LRAB Chapter 586 Sincerity, Test
Chapter 586 Sincerity, Test
"We have arrived at the target location and are searching for an available landing location."
One and a half minutes after Christina mentioned Longyearbyen, Norway, sky above Longyearbyen.
In order to further test his speed and minimize his presence, Han Zu has been flying at the highest altitude where clouds can be generated. The effect of the biological force field is indeed very large. Under its influence, there is basically no change in the surroundings.
The upgraded contractor's equipment can scan and observe a much larger range than before, and the information processing speed is also faster. Han Zu temporarily hovered at the top of the cloud, using the clouds to hide his body, while using the contractor's equipment to start investigating Longyearbyen City.
"Current coordinates: 78 degrees 13 minutes north latitude, 15 degrees 33 minutes east longitude."
"Current ground temperature: 5 degrees."
Longyearbyen is a fascinating place, located on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen, just over 1,300 kilometers from the North Pole. Longyearbyen has a very small permanent population of less than 2,000, mostly Norwegian, with a small number of people from Norway.
Although this area is sparsely populated, it's a haven for wildlife. Known as the home of polar bears, over 3000 polar bears live nearby. Other animals include reindeer, Arctic foxes, whales, seals, and approximately 100 different plant species. If it weren't for its small size and cold climate, it would be a truly wonderful place to live.
Despite its sparse population, Longyearbyen's infrastructure is relatively well-developed, with facilities such as hospitals, schools, kindergartens, gymnasiums, churches, and cultural centers all available. Furthermore, Longyearbyen's standard of living is not outdated.
Of course, the island's investment primarily comes from Svalbard University in Longyearbyen. As one of the few universities specializing in Arctic geophysics, Arctic geology, Arctic biology, and Arctic engineering technology, Svalbard University boasts many talented alumni and friends. The Arctic has always been a region of vital interest to humanity, but regardless of who or what forces seek to do something in the Arctic, they typically use the guise of scientific research, with Svalbard University serving as the perfect cover. Consequently, the annual investment and donations received by Svalbard University are astronomical.
However, not all donations and investments in Longyearbyen are motivated by selfish ambition. A few individuals, buildings, and facilities are truly selfless. For example, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, also located in Longyearbyen, was once known as the "Doomsday Seed Vault." It holds up to 4 million different types of seeds, designed to prevent a global nuclear war from devastating the Earth and extinct plants. Today, however, its role is limited, as human technology has gradually reached a level capable of completely eradicating human existence. While it remains a significant attraction for the average person, it is considered little more than a tourist attraction for those who understand this.
Little is known about this place. Most people, including Han Zu before today, know about it because of a rather ridiculous law. Because the ground here is permafrost, corpses rarely decay, potentially spreading disease. Therefore, there's a law prohibiting death in Longyearbyen and Spitsbergen. Unless it's sudden death, the sick and elderly must leave. When Han Zu saw this information online, he curiously researched it. According to the news, even pregnant women must leave the area a month before giving birth.
While this law was bizarre, the reasoning behind it made sense. However, after hearing news about the underground research institute from Christina, Han Zu's thoughts shifted. Longyearbyen's law likely had more to do with preventing pathogens from corpses from spreading to residents on the island or within the city than with preventing them from spreading to the underground research institute. It was likely designed to prevent pathogens from roaming around in corpses, potentially spreading to the underground research institute and contaminating experimental projects.
"Available landing location found, scanning for signs of human activity."
Using the contractor's equipment to scan and inspect, Han Zu found a suitable landing spot. It was located on the side of one of Svalbard University's buildings. It wasn't connected to the main campus roads or the playground, so it was usually sparsely populated. Now, there was no one at all. Using the bio-force field as a shield, Han Zu landed quickly and quietly.
"Enabling masquerade... Completed."
Among the upgrades γ4 had given Han Zu was a very useful one: a camouflage system. This camouflage system could, in a very short time, alter the user's clothing, appearance, and posture as seen by others through its own micro-cognitive force field. Han Zu's appearance had now become that of a standard Norwegian. Norwegians are generally tall, so the changes in height and posture hadn't been significant.
Svalbard University is located in the Arctic, a unique environment. Students here don't have a uniform. Furthermore, due to the specific nature of their disciplines, they wear specialized outdoor gear when conducting field trips and other activities. For example, Han Zu's current camouflage is just an ordinary ski suit.
With the help of the camouflage module, Han Zu easily blended into the crowd and followed them into the building. It was not that he suddenly became interested and wanted to pretend to be a graduate student, but according to the detection of the contractor's equipment, there was a special entrance in the building that Han Zu entered that required very high authority, which was probably one of the passages to the underground research institute.
"Overwriting permissions..."
"Structural scan in progress..."
"completed."
Svalbard University has a small student population, perhaps even a scant six hundred. According to the experimental project list and course schedule retrieved by the contractor's equipment, half the students and faculty were out conducting outdoor experiments, leaving even fewer people. Naturally, the building was relatively empty and unnoticed. Under these circumstances, Han Zu successfully navigated the corridors and staircases to the entrance without any hindrance. After completely erasing all surveillance footage of him, Han Zu used the contractor's equipment to easily pass the access control and reached an elevator.
Scans by the equipment revealed that the elevator was actually one of the exits of the nearby Svalbard Global Seed Vault. However, although the elevator stopped within the vault, over 100 meters underground, the contractor's equipment showed that this area did not exist in the vault's structural diagrams. Furthermore, exiting the elevator revealed a completely empty area, only a few square meters in size.
