CHAPTER 567: CHAPTER 465: 16 CANNON BLASTS

The fact proves that strict patrol and security measures are necessary.

Outside the testing site, patrolling soldiers once again discovered Lucia agents attempting to sneak into the test area.

However, their luck was obviously not as good as Oleg and his men; they were caught by fully armed patrol soldiers and taken directly to the Mobile Base before the test even began.

"Send them to the base and hand them over to the Lucia officials. The test is about to start, and there’s no time to interrogate them. This is not the place to leave them," Chen Xin observed the captured Lucia agents and the Commander, who finally felt vindicated, and signaled him to hand them over to the Lucia officials directly.

The test is about to begin, and the Mobile Base will be covered by the microwave exposure from the Weather Controller.

They’re wearing specially-made Protective Suits which pose no problem, but these Lucia agents, although layered thickly to resist the cold, had no protective measures.

Being exposed to microwaves wouldn’t matter unless something happened, which would be akin to putting fresh eggs in a microwave, so they definitely had to be sent away.

Chen Xin was strongly eager to test the effect of the Weather Controller’s microwave exposure but wasn’t so mad as to experiment on live humans.

As for interrogating them, Chen Xin had no idle time for that. They were merely there to spy on the test – what other purpose could they have? Even if there was more, the Lucia officials could be asked to properly interrogate them, sparing him the trouble.

The Commander left as ordered, handing the captured Lucia agents to the helicopter to be taken away and continued to instruct the soldiers to conduct tight patrols.

Meanwhile, the experiment was already counting down to begin.

"All ship prepare! Get ready for artillery firing!" In the command room, despite having experienced it once before, the Captain was still highly tense, his demeanor taut with seriousness.

This time the artillery firing would involve the consecutive launching of sixteen shells, and even supplementary firing is possible depending on the situation, posing a new challenge for all members of the Mobile Base.

They had undergone artillery firing training before, and fired shells formally during the last test, but shooting sixteen consecutive rounds is completely different from a single shot.

Consecutive rapid firing requires adjustment of the firing position for each shot, presenting a big challenge for both the artillery and the gunners, as these are not anti-aircraft guns designed for continuous firing like machine guns.

"Academician, artillery is prepared, ready to fire, please give the command!" Just like last time, after completing the preparation for firing, the Captain reported to Chen Xin.

"Standby for now." Chen Xin nodded, picking up the nearby communicator to contact the base, "How’s the preparation of the Weather Controller?"

"Report, Academician, the Weather Controller has completed 90% of the charging, all preparation work is done, ready to begin the test anytime!" The message from the base was equally optimistic, as they were all familiar with what needed to be prepared after two tests.

Hearing this report from the base, Chen Xin nodded satisfyingly and therefore said into the communicator, "Start the test!"

Following Chen Xin’s command, the base and Mobile Base started operating instantly, while Chen Xin moved to the observation window in the command room, from where the turret on the deck could be clearly seen.

In the last test, due to firing only one shell and the explosion location being far from the Mobile Base, Chen Xin did not see the firing visuals; this time, he wanted to see the spectacle of shell firing with his own eyes.

Chen Xin didn’t have to wait long; the turret on the deck soon began to move, and then with a command from the Captain, the 130mm caliber ship gun roared to life.

Shells shot out of the nozzle like streaks of lightning and exploded in the sky in an instant, accompanied by thunder-like sounds.

Even though the observation window and command room were well sound-proofed, standing by the window, Chen Xin still felt the astonishing commotion of the 130mm caliber ship gun firing.

The sixteen consecutive shots, heard from afar, sounded like sixteen fireworks bursts, but watching the shells fire up close, the echo in the ears was sixteen resounding thunders in the sky.

Looking at the sixteen streaks of fire that flashed before his eyes, feeling the sudden blaze leaving red marks on his retinas, Chen Xin looked up at the spot where the shells exploded above.

Although not very clear, when the later-fired shells exploded, the flash still allowed Chen Xin to see the chemical agents dispersing like fog in the sky.

This made Chen Xin excited and anticipating, hoping that this test could be a complete success.

"Academician, the base is about to activate the machine for microwave exposure, please quickly put on your Protective Suit!" Chen Xin wasn’t wearing a Protective Suit; now the Captain, already enveloped in his thick, special Protective Suit, urged Chen Xin, worrying he intended to personally verify the effect of the Weather Controller’s microwave exposure.

Hearing the Captain’s urging, Chen Xin tapped his wrist, and his original clothes instantly transformed into Nano Armor, covering his whole body, even obscuring his face behind a thick visor.

With Nano Armor on, Chen Xin’s voice became somewhat muffled, as if speaking from inside a metal can, but still, he gazed at the sky outside and asked the Captain, "Has the projection started?"

"Not yet," the Captain checked the electronic clock in the command room and replied to Chen Xin, "This time, we need to wait until the chemical agents in the sky are fully dispersed, reaching the maximum diffusion range, before starting the microwave projection, so there are still a few minutes."

Chen Xin nodded, switched the visual mode of the Nano Armor, and through the helmet’s display interface, he could clearly see the situation in the sky and the surrounding temperature changes.

"I hope this test can be perfectly successful," Chen Xin murmured, his mood inevitably tense.

This time, unlike before when it merely increased temperature and wind, the goal was to essentially change the weather, making rain fall in the test area.

To achieve this goal, it was undoubtedly much more challenging than the previous two tests.

Even Chen Xin could only hope for the test’s success, as this Weather Controller upgrade was not a result of system black technology, but the staff’s diligent effort.

Not even Chen Xin knew if the test would be successful this time.

This hope and tension were experiences he had never had before, giving Chen Xin a brand-new feeling.

Taking a deep breath, Chen Xin silently estimated the time, and in a matter of minutes, the microwave projection from the Weather Controller enveloped the entire test area.