Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2644 Opening Up a New Frontier (Third Update, Please Subscribe)

colony!
This is precisely Li Yi'an's idea: to turn space into colonies. After stating his thoughts, he added:
"People often say that the colonial era is over, and they even criticize it as a human sin, completely ignoring the role the colonial era played in advancing human civilization—in science and technology. It was precisely the exploration and demands of the colonial era that changed human society and reshaped modern civilization."

Li Yi'an's voice sounded somewhat somber, and he continued:
In 1877, Cecil John Rhodes wrote: "The world has been almost completely divided up, and the rest is being divided up, conquered and colonized."

"It's a pity we can't reach the stars that twinkle above us at night! If I could, I would devour them: I often think of this. Seeing them so bright yet so far away only makes my heart ache."

To some extent, Li Yi'an found himself in a kind of spiritual resonance with Cecil John Rhodes, a resonance of the desire to conquer the unknown world.

As he spoke, his gaze drifted into the distance, and he continued:

“We live in an era full of possibilities. Technological possibilities mean that we are not like Rhodes, who could only look up at the stars. We have the technology and the ability to conquer those planets and colonize them—that is the space I yearn for!”

He paused, then spoke in plain language:

"After the Soviets sent artificial satellites into space, the space race began. Subsequently, the US and the USSR began to fight fiercely for the honor of the space race, while we went down a different path. In my opinion, this was not the end—the great age of space exploration had begun."

Nodding slightly, Yuan Jialiu recalled the past, when Li Yi'an had described the "Age of Exploration" to him when he wanted him to take charge of the Space Exploration Technology Company.

“Zhiyuan, just as you said back then—we missed the Age of Exploration on Earth, so now we must seize the Age of Exploration in Space. We must not only be the pioneers of this era, but also the victors. This is what our company has always pursued, and it is also the core value of space exploration.”

Li Yi'an nodded slightly, a hint of smugness on his face.

How could he not be pleased?

After all, everything originated from his imagination and planning, and of course... all of this required assistance from various aspects such as technology and funding.

Technology and funding are one aspect, while the rate of return is another. In fact, in the 21st century, humanity already possesses the technology and funding to build space cities; the only problem is the return!

But the discovery of the "Lunaticon" crystal changed everything, transforming space exploration from a money-burning endeavor into a profitable investment.

And the return on investment is extremely high!

After a slight pause, Li Yi'an looked at the planning map and said:

"A mere space race and technology demonstration is meaningless. The key is to enable humanity to truly establish itself in space, and even achieve colonization."

He paused, then emphasized his words, saying:
"And the foundation of all this, I believe, is industry—space heavy industry. This is also the core of the space city concept. Without industry and production, how can a space city survive?"

"Yes, Zhiyuan!"

Yuan Jialiu couldn't help but lean forward slightly, his voice filled with barely suppressed excitement.

"This is the core issue: establishing a space industry system is not just about maintaining the operation of the space city, but about conquering space. Only with a space industry system can humanity truly enter the space age."

He paused, then added clearly and logically:
"In this process, the moon is the most important link - silicon, titanium, iron, magnesium and aluminum are everywhere on the moon. A large number of high-value mineral veins have been discovered on our lunar territory. With industrial raw materials, we have the premise for industrial production. We can obtain industrial production resources on the moon and completely break through energy limitations."

"You're right! So, a lunar base is the first step in conquering space."

Li Yi'an leaned back in his chair, his hands gripping the armrests, his expression becoming more serious.

"Moreover, from a technological perspective, we will manufacture more advanced industrial robots in the future, which will replace a large number of human workers. This makes large-scale production on the moon and in space possible—robots can operate without oxygen, while humans only need to perform control work within the base."

From an environmental perspective, the future Earth should only retain environmentally friendly industries, and all heavy industries should be moved to space.

He changed the subject, looking at Yuan Jialiu and said:
"Of course, this is just a vision, a plan, and it won't be easy to make it a reality."

"It may take a long time. I think it will be around the time the new century arrives."

Yuan Jialiu, who was prepared in advance, said:
"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. The complexity of this space industry far exceeds that of terrestrial industry, and no link in the chain can afford to go wrong."

The company plans to initially use its lunar base as a base to complete the verification of all core technologies in a small factory.

