I built an armada.

"I'm fine, Xueyun. You're exhausted too, go back to sleep."

Su Dingping lay on the bed, looking at Guo Xueyun's bloodshot eyes, and felt a pang of guilt.

Guo Xueyun stubbornly shook her head and tucked the blanket around him.

"Stop talking nonsense! I'll leave once you fall asleep. Close your eyes now!"

Her voice carried a forced fierceness, yet it couldn't conceal her deep concern.

Su Dingping was indeed utterly exhausted. Looking at Guo Xueyun's profile, which was full of fatigue yet still beautiful, under the soft light of the bedside lamp, a warm current surged in his heart, but at the same time, the feeling of exhaustion quickly swallowed him up like an endless darkness.

Before he could even say another word, his heavy eyelids closed against his will, and his consciousness instantly slipped into a blurry, chaotic state.

As Guo Xueyun watched Su Dingping's breathing gradually become long and steady, and his tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally felt a little relieved.

The intense pressure of the past few days and the worry of taking care of Su Dingping had already left her at her limit. Once her tense nerves relaxed, a strong sense of drowsiness would follow her like a shadow.

She had intended to sit and wait for Su Dingping to fall asleep before leaving, but before she knew it, her head tilted to the side and she dozed off on the edge of the bed. Her breathing gradually became shallow and even, clearly indicating that she was extremely tired.

After an unknown amount of time, Su Dingping unconsciously stirred in his deep sleep. A strange sense of clarity, like a cold stream, abruptly pierced the depths of his dream, waking him. The moment his consciousness returned, the first thing he felt was an unexpected weight on his body—his arm seemed to be gently supported by something warm and soft.

He suddenly opened his eyes. What came into view was Guo Xueyun's peaceful sleeping face.

She was probably exhausted, and somehow she fell asleep with her head resting on the edge of the bed, half of her face unconsciously pressed against his arm, a few soft strands of hair falling across her forehead and cheeks.

The warm yellow light from the bedside lamp gently enveloped her, completely shedding her usual capable and efficient demeanor, leaving only an unguarded tranquility.

Su Dingping's heart felt as if it had been unexpectedly and gently bumped, and a warm current mixed with heartache, pity and indescribable tenderness surged in his chest.

For the sake of "Dragon Star," and so that the light of that artificial sun could one day illuminate this land, he gave his all, almost squeezing out his last bit of energy. And the girl in front of him, who was also burning herself out with all her might, silently regarded him as her heaviest burden and her softest support.

Guilt gripped me like a vine.

He moved his body carefully and extremely slowly, trying not to disturb the person sleeping in his arms.

He turned to the side, extending his other unrestrained hand with a gentle touch, as if caressing the most delicate instrument component. He lightly wrapped his hand around Guo Xueyun's shoulder and back, with a force that was both irresistible and infinitely precious. With a slight effort, he gently and steadily carried her entire body onto the not-so-spacious bed.

This action finally alerted Guo Xueyun.

She groaned softly in her daze, her long eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings, as if she were about to wake up, and her body stiffened for a moment.

However, perhaps it was the comforting scent emanating from Su Dingping, or perhaps her exhausted body instinctively craved that warmth, but she ultimately did not fully wake up.

She simply curled up slightly, as if she had found a more comfortable position. Her arm, which had been resting on the edge of the bed, unconsciously pulled inward, and her forehead gently rested against his neck. Her light, warm breath brushed against Su Dingping's skin, and then she fell into a deep sleep again.

Time seemed to stand still at that moment. Only two intertwined, even breaths remained in the dormitory.

Feeling the real and warm weight in his arms, and smelling the familiar fragrance of Guo Xueyun, a scent that was unique to him and mixed with the faint smell of disinfectant and engine oil from the laboratory, an unprecedented calm and tranquility enveloped Su Dingping, instantly soothing all the anxiety, fatigue, and tension he had been feeling lately.

He silently lowered his head, his gaze lingering tenderly on her peaceful sleeping face for a moment, and a very slight, warm smile unconsciously appeared on his lips.

That's fine.

This rare tenderness, like the purest energy, refilled my parched body.

Su Dingping quietly closed his eyes, his spirit absorbing restful energy from his body while surging towards a more wondrous and profound realm. His consciousness subsided, instantly piercing through the barriers of reality and descending directly into a mysterious realm that belonged only to him—the Forging Space!
The moment Su Dingping's consciousness sank into the forging space, the surrounding reality receded like the tide.

