The little green shoot is still there in the crack.
Chen Hao stared at the monitor screen, his finger poking at the edge of the screen. He didn't speak, but his gaze was fixed on that spot, as if afraid that it would grow to the top of his head in the blink of an eye.
Nana stood in front of the terminal, scanning the soil moisture, air vibration frequency, and underground root activity patterns through the optical microscope. Three seconds later, she spoke: "Spore activity confirmed, homologous to yesterday's vines."
"So it's just dropping by?" Chen Hao withdrew his hand. "Or is it here to collect rent?"
"It is currently in its early stages of development. If left untreated, it is expected to break through 30 centimeters above the ground within seven hours."
"Seven hours... and we haven't even cleaned the flamethrower properly yet."
“No combustion is needed this time.” Nana brought up the sound wave array control interface. “The frequency suppression system is ready and the protective net can be activated in advance.”
"You make it sound so easy." Chen Hao rubbed his right leg. "Last time I just touched an antenna, and you made me fly."
"That time it was a case of the robotic arm accidentally triggering the circuit."
"But you caught me."
"The anti-gravity device has a response time of 0.4 seconds, and the error range is within the safe range."
"It sounds like he's praising himself."
Nana didn't reply, but directly activated the sonic transmitter on the outer edge of the agricultural area. Low-frequency vibrations came from the ground, like someone tapping on a metal water pipe in the distance. On the monitor screen, a light green ripple slowly spread, covering the entire outer area.
A few seconds later, the bud tip stopped growing.
“It works,” she said.
"Stops and it's effective?" Chen Hao frowned. "What if it's playing dead? What if it suddenly charges again after we've withdrawn our defenses?"
"Plants do not possess tactical thinking."
"How do you know? It was setting off fireworks yesterday."
"That's a chemical reaction, not an IQ test."
Chen Hao snorted and turned to get his toolbox. "Alright, then you adjust your frequency, I'll go and readjust the antenna angle, so you don't just end up shooting at the base of the wall."
He dragged his right leg as he walked out, his steps slow but steady. Before leaving, he glanced back at Nana: "Don't connect the wrong wire this time."
"The signal lines have been physically isolated."
“You always say it’s no problem.”
"Problems are meant to be solved, not used to prevent anxiety."
The sky outside was overcast, the wind was light, but it was still a bit chilly. Chen Hao squatted down next to the first antenna bracket, opened the wrench interface, and began to fine-tune the elevation angle. This job wasn't difficult, but he had to be careful. He still remembered the time the robotic arm suddenly moved and threw him out.
He kept turning the knob while glancing towards the control room. Nana stood behind the window, her optical mirror flickering slightly, as if she were synchronizing and calibrating data.
"Five degrees to the left," the voice came through the earpiece.
"Keep an eye on me," he said, twisting his neck. "My hands are shaking like they're cramping."
"The vibration amplitude is within the normal operating error range."
"Thank you for the compliment."
After the antenna was half-adjusted, Nana informed him that they were moving on to the second stage—the full-power test.
“Preparing to load pulse mode, lasting thirty seconds,” she said. “During this time, all non-essential equipment will go into silence.”
"Understood." Chen Hao stood up, supporting himself on the braces. "If I hear a buzzing sound in my head, don't panic."
"Human hearing cannot perceive this frequency band."
"Then why does my brain feel a little itchy?"
"Psychological suggestion".
I'll believe whatever you say.
Test begins.
The vibrations intensified, and the ground trembled slightly. Suddenly, the irrigation system valves opened by themselves, and water gushed out, drenching a pile of spare parts nearby. The monitor screen flickered, turning into static stripes, before returning to normal.
"The irrigation system has been activated by mistake." Nana immediately noted, "Signal crosstalk confirmed."
"I told you something bad would happen." Chen Hao wiped the water droplets from his face. "Can't you high-tech gadgets just behave yourselves?"
"We're installing a filter module," Nana said, operating the terminal. "The next test interval will be extended to two minutes to avoid continuous interference."
“Okay, take your time.” Chen Hao continued walking to the next antenna point. “I’ll straighten these ‘loudspeakers’ first.”
As he reached the third support, he stepped on a loose tile. He slipped, his knee slammed into the ground, and he winced in pain. His old injury in his right leg tightened, but he didn't stop. He used the support to stand up again.
"You fell down," Nana's voice came through the earpiece.
"I didn't fall, I just kissed the ground."
"It is recommended to check the condition of the joints."
"Let me finish adjusting this ring of antennas first."
He continued working. The last spot was on the edge of a high platform, requiring him to climb a ladder. He held onto the railing with one hand and carried his tool bag with the other, moving as slowly as an old-fashioned robot.
Just as I stood still, the main control chip suddenly alarmed.
