21: STC Protected Field Impact

Under the tireless labor of pioneer-01, the D-4 Platform was changing its appearance at a speed visible to the naked eye. The glow of the welding arc acted like a precise paintbrush, outlining new contours on the rusted metal surfaces, weaving scattered wreckage and the cold void bit by bit into a small patch of ground for Han Zhe to stand on.

The foundation for the ark one Residential Module had already been laid, its thick alloy skeleton rising from the platform surface like the ribs of a giant beast. Large armor plates were precisely hoisted by the SCV's magnetic claws, their edges trimmed amidst the hiss of laser cutters before being welded onto the skeleton with dull, solid thuds. The module was roughly rectangular and modest in scale, designed to accommodate at most three to five people, but for Han Zhe alone, it was more than spacious enough. According to the plan, it would be divided into a living area, a workspace (integrating the refining core), and a small life-support/circulation system core area.

While construction was underway, resource collection proceeded efficiently. The SCV's sensors constantly scanned the surrounding wreckage, flagging metal-rich zones or fragments that might contain rare elements and energy crystals. It used its cutting arm to dismantle larger debris and its magnetic claws to gather usable parts, transporting everything to a temporary "raw material stockpile" at the edge of the platform. The refining core, connected remotely via an extra-long cable, continuously converted the pre-processed metal into standard resource points and much-needed prefabricated components under Han Zhe's command.

Resource points climbed slowly but steadily, breaking past the 300 mark. Energy levels also maintained at around 3% thanks to the sunflower charging station and occasional small energy supplements found in the debris.

Everything seemed to be moving in a positive direction until that mysterious stc storage box began to reveal its deeper influence.

At first, it was just subtle anomalies. While planning the Drone Dock through the system interface, Han Zhe noticed unexplainable data perturbations in certain high-precision simulations, as if the signal was being subjected to very slight interference. He assumed it was caused by long-distance data transmission or vibrations from the platform construction and didn't pay it much mind.

Then, during a late-night shift (according to system time), while pioneer-01 was pre-laying internal pipelines for the module, its sensors caught an extremely brief, nearly imperceptible "ghosting" and color shift while scanning a weld seam. It lasted less than 0.1 seconds, and the system self-check reported no faults. Han Zhe pulled the logs and reviewed them repeatedly, but the anomaly seemed like a mere hallucination.

What truly alerted him was a message reported by the SCV: "pioneer-01 reports: During the collection of composite metal wreckage designated R-47, weak background radiation attenuation characteristics similar to those of the platform's core area (where the stc storage box is located) were detected internally. Attenuation magnitude: 0.003%, within error margins, but the pattern is repetitive."

Background radiation attenuation? And with a repetitive pattern? Han Zhe immediately ordered the SCV to pause collection on R-47 and perform comparative scans on several nearby pieces of wreckage with similar material composition.

The results were baffling: the closer to the platform's core (centered on the STC box with a radius of about fifty meters), certain frequencies of cosmic background radiation, stellar scattering, and even the minute electromagnetic noise emitted by the platform's own equipment showed extremely subtle but undeniable "attenuation" or "refraction." It wasn't being absorbed; rather, it seemed to pass through an extremely thin "lens" with unique properties, undergoing almost negligible deflection or weakening.

"System, analyze this radiation attenuation pattern! Is it a diffusion effect from the STC shield field?"

[Analyzing... Comparing STC casing scan data... Pattern matches highly. Conclusion: The 'Global Shield Field' inherent to the STC fragment is in a low-power maintenance state, but its range of influence is not strictly confined to the casing itself. Instead, it forms a weak, diffuse 'field' covering a spherical area with a radius of approximately fifty to seventy meters centered on the box (with blurred boundaries). This field causes extremely weak interference to information passing through its interior (including electromagnetic waves, particle streams, and potentially certain Warp information ripples), manifesting as attenuation, delay, or path deflection in specific frequency bands.]

"A field? Passive diffusion?" Han Zhe immediately caught the key point. "Does it affect the operation of our equipment? For instance, pioneer-01's control signals or the refining core's data transmission?"

[Current impact is negligible, within the fault tolerance of the system and SCV. However, as the shield field's intensity changes (e.g., due to casing disturbance or energy fluctuations) or as the precision of our equipment increases, the impact may intensify. Simultaneously, the existence of this field theoretically provides a layer of passive, non-directional information concealment for our activities. External detection of the field's interior will experience equal or even greater interference.]

A double-edged sword. This invisible "veil" could interfere with his precision operations, but it could also hide him to some extent. Han Zhe recalled the distant Warp ripples detected earlier. This veil might help him block out some of those inadvertent "glances" from afar.

"Continuously monitor changes in the intensity and range of this field. Assess its potential impact on the precision facilities we plan to build (such as drones and sensor arrays) and design anti-interference or compensation plans in advance," Han Zhe ordered, his internal valuation of the STC fragment rising once more. Even a passive field in a maintenance state had such an effect; if he could fully activate or even master its technology... Just then, a new report from the SCV interrupted Han Zhe's thoughts.

"pioneer-01 reports: Below the northern edge of the platform, a structure half-buried by metal debris has been scanned. Size: Small, approximately the height of a person. Material: Non-standard alloy, exhibiting a weak energy reaction. External damage is present, revealing a complex internal structure. Preliminary judgment: Not a native component of this platform; likely attached via impact or drifting. Requesting permission to clear and investigate."

A new discovery? Han Zhe's spirits lifted. He immediately pulled up the scan images sent back by the SCV. Beneath a pile of twisted metal fragments, a corner of a smooth, curved shell with a strange pale purple coating was exposed. There was an irregular breach in the shell, through which interlaced optical fibers and micro-crystal structures could be seen. The energy reaction was extremely weak and intermittent, like a candle flame about to go out.

"Carefully clear the covering, assess the structural stability and potential hazards (such as residual energy bursts or unknown contaminants), and then attempt a non-contact deep scan," Han Zhe ordered cautiously. In this godforsaken place, any unidentified object could bring either a pleasant surprise or a disaster.