flstandardbreds Chapter 1261
Chapter 1261
The team members worked together to push the boat and submarine to the shore and untied the securing ropes.
Seawater washed over the bottom of the ship, making a hissing sound, and white steam rose up.
The ship slowly sailed into the boiling sea, its hull coating shimmering in the setting sun.
The tester sat in the cockpit and started the ship's engine.
The sky remained gray, with countless volcanic ash particles floating in the air.
The sun's rays pierced through the hazy volcanic ash clouds, sprinkling onto the coastline and gilding the churning, boiling sea with a dark golden halo.
The sea was still roaring, the turbid yellow waves crashing against the rocks, the splashing water landing on the newly painted hull, instantly turning into a wisp of white vapor that dissipated into the scorching air.
Lin Wei and Xiao Xue stood side by side on the shore, watching the tester maneuver the boat into a smooth arc in the boiling sea.
The submarine, like a silent black behemoth, submerged into the water and then surfaced steadily, its dark silver coating gleaming coldly in the steam.
Captain Qin and Captain Chen exchanged a glance, both seeing relief in each other's eyes.
Captain Qin patted Lin Wei on the shoulder: "Team Leader Lin, your research team has made a great contribution."
Lin Wei shook her head: "It's a collective achievement."
As they were talking, the test ship slowly sailed back to the shore and stopped at the designated location.
The roar of the engine gradually subsided, leaving only the boiling sea still churning tirelessly, making a deafening roar.
The subsequent actions were even more methodical than the previous spraying work.
Captain Chen waved his hand, and Lieutenant Yun led a team of more than a dozen people to the breeding area of the base.
Soon, they returned carrying a specially made insulated box.
The box is made of boiling point alloy and wrapped with thick heat insulation cotton. A small temperature control device is also connected to the box, and the numbers on the screen steadily show the range suitable for the survival of hot spring fish.
Each box was securely fastened, and the soldiers carried them with steady steps.
Lieutenant Yun repeatedly reminded him, "Be careful, go slowly, and don't bump into anything."
By this time, the research team had already disbanded.
Lin Wei and Xiao Xue were also asked to go back and freshen up, and change into new air-conditioned clothes before coming back.
Therefore, at this moment, only Zhou Shuwan, Qi Mingyu, and Mu Mu were on the shore of Sub-Island No. 3.
Deputy Yun and his men carefully carried the insulated box onto the ship.
They placed the boxes one by one in the coolest, most ventilated spots that had been prepared in advance in the cabin, and carefully checked the temperature control equipment again. Only after confirming that everything was in order did they breathe a sigh of relief.
They are ready to depart at any time once Lin Wei, Xiao Xue, and Captain Ma arrive.
Actually, Zhou Shuwan originally wanted Mumu to stay home and protect her parents, and this time she would only go with Qi Mingyu.
After all, a voyage of forty nautical miles may not seem far, but in the apocalypse, on the boiling sea, any accident could lead to disaster.
She didn't want Mu Mu to take the risk too.
However, Mu Mu felt that this mission was very dangerous, and he needed to go and help.
My parents are currently living at the base, and as long as no disaster occurs, we don't need to worry about their safety.
Forty nautical miles isn't too far; one to two days is more than enough time.
Zhou Shuwan already knew that Lin Wei was going to bring Xiaoxue.
Since Mu Mu survived the disaster at Xiao Xue's house last time, she has never mentioned it again. Zhou Shuwan felt that regardless of whether the two of them got together or not, they could take this opportunity to increase their contact and have something to talk about.
So I agreed.
At this moment, the Zhou family of three stood on the deck, watching Deputy Officer Yun and his team move the insulated boxes, their faces filled with anticipation.
After the incubators were all properly placed, Lin Wei and the others arrived and greeted each other with nods.
Under Captain Ma's command, everyone boarded the ship one after another.
Zhou Shuwan, Qi Mingyu, Mu Mu, Lin Wei and Xiao Xue, Captain Ma with his squad and four maintenance workers, a total of more than twenty people, all boarded the ship.
Captain Chen stood on the shore, looking at Zhou Shuwan on the deck, his expression solemn, his tone full of admonition: "Dr. Zhou, this journey is dangerous, you must be extremely careful. If you encounter danger, save your own life first, the mission can be postponed."
Zhou Shuwan knew that Captain Chen was genuinely worried about her.
If it weren't for the fact that this mission absolutely required her, Captain Chen would never have let her go to sea.
Zhou Shuwan smiled, a bright smile, but her tone was exceptionally firm: "Don't worry, Captain Chen. We will definitely go and come back as soon as possible."
Captain Chen nodded and said nothing more.
After the anchor was released, the engine slowly began to roar, the sound barely audible amidst the clamor of the boiling sea.
This left those on the high-altitude fortress completely unaware of what was happening on the other side.
Only Xiao Sheng looked in this direction.
The ship slowly moved away from the shore and headed into the depths of the boiling sea.
Zhou Shuwan stood at the bow of the boat, holding onto the railing, and looked back.
Captain Chen and Lieutenant Yun, who were on the shore, had become two blurry black dots, standing on the bare rocky beach like two silent stone statues.
The rocky hills of the third sub-island gradually shrank in the field of vision, eventually merging into the gray sky.
Further away, there is the base's semi-aerial fortress.
That steel building suspended in mid-air was a haven for everyone in the apocalypse, but now it is gradually disappearing under the sky woven from volcanic ash, leaving only a faint outline.
As they sailed away from their only refuge in the sea, Zhou Shuwan felt a pang of panic.
She recalled the scenes she had seen in a documentary before the apocalypse—
As astronauts pilot their spacecraft away from Earth and look back at that blue planet, what awe and fear they must feel.
She was probably like that at that moment.
The ship broke through the churning boiling water, stirring up white spray.
The spray that landed on the ship's side instantly turned into white steam, rising upwards.
The wind on the sea grew stronger, carrying a scorching temperature.
As she looked at the scalding, despairing sea before her, the panic in her heart gradually dissipated.
If this mission succeeds, the hydrothermal vent fish can survive and reproduce at hydrothermal vents forty nautical miles away, which will greatly alleviate the base's food crisis.
These survivors will have a greater chance to live in this hellish apocalypse.
Qi Mingyu walked to her side, followed her gaze to the direction of the incubator, and said softly, "Don't worry, everything will be fine."
Zhou Shuwan turned to look at him and smiled, "Mm."
The ship sailed further and further away, eventually disappearing into the gray mist.
Captain Chen and his adjutant Yun remained standing on the shore, gazing in the direction the ship had sailed away.
Both of them wore expressions of bewilderment mixed with a hint of anticipation.
If this is successful, if the high-temperature coating can really sail for a long time in the boiling sea, then will they have hope of getting out of this desperate situation?
How wonderful it would be if we could really sail freely in boiling water someday.
Both of them thought the same thing, their gazes lingering on the direction where the ship had disappeared, unable to look away.