55: Ancient ship defense and energy resonance

Three ancient defense drones with sharp, aggressive designs moved like intelligent hounds, launching a swift and violent siege on the explorer. Their beam attacks were formidable and their mobility extremely high, weaving freely through the debris field and pushing the scout ship into a perilous situation.

The firepower of seagull three was insufficient to provide effective support; approaching recklessly would only turn it into a target.

"explorer, report damage!" Lieutenant Colonel Falcon shouted from the flagship, his heart burning with anxiety.

"Shields at 45%! Port thrusters damaged, mobility is dropping! The drones' defenses are too strong!" the scout ship's captain reported urgently.

Brute force was clearly not the answer. These drones were creations of ancient technology, with defensive and offensive methods that exceeded current understanding.

At the critical moment, Falcon received an emergency communication from Sun Zheng:

"Falcon! Synchronize the scout ship's sensor frequency with the energy signal of the ship's wreckage! Quickly!"

Within the fortress, through the intense resonance of the glimmer keystone, Sun Zheng keenly sensed that the energy fluctuations of the defense drones and the signal source of the ship itself seemed to share the same origin! It was highly likely they weren't simple combat units, but some kind of "recognition mechanism"!

Though Falcon didn't understand why, he had absolute trust in Sun Zheng's judgment. "explorer, immediately adjust sensor frequency to synchronize with the target signal!"

The technician operated quickly, adjusting the scout ship's external sensors and communicator frequencies to match the fluctuations of the blue light exactly.

A miracle occurred!

The moment the frequencies synchronized, the three drones that had been attacking so fiercely suddenly froze! They circled the explorer several times, the scanners on their bows emitting a soft light that repeatedly scanned the hull.

A few seconds later, they seemed to confirm something. Their aggressive glow faded, and they turned around, silently flying back into the shadows of the massive wreckage and disappearing.

Dead silence returned to the area around the explorer.

"They retreated?" the scout ship's captain asked in disbelief.

"It wasn't a retreat; they passed the identification," Falcon said, breathing a sigh of relief, his admiration for Sun Zheng deepening. "It seems the ship's defense system only attacks unidentified intruders. We stumbled our way through the verification."

The crisis was averted, but an even greater challenge and temptation lay before them. They had obtained "permission" to approach the ship.

"Commander, shall we attempt contact?" Falcon requested instructions.

"Contact approved! Proceed with extreme caution! The priority is to find a safe entrance and attempt to establish a connection with the ship's internal systems to gather information. Destructive behavior is strictly forbidden!" Sun Zheng ordered. The value of this ship was immeasurable; it had to be explored as intact as possible.

The explorer cautiously approached the area emitting the blue light. Observing at close range, it was a relatively intact part of the hull. The walls were covered in complex geometric patterns, and in the center was a circular structure resembling an airlock. Blue light was seeping through the gaps in the door and the surrounding patterns.

"Low-power energy field detected; the door structure shows an energy reaction. Attempting external energy input..." the Engineer reported.

They used the scout ship's small energy generator to simulate the ship's energy frequency, feeding a weak current into the door structure.

Hum—

With a slight sound, the patterns on the circular hatch lit up in sequence. Then, the heavy metal door slid silently to both sides, revealing a deep corridor emitting a faint blue glow!

The door was open!

A cold, stale metallic scent billowed out from the corridor.

"Deploy the scout robot!" Falcon ordered.

A small wheeled robot was sent into the corridor, its camera transmitting the interior scenes back to them.

The interior of the corridor was exceptionally tidy. The walls were made of smooth silver-gray metal, covered with flowing blue light paths, as if energy was still maintaining basic operations. There was no gravity and no signs of life, only an endless silence. After the robot turned a corner along the corridor, a relatively open space appeared before the lens—it seemed to be a circular hall.

In the center of the hall hovered a massive, constantly rotating complex geometric structure composed of countless blue lines of light! It looked like a holographic projection, yet it emitted tangible energy fluctuations! And the center of this light-and-shadow structure seemed to enclose a physical object?

"Enlarge the image!" Falcon ordered.

As the image zoomed in, the central object became clear—it was a crystal-clear blue crystalline prism about a meter long, with what looked like nebulae swirling inside! Its material and the aura of energy it emitted were strikingly similar to the glimmer keystone fragment inside Sun Zheng! However, it was more complete, and its energy was far more vast and majestic!

[High-purity Order Energy source detected! Same origin as the glimmer keystone! Energy level far exceeds existing fragments!]

"Commander! We've found what might be another key! A larger, more complete key!" Falcon's voice trembled with excitement.

Back at Hope Fortress, Sun Zheng's heart pounded as he watched the transmitted images! The glimmer keystone within his consciousness emitted an unprecedented, intense resonance that felt almost like a cheer!

This ancient ship was not just a vessel; it was a treasure trove! It guarded a vital fragment of the "key"!

However, just as everyone was immersed in the joy of discovery, the radar operator monitoring the external environment issued a terrified alarm:

"Warning! Faster-than-light warp signals detected! On the outskirts of the Asteroid Belt! Signal signatures identified as scrin capital ship class!"

"There are three of them! No, five! They are approaching!"