To prove that he was telling the truth, Hayden had invited a few veteran miners. However, while they were teaching Fang Zhao how to identify the rock quality in the mining area, they could easily dig up a large ore, but every time they pointed out a spot for Fang Zhao, they could not find a satisfactory result.
The veteran miners' faces were red. They wanted to explain, but they did not know what to say. They finally understood how Hayden was feeling.
Hayden could not help but say to Fang Zhao, "Your luck... is too bad."
Even Kevin Lin, who had been watching from the side, shook his head helplessly. He was both angry and amused. Fang Zhao's luck was really too bad.
Hayden and the other veteran miners did not dare point out a spot for Fang Zhao. They had already shared their experiences, so they just stood to the side and kept quiet.
"Really, as long as you remember what we said, you will surely be able to dig out a bigger power ore than S3's Andre," Hayden reassured Fang Zhao once again.
However, Fang Zhao was not as discouraged as they thought he would be. Instead, he carefully studied the stone wall. There were other miners mining around him, and the ore and waste were constantly being sent out by conveyor belts.
As Fang Zhao studied the stone wall, he recalled the identification method Hayden and the veteran miners had taught him. At the same time, he had a very special feeling.
There was a strange energy field in the mining area. If a normal person was exposed to it for a long time, their body would experience some negative changes. That was why miners wore protective work clothes. After all, they had to spend a lot of time in the mining tunnels every day.
Perhaps it was because of the invisible energy field that many mining machines could not be used normally. This was a phenomenon that occurred in more than 90 percent of power ore mines. It was not that there were no anti-interference mining machines, but those machines were too expensive to build, and maintenance was expensive. A place like planet Baiji, which was at the bottom of the development sequence set by the Alliance, would not use such machines. Besides, there were so many conscripts who could provide labor. Naturally, there was no need for such machines.
He had read a few books on power stones. The discovery of power stones had brought about a huge leap in technology. After that, the immigration plan had been approved, and the era of extraterrestrial exploration had begun.
Every power stone emitted an energy field. The strength of the energy field depended on its size and quality.
Through the uniform, Fang Zhao could still sense the invisible energy field that was distributed all around him. This was something that others could not sense.
As an ordinary person, after putting on work clothes, under normal circumstances, it was indeed impossible to feel such a strong energy field. This was also mentioned in some professional books. However, there were also a few people who, even if they were locked in a room that could completely block out the energy field, could still intuitively sense some things that ordinary people couldn't.
However, Fang Zhao analyzed his own situation. His situation was different from those "very few people." Those people could only sense it through intuition, but Fang Zhao could actually sense the energy field around him. Furthermore, the more he sensed it, the clearer he could distinguish those energy fields. Big, small, strong, weak. These energy fields clearly reflected the size of the ore and the distance between it and the ore.
Hayden and the others watched as Fang Zhao walked to a spot and stopped, then looked at the quality of the rocks and nodded to themselves. This little celebrity was a quick learner. The spot he had chosen also seemed to be a place with large ores. However, in light of previous incidents, they would not say anything until they had actually dug something out.
The sound of chiseling rang out. Hayden and the others craned their necks to take a look.
As the chiseled rock fell, a sharp edge that was different from the surrounding rocks appeared on the stone wall.
"Wait!"
"Don't do it!"
Hayden and the others hurriedly said, afraid that Fang Zhao would immediately start chiseling again.
Hayden quickly rushed over, got a closer look, and said excitedly, "That's right! It's an ore. Look at this edge, and it shouldn't be small. It's definitely a big ore! "
"Really? Let me see! "A few old miners also rushed over.
They were even more excited than Fang Zhao.
"Indeed!"
"It might very well be a big one! Hurry up and dig it out. Be gentle, take your time. Dig bit by bit. It doesn't matter if you dig a little slowly, but you have to ensure that it's intact. Otherwise, if you break it, it will lower its grade. "A few old miners surrounded Fang Zhao and gave him pointers on how to excavate this piece of ore.
Five minutes later, an energy stone that was close to 20 centimeters long and as thick as a wrist was dug out. There were some unusable gangue minerals on it that were an eyesore, but these didn't need to be removed by the miners. The excavated ore would be sent to a central location for processing.
