Chapter 144: The Arc Reactor Is Unveiled

“Faster, drive the vehicle up here!”

Given the critical nature of the equipment, it was initially not placed directly onto the vehicle, as the surrounding terrain simply couldn’t bear the weight. Now that it had been safely lowered, the transportation began. Numerous hoisting tools moved forward, lifting the container onto the flatbed truck and transporting it to the edge of the sinkhole.

There was no road large enough from the field airstrip to the sinkhole, but this posed no challenge for the Chinese soldiers. Within a few hours, they had leveled a path, deploying six steamrollers to compress the road back and forth more than ten or twenty times, ensuring the passage was stable enough for heavy equipment.

Thankfully, it wasn’t raining—otherwise...

Along the way, massive floodlights illuminated hundreds of meters around.

To supply power to over four hundred lighting units, the military had mobilized more than twenty electric power vehicles from several military districts, guaranteeing uninterrupted electricity. The Qin City Power Bureau had specially laid thickened cables leading here to ensure a stable power supply.

Kong Yan, accompanied by several engineers from Fantasy Technology, began directing the installation with a large workforce. To accelerate the process, the installation was divided into over a dozen parts to be completed simultaneously, rather than sequentially.

While the curved reactor was being installed, the neutralizer was also being assembled.

The neutralizer resembled a laser emitter, except it projected electromagnetic waves instead of lasers.

“Commander, shall we eat first?”

Qin Jun handed a meal box to Elder Zheng.

Elder Zheng nodded slightly and accepted it.

Night had fallen, and before resolving the magnetic field issue, many had little to do. Now awaiting the installation, Qin Jun suggested everyone eat first, anticipating a long struggle ahead.

Boom~~~

Just as they were eating, a tremendous noise erupted.

Everyone exchanged glances, set down their meals, and rushed outside.

“What’s going on?”

“Reporting, commander—a crane has struck the reactor.”

“What?” Qin Jun shoved the messenger aside and ran forward.

Zhu Lan and Elder Zheng’s expressions darkened as they hurried after him.

At the scene, the crane’s boom had smashed onto the reactor. Fortunately, the reactor box hadn’t yet been opened. Overall, it wasn’t severe.

“Kong Yan, is the reactor damaged?”

Kong Yan, operating the computer, shook her head upon hearing Zhu Lan’s question. “The outer shell protected it—no harm was done by the impact.”

Her words eased Zhu Lan’s tension.

“The problem is serious!” Shang Hang squatted, scooping up a handful of soil with a frown.

“What’s wrong?”

“The soil is loose. I’m absolutely certain. This terrain should never loosen, but now the earth is very loose!” After speaking, Shang Hang moved to the accident site beside the crane. Indeed, the soil around the crane was extremely loose. The crane had slid due to the loosened earth combined with the heavy force it bore, causing the accident.

Hearing Shang Hang, Zhu Lan frowned and crouched down to grab some soil himself. As he did, his face grew grave.

The soil was indeed loose. They had compressed the area repeatedly with heavy rollers in preparation for the curved reactor installation; it shouldn’t have loosened. Unless the rollers hadn’t done their job—but that was impossible, as seven steamrollers had compacted the entire area more than ten times. The problem had to lie elsewhere.

“Professor, I think I know what the issue is! The computer shows a shift in the magnetic field’s behavior. The magnetic field is affecting the surrounding terrain. Detection data indicates slight earthquakes; the soil has been shaken loose!”

Upon hearing this, Shang Hang went to the computer and verified the claim. He saw exactly what his student had described.

“Commander, trouble!”

“What is it?”

Shang Hang pointed at the screen. “The sensors recorded over thirty earthquakes just now!”

“Earthquakes? Impossible—I didn’t feel anything!”

Shang Hang shook his head. “These are micro-earthquakes, undetectable by humans. Sometimes even machines can miss them; such quakes are almost negligible.”

“So?”

Shang Hang smiled bitterly. “That’s the problem. Numerous dense micro-earthquakes have loosened the surrounding soil. According to current data, the quakes are still ongoing. At this rate, there’s no stable ground, and I worry that if they intensify, hundreds of meters around the sinkhole will collapse inward. If that happens...”

Elder Zheng frowned deeply. A collapse would pose a major obstacle to the ongoing rescue efforts, and the falling soil could cause secondary harm to survivors trapped below—that was the real concern.

“Are you sure?”

Shang Hang shook his head helplessly. “The magnetic field is definitely changing, but the cause remains unknown.”

