Chapter 527
Hurry up
Under immense force, the handrail Jiang Nian gripped tightly made a tearing sound as it succumbed to the strain. Inside the vertical passage, dazzling blue-white light surged upwards from below, instantly engulfing everything.
That wasn't the flash of an explosion, but a purer, more violent release of energy—the instant the marrow ore came into contact with the anchor point's energy core, it triggered a chain reaction. Jiang Nian felt the external sensors of his deep-sea suit instantly overload, and all he could see in his field of vision were blinding white lights and frantically beeping error codes.
But he didn't let go.
The marking system operated instinctively, and a pale golden energy flow seeped from his palm, wrapping around the metal handrail like vines, resisting the destructive suction that was pulling him downwards.
"pay close attention--!"
His roar exploded through the communicator, but the sound was immediately drowned out by a deafening roar. It wasn't sound, but low-frequency vibrations acting directly on his bones and internal organs. Jiang Nian felt as if his internal organs were about to shatter, and a thick, metallic taste of blood welled up in his throat.
Below, Old Knife let out a muffled groan.
Jiang Nian looked down and, through the blinding light, could barely see that Lao Dao was gripping the protrusion on the inner wall of the passage with one hand, while the other hand had let go. His whole body was being torn apart by the upward shockwave and the downward suction, like a leaf in a storm.
"Old Dao!"
Jiang Nian wrapped his legs around the armrest, leaned his body downwards, and stretched out his left hand.
The fingertips barely touched the old knife's wrist.
caught!
But almost simultaneously, an even stronger suction came from below. Jiang Nian felt his arm joints making a teeth-grinding cracking sound, and a piercing pain shot through the fracture in his right shoulder.
"Let go!" Old Knife yelled into the communicator, his voice broken, "If you can't pull them up... both of them will fall!"
"Shut up!"
Jiang Nian gritted his teeth, and the energy of the marking system surged wildly into his left arm. Pale golden patterns peeked out from under his combat suit, spreading along his arm, and the muscle fibers emitted a faint groan under the strain. He slowly pulled the old knife upwards.
The tunnel was vibrating violently, and the metal inner walls began to twist and deform. Hot air currents mixed with metal fragments shot upwards, crackling as they hit the deep-sea suits.
Chen's voice came from above, muffled and unclear: "...The tunnel structure...is about to collapse! Quick!"
Jiang Nian looked up and saw the circular exit above his head shrinking at a visible speed—the inner walls of the passage were being squeezed inward under high temperature and pressure.
There's no time left.
He used all his strength to violently swing the old knife upwards.
Old Dao's body flew upwards for a short distance before being grabbed by several hands reaching down from above—it was Engineer Chen and Xiao Li. They lay prone at the entrance of the passage, holding onto Old Dao tightly.
Taking advantage of the momentum, Jiang Nian propelled himself upwards with both legs.
Just as his upper body burst out of the passage—
"BOOM—!!!"
A deafening roar came from below as the structure collapsed completely.
The entire vertical passage twisted and compressed instantly, like a crushed soda can. Jiang Nian felt a tightness in his ankle, and an irresistible force dragged him downwards.
His legs below the knees were stuck in the deformed metal structure.
"Jiang Nian!" Old Dao turned around, his eyes wide with fury.
Engineer Chen and Xiao Wang rushed over and tried to grab Jiang Nian's arm, but the downward pull was too strong, and they were instead dragged towards the cave entrance.
"Let go!" Jiang Nian roared, "The passage is about to collapse completely! You'll all be dragged down with you!"
"No!" Engineer Chen's face turned red. "Come up together!"
Below, the creaking and twisting of metal grew more intense, like the chewing of a giant beast. Intense blue light seeped from the gaps, and the temperature rose rapidly. The leg armor of the deep-sea suit began to glow red and soften.
Jiang Nian stared at the wildly fluctuating external temperature readings on the mask: 210 degrees, 230 degrees, 250 degrees...
The limit for a deep-sea diving suit is 200 degrees Celsius, and the duration cannot exceed ten minutes.
We've already passed the limit.
A sharp pain shot through his legs, like being repeatedly burned by a branding iron. He could smell the burnt smell of protein—his own skin and tissue.
The energy from the marking system spontaneously surged to the legs in an attempt to combat the high temperature, but it was like a drop in the ocean.
calm.
必须冷静。
He quickly scanned his surroundings. The exit they were in was located on top of a protruding structure on the anchor point's outer shell, about thirty meters above the sea. Below them was boiling seawater—the energy from the anchor point's explosion was heating up the entire area.
“Engineer Chen,” Jiang Nian’s voice was hoarse but unusually calm, “is the ejection mechanism of the escape pod independent?”
Engineer Chen was taken aback, then understood what he meant: "Yes! Each escape pod has an independent compressed gas ejection device, located at the bottom of the pod! But that device is designed to eject the pod out of the sea, not for human use! The overload is too great, and the human body will—"
“Start it,” Jiang Nian interrupted him.
