The broadcast played over and over.
Yet the only sound in the cafeteria was chopsticks tapping against trays. Everyone seemed to feel as though they were on the eve of marching off to war.
Lu Renjia ate with his head lowered, chewing one mouthful of rice for a long time.
He was no hero.
He was just an ordinary worker in Tianshu Underground City.
Before the cataclysm, he had repaired elevators in a surface city. Later, he had moved into the Underground City with his family and been assigned to work in the Seventh Industrial District.
He used to think the work was rather dull.
Every day, he sat at his workstation, facing robotic arms, circuit boards, sealing rings, and testing instruments, repeating a single motion hundreds of times.
But things were different now.
He suddenly understood that every sensor he installed might eventually go into a robot's body.
That robot might go to Antarctica to block a Space Wormhole that suddenly appeared somewhere.
Every extra minute it held out meant a little less danger for the Underground City.
Halfway through the meal, Lu Renjia's personal Terminal vibrated.
He looked down.
[Emergency notice from the Seventh Industrial District:] [Effective at midnight today, the former Civilian Machinery Maintenance Team Three will be incorporated into the Third-Order Combat Robot core assembly line.] [All leave is canceled. All personnel will operate on a four-team, three-shift rotation.] [Estimated duration per shift: ten hours.] [Please report to your posts before 23:00 tonight.]
Lu Renjia fell silent for a few seconds and frowned slightly. Third-Order robots? What was going on?
Li Mei saw the notice too and asked,
"You're leaving tonight?"
Compared with the unfamiliar term "Third Order," she was more concerned about her husband's working hours.
Lu Renjia nodded.
"Yes. I have to