Chapter 1166
The Final Death Ceremony! System Soul Blank
The cheers abruptly stopped.
One second they were in the ecstasy of paradise, the next they had fallen into the abyss of a deep, dark winter!
Chips are the crown jewel of the information age, and the control system that runs the lithography machine is the soul that drives that crown! But this soul... is in the hands of the enemy, a blind spot they have never touched!
Guo Xueyun's tears hadn't even dried when her eyes were once again shrouded in immense worry.
The ecstasy on Yuan Tao's face froze instantly, turning into an indescribable sorrow and bewilderment.
The excitement and flush on the faces of everyone who had cheered faded rapidly, replaced by a fear even deeper than when they discovered the bearing was stuck!
Yes, machines are inanimate, no matter how precise you make every single part! Without that "brain" that can precisely command and coordinate thousands of machines, the complex photolithography process at the level of a creator is just a chaotic joke!
This "brain" is the core of what they have never truly valued or mastered—the software!
A deathly silence enveloped the entire venue.
This is even more despairing than hardware bottlenecks! It's invisible and intangible, yet it's the real Achilles' heel!
It felt like we had just climbed to the top of a mountain, only to find a sheer cliff ahead!
"system……"
Su Dingping stood there, as if all his strength had been drained in an instant, his face turning deathly pale from exhaustion.
He looked at the desperate faces around him, faces that had fallen from the clouds to the bottom of the abyss, and at the feeder and mask tables that had restarted and were running perfectly, yet were frozen like sculptures due to the lack of "soul commands".
Silence. A suffocating silence that lasted for more than ten seconds.
He took a deep breath, as if to suck out all the oxygen from the workshop, and then slowly exhaled.
He offered no explanation, no lengthy analysis, and no despair.
He simply raised his hand, rubbed his bloodshot eyes hard, and then spoke clearly in a calm yet chilling tone.
"I'll handle the system."
Without waiting for anyone's reaction, and without looking at anyone's incredulous eyes.
He turned around, dragging his exhausted body, his shoulders hunched, and walked alone to the small temporary office partitioned off in the corner of the workshop.
The door closed gently behind him. It was locked.
Yuan Tao was the first to react. A surge of passion rushed to his head, and he roared at the closed office door with all his might.
"Did you all hear that?! Chief Engineer Su said it!"
He'll handle it!
He can solve it!
His gaze, like a burning flame, swept across the still-stunned audience.
"What are you all standing around for? Get to work! Don't waste the hardware quotas that Chief Engineer Su secured for you! Everyone! Immediately start studying the system control interface document! Get it ready!"
If you can't even understand the syntax when I throw this code at you, you might as well go home and eat your own food! Chief Engineer Su is clearing mountains and seas for us, and you guys can't even weave a straw sandal? How dare you live with yourselves?!
He didn't even bother to question it!
His trust bordered on fanaticism!
The crowd was awakened by the frantic roar. Although their hearts were filled with turmoil and doubt, Su Dingping's miraculous breakthroughs over the years had already left an indelible mark on their hearts.
A tragic yet fearless, almost blindly obedient force began to re-coalesce in the workshop.
Guo Xueyun silently walked outside the office, carrying a new thermos and a thin blanket.
She didn't say anything, but simply placed the things gently on the chair by the door.
Looking at the sliver of light shining through the crack in the tightly closed door, I felt an unbearable pang in my heart, yet I couldn't utter a single word of dissuasion.
All she could do was pray and wait.
Su Dingping did not turn on the lights in the office.
He was overwhelmed by immense fatigue, but he did not collapse onto his cot.
He stood with his back to the door, his figure somewhat blurred in the dim light. The only light was from the computer screen on his desk. Its eerie blue glow illuminated his face, which appeared almost frighteningly focused, as his fingers hovered unconsciously over the keyboard.
However, his entire focus was no longer on the actual screen code.
His consciousness sank into that incredibly deep forging space.
A massive curtain of light stretched across the void.
