"This…"
As the platform descended, Hope realized that what lay beneath her feet was not ordinary ground, but an elevator. When the floor lowered to a certain depth, a protective shield automatically formed above their heads.
When the blue light along the shield completed a full rotation, it signified that the secondary detection barrier had been fully activated.
Immediately afterward, the elevator suddenly accelerated.
It was like a particle of light sinking into a vast ocean—from shallow waters into the abyss, from brightness into dimness, and finally into complete darkness.
At that moment, the transparent "tube walls" of the elevator began to emit light, illuminating the deep sea along their path.
Looking outward filled one with both fear and exhilaration.
"What is this? It's incredible!" Hope exclaimed, both delighted and frightened.
Seeing his daughter's reaction, old Pym smiled proudly. For a man, creating miracles was the greatest sense of fulfillment.
And this underwater city…
Had been built by Xu Dan.
Although Xu Dan was the primary creator, old Pym had also contributed. With enough confidence, he could consider himself one of its founders.
Being able to show his daughter such a miracle of the human world filled his wrinkled face with a radiant smile.
"That young man is truly extraordinary," Janet praised as well. She had witnessed even more astonishing phenomena in the Quantum Realm, so this deep-sea elevator did not shock her as much. But she was still human, and when she had entered the Quantum Realm, Earth's technology had been far less advanced. Being able to construct such a passage was undoubtedly a monumental achievement.
However, hearing his wife praise another man made old Pym uncomfortable.
"I contributed a lot too," he said defensively. "Without me, it would've taken him at least a year and a half… Well, at least three months to build the underwater city."
"Mhm. You're amazing too," Janet replied with a smile.
Old Pym nodded with satisfaction.
"No, Dad," Hope suddenly asked, "what material is this tube made of? The deeper we go, the greater the pressure. Can it really withstand it? Have you measured it?"
"Glass," old Pym replied.
"Glass? My God! You're really bold. How can glass withstand deep-sea pressure? Forget water pressure—even a passing deep-sea creature could crush it!"
Old Pym smiled faintly.
"Super-strength glass. As for the exact strength data, your little brain probably wouldn't understand. But you can think of it as the strongest material in the world."
"That's impossible. There's no way Earth can produce glass strong enough to resist deep-sea pressure, no matter how advanced it is."
"I had the same belief at first," old Pym admitted. "But Xu Dan's methods completely overturned my understanding."
He sighed.
No one would believe it without seeing it firsthand.
Back then, he had even made a wager with Xu Dan. If he lost, he would follow Xu Dan's lead without objection.
The result?
When the shrunken crystal city was restored to its original size, the seemingly fragile glass not only withstood the immense deep-sea pressure, it also emitted a powerful counterforce that stabilized the entire structure.
He had always believed himself to stand at the pinnacle of science. Even Howard Stark—revered as a genius of that era—had not impressed him much.
But when he met Xu Dan, he realized…
He himself was the ignorant one.
He had personally seen the underwater city during its early construction phase at the Antarctic Military Industries branch in northwest China.
At first, he thought Xu Dan had built the independent city to transport it into the desert as an oasis.
But the world had misunderstood Xu Dan.
His goal was never a desert oasis.
He wanted to build an underwater city.
As for the materials used—even old Pym himself could not fully comprehend them.
He had once believed such glass could not exist on Earth.
Yet the truth stood before him.
One could not deny reality simply by refusing to acknowledge it.
The elevator continued descending into deeper waters.
Though they should have been surrounded by darkness, the environment was growing brighter.
Hope frowned slightly and gazed into the distance.
There, shimmering in the abyss, was a radiant city of starlight.
Under its glow, the three of them could see deep-sea creatures of all shapes swimming around them.
These creatures, normally hidden in eternal darkness, displayed strange and fascinating forms.
Some were grotesque.
Some were beautiful.
Some were enormous leviathans.
Yet whenever they approached the illuminated zone, they recoiled instantly, fleeing like startled lightning.
"Is that the underwater city?" Hope asked excitedly.
Old Pym shook his head calmly.
"That's just a reception station, child."
"A reception station?" Hope's heart surged with shock.
If a reception station already resembled a shining star, what would the true underwater city look like?
Would it be like the moon itself?
Would observing it feel like humanity gazing upon the stars from Earth?
"Dad… what does the real underwater city look like?" Hope asked, unable to suppress her curiosity.
Old Pym explained patiently:
"The city follows an octagonal layout. From the central hub extend three concentric rings. Each ring contains eight subsidiary cities. Every city is connected by high-speed transit tubes. Beyond the third ring lies the reception stations."
"When we enter the reception station, you'll realize you've stepped into an entirely new world."
"No," Hope whispered, her voice trembling with awe. "I already feel like I've entered a new world."
Old Pym shook his head.
"It's too early to say that. When you truly enter the underwater city, you'll witness a miracle born from the perfect fusion of Chinese engineering and Xu Dan's technology."
"It is a marvel unprecedented in human history."
"Even the legendary lost ancient cities—no matter how beautifully writers describe them—would not equal even one ten-thousandth of this underwater city."
"Dad… isn't that exaggerating a bit?" Hope asked skeptically.
"Have you ever known your father to lie?"
Hope thought about it.
Her father was famously stubborn—unyielding as titanium alloy.
He was the very embodiment of an uncompromising man of science.
And besides—
If he exaggerated before his daughter, only for reality to fall short, he would lose his dignity as a father.
-----------------------
Completed English PDF of this fan-fic on my Patreon shop if you want to support and own the full fan-fic in one go. Just grab the PDF and binge the entire story from start to finish!
Guys, I've uploaded some High Quality english translated fanfic on my Patreon shop! Feel free to check it out-if you're interested, you can grab a copy and support me there.
Here are a few titles of recently uploaded fanfics:
New Addition
" A Certain Marvel Legend's Life "
" Marvel: FBI Bureau First Mission Persuading Harley Quinn "
" Marvel: Godhood Cultivation System "
" Marvel: Sign In at the Start to Obtain Megatron "
" Marvel: Starting as the Prince of Asgard "
" Marvel: Omniscient and Omnipotent — Growing Stronger by Watching Battles "
" Marvel: Cultivating Swallowed Star Techniques, Shocking the Avengers "
" Master of Souls in the Marvel Universe "
" Marvel: The Supernova "
" Marvel: Sign In at the Start to Obtain Chibaku Tensei "
" Marvel becomes a knight starting from Drive "
" The Marvel Universe in Meiman I Opened a Supermarket "
" Marvel: I Control Dreams in the World "
many more are available 115+
Your support means a lot-thanks in advance, legends!
patreon.com/SuperTL
(End of Chapter)