Everything was ready, and work on the Number One Tunnel soon began. Since the gunpowder needed for the project had not yet arrived, they temporarily adopted the Fire-quenching Method to break and excavate the rocks.
The modified excavator was the first to drive forward. Its long mechanical arm rose high, and the alloy-steel air hammer at the very front was precisely pressed against the white line drawn on the rock wall. After the operator in the cab saw that the air hammer was aimed at its target, he immediately stepped on an air-valve switch beneath his feet.
High-pressure air from the Air Compressor rapidly surged into the air hammer, and a burst of thudding explosions immediately rang out ahead.
The alloy-steel air hammer pounded the rock continuously at a rate of five or six times per second. For a moment, fragments flew everywhere before the rock wall, with small chunks constantly being knocked loose. In just ten seconds, it had chiseled a basin-sized hollow into the rock wall ahead.
Everyone present gained confidence at the sight.
They had known before that this thing could be used to excavate rock, but no one had ever seen its true results. Now that they had witnessed the scene with their own eyes and seen the Rock Drill's efficiency, everyone immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Digging a tunnel didn't seem all that difficult after all?!
Seeing that it was working, the driver pushed the handle again, controlling the mechanical arm as it extended forward. Once the arm had been braced firmly, he pressed the air-valve switch beneath his feet again. Another burst of thudding noise rang out, and the hollow that had just been chiseled went twenty centimeters deeper. Its efficiency was simply terrifying.
Just then, the driver suddenly stuck his head out