117: Chapter 116 Ice Abyss Emergency Plan and Karan's Rating

The 24th day after the ruling, Siberia, "cold fang" monitoring station.

The thermometer showed the temperature outside the cave was -49 degrees Celsius, but inside the monitoring station, a psychological "heat" permeated. On the walls, all screens displaying the "cold fang" awakening progress showed numbers climbing steadily and slowly: 68.1%... 68.3%... 68.5%...

The awakening curve had broken away from the early fluctuations caused by social emotional volatility and had turned into a smooth, almost straight upward diagonal line. This meant that the "cold fang" awakening process had entered a self-sustaining acceleration stage—its own generated "hunger" and active consciousness fluctuations were in turn catalyzing the thawing of the frozen force field and the failure of the logic-lock virus.

"The Absolute Zero Core reinforcement plan has passed theoretical verification." Zhou Zhe's hologram hovered in front of the main console. His background was the physical laboratory of the "Cradle" base, where complex cryogenic devices and flickering simulation interfaces could be seen, "But there are two fatal problems. First, to create an 'Absolute Zero Field' capable of covering the 'cold fang' main body (an oval cavity with a diameter of about two hundred meters), the energy required is three times the full-load firing of the Lunar Fortress main cannon. None of our existing facilities can provide it alone. We must connect the 'Cradle', the 'Qingtian' channel, and the peak output of at least three ground fusion reactors, for a duration of at least twelve seconds."

"And the second?" Zhao Yan stared at the progress bar on the screen, his voice steady.

"Second, time." Zhou Zhe called up a complex spacetime effect simulation chart, "The Absolute Zero Field is not just about cooling; it will create a 'superconducting spacetime bubble' where time is almost stagnant. But this 'bubble' will create unpredictable mutual interference with the existing frozen force field and logic virus seal of 'cold fang'. Our model has run 170,000 simulations, and the highest success rate is only 31%. In the remaining 69%, there is a 25% probability that it will directly tear the existing seal, causing 'cold fang' to wake up completely instantly; a 22% probability that it will trigger an implosion of the spacetime bubble, destroying the monitoring station and everything within a five-kilometer radius; and another 22% probability... that it will produce some kind of 'spacetime-consciousness miscibility distortion' that we cannot define, with unknown consequences."

The success rate was less than one-third, and the consequences of failure were all catastrophic. This was not like surgery; it was more like a game of Russian roulette where everything was at stake.

"Is there no other choice?" Shen Qinglan, who had just rotated back from the Pacific Ocean floating platform, asked, "For example, using the 'green soil' frequency consciousness soothing method to interfere with its awakening process in reverse?"

Elena's image appeared on another screen. She looked equally exhausted, clearly handling multiple analyses at the same time: "We've tried. But the consciousness structure of 'cold fang' is more... 'chaotic' and 'greedy' than the 'Abyss Devourer'. Pure positive frequencies have little effect on it and might even be distorted and absorbed by it, turning into stimulation. What it needs is 'satisfaction', or at least 'anesthesia'. But our technology is not yet capable of creating a 'dream feast' realistic enough to deceive the consciousness of an ancient biological weapon."

The monitoring station fell into silence, with only the buzzing of equipment and the subtle sound of numbers jumping on the screen. 69.2%...

"If we do nothing," Zhao Yan broke the silence, "at this rate, how long will it take for the awakening progress to reach 75%, when it gains long-range consciousness projection capability?"

"According to intelligence provided by 'Blade - Seventh Execution Court' and our models, from 75% to full awakening (100%), it may only take seventy-two to one hundred and twenty hours." Zhou Zhe replied, "Once it reaches 75%, it will be able to broadcast a strong 'emotional plague' like a virus, indiscriminately through the global information network, or even through the residual consciousness connections of the Gaia Network. At that time, social collapse will occur simultaneously on physical and consciousness levels, and we won't even have a chance to organize effective resistance."

Physical destruction still had fortifications to defend, but how to defend against a plague on the consciousness level? Should billions of people be made to wear neural blockers simultaneously?

"Initiate preparations for the Absolute Zero plan." Lin Shen's voice came through the communication channel, calm but with unquestionable power, "At the same time, execute Plan B: evacuate all non-essential personnel from the monitoring station and the surrounding five hundred kilometers; deploy three layers of emergency defensive lines on the ice sheet in advance, including physical barriers, energy interference fields, and... if necessary, small-yield nuclear explosive devices, used for final physical interception and energy counter-pulsing if the reinforcement fails and the 'cold fang' entity breaks out of the ice."

Nuclear explosion. This ultimate deterrent of the Cold War era had become the last rough physical line of defense when dealing with this kind of supernatural threat. Everyone knew that whether a nuclear explosion could truly kill an entity like 'cold fang' was completely unknown, but it could at least create massive energy turbulence and radiation pollution, which might interfere with its consciousness projection.

