Chapter 226: Echoes of the Shelter and Ghosts of the Past

Cold. Bone-piercing cold.

This was Xiang Lingna's first sensation upon regaining consciousness, as if her entire body had been submerged deep within an ice cave of ten thousand years, her very thoughts on the verge of freezing. Following that came pain everywhere on her body, ubiquitous and severe, especially at the hollow, seemingly torn-off stump of her right shoulder, where a burning agony mixed with nerve twinges and phantom limb sensations radiated.

She struggled to open her heavy eyelids; her vision was blurry and dim. After adapting for quite a while, she could barely make out the surroundings.

She seemed to be lying inside a narrow, transparent container resembling a medical pod, its inner walls coated with a thin layer of white frost. Outside the container was a room that was not spacious but filled with a certain old yet precise technological feel. The walls were made of cold-gray alloy, covered with various long-extinct display screens and interfaces of unknown purpose; many cables hung down from the ceiling like vines, some still flickering with extremely faint, fault-like indicator light. The air was cold and dry, carrying a faint, stale scent resembling a mixture of disinfectant and machine oil.

Where is this? The "shelter" mentioned by that electronic voice?

She tried to move, only to find her body so weak that even lifting a finger was abnormally difficult, as if every cell had exhausted its last bit of energy. Violent movements tugged at wounds all over her body, causing her to let out a pained gasp.

Just then, the only screen still lit in the room, an oval one directly in front of her, suddenly flickered, displaying lines of cold text alternating between Standard Common Tongue and Elven script, while that emotionless electronic synthesized voice sounded again, seemingly originating directly from the room itself:

【Vital Signs Monitoring: Stable. Multiple bone fractures, internal organ bleeding, severe energy depletion, missing key energy organ in right arm. Emergency life-support program activated. Injuries stabilized, but complete repair requires more energy and time.】

【Identity Confirmed: Key Carrier (Damaged). Permission Level: Guest (Temporary). Welcome to the 'Heart of the Ark' Shelter, Outpost 7.】

Heart of the Ark? Outpost 7? Xiang Lingna struggled to digest this information. This seemed to be another hidden shelter facility within the Ark.

"Who... are you?" she managed to speak, her voice as hoarse as sandpaper rubbing.

【I am the management unit of Outpost 7; you may call me 'Sentinel'.】 the electronic voice replied. 【My core directive is: when the Ark faces a catastrophic crisis, activate the shelter protocol, preserve as much living force and critical information as possible, and await the day of reboot.】

"Others... my companions..." Xiang Lingna asked urgently, "What happened to them? Sister Ai Li? Brother Lin Mo? And..."

The text on the screen scrolled and changed, showing some blurry fragments of external surveillance footage—obviously obtained through some external sensors not yet fully damaged. The footage was shaky and fragmented: one could see the Doctor's assault boat hovering at the entrance of the energy well; unconscious Sister Ai Li being roughly shackled with restraint devices by several Scavenger soldiers and dragged onto an assault boat; the light membrane of the Leyline Energy Well still flickering, but dimmer than before; while the abyssal area where the Shadow Engine was located was completely shrouded in a terrifying, constantly twisting black-purple energy storm, making any details impossible to discern.

【According to the last received external information: Individual 'Ai Li' has been captured by enemy units and taken away. Individual 'Lin Mo' remains at the core of the energy well; his status is special and cannot be detailedly detected. Individual 'Grona' and hostile target 'Shadow Eye' fell into spatial turbulence; whereabouts unknown. Individual 'Zero'... signal lost.】 Sentinel stated the cruel facts in a cold tone.

Sister Ai Li was captured... Big Sister Grona and that madman are missing... Zero... sacrificed...

Although she had long suspected it, hearing this cold confirmation still made Xiang Lingna's heart feel as if it had been tightly gripped; tears silently slid from the corners of her eyes, almost instantly freezing in the cold air.

Desolation surged again like a tide.

【Detected violent emotional fluctuation in guest. Suggestion: Remain calm; emotional fluctuations are detrimental to recovery.】 Sentinel's voice was without any ripple.

Xiang Lingna closed her eyes, took several deep breaths of cold air, and forced herself to calm down. Sadness and despair could solve nothing. She was still alive; Brother Lin Mo and Sister Priestess Liyana were also still alive; Sister Ai Li had only been captured, so there must still be hope to rescue her!

