Chen Hao stared at the narrow, knife-like channel on the monitor screen, tapping his fingers lightly twice on the control stick.
"That's it?" he grinned. "It's even more crowded than my apartment hallway."
Nana stood in front of the control panel, her voice steady: "The channel is 48 meters wide, and the density of the rock on both sides exceeds the standard, so the automatic navigation system cannot pass."
“That’s perfect.” Chen Hao flexed his wrists. “I’m best at driving on narrow roads. I never hit a cone when I was taking my driving test and I crossed the line.”
Susan pulled the last emergency kit from the locker, unzipped it, and checked it over. "You're squashing the coach's patience," she said, looking up. "Don't let the boat get stuck in the rocks this time."
"Don't worry." Chen Hao patted the armrest of the seat. "Although I'm lazy, I never let you down when it counts."
Carl crouched beside the floor access panel, holding a testing instrument; the numbers on the screen kept jumping. "The stress on the starboard hull has reached the critical point," he said. "A few more hits and we'll have to repair the boat with duct tape."
"As long as we have tape, it'll do." Chen Hao activated the propulsion system. "It's better than having no boat at all."
The lights in the main control room flickered briefly before settling down. The propulsion system emitted a deep hum, and the ship slowly moved forward, cutting into the gravitational field at the edge of the asteroid belt.
Nana pulled up the real-time star map; the dots of light were densely packed, like a handful of iron filings. "We're entering a high-risk zone three kilometers ahead," she said. "Debris flows are active; we advise maintaining a low speed."
"Understood." Chen Hao reduced the thrust to the lowest setting. "We're not driving a car now, we're ice skating, we have to inch along slowly."
The ship had only slid forward less than 500 meters when the first wave of tremors hit.
Bang!
A muffled thud came from the port side, the entire cabin shook violently, and half of the overhead lighting panel fell off.
“Impact confirmed.” Nana immediately brought up the external view. “A rock about 1.2 meters in diameter grazed the left wing shield, causing a 3% energy loss.”
“This is just the beginning.” Carl stared at the detector. “There’s something even bigger to come.”
Before the words were even finished, a second wave followed.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Three consecutive thuds, each faster than the last, sounded like someone outside was banging on the door with a hammer. Several indicator lights on the control panel began flashing red.
"Left-side shield overload!" Nana said quickly. "I suggest immediately adjusting the course by 15 degrees to avoid a collision."
Chen Hao steadied the joystick with both hands and gently moved it to the right. "Correcting," he said, squinting at the road ahead. "That patch of rocks ahead is too dense; we can't get through."
"We can try a zigzag approach," Nana quickly calculated. "Each deflection should not exceed ten degrees, and we can advance by utilizing the gaps between the loose rocks."
"Okay." Chen Hao smirked. "Snake-like movement, huh? I practiced that all the time when I played mobile games."
He pushed the control stick, and the boat began to sway slightly from side to side, like a fish weaving through reefs. Each turn was accompanied by a new thud, but the force was noticeably less.
Susan gripped the handrail to steady herself, her other hand pressing firmly against her tool bag. "This isn't mining," she gritted her teeth, "this is a funeral route."
"Don't sound so pessimistic," Chen Hao laughed. "We're still together, aren't we?"
“It’s only temporary.” Carl stared at the pressure readings on the starboard side. “The hull deformation rate has risen to seven percent. If this continues, we won’t even be able to save the return fuel line.”
"Then let's hurry up and find the minerals." Chen Hao looked up at the star map. "Where do you think that iron-nickel alloy is?"
Nana pointed to a flashing marker: "2.8 kilometers ahead, deep in the rift valley. But the current waterway is blocked by rubble, so we need to detour through the southern fault zone."
"Fault zone?" Susan frowned. "Those kinds of places are more prone to collapse."
“There is no other choice,” Nana said. “Going back the way we came is too risky. A ring of gravel has formed behind us, and we can’t get out.”
There was a moment of silence inside the cabin.
