The euphoria of his discovery was quickly tempered by the stark reality of his situation. He was deep underground, in an uncharted grotto, with a stolen corrupted egg, a pouch full of priceless crystals, and an enraged alpha predator likely guarding the only exit he knew.
Panic was a luxury he could not afford. He sat down on the edge of the glowing pool, pulled out a ration bar, and forced himself to eat. He needed energy. He needed to think.
"Okay," he said, his voice calm and steady in the quiet cavern. "Let's assess. Going back through the Alpha's lair is suicide. The creature is on high alert and will be guarding its remaining eggs with its life."
That left only one option: the fissure system had to have another exit.
He once again turned to his most reliable tool. "Editor," he commanded in his mind, "run a wide-area environmental scan. Focus on air pressure, currents, and geological stability. Find me another way out."
The Gene Editor's interface shifted from biological analysis to a topographical overlay of the surrounding rock. It was a slower, more energy-intensive process. Minutes ticked by. Lin Ke waited, his patience absolute. Finally, a thin, faint blue line appeared on the mental map, snaking its way from the grotto through the mountain.
[Analysis Complete. A faint but stable air current has been detected. The fissure system is not a dead end. A network of interconnected tunnels exists. An exit point is projected 2.3 kilometers north-northeast of your current position.]
Hope surged through him. He had a path.
He carefully repacked his gear, ensuring the corrupted egg and the Earthheart Crystals were secure. "Alright, little guy," he said to the Rock Vole. "We're going on another hike. Stay close."
The journey was a grueling test of endurance. The tunnels were a labyrinth, a maze of natural passages that twisted, turned, rose, and fell. It was pitch black, and Lin Ke had to rely entirely on his flashlight and the Rock Vole's superior senses. His partner was invaluable, its small body squeezing through tight gaps to scout ahead, its sharp claws finding purchase on slippery, damp rock where his boots could not.
At one point, they passed through a section of the tunnel where the rock was thin. Lin Ke paused, placing his hand against the wall. He could feel a faint vibration, and through the stone, he could hear a distant, furious scraping sound, followed by an enraged, frustrated roar. It was the Alpha, still trying to get at him from the main cave. A shiver went down his spine. His decision to find another way out had been the right one.
They pushed on, the only sounds being their own breathing and the scuttling of the Rock Vole's claws. After what felt like an eternity, but was likely three to four hours, they finally saw it: a faint pinprick of light in the distance.
As they drew closer, the light grew, and the fresh scent of the open wilderness replaced the stale, subterranean air. The tunnel ended in a tiny, well-hidden crevice, obscured from the outside by a thick, thorny bush.
Lin Ke pushed his way through the final few feet of rock and emerged, blinking, into the twilight of the Blackstone Wilderness. He had made it.
He scrambled out of the crevice and collapsed onto the ground, exhausted but triumphant. He was on the other side of the mountain ridge, miles away from the Alpha's lair. He took out his terminal. An entire day had passed since he first entered the wilderness.
He looked back at the imposing, dark mountain that had been both his prison and his treasure chest. Then he looked towards the distant horizon, where the faint, dome-shaped glow of Mo City's energy shield could just be seen.
He had the corrupted egg, a potential god sleeping within. He had the Earthheart Crystals, the key to raising his first loyal partner into a titan. His first expedition, fraught with peril, had ended in a success beyond his wildest expectations.
His mind was already racing, filled with schematics for his lab, protocols for purification, and plans for the Rock Vole's evolution. With a newfound sense of purpose, he set his course for home, the long and arduous journey back to the city seeming insignificant in the face of the monumental future he was about to build.