Qiongzhou Island, Wenchang Temporary Center.

"Mr. Xiao, where is our hero going?" Brosnan asked Xiao Yimin, looking at the big screen.

“Based on our observations over the past few days and his travel trajectory, his destination should be a place 800 kilometers north of the ‘Bird’s Nest’ base.” Xiao Yimin turned around and looked at the Director of the European Space Agency. “Mr. Brosnan, you should also know very well where I am referring to.”

"I don't think so?" Brosnan said, somewhat surprised. After pondering for a moment, he said, "That dangerous place was abandoned 10 years ago. What would he be doing there?"

"I don't know. Maybe they found something somewhere we can't see," Xiao Yimin said. "When he arrives, he might be able to help us solve some of the mysteries."

The Presidential Sanctuary in the United States.

“Mr. President, according to our analysis, Zhang Fan is heading toward Area 52,” NASA Administrator Griffin reported to Tekopf in the Oval Office.

“As far as I know,” President Tekopf asked, “we had already erased all traces of that place before the ‘New Age’ arrived?”

“Yes, Mr. President,” Griffin replied, “Miss Ivanka is no longer there.”

“That’s fine then, let it be,” President Tekopf said to Secretary of State Sheila. “If any Ross officials stationed in the U.S. ask about this, just say no comment.”

Ross, Red Square Fortress, Moscow.

"Yes, Mr. Prime Minister, Zhang Fan is on his way there," reported Russian Defense Minister Khruf.

“That’s good.” Prime Minister Medvedev looked up at the glass dome. “In any case, once he gets there, he can provide an answer to the mystery that has been troubling us.”

As Zhang Fan continued his journey, a place that had almost been forgotten was brought back into the public eye.

At the beginning of this century, the relationship between Miranda and Rochelle was in a honeymoon period. At that time, the two giants' Mars exploration technology was still leading the world. They jointly built the "Mercy Station" Mars base, known as the "Peace Paradigm," to jointly contain the rising other giant.

Before the completion of the "Bird's Nest" Mars base, which was advocated by another giant to "set aside disputes and jointly develop," "Mercy Station" was the largest and only base on Mars.

The "Bird's Nest" Mars base is an international base built under the framework of multipolar cooperation worldwide, led by the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

The "Peace Station" Mars base is an "oligarchic" base primarily led by the United States and Romania, and jointly developed with some friendly small and medium-sized countries. The other giant was naturally excluded from the list of users.

Even though Miro's "friendly countries" need to use the "peace station," they must first pay a considerable "administration fee," which has led to many complaints from their allies.

In the mid-21st century, with the completion of the larger, more advanced "Bird's Nest" stadium, which has a broader international cooperation base and more transparent operations, the importance of the old "Peace Station" has greatly diminished.

Ten years ago, Miro even began to exclude other cooperating countries from entering the "Peace Station" under the pretext of "unpaid fees," turning it into a private territory for the two countries.

However, the "Mercy Station" later encountered an accident, a serious fire, and a leak of toxic substances. The base was forced to close, and the area within 10 kilometers of it was designated as a danger zone by the United Nations, strictly prohibiting countries from conducting Mars exploration activities there.

Zhang Fan's destination was at the foot of Mount Olympus, in a place called Gale Crater, which is the location of the Mir Station Mars base.

Gale Crater is actually a dried-up old lakebed. The straight-line distance between Bird's Nest and Mir Station is 800 kilometers. Considering the terrain and the route, Zhang Fan's Mars rover will need to travel at least 1,600 kilometers to reach them.

Zhang Fan sets off at 8 a.m. every morning when the sun rises; he stops to rest from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. when the sun is at its strongest, and then deploys all the solar panels on the vehicle and adjusts them to the angle of direct sunlight to charge the Mars rover; he continues driving from 2 p.m. until 6 p.m. when the sun sets.

In other words, if the Firefly travels for 8 hours a day, with an economical speed of 30 kilometers per hour, it can travel 240 kilometers per day and complete the 1600-kilometer journey in 7 days, or one week.

After the living compartment was added, the Mars rover's power consumption increased significantly, and it was necessary to park and rest at night due to insufficient power.

Most of the Martian surface is covered by gravel desert, filled with rocks and sand. Dust storms can come at any time, making it easy to lose one's way. Fortunately, "Firefly" has an automatic driving assistance system and offline navigation capabilities, so Zhang Fan only needs to pay attention to the road conditions ahead, making driving less tiring.

The "Firefly," which houses the living quarters, looks like an oil tanker. Due to the addition of many devices for long-distance travel, the interior space of the living quarters is limited.

Small has its advantages. Although the "Bird's Nest" base is large, living alone in an open environment can easily lead to feelings of loneliness. Living in a small cabin, on the contrary, gave Zhang Fan a sense of security, like being back in his university dormitory.

The living pod isolated the outside world, and Zhang Fan slept until he naturally woke up. After starting the Mars rover, it automatically navigated along the route planned the night before.

The scenery outside the car window was just as it had been yesterday. If it weren't for the arrow on the navigation map moving forward, Zhang Fan wouldn't have been able to tell whether the Mars rover was moving forward or just circling in place.

The days spent traveling through the Martian wasteland felt like a never-ending cycle, with Mount Olympus becoming increasingly clear in the distance.

On the fifth day after leaving the "Bird's Nest", Zhang Fan could clearly see the peaks of Mount Olympus, shaped like steamed buns, through the windshield of the "Firefly". The green ridges stretched at the foot of the mountain, indicating that they were not far from their destination, "Peace Station".

At noon, Zhang Fan parked his car on a wide, flat area, loaded all the solar panels onto the car, and then lay down in the shade of the "firefly" while wearing a spacesuit for a nap.

This feeling is really great, especially on Mars, there's a magnificent and heroic feeling of "the sky is my blanket, the earth is my bed, I am the king of heaven and earth".

Theoretically speaking, I really am the king of Mars! After all, I'm the only human on the Martian surface.

Bob doesn't count; at most, he'd be called "General Gorilla." As for Yui, let's give her the title "Imperial Concubine Undressing."

"My beloved concubine, come quickly and undress me to serve you in bed..."

Zhang Fan was half asleep when he dreamed that Yui walked gracefully towards him, massaged his back, and then sat on him and rocked him...

wrong!

Zhang Fan opened his eyes and felt his body swaying from side to side!

Why does the body move on its own?

...

On Earth, those watching the midday live stream also noticed the anomaly in the footage.

"Um, am I seeing things? I think I just saw that mountain move a little." Someone rubbed their eyes and asked the person next to them.

"Huh? You saw it too? I thought it was just my imagination."

"Is the TV not set up properly, making it unstable?"

"That's not right! If the TV is unstable, the whole picture should be moving, not just the mountain!"

"It moved! It just moved again! I saw it!"

"Wow, it really is! I saw it too!"

...

Mars, Olympus Mons.

The largest volcano in the solar system.

It moved!