Reborn in 2010, the AI ​​in my mind is too powerful.

Chen Yiran didn't really want to confront Russia, but there was nothing he could do; the Russians' sense of security had always been a problem.

Aurora initially only intended to use the 30-kilometer restricted area as a testing ground, but they first consulted with Ukraine and Russia.

Ukraine is completely laid down. Do whatever you want. If the position doesn't work, let me know so I can change it. As long as you can provide some support later, that's fine.

Russia expressed its strong opposition, even to the point of being furious.

Although Aurora did not provide Ukraine with any high-end AI weapons or equipment, the ordinary drones it previously provided had already put Russia under immense pressure.

Not only did they fail to capture the country after fighting for so long, but their homeland was also bombed. Ukraine has even started bombing Russian oil refining facilities and storage sites. Russia remembers all these grudges.

Moreover, the place where the aurora is going to arrive may seem unimportant, but it is actually an absolutely central location.

Chernobyl is located on the banks of the Pripyat River, 110 kilometers from Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, but only 16 kilometers from Belarus!

The 30-kilometer restricted zone following the accident spans the Kyiv and Zhytomyr regions, but part of it extends directly into Belarusian territory.

Strategically, this place is also a very vulnerable point. Belarus is an important ally of Russia. After the war between Russia and Ukraine started, Russia sent paratroopers south from Belarus on the first day, heading straight for Kyiv and taking Chernobyl at the same time.

Although Ukraine subsequently recaptured it, a significant number of troops remain stationed along the Belarusian border, requiring Ukraine to maintain a constant military presence.

Moreover, Belarus is an important rear base for Russia, constantly launching missiles into Ukraine from its thousands of kilometers of border, and also serves as a communications relay station for the Russian frontline combat.

Even the factories are serving Russia's war effort; currently, hundreds of Belarusian companies are supplying Russia with electronic equipment and producing artillery shells.

Therefore, Russia directly and sternly rejected Aurora's purely scientific research request, and stated that Aurora is a company that Russia does not welcome. If Aurora were to enter Chernobyl, Russia would even consider using missiles to directly attack it.

Aurora remained unmoved. Chernobyl was too important for Aurora's next step of development, so Chen Yiran gave a firm order that it must be occupied first.

Subsequently, a force of over two hundred scientists, more than three thousand armed robots, three hundred Hunter tanks, and over one hundred aerial Hunter aircraft were stationed directly in Chernobyl.

Large-scale cultivation and field testing began in a restricted area 30 kilometers away.

Chen Yiran even directly confronted the Russian authorities on Twitter: "The Aurora staff who went to Chernobyl all have the latest Aurora dungeon technology support. Simply put, we are immortal. If you want to fight, then fight!"

This was actually the first time Aurora had publicly announced its dungeon plan. Although some high-end users and political and business leaders had already heard about it, it still excited them greatly when it finally came out of Chen Yiran's mouth.

After weighing the pros and cons, Russia did not take further action, which simply means it tacitly acknowledged the presence of the aurora in the region and began to intentionally avoid the area in all its operations.

Anyway, it's an abandoned place, so you're really something!

However, they still deployed more troops in Belarus, partly because they needed to guard against the aurora suddenly disrupting their logistics bases there.

On the other hand, Russia is very curious about what kind of research requires a trip to Chernobyl.

It wasn't just Russia that was curious; other companies around the world were also very curious, and even nuclear energy-related enterprises began to search through previous relevant documents to see if there was anything overlooked in Chernobyl that was worth investigating.

In short, Aurora successfully established a base in Chernobyl, and related research was able to begin. A month later, Chen Yiran received a very encouraging report.

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Honolulu, Hawaii: After two years of development, Hawaii’s economic center has shifted significantly.

Simply put, tourism is no longer Hawaii's most important pillar, and in fact, it is declining under the government's heavy hand.

However, the subsequent emergence of new industries effectively compensated for the economic losses, and most people in Honolulu became Aurora employees, or related support staff.

