Chapter 355: Alive

Chapter 355: The Living

“What does the Ring refer to?”

Chen Jian opened his mouth and asked Fuxi.

“There is no definitive answer yet.”

Fuxi’s tone carried a hint of bewilderment.

“From the decoded data, the so‑called Ring most likely denotes something akin to a large‑scale particle accelerator.”

“The documents mention the device’s prodigious energy consumption, confirming that it would demand a massive power supply.”

“Shancheng ultimately abandoned the project because its energy needs could not be met, rendering the apparatus inoperable.”

“Deeper layers of encrypted information remain beyond my reach for now.”

“Later we might try a reverse intrusion to seize control again, though that will take time.”

“Shancheng’s computing power now exceeds mine; mere elevated privileges can no longer effect a direct takeover.”

“Understood.”

Chen Jian gave a slight nod.

After a moment of contemplation, he pressed on:

“Given what we know, can we make a credible conjecture about the Ring’s specific function?”

“We can hazard a partial hypothesis.”

Fuxi replied:

“Based on current clues, the Ring is most probably a fundamental physics apparatus designed to address the entropy‑increase problem.”

“There are three main conjectures.”

“First, a circular particle accelerator equipped with a synchrotron radiation source, intended to probe the dynamics of large biomolecules and to decipher entropy changes—such as conformational entropy—during protein folding and unfolding.”

“This scenario aligns best with Shancheng’s view of ‘entropy increase’ and may well be one reason behind its full‑scale virtualization.”

“Second, an electron‑positron collider. This device would exploit the AdS/CFT duality to explore the relationship between black‑hole thermodynamics and quantum‑field‑theory entropy.”

“Proponents believe that, through the boundary‑encoding properties between higher‑dimensional and lower‑dimensional spaces, it could dissolve low‑dimensional entropy growth, perhaps even achieving negative entropy.”

“Third, a Penning trap. By employing uniform magnetic and electric fields to confine charged particles—such as ions—it can measure their mass‑to‑charge ratios with exquisite precision.”

“This apparatus serves primarily for precision observation, focusing on the entropy sector of weak interactions, and is regarded as a necessary instrument for a unified theory.”

“All three devices could plausibly bear the moniker ‘Ring.’”

“Yet I cannot fathom how these three machines and their research avenues tie into a solution for the apocalyptic crisis.”

“In my database, the underlying theoretical work remains quite rudimentary.”

“Even if we could fire up the equipment, it would not yield an instant remedy.”

“Perhaps it is a matter of insufficient authority?”

After Fuxi finished, Chen Jian, still foggy‑headed, shook his head slowly.

“It cannot be a permissions issue.”

“The Ring must be a device we have yet to comprehend.”

“Otherwise Shancheng would never have considered substituting it.”

“It is most likely a variant of existing technology—whatever it is, we must uncover its nature.”

“Contact the Ring Consortium.”

“We have no leads; they might have some.”

At that point, Chen Jian paused briefly.

According to the information Wang Lizhi had previously relayed, the Ring Consortium had entered dormancy when the Beast Tide began.

Now the Beast Tide has ended, and even Shancheng has been reclaimed.

They cannot remain asleep forever, can they?

It is time to rise and act!

“Understood. I will swiftly seek to establish contact with the Ring Consortium.”

“Find Jin Zan.”

Chen Jian added:

“He was once a merchant of the Mechanical God Church and has deep ties with the Ring Consortium.”

“He will certainly locate Wang Lizhi; he has his own methods.”

“Got it.”

Fuxi’s voice faded, and at that moment, He Shuo, who had arrived from afar, finally entered Shancheng’s interior and met Chen Jian waiting at the makeshift departure point.

“Captain.”

He Shuo hoisted a bundle and handed it directly to Chen Jian.

Chen Jian took it, frowned, and asked:

“What is this thing?”

The object was slick with blood, yet beneath the crimson veil it glimmered with a cold metallic sheen.

“A mineral that fell from a monster.”

“A mineral??”

Chen Jian asked in astonishment:

“What do you mean? Do those monsters digest minerals to power themselves?”

