Chapter 14 Re-entering the Graveyard, Target: Data Core!

"Seventy percent certainty?"

Chen Weiguo looked at Lin Yuan, a flicker of imperceptible fluctuation flashing in his eyes. He had not expected that after witnessing the horror of the "Void Devourer," Lin Yuan would still dare to provide such a high success rate.

This kid was either a newborn calf not afraid of the tiger, or he had absolute confidence in himself and the new equipment.

"Good!" Chen Weiguo slammed his hand on the table, making his decision. "We will proceed according to Comrade Lin Yuan's plan! All departments are to immediately enter Level 1 combat readiness and fully support Comrade Lin Yuan's second salvage operation!"

"Yes!"

The entire base, this massive state machine, instantly began to run frantically, revolving around the will of Lin Yuan alone.

...

Half an hour later, Lin Yuan sat in that silver-white chair filled with a sense of science fiction.

Cold bio-electrode probes were carefully attached to his temples, the back of his neck, and his spine by medical personnel wearing white coats.

"Mr. Lin Yuan, please relax and do not be nervous." The leader of the Medical Team, a gentle female doctor, softly reassured him. "We will monitor all your vital signs in real-time from the outside, and if there is any abnormality, we will take measures immediately."

Lin Yuan nodded and took a deep breath.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous. He never wanted to experience the feeling of his head about to explode like last time ever again. But this time, looking at the busy experts around him and the precision instruments flashing with indicator lights, he felt inexplicably much more at ease.

The feeling of having the country backing him up felt damn good.

"All system self-checks complete!"

"Vital sign monitoring system, normal!"

"Neural signal synchronization system, normal!"

"Forced interruption program, on standby!"

"Comrade Lin Yuan, you may begin." Academician Wang's voice came through the headset from in front of the console.

Lin Yuan closed his eyes and, following the familiar feeling, silently recited in his heart.

"System, initiate salvage!"

"Hum—"

That familiar, powerful suction force, as if his soul was being pulled away, came again.

But unlike last time, this time he felt a gentle yet powerful force wrapping around his "soul," making that dizzying, spinning sensation much lighter.

It was like riding a roller coaster; last time he hadn't fastened his seatbelt, but this time he had been strapped in with a five-point harness and even added two airbags.

"Neural connection stable!"

"Consciousness projection successfully entered the subspace channel!"

"Visual signals synchronized! Generating simulated imagery!"

Before Lin Yuan could clearly see the scene before him, he heard a series of excited reports coming through the headset.

He opened his "eyes" and discovered that he had once again transformed into that small "scavenger no. 1" drone, hovering in that ultimate darkness and dead silence.

And in the corner of his "vision," there was an extra small, translucent green window displaying his heart rate and blood pressure.

"Comrade Xiao Lin, can you hear me? How do you feel?" Academician Wang's voice came through clearly.

"I can hear you, Academician Wang. I feel... I feel much better than last time, not as dizzy." Lin Yuan replied while maneuvering the drone, slowly turning it around in a circle.

Meanwhile, in the connection room, on that huge screen wall, a blurry but recognizable 3D image composed of countless data streams and light points was being constructed in real-time.

Although it was far less shocking than what Lin Yuan saw with his own eyes, when that massive biological skeleton, like the remains of a god, appeared on the screen, a burst of irrepressible exclamations still rang out in the entire Command Center.

"My God... this is the 'Cosmic Graveyard'..."

"It's too spectacular... any fragment could be the tombstone of a civilization..."

The scientists were deeply shocked by the scene before them. For the first time, they "saw" so intuitively a world outside of Earth, a world that was much grander and more cruel.

"Quiet, everyone! Focus and keep good data records!" Chen Weiguo shouted in a low voice.

Lin Yuan ignored the clamor outside; all his attention was focused on the task at hand.

"System, open the map and locate the previous coordinates."

【Location complete.】

A simple star map composed of light points and lines unfolded in Lin Yuan's vision, with a red coordinate point flashing.

"Energy consumption 10 points, opening subspace channel. Current energy reserve 1840/200. Drone status intact."

Lin Yuan glanced at his energy bar and felt confident.

"Set off!"

With a thought, the engine of "scavenger no. 1" started, emitting a faint blue light as it flew towards the target coordinates.

After upgrading the stealth coating, the sound of the drone flying seemed even quieter, and the light emitted by the engine was even dimmer, making it almost invisible in the dark universe.

"Stealth improved, energy fluctuations reduced by 12.7%." In the Command Center, the technical staff immediately reported the precise data.

"Very good!" Academician Wang waved his fist excitedly. "This means the probability of us attracting the 'Void Devourer' has also decreased accordingly!"

The drone traveled between countless huge wrecks, and Lin Yuan carefully controlled the speed, trying to avoid areas that looked like they had strong energy reactions.

