I built an armada.

After a hearty meal and several rounds of tea, the guests had finished their meal and drinks.

The night was dark.

Su Dingping got up to take his leave at the opportune moment. Qin Baichuan and Guo Xueyun escorted him to the eaves of the heavy gate of the main house.

"Friend Su, have a safe journey. My words will always stand."

Qin Baichuan patted Su Dingping's arm solemnly once again.

Just as Su Dingping nodded and prepared to walk down the smooth granite steps to his car—

A breeze carrying the sweet, warm scent of lilies and tuberoses from the night garden swept by!
The space between Su Dingping and Guo Xueyun, which was normally open for conversation, was suddenly squeezed in by a delicate figure!

Qin Mingzhu slipped out like a light and swift white butterfly at some unknown time!
Almost without hesitation, with a resolute yet shameless air, she opened her arms and pounced on the unsuspecting Su Dingping!

Time seemed to stand still.

Su Dingping's body stiffened slightly due to his trained instincts, but he did not dodge in the end—he could feel the pure gratitude, impulse, and a kind of unadulterated intimacy unique to young people in this hug.

The hug was brief, lasting less than a second.

Her soft body pressed against his broad chest, and the sweet scent unique to young girls, along with the warmth of her hair, instantly filled Su Dingping's nostrils.

She could clearly hear the sudden, rapid heartbeat of the girl in her arms.

Qin Mingzhu seemed to have completed some extremely important ritual, releasing her grip with lightning speed and quickly stepping back to stand to the side.

Under the lights, her fair cheeks were flushed red like a fiery sunset, her eyes shimmering with a light that was both bold and pure, unlike anything she had ever seen before.

She didn't look at Su Dingping's reaction, but instead suddenly turned her head and stared directly, boldly, and without hesitation at Guo Xueyun, who was standing to the side, her body tensing instantly, and her eyes flashing with a sharp light!
Qin Mingzhu caught the sudden surge of alertness and invisible aura that belonged to a top-tier warrior.

But this usually gentle and proud heiress seemed to have had all the courage in her bones ignited by that hug.

She took a deep breath, raised her chin slightly, and looked directly into Guo Xueyun's unfathomable eyes, which were now filled with icy sharpness. Her voice was clear and crisp, carrying the frank and straightforward tone characteristic of a wealthy young lady—almost a declaration.

"Sister Xueyun!"

"If you hadn't met him earlier... I, Qin Mingzhu, would rather risk the entire Qin family than give him to you!"

The doors of the dark gray limousine slammed shut, shutting out the atmosphere of the Qin family mansion, which was filled with expensive floral scents and invisible gunpowder.

The night was as dark as ink, and the city lights reflected off the car windows, with dappled light flashing across the two faces inside the car, each lost in their own thoughts.

As soon as the car left the tree-lined road exclusive to the Qin residence, a chilling aura swept over from the driver's seat without any attempt to conceal it! Guo Xueyun's knuckles, gripping the steering wheel, turned bluish-white from the force, and she pressed the accelerator as if she wanted to crush the curb, the car engine emitting a suppressed roar.

Although she didn't say a word, the straight, almost stiff lines of her back, her taut jawline, and the sudden drop in temperature of ten degrees Celsius inside the car all indicated that Qin Mingzhu's blatant declaration of "war" was like a poisoned needle, precisely piercing the most sensitive nerve of the Dragon Heart Guard Chief.

Su Dingping sat in the back row, keenly sensing every unusual fluctuation in the airflow inside the carriage.

He straightened up from the slightly reclined back seat, looked through the front center rearview mirror at Guo Xueyun's eyes, which were shrouded in shadow, now filled with icy glints yet burning with flames, and his lips twitched almost imperceptibly.

This reaction is far more interesting than the most complex magnetic confinement equations he calculated?

Before he could even open his mouth to defuse the volatile tension, Guo Xueyun's words, as cold as Siberian permafrost, came crashing down on him, sharp and pointed directly at the back seat.

"This young lady from the Qin family is really quite impressive! She's risked the entire Qin family? Is she trying to poach me? Or do you think that 'revolutionary friendship' should be dampened by the enthusiasm of these rich young ladies?"

She glared at Su Dingping through the rearview mirror, her eyes burning with a mixture of resentment, unwillingness, and a fierce possessiveness. All pretense of modesty and dignity vanished in that instant, burned away by Qin Mingzhu's defiant declaration.

