Chen Hao's hand was still on the joystick, his eyes fixed on the screen. The blackout just now was so brief that the system didn't even report an error, but he still felt something was wrong.

“Nana,” he said, “replay the power log of the engine compartment, starting from thirty seconds ago.”

Nana stood in front of the main control panel, her finger tracing the panel. "Retrieved. Continuous slight current leakage detected, source: power core interface b7."

"Not a one-off fluctuation?" Chen Hao asked.

“No,” she said. “The leak has lasted for four minutes and thirty-eight seconds, and the cumulative load has increased by twelve percent.”

Susan looked up: "So, you're saying we've been leaking electricity all along?"

"To be precise, it's an abnormal energy return flow," Nana corrected, "leading to a decrease in the efficiency of the cooling system."

As soon as he finished speaking, a notification popped up in the lower right corner of the main control panel: [Power output dropped to 89%].

Chen Hao frowned: "Let's do some more in-depth diagnostics to see if the core is overheating."

A few seconds later, Nana's voice changed: "The core power temperature has reached the upper limit of the safety threshold, and the cooling system cannot effectively cool it down."

"Where's the coolant?" Chen Hao turned his head.

"The existing stock of 17% is insufficient to support a complete cycle."

He slammed his hand on the armrest: "That's it?"

“Standard reserves were already limited.” Carl walked over from the rear cabin. “Prolonged high loads deplete them faster than expected.”

"Then switch to the backup line." Chen Hao pressed a set of buttons. "Turn off all unnecessary modules."

The main lights went out, and the emergency lights came on. The numbers on the dashboard jumped one by one before finally settling down.

“The core pressure has dropped a bit,” Susan said, staring at the readings, “but the temperature is still rising.”

“It won’t last long,” Carl said. “Either it cools down, or it shuts down.”

"What if the plane stops?" Chen Hao asked.

"Drifting," Nana replied. "It will take seven hours for the core to cool down naturally, during which time navigation, shields, and communications will all be disabled."

"Seven hours?" Chen Hao grinned. "Enough time to be smashed to pieces several times over."

No one responded.

The cabin was quiet for a few seconds, with only the low hum of the equipment running.

"Let's try to get some coolant first." Chen Hao stood up. "What other usable liquids are on the ship?"

Carl thought for a moment: "Domestic water, hydraulic oil, medical refrigerant...these can all conduct heat in theory, but they may not be compatible with the system."

"What happens if they're incompatible?" Susan asked.

“At best, it will cause pipe corrosion; at worst, it will trigger a chemical reaction and explosion,” Carl said. “I’m not kidding you, someone actually tried to cool down the engine with bottled water, and it resulted in half the boat exploding.”

"Then forget it." Chen Hao waved his hand. "Don't blow yourself up just to save your own life."

Nana suddenly spoke up: "The database shows that there is an abandoned storage tank in maintenance passage C, registered as old version coolant residue, with a capacity of about five liters."

"When was this from?" Carl asked.

“The model is similar to a transport ship from ten years ago,” she said. “Component analysis shows that the main active substances are still present, but the concentration has decreased significantly.”

"Can it be used?"

"It can be diluted and mixed, and the effect is about 60% of the original solution."

"Even 60% is better than nothing." Chen Hao looked at Karl. "Can you get it?"

“Channel C has been closed for a long time.” Carl frowned. “It collapsed once over there, and now it takes twenty minutes to walk there.”

“As long as there’s a road, it’s fine,” Chen Hao said. “Go get it, Nana and I will prepare the dilution device here.”

"Wait a minute." Susan flipped through the paper ledger. "This stuff wasn't entered into the main system. Could it have already evaporated?"

“I’ll go take a look and see.” Carl turned and walked towards the equipment cabinet. “I’m just idling around anyway.”

"Bring a testing pen with you," Nana advised. "If the liquid has spoiled, don't force it to be used."

Carl nodded, picked up his toolbox, and left.

The control panel suddenly shook.

It wasn't a vibration; the screen flickered twice, and the data stream was interrupted for a moment.

"Not again?" Chen Hao stared at the monitor.

“External electromagnetic interference has increased.” Nana quickly operated the system. “The fluctuation range of the magnetic field reading has increased by 40%, affecting the gyroscope and communication array.”

"Where did it come from?" Susan asked.

“Unknown source,” she said. “Low-frequency pulsed radiation, released periodically, with intensity increasing over time.”

"Does it resemble some kind of signal?" Chen Hao asked.

“It doesn’t look like it.” Nana shook her head. “The frequency is chaotic, and there are no coded features. It’s closer to natural mineral resonance.”

"So it's the rock that's discharging electricity?" Susan frowned.

“The probability is high.” Nana pulled up a case from the knowledge base: “Some highly reactive mineral bodies can generate a continuous electromagnetic field under certain conditions. There have been instances where spacecraft have been paralyzed after accidentally entering such a field.”

"Are we considered to have stumbled into this place by mistake?" Chen Hao asked with a wry smile.

“It hasn’t entered the core area yet,” she said. “But if the interference continues to intensify, it could affect maintenance operations.”

