Don't go to the moon, there are gods on the far side of the moon.

Wen Zhaolin looked at the sun-blocking bag and suddenly remembered how Lin Wangchuan used to wrap the most dangerous things up like old tools. He used to think it was shabby, but now he was speechless.

Before the archivist entered, she took off her name tag and handed it to Qin Lan. She said that if the contents inside could find people by their names, then it shouldn't touch the tag yet. Qin Lan didn't say it was superstition; she simply put the name tag in a light-proof bag and wrote on the record: "I am voluntarily reducing my exposure so as not to affect identity verification."

The toolbox flashlight lit up briefly.

【major.】

Upon hearing this, the archivist's tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

When Wen Qingyue heard that Lao Zhou was going to enter the warehouse, she unusually refrained from mocking him, only ordering the removal of all the electronic screens outside the dark warehouse. She said that Lin Wangchuan had stipulated that nothing that automatically lit up could be within ten meters of the entrance. Wen Zhaolin remained silent for a long time before admitting that he had once thought this rule was outdated. Now it seemed that outdated things were lifesavers.

Before entering the warehouse, Lao Zhou refused excessive pain relief, only telling Chen Rui to put his phone away and not to take pictures at the entrance. Chen Rui wanted to go in for him, but Lao Zhou stopped him with a single sentence: "Can you touch Braille or screws?" Just before entering, Lao Zhou lowered his voice and instructed again: "If you're scared, stand outside. If something happens, remember to pull someone away. Don't take videos." Qin Lan remembered this sentence, and it became the first rule for field work at the lightless warehouse.

"Disconnect everything."

Qin Lan's order came almost simultaneously with the alarm.

The DreamNet observer area, Tianheng private channel, Deep Space Divine Court observation interface, solar sail control console—all non-essential interfaces were layered and disconnected from the network. The main control cabin lights dimmed, and backup power took over, as if someone had forcibly pulled the entire space city out of an invisible net.

The text did not disappear immediately.

[Request to review the external files.]

It remained in the center of the screen, without flashing, urging, or displaying a countdown.

The more this is the case, the more chilling it becomes.

Older systems always love commands, judgments, and forcing users into choices. But this line only says "request." It's as if your agreement or disagreement is irrelevant; it's just politely placing a glance at the doorway.

Xu Wangshu looked at it and said, "No response."

Wen Zhaolin immediately nodded: "Yes, no response."

Lu Chenggong glanced at him.

"Your agreement makes me uneasy."

Wen Zhaolin was not angry.

"Because this thing is different from the old Heavenly Court. The old Heavenly Court required permissions, interfaces, and legitimacy. The Outer Shell Files require 'viewing.' Once you respond, it may treat the responder as an object of observation."

Qin Lan asked, "How did Lin Wangchuan handle it back then?"

Wen Zhaolin closed his eyes briefly.

"He sealed that file in a dark archive."

What is a "no-light library"?

"Tianheng's early deep isolation chambers had no cameras, no wireless signals, and no automatic retrieval. All files were stored using Braille dots and mechanical locks, and at least two people were required to read them, and they were not allowed to speak the contents of the files inside the chamber."

Lu Chenggong laughed upon hearing this.

"So, the most advanced commercial space corporation is surviving by blindfolded groping around?"

Wen Zhaolin looked at him, his voice hoarse.

"Some things, the more light you give them, the more they know where you are."

The toolbox flashlight lit up briefly.

[Dad did a good job.]

Xu Wangshu said softly, "Don't get emotional."

[State the facts.]

Xiaoman suddenly looked up: "Then why is the cabinet door now in the dream network?"

This is the most critical problem.

The Tianheng Lightless Library is physically isolated, while the Dream Network is Lin Xiaoman's superficial listening platform. There is no modern network connection between the two. But last night she saw that eye outside the door, and today the old files seem to have been pushed to the end of the white corridor by something following the shadow of her records.

It wasn't Tianheng who sent the files over.

The archives are searching for the last eye that saw its kind.

Xiaoman's face gradually turned pale.