The air seemed to freeze for a few seconds.

"Snow Clouds".

Su Dingping's voice cut smoothly into the tense atmosphere, carrying a strange sense of calm.

He didn't defend himself, nor did he avoid the burning "feelings" that could almost ignite the carriage. Instead, he calmly and attentively met the fiery gaze in the rearview mirror.

"The security structure of Dragon Heart and the base, the outer barrier of the entire 'Dragon Star' project, the Qin family can indeed open up some corners that are difficult for us to reach."

He paused briefly, his tone carrying a resolute force and a hint of... reassurance.

“But for me, Su Dingping, this connection is a rope based purely on responsibility.”

He suddenly raised his voice, each word resounding like a refined alloy.

"To you, the chief security officer of the base and the sole executor of the highest authority, there is absolutely nothing to do with you except work. I assure you."

He implicitly included the eight words "revolutionary friendship is pure and flawless" in his resolute promise.

Guo Xueyun's tense shoulders suddenly relaxed slightly without her noticing.

The raging anger that had been stirred up by the inexplicable "invasion" of his territory was forcefully suppressed deep in his throat by Su Dingping's rational yet uniquely powerful assurance.

She bit her lip, took a deep breath of the cold night air, and finally let out a soft "humph" through her nose!

She let out a sigh, forcibly swallowing back the sudden "Qin family storm" that had almost caused her to lose control. She eased off the accelerator, the engine's roar gradually subsided, but the atmosphere inside the car remained heavy, like a hard stone that had just been forcibly pressed down.

Several hours later, dawn broke in the east. The massive Longxin integrated military industrial base resembled a steel behemoth just awakened from its slumber, its huge alloy gates sliding open heavily to welcome the "heart" that was returning to its nest.

When Su Dingping stood in the incredibly spacious, ultra-clean heavy equipment room deep within the base, with a dome high enough to accommodate rocket launches, the hustle and bustle and worldly entanglements that had been lingering in his mind for days were instantly washed away by the cool metallic aura.

His gaze, like a searchlight, was firmly fixed on the two “treasures” that stood like giant beasts in the center—treasures of extraordinary significance to him and to the entire materials industry of Longxia.

On the left stands a massive, rugged, and slightly dated 3D metal printer, still exuding a raw, industrial aesthetic. Adjoining it on the right is a smaller, yet incredibly precise, ultra-precision CNC five-axis machining center, its surface still bearing traces of wear and scratches.

Although covered in dust and bearing the distinctive Germanic tribal eagle emblem, the model number clearly reads "Retired D.L".

But in the eyes of all the engineers at this base, it was still a sacred object exuding an aura of "unreachable heights"!

"Wow... Look at the rigidity of this robotic arm!"

"Look at the seal of this spindle box!"
This is true industrial strength!

"Tsk tsk, look at the complexity of this control panel. The Germanic tribes truly live up to their reputation!"

A group of top engineers and equipment PhDs from the Longxin Base surrounded the two "treasures," carefully stroking their cool metal casings, their faces showing pilgrim-like amazement and undisguised self-consciousness.

The immense psychological burden of technological backwardness weighs heavily on the hearts of everyone who looks up to cutting-edge equipment.

Su Dingping's gaze swept over the engineers' faces, a mixture of admiration and frustration, but his eyes remained unmoved. He stepped forward, his palm calmly and firmly pressing down on a thick metal guide rail of the 3D printer, feeling the cold yet still solid structural strength.

He spoke, his voice not loud, but it echoed clearly in the vast, empty room, instantly silencing all the whispers and exclamations.

"The equipment is good equipment."

He first affirmed everyone's intuitive feelings.

"But everyone, we must be soberly aware of the gap."

He pointed to a welded and worn mark next to the printer's somewhat bulky printhead system, his eyes sharp as a scalpel.

"The combination of the nozzle's microchannel and sensor calibrator is one of the redundant designs that the Eagle Tribe's 'Falcon Project Group' discarded five years ago in the additive manufacturing of small missile engines."

His finger then moved to the expensive closed liquid cooling system of the CNC machining center next to him.

"While this cooling technology is ingenious, it also limits the potential for power increases, and the Germans have reached a dead end in their pursuit of ultimate precision."

With each point he pointed out, he precisely pinpointed a technical pain point or outdated design that was hidden behind appearances.

