Shane Freak
patreon
Chapter 877: Exploration 2
🕑 Added 2023-12-04 12:54:34 +0000 UTCTransformers Begin : Table of Content/Chapter List
XXX-----XXX-----XXX-----XXX
Liege Maximo's laboratory was located in Mariner Canyon.
It was about three hundred kilometers away from the central control base, situated beneath a section of reddish-brown cliffs.
If one didn't approach closely, it would be easy to overlook the entrance.
The entrance was a massive stone door, standing over a hundred meters tall and half a hundred meters wide. Its appearance, resembling the surrounding reddish-brown cliffs, could easily be mistaken for just another part of the rock formation from a distance.
Prometheus, the only Decepticon engineer accompanying the mission, was accompanied by several technical officers and two squads of engineers.
Upon reaching their destination aboard four armed transport ships, Prometheus disembarked and proceeded to inspect the cliffside.
The gigantic stone door, visible only up close, was his primary focus.
After a thorough examination, Prometheus's expression became serious. "This isn't stone!"
He turned to Sun Cheng, the Commander-in-chief. "Commander-in-chief, this door is made of a metal I've never seen before. It's very peculiar, exhibiting some characteristics of stone, but fundamentally, it's metal."
After consulting his own database, Prometheus found a suitable descriptor. "It's very similar to the concept of mimetic metal that we've been proposing internally!"
Although Sun Cheng wasn't a scientist, his accumulated knowledge made him no less capable than any Decepticon engineer.
Approaching and inspecting the stone door, he nodded slightly.
Indeed, as Prometheus had stated, the stone door was very unusual. Examination data showed that its composition was roughly similar to the surrounding cliffs, but its hardness was tens of times greater than that of the nearby rock formations.
Even with his scanning abilities, Sun Cheng could only vaguely observe an open passage behind the stone door. There was no way to explore further.
Nevertheless, Sun Cheng didn't leave empty-handed. At least, after probing a distance behind the stone door, he found no trace of the peculiar mimetic metal.
"Let's blast a passage from the side, creating a 120-meter channel. No need to touch this door. If it's safe inside, we can send people to study it later!"
After a brief consideration, Sun Cheng made a decision.
He walked to a nearby section of the cliff and marked two spots. Using his powerful strength, he left two marks on the cliff and ordered Prometheus and the two squads of engineers to carry out the blasting operation.
"Yes!"
Prometheus received the order and directed one squad of engineers to their tasks.
With a resounding blastoff sound, about half an hour later, a violent explosion had carved out a passage twenty meters high and a dozen meters wide.
When the passage was completed, Sun Cheng approached, releasing two electromagnetic waves from his eyes, quickly surveying the situation inside the passage.
"Not bad!"
The Decepticon engineers had precisely and skillfully created a temporary passage using explosive methods. Although it was only for temporary use, to prevent the passage from collapsing, they had installed some metal support pillars inside.
Decepticon craftsmanship, reliable and trustworthy.
As Sun Cheng was about to enter the passage, he suddenly remembered something and halted, giving the command, "Leave a few ordinary soldiers to guard here. In case we encounter danger, immediately detonate the passage and notify Mars Base to prepare for defense!"
He had other means of self-preservation, and in the most perilous situations, he could abandon his recently tuned mechanical body to save his life. This was why Sun Cheng took the risk to explore this unknown laboratory.
If the situation became irretrievable, he hoped to preserve Mars Base as much as possible.
Given Sun Cheng's past encounters with Lord Fallen, a once heavily injured Cybertron thirteen elder who still possessed combat capabilities far surpassing a Leader level, he understood the importance of preparing for the worst.
Although, according to the information he had about the thirteen elders, Liege Maximo, the Great Emperor, was not known for being a formidable fighter. However, facing the combined pursuit of several elders, this super Leader managed to evade elimination for numerous years. It was unlikely that he didn't have some tricks up his sleeve.
Therefore, Sun Cheng was genuinely concerned about the laboratory left by Liege Maximo on Mars.
He issued the orders, and the specifics were handled by the team without Sun Cheng's direct involvement.
An advanced warrior leading the way went to the rear, assigning four ordinary soldiers to guard the entrance of the newly blasted passage.
Prometheus, leading the two squads of engineers, followed at the rear. Their task was to salvage valuables after the front-line soldiers ensured safety.
Sun Cheng took the lead and quickly reached the end of the temporary passage.
There, only a thin wall remained unblasted between the entrance and the laboratory.
"Blast it!"
Following his command, engineers who had previously drilled and planted Blastoff devices in the cliff retreated and detonated the wall.
"Boom!"
With a shower of rocks, Sun Cheng, standing at the forefront, unavoidably took hits on his mechanical body from the flying debris, producing a series of cracking sounds.
However, such damage meant nothing to him now. It was akin to sand hitting a human; it didn't bother him.
Drawing the Ship-slicing Blade, he gripped it tightly.
Sun Cheng attentively stared at the just-blasted opening, unaffected by the dust and darkness. Once he confirmed the passage was safe for him to pass through, he didn't wait for the engineers to clear the way. Holding the Ship-slicing Blade, he strode in.
Upon entering the passage, a chilling, icy breeze made Sun Cheng feel a bit uncomfortable.
"The temperature is close to minus thirty degrees Celsius!"
Glancing at the faint frost forming on his arm, he alerted through the Communication Channel, "Found abnormal temperature; I suspect the laboratory might be built above an underground ice lake. Stay vigilant!"
While Cybertronians, like humans, disliked extreme environments, their unique life forms endowed them with greater adaptability to extreme temperatures, whether extremely high or low.
With the Ship-slicing Blade held firmly, Sun Cheng took the lead into the depths of the passage. The blue glow in his eyes intensified, signaling that he was thoroughly investigating the surroundings, including the composition of the walls, passage temperature, searching for traps, and constantly scanning for potential dangers.
As he walked through the winding passage, several kilometers deep, Sun Cheng and his team encountered no anomalies. However, as they reached the end of the extensive passage, another colossal door, identical to the one at the entrance, unexpectedly loomed ahead.
[Read at www.patreon.com/shanefreak, without ads and support the work.]
XXX-----XXX-----XXX-----XXX
Next Chapter >>Chapter 878: Exploration 3
