Chapter 175: Fortification Deployment Mission, Execute!

Chapter 175 – Deploy the Project, Execute!

Higgs‑field phase transitions, proton decay, quantum‑gravity vacuum reconstruction—these are concepts that Chen Jian is utterly clueless about.

Such knowledge is far beyond the reach of an undergraduate; it brushes the very frontier of fundamental physics.

Fuxi gave him a brief overview, but Chen listened in a fog and ultimately gave up.

Fortunately, as Fuxi himself said, uncovering the so‑called “truth” is not the most pressing matter right now.

Setting that aside, Lei Jie and his companions are still trapped inside 095.

In any case, we must retrieve them first.

——

Yet before we bring them over, Chen Jian must first understand what lies within Project 011.

He posed the question to Fuxi, whose answer was even more intelligent than Lingxi’s.

Or rather, more human‑like.

“In a short span it is impossible to explain every facility and device inside Project 011; the information is too vast and too granular.”

“However, since you have already been to 095, I can describe it in simpler terms.”

“Project 011 is a magnified version of 095, amplified by dozens of times.”

“It possesses all the functions of 095, but with a far more powerful, more refined intelligence system and far richer, more abundant resources.”

“In theory, operating at full power, within a few months I could, using the resources and equipment of Project 011, construct a near‑modern town capable of sustaining hundreds of lives, and make that town self‑sufficient.”

“Likewise, I could restore a relatively primitive industrial system of human civilization within a few months—of course, that would require external resources such as minerals.”

“Naturally, 011 also includes a defensive—or military—system suited to its intended construction.”

“The primary preparatory system for that defense is you, but alas, because 011 is not the war‑center we imagined, its armaments are relatively limited and rudimentary.”

“If we seek more and advanced weaponry, we may need to travel to the 010 project in Fengcheng, or the 006 project in Quancheng, or perhaps the 015 in Jincheng, or 009 in Changshan.”

“.006 may already have been activated.”

Chen Jian said helplessly:

“Quancheng has been seized by a faction; if you have lost contact with 006, it is highly likely that the project has already been destroyed.”

“Indeed, 006 is out of contact; its intelligence system is damaged, but its environmental‑maintenance system is independent—perhaps some equipment inside remains usable?”

“Unlikely.”

Chen Jian shook his head and said:

“If the advanced gear inside were still functional, Huadu would have been invincible long ago.”

“I suspect 006’s condition mirrors what we found at Project 7025—probably half‑destroyed.”

“Some equipment works; the rest has turned to scrap.”

“Understood. Yet we have other options; there’s no need to lose hope.”

“I’m not exactly despondent, though.”

Chen Jian waved his hand and continued:

“First we must bring Project 011 into full‑load operation and set up the surrounding defenses.”

“Four comrades remain in 095; we must retrieve them.”

“We cannot abandon the supplies and gear in 095; transporting them is a major problem.”

“Perhaps we should call in people from Huangshicheng first, lest we lack manpower.”

“Or maybe it isn’t that complicated.”

Fuxi spoke:

“Project 011 stores a considerable cache of cold‑start resources, including but not limited to a suite of construction and transport equipment.”

“These machines may not suffice for massive construction, but carving a rudimentary road between 095 and 011 is a trivial task.”

“Comrade Commander, what you need to do is simple.”

“Please confirm: shall we execute the deployment of Project 011?”

“Confirmed.”

Chen Jian answered without hesitation.

“Copy that, proceeding with Project 011 deployment.”

Immediately, a cascade of commands flashed across the screen before him.

“Task sequence compiled.”

“001: Activate communication protocol.”

“002: Activate ant swarm.”

“003: Open supply crates.”

“004: Assemble cold‑start devices.”

“005: Cold start.”

“006: Dispatch equipment.”

“007: Clear main corridor.” “008: Construct cellular network base stations.”

A series of concise directives rang out amid the rising roars, clangs, and mechanical whir of Project 011, as the beast that had lain dormant for three centuries began to stir.

