Chapter 40
First Phase of the Plan
On that day, people who were still awake around the world were the first to notice something strange.
“No signal on my phone?!”
Many thought it was just their own phone losing signal, but they didn’t know it was a global electromagnetic disturbance caused by the star destroyer cannon.
This disturbance would last for an entire month. During this time, people were forced to rely on cable networks as mobile phones became unusable.
Even 2G networks were nonexistent, let alone 6G.
Soon after, a global earthquake shook the ground and was felt by almost everyone. While not frequent and without significant damage, the tremors were noticeable.
Earthquake experts were perplexed as the measuring instruments failed to detect any activity, yet people could feel the tremors beneath their feet.
“Unless a huge earthquake comes from a place further away, what we’re sensing are just aftershocks.”
If it were to be confirmed, it would be the most significant earthquake in history.
Due to the lack of phone signals and the frequent earthquakes, people started to realize that something was amiss. With no means of spreading news and information online, they resorted to watching cable TV for updates.
..
“Are you really going to Earth, Commander?” Uncle Da asked.
Zhao Yu felt guilty as he had not discussed his plan with Uncle Da beforehand.
He added it during negotiations with Colonel Chu, fearing that Uncle Da might not approve, and hoping to solidify it as a done deal.
“Well, negotiations are my specialty. Ba Jie and the others just aren’t cut out for it. Too easily manipulated, you know,” Zhao Yu said.”
Uncle Da nodded. “I understand. I’ll quickly assemble a fleet to protect your safety.”
To his surprise, Uncle Da did not object. Was he not programmed to have emotional outbursts?
Zhao Yu suddenly understood. No matter how human-like Uncle Da was, he was still just an artificial intelligence. He did not have many unnecessary emotions.
“Let’s move on to the first phase of the plan,” Uncle Da said, not dwelling on the previous matter.
“Sure, go ahead,” Zhao Yu replied.
“For our base, we mainly lack two things,” Uncle Da continued.
“One, technology points, which are essential for upgrading technology and developing new industries.”
“Two, resources, which are essential for mass-producing combat machines.”
“Trading with Earth, the biggest advantage should be the technology point reimbursement from the ‘mysterious merchant’ title.”
“As for resources, in the short term, we do need Earth’s resources, but in the long term, there are many barren planets in the universe with unlimited resources,” Uncle Da explained.
Zhao Yu nodded. Except for Earth, the eight planets in the solar system had resources that were up for grabs. It was a first-come, first-serve situation.
After some thought, he asked again, “How long until the window period for landing on Mars?”
The eight planets in the solar system revolved around the sun at different speeds, and their relative positions changed constantly. When a planet was on the same side as Earth, the distance between them was at its shortest, making it the optimal time for space travel. This period of optimal distance is known as the window period.
“There are still 11 months left…”
Uncle Da continued, “Commander, in phase one of our mission, I’ve set up a mission to send a spaceship to Mercury.”
“Mercury?”
“Yes,” Uncle Da nodded. “Our spaceship has two power modes: magnetic and nuclear. However, magnetic propulsion isn’t practical for interstellar travel, as there aren’t enough strong magnetic forces in the universe to use it effectively. That’s why we have to rely on nuclear power.”
“Our nuclear fusion reactor technology is currently in its second generation, and the speed of a conventional nuclear-powered spacecraft is only 61,400 kilometers per hour. If we were to travel to Mars now, it would take 88 days to get there and two years to return.”
The shortest distance between Mars and Earth was 55 million kilometers, while the longest was 400 million kilometers. To minimize the round-trip time, it’s essential to take advantage of the window period.
“The average conjunction period between Venus and Earth is 584 days, and it’s currently about 110 million kilometers away from us, which isn’t yet at the farthest point. The next conjunction time is about 290 days later, which is longer than Mars,” Uncle Da explained.
Zhao Yu nodded, indicating that he understood. “And what about Mercury?”
“Mercury is currently 83 million kilometers away from us and 218 million kilometers away from Earth’s farthest point,” Uncle Da replied. “On average, Mercury and Earth converge once every 116 days during its fast orbit. Currently, we’re in the conjunction period, which is the optimal time to travel to Mercury.”
“Send a spaceship there now. How long will it take?” Zhao Yu asked.
“It will take 57 days,” Uncle Da replied.
“57 days? That’s rather long,”
Uncle Da nodded, “So, the core of our second phase plan is to upgrade the nuclear fusion reactor from the second to the third generation.”
“Upgrade the nuclear fusion reactor?” Zhao Yu frowned. Nuclear fusion was the foundation of all technology below 1.99, and the exchange price was also rising.
The first-generation nuclear fusion cost only 1000 technology points, whereas the second-generation cost 5000 technology points, requiring him to save up for half a year to upgrade it. Similarly, the third-generation fusion reactor required 10000 technology points, and Zhao Yu had no intention of upgrading it.
“Yes,” Uncle Da nodded. “Nuclear fusion is the foundation of all our technology. According to my calculations, upgrading the nuclear fusion reactor to the third generation will significantly increase the speed of all our spaceships powered by it… Not only that, but all facilities related to nuclear fusion, such as energy shields and ground-based laser defense systems, will also be enhanced. These are all supported by the fusion reactor, and upgrading it will naturally result in an overall improvement.”
Zhao Yu carefully considered it and realized that upgrading to a third-generation fusion reactor was indeed necessary. He had never thought of it before because he had to save up all his technology points, which would take him two years to accumulate 10,000 points. Now, with the title of “Mysterious Merchant,” he could quickly obtain a large number of Technology Points from Earth.
“Okay, so the first phase of the plan involves extensive trade with Earth?” he asked.
“Yes,” Uncle Da nodded. “My idea is to use the 50-kilometer diameter asteroid as our base on Earth. Then we will establish a company and build factories in different parts of Earth to earn technology points. We can exchange the Earth money earned for resources on Earth since we don’t have the ability to travel far yet. As the nearest planet, Mercury, takes 57 days to reach, it would be worth the time to travel there.”
Zhao Yu nodded. The plan was similar to what he had in mind. “Have you prepared a list of items to trade?” he asked.
“Yes, we have: Maglev cars, intelligent robots, and first-generation fusion power plants are on the list…”