several days, the rain finally arrived, and the heavens were most gracious—this rainfall was very abundant.

After just one or two minutes, the outdoor rainwater pipe had already begun draining.

And their newly built water conduit also clearly made the sound of flowing water.

"Sure enough, it works!"

The splashing water sound inside the pipe lifted everyone's spirits, for even Tang Jing had not dared to be completely sure that this big contraption could run perfectly before this.

But now it is only running a small part.

This pipe leading indoors has its other end directly connected to the outdoors, except that an extra opening was made in the middle section of the pipe.

As for this water inlet, it had given Chen Mu quite a headache back then.

Obviously.

A threaded cap similar to that of a mineral water bottle is still difficult for him now.

This has always been a sore point for Chen Mu.

He can now use his Special Ability to do many astonishing things—he's becoming increasingly adept at Iron Man's armor, and he can even make a piece of plastic transform into a human shape and dance, yet he is helpless when it comes to a bottle cap.

The reason is simple.

Such things demand precision, not imagination.

It doesn't even have much to do with mental strength.

This is actually not hard to understand.

Humans can paint exquisite works like the Mona Lisa, but without tools, most people can't even draw two parallel lines accurately.

And precision.

Yet it is one of the cornerstones of industrial civilization.

Chen Mu has always played to his strengths and avoided his weaknesses, trying to substitute qualitative things for quantitative ones whenever possible—for this water inlet, he initially planned to make a flip‑lid with a clasp to replace the threaded opening.

Although this would be less airtight, it would still be sufficient, since any minor leakage would soon flow out through the door gap.

But upon second thought.

So‑called playing to one's strengths and avoiding weaknesses is actually not a compliment here.

If the goal is to revive human civilization, his ability is clearly a shortcut, but if he cannot even manufacture threaded gears and such, then the so‑called rejuvenation of industry is nothing but a joke.

Therefore, Chen Mu immediately decided to give it a try no matter how difficult.

He has seen many domestic inspirational stories about early pioneers overcoming technical hurdles, and now applying them to himself feels somewhat fitting.

Thus, even though those days of work had already exceeded his capacity, leaving his body and mind utterly exhausted, Chen Mu still insisted on making a threaded cap.

The process was actually quite boring.

It was nothing more than repeated attempts, over and over again.

Each day he would make the threads when his energy was highest, then switch to other simple tasks when tired, waiting until the entire water‑intake project was finished.

The threaded cap was finally completed.

It is a white plastic threaded cap with a diameter of 1 cm; lacking a rubber ring for sealing, the inside of the cap was carefully given a groove.

This could very well be the first genuine industrial product made since humanity's apocalypse, and it immediately drew everyone's attention.

Everyone went up and touched it a few times.

Tang Jing praised it incessantly, but then she uttered some obscure terms—'check valve,' 'Y‑type filter,' and the like—leaving everyone dumbfounded.

……

The heavy rain lasted about a minute.

He Ying said, "I'll go open the outlet."

The outlet is located several tens of centimeters high; although Chen Mu had made a ladder for it, He Ying usually volunteers for such climbing tasks.

"Wait a moment," Tang Jing said.

"Why? What if the rain stops soon?"

"Looking at this rain, it won't let up in a moment; the initial runoff can't be used, so we need to wait at least ten minutes."

"What's the point of that?"

"Because it's dirty—let the rain wash the roof first; only after a while will the collected water be relatively clean."

"Is there really such a saying?"

"Because it's dirty—let the rain wash the roof first; only after a while will the collected water be relatively clean," Tang Jing explained.

"All right."

Everyone actually could hardly understand anymore, but they had grown accustomed to not probing deeper.

Listening to the rain, which was even more thunderous than last time, ten minutes passed quickly.

"Okay, we can open it now," Tang Jing said, watching the clock.

"I'll go," He Ying nodded.

"I'll come too—the cap is too big, and with the water's impact, one person would probably struggle to handle it."

Chen Mu said that and then climbed up together with He Ying.

To make operation easier, Chen Mu built a platform at the water inlet that could accommodate three to five people standing.

The two stood on opposite sides, both hands holding the round lid.

"Turn!"

One turn, two turns…

As the lid was unscrewed, the water flow eagerly rushed out.

"Careful, move aside."

At the moment the lid was completely taken off, the two could not hold onto it at all, and could only let it be washed away by the water; water splashed everywhere, soaking both of them.

"Damn, I forgot about this problem."

Chen Mu watched helplessly as the huge plastic lid was swept onto the ground, feeling rather helpless.

However, the water flow from the intake precisely shot into the sedimentation tank, letting everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

The two hurried down, and together with everyone else, stepped back to watch the water diversion project operate.

The water flow began slowly filling the sedimentation tank; the water level rose slowly, and when the surface reached the highest point, the water flowed into the Water Reservoir via the overflow outlet.

A few more minutes passed.

The Water Reservoir was also slowly filled, and the excess water, through the overflow outlet, entered the drainage pipe and was discharged outdoors.

Because it was the first use, all containers needed to be rinsed several times; Chen Mu opened the drainage pipe at the bottom of the Water Reservoir, and soon the drainage speed exceeded the inflow, causing the water level to drop again.

After repeating this several times, they then closed the drainage outlet.

"Mission accomplished." Tang Jing clapped her hands.

Everyone looked at the water tank before them, filled and as tall as a three-story building, feeling an indescribable joy.

The days when they couldn't take a shower might soon be a thing of the past.