The tree line gave way abruptly to a vast, vertical world of raw granite.
The Apex Cliff rose eight hundred feet above the forest floor—a sheer, sun-bleached monolith of solid stone jutting directly into the clear sky. At the very top, catching the bright golden sunlight, sat the final extraction platform. Its metallic housing glinted like a beacon, the biometric scanner glowing with a subtle, idle blue pulse.
Around the base of the cliff, the air was dead still, but looking up, the group could see high-altitude vapor trails tearing across the summit, hinting at fierce crosswinds near the peak.
Wu Haoran walked up to the base wall, knocked his knuckles against the cold stone, and looked straight up until his head tilted all the way back.
"Okay," Wu Haoran said, letting out a whistle. "That is... very high. And very vertical. Director Zhao really decided to save the literal cliffhanger for the end."
