21: Ancient technology? The discovery of underwater ruins!

The lingering power of the storm had not completely dissipated; a hazy mist still enveloped the sea and sky, and the air held a faint, pungent odor of gunpowder, blood, and ozone.

The massive steel body of the Deep Blue was covered in battle scars: jagged dents from rocket shrapnel on its sides, blackened patches from fire ships, dark red bloodstains congealed on the deck, and scattered shell casings and damaged temporary fortifications.

The sailors silently and swiftly cleared the battlefield, carefully covering the bodies of their comrades and carrying them off the deck.

The atmosphere was solemn and heavy; the cost of victory was clearly etched on every face and on the body of this colossal vessel.

Chief Engineer Zhang Tiezhu's sacrifice weighed like a massive stone on Lin Feng's heart.

He personally draped the flag over the loyal and brave veteran, his voice low but clear, resounding through the standing ranks: "Chief Engineer Zhang Tiezhu guarded the heart of the Deep Blue with his life! He is the backbone of Deep Blue! His blood will not be shed in vain! We will carry his will and continue to sail until we reach the sea of stars!"

These tragic words ignited a fire in the sailors' eyes, and a low "Deep Blue forever!" vow echoed on the deck.

Lin Feng's gaze swept over the dejected pirate captives, who were being escorted away by Marines with guns pointed at them.

Their eyes were filled with the fear of surviving a catastrophe and awe of this steel behemoth.

In the close-quarters, hellish melee that had just transpired, the Type 055 Destroyer had brutally torn apart the pirates' wolf-pack tactics with its raw firepower, iron will, and well-trained Marines.

Over twenty pirate ships were blasted to pieces by the 130mm main guns and secondary armaments, several speedboats attempting to board were riddled with holes by the crossfire on the deck, and those that managed to get close were sent to the seabed by high-pressure water cannons and the bayonets and entrenching tools of the Marines.

The pirates' blood stained the side of the Deep Blue and the surrounding seawater.

This victory was built upon a cost of iron and blood.

"Captain, reporting!" the intelligence officer hurried over, his face grave with a hint of excitement.

"We've conducted initial interrogations of several pirate leaders.

They confessed that this attack was indeed premeditated! Someone, before the storm arrived, revealed our precise location and… the intelligence that we might be in 'electronic silence' through an encrypted shortwave channel!

The reward was… the weapons, ammunition, and supplies on our ship."

Lin Feng's eyes instantly turned cold as knives: "As expected, there's an insider! Or rather… those eyes spying from the sky!"

The force behind the early warning aircraft was not just observing; they were actively guiding these hyenas to probe and exhaust them! This method was both insidious and vicious.

"Can we trace the source of the intelligence?"

"It's difficult," the intelligence officer shook his head.

"The other party used unconventional frequency hopping and one-time passwords.

The pirates only knew the other party called themselves 'Observer,' and the voice was processed.

But… we found this on one of the pirate leaders."

He handed over a metal piece sealed in a waterproof bag.

It was a strange emblem, neither gold nor iron, cold to the touch, with a complex, never-before-seen geometric pattern etched on it.

The lines were smooth and exotic, subtly emitting a faint energy fluctuation.

"Observer…" Lin Feng rubbed the emblem, feeling its peculiar coldness and faint energy fluctuations.

"System, scan and analyze this emblem!"

"Command received.

Item scanning…"

"Material analysis: Unknown alloy, highly stable molecular structure, containing non-Earth known element 'Theranium-7'."

"Energy characteristics: Detected faint, inert, warp-field-like residue.

Technology level: Extremely high (estimated to be 1.5 generations beyond current human civilization)."

"Pattern analysis: Geometric configuration contains basic spatial topological principles, suspected to be some kind of identifier or… navigation beacon?

No matching records in the database.

Conclusion: Highly suspected non-human origin or ancient lost civilization artifact.

Correlation: 11.8% characteristic match with Pioneer relic technology."

The system's prompt tone carried an unprecedented solemnity.

Non-human origin?

Ancient lost civilization?

Pioneer relics?!

Lin Feng's heart was in turmoil!

This "Observer" faction actually possessed such advanced technology?

And it was linked to the "Pioneer" relics mentioned by the system?

This water was even deeper than he had imagined!

Just then, the sonar department sent an even more astonishing report!

"Captain! Passive sonar continuously monitored that anomalous signal source!

After the storm's energy gradually dissipated, the signal characteristics became clearer!

It… it's not a point!

It's a massive, regular structure!

Located about 3800 meters below us, on the edge of a trench!

The preliminary outline from sonar imaging… shows a huge artificial geometric object!

Its scale… far exceeds imagination!

And, it seems to be… absorbing or converting the residual electromagnetic storm energy in the seawater!"

"What?!" Lin Feng and everyone in the command center were shocked!

An artificial object 3800 meters deep?

And it can absorb storm energy?

This completely exceeded the limits of modern human engineering!

"Immediately deploy the deep-sea unmanned submersible (ROV)! Use anti-interference cables! I want to see the images from the seabed!" Lin Feng ordered without hesitation.

Zhang Tiezhu's sacrifice, the pirate attack, the mysterious "Observer," and this call from the deep sea… all seemed to be connected by invisible threads!

He intuitively felt that this object at the bottom of the sea was extremely important!

Soon, a deep-sea ROV carrying powerful searchlights and high-definition cameras was slowly lowered into the inky black seawater.

In the CIC, a secondary screen, which had just partially recovered its functions and still showed some interference patterns, began to transmit real-time images from the abyss.

