Chapter 140: Staggered Timing
The wind from the depths of the wasteland carried a bone-chilling cold seeping from beneath the rock strata, sweeping over the rolling, undulating dirt mounds. Today's target was a newly marked red point on the edge of the western quarantine zone. The intelligence annotation read: Suspected multi-stage staggered-delay chained phantom array.
The convoy stopped on the high ground three hundred meters away. Everyone got out of the vehicles and, as per usual, established a perimeter. Lin Yan and Gu Shen stood at opposite ends of the high ground, simultaneously and slowly releasing their perception threads, carefully spreading them toward the target area.
This area was a massive collapsed ancient tunnel. The surface was left with uneven dirt mounds, showing no traces of artificial construction or alien beast activity. It was eerily quiet.
"Caught the first set of waves. The triangular main chain is intact," Lin Yan said in a low voice, his voice pressed into the communication channel. "There are a total of six secondary bypasses, with staggered timing. It's not a unified delay; it's a staggered arrangement. The first trigger threshold is ten minutes, the second is twenty-five minutes, and the longest one has a threshold of nearly an hour."
Gu Shen's perception roamed around the perimeter of the entire tunnel. His expression grew increasingly grim. "The six bypasses are divided into three groups that activate at staggered intervals. The first wave lures people closer. Once we think the crisis is over, the second batch follows. If we somehow survive the second round, a third layer of backup is waiting at the very end. The matrix has calculated the timing differences perfectly."
Lu Heng gripped his rifle tightly, his gaze sweeping over the undulating terrain around them. "The command center's directive is to verify the link status from a distance. We are not to approach or attempt suppression. Once the structure is confirmed, we mark it directly and hand it over to the heavy firepower squad for subsequent processing. We only do signal discrimination; we do not touch the trap."
Chen Ye and Zhao Kai split up. One watched the rear retreat route, while the other operated the detector to record the spectrum in real-time. Everyone remembered the lesson of the delayed bypasses from before; no one dared to harbor even a sliver of chance.
For the first ten minutes, the phantom array beneath the tunnel remained completely silent. All waves maintained their dormant baseline, without a single hint of elevation.
Just as everyone thought this phantom array was temporarily stable and were preparing to organize the data for reporting, Lin Yan's perception suddenly caught a trace of anomaly.
"The first bypass has activated!"
The channel instantly tensed.
A faint psychic ripple spread from the eastern anchor point of the tunnel, and a layer of corridor illusion slowly unfolded. But its radiation range was not large; it only covered a small area inside the tunnel and did not spread outward to the high ground.
"It's not aimed at us," Gu Shen quickly judged. "This first wave is bait. If an unsuspecting squad happens to be inside the tunnel, they will be trapped in the first layer of the corridor. If people outside see their companions trapped and rush in to rescue them, they will step right into the second timing sequence."
The matrix's calculations were hidden within the time differences.
The first layer of the phantom array would strike first, creating casualties and distress calls, luring rescuers from the outside into the encirclement. Twenty-five minutes later, the second group of bypasses would activate synchronously, sealing off all entrances and exits to the tunnel. The final group, at the one-hour mark, was the ultimate safety net, specifically reserved for those survivors who managed to endure the first two rounds and barely find a way out.
"A simulated deduction would show how ruthless this is." Lin Yan's perception clung firmly to the edge of the waves. "First, trap a portion of the people, then use the survival instinct of their companions to force others to enter, harvesting them layer by layer."
Zhao Kai quickly archived the spectrum changes: "The activation characteristics of the first stage have been recorded and are being transmitted back to the command center synchronously."
For the next fifteen minutes, the group waited quietly on the high ground. No one spoke; there was only the rustling sound of the wind sweeping over the dirt mounds. There were still ten minutes left before the second group of bypasses triggered.
Lu Heng pondered for a moment and made a decision: "The risk here has been confirmed. The structure is a staggered-timing chained phantom array. Our mission is complete; we will withdraw immediately. There is no need to stay here and wait for the second round of activation to verify."
"Agreed," Gu Shen nodded. "The sample data we've obtained is already sufficient. Staying longer yields no benefits, and within its timing coverage, the variables are too great."
The group methodically retreated to their vehicles. They boarded, closed the doors, and the off-road vehicles turned around, retreating outward along the tire tracks they had come on. After driving a kilometer away, Lin Yan looked back with his perception toward the direction of the tunnel, just in time to catch the moment the second group of secondary bypass waves elevated.
The second layer of the corridor opened precisely on schedule.
The atmosphere inside the cabin was oppressive.
"In the past, traps would only activate when the prey stepped in," Chen Ye said, gripping his notebook, his knuckles white with force. "Now, it can activate step by step according to its own timing, without needing a human trigger. Even if there are temporarily no humans in the entire area, the phantom array will operate in cycles according to its preset rhythm, quietly waiting for the day someone breaks in."
"The phantom array itself has become an automatically operating psychic booby trap," Gu Shen leaned against the seat, eyes closed as he regulated his breathing. "It doesn't need a priest to control it on-site, nor does it need the matrix to issue real-time signals. Once buried, relying on the resonance energy stored in the hyphae, it can autonomously cycle according to the timing."