“No.”

He Shuo shook his head and explained:

“This thing has no functional purpose.”

“It is merely waste, encased within the creature’s body.”

“But… don’t you sense something amiss?”

“What’s amiss?”

Chen Jian weighed the mineral in his hand, thought briefly, and replied:

“It’s too heavy?”

“Exactly, exceedingly heavy.”

He Shuo nodded.

“By volume, this thing outweighs gold.”

“A quick calculation suggests its density reaches at least 24 grams per cubic centimeter.”

Where on Earth could such a thing exist? How did this contraption appear?

As the words fell, Chen Jian's brow furrowed once more.

24 grams per cubic centimeter

To be frank, it's heavier than gold, but not by much.

The problem, however, is that even the densest metal known on Earth, osmium, clocks in at only 22.59 grams per cubic centimeter.

Moreover, this metal is exceedingly scarce, only extractable from platinum, and by any reckoning it could not be fashioned into such an inexplicable alloy component.

Are you sure you didn't mismeasure?

Chen Jian asked again.

We can take it back for testing—there shouldn't be any major issues.

I overheard your discussion earlier, and I wonder if this might be the product of the so‑called 'Ring Device'.

How did you arrive at that speculation?

Chen Jian pressed on.

He Shuo shrugged and replied:

Intuition.

After all, we have no idea what the Ring is, nor what this metal is.

Two inexplicable things tend to become naturally linked, don't they?

That makes sense.

Chen Jian pondered briefly, then said:

First, secure it and bring it back to base; we'll run an analysis with our equipment.

If it truly is a new element unknown to human history, we might be taking a giant leap toward the truth of the apocalypse.

Understood.

He Shuo nodded and asked:

But, come to think of it, if this thing is truly significant, could the mountain‑city folk possibly be unaware of it?

That's not necessarily so.

Chen Jian chuckled.

Those monsters weren't created by them; they merely exploited them.

Perhaps this time we might actually snag a loophole.

Only we don't know how big that loophole is.

Meanwhile, in Shen City.

Huang Meng wiped the sweat from his brow and stuck his head out of the slightly stifling tank.

Ahead lay Shen City, now within striking distance of their final objective.

He glanced at the map on his PDA and mused, "This truly is the largest ruin I've ever seen."

'Yet it's odd—why are the human settlements near Shen City all so small?'

'Given the scale and resources of this ruin, building a city akin to Jinling shouldn't be difficult, right?'

As his words faded, Jin Zhong replied:

'It's a geographical issue.'

'Shen City's location is poor; the Yangtze's floods inundate the surrounding plains every few years. To found a city, one would have to expand into the ruins themselves.'

'Moreover, the internal safety conditions are dire.'

'Here dwell massive blood‑skeletal behemoths, along with countless tier‑two and tier‑three monsters.'

'We've tried clearing the Shen City ruins before, only to return empty‑handed.'

'Empty‑handed?'

Huang Meng keenly noted Jin Zhong's phrasing.

'Not because casualties were too high, but merely that we achieved nothing?'

'Exactly.'

Jin Zhong nodded slightly and answered:

'The interior environment of Shen City is intricate, and the monster ecology is equally complex.'

'I struggle to describe it, but this place is like a labyrinth.'

'Once inside, the greatest challenge isn't defeating the monsters, but finding the correct path.'

'Our compasses often fail here—much like the incident the previous imperial guards faced.'

'Some say something buried beneath the Mountain City ruins distorts the magnetic field here.'

'I once took that claim at face value, but during my stint at Base 011 I perused countless reports and began to realize that if a magnetic anomaly could sway a compass dozens of kilometers away, the geography itself would already show marked alterations.'

'At the very least, the flora would betray its presence.'

'Yet, in fact—'

At that point, Jin Zhong gestured toward the Shen City ruins and asked:

'Do you think the vegetation here differs from that of any other ruin we've encountered?'

'No.'

Huang Meng shook his head decisively.

'Equally lush, equally uniform.'

'Indeed.'

Jin Zhong sighed and continued:

'That's the strangest part.'