Chen Hao took a deep breath, loosened his seatbelt, and then fastened it again. "Let's just push forward," he said. "We're going to risk it anyway."
With increased thruster power, the ship accelerated and plunged into a dense cluster of rocks. In the external view, rocks of all sizes swept past from all directions, some so close they almost brushed against the portholes.
Bang!
Another heavy blow, this time from directly above.
"Top shield failure!" Nana warned. "Structural integrity reduced by five percent!"
"Hold on!" Chen Hao jerked the steering wheel to avoid a giant rock flying towards him. "I haven't even had my space barbecue yet, I can't die here!"
"Is that all you care about right now?" Susan stood up, leaning against the wall. "Let's live to the day when we can have barbecues!"
"Keep a calm mindset." Chen Hao chuckled. "The more afraid you are, the easier it is to crash and burn."
Before he could finish speaking, the entire ship suddenly began to shake violently.
The alarm blared.
"Warning! High-intensity debris flow is approaching!" Nana's voice carried a sense of urgency for the first time. "It will cover an area of over five kilometers in a fan shape, and its speed will exceed three hundred meters per second!"
"How much?" Karl looked up, his expression changing.
"There's no way to avoid it." Chen Hao gripped the control stick tightly. "We can only charge forward."
“A brief gap has appeared ahead.” Nana quickly marked, “Thirty-second window period, we can cut into the middle buffer zone.”
"That's enough." Chen Hao stepped on the thruster.
The ship accelerated suddenly, tearing a path through a hail of flying rocks. Rocks scraped past on both sides, making a screeching sound. The lights flickered, and a burnt smell emanated from the control panel.
"The left engine is overheating!" Karl shouted.
"It can't be turned off!" Chen Hao stared straight ahead. "Stopping now would make us a sitting duck!"
Finally, the ship plunged into a relatively open area. The density of the rubble dropped sharply, and the sound of impacts became less frequent.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
“The buffer zone has been entered,” Nana confirmed. “Temporarily out of the main debris flow.”
"Phew..." Chen Hao leaned back, his forehead covered in sweat. "That part just now was more exciting than the first thirty years of my life combined."
“Don’t relax.” Carl pointed to the screen. “The pressure on the starboard side is still rising, and there is a risk of cracks in the hull.”
"I know," Chen Hao wiped his face, "but this place is still better than outside."
Susan opened her first-aid kit and put a new bandage on herself. "What's next?" she asked.
“Keep going.” Chen Hao looked at Nana. “How much further is the mine?”
“1.6 kilometers,” she said, “but it requires crossing a vertical rift valley, the interior of which is unknown.”
"The unknown is what makes things interesting." Chen Hao gripped the joystick again. "We've come this far; we can't go back empty-handed, can we?"
"The question is whether we can get in alive," Susan cautioned.
"Then be careful." Chen Hao smiled. "I'm not stupid, I won't just rush in headfirst."
He activated navigation assistance, preparing to reset the route.
Just then, Nana suddenly spoke up: "An abnormal signal has been detected ahead."
What type?
“Energy fluctuations, periodic.” She raised an eyebrow slightly. “It doesn’t seem like a natural phenomenon.”
"Is someone there?" Karl stood up.
“We cannot rule out the possibility of a mechanical device.” Nana pulled up the spectrum graph. “The signal source is located at the bottom of the rift valley and is continuously emitting low-frequency pulses.”
Chen Hao whistled: "Could it be an automated mining machine left behind by aliens?"
“It could also be a trap,” Susan said coldly.
"Whatever it is," Chen Hao said, stretching his shoulders. "Since we're here, we should take a look."
He pushed the control stick, and the ship slowly moved forward.
The entrance to the rift valley came into view, dark and gaping like an open mouth.
"Get ready to go into the cave," he said. "Everyone hold on tight."
The bow of the ship gradually disappeared into the shadows.
Suddenly, the radar screen on the control panel flashed, and the pulse signal suddenly intensified.
Nana looked up.
“The signal frequency has changed,” she said. “It’s responding to us.”
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