Activating the Omniscient System, I'm doomed!

Luo Yi replied, "What if we dig in from the side?"

"That won't work either. The roots of a thousand-year-old cypress tree, like the branches above, spread outwards. No matter how you dig, you can't get around the roots."

The person on the other end of the phone, worried he might not understand, gave an example: "It's like removing a stone from a person's head. Whether you cut from the top or the side, you have to avoid the nerves, understand?"

"Boss, no one usually takes care of that thousand-year-old cypress tree, but if we damage it, a lot of departments will definitely come looking for us, and we might even end up in jail. I advise you to switch to a different kind of ore."

Destroying ancient trees is too blatant and will definitely cause trouble; it's a very poor choice.

Roy then suggested, "What if we let the workers dig slowly by hand?"

"...The tree roots are at least 8 meters deep, and the seepage area is another 7 or 8 meters down. Moreover, all the soil around the roots has to be removed, which is a huge undertaking. Once the roots are separated from the soil, they will inevitably become loose, and even if the thousand-year-old tree doesn't fall, it will tilt."

The person on the other end of the phone continued jokingly, "Unless a machine can insert itself twenty meters into the soil through the cracks in a tree root like chopsticks and pull out a thumb-sized stone, hahaha."

Luo Yi's eyes lit up: "Do you have such equipment? I can increase the price, or you can rent the equipment; I can pay for it."

"You're kidding, how could there be such a device? I've never seen one before."

The other party hung up the phone as soon as they finished speaking, knowing that the deal was hopeless.

Luo Yi initially considered using his connections with the National Special Affairs Bureau, but after thinking about it, he decided to consult the Omniscient System instead, hoping for a simpler and more discreet approach.

Two solutions were quickly obtained.

First, reach level 5 physical fitness, consume 1000 mental energy, affect the internal structure of the soil, and then push the stone out of the ground.

The plan is simple and discreet, but the problem is that he hasn't even gathered all the level 4 materials yet, and he's still a ways from level 5.

The second option is to use ground-penetrating radar combined with a miniature robotic arm, which can be inserted into the crevices of tree roots like chopsticks to remove the water-soaked ore.

Ground penetrating radar is a very mature device, similar to X-rays in a hospital, which can detect what's underneath the soil.

Of course, Luo Yi could use the omniscient system to pinpoint the ore's location, but that would be difficult to explain to outsiders; having ground-penetrating radar would make sense.

"Unfortunately, the domestically produced miniature robotic arms are inadequate; their control precision is insufficient, making it impossible to extract rocks from twenty meters underground."

After searching for a while, Luo Yi discovered the core problem.

If ground-penetrating radar is the eye, then the robotic arm is the hand. The current situation is that we can see, but we can't take it out.

Because once your arm extends twenty meters, you can't control your fingers.

Foreign equipment can do that, since it belongs to the same ASML supply chain as lithography machines and uses the same precision control technology.

It's the technology that allows you to carve a world map onto a strand of hair; its precision control is among the world's best.

However, it imposes a technology blockade on the domestic market, making it impossible to buy technology even with money.

"Perhaps... we could pay foreigners to do it, and then have them ship the stones over."

Roy quickly came up with a solution.

They immediately found an overseas platform and posted the task.

Less than half an hour later, a Black guy messaged me in English: "Hey buddy, I'm really interested in this task. What's your offer?"

When Luo Yi was in high school, his English was just average, but after his mental abilities improved, he went through the English textbooks again and reached a first-class level.

So now, even when he sees abbreviated words, he can communicate as if he were speaking his native language, replying, "Eight million US dollars."

"Oh no, buddy, you probably don't know the price of this mission. We need to buy an entire tree in order to legally begin construction."

The black guy continued, "So, in addition to labor costs, you also need to pay for the trees and land restoration costs. All in all, it will cost at least 3500 million US dollars."

"You can rent advanced equipment that uses a robotic arm to insert into the soil without damaging the trees. I'll cover the cost of renting the equipment," Luo Yi suggested.

