bioinnovel Chapter 417 5 Hours!
Chapter 417 5 Hours!
When the military transport plane took off from the research station, Zhang Yan was leaning against the securing straps in the cargo hold with his eyes closed.
He didn't fall asleep immediately; his mind was still working.
Qin Xiao updates the satellite data every thirty minutes.
First update: The Opener Ground team has completed equipment assembly and started drilling.
Second update: Drilling depth 80 meters, speed 92 meters per hour, faster than expected.
Zhang Yan opened his eyes, glanced at the numbers, and did some calculations.
At this speed, it would take four and a half hours to shoot 400 meters.
Including the deceleration in the last hundred meters, the total time is six to seven hours.
It was two hours faster than expected.
He dialed Nie Qingcheng's number.
"I see it," she said. "The legal team left early and is now waiting outside the facility. The temporary security chief authorized by the CEO will be on duty in thirty minutes and will open the door as soon as he arrives."
"Access control for the fifth basement level?"
"The frequency lock of the Heart of the Creator is still there, but after Weber was suspended, the CEO transferred the physical access control authority of the fifth floor to the new person in charge. The frequency lock is an independent system and does not affect the physical passage. People can enter, but the Heart of the Creator cannot be activated in the passage."
"I don't need to activate it in the passageway. I'll activate it once we're inside the warehouse."
"Same as last time."
"right."
Nie Qingcheng didn't say anything more. "Go to sleep. I'll wake you up two hours before we land."
Zhang Yan really fell asleep this time.
When I woke up, the lights in the cargo hold had changed color. They were the yellow warning lights for landing.
There are seven unread messages on my phone.
Qin Xiao's.
"Drilling depth 260 meters. Speed reduced to 75 meters per hour. The rock strata have hardened."
"Depth 310 meters. Speed 68 meters per hour. Continue descending."
"Depth 350 meters. Speed drops sharply to 40 meters per hour. Approaching the high-density rock layer on the outer edge of the portal space."
Just as Zhang Yan predicted. The last 100 meters will be the toughest.
The latest one was posted twenty minutes ago.
"Depth 370 meters. Speed 30 meters per hour. They're changing the drill bit."
Zhang Yan did the calculations. The remaining depth was about thirty meters. At the current speed, it would take one hour.
He glanced at the flight time. Forty minutes until landing.
After landing, proceed to the facility—a car arranged by Nie Qingcheng is waiting on the runway, a 40-minute land journey. Enter the facility and descend to the fifth underground level, a 10-minute journey.
Total time: one hour and thirty minutes.
The person who opened the door will arrive in an hour.
Thirty minutes to go.
Zhang Yan dialed Qin Xiao's number.
"Will their speed increase again after they change the drill bit?"
"It's hard to say. The rock strata at that depth contain the same material as the door; you encountered it in Shennongjia last time. Ordinary drills can't penetrate it, but if they have special equipment—"
"They have them," Zhang Yan said. The Door Openers have been studying doors for eight hundred years. They wouldn't bring ordinary drills.
"That speed might return to over fifty."
Thirty meters, fifty meters per hour. Thirty-six minutes.
Zhang Yan arrived at the portal space one hour and thirty minutes after landing. The portal opener arrived thirty-six minutes later.
It's almost an hour short.
He didn't have time.
Zhang Yan stood up. The cargo hold was narrow, so he bent over and walked to the back.
The white tiger waited in the storage space.
"Qin Xiao. Coordinates of the entrance to the Gatekeeper's drilling tunnel."
"It's been sent."
Zhang Yan opened the map. The drilling entrance was three kilometers east of the Helios facility. The facility was directly below and slightly west of his flight path.
"I'm not going to the facilities."
Qin Xiao was stunned for a moment. "What?"
"Go directly to drill above the entrance."
"Brother Yan, that's the territory of the Gatekeepers. They have people on the ground—"
"It doesn't matter." Zhang Yan pulled up the White Tiger's parameters. "White Tiger's combat mode digging speed is three times that of industrial drilling equipment. From the surface to a depth of 400 meters, eight minutes."
Qin Xiao did the calculations. "After you land, go to the area above the drilling entrance—if you parachute—"
"No parachuting. I release the White Tiger as the plane flies low overhead. The White Tiger lands from the sky, smashes through the entrance, and plunges vertically down. I ride down."
There was a two-second silence on the other end of the communication.
"Brother Yan, there are armed personnel on the ground."
