Chen Hao's left foot slipped, and he slid down the slope. Gravel tumbled down with a clatter, and in the darkness, it was clear that he had traveled some distance before landing.
He suddenly grabbed, his fingertips wedged into a crevice in the rock, and his body stopped. His chest was pressed against the ground, his face down, and his nose almost hit a protruding rock.
"Don't move." Nana's voice came through the earpiece. "The soil within three meters to your right is loose. Even a slight vibration could trigger a secondary collapse."
“I know.” He took a breath. “I can’t move right now. I think I twisted my ankle.”
“There is an abnormal angle in the left ankle joint,” she said. “I recommend using a side-lying crawl to evacuate, keeping your center of gravity low and avoiding putting weight on one leg.”
“You make it sound so easy.” He slowly rolled over, his buttocks scraping against the ground as he moved upwards. “My body type isn’t suited for gymnastics.”
"In the current situation, survival takes precedence over comfort."
"You're really calm."
He climbed up little by little, gripping the edge of the rocks with his hands and using his knees and arms for leverage. With each movement, his left leg throbbed with pain. Finally, he reached flat ground and collapsed onto a large rock, panting as if he had run five kilometers.
"Where's the sample?" Nana asked.
He looked down at the sack, still hanging on his shoulder. He took out the bluish-gray ore and held it up to the scanner.
"Upload," he said.
The green light flashed twice.
“Data reception complete.” Her voice remained unchanged. “The composition meets expectations, with a silicon content of 63.7 percent and impurities under control.”
"That's good." He leaned against the rock and closed his eyes. "Now we'll walk back, right?"
“The journey is expected to take forty-seven minutes,” she said. “Your pace will decrease by twenty-two percent.”
"Can't you say something nice?"
"I am stating the facts."
He grinned, struggled to his feet, and limped back.
As dawn approached, the metal gate at the base entrance was pushed open a crack. Chen Hao entered, leaning against the wall, his face covered in dust and his clothes torn.
Susan was the first to rush over: "You're finally back!"
"How did it get like this?" Carl asked, peeking out from the tool shed.
"There was a slight mishap during the sampling process," Chen Hao said, putting the sack on the ground. "But we got the items."
Nana walked over and knelt down to examine his ankle. She gently pressed a few spots with her fingers, and he hissed.
“Soft tissue contusion, no fracture,” she said. “You need to apply cold compresses for two hours and limit weight-bearing.”
"We'll talk about it later," he waved his hand. "Let's get to work. Are you all ready?"
“The molds are ready a long time ago.” Karl patted the metal frame beside him. “We’re just waiting for you to bring the materials back.”
“I’ve also adjusted the resin ratio.” Susan opened her notebook. “I added some plasticizer, so the flowability should be fine.”
"Let's begin then." Chen Hao plopped down on the concrete block. "Who can explain the process to me?"
Nana turned on the light screen and projected a diagram of the wall structure. The middle mezzanine was marked in yellow.
“First, cut grooves between the steel structures,” she said, pointing to the diagram. “Eight centimeters deep and ten centimeters wide. Then inject the mixed grout and wait for it to cure.”
"It sounds simple," Chen Hao said, "but it's definitely going to be a lot of trouble in reality."
“Indeed.” Carl picked up the cutter. “The first hurdle is crushing the ore. This stuff is too hard; a regular grinder won’t grind it into much powder after one rotation.”
“There’s a solution in the database,” Nana said, pulling up some data. “High-frequency vibration crushing method. We can modify a discarded cutting machine and add a vibration module.”
"You really know a lot." Carl opened the casing. "Try it out."
The two worked for over an hour, the machine humming as the ore gradually turned into fine powder. Susan weighed the ore on an electronic scale and added resin in the correct proportions.
After the first mixing, the slurry was poured into the test tank, but it flowed very slowly and got stuck in the middle.
“It’s too thick,” Susan frowned. “It doesn’t have enough fluidity.”
“The resin concentration is too high.” Nana looked at the viscosity curve on the screen. “I suggest reducing it by 15 percent and adding a trace amount of dispersant.”
"Is there one ready-made?" Chen Hao asked.
“There was a small bottle in the lab waste bin,” she said. “The label says ‘unnamed additive.’”
"It doesn't sound plausible," Chen Hao said.
“But the component analysis matches,” she said, handing over the data sheet. “The risks are manageable.”
"Fine," Susan said, getting up to go look for it. "Anyway, there's no other choice."
The second batch of grout flowed smoothly into the test tank. They then struck while the iron was hot, opening a section in the main wall's interlayer and connecting it to a grouting pipe.