This is the absolute realm of his thoughts, a wondrous kingdom that transcends the constraints of physical laws.

In the vast emptiness, only his will surged, like a creator god. Wherever his thoughts reached, matter began to be constructed and condensed from the most basic particle level, eventually transforming into concrete forms.

His gaze first fell upon the enormous atlas suspended deep within space, woven from countless threads of light and runes—a treasure trove recording the wisdom of civilizations on Earth and perhaps even further back. Certain pages of the atlas shone with a soft yet certain light, revealing unlocked realms of knowledge.

Dragon Scale Formula, Plasma Turbulence Constraint Model, Original Architecture of Candle Dragon AI... while many more areas remain shrouded in deep mist, as if countless secrets are dormant.

Su Dingping's thoughts gently swept over the two silent areas on the illustration.

In the first area, several ancient seal characters clearly emerge.

"Superconducting rare earth purification system." Below it, a countdown timer for unlocking is displayed, with cold, hard blue fluorescent numbers flowing across it.

[265 days].

He could vaguely sense the key technological nodes involved.

"Three-phase rare earth extraction centrifuge" - a device that can forcibly remove impurities at the molecular level, with an efficiency 100 times greater than current Blue Star equipment; "Low-temperature superconducting extraction solution" - a special composite solvent that can achieve the directional capture of pure rare earth elements in a specific superconducting field environment.

The second area appears even more grand and complex.

"Foundation for Near-Earth Orbit and Deep Space Platform Construction." Countdown to unlocking.

[10 years and 67 days].

The blueprint hidden there involves improvements to rocket engine fusion propulsion, miniaturized high-energy-density nuclear batteries, and... the ultimate form of satellite array technology—enough to build information sensing network nodes for the future sky!
Time is the only, and most cruel, limiter here. The forging space can materialize knowledge, allowing him to simulate and deduce it thousands of times in his mind, and granting him almost unlimited "practice" time to hone his skills, but it cannot shorten the unlocking process of knowledge itself out of thin air.

"265 days...almost nine months to go."

Su Dingping silently recited the words to himself, his brows furrowed.

The South Heavenly Gate Project, a grand vision that embodies the Longxia tribe's ambition to dominate the future space frontier and build a Great Wall in outer space, has long been etched into his soul and is now right after the stellarator!
The skies of Earth are about to be illuminated, but the true battlefield that will determine the fate of the next century lies in the boundless sea of ​​stars. Space orbits will become the new gateways, the electromagnetic spectrum the weapons of war, and satellite networks the eyes and ears of dominance. Without reliable space power, nothing can be achieved.

No matter how bright the light ignited by "Dragon Star" is, it will eventually become fish on someone else's chopping board.

We must establish Longxia's aerospace outposts before the Eagle Tribe truly extends its reach beyond near-Earth orbit! The superconducting rare earth system that can be unlocked in these 265 days is a crucial link in the basic industrial platform of the Southern Heavenly Gate Project.

As for the decade-long aerospace technology, just thinking about it made Su Dingping feel a burning anxiety in his heart.

"We can't wait, but we must wait, and we need to be quick!"

This obsession was like a brand, deeply ingrained in the depths of his consciousness.

Suppressing his urgency for the distant star journey, Su Dingping focused his mind and returned to the most pressing battlefield at hand—the "Dragon Star" stellarator!

My thoughts surged instantly!

There were no floating blueprints, no commands issued. It was purely an instinctive calling and a highly condensed will to create the blueprint!
This space of consciousness suddenly shifted.

As if the particle soup at the beginning of the universe was suddenly ignited, countless basic particles emitting pale blue or incandescent white light, like the shock wave after a supernova explosion, under the control of an invisible and magnificent will, with a sharp, hissing sound like metal being torn apart and reassembled, surged, collided, entangled, and condensed at a speed exceeding the speed of light!
The entire space was roaring, and visible spatial ripples burst forth from its core. Amidst the dazzling light, the outline of a colossal creature was being "woven" out at a speed visible to the naked eye!
First came the twisted, nebula-like skeleton. Alloy beams, as thick as the ribs of a prehistoric behemoth, materialized out of thin air, interlocking and emitting a deafening clang! clang! clang!

The sound of metal clashing and riveting.