"Then we need to speed things up." Chen Hao pressed the communicator. "Karl, can you hear me?"

There was static on the channel, but it cleared up after a few seconds: "I heard you, go ahead and say it."

"There is electromagnetic disturbance outside, the sooner the better."

“Understood.” Carl’s voice was steady. “I’ve reached the entrance to Sector C and am removing the barriers.”

"Be careful," Susan interjected.

"Don't worry," he said. "I don't want to be stuck in the wall waiting for you to rescue me."

Communication was cut off.

Chen Hao leaned back in his seat, tapping his fingers on the armrest.

"Is all we can do now is wait?" Susan asked.

"We can't just sit idly by while we wait." He looked at Nana. "Can we reinforce the critical circuits? We can't let this little bit of interference bring us down."

“We can try temporary shielding,” she said. “It requires a physical connection to the Faraday cage structure, with a focus on protecting the main control chip and the cooling pump controller.”

Who will do it?

“I suggested that Carl do it, but he is currently out of town.”

"Then let's wait for him to come back," Chen Hao sighed. "Or... shall we do it ourselves?"

Susan shook her head: "I don't know anything about electrical engineering."

"I don't know either," Chen Hao said, shrugging. "But I can tighten screws."

Nana pulled up the blueprints: "The location is in the right mezzanine of the electrical compartment. Three inspection panels need to be opened and a copper mesh grounding wire connected."

“That sounds like a lot of trouble.” Chen Hao stood up. “We can’t just watch the machine burn dry.”

Just as he was about to leave, the alarm on the control panel sounded softly.

Power output reduced to 83%

Core temperature continues to rise.

Insufficient cooling system efficiency

"It's dying slowly," Susan whispered.

"He's not dead yet." Chen Hao stared at the screen. "As long as he has a breath left, we have to hold him off."

Nana suddenly looked up: "Interference source direction locked."

Where?

"Fifteen degrees to the right ahead, approximately 800 kilometers away."

Is it a dot or a patch?

"The initial assessment is that it is an isolated area, and the area is not large."

"So, we can reduce the impact simply by going around it?"

“It’s theoretically feasible,” she said, “but the current dynamic conditions do not support a large-scale change of course.”

"Then we'll just have to tough it out." Chen Hao grabbed his toolbox. "Let's go to the electrical module. Let's get as much done as we can while we still can."

Susan picked up the notebook: "I'll go with you; at least I can hand you the tools."

The two got up and walked outside.

Nana was the only one left on the main control panel. She quickly slid her hands across the panel, opening multiple windows to monitor various parameters.

Carl's voice came through the communication channel: "Storage tank in Sector C has been found. The outer shell is intact, and there is no obvious evaporation of the liquid inside."

"How are you feeling?" Nana asked.

"Testing is underway," he said. "The pH level is slightly acidic, but the active ingredients are still present."

“It can be used,” she replied. “Please bring it back to the main control area as soon as possible.”

"Okay. I'll leave right away."

Meanwhile, Chen Hao and Susan had arrived at the electrical compartment.

The inspection board was very tight; Chen Hao had to twist it for a long time before he could loosen the first piece.

"This ship is getting harder and harder to handle," he said, panting.

“You’ve never really served me well before.” Susan handed her a wrench.

"Don't let Nana hear this, she'll write it in her journal."

“She’s already listening,” Nana’s voice came through the earpiece. “She suggests using power tools to save energy.”

"Power tools also need electricity," Chen Hao said with a wry smile. "We're even using the lights sparingly now."

He switched to an electric screwdriver and continued disassembling the second board.

The copper mesh was a little wrinkled when he took it out, so he flattened it with his hand, stuck it in the designated position, and then secured it with clips.

"Next, grounding?" Susan asked.

“Yes.” He took out the wires. “Just connect them to the bottom metal frame.”

I had only connected halfway when the main control panel gave me a notification sound.

External electromagnetic interference intensity has increased to a critical level.

Some sensors are malfunctioning.

“Oh no,” Nana said, “the gyroscope is starting to drift.”

Chen Hao stopped what he was doing: "Will it affect the stability of the ship?"

“Not in the short term,” she said, “but if it continues to deteriorate, posture control will fail.”

"Then hurry up," Susan urged. "There's only one thread left."

Chen Hao connected the wires and patted the metal frame: "All done!"

"Shielding is effective," Nana confirmed. "The voltage at critical nodes is stable, and the impact of interference has been reduced by 60%."

"Finally, I've accomplished something worthwhile." Chen Hao wiped his sweat.

“Where’s Carl?” Susan asked.

“We are on our way back,” Nana said. “We expect to arrive at the main cabin in seven minutes.”

Chen Hao glanced at the time: "Hopefully, those five liters of liquid will actually be useful."

The control panel flickered again, this time only for a moment.

The data has been restored to normal.

But in the next second, the power output value jumped.

[81% → 79%]

"What about the temperature?" Chen Hao asked.

“It’s still rising,” Nana replied. “There are still twenty-three minutes until it automatically locks.”

"Karl, run!" Chen Hao shouted into the communicator.

Footsteps and panting could be heard over the channel.

"Almost there... around the corner of the corridor... fifty meters to go..."