"Start the injection." Karl pressed the switch.
The slurry was slowly advanced, and the yellow liquid flowed through the transparent pipe, entering the interior of the wall.
“Pressure normal.” Nana stared at the sensor. “Fill rate 82%... 89%... 96%... Complete.”
"Turn off the valve." Susan noted the time. "Now wait for it to solidify."
"The temperature is lower at night," Nana said. "The curing time is expected to be extended to more than six hours."
"We can't afford to wait." Chen Hao touched the wall. "There might be another earthquake tomorrow."
“I can activate the heating module,” she said, pointing to the equipment box. “It’s a portable thermostat that can heat specific areas.”
“Then let’s use it,” Carl said. “We’ll take turns guarding it.”
Nana turned on the power, and the two heating plates were attached to the outside of the grouting area. The temperature curve on the screen slowly rose.
Time passed slowly. Chen Hao remained seated, his ankle wrapped in an ice pack, chewing on an energy bar.
"Do you think this thing can really withstand an earthquake?" he asked.
“The simulation results show that it’s acceptable,” Nana said. “The actual effect needs to be verified.”
"Can't you be more certain?"
"Science does not accept speculation."
"So you're a scientist now?"
"I'm just performing data analysis."
Susan, who was taking notes, suddenly looked up and said, "Wait, the sensor reading has changed."
Everyone looked at her screen.
"The stress distribution... is changing?" Karl leaned closer.
“The red area is shrinking.” Nana pulled up a comparison image. “The pressure is being evenly distributed inside the material.”
"What do you mean?" Chen Hao stood up, forgetting the pain in his foot.
"Preliminary assessments indicate that structural stability is improving," she said. "It's 40 percent faster than the original plan."
"Really?" He stared wide-eyed.
"Data doesn't lie."
"Then can we increase the grouting area?" Susan asked.
"We'll decide after it's completely cured," Nana said. "Expanding the construction now carries risks."
“That’s true.” Carl nodded. “It’s not easy to succeed on the first try, so don’t mess it up.”
They continued monitoring. The heating plate ran for four hours, maintaining a temperature of thirty-eight degrees Celsius. Daylight broke, sunlight shone on the wall, and the grouting area had dried.
"We can do a simple test now," Nana said.
They built a temporary platform above and placed several heavy counterweights on it. The sensors transmit data in real time.
When the third block was loading, Nana suddenly raised her hand and said, "Stop."
"What's wrong?" Susan asked.
“The deformation value exceeded the threshold by 0.3 millimeters,” she said. “The support frame showed slight movement.”
"Should we remove it?" Karl reached out to move the counterweight.
"Wait a minute," Chen Hao suddenly said. "I remember there was an old steel cable on the trailer that we never removed."
"Try it," Nana said.
Carl ran out to look for it and soon returned dragging a rusty steel cable. The two tied one end to the top of the support frame and the other end to a ground stake in the distance, pulling it taut in opposite directions.
"Add another one," Chen Hao said.
The fourth counterweight was placed on top. The curve on the screen jumped slightly, then stabilized.
“The deformation has stopped,” Nana said. “The structure has rebalanced.”
"Looks like this trick works." Chen Hao smiled. "Making use of waste saves money and effort."
"The load-bearing capacity has met the expected standards." She looked at the latest data, "Fifty-one percent higher than the original wall."
"Higher than the simulation?" Susan exclaimed in surprise.
“The actual material compatibility is better than predicted,” she said. “The silicon particles bond well with the resin to form a stable network structure.”
"So that means we succeeded?" Karl clapped his hands.
"Initial success," Nana corrected, "but full testing is still needed."
“But at least we don’t need to drive in any more steel piles.” Chen Hao leaned back against the concrete block. “We can use the energy we’ve saved for other things.”
Susan closed her notebook and put her pen in her pocket. Carl removed the grouting pipe, cleaned it, and stacked the empty buckets.
Nana stood beside the equipment, the heat dissipation vents glowing slightly red, the screen constantly refreshing the stress diagram, the color changing from red to green.
Chen Hao looked down at his foot; the sprained spot still hurt, but he didn't say anything.
"What's the next step?" Susan asked.
“We’re getting ready for full-scale construction,” Nana said. “We need more ore and resin reserves.”
"I'll go dig up the second batch." Chen Hao stretched his ankles.
“You’re not suited for continuous work,” she said. “I recommend a twelve-hour break.”
“I’m not that delicate.” He stood up and leaned against the wall. “Besides, someone has to do this.”
