Everyone spread out and search along this rock face for an entrance into the mountains. Jiang Ye commanded over the channel. Don't venture in if you find one, send a message first.
The spiders dispersed, probing left and right along the red rock face. Soon, they all moved far away, leaving only Jiang Ye's spider idly waiting at the original spot.
Being the leader was so comfortable. subordinates ran errands, and you only needed to open your mouth.
Jiang Ye figured that such a massive mountain range wouldn't be uniformly sheer. There had to be some crevices. It wasn't man-made, after all, so how could it be so flawless?
Messages were constantly relayed through the channel by the squad leaders.
We've traveled five kilometers from the starting point, no entrance, but there's still a lot of shale in the rock strata.
The mountain terrain to the west is getting higher, estimated to be about four to five hundred meters.
Encountered two water ghosts, eliminated.
Report! Eight kilometers to the east, there's an underground river, and it seems to be flowing into the mountain.
Upon seeing the message about the underground river, Jiang Ye finally sat up straight and typed, Send the location!
The location has been shared.
Jiang Ye looked at the screen. About eight kilometers to the east, a red dot was marked. When the mouse moved over it, a description of the underground river popped up.
Everyone search for another half hour. If there are no other exits, gather at the underground river. Jiang Ye instructed all the captains.
He didn't wait at the original spot but controlled his spider to head east.
In a short while, he arrived at the designated location. Several spider armored vehicles were already gathered at the base of the mountain rock.
Jiang Ye drove over. The spiders all raised their front legs in greeting. Jiang Ye also raised his front legs in response, then looked towards the underground river.
The underground river's flow was not large, only about four meters wide. A dark, gaping hole had opened up beneath the mountain rock, and clear water was flowing out. Jiang Ye looked back. The water flowing from the mountain quickly dispersed into several small streams, flowing inconspicuously into the distance.
I just checked. These streams seep into the ground after two kilometers. It might be a newly formed river. Perhaps there was a rock collapse within the mountain, causing the underground river to change course, someone said.
Jiang Ye glanced at the screen. The speaker was the fourth captain.
He specifically opened the small notebook he carried in his pocket to confirm the fourth captain's name: Che Zhen.
Jiang Ye touched his forehead, feeling a bit speechless about the name.
The rock cave where the underground river flows out, a spider should be able to enter if it curls up. Should I go in and scout the path? Che Zhen asked again.
Isn't your spider damaged? Jiang Ye asked.
I checked the damaged parts; it's all external casing. The internal structure is fine, Che Zhen replied. It's already broken anyway. It's easy for other spiders to bump into things. It's better if my unit goes in. If it gets damaged, I'll just get a new one.
Alright, be careful. Go in and advance a short distance to test it, don't force your way through, Jiang Ye said. Others wait at the cave entrance. If anything happens, rescue the fourth captain immediately.
The spiders gathered at the cave entrance, awaiting orders. Che Zhen's spider stepped into the river water, lowered its height, and angled its turret down to three meters. Several of its metal spider legs folded spirally, maximizing space efficiency.
I'm going in! Che Zhen took a deep breath.
Jiang Ye covered his face. Good luck.
The spiders outside the cave all shouted encouragement.
Che Zhen's spider nudged its way to the cave entrance, turned on its headlights, and moved forward inch by inch with the small appendages at the ends of its spider legs. Jiang Ye stared at it nervously. He noticed that the cave entrance was only slightly larger than the spider, with an allowance of about twenty centimeters. A slight misstep would result in it crashing into the rock wall. The difficulty was comparable to a driving test's second subject.
Finally, Che Zhen's spider completely disappeared into the darkness within the cave. The spiders outside the cave turned on their headlights, but they could only illuminate a small circle of rock and flowing water at the entrance, unable to see the spider inside.
I'm in. The space inside the cave is shrinking. The rock composition is basalt, granite, and shale. The water has very few impurities. The scan results indicate it's edible grade, Che Zhen sent a voice message, his voice laced with nervousness and excitement. I can still crawl forward. I'll try to get through.
Be careful, Jiang Ye said.
The spiders outside the cave all echoed, "Be careful," like a broken record.
After waiting for a few more minutes, Che Zhen suddenly became excited:
The space has widened! The water flow is also increasing. There's a second underground river here! What flowed out was just a tiny tributary. This inner underground river is at least twenty meters wide.
Is it convenient to move? Jiang Ye asked.
It's convenient. The rock ceiling is twenty meters high. The spider can already stand and walk, Che Zhen said. Should I try to go further?
The signal is almost gone, Jiang Ye looked at the screen. You can move forward a little, but once the signal disappears, you must retreat. We cannot lose contact.
Okay.
As soon as Che Zhen finished speaking, his signal vanished.
Jiang Ye froze, then quickly moved to the cave entrance and called out, Fourth Captain! Fourth Captain! Retreat! Can you hear me?
There was no response.
The spiders outside the cave became restless. Che Zhen's spider had penetrated too deep into the rock strata, and it could no longer receive satellite signals. Besides the excessive depth, there might be interfering minerals within the rock walls.
Someone asked if they should go in for a rescue. Jiang Ye pondered for two seconds, then said, Everyone move aside.
The spiders at the cave entrance retreated. Jiang Ye also moved back a few steps, away from the entrance, and fired directly into the sky!
With a deafening roar, the shell shot diagonally into the sky. After a long time, it fell and exploded in an open area several hundred meters away, kicking up a large cloud of dust.
Jiang Ye then maneuvered his spider back to the cave entrance. As expected, before he could even speak, the signal reconnected.
What happened? I heard the cannon fire! Fourth Captain sounded a bit panicked. Hello? Can you hear me?
Your signal was lost just now. I fired the cannon so you could hear the noise, Jiang Ye said. Come back out. Be careful.
Oh, okay. I'm coming out now, Fourth Captain said. There were some creatures on the rock wall. I brought back some samples.
Jiang Ye's eyes widened instantly. Creatures?
There are more alien creatures?
After a brief moment of tension, he relaxed. The fourth captain's tone was casual, and he mentioned "some creatures on the rock wall," implying they were likely small organisms like moss, lichen, or small insects, which shouldn't be a threat.
However, when the spider armored vehicle emerged from the cave and tossed a large animal onto the ground, everyone present was stunned.
What the heck? Jiang Ye blurted out instinctively, staring at the large creature on the ground, his mind momentarily short-circuiting.
What the heck! All the nearby spider armored vehicles echoed, acting like a broken record.
What the heck, it's this big? I didn't feel it was this big inside. I thought it was just rabbit-sized, the fourth captain exclaimed absentmindedly, even extending a spider leg to prod it. This thing must be as big as a market-ready pig, right? It's so ugly!