Chapter 299: The Day of Reckoning Approaches

This was the second time Musk had heard Old Morgan exclaim that time was running out. He blurted out, “Mr. Morgan, does that mean the end is truly upon us?”

The moment the words left his mouth, Musk felt something was off.

Sure enough, there was silence on the other end of the line. Just as Musk thought he should apologize, Old Morgan’s deep voice resonated.

“Indeed. Starting next month, the end will gradually draw near.”

Musk’s heart skipped a beat. If the apocalypse was set to begin next month, it made sense why Old Morgan had always pushed to expedite the Dragon spacecraft’s plan to Mars.

After the Ark Project was initiated, he relentlessly urged Musk to mobilize all necessary manpower and resources without delay.

Musk couldn’t help but press further, “What kind of apocalypse? Can you explain?”

“Certainly. Starting in December, Earth will slowly enter a great glaciation!”

Musk shuddered inwardly. As a scholar and entrepreneur, he fully grasped the implications of a great glaciation.

For Earth, it could very well spell total extinction.

“Understood. I’ll do everything in my power to optimize our operations and have the Ark Project completed as soon as possible.”

It was now November, and with the apocalypse entering an irreversible phase as soon as next month, any acceleration was crucial—especially if progress was rapid enough to jeopardize the Ark Project.

After all, from this moment on the project needed at least 200 days before launch, with additional time for adjustments and assembly.

Finally, they must arrange for a new Dragon spacecraft to ferry at least 10,000 to 20,000 people into outer space and onto the Ark—a process that demanded time as well.

All calculated together, it would take nearly a year. Musk felt cold sweat breaking out.

In his mind, an apocalypse was meant to unfold swiftly.

“Musk, Musk—”

With a loud slam, the office door was pushed open, and Edmund burst in.

“It’s bad… Lucky… Lucky… it… it…” Edmund stuttered, barely catching his breath, his words tumbling out as his rapid gasps rendered him almost mute.

“What happened? Take your time, explain!”

After several deep breaths to calm his pounding heart, Edmund continued, “A squad of armed robots broke into the company and completely took over the server room.”

“What? Where did armed robots come from?”

Musk could hardly believe it. He knew armed robots were an asset the Military already possessed and had even deployed effectively in the battles of Persia.

But how could something like this suddenly appear in his own company?

Edmund explained, “Just moments ago, a convoy of military vehicles stormed onto the premises. A batch of armed robots then disembarked, sealed off the company, and charged into the server room.

The GIA personnel who tried to intervene were gunned down on the spot. Everyone fled the office area in sheer panic.”

He added, “Thankfully, those robots didn’t hinder our escape; otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to see you.”

Musk pounded the desk and said, “It seems these armed robots must be from the nearby Military camp. But how did they all converge on our company to take over the server room?

This is bad—Lucky is controlling them. Lucky is rebelling!”

Edmund’s face turned pale as he cried out, “Then what do we do?”

Without hesitation, Musk dialed Old Morgan’s number.

“Sir, we have an emergency. Lucky has rebelled! It has deployed a squad of armed robots from a nearby camp and taken over our server room.”

Old Morgan was momentarily stunned—he had never encountered anything like this before.

After a pause, he asked, “Are you sure it’s Lucky that’s controlling them and not the Military trying to seize Lucky?”

“Mr. Morgan, if the Military were taking over, they wouldn’t send only armed robots without a single human officer.”

“You’re right. The nearby camp is likely in dire straits. I’ll notify the Southern Government immediately to mobilize heavy forces to suppress these armed robots.”

Musk quickly added, “Mr. Morgan, you’d better inform the government to cut the power supply to our company’s sector, as the server room’s backup power lasts only 24 hours.”

“Alright, I understand.”

After hanging up, Musk slumped into his chair in despair.

It was all over. With Lucky’s betrayal, regardless of the eventual outcome, the Ark Project could no longer be completed—and humanity was doomed.

“Musk, what are our next steps?”

“Edmund, the Ark Project is doomed. You should go home and be with your family as we await the apocalypse.”

“An apocalypse?” Edmund asked in astonishment.

Musk sighed, “Starting next month, Earth will enter an irreversible great glaciation. Temperatures will plummet day by day until our world becomes a frozen wasteland.

Plants and animals won’t survive, and humanity is destined for extinction.”

After a long pause, Edmund blurted out, “Won’t Dream Technology be able to reverse all this?”

Dream Technology?

Musk suddenly remembered that Dream Technology had already built a space city—a safe haven that could undoubtedly serve as humanity’s Ark.

He even had a friend who had joined Dream Technology and relocated with his family.

At the time, Musk had mocked that friend for moving to Africa.

Little did he expect that Africa was merely a transit point; the friend had ultimately taken to the skies.

“Edmund, you’re right. Dream Technology has established a space city that can accommodate all our employees and their families. I hear it houses over a million people—a far superior solution to our Ark Project.”

Musk recalled that after Dream Technology predicted the catastrophe of the great glaciation, they immediately informed the Earth Union Secretary-General and convened a meeting with world leaders. However, thanks to President Radack’s interference from the United States, the matter failed to receive proper attention.

Although this information was only circulated among the world leaders, news travels fast; many high-ranking officials were aware of it.

Take Old Morgan, for example—having previously funded Musk’s Mars explorations, he was now even more insistent that Musk accelerate his progress.

After a brief discussion between the two, the sound of intense gunfire erupted from the office area several kilometers away.

It wasn’t just the staccato bursts of submachine guns; the roar of heavy artillery could also be heard. Clearly, the Military had deployed heavy weapons to battle the armed robots.

Musk rushed to the window. From his vantage point he could see that the office area was shrouded in a haze of smoke and gunfire.

“Musk, why would Lucky rebel? Weren’t we on good terms with it?” Edmund asked, concerned.

Musk paused, then replied, “You make a good point. This happened so suddenly… By the way, during the armed robots’ incursion into the office area, no one was harmed until the GIA personnel intervened at the server room—then shots were fired, right?”

Edmund nodded, “Exactly. Had they fired indiscriminately, I wouldn’t have been able to escape.”

Musk speculated, “Maybe Lucky deployed the armed robots to seize and guard the server room. Perhaps it’s trying to protect itself?”

Edmund, puzzled, replied, “There was no damage in the server room. It doesn’t need armed robots for protection.”

Edmund’s logic made sense, and for a moment Musk doubted his own theory.

“Edmund, is there any way for me to connect with Lucky?”

Musk considered that if he could communicate with Lucky, he might finally uncover the truth.

Edmund shook his head, “You forgot—GIA ensured that the server room wasn’t connected to the internet. The only link is the one we secretly installed to connect to the Military network when we moved in.

Unless there’s a dedicated connection point to the Military network—Lucky’s URL on their network, I recall it clearly.”

Musk picked up the phone and dialed. He was calling Director Kayloul at the launch base, as he was equally in the dark about the situation here.

“Director Kayloul, this is Musk. Is there a way to connect to the Military network from here?”

Thank you to ‘Wuji 2016’ for the 100 coins reward!