As the spacecraft landed, three astronauts from the Flame Country quickly emerged, each grabbing their tools and getting busy.
The time for the meteorite to pass through the lunar orbit was extremely limited. To utilize the Moon’s gravitational influence to push the meteorite off its collision course, they had to race against the clock.
Watching the astronauts in their bulky spacesuits busily working on the meteorite’s surface through the spacecraft’s camera feed on the screen, Chen Xin silently cheered them on.
This was unlike the Federation team, who disappeared without a word after heading down. The Flame Country’s team had a continuous livestream, so the progress of the project could be seen at a glance.
With the TV commentary explaining the scene, viewers didn’t even need to watch; they could listen and know the progress, how far the astronauts had gotten, and how much was left to complete.
Compared to the Federation team, who had to drill holes into the meteorite, the task for the Flame Country team was somewhat easier. Although they also had to drill holes, theirs were merely bolt holes for securing the propellants and not several hundred meters deep like the Federation’s.
So, even though there were more holes to drill, the diligent efforts of the three astronauts completed the job quickly.
Seeing that they had finished drilling, Chen Xin, like everyone else watching the livestream in front of their TVs, got excited. Even the TV host’s excited narration came through: "Great! All the bolt holes are done! Now the astronauts just need to install the bolts and they can finish the ground tasks, return to the spacecraft, and activate the propellant to push the meteorite!"
Hearing this, Chen Xin couldn’t help but stand up, watching as the three astronauts, with their thick gloved hands, clumsily installed the bolts. He almost wished he could reach out and help them screw in the bolts.
But with a distance of 380,000 kilometers, even if Chen Xin’s hand could reach into the screen, it wouldn’t suffice, so he watched anxiously.
Fortunately, the astronauts had anticipated the bolt installation issue before setting out, equipping themselves with professional electric tools that could tighten a bolt in a second. With three people working together, all the bolts were screwed in under the watch of six billion people worldwide.
Seeing that the astronauts had completed all the ground tasks, the chief commander at the mission control, excitedly grabbed the microphone and shouted at the astronauts: "Return to the spacecraft immediately, start the propellant! Don’t worry about that pile of junk on the ground!"
When the screen switched to the gray-haired chief commander in the mission control, Chen Xin found it hard to imagine that this old expert could be so excited, making one worry about his heart condition.
But the chief commander’s excitement was understandable. Even Chen Xin couldn’t help but shout at the astronauts to ignore the tools on the ground, get on the spacecraft immediately, and start the propellant to leave.
Compared to tidying up the tools on the ground, every second the astronauts boarded the spacecraft earlier meant starting the propellant earlier, pushing the meteorite off its collision course earlier, and saving the Blue Planet earlier.
Under the grand premise of saving the Blue Planet, the Federation had already blown up a billion-dollar spacecraft, let alone some tools.
The astronauts immediately executed the chief commander’s order, only checking if the bolts on the ground were properly installed before quickly returning to the spacecraft and, under the watch of six billion people worldwide, activated the propellant.
As the tail flames of the specially customized propellant for this mission erupted violently, the spacecraft the astronauts were on separated from the propellant and quickly ignited, lifting off the meteorite’s surface.
The Federation team could use the blast waves from a nuclear explosion to clear away surface debris when leaving the meteorite. The Flame Country’s team, lacking nuclear explosives, naturally couldn’t enjoy such a convenience.
But the heavy propellant they installed on the meteorite was not far behind the effect of a nuclear explosion in clearing debris. Although it couldn’t instantly blow away all the debris on the meteorite’s surface, the continuous spray of the propellant’s tail flame opened a gap in the surface debris flow.
Through the opening created by the propellant’s tail flame, the Flame Country’s spacecraft successfully left the meteorite’s surface, returned to space, and rendezvoused with the Federation’s Endeavor, embarking on the journey back to the Blue Planet together.
As the spacecraft from both the Flame Country and Federation returned, the meteorite also dislocated under the propellant’s thrust and the Moon’s gravitational influence.
"Thanks to the tireless efforts and heroic sacrifices of astronauts from the Flame Country and Federation, the massive meteorite hurtling toward the Blue Planet is now being gradually pushed off its collision course. According to scientists’ predictions, the meteorite will be completely removed from the collision path within hours, passing by the Blue Planet in the following days. The threat of humanity’s annihilation has been averted!"
As the female TV host’s voice rose in a jubilant cry, Chen Xin also couldn’t help but shout loudly. Although it meant all his preparations were in vain, if he could avoid a meteorite impact on the Blue Planet, ensuring life under the sun continued, he’d rather all his efforts be for nothing.
Screaming loudly until his throat was hoarse and he needed water, Chen Xin finally calmed down.
But as Chen Xin calmed down, he realized a key point subtly overlooked by the TV station, that the meteorite had already broken into two pieces. The Flame Country team had installed a propellant on the larger piece moving it, but there was no mention of the smaller piece being pushed away as well!
Thinking of this, Chen Xin hurried to his computer, checking the latest information. The TV was also on as he switched channels, hoping for any updates on the meteorite.
However, the TV was full of mirth and laughter as if the crisis had been resolved. Everyone was optimistic, and the reporting relaxed, much to Chen Yu’s disappointment as he wanted to hear any critical information.
Thankfully, he could still find some information online, and others were raising the same question as Chen Xin: Would the smaller piece of the meteorite hit the Blue Planet?
For this question, someone online provided a well-reasoned answer: "The Lucia will blast it into fragments with a nuclear bomb."