The storm warning is still in effect.

Chen Hao stood at the dock entrance, the wind seeping in through the cracks, chilling the back of his neck. He didn't move, just stared at the old ship half-buried among the supports. The hull was badly rusted, and a crack in the propeller casing looked like an open mouth.

"If we don't fix it soon, it'll really become scrap metal," he said.

Nana had already connected to the main control panel, her finger swiping across the virtual interface. A series of red warnings popped up; she didn't speak, but her brow furrowed slightly.

Carl crouched beside the thruster, holding a testing instrument in his hand. He inserted the probe into the interface slot, waited three seconds, and the instrument emitted a short beep.

“More than 70 percent of the core bearing is corroded,” he said. “The energy module is also half burned out.”

Chen Hao walked over and looked down at the dark metal piece. It should have been silver-gray, but now it looked like it had been gnawed on by something, with uneven, pitted edges.

"Where are the spare parts? Didn't we bring two sets of replacement parts?"

Carl shook his head. "The model doesn't match. This ship is an older model, while the ones in stock are newer models, a generation behind. Installing them would cause an electrical leak."

"Then let's fix it." Chen Hao patted the hull. "Aren't you good with your hands? Shave it, sand it, and it'll do."

“This isn’t a wooden bench.” Karl looked up. “It would explode if it were even slightly off. And we don’t have high-precision machine tools; we can’t adjust this level of fit by hand.”

The air went still for a moment.

Nana's voice rang out at this moment: "The database shows that the material for this component must have three characteristics: high temperature resistance, anti-magnetic disturbance, and low coefficient of expansion. There are currently no matching items in the inventory."

Chen Hao raised his hand and ran a hand through his hair. "So you mean we're stuck here? Waiting for the storm to pass, and then watching the ship rot?"

“Not necessarily.” Nana pulled up another file. “There are three possible alternative materials. One of them is a composite oxide ore, naturally formed, which was used for emergency repairs on the Type VII exploration ship.”

Where can I find it?

"The Beiling Fault Zone area. Marked as area G-9 on the map."

Chen Hao immediately looked at Karl, "Can we dig it out and use it directly? No processing needed?"

Carl stood up, dusted off his pants, and said, "If the purity is high enough and the shape is intact, it's possible. But those kinds of minerals are usually embedded deep in the rock layers, and it's very difficult to find a whole piece on the surface."

“It’s better than sitting here doing nothing.” Chen Hao turned and walked towards the control panel. “We’ll set off early tomorrow morning. While the storm is passing, we’ll take a detour around the outskirts of G-9.”

Nana nodded. "I will continue to search the database to see if there are any simple reinforcement processes or temporary packaging techniques available."

"Go ahead and investigate," Chen Hao said, pointing at the screen. "I trust your judgment, but we can't live off data alone."

He glanced back at the hull and sighed, "If this thing can't be fixed, we won't even have a chance to escape. What's that wind outside? When the fuel runs out and the oxygen is gone, that's when we're really doomed."

Carl didn't reply. He bent down, opened his toolbox, and began sorting through the equipment. He took out a set of portable drill bits, sampling bags, and protective gloves, checking them one by one.

"Bring extra ropes," Chen Hao suddenly said. "Last time a landslide almost buried people."

Carl grunted in agreement, pulled a new roll of rope from the corner, wrapped it around twice, and stuffed it into his bag.

Nana's interface flashed and a new notification popped up: "A small meteorite impact was detected in area G-7 three years ago. The composition of the debris has not been fully analyzed, and there may be non-local metal residues."

"Wait a minute." Chen Hao leaned closer. "You mean, things that fall from the sky might be more effective than things that grow on the ground?"

“Theoretically, it makes sense,” Nana replied. “Meteorites often carry high-density alloys, which, if not completely oxidized, can be used as energy-conducting structural components.”

“Okay.” Chen Hao grinned. “Then let’s change our route. Let’s go to G-7 first to check out the extraterrestrial objects, and then go to G-9 to dig for rocks. Let’s do both at the same time.”

