I built an armada.

He paused, then stated the deadline, a deadline that, even if anticipated, was heavy enough.

"Even the most optimistic estimate is that it will take more than two months."

"Two months?!"

A low gasp of cold air rose from the preparation room!
This will take too long! There are too many variables!

The overall ignition plan for "Dragon Star" cannot wait!

Jiang Tianzheng's forehead veins throbbed.

"So... we can only stare at this pit and do nothing? Two months... that time will be wasted for nothing..."

"Just wait?"

Su Dingping's lips were pressed into a cold, hard line, and there was not a trace of dejection in his eyes. Instead, a more fierce and imposing fighting spirit burned in his eyes!
"The ignition of the 'Dragon Star' cannot be stopped! The parallel assembly of other components cannot wait either!"
At this time.

He turned around abruptly, looking around at the faces filled with both hope and deep worry.

"We must tackle an even tougher challenge and capture another 'granary'!"

He stared at the glaring red void at the core and slowly uttered two words, each word carrying the weight of a thousand pounds.

"resource."

"resource?"

Jiang Tianzheng and several key members were stunned.

"Build 'Dragon Star,' ignite it, sustain it, develop the subsequent 'South Heavenly Gate' plan, and even build a future star fleet..."

Su Dingping spoke slowly, each word carrying a penetrating clarity and warning.

"What is needed? Steel? Electricity? Manpower?"

He shook his head, extended a finger, and precisely pointed to the underlying material flowing deep within the 3D image—the material that constitutes the most basic core magnetic materials, superconducting materials, and even those tiny but crucial electronic components.

"They are those extremely rare elements buried underground! They are praseodymium, neodymium, samarium, europium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium... they are high-purity zirconium, rhenium, ruthenium... they are those rare isotopes that cost millions of dollars per kilogram!"

His voice was as cold as iron, directly addressing the most acute pain point of the Longxia tribe.

"Our most fundamental weakness right now is not in software design, not in precision manufacturing, and we are not afraid of having our blueprints blocked!"

"The problem is that although we have a treasure trove beneath our feet, we can't extract the gold we need!"

Su Dingping's gaze was like a cold torch, scorching the hearts of everyone who realized the seriousness of the problem.

"We are at the mercy of others for 90% of the high-end, high-value-added rare earth elements and key isotope raw materials! We rely on occasional breakthroughs in the blockade, like a windfall! We rely on the charity of our opponents!"

"The batch that Tang Ping got."

Su Dingping's eyes were cold and stern.

"For 'Longxing,' it's a lifeline, but for our country's overall strategic development, it's like giving a thirsty person a small sip of water! 'Longxing' needs a batch to ignite, but what about large-scale mass production and designing the next generation? The 'Nantianmen' project needs a massive amount of supporting materials to open that door!"

Without an independent, efficient, and self-reliant source of resources, we will forever be locked in the shackles of others' resources, like begging on our knees!

He slammed his hand on the control panel, making a dull thud.

"So, while this 'vacuum chamber' is forced to wait, let's go mining! Let's set up our 'smelting furnace' and forge the sharpest spears! Let's solve the fatal bottleneck of raw material supply!"

“But…Director.”

A key researcher in materials science couldn't help but speak up, his voice filled with worry.

"Rare earth extraction, especially high-purity, directional separation of special isotopes through hydrometallurgy and ion exchange technology... is a completely different world from high-energy physics and precision magnetocontrol! The specialization is too high, the barriers to entry are too great! We..."

"If there's no road, we'll forge a bloody path!"

Su Dingping interrupted him decisively.

"Wanlong, prepare the car! To the East Garden Small Building!"

He turned to Jiang Tianzheng and gave instructions.

"Old Jiang, before the vacuum chamber equipment arrives, you will be in charge of coordinating all the assembly progress here! We've encountered some critical technical challenges that we can't solve for the time being."

He pointed to the red encrypted dedicated line next to the light screen, which was flashing communication signals.

"Handle it according to the contingency plan or keep it on file, and wait for me to come back! Do everything you can to ensure that the manufacturing of the core coil, magnetic control system, and energy transmission loop will not fail!"

In the quiet of the night, in the small building of Dongyuan, the study room that is always lit up.

Mr. Li and Mr. Hong sat facing each other on a large mahogany sofa. The teapot in front of them had been refilled several times, and the tea soup had become weak.

Old Li's white brows were furrowed, and his fingers unconsciously rubbed a smooth, delicate dent on the armrest.

