Tawil sent an urgent message to every one of us. From the Emperor to the Matriarch, all the leaders of the Empire who had direct access to SS-class and above research projects received the message. Apart from Pandora and Visca, who were purely military personnel and did not interfere with the work of the research institute, our entire family rushed to the disassembly space in the research center in half a minute.
Her urgent message was reasonable. As one of the last achievements of the old Empire's research projects, and an ancient relic that the Fallen Apostle did not hesitate to sacrifice the entire fleet to obtain, it possessed immeasurable potential value. The various analysis work on it had always been at the forefront of all research projects, and any information related to it had the highest priority. But now, this ancient relic that affected the nerves of countless people was on the verge of collapse. An unexplainable technical problem had caused the section of the starship wreckage that carried the database to suddenly activate, and the fragile research module was on the verge of collapse.
In the spacious disassembly space, only a section of the wreckage was suspended. The other section of the submersible starship had been urgently moved to another space to prevent the two pieces from reacting to each other and causing an even bigger disaster. When we rushed to the scene, we could see that the huge wreckage in front of us was abnormal at first glance. There were twisted and leaping energy sparks floating on its surface, and thick smoke and flames were constantly emitting from the cracked armor plates. On the fracture of the starship that had been split into two, we could clearly see that more than half of the internal passageways had been automatically locked due to the activation of the system. Small-scale explosions were continuously erupting from other parts of the fracture. It seemed that the entire wreckage had already disintegrated in a flash.
A large number of autonomous robots and Empire technicians were rapidly traversing the surface of the mountainous starship wreckage, going in and out of its cracked shell in an attempt to suppress the increasingly dangerous energy environment inside the starship. Many small-scale energy leeches had already come online and were connected to the wreckage that was on the verge of disintegration. Hundreds of bright blue light beams were directly connected to all the exposed energy pipes of the submersible starship, absorbing the raging psionic energy with a cup of water. Occasionally, injured Empire technicians could be seen retreating from the cracks in the armor of the starship. They were battered and exhausted, and their researcher uniforms were covered in burn marks, indicating that the situation inside the starship was even worse than it looked from the outside.
Tawil was currently in the command seat of the disassembly platform, assigning tasks. His voice was hurried, and his expression was anxious, but he was still orderly.
"Group three! Abandon the upper passage! Go support Team Two! "
"Energy Plundering Device! Connect more energy leeches to them! If you can't use the large ones, then use the small ones. Use numbers to hold them off! "
"The wreckage of Parsivir's system is out of control. All personnel immediately retreat from the shield generator! Weapons team, destroy the shield generator! Don't damage the Paswell eutectic ring below, or the laboratory will be vaporized … "
"Four groups have entered the power ring belt? Good, very good! Find the emergency control panel and adjust the following parameters: Parsivel System, cut off, shield generator, cut off, engine room, energy increase by 200%, shipboard laboratory, cut off, database, energy decrease by 73%! Alright, then stabilize these numbers. Before you lose control, I want all the numbers to not fluctuate at all. This is an order! Team Two, once the energy channel in the engine room is opened, immediately adjust the psionic well output in front of you and let it be at full power for the wreckage's engine function … Weapons team, immediately connect the energy leeches when you see the engine light up, then destroy the auxiliary nozzles of the wreckage according to the order of primary and secondary. Let them leak out. This should be able to relieve the internal energy pressure of the wreckage in a short period of time … "
Standing on the disassembly platform, Tawil, who was giving orders to her subordinates, was like a general standing on the frontline, giving her all to save a battle that was destined to be lost. She didn't even realize that there was a row of leaders standing behind her. Instead, she was giving clear and accurate orders. Under her swift and precise judgment, the energy sparks on the surface of the wreckage were finally temporarily suppressed. The excess energy was guided to the starship's engine, and then transferred by the energy leeches to the energy vent in the alternate dimension. However, I knew that everything was far from over. Even though I didn't understand the high-tech project in front of me, I could judge, regardless of whether it was Tawil's solemn expression or …
Well, most importantly, Lin Xue said, "The wreckage can't be preserved any longer."
When the wreckage finally calmed down a little and Tawil had time to catch her breath, I took the initiative and said, "Tawil, we're here."
She immediately turned around. Although she didn't notice the arrival of her commanding officer, it didn't affect her composure as a soldier of the Imperial Army. Tawil quickly saluted and reported, "Your Majesty, the wreckage is temporarily stabilized, but it won't last for an hour."
I noticed that Tawil had appeared in front of me in her original form instead of a projection. This meant that she had probably suspended all other research projects and put all her energy into saving the ancient wreckage before us. This made me realize the severity of the situation.
"What's going on?"
Sandora asked in a low voice, frowning as she looked at the wreckage that was still fuming with smoke and flames. Rescue workers were constantly coming in and out of the wreckage.
