In the dim cave, the flickering firelight illuminated Zheng Rong's cold, emotionless face. All the remaining forces of the Stone Tower were gathered here.

The president of the Stone Tower, an elderly man hunched over, lay at the deepest part of the cave, wrapped in a blanket, looking like a candle about to melt. His hands were covered in dried IV marks, and his arms were as shriveled as old wood.

Zheng Rong sighed deeply.

Someone responded, "We were in too much of a hurry. When we evacuated the underground city through the emergency passage, we couldn’t bring any survival equipment."

"How is the teacher?" Zheng Rong asked quietly.

Another person answered, "To be honest, not well."

"And what about Joseph?" Zheng Rong asked, "Joseph Kedell, the linguist..."

A woman replied, "He’s dead. When the Mayan forces attacked, it was Lin Siyin’s delivery time. Dr. Joseph stayed at the communications center until the last moment, waiting for your signal."

Someone else added, "His wife was weak after childbirth. Upon hearing of Joseph’s sacrifice, she gave up her chance to survive and insisted others take their child and escape the underground city."

"It’s a tragedy. When their child was born, Dr. Joseph had already died a hero. After careful consideration, she left a will on behalf of herself and Dr. Joseph, entrusting the child to their best friend—you, Dr. Zheng. After the war, you’re to raise him to adulthood."

Tears slid down Zheng Rong’s face.

"Siyin... she lay on her deathbed... waiting to die? Why didn’t you save her!" Zheng Rong cried out in disbelief. He rushed forward, but Xiang Yu grabbed him with one arm, shouting, "Calm down!"

"I’m so sorry," a young man said. "We did our best. The military was completely wiped out, and she lost too much blood after giving birth. Even if we had brought her out, we couldn’t carry more blood transfusion equipment. We couldn’t even bring the teacher's life-support wheelchair... I’m truly sorry, Dr. Zheng."

Zheng Rong collapsed against the cave wall, sobbing uncontrollably.

After a long time, he regained some composure and asked, "Where’s the baby?"

The man answered, "A healthy baby boy. Tell us about your situation."

"We lost two helicopter pilots and one computer programmer," Zheng Rong said. "We brought back a few things. Maybe you can make use of them, but we don’t have a computer right now..."

Lance pushed through the crowd, "Did you send a distress signal?"

A young leader from the scholar’s group responded regretfully, "Seventy-two hours ago, we sent a signal to the underground city at the Cape of Good Hope. But to avoid detection, we haven’t dared to confirm it since. We hope they’ll find us."

Zheng Rong paused in thought, "There are four underground cities, right?"

"Yes," the young leader sighed, "but much of that information is classified. Even we don’t know how to contact the other cities."

"What can we do now?" Xiang Yu asked.

"Wait," the young leader replied. "Wait for the rescue team from Cape of Good Hope. Keep the valuable data you brought safe, stay calm, and trust that we will get our chance to fight back. Oh, and take this."

He handed Zheng Rong a bottle of whiskey. "This was one of the teacher's prized collections. Trust us, trust yourself. We are all in this together."

Zheng Rong nodded. The expedition team found a small corner to rest, where they settled Ugos.

Anthony, stethoscope around his neck, listened to Ugos' heartbeat with a furrowed brow.

Eve had disappeared somewhere. Zheng Rong observed for a moment. Only Xiang Yu, Lance, and Anthony remained by his side, along with the unconscious Ugos.

Xiang Yu and Zheng Rong maintained a near-terrifying silence. Zheng Rong used the Mayan stone tablet as a makeshift pillow for Ugos to rest more comfortably. Lance handed over a small bag containing the particle generator.

Zheng Rong was still undecided about whether to hand it over.

Breaking the silence, Anthony sipped from a small enamel cup. "People in the Third World countries are generally very friendly. We’ll make it out."

Lance pursed his lips, nodding slightly. He turned to Xiang Yu, explaining, "Most of the Chinese are with the Cape of Good Hope underground city, alongside the Africans. China’s military strength rivals that of Russia and the U.S., but it suffered the most casualties during the first five-year defense war. What's the phrase again..."

"‘Hide your strength, bide your time,’" Zheng Rong replied indifferently. "I remember there are four underground cities, right? Lance, at this point, shouldn’t you reveal some of those damn classified secrets?"

"Taking away the bases in the Indian Ocean, East Siberia, and Arabia, the U.S. and Russia were stationed in Alaska’s underground city. The European forces were concentrated in Northern Ireland. Both regions have fallen—the fourth underground city, where is it?"

Lance remained silent for a long time before finally speaking. "No one is in the last underground city."

"The Antarctic underground city is where humanity’s black box is stored. All of Earth's ancient civilizations and historical records are kept there."

Zheng Rong asked, "Are there weapons?"

Lance shook his head.

