17: The Feast Begins

"Boss, the atmosphere here... why does it feel like people are waiting to see someone sent to the Decomposition Pool?"

At the Mining Area No. 7 Assembly Square, Ma Liu stood in the shadow of the massive pioneer-3 modified, his voice trembling like a leaf in the autumn wind.

The massive robot was rugged and hideous, its temporarily welded armor plates making it look like a beast pieced together from steel. Around it stood the Supervisors who had come to "see them off," arms crossed with mocking smiles on their faces. Further away were the dense crowds of Mine Slaves, watching silently with complex gazes—some with envy, some with pity, but mostly with the numbness of those looking at a dead man.

An eerie silence filled the air, like a parade before a public execution.

"Shut up." Chen Feng patted the robot's metal casing, looking up at the vehicle that was about to take him deep into hell, a perfectly measured look of fanaticism on his face. "We're going treasure hunting, not to our deaths. You should feel honored, Ma Liu; this is the glory bestowed upon us by the Overseer!"

"Yes, yes... glory..." Ma Liu stammered in agreement, his teeth chattering.

Just then, a flash of light and shadow appeared in mid-air, and the fat holographic bust of the Mining Area Overseer, Bachm, was projected above everyone like a deity.

"My warriors!" Bachm's voice was loud and passionate, as if he were delivering a speech to the entire mining area. "Today, we shall witness a historic moment!"

"number 734, Chen Feng!" he called out loudly.

"Here!" Chen Feng immediately took a step forward, head held high and chest out, his face flushed with an excitement bordering on fanaticism.

"You, with your wisdom and sweat, have proven your value to me and to Giant Star Mining! You were unwilling to settle for mediocrity and unafraid of hardships, volunteering to go to that forbidden zone where even the bravest warriors hesitate—the C-13 Mining Area—to carve out new wealth for us!" Bachm waved his arms passionately. "I admire your courage!"

He paused, looking at Chen Feng with a paternal gaze. "Go, child! I promise you, as long as you can bring back anything of value from inside, I will not only make you the wealthiest mine slave in Mining Area No. 7, but I will also personally apply to headquarters for you—the status of a Freeman!"

The crowd erupted in a collective gasp.

The sound of people drawing in sharp breaths echoed through the crowd.

"Long live the Overseer!" Chen Feng seemed dazed by this immense stroke of fortune. He knelt on one knee, his voice hoarse and choked with emotion. "It is my honor to serve you! I will certainly not fail your expectations!"

"Hahaha, good! Very good!" Bachm was extremely satisfied with this perfect script. "Reno!"

"Here." Reno, the Guard Team Captain, stepped out from the group of Supervisors, his voice as cold and hard as iron.

"You, personally lead the Guard Team to escort our hero to the C-13 Mining Area and open the gates for him!"

"Yes, Overseer."

The procession began to move with an eerie sense of ritual. Chen Feng and Ma Liu walked at the very front, followed by Reno and his Guard Team, and behind them were the Supervisors watching the spectacle.

Soon, they arrived before the massive steel gate of the C-13 Mining Area.

The gate was covered in rust, with a large skull painted on it in blood-red paint next to the long-faded words "No Entry." A cold wind, carrying the scent of decay and death, whistled through the gaps in the door.

Reno stepped forward and began entering the access code on the control panel. In the moment he brushed past Chen Feng, an almost imperceptible voice reached Chen Feng's ears.

"Don't die in there. It's not worth it."

Chen Feng's footsteps paused slightly.

He didn't look back, but simply replied in an equally low voice that only the two of them could hear.

"Thank you."

Reno's fingers paused on the keyboard for half a second before resuming their movements.

"By order of the Overseer, open the gate!" Reno commanded coldly into his communicator.

Creak—

The heavy gate let out a deafening screeching sound, slowly rising amidst a tooth-grinding noise.

A bottomless, pitch-black tunnel, like the maw of a giant beast, was exposed before everyone.

A thicker, colder chill, mixed with eons of dust and the aura of congealed spirits, rushed out, making everyone involuntarily take a step back.

"Go in, my hero," Bachm's voice rang out again, carrying an unquestionable urgency.

Without a word, Chen Feng and Ma Liu climbed into the robot's cockpit.

Whir—

The hatch closed seamlessly behind them. At the moment of closure, a sharp flash of intense pain shot through Chen Feng's nerves—the final warning of Law Contamination.

He glanced at the two bars of high-purity energy reserves displayed on the screen and took a deep breath.

There was no room for failure on this trip.

Under the gaze of everyone on the Assembly Square, the heavy metal feet of the pioneer-3 modified lifted, and step by step, it walked steadily into the deep darkness.

Once its massive silhouette was completely swallowed by the tunnel—

BOOM!!!

The massive gate slammed shut, kicking up clouds of dust and completely sealing off the two worlds.

On Bachm's holographic image, the passionate expression vanished instantly, replaced by the blatant, cruel, and triumphant smile of a hyena watching its prey step into a trap.

Meanwhile, deep within the dark tunnel, inside the robot's cockpit.

The expression of fanaticism and gratitude on Chen Feng's face vanished without a trace the moment the gate fell. His gaze returned to a glacial, deep calm, as if the actor from a moment ago was merely a clumsy illusion.

He reached out and pressed an inconspicuous button on the control panel, activating the cockpit's internal communication channel to block any possibility of external eavesdropping.

He turned to look at Ma Liu, who was still shivering with fear, and issued his first command after entering the C-13 Mining Area in a cold, bone-chilling tone devoid of any emotion.

"Ma Liu, report."

"The Backup Jammer I had you place outside the D-4 Vent—is it activated?"

Ma Liu shuddered as if he were meeting the person in front of him for the first time and stammered, "I-it's activated, Boss."