The snowstorm continued to cover the frozen wasteland.
At the outskirts of the restricted zone.
Searchlights remained in operation.
Beams of white light pierced through the darkness.
Illuminating the layers of snow eroded by contamination.
Inside the temporary base.
Everyone was waiting for the final analysis results.
At the center of the conference table.
A projection of the underground structure was displayed.
The technicians continuously adjusted the parameters.
All the data collected over the past two days was overlaid.
The direction of contamination spread.
Underground seismic records.
Changes in permafrost density.
Abnormal energy fluctuations.
All the information gradually converged.
Eventually, they all pointed to the same location.
Deep underground.
The person in charge stared at the screen.
Silence lingered for a long time.
"Confirmed?"
The technician nodded.
"Confirmed."
"The contamination source isn't on the surface."
"There is a large cavity underground."
"And contamination is continuously being discharged from below."
The room fell silent.
After two consecutive failed containment operations.
They had finally found the reason.
The problem had never been on the surface.
It was underneath.
Irina stood beside the projection.
Looking at the blurred area.
She suddenly spoke.
"Dig it open."
Everyone turned toward her at the same time.
"We have to find the source."
"Otherwise, the contamination will continue to spread."
The person in charge remained silent for several seconds.
Then finally nodded.
"Apply for a drilling permit."
The communication line was connected to the management center.
Several minutes later.
The order was approved.
Engineering units from the eastern mining district began mobilizing.
The next day.
The roar of machinery echoed across the frozen wasteland.
Several large tracked engineering vehicles arrived at the site.
Heavy drilling equipment slowly unfolded.
Support frames were secured.
Rangefinders were activated.
The miners began inspecting the permafrost structure.
For the Northveil Directorate.
This kind of work was nothing unfamiliar.
They had lived in the cold for generations.
They understood underground mineral veins.
And they understood permafrost structures.
They knew which rock layers were prone to collapse.
They knew which minerals could release toxic gases.
And more importantly, they knew how to survive in dangerous environments.
An old miner crouched beside the drilling site.
He grabbed a handful of permafrost.
Examined its color.
Then broke off a piece of rock.
Carefully inspecting its fracture surface.
A young worker looked confused.
"The scanner already checked it."
The old man didn't even look up.
"Machines break."
"Experience doesn't."
The young worker nodded.
He didn't ask anything else.
In the Northveil Directorate.
Technology was important.
Experience was equally important.
Because mistakes were not an option here.
Drilling began.
The roar echoed across the frozen wasteland.
The heavy drill bit slowly tore through the permafrost layer.
Ice shattered.
Rocks scattered.
The engineering teams worked in shifts.
The containment team continuously monitored changes in contamination levels.
Time passed slowly.
Ten hours.
Fifteen hours.
Twenty hours.
The drilling depth continued to increase.
Twenty meters.
Forty meters.
Sixty meters.
Eighty meters.
Then, at the twenty-first hour.
An alarm suddenly sounded.
"Cavity detected!"
Everyone at the site looked up simultaneously.
The technician quickly checked the data.
The drill had already broken through the rock layer.
A massive space existed below.
The person in charge immediately gave the order.
"Stop advancing."
"Confirm the structural stability."
The engineers began calculating the load-bearing structure.
They confirmed that there was no immediate risk of collapse.
Several hours later.
The results were complete.
It was safe to enter.
On the third day.
The descent operation officially began.
A temporary lift platform slowly entered the vertical shaft.
Steel cables made a faint scraping sound.
Searchlights illuminated the surrounding rock walls.
Seven members of the investigation team stood on the platform.
No one spoke.
As the depth increased.
The sound of the wind from the surface gradually disappeared.
The surroundings became quieter and quieter.
Twenty meters.
Forty meters.
Sixty meters.
Eighty meters.
The air became abnormally cold.
A technician glanced at the instrument.
"Minus forty-two degrees Celsius."
The person beside him frowned.
"How can it be this cold underground?"
No one answered.
Because no one knew the reason.
Irina stared into the darkness ahead.