An old miner inspected it and nodded in satisfaction. "Not bad, it's intact!"
"Heh, we finally dug out a big one!"
Hayden and the others breathed a sigh of relief when they finally saw this little celebrity dig out a big ore.
"Let me see."
Kevin Lin picked up the piece of ore curiously. It was a little heavy. Kevin Lin tried to hold it with one hand, but it took a lot of effort.
"Not bad, not bad. It's just a little smaller than the one Andre found on S3. Keep going. Who knows, maybe you can dig out a big one and break his record!" Kevin Lin said as he handed the stone to Fang Zhao.
"Hurry! Mark it. This will be recorded in your military record, "Hayden urged Fang Zhao.
After every miner excavated ore, they would use a special marking gun to mark it. When the ore was stored in the warehouse, there would be equipment that would scan the markings for each miner.
Fang Zhao fished out a small spray gun from the pocket of his uniform and made a mark on the rock he had just dug out. The mark displayed Fang Zhao's military serial number.
After marking it, Fang Zhao was about to place it on the conveyor belt when he suddenly heard Kevin Lin say, "Hold it!"
"What's the hurry? Take a picture first. This is the first big piece of ore you've dug up so far. Come, pose. Don't keep a straight face. Smile … "
After taking the picture, Kevin Lin told Fang Zhao to set the piece of ore aside. There was no rush to move it to the conveyor belt. After digging out a few more pieces, they could set it up for a picture.
After digging out the first piece of ore, it was as if Fang Zhao had unlocked a new skill. He dug out three more pieces in succession, each bigger than the one before. The fourth piece, in particular, was clearly bigger than the one that had been featured on S3's news headlines.
"What a pity. It would have been great if I had dug out such a big piece for the first time on a live broadcast." Kevin Lin knew that even if he dug out a bigger piece of ore than the one on S3, he wouldn't be able to make much of a splash unless Fang Zhao dug out an extra-large piece.
But if he could reverse Fang Zhao's image as the "worst of the five," it was worth a try.
Kevin Lin saw that Fang Zhao's mining momentum was just right, so he discussed with Fang Zhao about starting a live broadcast again.
"Just keep up the momentum. Wait a minute, Hayden, place the four pieces that Fang Zhao dug out over there. I'll take a close-up …"
Online, as soon as they saw the live broadcast notification from S5, some people rushed over to watch.
"Fang Zhao started a live broadcast again?"
"Did he finally dig out a big piece of ore?"
"He must have dug it out. Otherwise, he wouldn't continue the live broadcast."
When the live broadcast started, the first thing that came into view were the four large pieces of ore.
"Wow, this piece of ore is pretty big!"
"It's bigger than the one Andre dug out."
"These four pieces are said to have been dug out by him, but who knows? Maybe they were dug out by someone else and placed there for him."
"There's a mark on the ore."
"Even if it's a mark, it doesn't prove that he dug it out."
If it wasn't dug out through a live broadcast, they wouldn't admit it!
"Look, he's going to dig again!"
"Don't say anymore. Since he dared to start a live broadcast, he must have gotten someone to choose the right spot before digging. I wouldn't be surprised even if he dug out a huge piece of ore. "
In the tunnel, Kevin Lin was controlling the camera. He was nervous. He couldn't possibly dig out something like this on the first day of a live broadcast. Watching Fang Zhao dig out four pieces of ore, he really didn't want to give up.
Beside him, Hayden and a few other veteran miners were also nervous. Their gazes followed Fang Zhao closely, and in their hearts, they evaluated the stone quality of the wall where Fang Zhao was standing.
Fang Zhao paced back and forth before stopping at a spot.
A few veteran miners frowned. They had thought that Fang Zhao would choose a spot five meters in front of them. The stone quality there seemed to be a big piece of ore, but Fang Zhao had walked over there and returned.
"The stone quality there … doesn't seem to be a big piece of ore."
"It's not too bad. Maybe there are some small pieces, but there definitely aren't any big ones," one of the veteran miners muttered.