"what?"
"Activate the ejection device and aim it at where I'm stuck," Jiang Nian said quickly. "The shockwave from the explosion will blast apart the deformed metal. I'll be thrown out, and you guys can use that opportunity to pull me up."
"You'll be blown to pieces!" Xiao Li screamed.
“If I don’t start it, I’ll be roasted alive.” Jiang Nian looked at Lao Dao. “Lao Dao, you know what to do.”
Old Dao stared at Jiang Nian, his eyes bloodshot behind his mask. The silence that followed felt like an eternity.
Then he turned sharply and lunged toward the nearest circular escape hatch.
"Old Dao!" Engineer Chen tried to stop him.
"Listen to him!" Old Knife roared, having already pried open the hatch, revealing the complex mechanical structure beneath. He found the red manual start valve and turned it without hesitation.
"Everyone, lie down! Hold on tight!"
"laugh--!!!"
High-pressure gas gushed out from the jets at the bottom of the escape pod, emitting a piercing shriek.
Then came the explosion.
It was not an explosive, but a deflagration of compressed gas in an extremely unstable state.
An orange-red fireball exploded from the bottom of the escape pod, and the shockwave spread out in a ring.
Jiang Nian felt the metal structure that was trapping his calf suddenly vibrate.
It's loose!
He took the opportunity to struggle upwards with all his might.
Almost simultaneously, Chen, Xiao Li, and Xiao Wang grabbed his arms and shoulders tightly and pulled him upwards with all their might.
"Ugh—!"
The metal tore apart, and Jiang Nian's legs were finally freed.
But the shockwave from the explosion also hit him squarely on the back.
The tear in the back of his deep-sea suit ripped open completely, and scorching air rushed in. Jiang Nian felt his back instantly split open. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and everything went black.
"Pull him up!"
Several people hurriedly dragged Jiang Nian to a safe area.
Below, the collapse of the anchor point entered its final stage. The entire gigantic structure emitted a dying groan, its outer shell cracking, and eerie blue energy gushed from countless fissures like blood, dyeing the surrounding seawater an eerie fluorescent color.
The seawater boiled, huge bubbles surged upwards, and steam filled the air.
"Let's go! Get out of here!" Engineer Chen helped Jiang Nian, who was almost unconscious.
The five people stumbled and ran towards the edge of the platform.
The platform is tilting, and one side of the anchor point structure is beginning to sink into the sea.
"Jump!" Old Knife roared.
No hesitation.
Five people plunged into the boiling seawater. The moment they entered the water, extreme heat and extreme cold clashed—the surface seawater was heated to near boiling point, but just a few meters below, it remained near freezing. The turbulent currents of hot and cold tore at their bodies, as if they had been thrown into a blender.
Jiang Nian regained some consciousness after being jolted by the icy seawater.
He barely opened his eyes and, through his cracked mask, saw above: a massive, dark shadow, anchored at a point, was slowly sinking into the deep sea, its eerie blue light gradually dimming until it was swallowed by darkness. Floating on the surface were numerous fragments of molten metal that had cooled rapidly, like a bizarre meteor shower.
Successful.
The anchor point was destroyed.
The opening of the Guixu Passage was forcibly interrupted.
But what's the cost?
He couldn't feel his legs. A tingling, numb pain emanated from the burns on his back. His right arm was completely immobile. The mask's oxygen supply system alarmed, indicating less than 10% oxygen remaining.
The deep-sea suit was damaged in several places, and cold seawater was seeping in.
"Jiang Nian! Hold on!" Old Dao swam over and grabbed his arm.
Engineer Chen and Xiao Li also gathered around. Xiao Wang was in slightly better condition and kept watch nearby.
“Communication… let’s try contacting Old Qin…” Jiang Nian said with difficulty.
Engineer Chen nodded and adjusted the communicator frequency, but only heard static: "The signal is being jammed, probably from the aftershocks of the explosion. We need to surface and try again."
“We can’t…go straight up…” Jiang Nian shook his head. “The organization…definitely has ships monitoring the area…if the anchor point is blown up, they’ll definitely come to check…if we’re discovered, we’re finished…”
"What should I do?"
Jiang Nian looked down into the deep sea at the fading blue light: "Dive...use the chaotic currents after the explosion...avoid the search...take a detour...and get ashore..."
"Your injury won't hold!" Old Dao objected.
"We have to hold on." Jiang Nian coughed up a string of bubbles. "Let's go..."
He was the first to adjust his posture and swim towards the deep sea.
Old Dao gritted his teeth and followed. Engineer Chen and Xiao Li exchanged a glance and had no choice but to follow as well. Xiao Wang brought up the rear.
The five people were like a group of wounded fish, struggling to dive into the cold, dark seawater.