"The shockwave from the White Tiger's landing will clear the area."
Qin Xiao stopped arguing. "I've instructed the crew to adjust the flight path."
Zhang Yan hung up and dialed Nie Qingcheng's number.
"The plan has changed."
He finished speaking in thirty seconds.
Nie Qingcheng remained silent for five seconds. Longer than usual.
"How many armed personnel are there on the ground?"
"The satellite imagery shows twelve people. They are lightly armed."
"Are you sure the White Tiger landing will solve the problem?"
"No need to resolve this. I won't fight them. White Tiger will burrow underground as soon as it lands, and by the time they realize what's happening, I'll already be underground."
Three seconds of silence followed.
"The legal team will proceed with the facility as planned," Nie Qingcheng said. "In case you encounter any obstacles while descending through the drilling tunnel, the facility access tunnel is the backup route."
"it is good."
"Zhang Yan".
"Um."
"Tell me as soon as you land."
"Yes."
The crew adjusted the flight path. The cargo hold tail door opened at an altitude of three thousand meters. Hot air rushed in. The Sahara air was as dry as sandpaper.
Zhang Yan stood by the tailgate, the Thousand Machine Arm unfolded, and the White Tiger was released from the storage space.
The white tiger's metallic body could barely turn around in the cargo hold. It crouched, its eye sensors glowing red.
Zhang Yan rolled over and climbed onto the ground.
"Target coordinates locked," he said into the communicator. "Disengage in thirty seconds."
Qin Xiao's voice: "Drilling depth 388 meters. They're almost there."
Twelve meters.
Zhang Yan didn't wait any longer.
The white tiger leaped out of the cargo hold's rear door.
Three thousand meters of freefall. The wind whistled past his ears. The Thousand-Arm Arm gripped the White Tiger's neck armor tightly. The ground went from blurry to clear—a yellow desert, a few trucks, the metal supports of drilling equipment, and scattered figures.
The white tiger initiates its cushioning action at an altitude of 200 meters above the ground. Its limbs extend, and the hydraulic systems in its legs charge at full power.
Landing.
A shockwave, like a sandstorm, spread in all directions. Trucks were pushed more than ten meters away. People tumbled over like pieces of paper.
Zhang Yan didn't look at them.
"Drill".
The white tiger's forepaws slammed into the sand. Not drilling—it was tearing. The composite metal claws carved a tunnel through the rock. Debris flew everywhere. The temperature soared.
One hundred meters. Two hundred meters. Three hundred meters.
The speed was faster than expected. The upper layer of the Sahara's underground rock strata is sandstone, which is much softer than ice. The white tiger was practically leaping down.
Three hundred and fifty meters. The rock strata suddenly hardened. The same material as the door itself. The white tiger's speed plummeted from twelve meters per second to three meters per second.
Zhang Yan felt it. A resonance just like that of Shennongjia. The Heart of Heaven's Craftsmanship burned within his chest.
380 meters.
The white tiger's right forepaw pierced through a layer of rock wall.
A cavity has appeared ahead.
A spherical space. Runes cover the inner walls. A black sphere floats in the center.
The third door.
Zhang Yan jumped down from the white tiger's back. His feet landed on the runic ground. The golden light of the Heavenly Craftsmanship Heart automatically lit up.
He rushed towards the door.
The "Heart of Nature" affixed to the door surface. Maintainer privileges activated. Internal interface blocking procedure initiated.
A progress bar appears.
1%. 5%. 12%.
It's very fast. Blocking is much simpler than fixing.
23%. 31%.
Zhang Yan's peripheral vision caught sight of the east wall of the spherical space.
There is a hole there.
It's not natural. It was drilled out. It's two meters in diameter. Steam is still rising from the edges.
The portal to the Gatekeeper has been breached.
45%. 52%.
Sounds came from the cave entrance. Footsteps. More than one person.
58%. 63%.
A figure emerged from the cave entrance. Wearing a protective suit and mask, and holding something in their hand.
Semi-transparent. Dark red glow. Short staff shape.
Breaching hammer.
73%.
The man took off his mask.
Not Weber.
A young woman with short hair.
His eyes were so calm that it was hard to believe he had just crawled out of a 400-meter-deep drilling tunnel.
She looked at the Heart of Heavenly Craftsmanship in Zhang Yan's hand.
Laughed.
"Maintainer. We've been waiting for you for a long time."