Chapter 267: Paradise of the Divine

In the land of Mexico on the Yucatan Peninsula, the Natural Force camp bustled with activity.

“Leader Wolf, how many earthquakes have we had today?” Walkerson’s voice carried an edge of urgency.

“Captain, this is the ninth one. It appears the predictions from Dream Technology were more accurate. The United States’ efforts to stop the spread of the fault may well be in vain.”

Walkerson surveyed the camp, relieved to see mostly tents and a few low-built sturdy cabins that seemed secure against the quakes, which thankfully were only minor tremors.

“Where is Director Wu from Dream Technology?” he inquired, stepping into the command center constructed from simple materials. The command center hosted only their own commander, a certain Mr. Brühler.

Brühler was a middle-aged man of average height and carried a distinctive mustache. His narrow, slit-like eyes and unremarkable appearance hid the thunderous volume of his voice.

“Wu? He’s gone underground,” Brühler boomed. “Claims they’ve reached the site and he’s directing the big guns down there, making sure they don’t damage Paradise of the Divine in their digging.”

“Oh, they’ve reached it already? And you didn’t think to notify me?” Walkerson couldn’t hide his dissatisfaction.

Paradise of the Divine was what the hidden records of the Mayan civilization referred to as the extraterrestrial habitat, a sanctuary where gods were believed to dwell.

Upon hearing Walkerson’s complaint, Brühler quickly responded, “Professor Edward went along, I intended to inform you after getting a detailed report from him.”

Their conversation was interrupted as one of the screens flickered before displaying a clear face.

A plump Caucasion man’s visage zoomed in close; his prominent rosacea was even more accentuated.

“Professor Edward, what’s the situation down there?” Walkerson quickly asked, recognizing the professor on the screen.

The Professor spoke with evident excitement, “Captain, we’ve located the entrance to Paradise of the Divine. Based on Director Wu and his team’s scans, the structure is massive. Approximately 120 meters in length, 80 meters wide, and 60 meters tall—it’s colossal!”

The news left Walkerson and his colleagues astounded, followed by a chill of realization. From Professor Edward’s perspective, the artifact dwarfed a soccer field in size.

Yet, for a community of a hundred thousand people of Natural Force and their families, it seemed dauntingly small. Despite this, the task of unearthing such an enormous device, nestled 1,200 meters below the surface, loomed large.

“Professor Edward, considering the size of the ecosystem device, did Director Wu mention how we’re supposed to excavate it?”

“Director Wu advised that we try opening the gate first and take stock from within, suggesting that its original state wasn’t underground, perhaps hiding a mystery,” replied the Professor.

The camera switched to another face, featuring Dream Technology’s point man, Wu Xinghuo. Xinghuo had fast become an expert in intelligent robotics—particularly fascinated with massive intelligent robots, dreaming of creating Transformer-like machines of his own design. It was no coincidence that he was appointed to this mission by Du Qiu, given his track record with engineering robots.

“Mr. Walkerson, no need to worry. My last scan revealed a secret,” Wu Xinghuo began after Walkerson’s probing.

“It seems massive, but I suspect it’s modular, composed of a thousand ten-times smaller cuboids. If we can access it, we might find mechanisms inside to separate it into smaller, more manageable pieces.”

Relieved, Walkerson urged, “Then press on, Director Wu. Let’s see if we can gain entry to Paradise of the Divine.”

“Alright, I’ll have the guards record and broadcast it live to you,” Wu confirmed.

The camera cut to a 1,200-meter-deep underground cavern where a massive space had been carved out. At one end of this void stood a wall baring a ghostly teal metal luster; its width spanned over thirty meters, and it reached a height of seven to eight, though not yet fully uncovered.

Large robots continued to dig at the walls, expanding the revealed area. Towards the bottom, hieroglyphic patterns composed of pictographs caught the attention of Professor Edward and his assistants, who were deeply engrossed in translating.

Looking on from behind was Wu Xinghuo, eyes sparkling with recognition of some of the symbols from a programming language previously taught by Du Qiu—a vital language for intelligent machinery, a lineage linked to the engravings here.

As the Professor translated, it was revealed that a crystal cube needed to be placed to gain entry. An assistant carefully set the cube into a glowing recess that had emerged in the wall, yet despite this, the anticipated doorway to Paradise remained inexplicably sealed.