Zheng Rong said, "So, all we have left is the military power at Cape of Good Hope."

Lance remained silent.

"We..." Anthony looked Zheng Rong straight in the eye, "we can’t give in to despair. Listen, Zheng Rong, my homeland has fallen too... but at least your country still stands. This isn’t the worst possible outcome."

Zheng Rong nodded quietly after a pause. "I’m truly sorry, Dr. Anthony."

Anthony thought for a moment and said, "Let’s forget about this for a bit. Let’s play a psychological game."

"Lion, sheep, dog, snake," Anthony said. "Try to associate these animals with people close to you, for example..." He gestured toward Xiang Yu. "What animal do you think he resembles? You two are like brothers, right?"

Xiang Yu smiled. "Yes."

Zheng Rong thought for a moment. "He’s like a big dog."

Lance chimed in, "You’re like a sheep, Zheng Rong."

Zheng Rong twitched at the comment. Xiang Yu laughed, "I think Zheng Rong’s more like a dog."

Zheng Rong lazily remarked, "Lance is like a lion, isn’t he?"

Lance couldn’t help but laugh, then asked Anthony, "What does it mean?"

Anthony explained, "Okay, Zheng Rong thinks Mr. Yu is a dog, and General Lance is a lion. Lance thinks Zheng Rong is a sheep, and Xiang Yu is a dog."

Xiang Yu teased, "I also think Lance is like a dog."

Lance laughed, while a woman nearby joked, "The lion represents your lover..."

Anthony quickly said, "Oh no, Dr. Hilda, you’re giving too much away! Let me explain."

"The lion represents someone you love, someone you want to be dominated by. A lion symbolizes strength and control in a romantic relationship."

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"That’s ridiculous," Zheng Rong said bluntly.

Anthony chuckled, "The sheep represents someone you feel needs your protection, usually symbolizing a one-sided relationship."

Zheng Rong mockingly replied, "This is getting even dumber."

Xiang Yu asked, "And the dog?"

Anthony answered, "The dog represents loyalty, symbolizing family or close friends, fitting your brotherly bond. The snake represents danger, someone you’d avoid at all costs."

Zheng Rong said nothing and stood up, walking away.

After a moment of silence, Xiang Yu stood as well. "Where are you going?"

Zheng Rong walked into a side passage of the cave.

Lance turned to Anthony, shaking his hand earnestly. "Thank you, Dr. Anthony."

Anthony looked puzzled. "You’re welcome, but isn’t this something you all already knew?"

Lance finished his whiskey and, after looking around, walked another direction to find the leader of the refugee scientists.

Joseph's son was being cared for by the widows of the fallen scholars. They stopped Zheng Rong, advising him that the newborn should not be disturbed too often.

Zheng Rong stopped outside the corner, leaning against the cave wall, hands in his pockets, lost in thought.

"Are you angry?" Xiang Yu stood with his arms crossed, looking at Zheng Rong.

"No," Zheng Rong replied curtly.

The firelight reflected in Xiang Yu's eyes. In that dim, ancient world beneath the glaciers, Zheng Rong suddenly found his once-familiar face strangely unfamiliar.

Xiang Yu said, "Big dog."

Zheng Rong shot him an annoyed look.

Then Xiang Yu suddenly barked, "Woof! Woof woof woof!"

Zheng Rong jumped in surprise before bursting into laughter.

Xiang Yu's expression was hard to read. After a moment, Zheng Rong pulled a piece of liquor-filled chocolate from his coat pocket, unwrapping it. "This stuff tastes good."

He fed the chocolate to Xiang Yu, who leaned against the cave wall. The whiskey from earlier had made Xiang Yu's face slightly flushed, adding a touch of intoxication to his eyes.

In a deep voice, Xiang Yu said, "Zheng Rong, try to let it go. I'm grieving too."

Zheng Rong nodded weakly. Xiang Yu added, "We can raise Joseph’s child together."

Zheng Rong said, "Joseph died because of us. He could’ve escaped. He stayed to wait for our signal and held on in the tower until the end..."

Xiang Yu responded, "No, he wouldn’t have left. Even if not for us, he would’ve stayed to be with Siyin."

Zheng Rong, exhausted, nodded. "After the war... if we make it through, let’s give it everything we’ve got. For our son we haven't yet met, let’s survive."

Xiang Yu nodded. "Exactly. We need to figure out a way to save everyone."

Zheng Rong said, "It’s impossible. The army’s gone. We only have a few hundred scholars here, none of whom are trained to fight."

Xiang Yu smiled. "There’s always a way. Let me check what resources we can use."