"Sentinel, is this place safe? Will the Doctor's forces find it?" she spoke again, her voice still hoarse but now carrying a hint of determination.

【The outpost is located within the Ark's structural interlayers and parts of unrecorded ancient ruins; the entrance is concealed and has been buried by an explosion. The current external energy environment is extremely chaotic; large-scale enemy scanning is difficult to take effect. Deployment is safe in the short term. But in the long run, once the enemy fully controls the upper levels of the Ark and begins detailed excavation, discovery is highly probable.】

Safety is only temporary.

"Then what is here? Can it help me recover? What can we do?" Xiang Lingna pressed on.

【Main functions of Outpost 7: Short-term life support, information storage, basic maintenance. Available resources remaining: Low-power energy core (only capable of maintaining basic operation and your life-support needs), partially undamaged Elven technology database, one basic medical room (where you currently are), one maintenance corridor leading to other areas (partially damaged or blocked).】

Beside the screen, a previously dark screen lit up, displaying a fragmented structural map of the outpost, with most areas marked in red or yellow damage indicators.

【Based on your physical condition, full recovery requires massive energy and advanced medical resources, which cannot be provided here. Suggested plan: Use existing resources to initially stabilize injuries, restore basic mobility, then attempt to reach other possibly intact outposts or functional zones to seek more aid.】

Hope was slim, but at least there was a clear goal.

Under Sentinel's guidance, Xiang Lingna struggled to operate the few remaining functional buttons inside the medical pod, injecting some painkillers and basic nutrient solution; the severe pain in her body eased slightly, and she regained a bit of strength.

She pushed open the medical pod's door; the bone-piercing cold made her shiver instantly. She struggled to climb out, leaning against the cold wall, surveying the place that had saved her life.

The room was small; besides the medical pod, there were only a few dust-covered control consoles and a tightly closed metal cabinet. She opened the cabinet; inside were only a few worn uniforms printed with Elven script and insignia, some long-expired standard rations, and an unopened bottle of clean water.

She gulped down half a bottle of water, then struggled to put on an oversized uniform, slightly warding off some of the cold.

Just then, Sentinel's voice sounded again, carrying a trace of extremely faint interference static:

【Warning: Detected abnormal energy residual fluctuations in the external corridor of the outpost... Not the energy signature of current intruders... More ancient... Similar to... an Elven emergency distress signal... But extremely faint and... intermittent...】

An Elven distress signal? Could there be other survivors?

【Signal source location: Deep within the third maintenance corridor. This corridor has been severely damaged due to age and previous explosions, marked as a 'High-Risk' area. Attempt to receive a clear signal or dispatch a reconnaissance unit?】

A reconnaissance unit? Xiang Lingna glanced at this small, dilapidated outpost; where was there any reconnaissance unit?

"Can... can you bring the signal in? Or amplify it?" Xiang Lingna asked.

【Attempting... Signal too faint and interference severe... Enhancing reception sensitivity...】

Snowflake static increased on the screen; an extremely faint, noisy, intermittent Elven distress cry, mixed with huge explosion sounds and some terrifying roar, came out from the outpost's ancient speakers:

【... This is... the Seventh Ecological Garden... We have been breached! They are coming from the shadows... Ah!】 【... We can't hold! Activate the final protocol! Send the children into the... 'Cradle'! Quick!】 【... May the Moon Goddess... protect... the seeds...】 【... No! Don't come closer! Save...】

The voice stopped abruptly there, leaving only suffocating static.

Xiang Lingna felt her scalp tingle; this was obviously a distress signal residue left long ago, when the Ark first crashed or suffered an internal attack! The Seventh Ecological Garden? The Cradle? The children?

【Signal analysis: This is a historical residue information fragment, not real-time communication. Recorded time: Day 3 standard after the Ark's fall. Final disappearance location of signal source: The end of the third maintenance corridor, the site of the original 'Seventh Ecological Garden'.】 Sentinel added.

Historical echoes... but Sentinel detected "abnormal energy residual fluctuations," not just signal residue!

Xiang Lingna's heartbeat involuntarily quickened. The third corridor... high-risk area... ancient distress signal... and the abnormal energy detected by Sentinel...

What exactly was there? Merely ghosts of history? Or... was there truly something, after enduring long ages, still wandering and crying for help there?

A dangerous thought sprouted in her heart.