Kevin Lin hesitated for a bit, but in the end, he chose not to say anything. He had heard what the veteran miners had said and knew that they had purposely said it for him, a specially appointed reporter. But since the spot the veteran miners had pointed out was not as accurate as the one Fang Zhao had chosen, he decided to trust Fang Zhao this time. He did not interrupt the live broadcast, nor did he signal to Fang Zhao.
The veteran miners looked at each other and sighed silently. Forget it. Fang Zhao didn't appreciate it, so there was no need for them to say anything more. After all, what needed to be said had already been said. If they still couldn't dig out anything during the live broadcast, they could still justify themselves when they reported to the higher-ups.
Ding!
The sound of chiseling rang out. Experienced miners could tell whether there was ore just by listening to the sound.
A few of the veteran miners had an "as expected" look on their faces.
On the other side, as Fang Zhao chiseled out a large piece of rock from the wall, the camera captured the scene on the wall clearly.
There were no traces of power ore. This time, there weren't even any "peanuts." The surrounding stone quality was different from the ones miners usually chose. When experienced miners saw this kind of stone quality, it was like seeing a wormhole. They would choose to mark it and then go around it.
The atmosphere became incomparably awkward once again.
Kevin Lin was helpless. Does this kid Fang Zhao have a grudge against live broadcasts? Who knows how many people are laughing at him now.
Thinking about the reprimand he might receive when he reported to the chief editor, Kevin Lin was already thinking about how he would explain it to the higher-ups.
However, Fang Zhao, who was in front of the camera, did not go around it just because of the exposed stone quality. Instead, he raised his hand and wiped the chiseled hole on the wall.
Some small stone chips fell off, and Fang Zhao saw a small corner poking out.
As he got a clearer sense of the energy field, Fang Zhao finally chose this spot because the energy field here was the strongest and it was closer. However, it didn't look like a big mine.
A few veteran miners took a closer look and felt that it was probably a type of gangue mineral, but they didn't say it out loud. Gangue minerals were also trash, and it would be a little embarrassing for Fang Zhao to dig out trash during a live broadcast again.
Fang Zhao picked up the pickaxe and chiseled out that small piece. He removed the surrounding appendages and turned on his flashlight to observe it.
It was an irregular piece of ore about the size of half a pinky finger. It had a slight metallic luster, but it was somewhat different from metal.
"What kind of ore is this?" Fang Zhao asked.
"Metal ore? Doesn't look like it. "An old miner shook his head. He didn't seem to have seen this kind of ore before.
"Use the instrument in the waist pocket of your work uniform to test it. It can detect the composition of the ore," Hayden reminded him.
Fang Zhao fished out a palm-sized instrument from his work uniform pocket and opened a small cover to reveal a groove.
The groove was large enough to hold the small piece of ore, so Fang Zhao didn't chisel it into pieces.
Seeing Fang Zhao press the test button, Hayden hurriedly said, "No, you didn't switch the mode. This default mode detects energy, not composition —"
Before Hayden could finish his sentence, he heard a beeping sound from the instrument. This was the sound it made when testing power ores. Following this beeping sound, a strip extended on the small screen of the instrument.
The surrounding people suddenly quietened down. Their eyes stared unblinkingly at the small display screen of the instrument.
The beeping sound became more and more hurried. Everyone's heartbeats seemed to follow suit.
According to the Academy of Sciences, power ores of the same volume were divided into several grades based on the amount of energy they could provide. Previously, power ores excavated on planet Baiji had all been A- and below. None of the scattered sampling points had been found to be higher than A- grade. But now, Hayden and the old miners watched as the strip on the instrument passed the A- threshold and continued to extend.
The surrounding breathing stopped, and the beeping sound was exceptionally clear.
When the strip finally passed the "A" threshold, the beeping sound stopped as well. This signified the end of this round of testing.
The other miners nearby had long stopped what they were doing. They were all too familiar with the sounds emitted by the instrument, and they were also familiar with its rhythm. They could tell what kind of ore it was testing based on the frequency of the beeping sound. But the beeping sound just now was much more hurried than what they usually heard!
What did this mean?