Tawil lowered her head and explained, "The blueprint of the wreckage that we obtained previously was incomplete. It was missing an important thing. The energy source of the wreckage's diving equipment wasn't a psionic reactor but a small set of psionic wells. Its output power was almost three times the sum of all the known energy sources in the blueprint. The safety devices on the dismantling platform couldn't suppress it at all. What's more, there was an unexpected technical error. I misjudged the wreckage's decompression program. When I removed the last safety valve, the wreckage's smart alarm was activated. Under the preset program, the psionic wells of the wreckage began to operate again. The experiment module was overloaded. "
Even Tarver could make mistakes. Even though I felt that this was inconceivable, I had to accept this fact. Everyone made mistakes. Not even the Protoss were truly omnipotent, and Tarver was no exception, especially when he was dealing with a completely unfamiliar type of starship from the old empire. Only half of the blueprints were left, and the starship's structure was completely shattered. Even though it was regrettable that such a serious accident had occurred, it could only be said that he had accepted his fate. Right now, the most important thing wasn't to find out who was responsible, but rather how to minimize the damage caused by this incident.
"The front experiment module is completely beyond salvage." Although Sandora wasn't a scientific expert, she had a good understanding of the basic principles and parameters of various starships of the Old Empire. A large number of holographic projections hovered next to us, showing the energy parameters and damage of the wreckage. With just a glance, she could tell that some of the compartments had been destroyed. "The energy readings are too high. The more sensitive equipment should have been destroyed by now. However, this compartment was the first to be explored, so we should have collected a lot of information, right?"
"Yes, 64% of the front experiment module has been collected." Tawil nodded. "But this is still an unknown area: the database storage room. We were supposed to enter the database today to retrieve the memory of the wreckage, but an accident happened. "
"Can't we get in?" Sandora crossed her arms in front of her chest as if she had made a decision.
"The energy readings are soaring. The researchers' control over the wreckage's energy is limited to the outer ring. The core is still a living hell. Although the database has sufficient protection and is safe for now, we can only watch as it melts."
"Alright, give up all the experiment modules. Let's do our best to support the structure of the wreckage. We will dismantle the database."
"Your Majesty? Are you going to … "Tawil didn't seem to understand what Sandora meant. He couldn't help but ask.
"We will do it ourselves." Sandora's voice was calm but unquestionable. "We are the only ones who can enter the database storage room. Or do you have another plan?"
It was normal that Tawil still had concerns. It was impossible for her not to worry about our safety. But before this, she was still a member of the Imperial Army. Obeying orders was the brand that she was born with. So, after considering for half a minute, she came to the conclusion that Sandora's plan was the only solution.
"After we give up all the experiment modules, the internal energy pressure of the wreckage will drop by 60%. We have two hours. We have to evacuate in two hours no matter what. The moment the psionic well explodes, the energy level at the center of the explosion is equivalent to the concentrated fire of ten Galaxy Main Cannons. Even this dismantling space will be destroyed. Before that, I have to throw the wreckage into the void."
"If we don't evacuate in time, even if we don't die from the explosion, we will drift to another world, right?" Sandora didn't seem stressed at all. "Don't worry. I have thought it through."
At this point, Tawil felt that there was nothing more to say. So, he followed Sandora's orders and started preparing to send us into the core of the submersible spaceship, which was getting more and more serious.
Only Sandora and I. Although Shallow shallow and her sister could use their special mental powers and special abilities to become immune to any damage, it would require them to use their energy to cut through spacetime or reverse the effects on themselves. They weren't scientists, so it wasn't appropriate for them to spend so much energy in a sauna with us. As for Lin Xue, she couldn't follow us either. Her power wasn't suitable for this kind of mission. Let's not even talk about whether she could survive in the molten psionic pipes. Even if she could, it would be heartbreaking if something happened to her along the way.
A portion of the crew members who had already entered the submersible spaceship were evacuated. Almost all of them were injured. They had risked fatal energy leaks to suppress the safety valves in the spaceship wreckage. Their shields and various protective devices were almost completely destroyed. Now that Tawil had ordered them to abandon all the experiment modules and connect all the energy plundering devices to the end of the wreckage where the database was located, they finally had a chance to take a breather.
Several autonomous robots flew to the end of the wreckage and used phase displacement cutting rays to cut off the bolts. They lifted the entire engine plate and revealed a bottomless shaft. Tawil sent Sandora and I to the entrance and gave us a final warning. "Please be careful. The database has not been opened yet, so I can't guarantee that there won't be any dangerous things in there. The submersible spaceship has sailed through the abyss before, so there might be something like a sample storage room in the core area."
"Got it. No matter how dangerous it is, it can't be more dangerous than an exploding psionic well?" I held onto Sandora's arm and used my own power to guide the energy sparks in the surroundings away. "I am a man who wants to create miracles. That's right. I will definitely return safely. This is our promise …"
Without waiting for me to finish, Miss Lin kicked me into the shaft. I could still hear Miss Lin's exasperated voice through the whistling wind. "Are you crazy?! What nonsense are you talking about before we set off?! "
The shaft was very deep, and I wouldn't be able to reach the bottom in a short period of time. I heard Lin Xue's angry shout clearly. I was just trying to lighten the mood. Why did she have to be so angry? Then, I saw Sandora land from above. Her posture was much better than mine. I estimated that she would hit the water at around 9.9 pm.
