Chapter 98
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Chapter 98: The Prehistoric Deluge
Wen Jing smiled as she wrapped her arm around Haikui’s shoulders. “I watch the dynamic videos you share online several times a day. After spending a month at sea, you must have collected quite a few experiences. I can’t wait to hear all about it when we get home.”
As they spoke, they followed the other students and entered the port’s lobby.
Wen Yang had not yet left the ship. She usually inspected everything before finally coming out. So, Wen Jing and Haikui bid farewell to the rest of their student group in the lobby, watched them head home, and then turned to sit on a nearby bench, chatting while waiting for Wen Yang.
Haikui excitedly recounted some of the places they had visited. The pollution in the western ocean had greatly improved thanks to recent purification efforts, and they had made a full circle around the ocean. They stopped to rest on a small island, and the student group even did two collective deep dives to explore marine life and underwater ancient ruins.
“The ocean is so beautiful!” Haikui exclaimed, her face full of longing. “I want to be a marine scholar like Grandma when I grow up!”
Wen Jing nodded eagerly. “That sounds wonderful! With your grandmother’s precious research materials, our family will have a legacy to continue.”
Although Wen Yang felt some regret that neither she nor her sister chose marine-related careers after growing up, she respected their individual interests and never forced them. Now that Haikui had expressed interest in entering the field their grandmother had dedicated so many years to, Wen Yang must be ecstatic.
As they talked, they heard footsteps approaching the lobby entrance. The two looked up together and, sure enough, Wen Yang walked in with the staff from the aircraft carrier.
Wen Jing and Haikui quickly stood to welcome them. They greeted each other in the center of the lobby, joking and laughing as they walked out together.
Outside the port lobby stood cars and small aircraft, ready to take staff home in groups. Wen Yang and Haikui followed Wen Jing to the nearby helipad, where they took the helicopter she had flown to return to their new home in Di Qiu.
Once home, they had a simple lunch. After the meal, Wen Jing listened as they shared more stories about their recent trip west.
The three of them relaxed over tea after their meal. Seeing it was getting late, Wen Jing shared her plans for the afternoon and mentioned that the New Shan Hai Jing would launch in three days. They had overheard parts of the global meeting conducted that morning on the aircraft carrier and were all eagerly anticipating the restart of time exploration.
After a few more exchanges, the three of them stood up together. Wen Yang and Haikui went to their rooms to rest, while Wen Jing stepped out of the house and took the helicopter to the space base.
In the two days leading up to the launch of the New Shan Hai Jing, Wen Jing and the other members of the exploration team had conducted multiple rounds of training in the simulation chamber at the space base for their upcoming mission.
On the morning of the launch day, Chief Design Engineer Xue Zheng officially presented the new time capsule and their exploration mission to the world from the space base.
People all over the globe watched the live broadcast. After Xue Zheng introduced the design and mission content of the New Shan Hai Jing, Yao Chi, who was connected from the old Northern Continent shelters, gave a speech.
Yao Chi had closely monitored the survival conditions of those seeking refuge across the continents since she joined the Special Operations Department in the Northern Continent ten years ago.
Five years ago, she returned to the surface and re-established contact with survivors from the old Special Operations Department, working tirelessly to reconnect the continents. Along with Jiang Jing, she coordinated with the Federation and the Northern Continent to extract rare metals and energy minerals to rebuild the space station and space base. Moreover, Jiang Jing had publicly revealed the treasures confiscated from the Euyun family, which were continuously transported to the new space base by Wen Yang’s fleet.
In the rebuilt world, the financial system no longer existed, and gold reverted to its original value as a rare metal, playing an even more critical role in the space industry.
It was this strong support from individuals and resources that enabled them to return to space in just a few years. Due to these efforts, Yao Chi had become a well-known figure, and as everyone quietly listened to her expectations for the mission, she solemnly read the list of acknowledgments for those who assisted in promoting the reconstruction of the space station and base.
Wen Jing and the exploration team members stood upright at the podium of the space base, watching the projection on the large screen. Many familiar names appeared on the acknowledgment list, including Dr. Elsie from the Federation’s stronghold, Blanch from the Green Pasture Manor in the Northern Continent, and Professor Euyun from the Agricultural Institute.
As Yao Chi read each name and organization, a small corresponding live feed appeared at the bottom of the screen. The people on the screen smiled and waved to everyone across the ocean, and the exploration team waved back in response.
After Yao Chi finished reading, the time for their planned launch approached. The exploration team members turned and returned to the relaxation chamber in the lounge to make their final preparations before departure.
Thirty minutes before the launch, they each took their seats in the New Shan Hai Jing. Wen Jing checked all the startup devices and reported to the ground control room at the scheduled time: “All systems are ready.”
The ground control room quickly replied, “Received, starting countdown.”
Everyone watching the live broadcast around the world joined in the countdown, and when the last number was called, they heard the control room declare, “Launch.” The time capsule swiftly soared into the sky, quickly disappearing into the clouds above.