…
On high ground in the mining area, Edmund sat on a rock, frowning in deep thought.
Hayden, this "temporary worker," did not have enough experience, so besides Hayden, the higher-ups of the base had also invited a few experienced old miners to take a look. This was also the reason everyone was so at ease. If all the experienced old miners believed that those few spots could yield big ores, then Hayden would definitely believe it.
But could Fang Zhao be blamed for not being able to excavate ores?
Edmund knew that even if he had other thoughts, even if he felt that Fang Zhao had bad luck, he would only blame Hayden and the others for their incompetence, lack of experience, lack of ability, and lack of foresight. This person, Fang Zhao, they still could not criticize. Otherwise, if he quit or stopped soliciting donations, the base would be in even more trouble.
"Sigh!"
Edmund sat on the rock and looked up at the sky. I really want to transfer quickly! I can't stay here any longer!
Other than that …
Edmund lowered his head and looked at the electronic document. After holding back for two hours, he had only managed to write 27 words. There was an unwritten rule within the base that an officer of his rank had to submit a transfer application of at least 10,000 words.
He was good at leading troops to suppress bandits, and he could also lead troops to excavate ores, but this sort of paperwork was really too difficult for him!
After building up his emotions for an hour, recalling past battles big and small, as well as what had happened after he had arrived at Baiji base, Edmund was preparing to write 1,000 words in one go when he heard a strange, ear-piercing shriek.
"Boss —"
It was a shriek that sounded like it had been severely stimulated and its vocal cords had been pressured.
This sudden shriek made Edmund, who had been immersed in his emotions, tremble. The 27 words that he had finally managed to type out after two hours of hard work had been deleted.
It was fine if the words were deleted. It was only 27 words, and the document could be restored. But the emotions that had taken so much effort to build up had been shaken to the core by this strange shriek.
Edmund sat there like an enraged wild beast. His eyes were bloodshot, and all the hair on his body looked like it was about to explode.
But even in this state, Edmund did not stop the agitated Hayden. Only when Edmund lifted him up by the collar and his whole body was suspended in the air did he calm down a little.
Hayden's teeth chattered as he looked at Edmund, who was brimming with anger. "B-b-boss?"
The muscles on Edmund's face twitched as he tried his best to suppress his surging anger, but he also knew that if there had been nothing urgent, Hayden would not have dared to rush over.
Edmund could only think of this reason. "Did something happen to the minor celebrity?" He thought to himself, Celebrities really have a lot of problems.
"Yes, something happened." Hayden nodded blankly before regaining his composure. "No, no, no. Boss, that minor celebrity found a grade A power ore!"
Edmund let go of Hayden and threw him to the ground. "Pfft, it's just a piece —"
Hayden's feet had just touched the ground, and he had yet to catch his breath when Edmund once again grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.
"What did you just say?" Edmund enunciated each word with great difficulty.
"I said, that... that minor celebrity, he... he dug out a piece of... grade A..."
"Grade A? Are you sure it's grade A, not grade A-, a standard grade A? "Edmund's voice trembled at the end of his question.
"That's what the detection equipment shows," Hayden replied.
Bang!
Hayden finally landed on his feet again and tried to catch his breath.
Beside him, Edmund was also taking deep breaths. The air coming out of his nostrils looked like it was on fire.
Seeing Edmund like this, Hayden could understand his feelings.
The "development sequence" set by the Alliance was the order in which each planet would develop according to the quality of its energy source. Superior energy sources were ranked first, and this also determined the order in which each planet's garrison base could enjoy the distribution of resources.
Planet Baiji's ranking was considered towards the back, and based on its current rate of development, planet Baiji might not be able to meet the initial requirements for immigration even after 100 years. Continuing to stay here would not bring Edmund any substantial benefits, which was why he had thought of changing jobs.
But if grade A power ore appeared on planet Baiji, and there was quite a lot of it, then planet Baiji's ranking in the Alliance's development sequence would take a huge leap forward!
Edmund took a deep breath and rushed over to the mine. Right now, he needed to confirm two things. One, was the grade A power ore real? Two, how much of this ore was there?
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