The exploration work of the Kola Superdeep Borehole began on May 24, 1970, a day that seemed ordinary.

If there is anything special, it would be that seven days later, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake occurred in the Ancash Region of Peru, killing sixty-six thousand people.

The work of the Kola Superdeep Borehole started strangely — there were as many as 34,000 researchers involved in this project, but only a very few scientists were able to participate on-site.

This site wasn't only the 23-centimeter working surface of the Kola Superdeep Borehole, but the entire gigantic equipment and device setup.

Of course.

In that situation at the time, it can be explained as confidentiality.

Additionally, all personnel involved in this drilling work were each given an apartment unit.

The monthly salary level during the work period reached the annual salary of a university professor.

The drilling work of the Kola Superdeep Borehole was terminated in 1994, with a final depth of 12,262m.

The official reason for stopping the drilling was lack of funding, as the temperature at the bottom of the borehole was too high, and at that time Old Thief Kishimoto hadn't yet written Boruto, the cost and the scrap rate of drill bits were astonishingly high.

However, its research continued for several years thereafter, until it truly ceased in 2006 when funds were exhausted.

In 2008, the site was finally abandoned, and the entrance of the Kola Superdeep Borehole was sealed with a rusty metal cap.

During the drilling of Earth, the Russians discovered large amounts of hydrogen deposits, a major discovery on the scientific front.

Moreover, when the drilling depth reached 9,500 meters, the drill bit penetrated a strata containing gold and diamonds.

Analysis of the rock cores extracted at the time indicated that the gold content in this strata was astonishingly high, reaching 80 grams per ton.

It's important to know that a gold content of 4 grams per ton in a gold deposit layer is commercially exploitable, and in the Earth's surface layers, it's rare to find a deposit layer with gold content exceeding 10 grams per ton; by comparison, this is almost a trove of treasure.

Moreover, through various channels, this deep pit also gave rise to tales of underground beings and the gates of hell.

At the time, those rumors were nothing short of sensational, and some even claimed to have seen underground beings with bright red large organs, who idly drilled the underground rocks — can you believe this guy was invited to give a lecture at some ivy league school?

In short, the Kola Superdeep Borehole truly is the deepest vertical shaft ever dug by humans to date.

If Earth is likened to an apple.

Then the depth of current human mining development is akin to a mosquito stomping on the apple's surface.

As for the Kola borehole, it's simply a stronger stomp — and still hasn't even scratched the apple's skin...

What a sad story.

Frankly speaking, humans understand less about the underground than they do about the universe — because at least the universe we can still see.

Thus, the tales of underground beings have their market.

And the deep pit Liu Ming and others have now discovered...

Is it actually deeper than the Kola Superdeep Borehole?

Is it naturally formed, or man-made?

How deep is its greatest depth?

In the Fire Camp, Lin Li learned the information of the deep pit through the equipment Lin Ziming was wearing.

He looked up and said to Zhang Guanghua, who had just returned from sending Mingmou:

"Xiaozhang, check Director Lei Wenjun's location, see how far he is now... oh no, how far he is from Qian Gu Mountain."

Zhang Guanghua fiddled with the assistant's special tablet for a few moments, and quickly replied:

"Captain Lin, Director Lei is now in an area about two hundred kilometers southwest of Qian Gu Mountain, seemingly taking samples from a certain surface layer."

Lin Li pondered for more than ten seconds and said to Zhang Guanghua:

"Xiaozhang, contact Director Lei.

Instruct him to immediately drop his current work, there will be a special aircraft coming to pick him up, as there's a new task that might require his assistance."

Zhang Guanghua nodded solemnly:

"Understood, I'll do it now."

As Lin Li was relaying his instructions, Lin Ziming and others finally arrived at the cave Liu Ming mentioned.

The entrance of this cave was about four or five meters tall, with an internal arch-shaped roof a bit higher.

The cave area was no different from Liu Ming's description, around three to four hundred square meters.

At the center of the cave, there was a low building resembling an altar.

The building was square at the bottom, with each side around ten meters long.

At the corners were four waist-high pillars, which had engravings of unknown creatures on them.

