The wind hadn't completely stopped at three in the morning.
Chen Hao slung his backpack over his shoulder, the buckle clicking open. He glanced at his watch; the time was perfect. Karl was already standing in the doorway, toolbox in hand, his face pale in the headlamp's light. Nana stood between the two, a screen flashing on her chest, loading a route map.
“G-7 priority,” she said. “The signal booster is activated and can detect metallic reactions up to three meters underground.”
“Then let’s go.” Chen Hao rubbed his face. “If we go any later, it will be dawn, and it will be even harder to walk when the heat comes in.”
The three walked along the ridge. The loose stones underfoot made it easy to slip and slide. Karl tied the rope around his waist and handed it to Chen Hao and Nana. They linked together like three children who dared not let go.
After walking less than two kilometers, the ground began to seep water. My shoes made a splattering sound, and every step kicked up a layer of mud.
“The humidity is too high,” Carl said. “Electronic devices are prone to short circuits.”
Nana immediately shut down the unnecessary modules, leaving only the positioning and detection functions enabled. A slight clicking sound came from her arm guard, the sound of internal circuitry switching.
"Power saving mode activated," she said. "It can extend battery life by four hours."
"You're pretty resilient," Chen Hao said, panting. "Unlike me, I'd fall apart after walking this short distance."
“You don’t exercise often anyway,” Carl said without turning his head.
"That's because of you guys," Chen Hao grinned. "One of you is quick-witted, the other is skillful with your hands, and I'm just responsible for being good with my mouth."
No sooner had he finished speaking than something darted out of the crevice in the rocks ahead.
It had a black shell, a long tail with a hook at the tip. It crashed into the detector's support with a snap, and a piece of its parts flew off.
"What is that!" Chen Hao jumped back a step.
“Similar to a scorpion.” Nana brought up a thermal image. “Its body temperature is twelve degrees higher than the environment, so it should be a warm-blooded creature.”
"This thing can grow in this place?" Chen Hao picked up a stone. "Whether it's temperature-controlled or not, let's let it cool down first."
He threw a stone, which bounced off the rock face. Startled, the creature retreated into the crevice. Carl seized the opportunity to climb over and retrieve the fallen probe.
“The outer casing is cracked.” He checked it. “It still works, but the accuracy has dropped by thirty percent.”
“That’s enough,” Nana said. “The target area is just 300 meters ahead.”
They shuffled along the rock face. The ground grew increasingly damp, and the air smelled of rust mixed with rotting leaves. Finally, they reached the marker. Nana turned on the signal booster, and a red dot appeared on the screen.
“Two and a half meters underground, it’s a nickel-iron alloy,” she said. “The purity is estimated to be over 80 percent.”
Carl took out a portable drill and began drilling a hole at the designated spot. Chen Hao, who was squatting nearby watching, suddenly reached out and stopped him.
"etc."
"how?"
“Look at this soil color.” Chen Hao ran his fingers over the surface. “The top layer is wet, but the bottom is dry. This means there’s a cavity underneath, and it might collapse if we drill down.”
Karl stopped what he was doing. Nana scanned the geological structure and nodded: "There is a miniature cave, about 1.5 meters in diameter, located below the target."
“Then we can’t just dig it out.” Chen Hao stood up. “We need to make a support frame and surround the entrance first.”
Carl rummaged through his bag and pulled out some lightweight rods; the three of them worked together to build a triangular frame. When they resumed drilling, they slowed down by half. Once the drill bit reached the bottom, they used hooks to slowly pull the metal block out.
A black rock the size of a fist was pulled out.
"Conduction energy test." Nana took the sample and connected it to the testing pen. The readings jumped a few times before stabilizing.
"The resistivity meets the requirements, and it has good high-temperature resistance," she said. "It can be used as a temporary conductor."
“Okay.” Chen Hao laughed. “Things that fall from the sky are really more useful than things that grow on the ground.”
They placed the alloy into sampling bags and sealed them. Then they turned towards area G-9. The map showed the fault line entrance was five kilometers away, requiring them to traverse a narrow crevice.
Halfway there, it started to rain.
It wasn't a drizzle, but a downpour that lashed them. The three of them were instantly soaked. Their clothes clung to their bodies, and their backpacks felt noticeably heavier.
"Keep going." Chen Hao wiped his face. "Stopping here will only make it colder."
The crevice was only half a meter wide, and at its narrowest point, one had to turn sideways to pass. Nana was at the back, her sensors fogged up by rainwater. Suddenly, she shouted, "The rock face on the left is moving!"
Before he could finish speaking, a rock came crashing down and hit Carl's backpack squarely.
He stumbled forward before regaining his balance. His backpack was stuck in a crevice, leaving him suspended in mid-air with one foot dangling.
"Don't move!" Chen Hao, lying on the ground, stretched out his hand. "Give me your hand!"
Karlten didn't lift his arm, but gripped the rock face tightly with his other hand. Nana quickly calculated the angle of force and threw the spare rope over. Chen Hao caught it, wrapped it around his waist, and shouted behind him, "Tighten!"
The two of them worked together to pull him up. When the backpack was pulled out, one corner was torn, exposing the waterproof membrane.
“The stuff is still here.” Carl checked the bag. “The alloy isn’t missing.”
They continued on. The rain intensified, turning the mountain path into a muddy river. By the time they reached the entrance to the fault zone, it was already dawn.
The crack was bottomless, its edges jagged. Nana shone a beam of light, illuminating the light-colored patterns on the rock face.
“An oxide vein,” she said. “It’s located high up, requiring climbing to collect it.”
Chen Hao fastened his safety rope and climbed up, gripping the rock bolts. His fingers were numb with cold, but he didn't stop. The drill bit was inserted into the outcrop of the ore vein and slowly screwed in. What was extracted were only fragments, but enough for experiments.
"Two pieces." He handed over the sample. "Although they're not big, at least they're properly 'grown in the ground'."
Just as they were preparing to retreat, Nana suddenly said, "The fuel tank crash site is only fifty meters away."
They went around it. The old hull was half-buried in the soil, its outer shell charred black. But the remaining carbon crystal coating on the inner layer was still there, barely thick enough to meet the requirements.
"It's replenished." Nana scraped off a piece. "The problem of insufficient inventory is solved."
The return journey was even more tiring than the way there. The three men were covered in mud and water, their steps faltering. Just before noon, the base gate came into view.
The gate system detected the signal and slowly opened. They went inside and headed straight for the control room.
Chen Hao threw his backpack to the ground, panting heavily. "The materials are all here. Alloy, ore, carbon sheets, everything."
Nana took the samples and began sorting and registering them. A new list of items to be tested popped up on the screen.
"The testing is all scheduled," she said. "It starts first thing tomorrow morning."
"Who's on duty tonight?" Chen Hao asked, leaning against the control panel, holding a thermos of hot water.
“Me,” Nana said. “The system needs to continuously monitor the stability of the materials.”
Carl took off his wet coat and hung it on the radiator. "I suggest wearing cut-resistant armor next time you go out," he said. "You got lucky this time, but you might not be so lucky next time."
“All you ever think about is these things,” Chen Hao laughed. “If I were to write a memoir, I’d title it ‘Me and My Two Nannies.’”
No one answered. Carl looked down at his toolbox, while Nana refreshed the data interface.
Chen Hao finished the last sip of hot water and placed the cup on the table.
"Speaking of which," he stared at Nana's retreating figure, "when did you prepare that signal booster?"
Her fingers paused for a moment.
“Three years ago,” she said, “when you first broke the communication module.”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com