Those who face the wall, but are in the Nascent Soul stage.

Chapter 39 The Heavenly Ladder (Please continue reading)

Everyone knows that Tomoko can appear anywhere at any time.

But when they first actually saw Tomoko right next to them, everyone couldn't help but feel uneasy and subconsciously shut their mouths.

On behalf of the crew, I warmly welcome Professor Luo Qing, the Wallfacer, aboard the "Opener" spaceplane. Our final destination is the International Space Station. During the journey into low Earth orbit, please fasten your seatbelt and refrain from using any supernatural powers to avoid causing electrical anomalies in the cabin's facilities. Space travel technology is not yet mature; your understanding is appreciated.

This announcement was not the previous electronic female voice, but a middle-aged male voice coming directly from the cockpit, sounding like the captain of the spaceplane giving special instructions to this particular passenger.

Luo Qing gave an OK sign to the camera inside the cabin.

The Space Force leader heading to the International Space Station, Colonel Bi Yunfeng, poked his head out and asked Luo Qing behind him.

"Mr. Wallfacer, you've come here to..."

Luo Qing said, "I'm going to take a look at the space station. You don't need to worry about me. I already informed your superiors before I came up. Chang Weisi told you not to ask, not to care, and not to be curious. Just pretend I don't exist."

"Yes, I will obey orders from my superiors!" Bi Yunfeng was startled and did not say anything more.

But no matter how he tried to calm himself down, he still couldn't ignore Luo Qing's presence, especially after knowing that this legendary Wallfacer was sitting right behind him. He couldn't help but listen carefully to the sounds behind him.

The other Space Force members and experts in the cabin were the same; no one spoke, but everyone's ears were perked up.

"You are...Professor Wang Miao?"

Wang Miao was flattered and asked, "You know me?"

“When I was reviewing the materials for ‘Operation Guzheng’ before, I learned that your nanomaterial ‘Flying Blade’ is the ‘string’ of the guzheng. Of course, there is another person who once mentioned you to me.”

"Who?" Wang Miao didn't think that anyone he knew could be connected to this Wallfacer.

“Officer Shi Qiang,” Luo Qing said with a smile.

Suddenly, the image of that burly, cigarette-smelling old detective flashed into Wang Miao's memory. He couldn't understand how Shi Qiang knew everyone.

If Wang Miao remembered correctly, wasn't Shi Qiang responsible for protecting another Wallfacer?

Luo Qing explained, "Back in 07, I was also feeling down, and it was Officer Shi Qiang who rescued me from the rope. I haven't told anyone about this yet."

Only two Wallfacers were selected from the entire country, and Shi Qiang saved both of them?
"So that's how it is." Wang Miao suddenly realized, but then didn't know what to say. Could a 'superman' like Professor Luo Qing, who could traverse the atmosphere, really commit suicide by hanging himself because he couldn't think straight?
The reality seemed to create a strong sense of disconnect, leaving Wang Miao unsure how to communicate with this Wallfacer.

Luo Qing also noticed this, so he took the initiative to change the subject: "Professor Wang is going to space this time for the space elevator, right?"

In the early stages of the Crisis Era, according to the deployment of the mainstream solar system defense plan, humanity needed to carry out large-scale development of space, with the development of near-Earth orbit being the first priority. Therefore, the project to build a space elevator to develop near-Earth orbit was put on the agenda.

With the advent of the spaceplane era, the era of chemical rockets faded into history, and all countries in the world have now ceased further research on chemical rockets. For example, China's Long March 5 carrier rocket, the United States' Titan series, and Russia's Soyuz series have all become relics of the past.

In Crisis Era 7, the year after the test flight of the 'High Frontier' rocket, the last batch of launch vehicles in the stockpiles of major spacefaring nations underwent a series of intensive launches within a month. At least several hundred launch vehicles were launched into the sky. This launch extravaganza is said to have opened the prelude to humanity's large-scale entry into low Earth orbit.

