Volume 1: The Dragon in the Abyss
Chapter 2: The New Visitor in the Mountains
II. The Arrival of Technology
[Part 1: Establishing Daily Routine - Textural Depth of Life]
The Nujiang patrol team's base camp nestled in a mountain hollow at 2,800 meters elevation.
This was once an abandoned hydroelectric station shed, later converted into temporary lodging for line workers. Cracks spider-webbed across the reinforced concrete walls, with wild moss growing through them like nature's tattoos on architecture. The corrugated steel roof had been torn loose countless times by winds, each time repaired by Old Zhang with wire, until the patches resembled a battle-scarred military banner.
But this place was home.
At six a.m., the camp kitchen was already steaming. Old Zhang wore a faded army-green cotton jacket, tending the wood-fired stove where he cooked tsampa porridge. Firelight danced across his calloused face, illuminating the ravines carved by time. His right hand, scarred from a lightning strike incident three years ago, still wielded the ladle with steady confidence.
"Chen Yang, breakfast! We've got news today." Old Zhang's voice echoed through the valley.
Chen Yang emerged from the dormitory, hair still damp—he'd just rinsed off with spring water. This was his ritual after high-altitude work: washing away sweat and metallic odors with icy mountain water, as if cleansing the vertigo that came with the heights.
"What news? Headquarters raising our pay?" Chen Yang grinned, accepting the enamel bowl. The porridge steamed fragrantly, enriched with brown sugar and goji berries—Old Zhang's proprietary recipe, supposedly replenishing qi depleted by high-altitude work.
"Pay raise, my ass." Old Zhang shot him a look. "Provincial HQ is sending a technical supervisor. Something about promoting an 'intelligent inspection system.' Your stunt at Tower #37 yesterday went viral on the internal network. Now all the brass knows we've got an 'aerial acrobat' here."
Chen Yang's smile froze momentarily.
He didn't like attention. Five years ago, leaving the extreme sports circuit to take this job was specifically to escape spotlights and cameras. At altitude, he only wanted to face wind, clouds, mountains, and his own heartbeat—not to be anyone's "hero" or "madman."
"Old Zhang, that video..."
"Auto-recorded by surveillance, not leaked by me." Old Zhang waved dismissively. "But honestly, kid, you're getting more reckless. 120 newton-meters torque in that wind speed? You think you're still that parkour punk?"
Chen Yang fell silent.
He knew Old Zhang was right. But he also knew that if he hadn't gone, that loose bolt would inevitably cause disaster within three days. He couldn't watch three counties plunge into darkness, couldn't let hospital operating lights fail at critical moments.
"Old Zhang, about this technical supervisor..."
Before he finished, an engine's roar echoed through the hollow.
Not the typical diesel rumble, but a low, deep hum—technological precision. A pristine white electric SUV appeared at the camp entrance, emblazoned with "State Grid · Technology Innovation Division" that gleamed in morning light, starkly contrasting the weathered surroundings.
Old Zhang swallowed hard. "She's here."
[Part 2: Lin Xiao's Entrance - Character Contrast Portrait]
The door opened, and a figure stepped out.
A young woman, perhaps twenty-seven or twenty-eight, but her gaze carried sharpness and confidence beyond her years. She wore a charcoal outdoor jacket—simple cut but premium material—with a small badge at the collar: MIT's Electrical Engineering Department emblem. Her hair was tied in a practical ponytail, AR smart glasses perched on her forehead, lenses occasionally flashing data streams.
Behind her, two assistants unloaded equipment from the vehicle: silver portable drone cases, black thermal imaging containers, and a folding laser scanner. These devices reflected cold metallic luster in sunlight, like emissaries from a future world.
"Good morning." The woman extended her hand. "I'm Lin Xiao, Provincial HQ Technology Innovation Division, Smart Inspection Project Lead. And you are..."
"Chen Yang." Chen Yang wiped his greasy hands and shook hers.
Her hand was cool but firm. Chen Yang sensed this wasn't a hand accustomed only to keyboard work—fingertips showed thin calluses, the web between thumb and forefinger bore marks from tools. This earned the sudden "parachute drop" a degree of his respect—at least she wasn't some bureaucrat who only pontificated in conference rooms.
"I heard you completed a 'textbook-level' high-altitude operation at Tower #37 yesterday." Lin Xiao adjusted her AR glasses, which immediately projected a video—Chen Yang repairing the damper in howling winds. "I've watched it twelve times. Each viewing amazes me. Your balance, wind anticipation, that split-second operation timing..."