Lin Yan remained silent. Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, that old hidden injury gave a slight, throbbing pain.
He recalled the progression from the initial individual dormant phantom seeds to this current staggered-timing chained phantom array. The matrix's evolutionary path was terrifyingly clear. It wasn't blindly piling up traps. It had been continuously learning human rescue habits, disposal processes, and patience for vigilance, calculating all the attachments, urgency, and relaxation in human nature into its trap designs.
Upon returning to the bastion, the squad handed over all their detection records. The sample of this staggered-timing phantom array was immediately marked as the highest priority by the intelligence department and simultaneously distributed to all external squads on the Western Front.
That evening, a grim piece of news arrived.
Another patrol squad had run into the same type of staggered-timing phantom array in another tunnel area. They first discovered a missing scout trapped in the first layer of the corridor. The third-tier cultivator leading them, anxious, took two people and rushed in to rescue them, hitting the trigger node of the second group of bypasses perfectly. All three fell. In the end, only one person was forcibly dragged out under the cover of subsequent heavy firepower, their Sea of Consciousness completely shattered, never to be able to use Sea of Consciousness powers again.
The command center issued new external duty prohibitions overnight: Once someone is trapped within a phantom array area, nearby squads are strictly forbidden from rushing in to rescue them on their own. They must wait for a specialized psychic rescue team equipped with full suppression gear to arrive.
This prohibition was cold and cruel, equivalent to watching helplessly as the person trapped in the corridor was consumed within the illusion, with no immediate rescue. But everyone knew in their hearts that rushing in recklessly would only add new sacrifices.
Night enveloped the city walls of the West Bastion. Searchlights swept over the wasteland repeatedly.
Lin Yan walked alone to the training ground and sat cross-legged in meditation. He did not mobilize his Sea of Consciousness to explore outward; he merely observed inward at that stubborn, stress-induced hidden injury.
Simply following the squad to investigate, mark, and wait for artillery coverage would forever only allow for passive responses to the matrix's endless traps. The matrix was continuously breeding phantom seeds deep within the rifts, designing one new timing structure after another. Humanity was forever trailing behind it, exhausted, patching up the defensive lines.
It was treating the symptoms, not the root cause.
Deep beneath the earth, in Rift No. 79.
The feedback of the tunnel phantom array activating in two timing sequences to lure and capture rescuers traveled along the massive hyphae network to the matrix core. The fungal gills slowly opened and closed. It noted the killing efficiency of the staggered timing.
This template would be deployed in large quantities to all suitable tunnels, ruins, and quarry pits on the Western and Northern Fronts.
The next round of attrition was already brewing.
The convoy stopped on the high ground three hundred meters away. Everyone got out of the vehicles and, as per usual, established a perimeter. Lin Yan and Gu Shen stood at opposite ends of the high ground, simultaneously and slowly releasing their perception threads, carefully spreading them toward the target area.
This area was a massive collapsed ancient tunnel. The surface was left with uneven dirt mounds, showing no traces of artificial construction or alien beast activity. It was eerily quiet.
"Caught the first set of waves. The triangular main chain is intact," Lin Yan said in a low voice, his voice pressed into the communication channel. "There are a total of six secondary bypasses, with staggered timing. It's not a unified delay; it's a staggered arrangement. The first trigger threshold is ten minutes, the second is twenty-five minutes, and the longest one has a threshold of nearly an hour."
Gu Shen's perception roamed around the perimeter of the entire tunnel. His expression grew increasingly grim. "The six bypasses are divided into three groups that activate at staggered intervals. The first wave lures people closer. Once we think the crisis is over, the second batch follows. If we somehow survive the second round, a third layer of backup is waiting at the very end. The matrix has calculated the timing differences perfectly."
Lu Heng gripped his rifle tightly, his gaze sweeping over the undulating terrain around them. "The command center's directive is to verify the link status from a distance. We are not to approach or attempt suppression. Once the structure is confirmed, we mark it directly and hand it over to the heavy firepower squad for subsequent processing. We only do signal discrimination; we do not touch the trap."
Chen Ye and Zhao Kai split up. One watched the rear retreat route, while the other operated the detector to record the spectrum in real-time. Everyone remembered the lesson of the delayed bypasses from before; no one dared to harbor even a sliver of chance.
For the first ten minutes, the phantom array beneath the tunnel remained completely silent. All waves maintained their dormant baseline, without a single hint of elevation.
Just as everyone thought this phantom array was temporarily stable and were preparing to organize the data for reporting, Lin Yan's perception suddenly caught a trace of anomaly.
"The first bypass has activated!"
The channel instantly tensed.
A faint psychic ripple spread from the eastern anchor point of the tunnel, and a layer of corridor illusion slowly unfolded. But its radiation range was not large; it only covered a small area inside the tunnel and did not spread outward to the high ground.
"It's not aimed at us," Gu Shen quickly judged. "This first wave is bait. If an unsuspecting squad happens to be inside the tunnel, they will be trapped in the first layer of the corridor. If people outside see their companions trapped and rush in to rescue them, they will step right into the second timing sequence."