"Preparation time for the plan?"

"Connecting the energy network and deploying the cryogenic field generator will take at least forty-eight hours." Zhou Zhe said, "This is the time after extreme compression."

Forty-eight hours. By then, the awakening progress of 'cold fang' might have already exceeded 72%, approaching the critical point.

"Do it." Lin Shen said only two words.

The command was issued, and the massive machine began to roar again. The global energy network began to mobilize peak power for that coordinate in Siberia; special engineering troops, braving the severe cold and the increasingly intense mental discomfort (instinctive fear brought by being close to 'cold fang'), deployed various equipment and fortifications on the ice sheet.

At the same time, within the Dragon Kingdom, at the Social Dynamics Monitoring Center.

On the screen in front of Chu Yunshen, the "pressure index" representing the risk of social collapse had already broken through the red warning line. Although news of the Pacific Ocean "Return to Ruins" crisis and the accelerated awakening of the Siberian "cold fang" was strictly sealed, there were no airtight walls in the world. Various rumors, guesses, and panic-driven gossip spread rapidly through informal channels. Coupled with the aftermath of the previous "Common Future" simulation pollution incident, and the general anxiety brought by global technological imbalance, the "strings" of society had been stretched to the limit.

Multiple cities reported unexplained mass panic events: people felt extreme fear and despair without warning, subsequently triggering riots, destruction, or self-harm. The medical system was flooded with a large number of patients claiming to "hear whispers," "see hallucinations," or "feel cold and empty." Preliminary tests showed that an abnormal harmonic, weakly similar to the fluctuations of "cold fang," appeared in the brainwaves of these patients.

"The precursor to the 'emotional plague'..." Chu Yunshen muttered. "cold fang" did not need to be fully awakened; the enhanced negative consciousness field it emitted had already begun to affect those who were mentally sensitive or already under pressure, like radiation.

"How is the prototype test of the Wide-Area Consciousness Stabilization Field going?" He asked his assistant.

"The third round of testing has just ended." The assistant brought up the report, "Based on an amplified version of the 'green soil' frequency, the coverage can reach a medium-sized city, effectively neutralizing the detected abnormal negative harmonics and improving the emotional stability of those affected. However... the energy consumption is huge, requiring reliance on the backbone nodes of the urban power grid, and continuous operation will produce a slight 'blunting' side effect on the emotions of ordinary people—long-term exposure may weaken individual emotional intensity and creativity. Moreover, we cannot deploy it quickly on a global scale; materials and production capacity cannot keep up."

Another temporary solution that treated the symptoms but not the root cause, and had side effects. But it was better than nothing.

"Deploy it preferentially in the fifteen cities with the highest pressure index." Chu Yunshen ordered, "At the same time, initiate the 'Information Transparency Limited Upgrade'—gradually reveal to the public some information about the 'potential risks of extraterrestrial heritage' and 'global cooperation to address unknown challenges,' using controllable truths to hedge against out-of-control rumors. Emphasize that 'we are taking action, and we have a plan,' even if... the plan is not perfect."

This was walking a tightrope. Say too little, and panic could not be calmed; say too much, and it might trigger greater turmoil. But there was no time to guide it slowly.

25th day after the ruling, Bedrock Base, Liaison Coordinator's temporary evaluation room.

Liaison Coordinator stood in front of a wall made entirely of data streams, pearl-white fingers tapping lightly on the light bands representing different evaluation dimensions: technical integration, social stability, threat response maturity, external relationship handling... Each light band had detailed annotations and constantly updating scores.

Lin Shen stood behind him, waiting. This was not a formal review, but Liaison Coordinator's "preliminary evaluation report" would directly affect the composition of the parliamentary review panel and the focus of the review.

"Technical integration capability: B+." Liaison Coordinator finally spoke, his voice steady, "You have demonstrated the ability to decompose, digest, and adapt heritage technology to your own industrial system, although the process is full of trial and error. Regarding the preliminary analysis and response plan formulation for the 'Abyss Devourer' and 'cold fang', although there were errors in intelligence lag, the reaction speed and adjustment ability are commendable. In particular, the energy intervention in the 'Return to Ruins' operation demonstrated decisiveness under huge risks—even if that decisiveness brought new problems."

"Social stability: C-." Liaison Coordinator's finger slid across the violently fluctuating light band, "The social stratification and cognitive tearing caused by technological shocks exceed your effective control range. The intention of the 'Common Future' simulation was good, but the execution exposed an underestimation of risks at the consciousness level, leading to real-world pollution incidents, further shaking public trust. The current social pressure index and the incidence of abnormal mental events are close to the brink of losing control. This is your weakest link."

