manynovel Chapter 36 Energy Calibration
Chapter 36 Energy Calibration
Inside the dimly lit main hall of the air defense command post, only the low rumble of an old diesel generator and a few dim wall lamps provided limited light and life. The air was filled with the smells of engine oil, dust, and old metal, temporarily isolating the deadly and dangerous world outside.
Chen Haotian sat cross-legged on a small clearing, his eyes closed, his breathing long and slow. His entire being was focused on the complex rune floating deep within his consciousness. The normally stable radiance was now somewhat disordered, with tiny sparks of energy constantly flying from its edges, like a faulty circuit. Even more troublesome, two external energies, like uninvited guests, stubbornly lingered around the rune, constantly disrupting its stability.
One energy, possessing a hollow, void-like quality, seemed capable of devouring everything; it emanated from the void energy crystal. The other, even more bizarre, carried a cold, hard aura imbued with an aura of "otherworldly" laws, originating from the metal fragment of the DC Universe. These two energies had violently collided with the runic power in the previous explosion. Although they had temporarily subsided, their residual effects were severely interfering with the runes' precise locking onto their "home"—the coordinates of the Marvel Universe.
Tony Stark wasn't idle either. Using some basic equipment salvaged by Wesker's team, along with some data transmitted from the offline servers via Jarvis's remote connection, he temporarily set up a makeshift workbench in the center of the main hall. The holographic projection flickered, densely covered with complex energy flow diagrams, spatial curvature calculation formulas, and two constantly fluctuating coordinate points—one being the theoretical Marvel Universe anchor point, and the other being the target currently sensed by the rune, which had been deflected due to interference.
"Jarvis, recalculate the space constant correction value and incorporate the void energy decay model into the variables." Tony frowned, his fingers rapidly swiping across the holographic image, adjusting the parameters. "The interference field of that fragment is too strong; it's distorting the surrounding spacetime reference."
"Calculating, sir," Jarvis's voice came through the micro-interface on Tony's arm. "Based on the energy spectrum analysis of the debris's residual energy, its interference pattern exhibits nonlinear and chaotic characteristics, which will significantly reduce the prediction accuracy. It is recommended to introduce the multiverse membrane oscillation theory for auxiliary calibration."
"Introduce it," Tony said without hesitation. "We need all the theoretical tools possible. Chen, how's it going on your end? Has the coordinate offset changed?"
Chen Haotian didn't open his eyes, his voice deep and clear: "The offset is still fluctuating dynamically, mainly due to the influence of that fragment. The law fluctuations it emits are like a noise source, making the 'signals' received by the runes unclear. The interference from void energy is relatively constant, but it's constantly 'diluting' the source energy I use for positioning." He paused, his scholarly mind working at high speed, "Tony, try using your model to simulate a kind of 'reverse filtering,' aligning the frequency with the characteristic peaks of the fragment's fluctuations, and see if you can first shield it in the mathematical model."
"Inverse filtering...good idea." Tony's eyes lit up, and he immediately began to operate. The formula on the holographic projection began to change rapidly, and a new filtering algorithm module was added. As the algorithm ran, the fluctuation of the light spot representing the disturbed coordinates seemed to decrease somewhat.
"It's working!" Dr. Wesker, who had been closely following their work, couldn't help but exclaim, his voice filled with amazement. Although he was a virologist, he found this field, involving high-dimensional physics and energy manipulation, utterly astonishing. "You're... manually calibrating cross-dimensional spatial coordinates?"
"Otherwise what? Are we supposed to rely on the world's GPS?" Tony didn't even look up, his tone carrying his characteristic sarcasm and focus. "Doctor, if you have time to marvel, why don't you help check if the packaging of those samples and crystals is absolutely airtight? We don't want to bring zombie virus or any other weird energy leaks back to New York."
Wesker immediately composed himself and turned to urge the team members to conduct a final check. Several silver briefcases and specially made energy shielding containers were opened again, and the zombie virus samples, tissue slices, and the few shimmering void energy crystals inside were carefully removed for final status confirmation and sealing reinforcement. The DC metal fragment that had caused all the trouble was placed separately in a thickened lead box, with several simple energy suppression runes that Tony had hastily drawn and that shimmered faintly affixed to its surface—these were drawn by Chen Haotian based on his knowledge of runes, hoping to isolate its interference as much as possible.
Time slipped away amidst the hectic work. The sky outside gradually darkened from gray to gloomy, foreshadowing the approaching night. The diesel generator had consumed most of its fuel, and its dim light cast flickering shadows in the air.
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Chen Haotian's forehead. In his sea of consciousness, he was guiding his own recovering energy, carefully "washing away" the runes, attempting to peel off the foreign energy impurities attached to them. At the same time, he needed to multitask, introducing the "calibration parameters" calculated by Tony through mathematical models into the runes' operational logic. This was an extremely delicate and mentally taxing process, like performing neurosurgery at a microscopic level; the slightest mistake could trigger another energy backlash.
"The offset has stabilized at around 7.3%." Chen Haotian suddenly spoke, his voice tinged with fatigue but mostly focused. "The fragment interference has been mostly suppressed, but the 'dilution' effect of the void energy cannot be completely eliminated. Tony, your model needs to incorporate a dynamic compensation coefficient, referring to the energy decay curve I previously perceived."
"Dynamic compensation... Received." Tony's hands flew across the virtual keyboard, and the formula on the holographic projection updated again. "Jarvis, synchronize the data. Chen, try using your energy to guide and simulate this compensation effect. We'll conduct a live-action test."
A peculiar collaborative model unfolded between the two. Tony was responsible for constructing mathematical models at the macroscopic and theoretical levels, providing calibration schemes; Chen Haotian, on the other hand, relied on his mastery of the origins of runes to perform precise operations and verifications at the microscopic energy level. Science and the supernatural, reason and perception, reached a delicate balance and complementarity at this moment.
"Coordinate locking accuracy has improved to 92 percent," Jarvis reported, "but it still hasn't reached the safe crossing threshold. We recommend further optimization of the compensation algorithm and considering injecting additional energy at startup to counteract the final offset inertia."
"Extra energy..." Chen Haotian pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the carefully sealed void energy crystals. "Perhaps... we can use them. At the moment the return channel opens, we can inject these crystals as external energy into the runes, forcibly breaking through the coordinate blurring area caused by energy dilution. But this is risky and may exacerbate the instability of the channel."
"Risk and reward go hand in hand." Tony licked his slightly dry lips, his eyes gleaming with a mix of gambler's and scientist's intent. "It's better than being stuck in this godforsaken place or being teleported to some unknown space graveyard. Let's calculate the critical injection volume and the optimal timing."
"Calculating..." Chen Haotian closed his eyes again, his consciousness sinking into the core of the rune, simulating the various possibilities of energy injection. Tony was also simultaneously conducting tense data simulations and risk probability assessments.
In the dimly lit command center, only the sounds of generators, the soft hum of instruments, and the occasional exchange of concise, professional terminology between the two men could be heard. All supplies, data, and samples were ready, and Wesker's team held their breath, awaiting the final instructions. The moment of return was approaching, but the final and most crucial step—the precise calibration of the energy—was still underway, like calibrating a ship sailing towards a single lighthouse in a storm; any slight mistake could lead to drastically different outcomes.