284: Chapter 284 Flight

Qin Lin manually took over the controls, reduced the speed to the minimum, and activated the full-band scan.

The fog zone was dangerous, not because of monsters, but because there might be hidden ruins or sudden terrain changes inside.

If his previous RV encountered such an area, he would definitely have taken a detour.

But now it was unnecessary, because of high-altitude flight.

Qin Lin increased the altitude, and the The Ark rose straight up, passing through the fog layer to reach an altitude of 4,000 meters.

The fog churned below, like a gray ocean.

Above, it was still the sky of the apocalypse, with no stars, no moon, only a bottomless darkness.

Flying north for three days, the The Ark passed through three extreme climate zones.

Extreme blizzards, heavy acid rain, and high-radiation thunderstorms.

But the protective shield held steady every time.

The Lv7 Energy Shield V3 was much stronger than Qin Lin had imagined.

When entering the frost zone, the external temperature plummeted to minus 83 degrees again, and a thick layer of frost formed on the surface of the protective shield, but the temperature inside the cabin remained constant at 23 degrees.

When passing through the Thunderstorm Zone, the lightning was so dense that three or four bolts struck the protective shield every second, and the energy lights flickered wildly.

Li Ying was lying on the massage chair enjoying herself at the time, and she felt the The Ark vibrate slightly, but she didn't even open her eyes.

"What's wrong?"

Han Yurou was lying by the window, watching the lightning outside, her voice a bit nervous: "Thunder."

Li Ying gave an "Oh," turned over, and continued her massage.

Han Yurou turned her head to look at her, a bit annoyed: "Aren't you afraid?"

Li Ying said lazily: "What's there to be afraid of? It's not striking inside. My Brother Qin Lin is in the Drivers Cabin; he's not afraid, so what are you afraid of?"

Han Yurou thought about it and felt it made sense. She returned from the window to the sofa and sat down, but her eyes couldn't help but glance out the window.

On the morning of the fourth day, the System notification sound rang out.

[Sub-probe: Detected high-grade crystals reaction]

[Direction: North-northeast, distance about 300 kilometers]

[Reaction intensity: Medium]

[Estimated reserves: Unknown]

Qin Lin's eyes lit up.

high-grade crystals.

Upgrading to Lv8 requires 1,000 high-grade crystals, and he is far short of that amount now.

Three hundred kilometers, not far.

Qin Lin adjusted the direction, the The Ark turned north-northeast, and the speed was increased to 80 percent.

The thruster's flame changed from light purple to bright blue, the ship's body sank slightly, and then it accelerated forward.

On the holographic screen, the distance numbers jumped rapidly: 300, 280, 250, 200.

Mountains and cities flashed by outside the window, some looking like they had been burned by a great fire, leaving only charred frames; some looking like they had been washed away by floods, leaving only piles of rubble; and some where nothing could be seen at all, only snow as thick as a quilt, burying everything.

Qin Lin looked at these, unable to describe the feeling in his heart.

The apocalypse had been going on for almost a year.

A year ago, these places were still cities, with people going to work, going to school, buying groceries, and walking dogs.

Now, nothing is left.

The The Ark continued to fly.

When it was still 100 kilometers from the target, the System prompted again:

[Entering Thunderstorm Zone ahead]

[Energy interference: Significant]

[Suggestion: Activate Energy Shield V3 at maximum power]

Qin Lin opened the shield energy distribution interface and adjusted the power from the default 60 percent to 90 percent.

The protective shield changed from light gold to bright gold, and the light from the energy lamps became visibly stronger.

Then, the The Ark plunged into the Thunderstorm Zone.

The The Ark was surrounded by lightning.

It wasn't striking bolt by bolt, but falling in sheets, as if someone had poured a basin of lightning water in the clouds.

Purple, blue, white, each one as thick as an arm, striking the protective shield, and the "rumbling" sound could be heard through the cabin walls.

The light on the surface of the protective shield flickered violently, and the energy consumption rate jumped from 9 percent to 18 percent, then stabilized.

The The Ark's body trembled slightly under the bombardment of lightning, but it continued to fly forward steadily.

Han Yurou ran from the living room to the Bridge, lying on the back of the chair, watching the lightning outside, her mouth open wide enough to fit an egg.

"Brother Lin, it's so scary." Her voice was a little shaky.

Qin Lin reached out and patted the back of her hand: "Don't be afraid, go see what Aunt Qing is doing."

Han Yurou ran to find her mother.

Han Qing was in the Medical Room, learning about the newly added medical equipment, her expression as calm as if she were basking in the sun.

Although the Medical Room was now highly automated and she didn't need to learn how to use this equipment at all, as a doctor, she couldn't help but want to understand it thoroughly.

She glanced at her daughter who had run in and asked: "What's wrong?"

"There's so much thunder outside!" Han Yurou said.

Han Qing gave an "Oh" and continued organizing the equipment.

Han Yurou stood there stunned: "Mom, aren't you afraid?"

Han Qing looked up at her: "The protective shield can hold up, what's there to be afraid of? If you have nothing to do, go fold those gauze pads."

Han Yurou looked at the pile of gauze, then looked back at the lightning that wouldn't stop flashing outside the window, walked over silently, and began to fold the gauze.

Li Ying got up from the massage chair, walked to the window to look at the lightning outside, then walked to the Bridge, leaned against the doorframe, and watched Qin Lin's back.

"Brother Qin Lin, if this were in the past, we would have already been struck to ashes."

Qin Lin looked back at her: "Not anymore."

Li Ying smiled, walked over, sat down on the armrest nearby, crossed her legs, and watched the lightning outside the window.

"Seriously, passing through the Thunderstorm Zone in the The Ark is even steadier than the last time we passed through a Thunderstorm Zone; we almost got struck and flipped over last time." She said, with an inexplicable sense of satisfaction in her tone.

Qin Lin's mouth curled up slightly.

The Thunderstorm Zone lasted for 40 minutes.

When the The Ark passed out from the edge of the Thunderstorm Zone, the light of the protective shield changed from bright gold back to light gold, and the energy consumption rate dropped from 18 percent to 6 percent.

The sky outside the window returned to darkness, but without the lightning and thunder, it was as quiet as another world.

[Exited Thunderstorm Zone]

[Distance to target: 35 kilometers]

[high-grade crystals reaction: Enhanced]

Qin Lin took a deep breath, reduced the speed to 40 percent, and let the The Ark move forward slowly.

On the holographic screen, the terrain ahead gradually became clear.

It was a mountain range, but unlike normal mountains, the mountains here were black, not covered by snow, and from a distance, they looked like piles of burnt charcoal residue.

In the cracks between the mountains, red light flickered.

It wasn't firelight; it was magma.

[Target area: Magma Sea zone]

[Ground temperature: 85°C to 120°C]

[Environmental hazards: High temperature, toxic gas, unstable ground]

[Suggestion: Maintain a safe altitude, activate environmental isolation System]

Qin Lin lowered the The Ark's altitude to 2,000 meters above sea level, hovering over the mountain range.

On the holographic screen, the 3D image of the terrain unfolded.

This was a long, narrow valley with black ridges on both sides, and a winding crack at the bottom of the valley, with red magma surging inside the crack.

The reaction signal for the high-grade crystals came from the deepest part of that crack.

[crystal stone mineral vein: Located about 50 meters below the magma layer]

[Estimated reserves: 30-50 pieces]

[Automatic extraction function: Available]

[Precautions: Need to penetrate the magma layer, energy consumption is relatively high, estimated time required is 24 hours]