She paused, her expression growing complex. "But simultaneously, it deeply concerns me."
Chen Yang raised an eyebrow. "Concerns?"
"Yes." Lin Xiao turned, gesturing toward the drone her assistants were assembling. "According to our data models, yesterday your position experienced instantaneous maximum wind speeds of 26.7 meters per second, conductor oscillation exceeding standard safety values by 340%. Per the Electric Power Industry High-Altitude Work Safety Regulations, such conditions mandate immediate withdrawal, not continued operation. Human reaction time averages 0.2 seconds, but in that environment, an accident could occur in just 0.05 seconds."
Old Zhang frowned. "Engineer Lin, I don't understand those numbers. But I know if Chen Yang hadn't gone, Tower #37's damper would've failed within three days. The consequences would've been far worse."
"That's precisely my point." Lin Xiao's tone remained calm but carried unwavering conviction. "We shouldn't require people to assume such risks. Today's technology gives us drones, robots, remote operation systems. We can let machines handle dangerous work instead of gambling with flesh and blood."
She snapped her fingers. A hexacopter drone launched from the portable hangar.
The drone was silver-white, about 80 centimeters long, six rotors humming lowly in morning air. It hovered two meters above ground, a gimbal-mounted camera and mechanical arm beneath. Lin Xiao tapped her tablet, and the drone began autonomous patrol, flying around the camp's tree line, lens precisely capturing every branch detail.
"This is our team's fourth-generation intelligent inspection drone, codename 'Sky Eye IV'." Pride gleamed in Lin Xiao's eyes. "It features binocular vision, millimeter-wave radar, laser rangefinder, and thermal imaging. Ninety-minute flight endurance, Force-8 wind resistance, stable operation from negative thirty to positive fifty degrees Celsius. Most importantly..."
She tapped again. The drone flew to a dead tree, extending its mechanical arm to gently grasp a thin branch.
"It can perform fine manipulations. Theoretically, it could complete everything you did at Tower #37 yesterday—inspection, tightening, even component replacement. And it doesn't fatigue, doesn't fear, doesn't make adrenaline-fueled risky decisions."
Chen Yang watched the drone quietly.
He had to admit—this thing was impressive. Five years ago, the extreme-sports-loving Chen Yang would've been thrilled by such technology. But his current self felt a subtle... unease.
[Part 3: First Technical Clash - Prelude to Philosophical Collision]
"Engineer Lin, may I ask something?" Chen Yang spoke.
"Of course."
"Can this drone 'feel' wind?"
Lin Xiao paused. "What?"
"I mean, can it sense wind's 'mood'?" Chen Yang walked beneath the drone, extending his hand to feel the rotor downwash. "Yesterday at Tower #37, I used no instruments, but I could 'feel' which gusts were dangerous, which could be utilized. That wasn't data or algorithms, but... bodily memory."
Lin Xiao fell silent for several seconds, then said: "What you describe, we call 'experiential parameters.' They're admittedly hard to quantify, but not impossible to simulate technologically. Our AI model has collected over thirty thousand hours of high-altitude operation data. Through machine learning, it can predict over 90% of wind direction changes."
"And the remaining 10%?" Chen Yang countered.
"The remaining 10%..." Lin Xiao hesitated. "That's what we continuously optimize. But at least when machines err, they don't pay with their lives."
Their gazes met in the air—two utterly different philosophies silently colliding.
One believed in data, logic, reproducibility—that technology could eliminate all uncertainty.
The other believed in intuition, experience, communion with nature—that some things could never be algorithmically replaced.
Sensing the tension, Old Zhang intervened: "So... Engineer Lin, how about some tea inside? It's cold out here."
Lin Xiao nodded, signaling her assistants to continue equipment debugging while she followed Old Zhang into the camp's meeting room—actually a converted tool shed with a pieced-together long table and rickety chairs.
She opened her laptop, projector displaying a detailed PowerPoint presentation on the wall.
"This is Provincial HQ's 'Smart Inspection Three-Year Plan'." Lin Xiao began her briefing. "Year One: complete drone coverage inspection in pilot zones, with manual inspection as backup. Year Two: introduce climbing robots and cable robots for automated maintenance at key towers. Year Three: establish remote control centers, achieving 'people in the rear, machines at the front' paradigm."
