There was only a heavy silence, filled with the smell of blood and gunpowder.

Exhausted engineers, medical staff, security personnel... everyone silently straightened their backs.

A silent, tragic emotion called "victory" flowed slowly through the pervasive smell of burning.

Outside the operating room of the base hospital, the red light is always on.

Zhang Meng, Su Xuan, Wang Tiezhu and other core members waited anxiously in the corridor.

Mingzhao didn't go in. She stood alone by the window at the end of the corridor, gazing at the deep night outside.

In her hand was an encrypted hard drive containing all the core data of Operation Sky Curtain, which she had just downloaded from the engineering vehicle.

The cold, metallic exterior gleamed with a dim luster under the pale lights of the corridor.

Jiang Feng appeared at the entrance of the corridor. He walked quickly to Ming Zhao's side and handed her a small USB drive that was also encrypted.

The voice was deep: "The mole's USB drive has been hacked. Inside are some blurry photos he took at the base about the installation location of the silent damping plates, the layout of the cooling system piping, and... his notes about the location of the materials lab vents and the guard changing times. There's nothing directly about Stardust."

Mingzhao took the USB drive, put it in her pocket without even looking at it. Her gaze remained fixed on the view outside the window: "Where is he?"

"His emotions were extremely unstable, with intermittent breakdowns. The interrogation was suspended, and the medical team intervened. His prosthetic leg... appeared to have been impacted during the arrest, exhibiting abnormal vibrations and overheating, and has been disassembled for examination."

Jiang Feng paused for a moment, then added, "That leg... its internal structure is unconventional. The technical team's preliminary assessment is that it has a non-standard energy buffer device and a precision transmission structure, and some of the materials... are very special."

Mingzhao finally turned his gaze away from the window and onto Jiang Feng's face.

Her gaze remained calm, but a subtle ripple seemed to spread across its depths: "Special?"

"Yes. Extremely strong, lightweight, and with... traces of unique energy absorption properties."

Jiang Feng's voice carried a hint of seriousness, "This doesn't seem like something that can be manufactured using current domestic technology. The technical team is conducting further analysis."

Just then, the operating room door opened. The surgeon emerged wearily and removed his mask.

Zhang Meng and the others immediately surrounded him, their voices trembling: "Doctor! Old Zhao, he..."

The doctor's face showed a hint of relief and solemnity: "His life has been saved! Multiple fractures, internal bleeding, severe concussion, and... spinal cord injury. The surgery was successful, but he will need time to recover, and... he may never be able to fly again."

A wave of overwhelming grief washed over everyone. Su Xuan's tears welled up again.

Wang Tiezhu closed his eyes in anguish.

Zhang Meng staggered a step and was supported by the officer next to her. This tough old man finally shed two lines of turbid tears silently.

Mingzhao stood at the end of the corridor, listening quietly.

Her fingertips unconsciously caressed the cold hard drive in her hand, a drive that contained both victories and bloodstained data.

The night outside the window was as dark as ink, swallowing the distant mountains and the runway that had just been baptized by fire and blood.

Only a few streetlights at the base, like silent sentinels, stubbornly shone their faint light in the darkness.

Her figure was reflected on the cold windowpane, upright and lonely, like a silent pine tree on a towering cliff.

Those deep eyes reflected the dim light of the hard drive in their hands, and also the boundless, dark night outside the window, a night brimming with the unknown and challenges.