Chapter 133: Attitudes Toward Superconducting Ore

The helicopter touched down in a clearing within the forest. Grace and her team jumped out, and after she gave the pilot a thumbs-up, the aircraft lifted off and departed.

Once the helicopter was gone, Grace turned to the soldiers behind her, who were clutching their weapons. "Stay close," she warned. "Otherwise, you'll end up as lunch for the predators in this forest!"

Jake, experiencing the Pandora forest for the first time, was filled with curiosity about everything around him, especially the bioluminescent plants and the strange flora and fauna. He locked eyes with a prolemuris watching them from a distance, and after a moment, he asked Grace, who was leading the way, "Why are those monkeys staring at us?"

"Because they think we’re strange, just like you would stare if you saw a group of weird-looking monkeys back on Earth!" Grace explained.

Not long after, Grace stopped, took off her pack, and knelt at the base of a large tree, inserting a needle-like device into an exposed root. Norm knelt to assist her, and Jake curiously leaned in, but he lost interest after a few moments.

"Aren't we supposed to be scouting the Na'vi tribes?" Jake asked.

"Soldier, that’s a secondary objective," Grace replied, looking up at him. "Our primary mission is scientific research. We aren't Marine scouts, after all."

Disappointed, Jake wandered off to explore. He discovered a patch of plants resembling sensitive ferns that recoiled when touched. Fascinated, he poked a few leaves, which triggered a chain reaction that caused the entire cluster to retract. Behind them, he suddenly spotted a hammerhead titanothere.

Seeing the massive creature, Jake instinctively raised his machine gun in alarm. The titanothere let out a roar, its broad, armored head capable of snapping nearby trees like twigs.

Dr. Grace and Norm, hearing the commotion, rushed over. "Don't fire! That will only provoke it," Grace shouted at Jake. "It’s just asserting its territory. Stand your ground and don't move."

"Are you sure about that?" Jake asked nervously, eyeing the beast that could easily shatter trees thicker than his own arm.

"Of course! Put the gun down—its hide is so thick, bullets won't even penetrate it!"

Seeing the hammerhead titanothere becoming increasingly agitated, Jake said tensely, "I think it’s already been provoked!"

Hardly had he spoken when the beast charged. Jake shouted and charged back, but midway, the titanothere suddenly stopped and backed away in terror. Jake, thinking his own bravado had scared it off, spread his arms and taunted the retreating creature.

However, a heavy, raspy breathing behind him made his heart skip a beat. When he turned to see a massive, jet-black thanator with rows of razor-sharp teeth, his heart leaped into his throat.

The thanator didn't pounce immediately. Instead, it moved past Jake, effectively scaring off the herd of titanothere before turning its gaze back to Jake, who had raised his machine gun once more.

"How do I deal with this one? Run or stand still?" Jake asked, his voice trembling.

"Run, obviously!" No sooner had Grace spoken than the thanator lunged. Jake took off sprinting.

As he ran, Jake fired wildly at the beast behind him, but his bullets had no effect on the massive creature, serving only to buy him a few seconds. He was quickly overtaken, but his backpack shielded him from the thanator's jaws. After shucking the pack, he sprinted until he reached the edge of a cliff. With no other choice, he leaped, plunging into a pool of water below. He fought his way to the shore, gasping for air, and immediately pushed on, disappearing deeper into the unfamiliar forest.

Back at the landing site, after losing contact with Jake, Grace called in a helicopter for a search, but by dusk, there was no sign of him.

"It’s getting dark. We have to head back," the pilot warned.

"I hope he can hold out until we find him," Norm prayed.

"He won't make it through the night," Grace said, her voice devoid of hope.

At the floating island's temporary base, Wang Jing reviewed the report sent back by Ada Wong and addressed Song Guohua on the screen. "They’ve discovered us. We must accelerate our plans."

"The planar expeditionary force is ready," Song replied. "But is it truly necessary for us to cooperate with the Na'vi tribes?"

"They only wish to use primitive weapons; they offer no help to our future development and might even hinder our extraction of the superconducting ore," Song added.

"Has the analysis of the ore been completed?" Wang Jing asked.

"Yes. It has a wide range of applications, all related to cutting-edge technology—chips, power transmission, weapon manufacturing, and more..."

"Then you must find a substitute material as soon as possible," Wang Jing warned. "The superconducting ore on Pandora is not infinite. And don't forget, Pandora has a planetary consciousness. If we act like the RDA and strip-mine the planet without regard for the consequences, we will face a backlash."

"Imagine the hostility of an entire planet, with every animal, plant, and insect attacking us in a suicidal frenzy," Wang Jing warned solemnly.

Song Guohua fell silent for a moment before asking, "If it is as you say, why are we helping the Na'vi at all?"

"To understand the planetary consciousness. If we can grasp it, it will provide unexpected advantages for humanity and for the worlds we encounter in other dimensions."

"Besides, helping the Na'vi costs the United Government very few resources."

"Furthermore, technological progress cannot rely solely on the natural resources of other dimensions. If I were to ever lose the ability to travel between worlds, it would be a devastating blow to our civilization," Wang Jing cautioned.

"I understand. I’m sure the United Government will find your words quite enlightening," Song said with a smile.

"This is just my personal advice. The development of a civilization is not as simple as I make it sound. Dependence on natural resources is inevitable, much like the importance of coal and oil to modern humanity. But with our current technology, they are not irreplaceable."

"The same goes for the superconducting ore. You may use it because it is cheap, but you must not be forced to use it because you lack the technology to replace it."

Song Guohua nodded. "I’m sure Jiang Ning and the others will work even harder once they hear what you’ve said."