The wind stopped just as dawn broke.

Chen Hao squatted on the metal steps at the base entrance, holding half a compressed biscuit in his hand. He took a bite, and crumbs fell onto his trouser leg. Too lazy to wipe them off, he just stuffed the last bite into his mouth and mumbled, "Let's go."

Carl walked up from behind, a detector slung over his shoulder, and rolled his eyes when he heard this. "You said 'depart the day after tomorrow,' so today is the day after tomorrow? I was fixing the relay until 2 a.m. last night."

"That's perfect." Chen Hao stood up, patted his bottom, and said, "I've had enough sleep."

Susan was already standing at the entrance of the passage waiting for them, her protective suit neatly worn and her tool bag hanging at her waist. Seeing Chen Hao's wrinkled clothes, she couldn't help but remind him, "You should at least change your coat."

"There's no one outside to score us," Chen Hao waved his hand. "As long as it can move, that's fine."

Nana stood to the side, and the camera panned across the four people's equipment list, reporting a set of data: "Oxygen reserves are sufficient, communication module signal is stable, the journey is expected to take six hours, and sampling and marker points must be completed before returning."

"Did you hear that?" Chen Hao smiled at everyone. "If the robot says it's necessary, then we have to do it."

The group walked eastward along the dry riverbed. The ground was uneven and full of potholes; in some places, a layer of dust would settle underfoot. Chen Hao walked at the front, his steps a little slow, but he didn't stop. As the sun rose, the temperature slowly increased, and sweat began to bead on his forehead, his breathing becoming heavier.

“This place is much more difficult to navigate than the map shows.” Carl said, glancing at the detector screen as he walked. “The magnetic field readings are all over the place; we can only navigate using beacons.”

"Did you put the beacon down yesterday?" Chen Hao asked.

"Who else could it be but me?"

"Where did you put it?"

“One every 500 meters, buried under the stones.”

"Then why are you asking me?"

"I'm afraid you didn't even notice."

Susan interjected, "Stop arguing, the area just ahead is the edge of the region mentioned in the report."

She pointed to a patch of grayish-brown rocky ground ahead. Several cracks appeared in the surface, as if something had pushed through from below. Nana approached one of the cracks, and the camera flickered a few times.

"The soil density is abnormal, and there is a cavity structure below. It is recommended to take a detour."

"A hollow cavity?" Chen Hao squatted down and touched the edge of the crack with his hand. "Could it have collapsed?"

“Highly likely.” Karl stared at the detector. “But the crustal stress in this area has always been unstable. The massive evacuation three years ago might have been due to this.”

"Who cares why?" Chen Hao stood up. "We're here to find something, not to write a thesis."

They continued along the route Nana had planned. The further they went, the more brittle the ground became. Several places made a slight cracking sound when stepped on, and Nana immediately stopped, signaling everyone to wait for the scan results. They only continued after confirming it was safe.

Around noon, they arrived near their target coordinates. The terrain had slightly subsided, forming a small depression. In the center was a protruding rock platform, its surface covered with cracks.

“This is it.” Susan opened her clipboard to check the location. “29 degrees north latitude, 15 kilometers east, which matches the map markings.”

Carl set up the portable detector, made a few adjustments, and the waveform on the screen began to fluctuate. "The signal is intermittent, but there are definitely signs of heat flow. The depth is estimated to be about two hundred meters underground."

"Two hundred meters?" Chen Hao grinned. "The shovels we brought are only one meter long."

“We don’t need to dig that deep,” Susan said. “Just find traces of the surface overflow.”

Nana initiated a low-power scan, moving back and forth along the edge of the depression. Suddenly, her voice changed: "At the three o'clock position on the left, there's a faint reflection of light beneath the soil."

"Light?" Chen Hao turned around immediately. "What light?"

"Blue, extremely low frequency, continuously flashing."

"This is unbelievable." Karl frowned. "How can there be a light source in a place like this?"

"Let's go take a look." Chen Hao had already stepped over.

They walked to the spot Nana had pointed out. The ground looked similar to the rest of the place, a layer of hardened sand and gravel. Chen Hao took out his shovel and forcefully pried away the surface soil. Once, twice, and on the third pry, the tip of the shovel hit something hard.

