Chapter 132 The Mysterious Machine Was Found
Ning Hai frowned, unsure whether that thing would explode.
"What do you want to do?" Ning Hai decided to ask first.
The mercenary captain said, "I want to use explosives to open this door."
"Explosives?" Ning Hai immediately shook his head vigorously. "No way! A single burst of bullets has already cracked this place open. You want to use explosives? Are you crazy?"
The mercenary captain asked seriously, "Then do you have any other way to open the door?"
Ning Hai's expression was grave. "No, but..."
“Mr. Ning, please trust my professional abilities,” the mercenary captain patted him on the shoulder. “With only a small amount of explosives and a directional blast, we can blow open the iron gate without destroying this place as much as possible.”
Ninghai was caught in a dilemma.
The mercenary captain asked again, "Mr. Ning, please tell me what's inside, and whether it might explode?"
“What’s inside…” Ning Hai looked at the round iron gate in front of him.
Although the mercenaries probably wouldn't believe it if I told them, it was related to Professor Bruce's secret research, so I couldn't tell them directly.
In fact, Bruce's secret project was time travel.
For nearly a century, Country M has held a dominant position in global scientific research, and has therefore been conducting numerous cutting-edge scientific explorations and researches behind the scenes.
Bruce himself has a strong interest in this area.
Based on a top-secret file about the Kutcherberg nuclear power plant that they had collected a few years ago, they obtained the support of a special research department in the United States and established a special research project team for time travel.
The top-secret file mentioned that decades ago a group of Eastern European scientists were conducting experiments on time travel.
Because they needed a huge amount of energy, the group of Eastern European scientists set up their research lab inside the Kurtenberg Nuclear Power Plant, which was then the world's largest nuclear power plant.
However, an unexpected accident occurred, leading to an explosion at the nuclear power plant.
Therefore, the serious accident at the Kutcherberg nuclear power plant was not caused by reactor design flaws and operator error, as later announced.
More recently, Bruce investigated based on top-secret files and found more clues, leading him to conclude that the machines made by the Eastern European scientists decades ago should still be underground at the nuclear power plant.
Furthermore, that machine may very well have successfully opened a spacetime tunnel.
This was extremely tempting for Bruce.
He desperately wanted to find that machine, even if it was just wreckage, it could be of great help to his research project.
It just so happens that Ning Hai, who was once his prized student, went to the United States to seek his protection, which led to the current situation.
"Mr. Ning?" The mercenary captain called out when he saw Ning Hai in a daze.
Ning Hai came to his senses and slowly said, "Theoretically speaking, the nuclear power plant is already decommissioned and has no energy supply, so it shouldn't cause that thing to explode, but... this is only theoretical after all."
Seeing his conflicted expression, the mercenary captain simply said, "If Mr. Ning is really worried, then let's go back."
Ning Hai blurted out, "No! The professor's request is right here, I have to get it!"
He also needs to complete this mission to obtain citizenship in Country M and become a senior researcher in Country M. At that time, the things he did in China will no longer be a problem.
But if he doesn't get the item, he'll have to continue living on the run for the rest of his life, with no chance of ever turning his life around.
“Mr. Ning, this puts me in a difficult position.” The mercenary captain shrugged and spread his hands. “There’s no other way but to use explosives.”
"Fine... go ahead and blast it!" Ning Hai reluctantly agreed.
Having received permission, the mercenary captain and his men immediately sprang into action.
First, the equipment carried must be used to re-equip the explosives according to the situation on site, and the explosive tools must also be modified.
Seeing how skillfully they worked together, Ning Hai breathed a slight sigh of relief. "About how long will it take?"
The mercenary captain said, "You can take a nap first, and I'll wake you up."
Ning Hai looked around. The ground was muddy, soaked by groundwater for who knows how long, and there was nowhere to sit. He could only wave his hand wearily, saying, "I'll keep an eye on things. You guys get on with it."
——
Meanwhile, Ning Jinli and the rescue team have arrived at the area where the experts are trapped.
Because we followed the established official route for the expedition, everything went smoothly.
Ning Jinli continued to absorb nuclear radiation as she walked. The radiation, which would be fatal to ordinary people, was the cultivation energy she desperately sought.
"How are you doing? Can you hear me?" The rescue team leader cautiously approached the collapsed area and called down.