As always, Yuan Jialiu remained extremely pragmatic, and so were his plans—bold yet not reckless. "After all, from a practical standpoint, any space development must proceed steadily step by step, without being impatient for quick results. And the biggest difference between us and NASA and the Soviet space agency lies precisely in this pragmatic development orientation—all our explorations are not for empty fame, but for the survival and development of mankind in space."

"Very good, being pragmatic is the key."

Li Yi'an raised his hand to signal Yuan Jialiu to continue, and then asked:

"How can we ensure energy supply for the space industry? If all equipment and energy rely on transportation from Earth, the costs will likely be too high to sustain."

Yuan Jialiu replied:

"This is precisely the core advantage of space development—unlimited power."

He then explained:
"Early space energy was mainly solar energy. Whether on the moon or in space, there is no atmosphere or cloud cover to block it, the intensity of solar radiation is more than twice that of Earth, and there is no interference from extreme weather. Solar panels can generate electricity continuously and efficiently around the clock."

He paused for a moment and then stated the premise of this plan.

"Moreover, the moon has abundant silicon resources, which can be used to produce solar panels on-site, completely eliminating the high cost of transportation from Earth and achieving energy self-sufficiency."

Li Yi'an nodded slightly, picked up a pen, wrote "solar energy" and "silicon" in his notebook, then underlined them, and said:

“Using local resources and generating electricity locally makes perfect sense and forms a closed loop. So, with a stable energy source, what are the long-term plans?”

"Zhiyuan, the next step is the most crucial one. With a stable energy source, we can establish an integrated system of 'mining-benefiting-smelting' to produce metals such as aluminum, titanium, and iron on a large scale."

These space-produced metals can not only be used to expand space bases, but also to build various facilities, such as controlled nuclear fusion reactors!

With a slightly stronger tone, Yuan Jialiu continued:

"The most promising path to controlled nuclear fusion currently requires extremely strong magnetic fields exceeding 10 Tesla to confine plasma at hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius. The best way to generate such a strong magnetic field is to use superconducting magnets—which have zero resistance and can carry huge currents without generating heat. Currently, low-temperature superconducting materials are used on Earth, requiring complex liquid helium cooling systems, which are close to -269°C."

The cosmic background temperature of space is only -270.3°C, making it a natural, free "super refrigerator." Theoretically, all known superconducting materials can operate at this temperature, and it is even possible to discover new materials with higher critical parameters at the low temperatures of space.

Meanwhile, in the microgravity of space, plasma is unaffected by convective instabilities caused by gravity, making confinement and stability potentially easier.

"In other words, controlled nuclear fusion can be achieved more easily!"

Li Yi'an raised his eyebrows slightly. With controlled nuclear fusion technology, not only could they obtain endless energy, but they could also further explore space.

Yuan Jialiu nodded and said:

"Yes, not only that, but we will be able to produce next-generation superconducting materials with extremely high purity and perfect structure in microgravity and ultra-high vacuum environments, and it may even be used on Earth."

Furthermore, building a nuclear fusion reactor on the moon has corresponding advantages in terms of raw materials, as the moon itself is rich in helium-3, which can fully meet the needs of large-scale mining.

Then Yuan Jialiu continued:

"Helium-3 can not only serve as a power source for space cities, but also as the core power source for spaceflight. At that time, the moon can become a 'refueling station' and springboard for going to Mars and even deeper space, truly opening the great space voyage era that you, Zhiyuan, have mentioned."

"The Age of Space Exploration!"

Li Yi'an pondered, his tone filled with anticipation, his eyes sparkling with longing for the future. He placed his hands clasped on the table and sighed:
Who would have thought it all started on the moon?

Then, he looked at Yuan Jialiu and said:
"This is exactly the future I want—for human civilization to leave the cradle of Earth and venture into the wider universe, ultimately conquering the distant stars!"

He paused slightly, looked at Yuan Jialiu, and said:
"I will fully support your lunar base verification plan. I will provide manpower, material resources, and financial resources, as long as it is a reasonable need, as long as it is for the development of our space industry, and as long as the company needs it, I will support SpaceX."

After saying this, Li Yi'an's expression became solemn, and he spoke in a serious tone filled with expectation:
"This is precisely the difference between us and them. Our goal is not short-term national honor, but the sustainable development of human civilization in the universe."

(End of this chapter)