With the experience from last time, he was now familiar with the road, like an experienced scavenger looking for treasures in a familiar garbage dump.

After about ten minutes, the wreckage of that mountain-sized "Oracle-class Raider" covered in terrifying claw marks appeared in his vision again.

"Arrived at the target area." Lin Yuan reported in a low voice.

"All units pay attention! Enter high alert status!" The atmosphere in the Command Center instantly became tense.

Lin Yuan controlled the drone, slowly approaching the bridge of the warship.

A huge hole had been torn open in the bridge, and various broken wires and shattered consoles inside were clearly visible.

He carefully drilled inside through the opening.

A cold, dead aura rushed towards him, as if the death wail of this warship was still frozen in this space.

Lin Yuan shivered, forcing himself to concentrate, and began to search in the broken command cabin.

His gaze swept over the strange-shaped seats, extinguished screens, and broken joysticks. The technological style here was completely different from Earth's, full of a certain rugged and wild beauty.

"Found it!"

Lin Yuan's gaze locked onto the very center of the main console.

There, in a palm-sized slot made of an unknown crystal, a USB-shaped object emitting a faint blue light was quietly inserted.

It looked intact, as if it had not been affected by any explosion.

【Scanning...】

【Target: Oracle-class Civilization - Standard Data Core (Incomplete)】

【Energy Reaction: Medium】

【Structural Strength: High】

【Analysis: May contain key information such as the civilization's basic technology tree, star map data, etc. Some data units are damaged.】

Seeing the scan results, Lin Yuan and all the scientists in the Command Center skipped a beat.

Basic technology tree!

The weight of these four words was heavier than Mount Tai!

"That's it!" Academician Wang roared excitedly. "Xiao Lin! At all costs, bring it back!"

Lin Yuan licked his dry lips and controlled the drone, slowly extending the mechanical claw.

"Warning! The grabbing action will generate energy fluctuations, which may attract unknown threats!"

The familiar system prompt popped up again.

Lin Yuan's heart tightened, but the arrow was on the string, and he had to fire.

"Grab!"

With a thought, the mechanical claw firmly grasped the end of the data core.

"Starting to grab..."

The data core was inserted very tightly; Lin Yuan turned the drone's engine power to the maximum and pulled hard.

"Creak—"

The harsh sound of metal friction rang out in the silent command cabin.

The data core was pulled out bit by bit.

Just at this moment, a harsh alarm sounded loudly in the Command Center!

"Alarm! Alarm! Detected high-intensity spatial distortion! In the 7-3-9 coordinate area! Approximately fifty astronomical units from the target position!"

"Energy level... immeasurable! It's the 'Void Devourer'! It's here!"

The Minister of Intelligence Analysis's voice became incredibly shrill due to fear.

On the screen, a huge red light point representing a terrifying threat was rushing towards Lin Yuan's position at an incredible speed!

"Xiao Lin! Quickly! Abandon the mission! Return immediately!" Academician Wang was sweating profusely with anxiety, roaring into the microphone.

Lin Yuan's scalp also exploded with terror.

Damn it, why is it here again! And it came so fast!

He glanced at the data core that had been pulled out halfway, then looked at the "shadow" representing death that was rapidly approaching in the distance, gritted his teeth, and steeled his heart.

Since he was already here, how could he go back empty-handed!

"Get up for me!"

He roared, pouring all his mental energy into the operation of the drone.

"Clang!"

Accompanied by a crisp sound, that blue data core was finally pulled down completely!

"Hold on tight! Run!"

Lin Yuan immediately ordered the mechanical claw to grasp the data core tightly, while turning the drone's direction, preparing to run away.

"Return! Return immediately!" He roared frantically at the system.

【Return program initiating... needs 3 seconds for spatial positioning...】

【3...】

That "Void Devourer" had already closed half the distance; its massive, twisted shadow had already covered a small half of the starry sky.

"Hurry!"

【2...】

A familiar, irresistible suction force came from behind, and the drone's speed began to drop uncontrollably.

【Warning! Drone affected by high-dimensional gravitational field! Energy reserves dropping rapidly!】

【850/200】

【620/200】

【400/200】

The energy bar was pouring out like floodwater from an opened gate!

"Xiao Lin! Hold on!" In the Command Center, everyone stood up, staring fixedly at the rapidly falling numbers on the screen.

Lin Yuan felt his soul being pulled by that suction force, and his head began to ache in waves.

The precursor to mental backlash!

【1...】

"Boom!"

Just at the moment the return countdown ended, an unimaginably huge gravitational force slammed hard into the drone's "butt."

Lin Yuan only felt a flash of white before his eyes; his brain felt like it had been smashed hard by an invisible giant hammer, and he instantly lost all consciousness.

In the last second before he lost consciousness, he heard the system's cold prompt.

【Return successful.】

【Warning! Drone suffered fatal damage! Airframe 93% destroyed! host suffered overloaded mental backlash!】