A moment later, a response came from below: "Two people fell and were injured, one of them broke his leg. The other three and I are okay, just a little dehydrated."
The rescue team leader then asked, "Is anyone trapped underneath?"
The other party said no.
"Let's lower some water and chocolate down with the rope first," the captain reminded. "You guys eat something to replenish your strength and try to stay to the side. There are obstacles piled up at the collapse site, and we need to clear them."
"Okay, thank you... thank you all..." The people below breathed a sigh of relief.
As the rescue team members were preparing to begin clearing the debris, they discovered that the reinforced concrete rubble above the collapsed area was firmly stuck together, making it difficult to pry it open with the equipment they were carrying.
The gaps in the obstacles were too small for people to pass through.
"Captain, this won't work..." one of the team members whispered. "We'll need an excavator to open this up. But even if we can get the excavator over here, the area can't support the weight. What should we do?"
"Let me try." Ning Jinli slowly approached.
The captain asked, "Do you have a solution?"
Ning Jinli nodded, "Please move aside a little, I'll widen the gap so we can bring them up with ropes."
Several team members quickly said that these obstacles were not only heavy, but also stuck together, and even their equipment could not be opened, so how could she do it?
The captain was straightforward: "General Shangguan told me that Miss Ning has extraordinary abilities. Let's trust Miss Ning."
Several rescuers then stepped back.
Ning Jinli secretly circulated her internal energy, reached her hands into the obstacle, and then tried to increase the force little by little.
Crack...
A faint cracking sound rang out, and everyone's heart instantly leaped into their throats.
It is important to understand that if we are not careful, the collapse area will expand again, and given the extent of the collapse in the surrounding area, it will create a chain reaction, which could not only prevent the experts from getting out, but also bury the rescue team alive.
Ning Jinli held her breath and slowly pried open the concrete block with her bare hands, then carefully bent the protruding steel bars aside.
This scene left the rescue team completely dumbfounded.
This is special concrete and steel reinforcement used in nuclear power plants; even after decades, its strength far exceeds that of ordinary building materials.
And then... she opened it with her hands?
Is this Superman?!
“It seems about right,” Ning Jinli said, looking at the gap that was barely big enough for one person to pass through. “I can only dig this far. If I go any further, the obstacle might collapse at any moment. It’s not as convenient for you to go down as I am while you’re wearing protective suits, so let me go down.”
Without hesitation, the rescue team members secured Ning Jinli with a safety rope.
Several people pulled on the rope and lowered Ning Jinli down.
For safety reasons, it took them about ten minutes to reach a height of five or six meters.
"Where are the wounded?" Ning Jinli asked, holding up a flashlight.
"Here it is!" someone responded.
Ning Jinli looked in the direction of the sound and saw four experts huddled together in a corner, guarding the other two lying on the ground.
In the areas not illuminated by the flashlight beams, patches of pale blue and pale green light faintly shimmered.
That was produced by certain radioactive materials.
This shows how severe the nuclear radiation is here. The radioactive glow that can be seen with the naked eye is so obvious, not to mention those that cannot be seen with the naked eye.
As Ning Jinli approached, the experts exclaimed in shock:
"Young lady, are you from the rescue team? Why aren't you wearing protective gear?"
"This was the central area of the nuclear power plant back then! The place where the nuclear leak was most severe! Now, there is high-intensity nuclear radiation everywhere here!"
"Yes! Without protection, even a few minutes of exposure can cause serious harm to the human body! Young lady, you... sigh!"
The group was heartbroken, believing that the rescue team had risked their lives to save them.
Especially this girl, she looks very young.
However, rescuing them resulted in exposure to high levels of nuclear radiation...
"Don't worry, I'm not afraid of nuclear radiation," Ning Jinli reassured him. Then she noticed that one of the wounded had a broken leg and his protective suit was torn, so she asked, "How long has he been exposed?"
Several experts looked saddened. "It may have been more than twelve hours."
"It's likely that when he fell and broke his leg, his protective suit was torn at the same time..."
As they spoke, some people began to sob quietly.
They all knew that even if their colleague survived and left this place, the residual nuclear radiation in his body would not let him go.
Before long, he too will...