The fish have begun a large-scale attempt to land!

During that month, news reports frequently featured live broadcasts of several carrier rockets launching simultaneously.

In the eternal desert, the flames of rockets rising up carried the cries of human civilization and the tears of countless veteran aerospace engineers. One after another, they blazed brightly in the dark sky, becoming brief suns, and finally turning into one of the countless stars.

After that, the era of spaceplanes arrived. The 'Opener' was the second-generation spaceplane after the 'High Frontier', which could freely enter space from the atmosphere without the aid of a launch vehicle.

However, the era of spaceplanes will not last much longer in the foreseeable future.

because……

"It's for the space elevator." Wang Miao adjusted his glasses, and in his professional field, he broke free of his usual restraint and shyness, becoming quite talkative.

Also in the 7th year of the Crisis Era, construction began on Ladder 1 and Ladder 2 respectively atop Mount Kilimanjaro, the roof of Africa, and near Uluru, a massive rock formation in the vast Australian outback. Later that year, construction began on Ladder 3 on an artificial floating island called Verne Island in the equator of the Pacific Ocean.

The three space elevators, which represent huge investments and offer no economic benefits in the short term, demonstrate humanity's determination to make large-scale access to space.

The world's nations have united as never before.

Wang Miao said, "The space elevator project has been underway for two years. The Earth base has been basically completed, and the flying blade material has also matured. Now the main focus is on the site selection for the space intermediate station. Currently, the plan is to use three space stations as the terminal stations for the three space elevators."

Luo Qing said, "I remember there are only two space stations now, namely the International Space Station and the Chinese Space Station."

"That's right, but the third space station won't be built on Earth. The plan is to assemble it from the International Space Station and then separate it. It shouldn't be long."

Luo Qing suddenly realized.

Wang Miao continued, "Now all that's left is to test the 'flying blade' material in space. So far, it seems that the 'flying blade' material can still maintain its toughness and strength in the ultra-low temperature vacuum. The high-speed impact of a simulated meteorite will also be cut into two pieces by the 'flying blade' itself."

My main purpose in going to the space station is to study its compatibility with Earth in geostationary orbit. If there are no problems, we can attempt to lay the orbit for "Space Elevator 1" this June, and complete the construction of the first guide rail by the end of the year. At that time, the space elevator will become the tallest structure ever built by mankind.

Wang Miao was clearly excited as he spoke. Without Luo Qing having to ask any further questions, he began to explain on his own: "The space elevator project will definitely have four guide rails, but we can lay one first. With just one guide rail that can be put into trial operation, the total capacity for human beings to enter space will be at least several hundred times greater than it is now."

Currently, the main constraint on the construction speed of the space elevators is human space transportation capacity. Once the first guide rail is laid, the space elevator can be used to transport the flying blade materials needed to build other space elevators. If things proceed quickly, all three space elevators could be completed by 2020 (Crisis Era 13).

Luo Qing suspected that Wang Miao could reveal all the information on her own without her prompting; this adorable nanotechnology expert couldn't keep anything to herself.

"The space elevators are expected to operate at speeds exceeding 1500 kilometers per hour, and the journey from the base point to the geostationary orbit terminal (space station) will take approximately twenty hours. The cost of entering space is expected to be lower than that of a commercial airliner. Once the three space elevators are completed, humanity can complete the initial construction of a near-Earth orbit defense system within thirty years!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Qing turned his head and asked, "Zhi Zi, did you hear that?"

Tomoko typed out a line of black text from her chair: 【We don't care.】

Luo Qing immediately saw through the Trisolarans' fragile and arrogant mentality: "Still being stubborn? Don't you care that you scared Professor Wang back then and made him stop his research on nanomaterials?" Sophon fell silent again.

Luo Qing turned to Wang Miao and asked, "Did Zhi Zi scare you back then?"

“Uh…” Wang Miao stammered, but finally managed to squeeze out the truth: “I admit, I was almost scared to death at the time.”

