The air in the Oblivion Graveyard was utterly different from the underground pipes. It wasn't merely stale or polluted, but a lethal cocktail of toxic rust dust, volatile rare metal compounds, and decomposing organic waste. Even with the environmental camouflage filter, Chen Ke could feel the odor trying to penetrate the defense, irritating his olfactory nerves. The filter emitted a faster, softer hum than before, indicating the high danger of the external environment.
Lia coughed a few times not far behind him, quickly covering her mouth, her protective gear clearly far less advanced than Chen Ke's. She pointed towards an area to the right front, a twisted mountain range formed from the wreckage of massive cargo ships, indicating the direction.
"Follow me," her voice came through the crude mask, somewhat muffled. "It's closer this way, and avoids the 'Scavengers'' regular patrol routes."
Chen Ke offered no objection, following silently. His senses were heightened to the extreme, his implants scanning the surroundings in passive mode. Countless derelict ship skeletons lay in the sea of rust like fossils of prehistoric behemoths. On some smaller wrecks, faint lights flickered—settlements of scavengers or exiles, dotted throughout this land of death like vulture nests.
They moved under a huge, broken ship's keel. The rust-red metal structure above, like rotting ribs, blocked part of the gloomy sky.
"Your father," Chen Ke began, his voice muffled by the mask, "what exactly does he do in the Graveyard? Researcher? Engineer?" He needed information, any information, to assess this suddenly appeared "guide" and the potential risks she represented.
Lia was silent for a few seconds, seemingly hesitant. "He... he's a 'Listener'," she finally said, her tone carrying a hint of imperceptible pride, but more than that, worry.
"Listener?" The term was unfamiliar to Chen Ke.
"It means... someone who specializes in finding and interpreting the residual signals in old equipment," Lia explained. "Some black boxes from old-era ships, or damaged server arrays, have... whispers left inside. Dad can understand them."
Interpreting residual data? Chen Ke's interest was piqued. It sounded like a highly specialized, illegal form of data recovery with almost mystical overtones. But in an era where data was everything, someone with such skills could indeed access unusual secrets.
"Was the 'Cradle' signal something he 'heard'?" Chen Ke pressed.
"I'm not sure," Lia shook her head. "He came back a few days ago very excited, and also very scared. He said he'd picked up an unprecedented signal pattern from deep in the Graveyard, near the 'Great Chasm'... very strong, very rhythmic, like... like..."
"A heartbeat," Chen Ke finished.
Lia whirled around to look at him, her eyes wide behind the mask. "How did you know?"
Chen Ke didn't answer. Old Dog's warning, the "heartbeat" heard by Lia's father... the clues were converging, all pointing to the mysterious "Cradle." It wasn't just actively transmitting signals; its influence seemed wider than expected.
Suddenly, Chen Ke stopped, throwing an arm out to block Lia. He crouched, his gaze sharp, fixed on a patch of ground. In the thick rust dust, there were clear tread marks, fresh, standing out starkly against the surroundings.
"Scavengers?" Lia whispered, fear in her voice.
Chen Ke examined the tracks carefully and shook his head. "Not a standard model. Heavier, more precise." He reached out, lightly brushing the edge of a track; his glove picked up tiny, metallic-glittering particles. "Residual coolant from energy weapons. It's an armed vehicle."
"Those people in the unified uniforms?" Lia's voice trembled.
Chen Ke stood up, his gaze following the direction of the tread marks—the same area Lia had pointed towards earlier, the region of the "Great Chasm." "The Ring" wasn't just here; they had brought heavy equipment. They were determined to secure the "Cradle," or... desperate to seal it off.
"We need to move faster," Chen Ke said grimly. The situation was more severe than he had anticipated.
They left the relative cover of the keel zone and entered a more open area. It was littered with the wrecks of countless small aircraft, as if the site of an ancient aerial catastrophe. The wind whistled through the twisted metal sheets, producing a shrieking sound like ghostly howls.
Just as they were about to cross this area, Chen Ke's implants picked up an extremely faint, rhythmic pulse signal. The source seemed to be inside a capsized survey ship wreck not far away.
He signaled Lia to stop and approached the survey ship silently. The hull was severely damaged, the viewports black. He used his enhanced vision to peer inside.
No living beings. But in a corner of the cabin, an inconspicuous device, deliberately hidden, was active. It was small, flashing with a faint light that blended with the environment, continuously emitting the pulse signal.
A monitoring beacon.
Chen Ke's heart sank. "The Ring" hadn't just sent armed squads; they had also set up a surveillance network along key paths. Their own movements might already be compromised.
He quickly retreated to Lia's side. "We're being monitored. We can't take the original path."
A flicker of panic crossed Lia's face, but it was soon replaced by determination. "I know another way. Harder, but it bypasses 'Screaming Valley' and goes straight to the edge of the 'Great Chasm'."
Chen Ke looked at her and nodded. At this moment, he had no better option.
Just as they were about to change direction, a muffled explosion sounded in the distance, a few kilometers away, followed by a rapid series of energy weapon discharges. The sounds echoed distortedly through the valleys of scrap metal.
A firefight? Had "The Ring" people encountered something? Scavengers in the Graveyard? Or... something else?
Lia's face instantly turned pale. She looked towards the direction of the explosion—the same direction as the "Great Chasm."
"Dad..." she murmured, her voice filled with terror.
Chen Ke said nothing, only tightening his grip on the high-frequency cutter. The fog ahead seemed thicker, and the danger had already arrived.
Deep within the Oblivion Graveyard, the mysterious "heartbeat" continued, as if calling out, yet also warning.