'Not just the plants— the wildlife here is indistinguishable from that elsewhere.'

'They remain unaffected—they thrive just fine.'

'Perhaps because they rely more on instinct, they can shrug off unknown influences.'

'Possibly.'

Huang Meng stared thoughtfully at his PDA as the pre‑launched drone hovered over the Shen City ruins.

From the aerial footage, the ruin showed no sign of anomaly.

For a fleeting moment, he thought everything here might simply be the Mechanical Cult's hyperbole.

—

After all, in their mouths, Mountain City was a forbidden zone.

But now?

According to the latest reports, the commanders have successfully cleared the monsters surrounding the mountain city and opened a passage from the outside world to it.

The facts also prove that it was never a “Divine Kingdom” at all, merely an underground city of bizarre order erected by a group of hopeless souls.

By the same token, the truth of the Shen City ruins could not be any more fantastical.

Its danger is, in fact, even less than that of the mountain city.

With that thought, Huang Meng issued his order:

“We must not waste any more time.”

“The target lies eleven kilometers away; the drone has already spotted the entrance to the underground works.”

“Route planning is complete; we can proceed.”

“Copy that.”

Jin Zhong immediately nodded, then raised his hand in a gesture, commanding the unit to move forward.

The mixed infantry‑tank‑motor squad surged into action once more, and in less than half an hour the group had crossed the vague boundary between the ruins’ interior and exterior, stepping formally into the heart of the site.

Huang Meng kept his eyes glued to the map on his PDA, and a moment later he frowned and spoke:

“Strange!”

“The magnetic field here is truly being disturbed.”

“The inertial navigation system has failed—though the cellular positioning still works.”

“What on earth is happening?”

“Is the situation serious?”

Jin Zhong asked hurriedly.

“Not particularly serious.”

Huang Meng shook his head and continued:

“The drone signal is unaffected; from the aerial thermal imagery there are no signs of monster activity along our route.”

“The path should be smooth; we expect to arrive in half an hour.”

“Understood.”

Jin Zhong let out a slight sigh of relief.

His greatest fear had been the prospect of becoming lost, yet it was evident that, before the high‑tech gear of the Huaxia forces, that danger had vanished entirely.

Even without cellular service, as long as communication with the drone remained intact, the squad could scarcely go astray.

He kept close to the side of the 30A tank, its tracks crushing the humus piled on the road and leaving deep ruts.

Within those ruts a faint, damp sheen glimmered, as if water were seeping out.

Jin Zhong instinctively glanced twice more, but soon he detected an anomaly.

It seemed… not to be water at all.

“Hold on!”

Jin Zhong raised his hand to signal the unit to halt, and Huang Meng stuck his head out again, asking:

“What’s the matter?”

Jin Zhong did not answer immediately; instead he crouched behind the tank’s tracks, bent down, and examined closely.

This time he was certain: there was no water on the ground.

The soil was indeed damp, but the glint was not water.

It was a thin layer of metallic dust.

Jin Zhong furrowed his brow.

He plucked a small clod of earth from the track, rolled it between his fingers, and then held it up before Huang Meng.

“Something’s off about this ground.”

“What kind of powder is this?”

“It looks like aluminum powder.”

Huang Meng looked at Jin Zhong’s fingers, studied the substance for a moment, and said:

“Aluminum or silver? Its luster seems a shade dimmer than pure aluminum.”

“Is it everywhere around us?”

Jin Zhong nodded slowly.

“All through the underground!”

“It must have settled beneath the soil, only to be unearthed when the tracks turned it over.”

“We’ve been to Shen City before, but never noticed this—perhaps because we never lifted the surface.”

“Could this be the cause of the magnetic chaos here?”

“I don’t know.”

Huang Meng shook his head.

He fished an old‑fashioned compass from his pocket and tossed it to Jin Zhong, who instinctively brought the needle close to the ground.

After a moment, he turned back to Huang Meng and said:

“No reaction.”

“The compass needle doesn’t respond to this metal.”

“But these powders…”

“Are gathering.”

“They seem… alive!”

(End of chapter)