Cataclysmic Era: I can unlock the tech tree

The next day.

A piercing alarm sounded inside the phoenix.

Gao Yang and Zhao Zijie opened their eyes almost simultaneously and looked at the holographic image next to the bed.

"Holy crap! What's going on?!"

The footage from the camera at the bottom of the starship was displayed before the two men.

Gao Yang was slightly taken aback by the slightly strange scene.

After realizing what had happened, his expression changed drastically, and he exclaimed in alarm.

"Holy crap!! We're flooded?!"

"First, what's going on?!" Zhao Zijie asked immediately. "Is there a calculation error?"

One's mechanical electronic voice immediately sounded: "Affected by various complex factors, the scale of the ocean tides far exceeds expectations."

"Complex factors? What factors?" Gao Yang asked subconsciously.

The holographic image changed again.

This time, we are showing the view from the camera on top of the starship.

A towering wave crashed towards the camera, slamming hard against the phoenix's hard shell.

"Storm?" Zhao Zijie muttered to himself.

"Yes." As Yi's voice rang out, a series of complex data appeared in the holographic image in front of the two of them.

"Due to the gravitational pull and temperature differences of Saturn, relatively powerful hurricanes have been generated on the surface of Titan."

"Methane has a low density in the ocean and is easily affected by hurricanes, which leads to relatively large errors in the calculation results."

"Hiss..." Zhao Zijie gasped. "Stop talking nonsense and just tell me how high the sea level is going to rise."

"Data recalculation in progress..."

A simulated scene appeared in front of the two.

"Burning..." Gao Yang stared at the simulated scene before him, swallowing hard. "This is fucking half-submerged!"

"First, assess the impact of this incident." Zhao Zijie, dressed, walked quickly toward the cockpit with a solemn expression.

The holographic interface followed his footsteps, floating through the air.

"Captain, the assessment results are in."

Zhao Zijie turned his head and glanced at the evaluation interface.

When he saw the result clearly, he couldn't help but stop in his tracks.

"Yi, are you sure?"

"Yes, Captain, I'm sure," One replied again.

"W-what happened? What were the assessment results?" Gao Yang rushed to Zhao Zijie's side in a fluster and asked urgently.

"...See for yourself."

As he spoke, Zhao Zijie reached out and swiped the holographic interface, sending it to Gao Yang.

"No impact?! Huh?!"

Gao Yang's eyes widened as he stared at the holographic interface in front of him in disbelief.

"According to the assessment, the Luan Bird Starship and its extraction system have excellent sealing performance. In addition, the seawater is composed of liquid methane, so even if the Hall thrusters are submerged, there will be no problem..."

"Zijie, what do you think?" Gao Yang turned to look at Zhao Zijie beside him.

"Me?" Zhao Zijie's lips twitched. "I choose to let Zero see it."

"First, send a communication request to Mars."

……

"So, there was no problem with One's assessment?"

Zhao Zijie glanced at the raging waves outside the porthole out of the corner of his eye and asked in a low voice, "This incident really won't have any impact on the starship and the extraction device?"

"Yes, Captain Zhao Zijie." Zero's unique electronic synthesized voice rang out in the cockpit.

"Please do not be deceived by the storms of the outside world."

"Although the waves formed by liquid methane are powerful, they cannot shake the Luan Bird Starship at all."

"As for the extraction equipment, the fixing device can fully guarantee its safety."

"Alright." Zhao Zijie turned his head again to look at the huge waves crashing against the porthole. "I have no problem."

"Okay, I wish you a happy life and success at work."

The long-distance communication was automatically cut off as soon as the voice finished speaking.

Zhao Zijie turned around and looked at Gao Yang.

"Calm down, nothing bad will happen. Just think of it as a vacation by the sea."

Gao Yang: "..."

"You call this a beach vacation?"

Countless waves splashed across the starship's portholes.

A torrential downpour of methane rained down from the sky and poured onto the surface of Titan.

In the deep sky, a blinding flash of lightning would occasionally streak across the sky.

It looked like the end of the world.

Faced with Gao Yang's question, Zhao Zijie shrugged helplessly and took a bag of potato chips from the cabinet next to him: "What else can we do?"

"Since we can't resist it, let's just enjoy it."

"Moreover, according to Zero's calculations, this storm will only last for three days."

……

The next day.

It must be said that human beings are extremely adaptable to the environment.

Gao Yang, who was initially worried about the harsh environment, completely adapted to the violent environment after just one day.

He even took countless selfies while standing in front of the porthole.

As Gao Yang operated his watch, he said matter-of-factly, "Isn't that obvious?"

"Look, the post I made on WeChat Moments this morning has already received hundreds of likes, and quite a few drivers have left comments!"

"What did he say?" Zhao Zijie asked curiously, leaning closer.

"Most people expressed their envy, and quite a few are preparing to apply to work on Titan," Gao Yang said, scrolling down the comments section of his WeChat Moments.

Zhao Zijie: "..."

"Um, um, could you take a couple of pictures for me?"

Just as the two were laughing and joking, the familiar alarm sounded again.

"warn!"

"A blockage has been detected in the extraction device. Please proceed immediately to clear the conduit opening."

A rigid voice echoed in the cockpit.

The smile on Zhao Zijie's face gradually faded, and a deep sense of doubt crept onto his face.

"Blockage?"

"How could it be blocked?"

He ran to the captain's seat in two quick steps and waved his hand in the air.

The holographic image responded immediately to his movement.

A 3D model of the entire extraction device appeared in front of the two of them.

A large red dot appeared at the opening of the catheter.

That's where the blockage is.

"Could it be mud or sand?" Zhao Zijie asked, looking confused.

"That shouldn't be happening..." Gao Yang frowned, muttering to himself, "How could a pipe with a diameter of two meters be blocked by mud and sand?"

Looking at the extraction device that had already been shut down, Zhao Zijie's eyes showed even greater confusion.

"Forget it, let's not guess what it is yet."

"We can't go out in this environment. Let's wait until the tide goes out."

As he spoke, he reached out and pressed a button on the control panel, preparing to cut off the power to the extraction device.

"The blockage has been cleared," the rigid voice rang out again.

The extraction device, which had been in emergency shutdown mode, resumed operation.

"???"

Zhao Zijie and Gao Yang were completely dumbfounded.

What is that?

"So...this means he's recovered?" Gao Yang asked cautiously. "Will there be any problems?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than the alarm sounded again.

"A blockage has been detected in the extraction device..."

"This is outrageous!"

Without any hesitation, Zhao Zijie pressed the button on the control panel.

A few minutes later, the alarm stopped abruptly.

"The blockage has been cleared."

One's warning voice rang out again in the quiet cockpit.