Chapter 446

Lin Xian felt the ringing in his ears grow increasingly sharp.

He silently stared at the metal die and the countdown on his retinal display, frozen in place, his mind seemingly sluggish at that moment.

Lin Xian's lips parted slightly, trying to steady his thoughts.

"Gra… Grace."

"Grace!"

If Grace didn't respond, it was highly likely his connection to the Flash Bullets had been severed; Lin Xian tried to focus his attention on the strange dark presence at his third eye, but the numbers before him made concentration difficult.

"What the hell is going on…"

A bad premonition stirred in his chest.

Lin Xian clenched his fists—if he lost contact with Grace, it meant he lost control of Nantianmen, severed his direct link to Chu Yan's consciousness, and all the efforts Phoenix Society's Star Research Lab had made over this period would be wasted!

He stared at the metal die, then exhaled deeply, immediately disengaging his consciousness from the Black Star Forge and sitting still as he regulated his breathing.

"Damn it, focus!"

Lin Xian opened the left arm of his power armor, pulled out a stored Cold Dark reagent, and plunged it sharply into his chest.

Hss!

A surge of Dark Energy flooded his body; Lin Xian clenched his fists and refocused his mind.

"Grace!"

【I'm here!】

When Grace's crisp voice echoed in Lin Xian's ears, he felt his head jolt—the breath caught in his throat eased by a third.

"Grace, what just happened? Was there an anomaly with Nantianmen?!"

【Fifteen minutes ago, near-Earth orbit sensors detected an anomalous gamma-ray burst (peak 3. 5 TeV), source azimuth a-17. °, duration 0. 2 seconds, penetrating the radiation shielding of the Beam Platform Core Harmonizer. I have isolated the damaged unit, activated the backup power loop, and am currently scanning for deep-system failures.】

"Gamma-ray burst? Did it affect Nantianmen's functionality?"

【The Beam Platform Core Harmonizer currently has system instability. Recommend against activating Nantianmen. I will repair it as soon as possible. Are you in an emergency situation?】

"I…" Lin Xian closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and asked: "What about Chu Yan? Can you still contact her and the Phoenix Society?"

【Grace currently has no active task to contact Chu Yan. If you require it, I can attempt to establish contact.】

"Contact her."

【Grace understands.】

Several minutes later, Grace responded again.

【No response from Chu Yan.】

"What's going on?"

【Specific cause cannot be determined. Grace has not yet formulated a definitive theory on the Flash Bullets' connection mechanism, but based on my knowledge, it leans toward quantum communication research.】

Lin Xian pressed his fingertips to his brow, paused, then continued:

"What about the strange entity outside Nantianmen? Has it caused any damage?"

【Observation indicates it is a formless cosmic-space entity, asphalt-like in composition, adhering to the North 2-BE6 photovoltaic wing and the energy-concentrating main shell. It has not attacked the spacecraft. I have fully repaired and integrated the defense platform's close-in weapons for debris clearance, but initiating an attack may trigger unpredictable chain reactions.】

Lin Xian shook his head: "If it's not threatening you or Nantianmen, don't attack yet."

【Understood. May I interpret this as: if Grace is attacked, I may initiate self-defense?】

"Of course."

【Understood.】 Grace's voice was calm and clear.

Lin Xian thought for a moment, then said: "Keep trying to contact Chu Yan. Notify me if you get anything."

【Grace understands.】

After confirming Grace and Nantianmen were unharmed, Lin Xian exhaled half his tension—he harbored no illusions; Chu Yan, the earlier anomaly, and the countdown before him were surely connected. The only uncertainty was whether this was tied to Chen Yanxiu.

"Thirty-four hours—that's the day after tomorrow at 10 a. ."

Lin Xian stared at the ever-changing numbers, his breath growing heavier: "What does this countdown mean? What will happen the day after tomorrow? Why does the metal die display the same digits? Coincidence—or a sign?"

Hum!

A mechanical arm extended from behind Lin Xian, gathering powerful electromagnetic force to grip the metal die. As he pulled it out, the entire control room floor shuddered violently under the power armor's weight; the all-metal floor and platform sank several millimeters.

Since fleeing Jiang City, Lin Xian had never faced such chaos and confusion—he had no clue at all.

Blood Vines, Triangle Men, metal die.

Shengcheng, Chen Yanxiu, Garan Volcano.

And the Ocean God, whose emergence seemed to have surprised the Shengcheng organization; the second Triangle Man he'd seen; this mysterious Deep-3 Nuclear Thermal Initiator; and what Chen Yanxiu had said…

Why had the Dark Civilization suddenly canceled its mission to eliminate him? Was the Ocean God's departure because of this?

Then what did the anomalous gamma-ray burst and the countdown before him mean now?

Perhaps he'd learn the reason after the countdown ended—but Lin Xian could never sit idle.

"Damn it!"

Lin Xian shot to his feet, eyes blazing: "Ning Jing, Kiki—any discoveries?"

Inside the Abyss-class North Wind-09 strategic nuclear submarine, the metal bulkheads were coated with condensation; the dim blue emergency lights stretched Ning Jing's shadow along the pipe-lined corridor as she entered the torpedo bay, facing a dense array of torpedo launch tubes. Upon hearing Lin Xian's voice, she immediately replied:

"Captain Lin, this sub has ample supplies and weapons—enough to support a hundred-man operation. All systems are functional. We found twelve high-explosive torpedoes and twenty others with unusual features. Inspection suggests they're underwater decoys, each containing over two hundred explosive decoy units, capable of affecting a vast stretch of ocean. It seems Shengcheng used these to evade deep-sea monsters."

"Just these torpedoes?" Lin Xian asked.

"But decoys alone won't fool the deep-sea things." In the submarine's central control room, Kiki pointed to a purple-glowing box-like device at the console's base over the comm channel: "I found something similar to our Same Tower device—it resists Dark corruption underwater, but it can't block the nuclear reactor's energy signature. They must have another method."

"Could it be a Taboo Object?" Ning Jing replied. "That Sacred Revelation person—this organization has deep research into Taboo Objects and Star Abysses. It might be related."

"Maybe."

Kiki continued searching the submarine's systems for information on Haiwen and pathways, while also checking on Lin Xian.

"Lin Xian… are you okay?"

His condition earlier had frightened her.

"I'm fine." Lin Xian paused, then said: "I'll tell you later. What about Bai Bai? Has he noticed anything unusual?"

"I asked you."

Kiki turned to Bai Bai and saw him nervously scanning the surroundings.

"N-nothing specific… but due to the water connections, I can sense distant movements far beneath the surface."