"Can't you be more serious?!" Sandora flew to my side with a blue arc of light behind her. She pulled my arm and rushed to the bottom of the shaft, one hand still holding onto her skirt. "By the way, shouldn't I be wearing a skirt today?"
"It's okay. It's not a loss to show it to me. Speaking of which, it's pure white today … "I casually said. I turned around and carried Sandora horizontally across my chest, maintaining a princess carry position. Then, I smashed her vertically at the bottom of the shaft, which might have been used to repair the engine.
… …
"Help me. Pull me out. I'm stuck." My thighs had sunk into the metal beams of the spaceship structure, which had already decreased in strength due to the energy flow. I helplessly placed Sandora on the ground. I really placed her on the ground. I didn't even need to bend my waist. I just had to place my hand down and Sandora landed.
Sandora was speechless.
After a particularly awkward and deja vu landing, Sandora quickly found the correct direction based on the ship's structural diagram that Tawil had sent to us. The two of us quickly moved forward in the midst of the constant explosions of energy.
The sturdy corridor that was originally used for maintenance was now in an abnormal state. The twisted stubble wasn't "fresh", which meant that the damage here was left behind by the battle that happened over 700,000 years ago and not caused by the current energy leak. The overly intense psionic energy filled the entire space, causing my vision to appear in a bewitching light blue color. The energy concentration here was so high that Sandora became spirited after walking for a short while. I suspected that she was fully charged.
"The environment here is really vile." I raised my shield to protect myself and Sandora while carefully avoiding the large holes in the corridor along the way. Due to the erosion of psionic energy, many of the structures near the energy pipes in the battleship wreckage had become extremely weak, especially this maintenance corridor. The originally indestructible interstellar alloy had now lost its microscopic stability and became like decaying steel. As we gradually moved forward, large holes started to appear on the ground due to the imbalance in the gravity field. Below the holes, we could see a boundless, almost crystalline blue cloud. That wasn't anything good; it was psionic energy that had reached a critical level. If we were to fall into it, every second would be equivalent to taking a direct hit from a medium-sized main cannon. Even if we didn't die, we would at least lose a layer of skin.
Of course, Sandora's own psionic shield was sufficient in such an environment, but she still chose to hide under my energy shield. It wasn't to express intimacy, but rather, it was the optimal working plan. I had almost 100% defense against any form of energy invasion. Unless it reached its upper limit in an instant, there was basically no non-physical damage that could break through my energy shield. This was the instinct of Void creatures, and there was almost no energy consumption. On the other hand, Sandora's own psionic shield required her energy core to continuously charge. In comparison, she decided to let her husband be the meat shield in front of her while she focused on tinkering with advanced technology. This was why an "illiterate" person like me had to travel together with Sandora. I wasn't there to do technical work; my main value was to be a tank.
After walking through the treacherous maintenance tunnel for more than ten minutes, we came across a small "safety station." It was a triangular work platform protected by a powerful shield generator. It was specially designed to provide a limited number of researchers with a time limit in extremely dangerous locations. It was secured by a few mechanical arms in the spacious transit area. Opposite it was the hundred-meter-wide inner corridor of the spaceship. Inside the thick blue shield of the "safety station," several Xi Ling technicians were working hard on their tasks.
"Why haven't you retreated yet?"
Shadora and I immediately entered this' safety station 'that was only a dozen square meters in size. The rampaging psionic currents and continuous explosions were temporarily isolated from the outside world. I noticed that the' safety station ''s work platform was displaying the scanned image of the nearby area. I immediately asked, "What is it?"
"Your Majesty, the energy readings in the core area are still high. Now, we are relying on this work platform to directly intervene with the nearby data circuits. We can still barely control a small portion of the energy valves in the core area. Once the work platform is shut down, the core area will immediately burn down and the database will be destroyed. The performance of the autonomous robots is limited, and they can't handle such a complex environment that can change in an instant. So, we have to stay here until the last moment. "
An apostle wearing a white robe with the symbol of an ordinary assistant technician on his chest quickly reported. With his reminder, I noticed that there were many blue information cables extending from the outside of this "safety station." These cables were violently pierced into several metal plates at the end of the maintenance tunnel. The flickering light indicated that they were exchanging data with the last few pressure relief pipes in the core area of the debris.
After listening to the apostle's words, I realized that the situation in the core area of the deep-submersible spaceship was worse than I had initially thought. The out of control psionic wells were currently filling up 80% of the energy to the core area. If it weren't for the technicians forcibly intervening in the core area to continuously evacuate the energy to the outer ring, the core area would have collapsed long ago.
"This is too dangerous. I'm afraid this platform won't last for more than two hours …"
I furrowed my eyebrows and looked at the psionic shield outside the triangular safety station. Under the continuous energy bombardment, the shield was already showing signs of flickering. This was proof that the shield was gradually overloading.
It seemed that before I could safely open the database, I had to first deal with the culprit that caused the core energy to go berserk — the last energy bolt that I couldn't remove back then.
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