Did the world end today?

Chapter 407 Dam Collapse
Southwest, inside the mission control center of an aerospace force base in the Western Theater Command.

On the huge screen, several cursors representing spacecraft performing flight missions flashed, and the one highlighted in particular was flying along a precise trajectory around the red circle on the map below marked "Z-01 Cryogenic Anomaly Zone".

This area, approximately 50 kilometers in diameter, is located in Nevada, 85 kilometers north of the Limiter Array project site.

From the image captured by the "Tianyan-24" optical imaging reconnaissance satellite on the right side of the screen, a radial cloud is forming in this area.

It looked like a pure white starfish, lying on the grayish-yellow ground.

Everyone in the mission control center stared intently at the starfish on the screen, watching the direction in which its tentacles extended.

"The low-temperature zone is 8.6 kilometers away from the rear command post of the base, and the current diffusion rate is under control."

"The base personnel have completed the temporary transfer and are expected to reach the safe area in 10 minutes."

"Understood. Prepare to establish a ground beacon."

"Received, preparing to establish a ground beacon."

"Ground beacon established, target area identified."

"Received, target area identifier."

Short commands echoed continuously in the control center, and everyone was busy working nervously. Just then, a voice suddenly rang out from the loudspeaker, drowning out all the noise in the control center.

"Control center, this is Qingluan-76022."

"I have reached 6000 meters above the target area and entered the predetermined reconnaissance orbit. Request to commence reconnaissance procedures."

The pilot's voice was calm and steady, transmitted through the encrypted channel without a trace of noise.

"Qingluan 022, this is the control center."

"Permissions confirmed. Initiating reconnaissance procedure one."

"Please initiate wide-area multispectral scanning to establish a baseline environmental model."

On the command console, the commander's voice was steady, but the long hours of continuous work had made his throat slightly hoarse.

"Understood. Initiate wide-area multispectral scanning."

The pilot repeated the instructions, and then the green light indicating the execution status of the instructions quickly lit up on the control center's large screen.

"The spectral scanning array is activated, and the scanning range covers the entire Z-01 area and the surrounding 20-kilometer buffer zone."

"Data link transmission initiated."

On the screen, a waterfall of refreshed data flashed by rapidly.

Infrared spectral images were first constructed, clearly showing a circular area with blurred boundaries that contrasted sharply with the surrounding desert environment.

In this area, the surface temperature is nearly 40 degrees Celsius lower than the surrounding area.

"Control center, preliminary infrared data received."

"The low-temperature zone is clearly defined with steep boundaries and an abnormal temperature gradient."

"We are conducting hyperspectral and synthetic aperture radar scans to obtain surface composition and micro-topographic data, and to rule out changes in surface structure."

"Received, data stream received."

The commander responded quickly, and when he looked up at the small area to the side of the command center, a dozen scholars who had been urgently assembled from various related fields had already begun their analysis.

"Give me a preliminary assessment of the damage!"

The commander gave the order, and just seconds later, a middle-aged man from the expert team, whose hair had completely fallen out, answered:

"The lowest temperature monitored in the core area was 63.15K, equivalent to -210 degrees Celsius."

"Absolute zero has not been reached!"

"understand!"

The moment this answer was uttered, everyone in the control center breathed a sigh of relief.

The bald man's reports continued.

"From the low-temperature core outwards, the influence of the low-temperature zone rapidly diminishes."

“零下210到零下150，半径15米；零下150到零下60，半径60米，零下60到0度，半径300米。”

"0 degrees to 20 degrees, radius 550 meters."

"Overall assessment indicates that the Z-01 low-temperature anomaly zone did not cause any substantial disaster."

"clear."

At this moment, everyone's hearts, which had been hanging in suspense, were finally completely put at ease.

Initially, when they received reports of the low-temperature zone, they thought it would be a disaster as severe and deadly as a large-scale thunderstorm.

They also thought that this cold zone would at least wipe out all life within the entire Z01 area town.

But now it seems.
It's all show and no substance, all bark and no bite.
The commander let out a heavy sigh of relief, and at that moment, the hyperspectral scan report from Qingluan had already been transmitted back.

No abnormalities were found.

"The topography and landforms have not changed, and the soil composition has not changed."

"A large number of active targets were detected on the ground, identified as local civilians."

"The low-temperature cloud cluster is dissipating. Should we continue reconnaissance? Please advise."