Carl looked up. "G-7 is eight kilometers from here, all scree slopes. It would take at least four hours to carry the equipment there."

"So you're planning to sleep on the boat?" Chen Hao retorted. "You can't move anyway."

No one laughed, but the atmosphere relaxed a little.

Nana began updating the task log synchronously and simultaneously initiated multi-threaded queries. Material parameters, environmental simulations, and risk assessment tables were constantly refreshing on the screen.

“A reminder,” she said, “area G-7 is currently downstream of the storm’s path, ground humidity has reached a critical level, and the probability of mudflows has risen to 37 percent.”

"That means the sooner we go, the safer we are." Chen Hao stroked his chin. "We'll leave once things have calmed down."

“I recommend waiting for six hours,” Nana said. “The current wind speed is still above the safe threshold, and the visibility at night is less than five meters, making it too risky to go out.”

Chen Hao glanced at his watch; it was 11:40 PM.

“Then we’ll take turns,” he said. “You two go back and get some sleep, I’ll keep watch for the first half of the night. We’ll meet at three o’clock tomorrow morning to leave.”

Carl packed his backpack, picked it up, and tested its weight. He walked to the door, then stopped.

"Did you bring the waterproof membrane?" he asked Nana.

"Two volumes have been prepared and are attached to the third item of the equipment list."

“Add another roll,” he said. “In case we encounter a wet area, the electronic components won’t be able to withstand it.”

Nana nodded and revised the list.

Carl walked out, his footsteps fading into the distance.

Chen Hao sat down against the control panel, legs stretched out, toes of his shoes scraping the ground. He looked up at Nana, "Tell me the truth, is this ship salvageable?"

“It cannot be confirmed with 100% certainty,” she said, “but based on the information available, the probability of success is 38.6 percent.”

"Not even 40%?" He gave a wry smile. "Have we always been this unlucky?"

You humans often say, "Treat a dead horse as if it were alive."

Chen Hao was taken aback for a moment, then burst out laughing, "You've even learned to interrupt?"

“I’m just using a common phrase,” Nana said expressionlessly, “and I believe it’s appropriate for the current situation.”

Chen Hao waved his hand, "Alright, just don't tell me 'the hope is slim'."

He stood up and stretched his shoulders. "I'll go get some food. You keep investigating, and call me if you find anything."

Nana nodded, her gaze returning to the screen.

The data stream continues to scroll, and new keywords are being loaded: **natural conductor veins**, **recrystallization temperature of meteorite alloys**, **simple magnetic field shielding method**.

The wind howled outside the base, causing the metal walls to vibrate slightly. The lights on the top of the dock flickered briefly before settling back down.

As Chen Hao walked out the door, he casually turned off the overhead light switch. Darkness instantly engulfed most of the dock, leaving only the blue light from the control panel reflecting on Nana's face.

She didn't move; her fingers were still sliding rapidly.

Three minutes later, a new record popped up: **Recommended solution 04-c: Use a carbon crystal layer to wrap the damaged interface and wrap it with magnetized iron wire to form a temporary stable field**.

Materials required: carbon wafer (thickness ≥ 0.3mm), soft magnetic alloy wire, insulating tape.

Inventory check results: One carbon wafer remains (insufficient size), no soft magnetic alloy wire in stock, insulating tape available.

Nana marked it as "partially feasible" and automatically associated it with the collection priority.

She pulled up a map and drew a broken line between G-7 and G-9. Two small dots were added along the line, labeled "Ruins of the Abandoned Exploration Station" and "Crash Site of the Old Fuel Tank".

Ten minutes later, she said softly, "I've found a possibility."

As soon as the words were spoken, the broadcast system automatically activated.

“Karl,” Nana said into the communicator, “Please check the small silver box in the toolkit, number T-12. It contains what you need.”

A few seconds later, a response came: "I saw it. What is it?"

"This might be the most anticipated thing for us tonight."