"Is it mistaking me for a door?"

Two sudden knocks came from the toolbox.

【no. 】

The flashlight is on again.

You are a human being.

Xu Wangshu continued, "Lin Jibai is right. It can only leave an image through your dream network, which doesn't mean you are the door. We don't accept its definition."

Xiaoman gripped the blanket tightly and nodded.

Qin Lan began to formulate a new plan.

"If the data library is not connected to the network and the files cannot be moved, we will send someone to the site to read it blindly. After reading it, we will repeat it in human language onto the offline paper, and then the review team will organize it."

Wen Zhaolin immediately said, "I'll go."

"No way." Xu Wangshu refused quickly. "You know that old files have too many keywords, making it easy for them to use old knowledge to hook back into them."

Lu Chenggong leaned back in the medical chair: "Me??"

"Your eyes have just been targeted by the sun's arrow; don't give anything outside the shell a second target."

Lu Chengong clicked his tongue.

Xiaoman was even less likely to go. Lin Jibai was now just a toolbox. Finally, Qin Lan's gaze fell on a name.

"Zhou Jianguo".

There was a moment of silence in the main control room.

Old Zhou had just finished bandaging his hand when he was suddenly connected to a voice call. He thought it was another call to verify his cigarette debt.

"Boss, two packs of cigarettes can wait, your hand still hurts."

Qin Lan finished explaining the situation.

Old Zhou remained silent for a few seconds.

"Does that mean you can't look at that library, you can only touch it?"

"Yes."

"Can't I read it out inside?"

"Yes."

Old Zhou hissed.

"Then you're really suited to come to me. I used to repair old display cases by feeling the screws with my hands, and my eyesight is failing me."

Chen Rui, standing nearby, became anxious: "Master, your hands are burned like this!"

"My left hand is burned, but I can still touch it with my right hand." Old Zhou paused, then asked, "Is it dangerous?"

No one spoke.

Old Zhou understood.

He sighed, "Overtime pay will have to be calculated separately."

The toolbox flashlight is on.

I'll pay you back with the cigarettes I owe you.

Old Zhou immediately cursed, "Don't you dare try to use my cigarettes as a favor!"

The tense main control cabin was brought to a slight sense of life by this rebuke.

The plan was quickly finalized: Lao Zhou and a blind document archivist would enter the Tianheng Lightless Library; Wen Zhaolin would only provide the mechanical lock sequence and would not enter the library; Xu Wangshu would remotely formulate the reading rules; Qin Lan would record the personnel status throughout the process; Lin Xiaoman would no longer connect to the Dream Network and would only rest on the real side; Lin Jibai would not be allowed to actively tap the words on the shell.

The last one was written by Xu Wangshu himself.

The toolbox remained silent for half a minute before its light came on.

【Know.】

Two hours later, the external view of Tianheng Lightless Storage was transmitted.

It was a heavy, black door without any electronic screens, its surface rough, like a single piece of burnt stone. Wen Qingyue stood outside the door, his face even colder than the night before.

"I will only open it once."

Qin Lan said, "The records will be made public."

Wen Qingyue looked at the camera.

"It's good to make it public. Let you know that Lin Wangchuan wasn't afraid of Wen Zhaolin, nor was he afraid of me back then."

The mechanical lock opens section by section.

There were no lights inside the dark door.

Old Zhou walked in carrying a probe without a light source, the archivist following behind. Before the door closed, he turned back and called out.

"Lin Jibai, come back and give me back my cigarettes."

I tapped the toolbox.

【Wait for you.】

The door closed.

External monitoring showed only two vital signs remaining.

One minute.

three minutes.

Seven minutes.

At the ninth minute, the archivist's heart rate suddenly spiked.

Old Zhou's voice came through the wired channel outside the lightless storage room, and it was kept very low.

"I touched it."

Qin Lan asked, "What did you touch?"

Old Zhou didn't answer the question; he only described the status according to the rules.

"There's no paper in the cabinet."

He paused.

"It's the eyelid."