Then there's the outer shell—those "dragon scale" composite panels that shimmer with a strange silvery-white luster and have a liquid metal-like sheen flowing across their surface, each piece attached to the skeleton with the precision of a master craftsman's hammer, fitting together seamlessly.

Each contact created a ripple of silvery-white space, emitting a deep "hum" sound.

Ming.

A colossal device, sixteen meters tall and majestic like a mountain, stands at the center of the forging space!

It is no longer the empty shell that needs to be welded and pieced together by countless workers in reality, but a dazzling and naturally formed steel artwork.

The spiral's main structure is full of indescribable mathematical beauty, like a solidified, collapsing singularity of gravity; yet, on its cold metal shell, it presents a life-like, supple rhythm.

It stands quietly, exuding not the physical texture of materials, but a majesty unique to a pure "perfect structure" that touches the limits of physical rules!

The outer shell of "Dragon Star" is complete!
Immediately afterwards, the focus of the space shifted to the iconic component that represented the culmination of Su Dingping's more than a month of hard work—the "heart" of the stellarator.

The same particle frenzy has reappeared, but this time it is more subtle and more complex! If the construction of the outer shell is like a master craftsman wielding a giant hammer to strike the stars, then the birth of the core components is like a fairy using moonlight to embroider the Milky Way on a nanoscale.

Countless microscopic particles, invisible to the naked eye, precisely outline a complex and dizzying internal structure.

"Three-dimensional tortuous magnetic confinement coil array, complete!"

An invisible giant hand coiled and shaped a superconducting copper wire, as thick as a child's arm, shimmering with a deep purple metallic sheen, and covered with mysterious spirals, with a precision beyond human imagination!
The twist angle and spatial curvature of each coil perfectly replicate the design drawings, and the coil assembly itself forms a miniature topological force field that can restrain violent energy.

"Implant the 'Candle Dragon' main control crystal core array!"

A core processor module, composed of countless tiny, dust-like, ethereal blue crystals, silently embedded itself into a pre-reserved slot in the center of the structure. The instant the crystals made contact with the module, a continuous, ethereal blue light flowed, as if a dormant brain had been infused with consciousness, faintly radiating the glow of data.

"Active liquid helium cooling circuit, be laid!"

Transparent as crystal, yet flowing with a chilling, timeless network of pipes, like intricate capillaries, instantly spreads along a pre-designed path, filling every corner of the core components. Silvery-white liquid helium flows silently within the closed loop of pipes, emanating a misty, biting cold.

"Plasma injection channel, melting and casting!"

A vital passage leading to the "battlefield" has been formed, its material shimmering with a molten star-like luster, its inner walls so smooth they reflect the soul.

...Every system was constructed precisely, efficiently, and without any delays under the supreme power of the laws of space!

Finally, the core component of the stellarator, which is about five meters in diameter, nearly three meters high, and so intricately complex that it is dazzling to behold, was carefully "lifted up" by an invisible force.

The magnificent spiral shell of "Dragon Star" seemed to resonate with it, and the main chamber, which had already been opened, was like a warm nest, waiting for its "heart" to return.

"Dock!"

Su Dingping's consciousness issued the command.

hum...

The core components slowly sank and were embedded.

Countless pipelines, energy pathways, and data flow channels waiting at the interface automatically, precisely, and silently completed billions of connections.

Like a precise mortise and tenon joint finding its mortise, like a steel body being connected to blood vessels and nerves.

That perfect fit was absolutely flawless! There was no redundancy whatsoever, no friction whatsoever.

At this moment, the entire "Dragon Star" seemed to emit a satisfied hum! Radiance flowed, forming a seamless whole!
The colossal steel structure, sixteen meters tall, stands silently in the virtual core, like an ancient deity dormant, about to ignite a star.

Su Dingping took a deep breath, focused intently, and prepared to issue the most important simulation command—"Ignition! Maintain the reaction!"

He wanted to see what the limits were of this artwork, which embodied his wisdom beyond its time, under perfect spatial conditions. How long could it operate stably? Could it ignite that controlled stellar fire?

Consciousness focused, the command is about to be issued—

"Om..."

A violent tremor, not originating from the forging space, forcibly tore at his consciousness!

Immediately afterwards, a voice filled with anxiety pierced the boundary between virtual and reality, exploding in his ears like a thunderclap.

"Director! Director Su! Wake up! Something's happened! At the military factory..."

The voice was so real, with a raw, realistic quality, completely different from the ethereal quality of the space! It was Wanlong! (End of Chapter)