Chapter 430: The Final Crisis |
Inside the main cabin.
Guan Tong had just arrived from the rest compartment when he saw the multi-armed space robot start working frantically at the control console.
Then, a folded large screen on it rose and expanded, automatically initiating a video call connection with the Ground Control Center.
Once connected, Zhang Minglu and Director Weilan Ke appeared on the screen.
“Guan Tong, how are you feeling after resting? Any problems with your body?” Zhang Minglu asked with a concerned tone.
“I’m just a bit tired now. No major issues otherwise,” Guan Tong said.
“Tired... I hate to say this, but now isn’t the time to rest.”
Guan Tong frowned. “What do you mean? What else is there?”
Logically, now that the Wailing Furnace had been devoured by the title, the Scarlet Fear should have receded, resolving the crisis caused by this rule.
“Oh? Have they all woken up?”
“Not quite. Even though the influence has faded, the damage it caused is irreversible. Many victims have fallen into comas... but regardless, even if only one out of a hundred victims can return to normal life in the future, that’s a good outcome—and it must be credited to you.”
Guan Tong nodded.
This situation was unavoidable. It was like how the law only catches and punishes criminals after the fact, but the harm suffered by the victims can never be undone.
He then took the initiative to ask, “Since you’re telling me the good news first, that means there’s bad news too. Whatever it is, please just tell me directly.”
The two exchanged a glance, and Zhang Minglu said, “Here’s the situation...”
He explained how Robert had steered “Dream Boat One” toward them and the whole chain of events. Guan Tong listened, but he wasn’t as panicked as the two had imagined.
“So, in short, you’ve concluded that he intends to use ‘Dream Boat’ to ram the ‘Empire Pioneer’?”
“Based on its trajectory, that’s the case.”
Guan Tong pondered this for a moment.
Weilan Ke and Zhang Minglu were both secretly stunned to see him remain so composed.
Hearing news like this and still staying calm—Guan Tong, as the “party about to be hit,” had a psychological fortitude far superior to theirs, even though they were safe on the ground without any danger.
But if Guan Tong knew what they were thinking, he would have found it laughable.
The reason he “wasn’t panicking” was simply that he was in no real danger. Even if the two rockets really collided, he would definitely use Body Swap to return to Tianshui Star before the impact.
After thinking for a moment, Guan Tong said, “Check on the woman who was the ‘propagation source’ in Luruiguo. See if she’s returned to normal now that the Scarlet Fear has faded.”
The two were taken aback. Zhang Minglu was the first to catch on, his eyes lighting up. “Guan Tong, are you suggesting that if she’s recovered, Robert might also recover?”
“Exactly. Didn’t you suspect Robert also became a propagation source? Their situations should be similar.”
Guan Tong had previously reasoned that people who became propagation sources for fear had likely come into contact with—or even obtained a small portion of—the “Wailing Furnace,” thus gaining a similar ability.
Now that the main body of the Wailing Furnace had been devoured and absorbed by the title, becoming experience points for leveling up, the small fragments in their possession might have also turned into “dead objects.”
It was like the Nano Swarm he had on hand—after detaching from that massive intelligence, this small fragment no longer possessed any intelligence and became an “item” under the holder’s control.
“That’s a very good point!” Zhang Minglu acted decisively. “I’ll contact Luruiguo right away to ask about that woman’s situation. Director Weilan Ke, please have your people increase the intensity of communication attempts with ‘Dream Boat One.’ If Robert regains consciousness and hears us, he might take the initiative to contact us and explain the situation.”
The two went off to handle their tasks, leaving the screen empty for a moment.
Guan Tong sat there alone, gazing at the space outside the porthole. A thought suddenly popped into his mind: I wonder if my Shadow can exist in a space environment?
As soon as this thought appeared, it quickly took root and sprouted.
He immediately decided to give it a try.
A shadow line in its substantial-insubstantial state emerged from under his feet and burrowed into the cabin’s material.
The reason he didn’t use a Physical Form Shadow was that the spacecraft’s seal was critically important. If he accidentally created a hole, it would be both troublesome and dangerous in space.
Fortunately, over the past month, through his development of the Shadow, he had mastered the derived ability of “Simultaneous Substantial-Insubstantial.”
This way, he could first control the substantial-insubstantial Shadow to pass through the cabin, and once it entered the space environment outside, he could make the part exposed to space solid again. This would preserve the cabin’s integrity while testing the Shadow’s adaptability to the space environment.