“We have it,” he said.

He crouched down and used his hands to clear away the surrounding dust. After a layer of dark gray sand was removed, several crystal fragments the size of fingernails were revealed underneath, gleaming with a faint blue light, like the last flash of a firefly before it went out.

"This is... ore?" Susan leaned closer to examine it.

“It doesn’t look naturally formed.” Carl took out a magnifying glass. “The edges are too regular, and the way it emits light is wrong.”

Nana brought the lens close to the crystal and ran the mineral analysis program. A few seconds later, she looked up: "A high concentration of silicon-based complex was detected, and the electron transition frequency matches the characteristics of the 'unknown particle stream' described in the data with an 89% accuracy."

"So—" Chen Hao stared at the blue light, "this thing can actually generate electricity?"

“We cannot verify the output capability at present,” Nana said, “but its physical properties support the energy carrier hypothesis.”

"That's enough," Chen Hao laughed. "As long as it's not just the stone acting crazy on its own."

He carefully picked up a fragment with insulated pliers, placed it in a sampling bag, and sealed it. Susan wrote down the time, coordinates, and preliminary assessment on the label. Carl, meanwhile, used a detector to record data about the surrounding environment.

"Dig deeper," Chen Hao said. "Let's see if there's anything else."

They expanded their excavation area. Soon, they discovered more similar crystals in a deeper layer of soil, some even connected into small pieces, like veins embedded in the rock strata.

“The distribution is uneven,” Susan observed for a while. “It’s like some kind of geological activity pushed them up here.”

“That means there’s a source down there.” Chen Hao looked up at the sky. “We can’t bring the drilling rig down today, but at least it proves that the lousy book wasn’t just made up.”

"We can't completely rule out the possibility of contamination," Carl cautioned. "What if it's residue from previous experiments?"

"If it's just residue, why is it still glowing after all these years?" Chen Hao countered. "If it had already become ineffective, how could it still leave behind an energy signal?"

Carl didn't say anything.

Nana continued scanning the surrounding area, then suddenly stopped: "The ground bearing capacity drops sharply five meters ahead, indicating a possible hidden subsidence zone."

"Let's retreat first." Susan carefully collected the last sample. "We have enough samples; there's no need to take any risks."

They retreated to safety and tallied their gains: five sealed ore samples, three sets of environmental data records, and a hand-drawn location sketch.

"Let's go back." Chen Hao stuffed the sampling bag into his backpack. "If I stay any longer, I'm afraid I'll get too fat to walk."

“You can’t walk anymore,” Carl said.

"That's from being tired, not from being fat."

Susan smiled and initiated a communication test. The signal was weaker than when they arrived, but the connection could still be maintained. Nana switched to infrared mode and guided the team back along the same route.

The wind picked up again in the afternoon, whipping up sand and dust that obscured their vision. Using Nana's navigation, they navigated around a newly appeared quicksand pit, taking twice as long as expected to return to the base entrance.

It was getting dark.

Chen Hao unloaded his backpack on the ground and said, panting, "I'm finally back alive."

Susan took the sampling bag and prepared to register it for storage. Carl checked the equipment status and unplugged the detector. Nana stood aside, still synchronizing the last batch of data.

"We'll start the analysis tomorrow," Chen Hao said, leaning against the wall. "Who's in charge of washing the dishes?"

“You said this morning that anyone who’s late would have to wash.” Susan looked at him.

Am I late?

"You entered the door right at six o'clock sharp."

"That's not considered late."

"Then just remember what you said."

Chen Hao chuckled twice and stopped arguing. He looked up at the lights in the main building of the base, then looked down at the mud on his hands.

"This trip was worthwhile," he said.

Susan placed the sample in the storage cabinet and labeled it. Carl recharged the communication relay. Nana shut down the scanning program, and the machine vibrated slightly.

Chen Hao stood at the door, not moving.

The distant wasteland had been swallowed by the night, and the wind was still blowing, making the tin roof sway gently.

He lifted his foot, ready to go inside.

At that moment, the sampling bag in the side pocket of the backpack suddenly flashed.