Cataclysmic Era: I can unlock the tech tree

Upon hearing the Speaker's words, Mo Zeyang's breathing quickened.

He exclaimed in shock, "What is Professor Lü planning to do?!"

"A quantum supercomputing center, and... artificial intelligence," the councilor said, enunciating each word clearly, while staring intently into Mo Zeyang's eyes. "Do you think this is possible?"

Mo Zeyang stood there, stunned.

Gradually, his face flushed red, and a spark of excitement flashed in his eyes!

He jumped up from his chair and asked excitedly, "Speaker! Where is Professor Lü?"

"I'm going to find him!"

"I've said it before: superconducting circuit quantum computers are the key to solving artificial intelligence!" Mo Zeyang's face was full of excitement. "After all these years, I've finally waited for this!"

Mo Zeyang's reaction clearly exceeded the Speaker's expectations.

Representative Li composed himself and asked slowly, "Do you think this architecture can realize a general-purpose quantum computer?"

Faced with Councilor Li's question, Mo Zeyang hesitated for a moment, then nodded firmly and slowly.

……

Meanwhile, at a rocket launch site in the United States.

Three Saturn VI heavy-lift launch vehicles, each over 150 meters tall, rested quietly beside the launch pad.

Inside the landing module, three astronauts sat nervously in their seats.

Andrew swallowed hard and whispered to his companion, "Bruno, I'm a little nervous..."

Hearing Andrew's words, Bruno, who was standing next to him, looked at Andrew with a wry smile and said, "Don't even mention you, I'm nervous too."

"I've never been to space either..."

On the other side, the female astronaut Joy sighed softly and said in a low voice, "Me too..."

Andrew: "..."

Of course he knew that neither of them had been to space!

I don't know what NASA is up to. All three astronauts in the Pathfinder program were volunteers.

After a brief and rudimentary training period, the three selected astronauts were hastily launched onto the Saturn VI rocket.

Andrew still remembers the way his teacher looked at him.

There was a hint of pity mixed with regret.

Andrew shifted uncomfortably, his body strapped tightly to the seatbelt. "Do you think we'll survive?"

Bruno sighed softly and slowly shook his head: "It's difficult."

"NASA assured us!" Andrew's expression grew increasingly uneasy. "They said..."

"Tch..." Joey, who hadn't spoken until now, scoffed irritably. "You actually believe what NASA says?"

"Anyway, I didn't come to this project with any intention of going back alive... The $500,000 compensation is enough for my parents to live on."

Upon hearing this, Andrew fell silent.

After a long while, he exhaled a long breath.

Well, at least my wife and children can live more comfortably.

"Hiss..." A static sound came through the radio.

"Attention, there are 15 minutes left until launch!"

……

United States, Houston ground control center.

Morton stared nervously at the three enormous rockets on the big screen.

Upon hearing the question, Professor Chris, who was standing to the side in a white coat, shook his head helplessly: "Director Morton, this is the fifth time you've asked this question."

"I'll say it to you one last time: all three Saturn VI rockets have been inspected three times and no faults have been found."

"Trust me, they will definitely be able to safely send those three astronauts to Mars!"

……

American television station.

A talk show has quietly begun.

"Hello everyone, welcome to this program."

"Today, we will bring you live footage of the Saturn VI rocket launch!"

"For this program, we specially invited Professor Parker from NASA!"

As the host's voice faded, three Saturn VI rockets, arranged in a triangular formation, appeared on the television screen.

The close-up of the rocket ended, and the scene switched back to the stand-up comedy segment.

The host, microphone in hand, turned to the white-haired professor beside him and asked, "Professor Parker, could you tell us why the Pathfinder program used three Saturn VI rockets?"

Parker's eyes flickered slightly, and he replied in a slightly hoarse voice, "It's simple, because our astronauts will be spending three months on Mars."

The host then feigned surprise: "Wow, that long?"

"Then they must have brought a lot of survival supplies, right?"

Parker nodded slightly: "That's right."

"The three astronauts were inside the landing module of the Pathfinder 1 rocket."

"Pathfinder 2 carried a Mars capsule and a return capsule."

"As for the Pathfinder III rocket, it carries various survival supplies, including food, water, and essential oxygen. In addition, in case of accidents, the rocket also carries spare parts for some critical equipment."

The host nodded slightly, about to say something more, when Parker interrupted him: "Alright, the rocket is about to launch."

Upon hearing this, the host quickly turned his gaze to the large screen beside him.

The television footage then switched to the rocket launch site.

……

"Note that the rocket will ignite in one minute."

"Countdown: 30 seconds!"

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

"ignition!"

With a command given, a plume of flame, gradually changing from orange-yellow to blue, appeared at the bottom of the rocket.

Propelled by liquid oxygen and kerosene engines, the three massive Saturn VI rockets slowly rose into the air.

The three astronauts inside the landing module felt a powerful force press them down onto their seats.

Saturn VI gradually increased its speed, drawing a graceful arc in the sky.

"Achieved its designated orbit; first-stage rocket ready for separation!"

"Separation successful!"

"Successfully entered low Earth orbit!"

"Second stage rocket separation successful!"

As time passed, reports came over the radio.

A faint smile gradually appeared on Morton's face.

It worked!

Professor Chris, who was standing to the side, breathed a long sigh of relief, picked up the microphone, and turned on the radio communication switch.

"Pathfinder One, this is Houston Ground Control Center, please respond!"

After a brief wait, Andrew's response came through the radio.

"Calling Houston, Pathfinder One received, please proceed!"

"Report the situation!"

"Calling Houston, rocket in good condition, astronauts in good condition, all normal!"

Andrew's voice was transmitted to the Houston ground command center via radio signal, and then it rang out on major television stations and radio stations across the United States.

After a brief silence, every researcher at the Houston command center stood up and applauded enthusiastically!

Seeing the thunderous applause before him, Morton's eyes welled up with tears.

"God bless America..."

He made the sign of the cross on his chest and muttered to himself.

P.S. Does anyone have any suggestions for a title for this book? It might be renamed later, and I'm really bad at coming up with names...