"What scared you?"

"Photo countdown, retinal countdown, cosmic radiation background flickering, and so on..." Professor Wang Miao said.

Luo Qing gently patted Professor Wang on the shoulder.

"Zhi Zi, apologize to Professor Wang, and have the Trisolaran who suggested the scheme to scare the scientists punish himself with three cups of wine. Let's just let this matter go."

The intimidation is true, but the plan was not proposed by the Trisolarans.

Who proposed it?

[ETO member: biologist 'Darwin'.]

He's a proponent of social Darwinism.

"Are you still alive?"

[Living]

"Let him punish himself by drinking three cups."

Darwin, who was chatting offline with Qin Shi Huang and Mozi, suddenly became serious. He went straight to the wine cabinet, pried open the Moutai wine treasured by Qin Shi Huang, filled the glass, and then drank it down without hesitation.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Qin Shi Huang tried to stop him.

Darwin remained silent, but poured himself a second glass of strong liquor, and with a flushed face, he downed it in one gulp.

Mozi also noticed Darwin's abnormality, but before he could stop him together with Qin Shi Huang, he had already swallowed the third cup of scalding white wine.

After finishing the three glasses of baijiu, Darwin stumbled onto the sofa and mumbled incoherently, "The Lord made me drink three glasses of baijiu."

Upon hearing this, Qin Shi Huang and Mozi exchanged bewildered glances.

Why would God make Darwin drink so much?
"Give him some methaqualone," Qin Shi Huang said to Mozi, frowning.

Darwin has consumed three glasses of strong liquor and is currently in shock due to an acute alcohol allergy.

The words that Zhizi typed were printed on the big screen once again.

"Serves him right! If he drinks three more cups, Zhi Zi will scare me too, I'll get this bastard drunk." In the cabin, a physics expert cursed in a very low voice.

Ding Yi, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up: "If each person drinks three cups, at least half of the physics experts present have been intimidated by Zhi Zi."

Zhizi remained silent in embarrassment.

"Hmm? Dr. Ding Yi?"

Luo Qing immediately recognized Ding Yi's voice. He was used to not using his spiritual sense on Earth and hadn't paid attention before, but now he noticed that Ding Yi had been sitting right in front of him all along.

Under Zhang Beihai's shocked gaze, Ding Yi turned his head and spoke in a somewhat weary tone:
"It's me, Professor Luo Qing. It's been a long time."

Summary of donations (including monthly passes) received for this book as of April 15, 2025.

Shui Zhu kowtowed to 68 'patrons/bamboo' Orz, receiving a total of 1300 Qidian coins and 12000 contribution points (monthly ticket contribution points).
May the glory of the eternal ages shine upon you forever!

The following is the list of Jinzhu (金竹) members.
Qian Mengjian has accumulated 700 Qidian coins in donations to "The Wallfacer, But in the Nascent Soul Stage".

Creating a sandbox world and rewarding "The Wallfacer, But in the Nascent Soul Stage" with 500 Qidian Coins.

A user named "Primordial Being" donated 100 Qidian Coins to "The Wallfacer, But a Nascent Soul Stage"

■ The following is a list of monthly pass contribution points (one monthly pass = 100 contribution points).
1. Nova Pigeon (Apprentice, 1300)

2. Two Tree Eaters (Apprentice, 1200)

3. Uroborus (Apprentice, 900)

4. Humility and Gradual Progress (Apprentice: 700)

5. Create a sandbox world (Apprentices: 700)

6.yfrty (Apprentice: 500)

7. Cao Daguanzi (Apprentice: 500)

8. New Book Friends in the Group (Apprentices: 500)

9. An Ruo Qian Xi (Intern: 400)

10. Let the world feel pain – Payne (Trainee: 400)

11. Watching the Clouds Fall Calmly (Intern: 400)

(There is a 500-word limit. The remaining rankings can be seen in the novel's contribution value sorting. Thank you all for your support, love you all.)
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(End of this chapter)