Ice Age Apocalypse: I've Stockpiled Billions of Resources

“The timing doesn’t match at all.” Karina’s calm analysis came through the earpiece. “If that was a spaceship from tens of millions of years ago, then dinosaurs were the dominant species on Earth. And according to that voice, we are a ‘primitive intelligent species,’ with a mismatched genetic sequence. This means we have no blood relation to Martians. Humans are native to Earth and have nothing to do with them.”

“That’s right.” Lin Luo stared at the holographic image slowly dissipating. “If we were from the same origin, that system wouldn’t have called us ‘visitors from a low-level civilization.’ The tone was like a human looking at monkeys.”

“Since there’s no blood relation, it’s even more troublesome.” Natasha turned around, her cold gaze sweeping over the rows of silver hibernation pods around her. “Those who are not of our kind are bound to have different hearts. Lin Luo, what should we do with these people? If these guys wake up, even just one of them, with the technology they possess, could crush us like ants.”

Natasha's words made the air freeze instantly.

This is a very real and cruel problem.

These one hundred sleeping Martian elites are like one hundred nuclear bombs that could be detonated at any moment.

“They are an extremely dangerous destabilizing factor.” Lin Luo’s fingers tapped lightly on the grip of his rifle, a ruthless glint in his eyes. “The best way to deal with potential threats is to eliminate them completely.”

“Just like humans and tigers,” Lin Luo said slowly, his voice echoing in the empty hall. “Tigers are powerful, beautiful, and can even be considered masterpieces of nature. But if a human encounters a tiger in the wild with his bare hands, he must kill it to survive. The reason why humans can dominate the earth is because of their wisdom, tools, and the absolute elimination of threats.”

Natasha nodded, agreeing with the view: "That's right, humans can't live peacefully with tigers. Tigers can live in this world, they can be kept in cages, but we can't let them run wild, and we certainly can't let them sleep next to our beds."

"Put yourself in their shoes. If these Martians woke up and found their home occupied or explored by a group of 'lower-level monkeys,' what would they do?" Lin Luo sneered. "They would restrict, even enslave, and cleanse humans. In the eyes of advanced civilizations, we are either resources or pests. Expecting them to shake hands with us after they wake up is something that only happens in fairy tales."

"Then stop talking nonsense." Natasha took several high-explosive C4 explosives off her tactical belt, her eyes filled with determination. "While they're still sleeping, turn this place into their graveyard. I'll plant the bombs now, blow up the load-bearing pillars and the energy core, and let all these people die."

She was about to take action when she spoke, and her movements were swift and decisive.

"and many more!"

Suddenly, Karina's urgent shouts came through the earpiece: "Natasha, stop! Don't be so hasty!"

Natasha paused, frowned, and pressed her earpiece: "What? You're getting soft-hearted? Being overly compassionate at a time like this will kill everyone."

“It’s not that I’m being soft-hearted!” Karina’s voice was somewhat anxious. “I’m analyzing it from a technical perspective. The energy system in that archive has been running for tens of millions of years without running out of energy, which means that it uses extremely unstable high-energy physical reactions, or antimatter energy. If you rashly detonate C4, it could very likely disrupt the balance of the energy field.”

"So what?"

"It could trigger a chain reaction, not just destroying this building, but possibly leveling everything within a radius of tens of kilometers! Then none of us will escape; we'll all die here!" Karina spoke rapidly. "That's Martian technology; we don't understand its defense mechanisms or energy structure at all. Doing this is too dangerous!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Luo's eyes narrowed slightly.

Karina makes a good point.

This is unknown territory. The light sphere just now demonstrated a high level of intelligence. Since it has a defense system, it might also have a self-destruct program.

If we sacrifice everyone to kill a hundred sleepers, it would be a losing proposition.

“Karina is right.” Lin Luo reached out and pressed Natasha’s hand, which was about to attach the explosives. “The risk assessment is too high. We can’t force it.”

"Then what should we do? Just leave it like this?" Natasha was somewhat unwilling.

"Leave it for now, but we can't let them out easily either." Lin Luo made a decisive decision. "Seal off the archives room first. Close the door, and I'll try to disable the external opening mechanism of the access control system."

Lin Luo walked to the triangular entrance, took out the data terminal, and connected it to the control panel.

"When I was downloading the data just now, I left a backdoor." Lin Luo's fingers flew across the screen. "I'm now changing the key to open this door and locking the physical lock."