"Threat response maturity: B-." He turned to the third light band, "You have realized the complexity of the threat (physical, consciousness, social) and are trying to establish a multi-dimensional response system. But there is a risk of neglecting one thing while attending to another in resource allocation, and the understanding of 'prisoner' type threats is still at an early stage. Cooperation with 'Blade - Seventh Execution Court' is a pragmatic choice, but it increases political risk."

"External relationship handling: C+." The last light band, "Interactions with the parliamentary observer (me) maintain basic courtesy and limited transparency. Contact with the remnants of 'Blade' is a high-risk behavior, but the motivation can be understood. No contact has been established with other galactic civilizations yet, and you are in an isolated state within the parliamentary framework."

Liaison Coordinator turned around, black crystal eyes looking at Lin Shen: "Comprehensive score: C+. Barely passing, but there is a fatal shortcoming—social stability. The parliamentary review panel will not ignore this point. A civilization that cannot maintain internal unity and may collapse under pressure is regarded as an unreliable manager, even if it possesses powerful heritage technology and fighting will, and may even become a new source of instability."

"How will the review panel test this?" Lin Shen asked directly.

"I don't know." Liaison Coordinator gave a rare uncertain answer, "The review procedure is dynamically generated by the committee based on real-time assessments. It could be a simulated scenario stress test, an 'issue debate' targeting your social weak points, or it could be... observing your performance in the upcoming real crises. For example, your handling of 'cold fang'."

He paused and added: "But one thing is certain: if your society erupts into large-scale collapse events during the review, regardless of how you perform in other aspects, the application for renewal of management rights is highly likely to be directly rejected. The parliament will not allow a civilization that may implode at any time to control heritage that is sufficient to affect the stability of the galaxy."

The pressure was like a mountain. The internal society could collapse at any time, external ancient prisoners were about to break the seal, the review panel in the starry sky was watching covetously, and the Pruning Faction fleet was still on the way.

When Lin Shen left the evaluation room, he felt as if the weight of the entire planet was pressing on his shoulders. He returned to the command center and looked at the crisis progress bars displayed on the large screen: cold fang awakening (70.3%), social pressure index (91%), Return to Ruins seal stability (29%), Silent Outpost exploration team formation progress (65%), wide-area stabilization field deployment (12%)...

Every number was jumping, telling of the urgency of time.

The communicator rang; it was Elena: "Dr. Lin, we have a new discovery while re-analyzing the map of Talos. The Pacific Ocean 'Return to Ruins' node, the Siberian 'cold fang' location, and the third node pointing to deep space on the Talos map—if the three points are connected and the Earth's rotation and revolution corrections are included... the plane they form is almost exactly perpendicular to the 'ramming angle' direction of the Solar System entering the galactic spiral arm."

"What does that mean?"

"This means that the locations of these three nodes may not be random. They may form a huge... aiming base or signal array facing the deep space of the galaxy." Elena's voice trembled slightly, "Talos and the first-generation Blade, what they set up in the Solar System back then, besides ecology, research, imprisonment... there might be other, more grand purposes. Could the third part of Alpha's 'Initial Heart Emblem' be related to this 'array'?"

The mystery deepened. But Lin Shen had no time to delve into it. He looked at the red number in Siberia that kept jumping (70.8%).

"Accelerate the formation of the exploration team. How are the preparations for the Absolute Zero plan?"

"Energy network connection is 78% complete. Cryogenic field generator deployment is 62% complete. It is expected to be ready for launch in thirty-four hours." Zhou Zhe replied.

"Expected progress of cold fang?"

"It will reach the 75% critical point in about seventy-three hours."

The time window was closing.

Lin Shen took a deep breath: "Notify 'Blade - Seventh Execution Court' that we accept 'Blade of Supervision' to accompany the exploration of the Silent Outpost. At the same time, request them to provide more detailed model data on the interference effect between the 'Absolute Zero Field' and the 'logic virus seal', even if it is only theoretical."

"In addition," he looked at Chu Yunshen, "initiate 'Social Emergency Plan A'. Authorize limited information control and resource allocation. We must stabilize the social foundation before cold fang breaks through the critical point, at least... hold on until the reinforcement operation is completed."

The order flooded into various departments like a tide again. Civilization was like a broken ship sailing in waters full of turbulent waves and hidden reefs, patching here and leaking water there; the mast groaned in the gale, and what the navigator pointed to was deeper, more unknown darkness.

In a corner that no one noticed, the Sarah Chen in the consciousness crystal, who had been under close surveillance, had an extremely brief, weak synchronous fluctuation in her brainwave graph at some point after the "prisoner's whisper" was emitted from the Pacific Ocean "Return to Ruins" node.

The fluctuation only lasted 0.07 seconds, then returned to normal.

The monitoring AI marked it as "random noise" and did not trigger an alarm.

But in that incomprehensible 0.07 seconds, deep in Sarah's dormant consciousness, there seemed to be a completely different "voice," gently, curiously...

"Heard" that lonely call from the abyss.