The matrix's calculations were hidden within the time differences.
The first layer of the phantom array would strike first, creating casualties and distress calls, luring rescuers from the outside into the encirclement. Twenty-five minutes later, the second group of bypasses would activate synchronously, sealing off all entrances and exits to the tunnel. The final group, at the one-hour mark, was the ultimate safety net, specifically reserved for those survivors who managed to endure the first two rounds and barely find a way out.
"A simulated deduction would show how ruthless this is." Lin Yan's perception clung firmly to the edge of the waves. "First, trap a portion of the people, then use the survival instinct of their companions to force others to enter, harvesting them layer by layer."
Zhao Kai quickly archived the spectrum changes: "The activation characteristics of the first stage have been recorded and are being transmitted back to the command center synchronously."
For the next fifteen minutes, the group waited quietly on the high ground. No one spoke; there was only the rustling sound of the wind sweeping over the dirt mounds. There were still ten minutes left before the second group of bypasses triggered.
Lu Heng pondered for a moment and made a decision: "The risk here has been confirmed. The structure is a staggered-timing chained phantom array. Our mission is complete; we will withdraw immediately. There is no need to stay here and wait for the second round of activation to verify."
"Agreed," Gu Shen nodded. "The sample data we've obtained is already sufficient. Staying longer yields no benefits, and within its timing coverage, the variables are too great."
The group methodically retreated to their vehicles. They boarded, closed the doors, and the off-road vehicles turned around, retreating outward along the tire tracks they had come on. After driving a kilometer away, Lin Yan looked back with his perception toward the direction of the tunnel, just in time to catch the moment the second group of secondary bypass waves elevated.
The second layer of the corridor opened precisely on schedule.
The atmosphere inside the cabin was oppressive.
"In the past, traps would only activate when the prey stepped in," Chen Ye said, gripping his notebook, his knuckles white with force. "Now, it can activate step by step according to its own timing, without needing a human trigger. Even if there are temporarily no humans in the entire area, the phantom array will operate in cycles according to its preset rhythm, quietly waiting for the day someone breaks in."
"The phantom array itself has become an automatically operating psychic booby trap," Gu Shen leaned against the seat, eyes closed as he regulated his breathing. "It doesn't need a priest to control it on-site, nor does it need the matrix to issue real-time signals. Once buried, relying on the resonance energy stored in the hyphae, it can autonomously cycle according to the timing."
Lin Yan remained silent. Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, that old hidden injury gave a slight, throbbing pain.
He recalled the progression from the initial individual dormant phantom seeds to this current staggered-timing chained phantom array. The matrix's evolutionary path was terrifyingly clear. It wasn't blindly piling up traps. It had been continuously learning human rescue habits, disposal processes, and patience for vigilance, calculating all the attachments, urgency, and relaxation in human nature into its trap designs.
Upon returning to the bastion, the squad handed over all their detection records. The sample of this staggered-timing phantom array was immediately marked as the highest priority by the intelligence department and simultaneously distributed to all external squads on the Western Front.
That evening, a grim piece of news arrived.
Another patrol squad had run into the same type of staggered-timing phantom array in another tunnel area. They first discovered a missing scout trapped in the first layer of the corridor. The third-tier cultivator leading them, anxious, took two people and rushed in to rescue them, hitting the trigger node of the second group of bypasses perfectly. All three fell. In the end, only one person was forcibly dragged out under the cover of subsequent heavy firepower, their Sea of Consciousness completely shattered, never to be able to use Sea of Consciousness powers again.
The command center issued new external duty prohibitions overnight: Once someone is trapped within a phantom array area, nearby squads are strictly forbidden from rushing in to rescue them on their own. They must wait for a specialized psychic rescue team equipped with full suppression gear to arrive.
This prohibition was cold and cruel, equivalent to watching helplessly as the person trapped in the corridor was consumed within the illusion, with no immediate rescue. But everyone knew in their hearts that rushing in recklessly would only add new sacrifices.
Night enveloped the city walls of the West Bastion. Searchlights swept over the wasteland repeatedly.
Lin Yan walked alone to the training ground and sat cross-legged in meditation. He did not mobilize his Sea of Consciousness to explore outward; he merely observed inward at that stubborn, stress-induced hidden injury.
Simply following the squad to investigate, mark, and wait for artillery coverage would forever only allow for passive responses to the matrix's endless traps. The matrix was continuously breeding phantom seeds deep within the rifts, designing one new timing structure after another. Humanity was forever trailing behind it, exhausted, patching up the defensive lines.
It was treating the symptoms, not the root cause.
Deep beneath the earth, in Rift No. 79.
The feedback of the tunnel phantom array activating in two timing sequences to lure and capture rescuers traveled along the massive hyphae network to the matrix core. The fungal gills slowly opened and closed. It noted the killing efficiency of the staggered timing.
This template would be deployed in large quantities to all suitable tunnels, ruins, and quarry pits on the Western and Northern Fronts.
The next round of attrition was already brewing.