Xiang Yu asked Zheng Rong to rest, but Zheng Rong followed him, thinking of the historical account where Xiang Yu broke through the siege at Gaixia, escaping to Yinling with only a few dozen soldiers. They charged through the swamps, and with just 28 men, Xiang Yu broke through Liu Bang’s heavily fortified lines, successfully retreating to Yinling. Maybe, just maybe, they could find a way out too.

Lance was standing in front of an iron door, discussing something with the leader.

Xiang Yu called out loudly, "What’s the plan?"

Lance replied, "You’re just in time. I’ve been thinking, and I can’t just sit here waiting to die."

The leader said, "The reinforcements from Cape of Good Hope have likely reached Alaska, but this cave is well hidden behind anti-gravity fields and metal-destroying barriers, so they probably haven’t found us."

Xiang Yu asked, "Can we establish communication?"

Lance shook his head gravely. "We didn’t bring any signal-camouflage equipment. The moment we open radio communication, we’ll expose our location."

Xiang Yu pondered and asked, "What if the machines find us? We could hold them off with the barriers until reinforcements arrive..."

Lance said, "That’s too dangerous. If reinforcements aren’t already here as we hope, we’ll be throwing away everyone’s lives. I’ve thought of another way. Look here."

"Inside this storage room, there should be two humanoid ground combat mechs from Russia, built a decade ago," Lance explained. "The only soldiers left are you and me."

The leader added, "I can’t unlock the door without the code. The military has it."

"Step aside," Zheng Rong said.

Lance immediately shouted, "Get down!"

Zheng Rong aimed his magnetic cannon, blasting a hole through the door.

Dust filled the air, and Lance coughed as he got up. Xiang Yu signaled to the leader not to worry, as he was used to Zheng Rong's recklessness.

"Dr. Zheng, you're too... violent," Anthony remarked, startled by the sound as he arrived.

Two combat mechs, each four meters tall, stood silently in the center of the warehouse. Xiang Yu grabbed the steel door and yanked hard while Zheng Rong blasted the welded joints. Together, they removed the door.

Lance explained, "These mechs have specialized radar and radio transmitters, but they need to be within a kilometer to connect with military helicopter frequencies."

Xiang Yu nodded. "I’ve done some simulator training on these."

Lance sighed, "I’m not too familiar either, but we’ll give it a try."

A female scholar standing outside the warehouse said, "My mentor helped design these mechs. I can help you understand their internal structure, but there’s a flaw—the manual control system is too complex. They require signals from a control tower to navigate along a designated path. That’s why they were never mass-produced."

Zheng Rong asked, "So what does that mean?"

The female scholar explained, "If the operator has to handle both firing and close combat, they can’t simultaneously control evasive maneuvers or monitor rear positions. That’s why they need external guidance."

She pressed a few buttons on the side of the warehouse, activating a series of blinking lights. The mechanical hums filled the air as the energy transfer pipes detached from the back of the black mechs.

"The energy levels are full," she said. "You can see the power readings here. Each mech is equipped with a small magnetic cannon." She pressed another button, and the black alloy mech gradually shifted to a silver protective color.

Zheng Rong asked, "Are you two taking one each?"

Lance responded, "Yes, you stay behind to protect them."

Zheng Rong said, "Without tower signals, how are you going to fight?"

Lance replied, "I’ll do my best to avoid the Mayan machines."

Zheng Rong snapped, "Leave Xiang Yu out of this. If you want to go die, fine, but don’t drag him along."

Lance laughed, "Yes, as you wish, I’m heading to my death right now."

Zheng Rong had nothing more to say. Lance thought for a moment and then climbed onto one of the mechs. Zheng Rong said, "Equip me with a magnetic cannon. I’ll go to the mountain peak and direct the fight."

Both Xiang Yu and Lance’s faces changed as they shouted in unison, "No!"

Zheng Rong countered, "Short-range ground radio waves won’t be intercepted. Plus, with a specialized transmitter, where do you plan on going without knowing the terrain?"

Lance replied, "You’re insane! How do you plan to navigate us?"

Zheng Rong said, "I still have Jin Pu-ai’s computer. Its sonic probe can scan the canyon and surrounding areas, detecting where the metal killers are hiding. I’ll find a high, hidden spot to send you signals so you can avoid the Mayan machines and locate reinforcements from Cape of Good Hope—if they exist."

"Jin Pu-ai’s high-powered laptop battery will last for eight hours. You’ll have four hours to search, and four hours to follow another route back. Once you get a response from the military, transmit the coordinates of this location to them."

Lance and Xiang Yu were both frustrated. The mechanic went to consult others and soon returned, saying, "The Physics Association has decided to give you the quantum gravity defense device, Dr. Zheng. Please be careful."

Zheng Rong said, "Great, now there are no more objections. Let’s go, get ready, and move out."

Lance protested, "Wait, this is too dangerous, I object..."

Zheng Rong shouted in anger, "Shut up! You sheep in lion’s clothing!"