The PPT overflowed with data: cost reduction curves, accident rate decline projections, personnel allocation optimization... Every figure meticulously calculated, every curve pointing to one conclusion—
The future wouldn't need people like Chen Yang.
Old Zhang's grip on his teacup tightened, knuckles whitening.
Chen Yang remained calm. He simply asked: "Engineer Lin, before coming here, where did you work?"
"MIT's power systems lab, then Siemens' smart grid division." Lin Xiao answered truthfully.
"Have you climbed transmission towers?"
"No."
"At over 4,000 meters elevation, standing on a wire thinner than chopsticks, have you felt that wind?"
"No." Lin Xiao's voice lowered.
Chen Yang stood, walking to the window, gazing at the distant snow-capped mountains. "Engineer Lin, I don't oppose technological progress. If your drones can match or exceed my work, I'd gladly step back to become an operator. But understand this: power grids aren't laboratories, mountains aren't code. Some things can't be explained in PowerPoint."
He turned, eyes devoid of hostility, only profound seriousness. "Give me a chance, and your drone a chance. Let's do a comparative test—same task, you use machines, I use my hands. See who does better."
Lin Xiao looked up, AR glasses reflecting window light.
She remained silent for a full ten seconds.
Then a faint smile curved her lips. "Agreed. But one condition—if my drone completes the mission, you'll help us collect your operational data to train our AI model. Your experience shouldn't vanish when you retire. It should become inheritable 'digital memory.'"
"Deal." Chen Yang extended his hand.
Their hands clasped again.
This time, not courtesy, but a silent declaration of war.
[Part 4: Mission Assignment - Hook for Next Chapter]
At 3 p.m., Provincial HQ transmitted a new inspection assignment via satellite phone.
"Towers #22 through #26. Frequent thunderstorm activity last night. Comprehensive inspection required, focusing on insulator string flashover traces. Deadline: 48 hours."
Old Zhang studied the assignment sheet, brow furrowed. "This section's on the 'shadow slope'—dense vegetation, poor visibility. Usually takes three days to patrol."
Lin Xiao smiled confidently. "This is precisely where drones excel. Dense forest navigation, multi-angle photography, infrared detection—these are our strengths."
She looked at Chen Yang. "We depart simultaneously tomorrow. You take your route, I fly my drones. Let's see who finishes first, whose report is more accurate."
Chen Yang nodded without further comment.
But Old Zhang knew—the kid had entered "combat mode." A special mental state: eyes sharpening, movements lightening, entire being seemingly merging with the environment.
Five years ago, this state earned Chen Yang the nickname "Child of the Wind" in extreme sports circles.
Five years later, where would this state bloom again?
Night fell. Inside the white SUV parked outside, Lin Xiao checked drone flight logs on her laptop, screen light casting her focused expression in stark relief.
Assistant Xiao Li approached, whispering: "Engineer Lin, do you really think that Chen Yang can beat our drones?"
Lin Xiao didn't answer, silently pulling up a video—Chen Yang's Tower #37 operation. She dragged the progress bar to the critical frame: Chen Yang, in howling wind, at a near-impossible angle, precisely fitting the wrench onto the bolt.
In that instant, his body formed a delicate equilibrium with the conductor, the wind, the entire universe.
An equilibrium no mechanical formula could calculate.
"Xiao Li." Lin Xiao said softly. "Tomorrow, prepare all sensors. I want to record his every movement, every breath, every decision timestamp. If we can decode his 'secret,' it'll be a major breakthrough in AI history."
Scientific fervor glinted in her eyes.
In the dormitory, Chen Yang lay on his crude wooden bed, hands behind his head, staring at the dim ceiling bulb.
He recalled five years ago, the day he left extreme sports.
A reporter had asked: "You abandoned so much honor and money to come to these barren mountains. Was it worth it?"
He hadn't answered.
Because "worth it" wasn't meant to be spoken—it was meant to be lived.
Tomorrow, he would prove again that some things machines could never learn—
The silent dialogue between humanity and nature, forged through countless trials of life and death.
Next Chapter Preview:
Chapter 3: "Two Languages" - Chen Yang and Lin Xiao depart simultaneously for Towers #22-#26. One climbs through dense forest relying on touch and hearing; the other commands from HQ, monitoring multi-screen data. When the drone encounters unexpected trouble, who can identify the problem faster?