Old Hong stared at the encrypted briefing that had just been delivered to the coffee table, still smelling of ink. The thin few pages recorded the details of the thrilling attempted assassination in the city center a few hours earlier.

The footsteps outside the door were steady yet hurried.

squeak-

The heavy oak door was pushed open, and Su Dingping's tall figure walked in, bringing with him the cool outdoor air.

His expression was calm and composed, showing no trace of the lingering fear from his brush with death.

"Dingping! Sit down quickly!"

Old Li immediately straightened up, his eyes filled with a mixture of relief and undisguised worry. He quickly looked Su Dingping up and down, and his worry deepened when he saw the small bandage on Su's forehead.

"Is the injury... serious?"

"Minor abrasions, skin and flesh wounds, nothing serious."

Su Dingping sat down on the sofa to the side, without any pleasantries or even glancing at the water, and went straight to the point.

"Mr. Li, Mr. Hong. The manufacturing of vacuum chambers is currently facing a bottleneck due to the import of high-end equipment. The estimated time window is about two months."

“I know that.”

Old Li's expression was solemn.

“A confidential insider from Mingzhu just came to report on the situation and explained their strategy.”

That old fox Qin Baichuan is really going all out this time, fighting on the front lines.

"This time cannot be wasted."

Su Dingping's eyes were as sharp as unsheathed military knives under the soft light.

"I will use this 'vacuum period' to resolve another, more deadly chain that is stuck in our throats!"

"You mean..." Old Hong's cloudy but sharp eyes also focused on him.

Rare earth elements! Resources!

Su Dingping's voice was resolute.

"The 'Dragon Star' consumables are essential for the future 'South Heaven Gate' project, and we cannot be dependent on others! What we lack is not minerals! What we lack is the means to efficiently, cheaply, and with high purity extract those strategic treasures from ore slag! The Longxia tribe's current technology in this area lags behind international advanced levels by at least a decade at key junctures!"

He leaned forward slightly, his expression conveying an unwavering determination to overcome the challenge.

"I'm going to Xijiang! To overcome the technical barriers to high-purity rare earth extraction from the Longxia tribe!"

Old Li and Old Hong quickly exchanged a deep glance. There was no surprise, only a shared understanding of expected decisiveness and a ruthless determination ignited by being cornered!
"it is good!"

Old Li slapped the armrest of the sofa, stood up abruptly, and a long-lost, resolute flame ignited in his cloudy eyes.

"This festering sore should have been punctured long ago! Being held hostage by resources is too humiliating! Old Hong!"

"understand!"

Old Hong immediately got up, walked to the red encrypted communication station in the corner of the study, and skillfully turned several heavy, blunt knobs.

After a brief buzzing sound of the current switching on.

"Xijiang Comprehensive Research Institute! Encrypted channel direct connection! Connect me to the highest-ranking official, Xu Bingxian!"

***

Xijiang Prefecture, in the heart of Southwest China.

The rolling, dark green mountains are shrouded in thick clouds and mist year-round, and the air is filled with a unique, moist, and slightly earthy scent.

This area is one of the important hinterlands of China's rare earth resources.

Deep in the mountain valley, the industrial areas are sparsely lit and filled with the dull smell of large chemical enterprises, a mixture of sulfur and metal.

The Xijiang Comprehensive Research Institute, a five-story gray-white office building, is inconspicuous among the vast industrial clusters nestled in the mountains.

The director's office, however, was filled with an oppressive, restless atmosphere.

Xu Bingxian stubbed out his cigarette in the ceramic jar, which was already overflowing with ash.

His face was somewhat loose and droopy, with deep nasolabial folds, exuding an air of stubbornness stemming from years of hard work in a small field, a solid foundation, but also a narrow perspective.

He looked irritably at the encrypted official letter on the table that had just been sent through expedited channels—"Notice on Receiving the Su Dingping Technical Exchange Group of Longxin Laboratory and Fully Cooperating with Their Work."

"Shit!"

Xu Bingxian couldn't help but mutter a curse under his breath, his voice hoarse and thick with accent.

"Military experts? Longxin Laboratory? They work on missile nuclear power? They've come to this remote corner to research hydrometallurgy and ion exchange cells?"

He felt a stifling sense of being belittled, even insulted.

"I've been working on rare earth purification for six years! I was the one who tackled the Xijiang No. 1 line back then! The distribution of ore veins, acid and alkaline environment, reactor control... every drop of finished ionic liquid wasn't the result of our hard work and dedication. What does a greenhorn who works on war machines know about panning for gold in the mud?"

He knows it perfectly well.