The chaotic currents caused by the explosion swept them up and down. Visibility was extremely low, and they could only rely on the faint locator lights on their diving suits to see each other.
Jiang Nian's consciousness fluctuated between clarity and confusion.
The energy of the marking system slowly circulates within the body, repairing the most fatal damage, but it's a drop in the ocean. Blood loss, hypothermia, lack of oxygen, severe injury... each of these could be fatal.
He didn't know how long he had been swimming.
Maybe a few minutes, maybe a few hours.
Until the oxygen alarm on the mask turned into a piercing beep—the oxygen was gone.
The field of vision began to darken, and black spots appeared at the edges.
Is it... over?
Just then, a faint light suddenly appeared in the darkness ahead.
It wasn't the faint blue anchor energy glow, but a soft, stable yellowish-white light.
light?
Jiang Nian used his last bit of strength to paddle in that direction.
The light drew closer, and its outline gradually became clearer.
It was a small scientific research submersible, silently hovering in the deep sea. There was a faint marking on its hull, but in the dim light of the diving suit, Jiang Nian could make it out—
It was a simplified Tai Chi symbol, surrounded by stars.
The mark of dawn.
The submersible's hatch slid open silently, and a figure in a lightweight diving suit swam out, gesturing a series of hand signals to them: Safety, Follow, Enter.
They are the ones who will meet you.
As Jiang Nian's last bit of strength dissipated, his body sank downwards.
The figure quickly swam over and caught him. Old Dao and Engineer Chen also swam over and helped push him toward the open hatch of the submersible.
Once inside the cabin, the air pressure returns to normal, and gravity returns.
Jiang Nian collapsed onto the cold floor, his mask carefully removed. He greedily inhaled the oxygen-rich air inside the cabin, but each breath aggravated the wound on his back, causing him excruciating pain that made his vision blur.
"Medical kit!" a strange but steady female voice rang out.
Someone knelt beside him and quickly examined his injuries. "Extensive burns, fractures of the right scapula and clavicle, fracture of the left shinbone, excessive blood loss, hypothermia... God, it's a miracle he's still alive."
"He must live." Old Dao's voice, equally exhausted, came from nearby. "Old Qin wants to see him."
The woman's voice paused for a moment: "Elder Qin already knows. The energy signal from the anchor point explosion was too strong to be concealed. The organization must know too. We have to leave this area immediately."
"Where?"
“A safe house. A place no organization can find.” The woman began injecting Jiang Nian with painkillers and clotting agents. “But before that, he needs emergency surgery. The submersible has basic medical equipment that can temporarily stabilize his injuries. But the real treatment will have to be done on land.”
Jiang Nian felt the cool liquid flowing into her blood vessels, which slightly relieved the excruciating pain, but her consciousness became even more blurred.
He heard Engineer Chen ask, "Are you from Dawn? How did you know we were here?"
“Old Qin had been monitoring the energy readings at the anchor point,” the woman replied. “Before the explosion, he predicted the most likely escape routes and ocean current paths, and told us to wait in these waters. But to be honest, we didn’t expect to actually wait… and we certainly didn’t expect to be met with this group of…” She seemed unable to find the right words, “wounded soldiers.”
"What about the others?" Xiao Li asked weakly. "At the anchor point... are only the five of us still alive?"
silence.
The woman whispered, "Based on the life signals we've detected... there are no other survivors in the epicenter of the explosion."
Xiao Wang let out a suppressed sob.
Engineer Chen sighed heavily.
Old Dao didn't speak, but Jiang Nian could feel the weight of his gaze.
The submersible began to move, its engines humming low as it headed towards the deeper, darker waters.
Under the influence of the drugs, Jiang Nian sank into a dreamless darkness.
Before completely losing consciousness, the last thought flashed through my mind:
The anchor point exploded, but the "key" to the Ruins of Return is still inside him.
The organization's plan was thwarted once, but they will not give up.
The storm has only just begun.
He, however, had to survive.
For those who have died.
For those who are still alive.
For that truth hidden in the shadows of history, concerning the future of all humanity.
Darkness descended completely.
The submersible, like a silent fish, glides into the unknown depths of the sea.
The darkness is not peaceful.
Jiang Nian's consciousness floated in the abyss of dreamslessness, but the marking system was operating in a way he had never experienced before. It was no longer merely repairing his body; it was more like... analyzing something.
Fragmented perceptions flooded into the darkness.
He "saw" flowing, dark golden lines, spreading through the void like veins, outlining a corner of a colossal, incomprehensible geometric structure. He "heard" not the vibrations of sound, but a low, almost imperceptible "frequency," like the ancient, slow breath of a sleeping behemoth. He "felt" an indescribable pull, from below, from a deeper, colder darkness, where something was "pulsating," faintly resonating with the marking system within his body. (End of Chapter)