She remained silent as well.
She could feel it.
The temperature here was unnatural.
As if something were continuously absorbing heat.
Making the entire underground space colder and colder.
Finally.
The platform stopped.
Depth.
Ninety-three meters.
The searchlights shone forward.
Everyone froze at the same time.
It wasn't a natural cavern.
It was an abandoned facility.
Steel support frames.
Sealed corridors.
Collapsed platforms.
Severely corroded metal walls.
Large amounts of equipment debris were scattered across the floor.
A technician whispered.
"People used to be here."
No one answered.
Because it was an obvious fact.
The question was—
Why was there no record of it?
The team leader raised a hand.
"Begin the investigation."
Everyone immediately got to work.
Air testing.
Radiation testing.
Structural stability checks.
After confirming that the area was safe.
The investigation team began moving deeper inside.
Their footsteps echoed through the corridors.
A thick layer of dust covered the floor.
Many areas had already been eroded by time.
The markings on the walls were blurred beyond recognition.
Only fragments could be made out.
Experimental Area.
Storage Area.
Maintenance Area.
As they continued deeper.
The detection instruments began emitting warning tones.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
The contamination concentration was rising.
That meant they were getting closer to the source.
Suddenly.
One of the technicians crouched down.
"Something passed through here."
The light illuminated the floor.
A distinct drag mark extended into the darkness.
It didn't look mechanical.
It looked more like the trail left by some large object being dragged across the ground.
The team leader's expression changed slightly.
"Raise the alert level."
Everyone tightened their grip on their weapons.
They continued forward.
The deeper they went.
The lower the temperature became.
The surfaces of the metal walls were already covered in thick layers of ice.
The technician checked the data again.
"Minus fifty-five degrees Celsius."
The surroundings fell silent.
A temperature like this was already abnormal.
Irina slowly walked toward the wall.
She reached out.
And gently touched the layer of ice.
Her ability activated.
Not memory reading.
But phase-state analysis.
She could clearly sense the process through which the ice had formed.
The direction of heat flow.
The rate of freezing.
And the changes in its internal structure.
Several seconds later.
She opened her eyes.
Her expression had changed.
The team leader immediately noticed.
"What did you find?"
Irina looked ahead.
"This ice didn't form naturally."
"What do you mean?"
She raised her hand.
And pointed toward the depths of the corridor.
"Heat is being drawn away."
"All the heat is flowing toward the same place."
Everyone's expression changed.
Natural freezing would never behave like this.
Only something continuously operating could constantly draw away the surrounding heat.
Creating such extreme low temperatures.
The team leader immediately asked.
"Is the source still operating?"
Irina remained silent for several seconds.
Then slowly nodded.
"At least... it's still alive."
The air grew heavy.
If something inside an abandoned facility.
Was still operating decades later.
That was definitely not good news.
The investigation team continued forward.
Eventually.
They arrived before a massive alloy door.
The door was enormous.
Its surface was covered in frost.
Even after so many years.
It had not been completely destroyed.
The technician inspected it.
His face turned pale.
"This is a containment door."
"What level?"
"The highest level."
Everyone fell silent at once.
The Northveil Directorate had no facility of this specification.
Which meant this place came from an earlier era.
And whatever was sealed inside.
Was extremely dangerous.
Irina stepped forward.
She gently placed her palm against the door.
Ice rapidly spread across its surface.
Phase-State Dominion began analyzing the structure.
Several seconds later.
She opened her eyes.
Her voice was low.
"There is a space behind the door."
"How large?"
"Very large."
The team leader took a deep breath.
"What about the contamination source?"
Irina stared at the door.
She remained silent for a long time.
Then finally spoke.
"It's right inside."
The corridor fell completely silent.
Everyone stared at the sealed door before them.
They had finally found the location of the contamination source.
At the same time.
They were standing before the entrance to the true danger.
And on the other side of the door.
Something that had continued releasing contamination, absorbing heat, and surviving inside this abandoned facility to this very day.
Still had not stopped operating.