Upon receiving Qingluan's report, the commander pondered for a moment before replying:

"Raise altitude and conduct reconnaissance according to reconnaissance procedure two."

"Understood. Conduct the reconnaissance according to reconnaissance procedure two."

The pilot responded quickly.

On the large screen, the altitude reading next to the beacon representing Qingluan 76022 continued to climb, eventually settling at 30000.

The control center was back on track, and the commander stood up, walked to the back, and answered a phone call.

On the other end of the phone was Lin Xu, who was waiting for the latest report.

"Comrade Lin Xu, the reconnaissance of the low temperature anomaly zone Z01 has been completed."

"Based on the current situation, this abnormal low temperature phenomenon has not caused any substantial disaster, nor has it affected the construction site of the limiter array."

"The environment around the base is currently safe. Please decide whether personnel can return."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Xu's expression finally relaxed on the other end of the phone.

"What exactly happened? Has the physics team offered an explanation?"

"Still under analysis."

The commander replied:

"A detailed analysis report is expected to be available in 20 minutes, but based on the current preliminary analysis results, it is highly likely that the thermodynamic effect is caused by some kind of abnormal entropy reduction."

"This influence presents an irregular, one-dimensional, point-like distribution, with limited macroscopic impact; therefore..."

"Azure Phoenix 022 reporting!"

Before the commander could finish speaking, a slightly hurried voice suddenly came through the microphone in the control center.

He instinctively looked up, while the pilot continued his report:
"An area of ​​abnormally low temperature has been detected."

"Data coordinates have been uploaded."

"Coordinates of the low-temperature zone: 36.01121, -114.74201."

"Transition to investigation procedure one."

"To truly conduct wide-area multispectral scanning."

"Multispectral scanning complete, data transmitted."

As soon as he finished speaking, the commander quickly turned his gaze to the expert group on the other side, and the bald man reported the results again.

"The core temperature is -40 degrees Celsius, no risk."

"It's not risk-free!"

The pilot quickly interrupted the scholar's narration, then reported in an extremely tense tone and at a rapid pace:
"That's the Hoover Dam!" "I can already see large sections of the water freezing over!"

"Cracks have appeared in the dam!"

"This dam"

"I can't hold it anymore!"

Three minutes ago, downstream of Hoover Dam.

The Nevada sun relentlessly baked the Colorado River canyon, but on the bridge, gusts of cool wind from the abyss sent a chill through dozens of fifth-grade students.

"Children, look at your feet!"

Mr. Mike Reynolds, a tall and enthusiastic science teacher, spread his arms wide and his loud voice drowned out the roar from the bottom of the dam.

"You are standing atop an engineering marvel! Look over there—"

He pointed to the huge, curved wall in the distance.

"That's a concrete gravity arch dam. It uses its own weight and ingenious arch structure to transfer the enormous thrust of the entire Lake Mead behind it to the rock walls on both sides."

The students chattered excitedly as they leaned against the railing, gazing at the dizzying depths below and the azure lake in the distance.

"Professor Reynolds!"

A boy wearing glasses pointed to the brand-new bridge surface beneath his feet and asked:
"Why should we take this new bridge instead of the old route along the dam itself?"

"Good question, Ben!"

Reynolds nodded approvingly.

"This is one of the main points we're going to talk about today."

"Look, the bridge beneath our feet is another miracle in itself; it has solved the traffic bottleneck at the top of the dam."

"And the road to the dam itself, as you can see, is closed to heavy trucks and most of the public."

"This is mainly for counter-terrorism security and structural protection considerations—perhaps we shouldn't mention 'counter-terrorism' too early now, but let's just treat it as a story."

"Imagine if a truck loaded with dangerous goods had an accident on the top of the dam, or worse, if it were used as a weapon, the consequences would be unimaginable."

"Therefore, our government made the wise decision to allow the dam to focus on its core missions—power generation, flood control, and water supply—and to divert traffic functions to the more modern and safer bridge."

As soon as he finished speaking, the students in the line nodded in unison, and a cacophony of responses erupted instantly.

But this answer doesn't satisfy everyone.

A little girl named Lily, with a hint of unease on her face, asked softly:

"Teacher, is the dam itself safe? It's so old, won't it... collapse?"

Professor Reynolds laughed, a laugh full of confidence and scientific certainty.

He walked over to Lily, patted her thin shoulder, and then turned to all the students, speaking in his signature, most theatrical tone as a great professor:

"Collapse? Listen up, future scientists! The Hoover Dam is a monument to human will and wisdom!"