Descending… descending… the dark seawater swallowed the light.

Only the ROV's own light pierced the darkness, illuminating the swirling plankton and rugged submarine rocks.

The depth indicator kept jumping: 1000 meters… 2000 meters… 3000 meters… The pressure was immense, the environment silent.

Suddenly!

The ROV's lights abruptly illuminated an area starkly different from its surroundings!

It wasn't rock, nor was it mud.

It was… a wall!

A massive, smooth, deep azure metal wall!

The wall extended upwards, disappearing into the deeper darkness above, and downwards into the abyss of the trench beyond the ROV's lights!

The surface of the wall was incredibly smooth, without any signs of welding or riveting, as if it were a single, seamless entity.

Even more astonishing, the wall was covered with extremely complex energy patterns, flowing with a faint blue light, these patterns slowly pulsed as if alive, greedily absorbing the residual, visible wisps of blue-purple electrical arcs (electromagnetic storm residue) in the seawater!

The entire scene was filled with a sense of technology far beyond its time and an indescribable grandeur and mystery!

"My God… what… what is this?!" Deputy Captain Chen Hai exclaimed, his eyes wide.

The ROV cautiously moved along the wall, its camera capturing more details: huge, sealed arched gateways?

Collapsed, distinctively styled gigantic structural remnants?

Strange fragments scattered on the seabed, similar in material to the emblem?

The entire area was like the ruins of a massive city, belonging to gods or an alien civilization, submerged beneath the endless abyss!

"Try to get a little closer! Collect samples!" Lin Feng's voice carried an uncontrollable excitement and shock.

His heart pounded in his chest, one thought incredibly clear: This was definitely not a product of human civilization!

This was very likely the "Pioneer" relic mentioned by the system!

And also the target that the mysterious "Observer" faction might be pursuing!

The ROV extended its mechanical arm, cautiously approaching a deep azure fragment, about the size of a washbasin, scattered at the edge of the massive wall.

Just as the mechanical arm was about to touch the fragment—

Buzz!

An invisible, powerful energy pulse suddenly erupted from the patterns on the wall!

The screen was instantly filled with dazzling blue light, accompanied by intense static and distortion!

"Report! ROV hit by strong energy impact! Signal lost! Cable… the cable seems to have been melted by some kind of force field!" the operator reported in horror.

The screen went completely black.

A deathly silence fell over the CIC.

Only the heavy breathing and heartbeats of everyone remained.

That fleeting glimpse of the image was enough to overturn everyone's understanding!

Beneath the deep sea, such a magnificent and advanced relic of an unknown civilization lay dormant!

"Deep Blue Hegemony system!" Lin Feng took a deep breath, suppressing the turbulent waves in his heart.

"Analyze the data just acquired! Determine the relic's coordinates! Evaluate its value and risks!"

"Command received.

Data analysis in progress…"

"Target confirmed: Large underwater artificial structure."

"Scale: Preliminary scan shows the main structure is over 5 kilometers long, depth unknown.

Technological characteristics: Highly consistent with a 'Pioneer' civilization's primary outpost or research facility."

"Energy reaction: Detected stable, highly efficient energy absorption and conversion mechanism, energy form unknown, level: extremely high (potentially exploitable)."

"Defense mechanism: Detected passive energy field, with repulsive/destructive reaction to unidentified approaching targets.

Danger level: High."

"Correlation: Significant common origin with the energy characteristics of the emblem held by the host."

"Major clue found!

Main Quest [Traces of Civilization] has been updated!"

"Quest Objective: Explore 'Pioneer' underwater relic (Lv.1 Outpost), acquire core data sample (0/1), analyze its basic technology (0/3)."

"Quest Rewards: Massive energy points, 'Pioneer' basic material technology blueprint (partial), unlock 'Deep Sea Exploration' tech tree, special item x1."

"Warning: Relic contains unknown defenses and potential risks.

It is recommended to explore after thorough preparation."

The system's prompts echoed in Lin Feng's mind like a great bell.

Pioneer relics!

Main Quest!

Huge rewards!

But at the same time, it came with immense danger—the defensive force field that easily melted the ROV's cable was clear proof!

Lin Feng looked at the final frozen image on the screen, that magnificent, Deep Blue giant wall, his eyes becoming incredibly profound and resolute.

Zhang Tiezhu's blood, the pirate attack, the mysterious Observer, the early warning aircraft's spying… all clues seemed to subtly point to this deep seabed.

Energy?

Here was an almost endless, unknown energy source that could absorb storms!

Technology?

Here was ancient technology beyond human imagination!

Threat?

Here might also hide unknown dangers, even attracting more powerful coveters!

"Record coordinates!

Top secret!" Lin Feng's voice was decisive, carrying a resolve to open a new era.

"Notify the Technology Department and Engineering Department to halt all non-essential projects and concentrate all resources!

Design and build a manned deep submersible capable of resisting deep-sea high pressure and unknown energy field interference in the shortest possible time!

We are going down!

To personally uncover the secrets of this 'Pioneer' relic!"

The Deep Blue's flag must not only fly above the sea but also… be planted beneath this ten-thousand-meter abyss!

Ancient technology would be his most powerful lever to shift the future landscape!

But at the same time, he vaguely sensed that the moment this relic was discovered, it might also open a Pandora's box full of unknowns and risks.

"Observer"… are you also looking for it?

Lin Feng tightened his grip on the cold emblem, a cold glint in his eyes.

Then let's see who can get this deep-sea treasure first!