Anyone else might have thought this place was empty, that the surrounding walls were solid rock, unconnected to any location, and that there were no hidden secrets hidden behind them. But Han Zu, with his clairvoyant abilities, discovered something others couldn't. In the center of this several-square-meter space, 30 meters below the ground, lay a square groove measuring 30 centimeters long, 30 centimeters wide, and 5 centimeters high. Marks along the edges suggested it was man-made. In the center of the square groove lay a circle of unknown runes.
"No similar text detected."
Although the contractor's equipment couldn't detect anything similar to this strange circle of symbols, Han Zu's perception detected a scattered but intense energy response. Based on his perception of this energy response, Han Zu used his own energy to gradually resonate with the fluctuations of this energy response. Soon, Han Zu felt a strange pulling sensation. Han Zu relaxed his body, allowing the pulling force to guide him. A second later, Han Zu's vision suddenly changed. He found himself leaving the original room and entering a larger area.
"Calculating current depth... Completed."
"Current depth: 12 kilometers underground."
According to the contractor's equipment, he had reached twelve kilometers underground. Based on the information Christina provided, he should have already entered the underground laboratory. Han Zu quickly surveyed his surroundings and found himself in a room with multiple exits, surrounded by a number of people. Just as Han Zu was about to go on a killing spree and eliminate all witnesses, he suddenly noticed that the people around him had no reaction to his sudden appearance, as if this was a normal occurrence.
Han Zu immediately looked down and saw a circle of symbols beneath his feet, identical to the one he'd seen before, only slightly larger. Looking around, most of the people around him also had similar, though not identical, circles beneath their feet. This must be a teleportation zone. The people around him were dressed in a variety of clothing, from ski suits like himself to civilian clothing. He didn't look much different from the others around him, which was why they weren't curious about him at all.
After observing for a while, Han Zu used the contractor's equipment to record all the symbol circles. Then, following the footsteps of some people, he left the area through one of the exits.
"The structural diagram is 79% complete. The remaining areas are blocked and cannot be detected or drawn."
A few minutes after exiting the transport zone, Han Zu arrived at a corridor. Resting his hands on the railing at the corridor's edge, Han Zu looked down. He was in a vast, man-made underground cavern. Looking up, he saw the ceiling covered by thick rock walls and metal support structures. Around the rock walls, neatly arranged were numerous strips of lighting fixtures. The light from these fixtures flowed like streams, following the folds of the rock walls and creating bright, yet not glaring, trails of light in the air.
Han Zu's gaze extended downwards, looking at the rock walls in the distance and nearby, where huge metal structures stood. The diameter of those metal pillars was more than ten meters. On each metal structure, there were some areas where energy patterns of various colors could be seen slowly flashing. Those were pipelines that transported energy. They led to the place where each metal pillar connected to the rock wall. There were many precise and sturdy mechanical parts running at a low speed, making a slight "buzzing" sound. Even without the analysis of the contractor's equipment, Han Zu could probably guess that they were probably related to the metal structures supporting the rock wall.
Rather than a secret underground research institute, this place resembled a city deep beneath the ground. Descending along the rock face, one could see stacked platforms, each housing a crisscross of buildings. Most of these structures were constructed of a combination of metal and glass. Behind the transparent glass walls, one could vaguely see figures swaying, some moving quickly, others conversing hushedly around a glowing screen. Upon closer inspection, Han Zu discovered that they were somewhat different from what he had imagined. They weren't all wearing formal research lab coats; instead, they were dressed in a variety of clothing. If one hadn't noticed the surrounding buildings, one might have mistaken them for ordinary residents.
Between the platforms hung numerous transparent suspended tunnels, connecting the various areas of the underground research institute. Occasionally, small hovercraft would pass through these tunnels, leaving a faint energy trail in the air. However, observation revealed that these small hovercrafts were not large enough to carry people. While this was not entirely impossible, even a person of average height would have to bend their knees and legs, lying down, to enter. Through his clairvoyant abilities, Han Zu could confirm that these small hovercrafts were primarily used to transport cargo.
Han Zu took a deep breath and noticed a faint metallic smell in the air, a mixture of disinfectant and some unknown chemical. For some unknown reason, when he inhaled this smell, the energy and activity in Han Zu's body actually changed slightly. This made him frown.
If the energy activity in the body changes without one's own control, there are generally only two possible situations. The first is that there are targets related to the Gift of Death Path or with similar energy types nearby. The second is that there are sufficiently powerful equipment or individuals nearby.
Han Zu didn't sense the Death Path's Gift or similar energy fluctuations, so the first possibility could be ruled out. This confirmed that there were at least several devices or individuals with powerful energy within this underground research institute.
Those possessing a certain level of energy, whether devices or individuals, can be compared to celestial bodies in the universe, and their energy can be likened to the gravitational pull of these celestial bodies. As long as the gravitational pull is strong enough, it will exert a mutual attraction on other celestial bodies that can sense it. Han Zu is a rather large "celestial body," so naturally his own gravitational pull is also very strong. Something that can disturb his own gravitational pull to a certain extent is not common.
"I really didn't expect that. There is something about this place."
Han Zu tapped his fingers lightly on the railing a few times, and found an opportunity to blend in behind a few people who were moving forward, followed them along the corridor, and left this location.