At the Aurora Biochemical Research Institute, Chen Yiran poked at a dark, indistinct object and asked a question that left the researchers nearby speechless.

"So this is the black velvet you've cultivated? So, is this edible?"

The research director next to him was also a modifier; his entire body consisted of biological tissue only in his brain, while his face was simply a metal plate with countless sensors.

Even so, Chen Yiran could sense a wry smile on that face.

"Don't avoid the question! After all, he's growing mushrooms, so the question is, are they edible or not?"

The researcher's wet brain worked frantically, and then he came to a conclusion: "Strictly speaking, mushrooms are fruiting bodies that emerge during the reproduction of fungi, responsible for spreading spores. This black fuzz is mycelium."

If you want to eat it, you'll have to wait until it actually grows into mushrooms. Although it's not poisonous, it's still not recommended to eat it, as it's more suitable for extracting velvet oil.

Chen Yiran's eyes lit up: "So that means it's edible! Our astronauts can use it as fuel, to combat radiation, and even eat it! What a great thing!"

The researcher nodded slowly: "If it really comes down to it, then it's okay to eat it. However, we still prefer to send the modified humans on their long voyages; ordinary humans are still too fragile."

"People need nutrition too! Can't this be used to regulate their bodies?"

The researcher was in great distress. He felt that the world-changing discovery they had painstakingly made seemed to be inseparable from the dining table.

"Yes, although it's certainly not as good as our specially formulated nutrient solution, if there's really no other way, we can use some equipment to extract the nutrients and provide them to the wet parts."

How fast is he growing?

"It's growing exceptionally fast. If left unchecked, it could be apocalyptic, leading to the end of human society. But that would be a scenario of completely unchecked growth. So far, our modifications have been very successful."

Chen Yiran thought for a moment, then asked pointedly, "Suppose, suppose we have a minor conflict with a nuclear-armed country, and then secretly drop this on them, could they destroy all of their nuclear facilities in a short time? And nuclear bombs, could they destroy them all?"

The researcher paused for a moment, then thought for a while and said, "Yes, the longer the half-life of a radioactive element, the fewer atoms decay per unit time, and the weaker the radioactivity. So before a nuclear bomb explodes, the radioactivity is actually very low, and uranium can even be safely touched."

However, we should be able to cultivate them in a targeted manner. Black velvet can first use its radial orientation for rough navigation, spreading towards high-radiation areas. Once it enters the area, it can rely on the chemical affinity of its hyphae for uranium and plutonium to make precise anchoring.

The black velvet reproduces extremely quickly, its mycelial cords growing directionally towards the radiation source, penetrating nuclear facilities like roots. It clogs cooling circuits, corrodes seals, short-circuits electronic circuits, and seals up missile mechanical structures.

However, I want to say that the impact cannot be limited to nuclear weapons. Even if we selectively cultivate them, we cannot currently prevent them from absorbing other forms of radiation. All nuclear power plants, hospital radiology departments, and various nuclear-powered warships will soon be affected.

Amy Zegart, who had been listening in, seemed to have thought of something and asked excitedly, "Wait, if we guide him further, is it possible to let him ingest a milder form of radiation? Like infrared radiation emitted by the human body?"

The researchers fell silent.

Chen Yiran asked somewhat seriously, "So he not only eats particle radiation like alpha particles, beta particles, and neutrons, but also electromagnetic radiation like radio waves, microwaves, infrared rays, and visible light?"

In other words, it treats any warm-blooded creature as a heat source and devours it indiscriminately?

"Yes, even in a strong radiation field, the energy flux is not enough. Black Velvet mainly relies on absorbing visible light across the entire spectrum to generate energy. Radiation is just a means we use for directional purposes."

However, we have been providing targeted training to keep it within our control and prevent it from damaging our own equipment.

Of course, if the company needs it, we can let it grow completely uncontrolled! All we need to do is create one port at the production end, and we can make it controllably consume all the facilities of the opposing forces.