“I can remotely guide the sampling route,” she said, “to avoid unstable areas.”
"Then you'd better keep a close eye on me." He grinned. "Last time you almost sent me to the bottom of the earth."
"That time you deviated from the planned path."
"The terrain forced me to do it."
"Next time I will give an advance warning."
“Okay.” He nodded. “You keep watch on the road, and I’ll do the work.”
Susan glanced at her watch: "It's 7:17 a.m. now. If we can get the new batch of materials ready before noon, we can start large-scale reinforcement this afternoon."
“There’s enough time,” Carl said. “I’ve already made three molds, and they’re ready to use anytime.”
"The resin reserves can support two more grouting operations," Susan added.
"It's settled then." Chen Hao picked up the folding shovel. "I'll bandage my foot and then we'll set off immediately."
He turned to leave, but Nana suddenly called out to him.
"This," she said, handing over a small locator, "is attached to the inside of your clothes to monitor your movement in real time."
"Is it that kid's watch set again?"
"More precise."
“Okay.” He took it and stuffed it into his pocket. “Don’t change the walls so much that I won’t recognize them before I get back.”
“No,” Carl said. “We’ll get started once you bring the materials.”
Chen Hao waved and limped out of the base.
The three remained where they were.
Nana stood beside the equipment; the machine vibrated slightly, and the fan speed increased. Her light screen continued to run, and the stress distribution diagram of the new material was changing from red to green.
Susan flipped through her notebook, the pen scratching softly on the paper.
Carl put his tools back in the box and looked up at the wall.
The wind blew across the roof, causing the tarpaulin to sway gently.
Nana suddenly looked up in the direction Chen Hao had left.
“He deviated seven meters from the planned route,” she said.
Susan stopped writing: "Why?"
"There are signs of a landslide ahead." Nana pulled up a topographic map. "He's taking a detour."
“Tell him to be careful,” Susan said.
Nana tapped her fingertip and sent the command.
A few seconds later, Chen Hao's voice came through the communicator: "Received. The soil is loose here, I'll walk along the edge."
“Keep your distance,” Nana said. “The slope on the right is more than 45 degrees, and there is a risk of landslide.”
"I know." His voice was a little breathless. "This damn road is harder to stick to than my diet."
Susan couldn't help but laugh.
Carl poked his head out of the tool shed: "He can still joke, which means he's in good shape."
“His heart rate is currently 89 per minute,” Nana said. “That’s in the mild stress range.”
"He's faster than I was in the 800 meters back then." Susan closed her notebook. "I hope he can actually get his hands on something."
“The probability is 68 percent,” Nana said, “provided that the ore has not been eroded by groundwater.”
"It's not that high."
"It's already 23 percentage points higher than yesterday."
Susan paused for a moment: "You mean...we actually made progress today?"
Nana didn't answer; instead, the screen switched to a new construction flowchart.
Carl came out with the completed mold: "This will work. We can just put it on and drill the holes tomorrow."
"Put it over there." Susan pointed to the temporary shelf. "We'll confirm the dimensions when Chen Hao gets back."
Nana stood still, and the machine vibrated slightly. The cooling fan increased its speed by half a speed.
In the distance, Chen Hao's figure appeared around the bend of the hillside. He stopped and raised the scanner, aiming it at the rock face.
“I saw it emerging,” he said. “It’s bluish in color, just what you wanted.”
“Start sampling,” Nana replied. “Each sample should not exceed 500 grams to avoid structural damage.”
"Understood." He took out a folding shovel and inserted it into the crevice in the rock.
The shovel got stuck, so he pried hard. A piece of ore the size of a fist fell down and landed at his feet.
"First one in hand." He picked it up and stuffed it into the sack. "It's quite heavy."
"Upload the data," Nana said.
He pressed the scanner button. The green light flashed twice.
“Received,” she said. “Preliminary analysis is in line with expectations.”
“There are two more.” Chen Hao looked up at the rock strata. “The one on top is bigger.”
He took a few steps uphill and stepped onto a slope. Gravel rolled down his feet, and he slid down several meters before coming to a stop.
"Be careful," Nana said, her voice becoming more urgent.
"It's nothing," he said, steadying himself. "It's just that the road is bad."
He raised the shovel again, aiming it at the crack above.
This time the shovel went in smoothly. He gave it a sharp pull—
The entire rock formation emitted a muffled thud.
Chen Hao suddenly stepped back, but the ground on his right had already begun to loosen.
He lost his footing with his left foot and slid down the slope.
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