This level of mandatory notification meant that someone above was treating this kid like a "god," and no matter how unhappy Xu Bingxian was, he had to obediently play the role of "receiving the emperor"! Frustration, resentment, and an instinctive resistance to "outsiders," especially "cross-disciplinary geniuses," interfering in his life surged within him.

Frustrated, he dialed the internal line.

"Hey! Old Wang from the office! Quickly get someone to clean the main conference room and the physics lab on the third floor, east side, which has its own testing station! Also, urgently purchase a brand new set of office equipment! The standard should be... the highest reception standard! Oh, and by the way, prepare accommodation as expert apartment suites, find new and good ones! Also..."

He lowered his voice, his tone carrying a hint of warning.

"All research groups in the institute, for any small projects you're working on or any research reports that aren't particularly sensitive to data, hurry up and produce a decent report for me! Our precious 'military representative' needs to see it!"

boom!
He hung up the phone in frustration, feeling an even heavier tightness in his chest.

"Cooperate?"

He grabbed the enamel mug on the table and took another swig of strong tea, a barely perceptible sneer playing on his lips, carrying the arrogance that comes from years of cultivating a place.

"Then let's cooperate properly! Let this young 'national treasure' see what it means to be a complete novice in a completely different field!"

He stared at the official document with the red header, a hostile glint flashing in the depths of his cloudy eyes.

At night, the oppressive and murky air of the Xijiang Research Institute and Xu Bingxian's underlying resistance were temporarily left behind in the shadow of the towering mountains.

Su Dingping sat alone on a simple bed in the specially equipped dormitory of the "Longxin No. 2" laboratory, with only the outlines of a few equally silent expert buildings outside the window.

It was very late at night, and the whole building was so quiet that it seemed as if even the air had stopped moving. Only the sound of his own heartbeat resonated in his ears.

The heavy pressure from the vacuum chamber, the overwhelming sense of isolation and technological barriers from the Xijiang Research Institute, and Xu Bingxian's forced smile during the day, with suspicion hidden deep in his eyes... He forcibly suppressed all his chaotic thoughts, as if pressing an invisible switch in his mind.

Close your eyes.

next second.

"Om-!"

A sudden, overwhelming feeling of sinking consciousness washed over me! It was like falling into a layer of ice floes in the deep sea!
When the feeling of weightlessness subsided, my feet touched the hard, cold foundation, and suddenly the view opened up before me!

A massive "forging space" filled with countless three-dimensional data streams and strange energy filaments!
The core of the massive "Dragon Star" stellarator, which sleeps like the Earth's core—the ultimate target surrounded by countless loop coils and magnetic field structures—still quietly floats in the center of space!
It is not ignited and has not yet achieved substantiality; it is merely an extreme structural simulation accurate to every single atom.

Without hesitation.

Su Dingping stretched out his arm, fingers spread, as if pressing an invisible button that carried the rules of the universe—

[Core Reactor Module]!
【start up!】

The chilling command, imbued with unparalleled determination, pierced the core of space!
boom--!!!
A roar that seemed to burst forth from the very origin of the universe, exceeding the limits of human hearing!

It wasn't a physical explosion, but a terrifying "sound" of pure energy erupting at the level of laws! The stable spacetime structure of the forging space, which simulated physical constants, instantly rippled with violent vibrations! Like a supernova being thrown into a calm lake!

Countless blinding white lights! Like billions of molten swords, they violently erupted from the core of the massive stellarator structure, from the depths of the "furnace" composed of layers of superconducting confinement magnetic fields and magnetized plasma flow!

Light!

A pure, destructive light, representing the initial moment of fusion, powerful enough to tear everything apart! It instantly filled Su Dingping's entire field of vision!

That terrifying incandescence even momentarily stripped him of his perception of space!

The light was filled with unimaginable heat and pure, furious energy! It seemed to want to completely annihilate the entire forging space, along with his consciousness!

Su Dingping's body shook violently on a conscious level! His thoughts seemed to be torn apart by the violent light and heat! Every simulated nerve was enduring excruciating pain, as if he had been thrown into a furnace!
He gritted his teeth and refused to back down! His eyes, peering through the gaps in the destructive incandescent light, frantically "locked onto" the internal state of the simulated core reaction area!
It didn't collapse!

There was no uncontrolled meltdown or instantaneous energy collapse as expected!

That represented a torrent of core data—deuterium and tritium ions confined, accelerated, and collided within an extreme magnetic field—like trillions of raging light snakes frantically colliding, annihilating, and regenerating on a predetermined trajectory! The light was terrifyingly blinding, but… (End of Chapter)