“Signal return current overload, main power cut off.” Nana spoke faster, “Backup line is starting up.”
Chen Hao heard a noise behind him.
He turned around and saw the robotic arm slowly extending from the maintenance bay, its movements stiff, as if remotely controlled. It had no target; it simply stretched forward, heading straight in his direction.
"Nana!"
"The servo motor is receiving abnormal power and is disconnecting."
The robotic arm didn't slow down; instead, it accelerated, its end slamming into Chen Hao's waist. He lost his balance and fell backward.
I instinctively reached out to grab the railing, but missed.
The body is airborne.
The wind whistled past my ears.
He thought he was really going to be smashed into eight pieces this time.
The fall stopped midway.
It felt like being supported by an invisible net, slowly descending. Finally, it landed gently, without even its shoes bending.
He sat on the ground, panting.
Nana had already appeared beside them, the robotic arm retracted into its original position, and the indicator light of the anti-gravity device flashed red.
"The basic mode worked successfully," she said. "Try not to stand on the edge next time."
"You have the nerve to say that?" Chen Hao patted his pants and stood up. "Who allowed the backup wiring to be connected to the robotic arm?"
"The aging of the wiring caused a short circuit, and the shielding layer failed."
"Then why don't you hurry up and change it?"
"The blueprints have been retrieved." Nana turned on the projector. "You need to replace the signal shielding component at node three, model B7-2X."
"I'm not an electrician."
"You are now."
Chen Hao rolled his eyes, but still took the new component and climbed up the platform to reconnect the wires. This time, he asked about every step before starting, afraid of triggering some hidden easter egg.
Half an hour later, the line was repaired.
“Retest?” he asked.
"Change to intermittent pulse output." Nana adjusted the parameters, "Once every ten seconds, reducing the peak energy."
A new round of testing has begun.
There were no malfunctions this time. The irrigation system was quiet, the monitoring screen was stable, and the antenna was working normally.
"Interference eliminated," Nana confirmed. "The frequency protection network can operate for a long time."
"Finally." Chen Hao sat down against the wall. "Can I rest for a bit now?"
"You can rest now."
"You making me feel even more tired makes me feel worse."
"This is a psychological problem for you."
"I think you did it on purpose."
Nana didn't respond, but instead opened the knowledge base search interface. She entered the keywords: bioresonance, acoustic response, multi-species defense.
A few minutes later, a new set of data was generated.
“The current frequency only works for vine-like organisms,” she said. “If other mutated organisms appear, the corresponding mode needs to be switched.”
"Anything else?"
"The database shows at least three potential threats: burrowing insects, nocturnal mammals, and airborne planktonic sporophytes."
"Sounds like a monster convention."
“Three preset modes have been established.” Nana brought up the menu: “Plant inhibition, insect repellent, and mammal warning.”
"Can I switch by voice?"
"support."
"Let's try using an insect to repel them."
"Confirm command: Switch to insect repellent mode."
The system hummed, and its frequency changed. The vibrations in the air quickened, like the flapping of a mosquito's wings.
"It's done." Chen Hao nodded. "From now on, whenever anyone gets close, ask it if it's afraid of noise."
"At the same time, we optimize energy distribution." Nana connected to the solar energy storage system, "which automatically adjusts the output power according to the intensity of sunlight, reducing our reliance on biogas power generation."
"That's good." Chen Hao stretched his right leg. "Finally, there's a function that I don't have to do myself."
"You still need to participate in the debugging process."
"I knew it wouldn't be that easy."
“The last item: sensor linkage.” Nana pointed to the outer radar. “When a specific biological signal is detected, the system will automatically switch to the corresponding defense mode.”
"Fully automatic?"
"Has manual overwrite permission."
"That's alright."
Chen Hao sat back down at the control panel, placing a soft pillow under his right leg. On the screen, the green light of the frequency protection network flowed steadily, like an invisible fence quietly surrounding the base.
"It's running normally," Nana said. "The current mode is plant suppression, and the standby mode has been activated."
"Okay." Chen Hao yawned. "You keep an eye on things, I'm going to take a nap."
"I will be on duty."
"You always say that."
"Because I really do."
Chen Hao closed his eyes, but couldn't fall asleep. The scene of being thrown out of the air was still vivid in his mind. The feeling of weightlessness was too real; even being caught was terrifying.
He opened his eyes and looked at the surveillance screen.
The green light remains.
The bud tip didn't move.
Everything was calm.
Just as he was about to close his eyes again, Nana suddenly turned her head.
"New signal detected."
"What?"
“A slight tremor was observed at a depth of 3.2 meters in agricultural area D.”
Chen Hao sat up straight.
“Frequency matching analysis in progress.” Nana brought up the waveform graph. “Similarity of 89%... it’s another kind of vine.”
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