Rejecting Tsinghua and Peking Universities: I Will Lead Harbin Institute of Technology to World Lead

When the Mars mission officially began, China's engineering team, carried by the Xuanyuan space carrier, entered Mars orbit.

The massive Xuanyuan slowly hovered above the orange-red planet. The hatch opened, and countless silver-white engineering robots poured out like a swarm of bees, descending towards the designated landing point.

The preliminary work was naturally very difficult.

Mars' gravity differs from Earth's, being only about one-third that of Earth. It lacks oxygen, and its atmosphere is so thin it's almost negligible. The temperature difference between day and night is extreme, reaching 20 degrees Celsius during the day and plummeting to minus 80 degrees Celsius at night. Every so often, massive dust storms sweep the globe, blotting out the sun and lasting for months.

Humans cannot work directly in such an environment.

Therefore, the Chinese engineering team dispatched a large number of robots specifically adapted to the Martian environment. These robots have low-temperature resistant alloy shells, dust-resistant sealed structures, and special locomotion devices adapted to low gravity. Each robot is equipped with state-of-the-art artificial intelligence, enabling it to independently complete complex engineering tasks.

They began to gradually build up Lin Feng's plan.

Starting with the most basic energy station, moving to oxygen production plants, ice cap melting devices, and ground control base stations for orbital reflectors, each module gradually takes shape in the hands of robots, like ants building a nest, slowly but steadily.

Lin Feng was monitoring every development on Mars in real time via remote surveillance. He didn't need to go to that red wasteland in person, but his will, through those robots, was transforming the planet inch by inch.

At the same time, Lin Feng also clearly knew that the Mars terraforming project could not be accomplished overnight.

This is humanity's first time terraforming a planet, and there is no precedent to follow. All theories, all plans, and all engineering processes need to be verified and adjusted in practice. Only when they truly master the entire process of terraforming Mars and accumulate sufficient data and experience will they be able to terraform other planets more efficiently.

Therefore, while making steady progress on Mars, Lin Feng turned his attention to another front.

The crew of the light-speed warship began their second test voyage.

This time, it's not just a quick trip to the edge of the solar system. This test voyage will last for three years.

Over three years, the light-speed warship will stockpile sufficient resources—food, water, energy, and spare parts—to sustain all expenses during the entire trial voyage. During these three years, they will venture as deep into the Milky Way as possible, searching for other potentially habitable planets.

As for Lin Feng himself, it's impossible for him to leave Blue Star.

His safety was paramount. The Mars terraforming project required his oversight, and every major decision regarding the light-speed warship required his remote involvement. It wasn't that he didn't want to see that cosmos, but that he couldn't. At least not now.

Lin Feng remained on Earth, overseeing the command center. Two enormous holographic projections floated before him—the left showing real-time construction footage of Mars, the right displaying the trajectory of a light-speed warship. His gaze shifted back and forth between the two, like a chess player in control of the entire game.

The light-speed warships and Mars are advancing side by side.

Time is constantly passing by.

Spring goes and autumn comes, and the seasons change.

On Mars, more and more robots are arriving. An oxygen production plant has begun trial operations, and the first batch of liquid oxygen has been extracted from the Martian atmosphere. Melting devices on the polar ice caps have been activated, and trickles of water have begun to appear beneath the ice. Orbital reflectors have been successfully deployed, reflecting more sunlight onto the Martian surface, and temperatures are slowly rising.

Inside the command center, the technicians cheered with joy. Lin Feng looked at the data on the screen, a faint smile playing on his lips. The Mars terraforming project was progressing more smoothly than expected. Those theories were becoming reality.

On the other hand, the situation was completely different for the light-speed warships.

Three years have passed in the blink of an eye.

The real-time communication transmitted back from the light-speed warship still showed that endless darkness.

For three whole years, they sailed entirely in darkness. They encountered no planets, saw no stars, only the occasional stray speck of interstellar dust leaving faint glimmers outside the portholes. All along the way, there was only endless, seemingly all-consuming blackness.

The test flight team recorded a massive amount of data: interstellar radiation, the curvature of space, and various technical details of the voyage. But what they most wanted to find—another planet, another potentially habitable planet—never appeared.

"General Lin." On the communication screen, the captain's face showed exhaustion and disappointment. "Three years have passed, and we've found nothing. As planned, prepare to return."

Lin Feng was silent for a moment, then nodded: "Let's return. We'll rest for a while and prepare for the next test voyage. This time, let's change direction."

"Yes."

Communication was cut off. The light-speed warship slowly turned in the darkness, heading towards Blue Star. It came empty-handed, and it returned empty-handed.

The atmosphere in the command center was somewhat oppressive. Three years of anticipation, three years of sailing, had resulted in nothing but emptiness.

Lin Feng, however, remained calm and even breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Finding nothing is itself an answer. At least it proves that the Milky Way isn't teeming with planets and life. Human loneliness may be more profound than we imagine.

But that is precisely why the Mars terraforming project is all the more important.

When the light-speed warship finally landed at the launch site, the progress on Mars had entered a new phase.

The oxygen concentration has reached a level where breathing is barely possible—though auxiliary equipment is still needed. Liquid water from the melting polar ice caps has formed a small lake. While the temperature remains cold, it is no longer as extreme as it initially was.

The first batch of cyanobacteria was released into the lake by robots. These tiny life forms will begin their photosynthesis on Mars, gradually converting carbon dioxide into oxygen and laying the foundation for the future food chain.

Lin Feng stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window of the command center, looking at the red dot in the night sky outside.

Mars is turning green.

The light-speed warship will set sail again after rest and refitting. Next time, it will change direction and continue its search for a possible home in that sea of ​​stars.

Two things: one is being done, and the other is being waited for.

The project we're working on is progressing steadily. The one we're waiting for has yet to yield results.

But Lin Feng wasn't in a hurry.

The universe is too vast, and time is too long. Humanity has only just taken its first steps out of the cradle; it's not going to be that easy to find neighbors.

He turned around and looked at the live image of Mars projected on the holographic screen. The small lake shimmered faintly in the sunlight.

Not urgent.

One day, humans will settle there. One day, the light-speed warship will bring back good news.

And now, let's move forward.