The other party quickly replied: "We do have such equipment, but there is no rental company. You can only order it from ASML six months in advance. Including the logistics costs of getting it into the mountains, you will need to pay about 2.5 million US dollars."

"Of course, I will eventually return this device to you, but your delivery address cannot be in the Tokyo area, otherwise it will not be able to pass through customs."

That's an oversimplification. These high-precision devices are used by large companies. They don't have the time or energy to rent them out and make such small profits.

No wonder the omniscient system didn't recommend this option; the cost is too high, and it takes too long.

Luo Yi withdrew from the overseas platform, abandoning his idea of ​​finding a foreigner.

If the cost is under 30 million, he would be willing to consider it.

But this amount of US dollars, when converted, would be at least 300 million, and buying equipment would require more than a billion, and even that wouldn't be enough to ship.

"No matter how easy it is for me to make money, I can't afford to lose like this."

"With that money, it would be better to acquire a machinery company and do our own research and development."

After some deliberation, Luo Yi decided to take this opportunity to support a machinery company, which could be considered as laying the groundwork for the robot supply chain in advance.

With his current brainpower and omniscient system, he could even obtain the stone faster than those from abroad.

They immediately used the Omniscient System to find a machinery equipment company that was closest to Zhouzhuang Mountain and was currently laying off employees.

……

Jiangcheng.

The entrance to the factory of Huaji Equipment Company.

More than a hundred production workers gathered and were discussing the matter.

"How many rounds of layoffs have there been already? The Lunar New Year is almost here, can't they just hold on until the end of the year?"

"I heard that a lot of infrastructure projects have been halted, and industrial and mining activities are declining. Without market demand, a lot of inventory can't be sold, and bosses have mortgaged their properties to pay wages."

"No wonder, I was wondering why there was so much more and more equipment in the warehouse, it's all money."

"Fortunately, the boss is kind and can give me N+1 compensation. I can go home for the New Year early and maybe I'll go to Foxconn next year."

Amidst the murmurs and discussions, a middle-aged man in his forties rushed out of the office building, holding a megaphone and shouting:

"Everyone, please be quiet."

"I have some good news to announce: someone wants to acquire our company."

"He's already on his way and will be here soon, so please don't block the way here; it's not a good thing."

"Those who want to stay, go back to your jobs now. Those who don't want to stay, go over there to register, and I will arrange severance pay for you."

The employees on site looked at each other, unsure of what to do.

The company offers good benefits, so of course they want to stay.

But the industry is in a slump, and even if it's acquired, it probably won't last long. It's better to go to Foxconn and accumulate seniority as soon as possible.

"Mr. Yu, after the acquisition, will you still be making equipment? We don't know how to make anything else," a veteran employee asked loudly.

Holding up a megaphone, General Manager Yu replied, "They said they'll still be making equipment, the compensation will be the same as before, and they've brought a top-notch R&D team and new technologies."

"Everyone, please disperse quickly. I will send out more details after I finish speaking."

Even Mr. Yu himself wasn't sure. He said those words mainly to disperse the crowd. If people didn't know better, they might think it was a strike or a disturbance.

As the crowd dispersed, a taxi soon pulled up, and a middle-aged man wearing sunglasses got out of the back seat.

"Are you Mr. Ji, the CEO I talked to on the phone about the acquisition?"

Luo Yi nodded slightly. "Hello, Boss Yu."

"Mr. Ji, didn't you bring a research and development team? Where are they? I've already told you about my company's situation on the phone. Our products aren't competitive, and the market is getting smaller and smaller. It's not easy to do business here."

When Mr. Yu saw that he was alone, he felt even more uncertain. He was afraid that his company would be acquired and then used to do other things.

Luo Yi laughed and said, "To be honest, I started out in mechanical technology and was the chief engineer of the R&D team."

"Oh, really!" President Yu's expression turned serious as he looked him over again, gesturing for him to sit down in his office and talk.