Chen Jian sprang to his feet, and as he pushed open the door toward the living quarters, a swarm of small, wheeled quadruped robots sprang to life.

They emerged from sealed pods on the side of the living area, and under Fuxi’s prodigious computing guidance moved like worker ants under a queen, one after another sliding toward their targets.

Countless supply crates were opened, and the components within were extracted one by one and placed in the designated assembly zone on the floor.

Then a robotic arm on the overhead rail descended, beginning to assemble the massive machine whose purpose Chen could not yet discern.

The bustling scene made Chen feel as if he were inside a frenetic future factory, and while the “ant swarm” busied themselves, a sudden, deafening crack and roar echoed from the ceiling of the living area.

Fuxi’s voice followed immediately.

“Main corridor opened, awaiting clearance.”

“Network signal weak, satellite link poor, drones cannot launch; external perimeter cannot be established for now.”

“Comrade Commander, before the main corridor is cleared and the external cellular base stations are erected, you and your comrades may need to assume temporary guard duty.”

“Understood, I’ll handle the temporary watch.”

Chen Jian donned the “Nezha” exoskeleton helmet once more and headed toward the lounge where Zeng Yi and the others waited.

As he swung the door open, three faces of sheer terror stared back at him.

Clearly, through the lounge’s semi‑transparent glass door they had already witnessed everything happening outside.

Yet they could not grasp what had occurred, nor how it had come to pass.

The fear of the unknown surged like a tide, drowning every thought in their minds; even though they had braced themselves mentally, they still could not quickly accept

what their eyes beheld.

Autonomous humanoid machines, flickering light signals, a constant broadcast of task progress they cannot comprehend, the thunderous roar overhead and the tremor beneath their feet.

In that instant, the three Sanctified Blooded felt the insignificance of their own existence.

The power they boasted of seemed trivial before true greatness.

The few of them shivered all over as they stared at Chen Jian, who, with a placid expression, waved his hand and spoke:

“Come with me.”

“We must return to the surface to set up a watch, then inform Lei Jie and the others to come.”

“Understood.”

Zeng Yi answered with difficulty; the three followed Chen Jian, taking the elevator upward as guided by Fuxi to the connecting level, then proceeded through the blast‑opened main corridor outward.

The massive piles of earth had not yet been cleared, and the group struggled a little to crawl out of the passage; turning back, they faced the true gate of Installation 011.

It seemed like a portal to another world.

Chen Jian launched a drone and set up a simple guard post.

Then he called Lei Jie, briefly briefing them on the situation at Installation 011.

In fact, Lei Jie and his companions had already grasped most of the details through Fuxi’s and Lingxi’s information exchange, yet when they heard Chen Jian’s own confirmation, their tone could not hide excitement.

“We’ll head over immediately!”

As the words fell, the radio crackled with the roar of engines.

Chen Jian stared silently at the drone reconnaissance feed on his visor, then realized—whether due to the death of the secondary monsters or the activation of Installation 011—nearby fungal beings and other creatures were fleeing wildly from the Jinling ruins.

“The surrounding environment is safe.”

Chen Jian said, a hint of surprise in his voice:

“Those lingering monsters seem to have been scared away?”

“Of course they would run.”

Ji Xing’s voice came through the infinite‑electric channel.

“Something is emerging behind you.”

Chen Jian turned his gaze back to the main passage of Installation 011; there, as the ant‑like swarm laid cables and erected the first cellular network base station, a massive four‑legged, tracked excavator was already clearing the loose soil at the entrance.

In the sky, several quad‑rotor drones hovered in waiting; once the next base station was erected and network coverage completed, they would immediately ascend to the heights.

“Monsters, you, us—”

Ji Xing spoke, his words mismatched:

“We have become true monsters.”

“Wrong.”

Chen Jian paused, then said:

“We are not true monsters.”

“We are true industrial Cthulhus!”

(End of Chapter)