Chapter 14: Mechanical Civilization, Section 4

Thirty valves, like thirty thick walls, each with a thickness of an astonishing two meters. Kurokami even suspected that these valves were modified armor products. Of course, they also possessed the high strength and pressure resistance characteristic of armor. Under normal circumstances, even being fired at from close range by ship guns would not cause any problems for them.

Unfortunately, Kurokami’s ability was to control machinery—he didn’t need to break through these valves; he just had to find their control centers. It couldn’t be any simpler.

What was behind the valves?

Standing in front of the last massive threshold, Kurokami hesitated. Although his physical condition had improved significantly after traveling this distance, operating machinery still consumed biological energy, and his condition wasn’t great. Without the silent supply from the nuclear power source, he would likely be exhausted by now.

“I hope what awaits me isn’t a gun barrel,” Kurokami thought with a wry smile. Numerous thin black threads extended further, slipping into the faint gaps at the edges of the valves.

The silence along the way made Kurokami feel uneasy. This artificial planet was so vast—it must have taken a colossal effort to build. He found it hard to believe that such a place wouldn’t have any defense system. After all, as the saying goes, a long dike can collapse because of an ant hole. A robust internal defense network was the foundation of a base’s security. Without it, no matter how large the base, it was nothing but a target.

No one would be stupid, and Kurokami never underestimated his opponents. The quieter it was, the more he felt extreme danger, as if unseen eyes were secretly watching him. The oppressive sense of uncertainty made every hair on his body stand on end.

Engineering mechs weren’t combat types. Though they had unparalleled advantages over combat mechs in terms of safety and exploration, in crisis situations, they relied more on the skills of the technician. Right now, Kurokami’s only self-defense weapons were those two giant welding torches and sharp drills.

Of course, used properly, these two items could also be deadly weapons.

“Boom!!” With a loud rumble, the valves slowly opened, revealing the space behind them to Kurokami’s eyes.

This!?

Kurokami’s eyes widened in shock, filled with disbelief.

There were no dark gun barrels, no menacing guards, nor any mysterious and strange alien creatures. What appeared before him was a vast space, dozens of feet across, with extremely high ceilings that appeared pitch black at a glance, making it impossible to see what was installed above.
A planetary repair workshop… and it was… this big!?
No, no, no—just the size of the space wasn’t enough to astonish him. What really shocked him were the things inside. Completely different from what he had imagined, there were no large machines in this repair workshop at all. The only thing present was a square metal box. This mysterious box was placed right in the center of the room, with countless cables of varying thicknesses hanging down from the ceiling and connected to it. Although there were no visible indicator lights on the box, it was covered with numerous dots of different colors, flashing colorful lights. At first glance, it exuded a sense of mystery and strangeness.
What was inside the metal box? Mechs? Siege weapons? Or perhaps some kind of device for repairing alien creatures?
Black Hair was utterly baffled. He immediately used the scanning devices of his engineering mech to investigate, but the results left him speechless.
The rays couldn’t penetrate it, and its surface was made of an unknown alloy. Preliminary analysis suggested that this substance was… not of human origin!?
Wasn’t that obvious? Black Hair highly doubted the intelligence of the researchers who designed this mech. If they didn’t know, they should just say so instead of producing a formal report. What were these idle folks thinking? Ignorance wasn’t a mistake, but being ignorant and arrogant was definitely their fault.
Damn it! Black Hair cursed loudly for the first time since entering the asteroid, giving up on studying the box.
There was no choice—he still had many places to explore. He couldn’t waste time here. Besides, since this was the repair workshop closest to the planet’s surface, the items inside surely weren’t very important. It wasn’t worth wasting his biological energy here.
It was better to find the planet’s control center first… Black Hair thought to himself. Once he found it, he would have a good chance of controlling everything on the planet. By then, he could do whatever he wanted.

With the vast amount of information he had gathered, Kurokami already knew the location of the asteroid’s control center. It was right in the middle of the planet, and even if calculated as a straight-line distance, it was still fifteen kilometers away. Unfortunately, no one would foolishly design the path to their core area to be so simple.

To reach the core of the planet, Kurokami had to pass through six functional zones of varying sizes—some for assembly, some for production, and others for living support. The most dangerous ones were those for defense, filled with unknowns and perils. Thankfully, the information he had included the fastest routes and methods to get there, so he didn’t have to confront these mysterious areas directly.

Just as no one would design their home as a maze, the asteroid was equipped with numerous light pathways to facilitate quick access to various parts of the planet. These pathways resembled tubes, spread across the entire planet through special connection devices. By going to a station-like location at their intersections, one could quickly reach any corner of the planet.

Kurokami knew there was such a “station” near the repair workshop.

But just as he was about to leave the workshop, an anomaly occurred. For some reason, the engineering mech suddenly lost its ability to move, freezing up with a series of harsh metal-scraping noises. Its massive body collapsed weakly to the ground, and the welding torch scraped against the surface, producing a series of dazzling sparks.

“Is it really not working anymore?” Kurokami shook his head in frustration with a bitter smile.

After going through a series of shocks and harsh conditions, even an engineering mech couldn’t hold on. Kurokami was sure the mech’s exterior must be covered in wounds, in a state of extreme damage. Yet he had no alternative.

The sudden breakdown of the engineering mech put him in an extremely dangerous situation. Although the internal gravity of the asteroid was normal, and the mech’s personal armor allowed Kurokami to operate in vacuum, he had no idea what else he might encounter. Without the protection of the engineering mech, if he were suddenly attacked, he couldn’t even imagine what would happen to him.

But there was no choice. Kurokami could operate machinery, but he wasn’t a qualified mechanic. So he had no choice but to put on the personal armor, grab all the equipment he could use, and climb out of the mech.

As soon as he stepped outside, he truly realized the enormity of the internal passages on this planet. It seemed its original owner must have been a giant, which explained why everything was designed on such a massive scale. Standing in the workshop, Kurokami felt almost dwarfed by its scale.

The station wasn’t far away—just ten minutes later, he arrived at the device that connected every corner of the planet. He successfully activated it.

It was as if he were dreaming. As the device came online, Kurokami felt a tremor through his body, followed by a flash of white light. When he regained clarity, he found himself in another place. The simplicity of the process and the brevity of time left him in awe of the planet’s advanced technology.

Was this really just an ordinary “station”? It was clearly a particle generator!!! It recorded the structural form of any object entering the station, broke it down into its most basic particles, and emitted them, only to receive and reassemble them on the other end. Such a fantastical technology had even been top-secret on Earth in the past. Moreover, it was extremely complex to operate—requiring as much energy as an entire city. Using it as a “station” on this asteroid was pure waste!!

But facts were facts. No matter how reluctant Kurokami was to believe it, what he had experienced was undeniable. Full of excitement, he stepped out of the station on the other side.

According to the information, this place should be near the core. Just another 300-meter corridor and five security checkpoints would take him to his destination.

But why hadn’t he been checked yet? Doubt crept into Kurokami’s mind. Since entering, although the machinery had been functioning normally, he hadn’t detected any signs of life. The entire asteroid exuded a sense of desolation, as if…

it were a dead city.

Could it be that no one used this place anymore?

Kurokami quickly dismissed this thought. At that moment, a thick black mist suddenly appeared across from him. The mist twisted continuously, seemingly drawing in all the light around it. Occasional arcs of electricity burst from within it, emitting a harsh buzzing sound.

“Visitor… stop… You disturb… the great… master’s slumber!”

“Whoa!” Kurokami’s right hand trembled violently, and a pitch-black bayonet appeared in his hand.