"It used 336 million cubic meters of concrete! Its base is thicker than two football fields side by side!"

"It is so sturdy, so powerful, I can even tell you—"

He paused, deliberately creating suspense, and only continued after seeing all the children's eyes widen:
"According to some declassified research reports, even during the most intense period of the Cold War, the military assessed that it could withstand all conventional attacks except for direct hits."

"Some people have even said that even using a tactical nuclear bomb might not be able to completely destroy it; at most, it would only leave a scar on its surface."

"Its structure is so dense and massive that destroying it would require the laws of physics to break down!"

His words carried an undeniable force, and the doubt on the children's faces was replaced by pride and amazement. Reynolds was pleased with the effect and was just about to continue his description of the downstream power plant.

At this moment——
Changes occur suddenly.

There was no warning, no loud noise.

The first thing you feel is the wind—the cool, damp breeze that was blowing upwards suddenly stopped.

The entire canyon fell into a deathly silence, as if the universe had pressed the mute button.

Immediately afterwards, a bone-chilling, indescribable cold spread from the depths of the dam beneath our feet. It wasn't the cold of winter, but a kind of... absolute zero that devoured all life and vitality.

“Teacher…?” Lily’s voice trembled as she pointed to the dam.

On the side of the dam facing the lake, a layer of ominous, glass-like, dark blue ice was visibly covering the massive wall and spreading rapidly.

The confidence on Reynolds' face froze instantly, turning into astonishment and disbelief.

"This is impossible……"

Then, the sound returned.

But it wasn't the roar of flowing water; it was a symphony from hell.

"Crack—Bang—"

A muffled, deafening roar, powerful enough to shatter internal organs, came from inside the dam.

That wasn't an explosion, but rather the deathly lament of millions of cubic meters of concrete instantly brittled and disintegrated at extremely low temperatures, like glass being struck.

The massive cracks, like black lightning, spread wildly across the dam surface, blasting the ice layer apart with internal forces, sending fragments flying everywhere.

"Get down! Everyone get down! Hold onto the railing!"

Reynolds's roar was drowned out by the increasingly loud sounds of the structure collapsing.

The real disaster has only just begun.

The lake water behind the dam, which was instantly frozen at absolute zero, experienced a terrifying phase change explosion.

The ice expanded rapidly, but was constrained by its still-fragmented structure, generating unimaginable pressure.

"boom!!!!!!!"

This time it was a real explosion.

The middle section of the dam, as if crushed from the inside by an invisible giant's hand, suddenly bulged upwards and then exploded.

Countless blocks of frozen concrete and ice shot into the sky like cannonballs, some of which crashed onto the bridge deck above them with a terrifying thud.

The gravitational potential energy of Lake Mead, a force that Professor Reynolds had just praised as a "miracle," now became the embodiment of destruction.

A murky wall of death, mixed with ice and gravel, gushed out from the breach; it was not water, but a solid shockwave.

It easily devoured the power plant, toppled the transmission towers, and rushed downstream with a thunderous roar.

The bridge was shaking violently, as if it would collapse at any moment. Children screamed and cried, clinging tightly to the ground or holding onto the railings.

The air was filled with concrete dust, water mist, and a cold, unfamiliar smell.

Professor Reynolds collapsed to his knees, his face deathly pale. His earlier confident pronouncements had been shattered by the calamity that defied the laws of physics.

He gazed at the massive dam, now a ruin and still crumbling, his lips trembling as he murmured to himself:
"Dam. Dam"

Above him, due to the failure of the supporting structure below and the impact of the blast shockwave, the bridge he had just praised, a symbol of modernization and safety, began to emit a tooth-grinding metallic twisting sound, the huge steel cables swayed wildly, and the bridge surface showed terrifying wave-like undulations.

The fear of death finally triggered Reynolds' adrenaline, and the next second, his brain became instantly clear, like a room with spiderwebs burned away by a raging fire.

still have a chance.

He rushed toward the school bus parked not far away and flung open the door.

Then, he shouted loudly to the students who followed closely behind:
"Run!"

"This bridge can still hold!"

"Kids! Get on the bus!!"

With the roar of the engine, the school bus sped off.

As he peered down, billions of cubic meters of lake water began to flow down into the Colorado River.

On the west side in the direction the river is flowing.

That city, gleaming with gold and brightly lit.
It went out instantly!

(End of this chapter)