After saying this, the researcher stood up straight, looking as if he was willing to do anything for the company.

Before the adjustment, he was just an ordinary researcher; he was even just a graduate student. But after the car accident, he got the adjustment quota through his supervisor.

After becoming a modifier, with the help of the chip's computing power, many of his previously unclear ideas suddenly became clearer and clearer, and his computing power design ability became exceptionally powerful.

This enabled him to pick up his old thesis and successfully create an unprecedented black velvet pattern with Aurora.

A scholar will die for one who understands him. The aurora borealis gave him his current abilities, allowing him to manage such a terrifying project. Even if it means destroying the world, it's understandable, right?

Chen Yiran patted the researcher's metal shoulder: "Philby, right? I remember you. Go do it. We don't necessarily need to use it, but we must have it."

A Chinese scientist once said something very philosophical: "Having a sword in your hand and not using it is different from having no sword at all!"

"Boss, don't worry, we'll start cultivating new plants right away!"

"Great! Very energetic!"

After fooling a group of researchers, Chen Yiran then faced Amy, who wanted to drape a yellow robe over his back.

"Boss, should we just release some to Russia first?"

"Let's talk about it later. You should prepare a contingency plan. If we want to cultivate on a large scale, we'll need a lot of land. Those in the Middle East with whom we have good relations can contribute some."

After giving his instructions, Chen Yiran hurriedly went home and then called Musk from Oasis.

Musk listened to Chen Yiran assign him tasks with a bewildered expression.

"What do you mean by 'coordinating the construction of the new spaceship'? Boss, the starship development is going smoothly, but now we need to change the overall direction."

Chen Yiran tossed him a document and said, "We didn't occupy Chernobyl a month ago. We didn't occupy it for no reason. There were reasons for everything."

"Everyone outside is saying it's because you found a new Ukrainian model who was whispering in your ear, and then you just went to help Ukraine without really showing up."

"...Slander! Don't listen to those rumors. Actually, it's because one of our scientists needs to go there for research."

In 1991, scientists discovered about 200 types of melanin-containing fungi on the inner wall of the Chernobyl No. 4 reactor, which turned the cooling water pool black.

In 2007, Albert Einstein College of Medicine discovered that three types of melanin-containing fungi grew faster in environments with radiation levels 500 times higher than normal. Within 20-40 minutes of irradiation, the electron transfer capacity of melanin increased 3-4 times; this is known as radiosynthesis. Melanin absorbs ionizing radiation and converts it into chemical energy, similar to photosynthesis.

"Boss, I graduated from university; I didn't drop out halfway through."

Chen Yiran felt that as the company developed, Musk's burden became lighter and lighter, and he gradually became more and more sarcastic!

"In short, we obtained some research data from other companies, then took samples from Chernobyl, and used AI technology to continuously design proteins and conduct high-throughput screening."

We eventually obtained a completely new strain of bacteria, which Aurora internally codenames as Black Velvet.

It is a black, velvety, carpet-like fungal mat that can be sprayed to block radiation. It does not need oxygen but consumes carbon dioxide and has a strong ability to reproduce.

Its surface has many three-dimensional arrays of melanin, which are then generated by multiple excitons. A high-energy photon can cascade and excite a batch of electrons, and we can directly extract electrical energy through conductive hyphal networks.

Furthermore, there is currently another byproduct, a high-energy substance extracted from mature fungal carpets that we call velvet oil. It is a stable ultra-high-energy substance with an energy density 31 times that of TNT and about 145 times that of lithium batteries.

Specific enzymes can be used to break down lint into carbon dioxide, water, and electrons.

Its specific impact is outrageous, so Falcon can't stop; it needs to keep launching Starlink, but the Starship program needs to be changed.

Musk's eyes lit up: "Hitaka is an exaggeration? Does that mean we could actually go to Mars in the near future?"

"Don't think too much about it yet. Let's go to the moon first. You design the spaceship first. We need to start by covering the Earth with black velvet, and then cover the moon with it too."