“I know this!” Zhu Lan raised his hand. All eyes turned to him.

Without speaking, Zhu Lan walked aside and turned the computer screen toward everyone. “Look.”

“What is this?”

“The data shows the magma flow beneath has slowed by 0.05 seconds, while here, here, and here...” Zhu Lan pointed at several locations.

“At these three points, magma flow velocity has increased by 0.03 meters. If I’m correct, this is due to frozen magma causing surges that affect these points. According to continental plate data, these points lie between the sixth and tenth plates. This explains the micro-earthquakes; magma movement is pushing the plates, which in turn affects the magnetite oscillations, causing the magnetic field changes!”

“Is it dangerous?”

Zhu Lan shook his head. “It will have an impact but not a severe one. Installation may need to pause briefly but must continue!”

Elder Zheng nodded solemnly, then said, “Proceed—accelerate the timeline!”

No one felt like eating anymore. The soldiers became even more cautious, assigning personnel to monitor the ground closely, especially around the cranes. If any abnormality appeared, operations would halt immediately before resuming.

Hour after hour passed.

No one complained of fatigue; everyone understood they were racing against time. Successful installation meant the rescue could begin.

Around the sinkhole, dense half-meter-thick cables connected to massive devices. Each device extended five meters into the sinkhole, with a colossal emission apparatus directed inward.

To ensure a magnetic field strength of 100,000 units, Zhu Lan had brought in five neutralizers. With remote coordination by Hong Hou, absolute synchronization was achievable.

To prevent any accidents—such as a neutralizer falling—each was secured to the ground by a triangular fixed frame. The entire neutralizer assembly stretched eighteen meters, with the extended part being the support frame.

To manufacture these frames, Hong Hou halted all operations at the Azure Base, focusing entirely on their production. Additionally, several steel mills rushed out parts quickly. Appearance was secondary; strength was paramount. Each frame weighed over five tons to guarantee absolute stability.

Besides the fixed frames, there were extended brackets connecting the neutralizers to the frames. Made entirely of alloy, these were not only lightweight but stronger than steel. If time permitted, Zhu Lan would have insisted on using alloy exclusively.

Alloy smelting was trivial for Zhu Lan; the warehouse still held a vast amount of his manifested scrap awaiting melting.

Kong Yan placed a peculiar stone inside the curved reactor.

She then went to the control panel and began operating it continuously.

Everyone else had to stand far away. The curved reactor was no simple device; if anything went wrong, it would be a massive bomb. Had there been a choice, Elder Zheng would never have agreed to bring such an unstable object here.

Electric currents flickered inside the curved reactor, beginning to rotate.

Gradually, a ring of electric current materialized before everyone’s eyes.

Blue electric currents formed a luminous blue halo, casting a serene glow over everything nearby.

“Oh my God, what is that?”

The CIA was monitoring via satellite, and as the image appeared, everyone’s eyes widened.

Grindon Oakstein, Deputy Director of the CIA, furrowed his brow.

“Can someone tell me what this is? A secret weapon from the Chinese?”

The sinkhole incident had drawn worldwide attention. Although it was deep night in the U.S., CIA personnel had to stay up.

Because China had increased lockdown measures, normal surveillance couldn’t detect anything, forcing the use of spy satellites.

When the sinkhole appeared on satellite images, many remarked on the Chinese’s bad luck—God seemed to be sleeping on the job. (Though the Chinese did not believe in God.)

When helicopters delivered numerous containers, many were puzzled. But once the device started running, all eyes were glued to the screen.

“Director, that looks like a curved reactor?”

“No way, that’s something out of a movie, right?”

Another agent immediately objected, but his voice grew weaker as the satellite image clearly showed a reactor very similar to the one in Iron Man—only seemingly more advanced.

Grindon frowned. “Where did this come from? Has China developed some new energy source?”

His words triggered an investigation, which quickly revealed the containers came from Fantasy Technology!

“Damn, that company’s really pushing the limits!”

Grindon’s frown deepened but he said nothing. “Keep a close watch—I need to report to the President!”

With that, Grindon turned and retreated to his office to call the President.

Not only the U.S., but many countries’ satellites were tracking the Chinese sinkhole incident. The curved reactor immediately appeared on many nations’ radars. The investigation quickly revealed familiarity: the curved reactor was no stranger.

First, it was a product of Fantasy Technology, proposed by a madman last century. Second, the curved reactor was famous worldwide thanks to the Iron Man movie—a well-known fictional energy technology.

(To be continued.)