The Way Back to Civilization - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Rekindle

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Looking at the huge assembly machine in front of him, for some reason, Gu Fan could vaguely hear a hint of emotional fluctuation in his tone.

“Codename [Rekindle], I have completed all missions assigned…”

“Currently, the factory is in good condition…”

301’s report was very detailed. As he spoke, his sensor on his face was flickering with a faint blue light. His arm with a drill and hydraulic clamps were holding each other.

This inadvertent action made the Steel Giant look like a child who was eager to be praised. It had to be said that this feeling was really strange…

According to 301, the 4.2 billion hibernation pods were part of the [Rekindle Project].

After completing such a large number of manufacturing targets, the human workers in the factory boarded the spaceship with the goods. Before they left, the last task they left for 301 was to protect the factory.

For nearly a thousand years, 301 had been maintaining every production line in the factory. Under his careful care, the huge factory maintained its usual vitality until Gu Fan arrived.

“I want to know more about [Rekindle Project]. Do you have any records of this plan?”

Facing Gu Fan’s question, 301’s sensor flashed a few times. He was thinking.

“According to the keyword search, I found related content for you. I’ll start broadcasting it now.”

Not long after, accompanied by a slightly ear-piercing electric current, an unfamiliar man’s voice began to transmit from 301’s vocal system.

…

[October 27th, the situation in the solar system has completely gone out of control. We don’t know what it is at all. Perhaps it’s a genetic virus released by the ancient Saint, or it might be a spiritual curse cast by the Star God. In short, more and more people have contracted the Wither Disease. Even the factory has similar symptoms. Yesterday, a worker even died in the dormitory. When we noticed him, his entire skin had already turned black and shriveled. We only touched him once and he turned into a pool of dust.]

…

[July 6th, how terrible… If nothing goes wrong, there shouldn’t be any healthy humans left in the entire Federation. We tried all kinds of methods to stop the spread of the Wither Disease, but we couldn’t. I heard that the people above are planning to isolate the entire solar system. They asked us to build hibernation pods. It’s said that the symptoms of the Wither Disease will be greatly alleviated in a dormant state, but freezing billions of people together is a crazy idea.]

…

[Today’s date is July 11th. This should be the last log I can leave behind. The people above have ordered us to destroy all information about the Wither Disease and Project Rekindle. Logically speaking, I should delete these logs of mine, but this evacuation operation was too rushed. Too many people were left behind. I don’t know when we can return here again, so if anyone is left behind, please don’t be afraid. We will wait for you in the Centaur Alpha System for a period of time. There is our garrison and sufficient dormant cabins there, if you can last until there…]

This was a voice log from an unknown source. The man’s tone was filled with worry, but the most eye-catching thing was the strange illness known as blight.

His skin turned black, and over time, even his body began to shrivel. In the end, he turned into gray ashes as he died, as if he had been burned away by flames…

Suddenly, Gu Fan seemed to have thought of something. A sense of fear began to spread in his heart.

Wasn’t this the same strange illness that had happened to him and his classmates in the military academy?

At that time, he was still a military school student. During a training trip, the transport ship he was on accidentally sailed into an unknown dark space. When they returned to the real universe from there, everyone began to show symptoms similar to decay. Even the most advanced medical technology of mankind could not determine the cause of the illness.

In the end, after a few more seriously ill students passed away, he was sent to a medical hibernation pod. He only woke up naturally not long ago due to a malfunction, and the illness in his body had mysteriously disappeared.

“So when was the last log recorded?”

“About 1,100 years ago.”

Gu Fan lowered his head and pondered for a moment. He was not surprised by the time.

However, if what I’ve contracted is the Wither Disease, does that mean that after I fell into a deep slumber, this strange disease continued to wreak havoc for hundreds of years?

At this moment, Room 301 spoke first.

“I’ve been trying to re-establish contact with humans.”

Hearing this, Gu Fan looked up in surprise.

“I used factory materials to make a long-wave radio that transmitted signals out on a three-day frequency, which has been the case for the past 377 years.”

Its words were unbelievable. Without any external instructions, this smart machine in front of him actually made a radio station with its own thoughts?

In that case, the radio signal captured by the Glory Queen had come from that radio station. However, Gu Fan could not figure it out.

“Why? Why did you make that thing?”

In the face of his curiosity, the steel giant fixed to the orbit by the cable hesitated for a moment.

“I’m looking for humans.”

“Long periods of idleness have been deeply disturbing to my deep programming.”

“I fear that mankind will one day no longer need me, and your presence gives me joy.”

Oh my god… This really didn’t sound like something a machine would say.

Even though this idea was crazy, in Gu Fan’s eyes, the engineering machine code-named 301 was more like a life with a soul and emotions in his eyes. It was not a pile of cold data wrapped under a steel plate made of 0s and 1s.

For a moment, he was so surprised that he could not speak. He only sized up the big guy in front of him with interest.

“Speaking of that spaceship, can you repair it?”

With a hint of anticipation, he raised his hand and pointed at the ceiling to signal to the Glory Queen, who was parked outside the factory.

301 quickly replied.

“No. I can only restore about 60% of its total effectiveness…”

But before he could finish, 301 suddenly fell silent as if it had noticed something. In the dim environment, only its sensors were flickering.

Beside him, Xue Feng’s eyes were also flickering with a scarlet glow, which reflected the light blue sensors of 301.

Gu Fan knew that at this moment, there was a silent and intense exchange between the two programs.

Not long after, 301 slowly straightened its back and scanned the empty factory area. It seemed to be thinking about something and said calmly.

“According to the recalculation, 85% of the hull’s efficiency can be completely repaired under extreme efficiency.”

After knowing that the Glory Queen could be properly repaired, Gu Fan could not hide the excitement in his heart.

“That’s great…”

He smiled, and all this was silently observed by 301.