Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system, and since ancient times, it has been endowed with many special mythological connotations. In ancient China, it was called the "Fire Star," while in the Roman era, it was known as Mars, the god of war...
As the spacecraft approached, the crimson planet, about one-seventh the size of Earth, came into view, dotted with patches of green.
This was a desert planet with extremely scarce water resources, buried deep underground in the form of ice layers. Initially, it was a barren wasteland.
Later, humanity ventured beyond Earth and began colonizing the solar system. The first step onto Mars was taken by collecting water resources from asteroids, Saturn's moon Titan, Pluto, and other celestial bodies, eventually transforming it into a living planet.
Breaking through Mars' wind-ravaged atmosphere, the spacecraft officially entered the planet. High in the sky, dust storms raged, pounding against the cabin glass with a deafening roar—far more violent than the high-altitude winds on Earth.
Feng Lin felt his body sink as the spacecraft began a rapid descent.
In the distance, he saw a towering mountain, its middle sheared off to form a flat stone platform, upon which stood rows of buildings.
Mars Stone Platform City!
The spacecraft soon landed, and Feng Lin stepped out.
Whoosh—!!
A gust of yellow sand swept over him, choking his mouth full of grit and nearly clogging his nose.
Cough, cough...
Feng Lin spat out the sand in frustration, looking around.
Unlike Earth's architecture, which featured towering skyscrapers brimming with high-tech flair, Mars' cities had few residential buildings. Instead, they were filled with windmills standing about a hundred meters tall, their blades spinning furiously in the raging winds like speeding wheels. There were so many of them that it looked like a forest of windmills.
There were few pedestrians on the ground. Occasionally, passersby wore headscarves covering their faces, giving off an exotic vibe.
But this wasn't for show.
Mars' air was too dry, with sandstorms blowing year-round, leading to this specific attire designed to shield the mouth and nose.
Sure enough, Feng Lin, not wearing such clothing, walked along the street for a while and felt waves of sand and dust hitting his face. Not only were his mouth and nose nearly clogged, but his entire body was covered in grime, making him look like a mud figure.
Cough, cough, cough...
Feng Lin coughed repeatedly, shaking himself, and dust scattered everywhere like sand.
He wore a pained expression. This was too much—was the PM2.5 index nearly breaking 1000?
Seeing the newcomer's misfortune, the Martian natives exchanged knowing smiles.
The surface was no place to linger. Feng Lin hurried his steps and quickly entered the underground city of Stone Platform City.
Yes! An underground city.
Earth, humanity's home planet, was a life-sustaining world teeming with countless species. Its environment was excellent, so human architecture naturally rose into towering skyscrapers.
Mars, however, was entirely different. With its harsh environment, howling winds, and raging sandstorms, the surface was utterly unfit for habitation.
Thus, instead of building upward, the city was constructed downward.
The main part of the city lay underground—that was the true residential area. The surface was filled with wind turbines, harnessing Mars' abundant wind energy to provide clean, continuous power to the underground city.
Feng Lin found an entrance to the underground city, resembling a subway station, and descended rapidly via an elevator.
Before he knew it, he had gone down over two hundred levels, deep into the crust.
Stepping out, Feng Lin found himself in a vast, spacious area. The underground had been completely hollowed out, forming a magnificent subterranean city.
Though it was an enclosed space, it wasn't stuffy—clearly, there was an air circulation system.
An artificial sun at the top of the space emitted sunlight-like radiance, bright but not glaring, illuminating the city without any dimness.
Everything seemed ordinary, yet it showcased the advanced technology of interstellar civilization.
Just then, a message popped up on Feng Lin's identity chip: "Feng Lin, citizen of Earth's Huaxia City, welcome to Mars' Stone Platform City..."
The underground city's core management optical brain had identified Feng Lin's identity and sent a welcome message, along with an introduction to the city's basic information.
With a simple tap, Feng Lin could learn the general layout of Stone Platform City, leaving him with no sense of unfamiliarity.
He opened the map and entered the keyword "Giant Pharmaceuticals" to search. Soon, he found the company's location.
As a newcomer, he had no time to explore the Martian underground city. He decided to head straight to the company for onboarding and save sightseeing for later.
Giant Pharmaceuticals was located in a remote area. After taking a Martian-specific underground tunnel train for twenty minutes, Feng Lin got off and saw a peculiar beehive-like structure built against the underground wall, prominently marked with the words "Giant Pharmaceuticals."
The Giant Pharmaceuticals building was riddled with beehive-like tunnel entrances, with magnetic levitation cars constantly entering and exiting like worker bees.
Feng Lin walked toward the main entrance.
A squad of intelligent robot security guards spotted him and approached, their electronic eyes scanning Feng Lin from head to toe, as if trying to see through him.
The beam guns in their hands were no toys—if Feng Lin made any suspicious move, he'd be riddled with holes.
"Giant Pharmaceuticals is private property. Stranger, state your purpose!" the lead robot guard said in an electronic voice.
"I'm a recruited intern geneticist, here to report for duty!" Feng Lin replied, using his identity chip to display his acceptance letter.
After scanning it, the robot guard's electronic eyes turned from red to green, and they immediately stepped aside to clear the path. "Welcome, new employee Feng Lin!"
Feng Lin nodded and walked inside.
As soon as he entered the building, a seductive blonde woman greeted him with a smile. "Feng Lin, we meet again!"
"It's you!" Feng Lin was startled to see her—it was the alluring woman from the virtual interview.
He hadn't expected her to keep her appearance unchanged in the virtual universe; in person, she was just as captivating.
"I'm Isabella, the HR manager at Giant Pharmaceuticals. This is our second meeting. It's late today, so the company has arranged a room for you. Settle in first! Tomorrow, I'll take you to familiarize yourself with the various departments, then send you to your workplace!" the blonde Isabella said with a charming smile.
"Alright!" After six hours of long-distance travel, Feng Lin was indeed a bit tired. He followed her into the Giant Pharmaceuticals building and entered a room made entirely of metal, exuding a high-tech vibe.
"Coming to Giant Pharmaceuticals, I'm sure you won't be disappointed!" After arranging Feng Lin's accommodation, Isabella gave a light, seductive smile, turned, and walked away with a graceful, swaying gait.
Feng Lin's expression remained calm, noncommittal, as he stepped into the room.
Gene potions were, after all, a hugely profitable industry!
There was no denying that Giant Pharmaceuticals was filthy rich. The room was as luxurious as a palace, stocked with various high-grade nutrient fluids for replenishing energy. The spacious room had no buttons—all devices were fully remote-controlled.
Feng Lin picked up the room's control hub and suddenly noticed the words "Gene Master Tutorial" on it.
He tapped it, and a holographic projection appeared in the middle of the room, displaying various options.
At the very top was the first option: "Gene Master Schools."