With a deep mechanical clicking sound, the heavy black metal door slowly closed, sealing the sleeping purple giants back into the darkness.

"Then, we'll create a disguise at the entrance," Lin Luo instructed. "Try to keep other people away. If other survivors or forces come here later, we can't let them easily discover this entrance."

The two quickly set to work, using the surrounding rubble and special camouflage cloth to completely cover the triangular entrance. From the outside, it looked like a collapsed dead end, utterly devoid of any value for exploration.

"Alright, let's go."

Having done all this, Lin Luo showed no hesitation, quickly leading Natasha through the ruined streets and heading towards the chariot.

The feeling of being watched finally disappeared. Although those "tigers" were not killed, at least a lock was added to the cage.

Back next to the amphibious vehicle, the sound of the air pressure valve opening felt especially familiar.

"call……"

As soon as he entered the carriage, Lin Luo immediately took off his mask and slumped into the driver's seat.

The relaxation that follows intense mental tension brings with it a strong feeling of hunger.

"You're back? Are you alright?" Chen Shuang asked with concern, handing over two towels.

"It's nothing, I'm just a little hungry." Lin Luo wiped the sweat from his face, and his stomach rumbled in agreement.

Actually, it wasn't just him; everyone else in the car was hungry too.

The long period of exploration and tense vigilance greatly depleted their physical strength.

"Are you all hungry?" Lin Luo looked at everyone's tired faces and smiled slightly. "We had a good day. Although we didn't get any physical items, we did get some important scientific data. Let's celebrate."

With a thought, Lin Luo connected his consciousness to that magical and strange space.

The next second, as if by magic, a pile of food appeared out of thin air on the folding table in the middle of the carriage.

It's not the kind of dry, hard compressed biscuit, nor is it the kind of unpalatable synthetic paste.

It's not just food, it's real delicacies.

Several boxes of self-heating hot pots still steaming, a large bag of fresh vacuum-packed braised beef, and even... a whole box of exquisite chocolate cream cake!

"Wow!"

A cheer immediately erupted in the carriage.

The two sisters, Yuqi and Yuna, were soaking in the water tank when their eyes widened instantly, and even their fish tails couldn't help but splash water.

"This...this is a cake?! I love it the most!" Zhang Min exclaimed happily.

"And this too." Lin Luo produced several bottles of chilled cola and juice as if by magic. "Since we're in the car, it's safe here, so everyone can eat as much as you like."

The aroma of food instantly filled the entire carriage, dispelling the previously oppressive and dull atmosphere.

Everyone sat together and feasted.

Lin Luo tore off a piece of braised beef and stuffed it into his mouth. The salty and savory meat made him squint his eyes in satisfaction.

Natasha was enjoying a piece of cake, with a little cream on the corner of her mouth, which made her look rather cute.

"Mmm...it's so delicious." Karina exclaimed while drinking her cola, "To be able to eat something like this in a godforsaken place is like heaven."

Yuqi and Yuna received some desserts and jelly. The two sisters ate very happily, and their faces showed long-lost smiles. The weakness they had felt from dehydration seemed to have dissipated a lot.

"Brother Lin Luo, how many good things are hidden in your space?" Zhang Min asked excitedly while eating tripe in the hot pot. "This time we've had a great harvest. Although we didn't manage to do anything to those aliens, we got the scientific data and now we've got so much food. This adventure feels so worthwhile."

Lin Luo smiled and handed out another sausage to everyone: "As long as you follow me, you won't go hungry."

The carriage was filled with laughter and cheerful conversation. The steam from the hot pot condensed into a thin layer of mist on the windows, keeping the desolate, cold Martian ruins outside out.

But while Lin Luo was enjoying the food, his gaze drifted through the crack in the window to the unseen black archive in the distance.

A trace of worry still lingered deep in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" The observant Chen Shuang noticed Lin Luo's unusual behavior and asked in a low voice.

"It's nothing." Lin Luo looked away, took a sip of iced cola, and suppressed the heat in his heart. "I was just thinking that we need to handle the archives properly in the future. Although that door is locked, it doesn't mean it's safe forever."

He knew very well that the blockade was only a temporary measure.

It's dangerous here.

If this unusual Martian race were to awaken, it could bring a lot of trouble to itself and even to all human survivors.