Fifteen minutes later, the control room relayed a message from the space station: “The New Shan Hai Jing has successfully entered extraterritorial orbit and is on its way to the time tunnel. Everything is proceeding normally.”
Cheers erupted across the screens on all continents, and many people rushed outside to look up at the sky.
In some regions, it was daytime, and only a blue sky could be seen without a trace of the time capsule, while in other places it was night, revealing glimpses of flickering lights among the clouds. People pointed and exclaimed, “Is that bright light the New Shan Hai Jing?” Someone nearby laughed, “That’s just a star.”
As people worldwide gazed up, speculating whether the New Shan Hai Jing had already entered the time tunnel, Wen Jing quietly looked through the sealed window of the time capsule at the universe she had not seen for ten years. Everything seemed unchanged, still vast and profound like an endless eye quietly gazing back at her.
Soon, they entered the pitch-black time tunnel according to their scheduled route. The upgraded New Shan Hai Jing traveled several times faster than before. After just over three hours of travel within the tunnel, they reached the edge of their observation mission, twenty-seven thousand years before the starting point.
Calculating based on a repeat every ten thousand years, this location should represent an earlier time period between them and the Ponsuo Tribe. Generally following the evolutionary pattern of civilizations, this time point would probably still find the world in the process of transitioning from tribes to nations.
Wen Jing raised her hand to activate the time capsule’s cloaking device, slowly merging into low Earth orbit. After circling once, they entered the atmosphere. Everyone in the time capsule focused through their own sealed windows, observing the sights below.
As the time capsule descended closer to the ground, they saw mud-built houses and people in wide robes walking about, both men and women, with no significant differences in height or build.
There were fields on the plains and markets in the cities. The enlarged video transmitted back from the time capsule allowed them to see individuals carrying ceramic pots to fetch water and others using large sieves to sift grains.
It appeared they were witnessing the early stages of a national civilization, with geographical features distinctly different from their own world, as the locations of oceans and land masses were not quite the same.
They flew low over the cities across the continents, documenting the scenery before quietly departing, heading towards twenty-three thousand years prior.
This time period, having undergone three thousand years of development, entered the era of imperial conquests. The previously harmonious scene transformed into one of chaos and war, depicting armored soldiers with thick beards, with fleeing civilians outside the battlefield. The river contained numerous floating corpses, presenting another grand empire built upon countless lives lost.
After documenting the scenes there, they left again, traveling to twenty thousand years ago. The scenery felt eerily familiar, with densely packed cities and desolate lower-class citizens, while the natural environment echoed the same poor state as before, appearing heavily polluted.
Once they had observed the conditions of this era, they ascended from the atmosphere and entered the time tunnel, arriving at the discontinuity point of the cyclical time period that Yan Yi had calculated.
As soon as Wen Jing merged into low Earth orbit at this location, she sensed something was off about the scenery below. Sure enough, when they entered the atmosphere, they found that the land had vanished, leaving only a vast ocean behind—every continent had suddenly disappeared within a few centuries.
They circled above the surface, spotting only a handful of small conical islands. Wen Jing observed the scene and slowly said, “Those islands must have once been mountaintops.”
The others below looked confused about the scene. “How could it have changed so drastically?”
The accompanying ancient civilization scholar pondered, “If I’m not mistaken, this should be the ‘prehistoric deluge’ recorded in many ancient texts.”
The occupants of the time capsule fell silent upon hearing this. They flew a few more laps over the globally connected ocean, striving to find any human traces.
Finally, on the third round, they spotted a giant ship floating on the water. Wen Jing slowly descended to observe it closely and saw many women and children dressed in rags, along with various animals.
“Could that possibly be… the legendary Ark?” Xue Zheng’s tone held a hint of uncertainty.
Wen Jing pushed the control stick again, starting to search for other surviving humans. However, no other life forms were visible except for the suspected Ark.
At that moment, Yan Yi gently tapped Wen Jing’s shoulder. “We’re nearing the discontinuity point. We can’t stay here any longer.”
Wen Jing nodded and piloted the time capsule out of the atmosphere. Just as they left this time period, heading toward the time tunnel, the position of the planet below suddenly darkened, and the time capsule appeared to be shrouded in black fog.
The people in the cockpit exchanged glances. Wen Jing, Xue Zheng, and Yan Yi simultaneously stated, “The time period has reset.”
Wen Jing followed the route back to the time tunnel, crossing the pitch-black three thousand years until they emerged from another time tunnel’s entrance. Xue Zheng glanced at the coordinates indicator. “We are seventeen thousand years in the past.”
The planet below returned to its original position, where they could see the floating clouds and oceanic continents from a distance. Wen Jing gently merged into extraterritorial orbit, softly saying, “The previous time period reset at the end of the cycle. Let’s see what this time period has in store.”
