In the bus, the one who spoke was a middle-aged man in rescue gear, of medium build, with well-defined facial features and an authoritative presence, his round eyes shining brightly.

He was the deputy commander of the rescue team’s operation, Han Yue.

He sat beside the Director of Emergency Rescue, Yian Qingwen, holding a high-precision topographic map of Punjab Province.

Gu Ji lifted his seat slightly, stealing a glance at the map, which had two red earthquake circles drawn on it.

"This should be considered a rather rare double quake."

After a brief consideration, Yian Qingwen, who had a background with the Seismological Bureau, confirmed the earthquake sequence.

An earthquake sequence refers to a series of earthquakes that occur consecutively within the same seismic source over a period.

In an earthquake sequence, the strongest earthquake is called the mainshock; smaller subsequent earthquakes in the same seismic area are called aftershocks; smaller earthquakes in the same seismic area before the mainshock are called foreshocks.

According to their arrangement, earthquake sequences are divided into three main categories.

Mainshock type: The mainshock’s magnitude is high and prominent, and the energy released by the mainshock accounts for over 90% of the entire earthquake sequence. This type is further divided into "mainshock-aftershock type" and "foreshock-mainshock-aftershock type";

Swarm type: There is no prominent mainshock; the primary energy is released through multiple earthquakes of similar magnitude. If there are two maximum earthquakes of nearly equal magnitude in the sequence, it is called a double quake type;

Isolated type: Its main characteristic is the near absence of foreshocks and aftershocks.

The double quake that Yian Qingwen referred to is a swarm type.

Generally, earthquakes of both the mainshock type and swarm type cause severe disasters. For example, Pakistan’s 9.24 earthquake was a typical mainshock type, while the 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Turkey two years ago was a swarm type.

This time, the earthquake in Pakistan erupted across Punjab Province, spanning a vast area and affecting densely populated regions, thus making it even more severe.

This was indeed the case.

After leaving the Lahore city area, as the convoy approached the epicenter, the surrounding mountainous roads visibly changed.

To the right of the vehicle, the mountain forests affected by the earthquake zone were devastated, with cracks faintly visible in the mountain mass, massive rocks and trees overturned and scattered everywhere. The once dense forest was now in ruins, leaving behind a chaotic mess.

The river below the left mountain path was even more turbulent, with steam rising and waves aggressively churning.

The distant bridges and dams had completely collapsed, and the fallen debris glittered in the sunlight, exuding a sense of death.

The only geological disaster Gu Ji had experienced was the Myanmar North Underground Building checkpoint.

But that was a subsidence, and he was inside a completely enclosed building at the time, feeling no terror.

Seeing these shattered remains with his own eyes, he realized the destructive power of seismic waves.

"Pakistan is located at the junction of the Eurasian and Indian plates, frequently affected by strong seismic activity and severe earthquake disasters. According to data from the Bafang Seismological Bureau, a characteristic of this earthquake is the frequent aftershocks, with high magnitudes and wide distribution."

"Only 4 hours after the first major earthquake, an 8.1 magnitude quake occurred 95 kilometers northeast of the epicenter, and within 24 hours, the seismic zone has experienced over a hundred aftershocks above magnitude 4, stretching over 300 kilometers. Therefore, this operation is extremely dangerous, everyone must..."

Yian Qingwen stopped abruptly mid-sentence.

A dull sound, seemingly coming from nowhere, filled the air, reminiscent of throaty breathing obstructed by thick phlegm, making everyone uneasy.

Instinctively, Gu Ji and others couldn’t help but notice the thermos on the small table in front of Yian Qingwen, the water surface vibrating in ripples.

"Grumble..."

Beside him, the rescue dog Xiao Jian inexplicably began to shake its body and bared its teeth.

In an instant, the bird flock in the forest to the right took flight in a panic into the air, and the distant mountain peak trembled slightly, as if something enormous was awakening, causing the entire bus’s windows to resonate with a loud "buzz buzz buzz" vibration.

Deputy Commander Han Yue’s expression changed dramatically.

Director Yian Qingwen urgently shouted to the driver, "It’s an aftershock! Hurry! Get the convoy to speed up!"

"Boom——!"

Suddenly, a booming sound jolted everyone, the ground began to shake, the river roared, and hundreds of tons of rocks and soil, propelled by immense force, rolled down, kicking up swirling dust and smoke. The river of rubble quickly overran the entire forest, knocking over every tree and shrub in its path, creating a deafening roar.

"There’s not enough time! Driver, stop the bus! Pull the handbrake tight!"

Although Yian Qingwen was a seismic expert, Han Yue had been involved in earthquake rescue for years and knew that with the speed of the bus, it was impossible to escape such a seismic landslide, "Everyone get off the bus!!"

"Quick! Quick! Everyone get off the bus now!!"

"Don’t worry about the equipment! Get off first!"

"Hurry!"

As soon as the bus door swung open, Han Yue and several team leaders immediately stood up, frantically urging the team members to evacuate.

A paramilitary medical staffer still wanted to grab important equipment from the luggage rack but was scolded by Han Yue on the spot.

Lives were at stake.

Gu Ji quickly jumped off the bus with Xiao Jian in his arms, the seismic-trembling mountain road underfoot felt like a trampoline, but his strong core control kept him from falling.

His eyes flickered, quickly assessing the surrounding terrain, realizing the only safe spot was behind the bus!

So he quickly stretched his neck and shouted, "Everyone, hurry to the back of the bus for shelter!"