The substantial-insubstantial Shadow, like a black thread, quickly passed through the cabin’s interior and entered space. The part of the substantial-insubstantial Shadow exposed to space was materialized under Guan Tong’s control, and he activated visual sharing.
As soon as it turned solid, the Shadow immediately began to undergo many changes that were completely different from its state on Tianshui Star.
First, even under Guan Tong’s control, it started swaying toward the planet on its own. This was likely related to gravity; given the Shadow’s small mass, it couldn’t break free from Tianshui Star’s gravitational pull in orbit.
Second, it was actually “darker” than on Tianshui Star. This might have been due to the lack of an atmosphere to scatter light, making the Shadow’s edges exceptionally sharp and clear, quite conspicuous.
If Guan Tong had released more than just a small segment and instead created a large amount of Shadow to morph into some kind of monster, he could definitely pull off a convincing portrayal of some cosmic horror.
Hmm?
Just then, Guan Tong made another discovery.
Through the shared visual, he saw small marks gradually appearing on the Physical Form Shadow, resembling spots left by burns.
Were they caused by cosmic rays?
Guan Tong thought to himself. The various cosmic rays, radiation, extreme low temperatures, and lack of atmospheric pressure in space were all deadly to humans. That was why astronauts had to wear precisely protective spacesuits for extravehicular activities.
Now, the Shadow wasn’t a human body. Although it could be immune to some injuries that would harm a human, it would still be affected by radiation like cosmic rays.
After the experiment, Guan Tong dematerialized the Physical Form Shadow in space and retracted it.
His conclusion was that the Shadow was usable in space but subject to many limitations, such as planetary gravity and cosmic rays. For now, his Shadow’s strength in a space environment was still insufficient.
This gave him some new understanding.
He believed this kind of awareness was more important than an increase in Ascension Coins or Mind Power.
Because he had always had a premonition that the Fire Thief would eventually release rules related to outer space and alien planets.
Making some preparations and understanding this in advance seemed very necessary to him.
Not long after he retracted the Shadow, Zhang Minglu got back with feedback.
“I have news!” Zhang Minglu’s face appeared in front of the camera, showing both excitement and worry. “According to surveillance footage, after the Scarlet Fear faded, that woman in Luruiguo shouted, ‘They’re gone, I’m finally free!’ and then collapsed into a coma!”
“They...”
“This means your speculation is correct. It’s just...” Zhang Minglu gave a bitter smile.
“It’s just that she passed out, like many stress victims. That is to say, Robert might have passed out too. This still doesn’t solve the problem because he had already set the spacecraft’s course.”
Guan Tong said, “So, even if he’s unconscious in the cockpit, ‘Dream Boat One’ will still follow the set speed and direction to collide with us?”
“Yes,” said Weilan Ke, who had also appeared on the screen, his face serious.
“We’ve tried contacting Robert but can’t reach him. If we don’t stop this, in a little over thirty hours, the two spacecraft will collide.”
“...”
“We could forcibly return the ‘Empire Pioneer,’ but that also comes with certain risks,” Weilan Ke said. “Either way, changing the ‘Dream Boat’s’ navigation settings would be the best outcome.”
All three fell into silence for a moment.
Soon, Zhang Minglu’s phone rang. It was a call from the Countermeasures Research Office.
He answered and quickly put it down, turning to inform Weilan Ke, “Return. We need to ensure Guan Tong’s safety.”
“...Even if the return goes smoothly, your ‘Dream Boat’ will inevitably be destroyed—and by missiles.”
Without the “Empire Pioneer” as its target, if “Dream Boat One” continued on its original course, it would be heading straight for a crash landing on Tianshui Star.
If they were lucky, the landing site might be an ocean or an uninhabited area in a destroyed country. If they were unlucky—like if it landed on a densely populated major city in a Human Consortium member state—the consequences would be absolutely unacceptable.
To be safe, the Human Consortium would likely launch a large number of missiles to destroy it before it landed.
“‘Dream Boat’s’ destruction is something Beixing can accept. I think what Director Weilan Ke is really worried about isn’t the spacecraft, but your office’s member Robert, who’s inside it.”
Weilan Ke’s mouth twitched, and he tacitly acknowledged it.
Robert had been sent as the Team Leader to carry out the Space Migration mission, which itself showed that he was the most outstanding astronaut in the Suroma Space Agency.