"To be honest, our Longxia tribe has made progress in the integration of underlying technologies for high-end equipment and the accumulation of core materials and processes."

He looked around, his gaze calm and powerful, without the slightest hint of shame about his shortcomings.

"Compared to those technologically advanced tribes that have been ahead for decades or even centuries, there is indeed a gap."

The admiration on the engineers' faces was gradually replaced by a heavy sense of acceptance.

That was the clarity and cruelty of facing a huge gap.

But just as this heavy silence was about to solidify, Su Dingping's voice suddenly rose, like a warhammer shattering ice, and carrying an unparalleled confidence that cut through chaos and saw into the future!

"Don't be afraid of gaps!"
This gap is the result of the path paved by our predecessors.

But we're not just going to follow behind and eat the dust!

His hand slammed down on the printer's cold metal frame with a loud clang! His aura instantly ignited like a nuclear reactor, unleashing an overwhelming and destructive force!

"I have absolute confidence!"

Su Dingping's voice echoed beneath the dome, each word carrying immense force, striking the deepest part of everyone present.

"Let's start with these two stepping stones! Demolish! Learn! Modify! Rebuild! Even start from scratch!"

His gaze was like lightning, sweeping over every face that looked up at him, carrying a raging force that swept everything away.

"Lead the entire Longxia tribe and cross this mountain!"

"Chase after them!"

"Then……"

His voice suddenly rose an octave, as if announcing an inevitable future—

"Completely crush it!!"

"Overtake! Overtake!!!"

Like throwing a red-hot iron into a still, simmering oil pan! Boom—!
Instantly! It exploded!
The brief silence was like a fuse burning out, followed by a volcanic eruption of fury! The humility and frustration in the eyes of all the engineers, all the elites of Longxia suppressed in the shadow of these two old machines, were crushed by this soaring vow of confidence! In its place was a fanatical fighting spirit that was completely ignited and could almost scorch the soul!
The faces that had been weary and frustrated from years of facing technological barriers were now flushed red, and their fists were clenched so tightly that their knuckles turned white!

"it is good!!"

"The chief designer is awesome!!"

"Fuck him!!"

"Charge with us!!"

A cacophony of rough, fervent shouts and excited whistles instantly engulfed the entire heavy equipment room! The massive dome seemed to resonate! The blood of the dragon's heart boiled!
The boiling passion was quickly cooled and solidified by precise commands! What stunned everyone and filled them with immense anxiety, like their hearts were about to stop, happened—Su Dingping did not immediately initiate the plan to create the core vacuum chamber for nuclear fusion!

The first thing he did almost made all the engineers' eyes pop out of their sockets!
"Engineer He! Take a team and disassemble this printer! Be careful! Label and seal every small part with a shockproof box!"

"Dr. Chen! You lead another team! Deal with this CNC machine! Take photos of the original main circuit diagram and keep records! Disassemble and measure the entire spindle gearbox structure! Record the exact location of every single screw!"

Su Dingping's commands were like a precise robotic arm, clear and efficient, yet swift as lightning.

"It's...it's been demolished?!"

Engineer He's jaw almost dropped to his name tag, and his lips trembled.

"Chief...Chief Engineer!"

These... these are the only two high-end machines we acquired at great expense! If we take them apart, we might not be able to put them back together..."

"That's right! What if we damage the core? How are we going to build the core chamber then?!"

Dr. Chen's face also turned pale.

"If we don't dismantle it, how will we know where the true essence and weakness lie!"

Su Dingping picked up an Allen wrench with practiced ease, and walked over to the massive 3D printer.

"Action! Execute the order!"

That unquestionable authority instantly overwhelmed all hesitation.

For the next seven days and seven nights, the lights in the ultra-clean heavy equipment room of the Dragon Heart Base never went out! Under breathtaking precision, the two machines, representing the top industrial capabilities of the Germanic tribes, were completely disassembled into tens of thousands of parts, which were then categorized, sealed, recorded, and mapped.

The entire project was like a massive surgical operation, meticulous to an extreme degree.

Every component and every process is recorded without any blind spots by high-definition cameras and multi-angle scanning.

Disassembly, mapping, discussion, verification... the deeper they went, the more shocked the engineers became, until finally they were all numb with disbelief.

For the first time, they saw directly that beneath that seemingly exquisite outer shell, within those tightly sealed core components, sat densely packed clusters of wafers and integrated chips! (End of Chapter)