"Young lady, don't worry about me. Please take the rest of the people and the important data we collected out first," the fractured expert said weakly. "I'm definitely beyond saving, don't waste your time on me."
Ning Jinli took out the walkie-talkie she wore on her waist. "Captain, I need a set of protective clothing."
"Received," the captain replied immediately, "I'll put it down for you right away."
Soon, a new set of protective clothing was lowered down by ropes.
With the help of the other experts, the fractured expert was fitted with a new brace, and then Ning Jinli placed her hands on the expert's body.
The next second, the air began to swirl around her.
The experts, wearing protective suits, helmets, and masks, couldn't feel the wind, but they could see her hair moving.
Then, a faint, mixed blue-green light surged toward her from all around.
The experts had never seen anything like it in their lives and were all dumbfounded.
As the radioactive energy continued to enter Ning Jinli's body, it all disappeared in a short while.
"Little girl... what's wrong with you?" an expert stammered.
Ning Jinli slowly exhaled, "I absorbed the surrounding nuclear radiation, including that from this expert's body."
The group looked on incredulously.
But judging from Ning Jinli's tone, she didn't seem to be joking.
"Don't worry," Ning Jinli reassured the specialist who treated the fracture, "there is no residual nuclear radiation in your body anymore, but because of the long exposure time, it caused some damage to your body. Just take good care of yourself and don't worry about any aftereffects."
"Alright, I'll take you upstairs now."
Ning Jinli secured the safety rope to the expert with the fracture, then communicated with the rescue team above via walkie-talkie to coordinate their efforts, slowly hoisting him up.
At the same time.
In Ninghai, the mercenary team had already prepared small explosive devices for directional blasting and placed them around the round iron gate.
A few sounds, barely louder than firecrackers, rang out.
The circular iron gate bulged several centimeters out of the wall due to the directional impact of the explosion.
Ning Hai immediately checked the nearby cracks and found that they had not gotten any worse, which put his mind at ease.
Then, with the combined efforts of several mercenaries, they finally managed to open the iron door, which was at least forty centimeters thick.
Ning Hai was the first to crawl inside. He shone his flashlight inside and found that the space was not large, and the surrounding area and the top of his head were curved, like an upside-down bowl.
The walls were covered with cables, clearly all of which came from the nuclear power plant above this secret basement.
Countless cables eventually converged, connecting to a test platform over a meter high in the center, where a black sphere the size of a basketball was located.
"Tsk, thank goodness this place is deep enough and the walls are sturdy enough, otherwise I wouldn't have survived that explosion," Ning Hai remarked casually. "I finally found it."
"Is this it?" the mercenary captain asked, pointing at the black sphere.
Ning Hai leaned closer for a closer look. He couldn't tell what material the black sphere was made of; it resembled both metal and rock.
"I guess so... Besides this, there doesn't seem to be anything else." Ning Hai muttered to himself, "This thing... is it a machine?"
"Then take it down." The mercenary captain walked to the experimental table and was about to start.
Ning Hai quickly stopped him, "Don't rush, let me observe its structure further. This thing is embedded in the lab bench; we can't just forcibly remove it. Will you pay for it if you break it?"
A mercenary wandered to the other side of the experimental table and found several switches and buttons, as well as rows of indicator lights.
This looks like the control panel.
He bent down, exhaled, and blew away the thick layer of dust covering it.
However, there were no words or symbols next to the switch buttons, so it was impossible to tell what they were for.
Since he had nothing better to do, and he figured that the nuclear power plant had been destroyed long ago and there was no way it could still supply electricity, the machines here definitely couldn't be started again, so he started flipping switches and pressing buttons.
The clattering sound alerted Ning Hai.
He turned his head and saw it was the mercenary who had previously fired the shot in a panic. He immediately flew into a rage. "What are you doing now! Don't touch me! You idiot, why do you have to be so clumsy?!"
Since the two had already had a conflict, and Ning Hai was now swearing again, the mercenary could no longer tolerate it. He kicked the control panel and gave Ning Hai the middle finger.
"You son of a bitch!" Ning Hai braced himself against the lab table, ready to flip over and start a fight.
The other party was no pushover either; they immediately pulled back the bolt and pressed the muzzle against Ning Hai's forehead.
Just then, the indicator light on the control panel suddenly lit up.
The black ball then began to spin...
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