As the Director, Weilan Ke had probably worked with Robert many times in the past. The two might even share a deep friendship. Both publicly and privately, he certainly wouldn’t want Robert, who was suspected to still be alive, to be blown to pieces by missiles.
But no matter what he thought, he didn’t have the authority to make the final decision. Whether to force the “Empire Pioneer” to return was determined by discussions between Beixing’s and Suroma’s Higher-ups. Since the Countermeasures Research Office had called, it meant the two sides had already come to an agreement.
“Since that’s the case, then start preparing to...”
Guan Tong suddenly spoke up. “What would need to be done to stop the ‘Dream Boat’?”
“The command would have to be changed on the ‘Dream Boat’s’ main console. Remote operation won’t work because the ‘Dream Boat’ is currently running under highest authority,” Weilan Ke said.
“So, to stop it, someone has to get inside the ‘Dream Boat’.”
Weilan Ke was stunned by this. Zhang Minglu exclaimed in surprise, “Guan Tong, are you thinking of going over there? That’s impossible! We’ve already thought about this issue, and someone even suggested using a teleportation-type item to remotely teleport into the spacecraft. But first of all, teleportation-type items can’t be used in space at all. The reason is that there are no fixed coordinates in the universe, only relative positions!”
Recovering from his shock, Weilan Ke also frowned. “Mr. Guan, your idea is too unrealistic. The ‘Dream Boat’ is currently moving at full speed. Do you know how fast that is? Moreover, this extremely high speed is unstable due to gravitational influence. Even the most outstanding astronaut couldn’t get inside it.”
Guan Tong nodded after hearing this.
He really didn’t know enough about aerospace knowledge.
Originally, his idea wasn’t to use a teleportation-type item, as Zhang Minglu had suggested. He was thinking of using the Body Swap ability to somehow project one of his Mind Power items onto the “Dream Boat.”
But now, hearing what Zhang Minglu and Weilan Ke said, this seemed somewhat unrealistic. The spacecraft’s speed was too high. A tiny difference would mean missing by a mile. It would be very difficult for his Shadow or other Mind Power creations to make contact.
And doing this in space was far too dangerous.
Risking an adventure to explore the Scarlet Fear was one thing. But taking risks for an astronaut he didn’t even know and a spacecraft was another matter entirely.
If the former succeeded, it could not only save many people but also give him access to some of the underlying secrets of the Doomsday Rules. So Guan Tong was willing to take that risk.
The latter...
Guan Tong abandoned his original idea and said, “I understand. Then prepare for the return.”
“Director!”
At that moment, an urgent shout came from outside the screen. Weilan Ke turned to look and saw it was the head of the team responsible for contacting Robert.
“What’s wrong?”
“We’ve received a reply from Robert! He says he has returned to normal and wants to have a video call with you, Director!”
Weilan Ke was overjoyed. “Excellent! Connect the line here immediately!”
“Wait!” Zhang Minglu, who was nearby, immediately stopped him. “Director Weilan Ke, calm down. I think this isn’t right.”
“The request for a video call is indeed problematic,” Guan Tong, who had heard the conversation from the screen, also said. “Don’t forget, he might be a ‘propagation source’ for the Scarlet Fear.”
Weilan Ke hesitated. “Wasn’t the woman from Luruiguo proven to be fine?”
Zhang Minglu quickly corrected him. “No, she didn’t prove anything. After the Scarlet Fear faded, she fell into a coma and didn’t come into contact with anyone during that time—who knows whether she’s still a propagation source now?”
Weilan Ke felt a chill run down his spine, goosebumps rising all over his body. “So, you’re saying Robert might be deceiving us? His goal could be to spread the Scarlet Fear through the video?”
“That possibility can’t be ruled out,” Guan Tong said.
After the Nano Swarm intelligence left Tianshui Star, the fragment of the Nano Swarm in his hand could still exert its decomposition effect.
Now that the main body of the “Wailing Furnace” had been devoured, who could guarantee that the woman from Luruiguo and Robert couldn’t still use the “fragments” they had obtained to continue activating their abilities?
Zhang Minglu gave a suggestion.
“Director Weilan Ke, contact Robert via audio communication first. Make him immediately halt the ‘Dream Boat One’s’ course, then have him manually remove Wei Xuan’s highest authority from the main console, allowing our Beixing Space Agency to take remote control. If he agrees to all this, then he can be considered somewhat trustworthy.”
“Alright, let’s do that!”