Leading upward from the base were more than ten steps, and at the top was a circular platform about two meters in diameter, engraved with some runes.

For some reason.

When Lin Ziming saw this altar-like structure, he immediately thought of the teleportation array in Ziqiong City; the two seemed to share some unutterable patterns and similarities.

He then surveyed his surroundings.

Sure enough, just as Liu Ming said, there were no other obvious traces of man in the cave; it's unknown whether they were deliberately erased or weathered over time.

As Lin Ziming was examining the inner environment of the cave, reconnaissance company commander Zhang Yaqing quickly stepped forward and handed him a sterile bag:

"Colonel Lin, we found this item at the cave entrance."

The bag Zhang Yaqing handed contained two disc-shaped wooden plates the size of CDs, engraved with various runes, each with a jade stone embedded in the center.

They looked like items meant to be used together.

Lin Ziming examined them briefly and then handed them to Patriarch Wei:

"Patriarch Wei, can you recognize what these are?"

Patriarch Wei took only two glances before blurting out a term:

"Tier Three Cloud Concealment Talisman!"

"Oh? Does Patriarch Wei know its use?"

Seeing Lin Ziming's curious expression, Patriarch Wei explained:

"The Tier Three Cloud Concealment Talisman is a highly advanced concealed array.

These two wooden plates are called talisman bases; placed outside the area to be hidden, they will automatically form a protective barrier.

This protective barrier can withstand multiple attacks from High-Level Core Formation Realm, and possesses a strong illusion array function.

This illusion array won't confuse people but makes the protected area appear ordinary as if in a mundane state, as Mr. Hua mentioned — what was it, mimicry.

Such talismans are common among Core Formation Realm or powerful Foundation Establishment Stage loose cultivators, serving as protective arrays often deployed when the owner is away.

Under normal circumstances, a cave protected by a set of Tier Three Cloud Concealment Talisman would not require additional defense measures."

Then Patriarch Wei used his divine sense to scan the two talisman bases, immediately shaking his head:

"These two talisman bases have completely expired as their validity period is over...

No wonder the cave lacks any defense mechanisms, probably because Mo Peidong didn't anticipate his demise in the chamber."

Lin Ziming thought for a while, furrowing his brows and said:

"Strange, if there was such a place, why did Mo Peidong die in the chamber at the Mo Family Manor?

Why didn't he just stay in the cave to conduct his research?

If he was about to die, he should have used magic to blow the altar apart, preventing future generations from discovering any secrets and profiting — that would be the normal psychology of a selfish person, right?"

Considering momentarily, Zhang Yaqing said:

"Could it be that when Mo Peidong discovered the ice coffin, it could still be moved, but upon arriving at the Mo Family secret chamber, found a barrier surrounding the ice coffin and was forced to remain only in the chamber?"

Lin Ziming continued frowning, shaking his head:

"I feel there's more to it, but can't pinpoint it exactly...

Let's do this then, Xiaoliu.

First, arrange for personnel to collect samples from each corner and seal them for storage; send them for analysis for weathering structures once back at command to see if anything can be examined out.

Also, backup photos and images of the altar and send them back to command, highlighting the runes on the stone pillars to see if there's any correlation with those we encountered before."

Lin Ziming, the prestigious captain of the Shencheng Special Forces, a super elite among elites, is finally showcasing his commanding prowess in the Damo Realm.

He then said to Liu Ming:

"Xiaoliu, where's the deep pit you mentioned..... wait a minute? What's that?"

As he spoke, Lin Ziming's gaze locked onto a corner not far away.

Leaving his previous sentence hanging, he walked directly towards that direction.

This corner was to the left of the altar, only three to five meters close to the stone pillar.

Upon arriving at the corner, Lin Ziming put on gloves and carefully picked up a small black stone from the ground.

This small stone was pitch black, yet faintly emitted a reflective luster.

Examining the 'stone' while furrowing his brows, Lin Ziming then removed his gloves and gently touched it with his hand.

Suddenly thinking of something, he cautiously channeled a trace of Spiritual Energy into the stone.

A moment later, Lin Ziming's eyes widened:

"Dammit? A black Spirit Stone?"

...

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