An icon that had never been lit up—【Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography Machine End-to-End Real-Time Control System】—was silently floating. The progress bar… was no longer a lifeless gray! Instead, it displayed two chillingly large red characters.
[Unlocking...] The tiny note below flickered almost as if it were burning.
[Deep front-end technology correlation verified at 95% resolution! Extremely high correlation! Unlock countdown accelerated! Estimated: 3 days!]
Su Dingping stared intently at the shrinking numbers and progress bar. Deep within his weary eyes, the last bit of strength transformed into a burning flame.
New Delhi.
The once bustling palace is now shrouded in a deathly silence and restlessness. Expensive tapestries have been torn to shreds, and shattered porcelain and wood chips are scattered across the gilded and silver-inlaid floor.
The Indian king's usually arrogant face was now filled with nothing but twisted shame and immense panic.
Denver! Denver!
Those savage monkeys!
How dare they? How could they?!
He flew into a rage like a lion whose tail had been stepped on, enraged at the sight of the shattered battle report.
"Our armored onslaught was blocked by a bunch of scum with crappy individual weapons?! And we lost so many tanks?! The general was killed?!"
This is the ultimate insult to our sacred and inviolable great Indian tribe!
The enormous casualty figures and photos of destroyed, expensive equipment gnawed at his proud heart like a cold, venomous snake.
What terrified him even more was the rapidly spreading international media coverage. The overwhelming ridicule was like a series of resounding slaps to the face of this "leader of a powerful nation." Headlines like "Military Myth Completely Bankrupt," and "Armored Forces Stuck in the Quagmire," each one a poisoned dagger, were everywhere!
His carefully cultivated image as the "Third Pole" and "King of Africa" crumbled instantly!
"Immediately! Send two more elite mountain divisions over there! At all costs! Crush them!"
He roared hysterically at the trembling Army Chief of Staff.
The Chief of the General Staff was deathly pale, and his voice was trembling.
"Your Majesty... Your Majesty... the terrain in Denver is too complex, all mountainous... our massive armored forces simply cannot operate effectively... moreover, the enemy has clearly received precise intelligence and tactical guidance... further reinforcements... what if..."
"Useless! All of you are useless!"
The Indian king grabbed the gold-inlaid pen holder on the table and smashed it hard.
Just then, his staff officer in charge of foreign affairs cautiously approached, holding a copy of the latest intelligence report.
"Your Majesty... our... our intelligence sources analysis... suggests that behind this Denver armed attack... there might be... the shadow of that bald eagle in the north... they... seem to have provided weapons to Denver..."
"The Eagle Tribe?!"
The Indian king suddenly turned his head, his eyes bloodshot.
"I knew it! I knew it was them who did it!"
They're getting revenge on me! Revenge for those 20 billion dollars and their useless, worthless data!
Anger and humiliation instantly clouded his judgment! He grabbed the dedicated satellite phone and dialed the encrypted line directly to the Great Chieftain of the White Eagle Palace.
This time, he did not hide his anger.
"Your Excellency, I demand an explanation!"
The Indian king's voice became shrill due to extreme anger and fear.
"Is the Denver tribe's affair caused by your people? Using such despicable means to attack a loyal partner dedicated to the free world?! Do you know how much loss and humiliation this has caused our great Indian tribe in the international community?"
On the other end of the phone, the Great Chief was as calm as a frozen pool that had been frozen for millennia.
"Explanation? Your Majesty, on what grounds are you accusing a true friend who has long provided you with technical assistance and strategic support? Denver armed insurgents attacked your army?"
Isn't this an internal problem of your country's border management and military capabilities? I suggest you first examine why your army can't even handle a backward local militia.
The coldness, condescension, and dismissive attitude in that tone were like a bucket of ice water poured over the Indian king's head, instantly snapping him out of his rage and leaving him feeling cold all over.
He realized that expecting the other party to admit it was simply wishful thinking.
The White Eagle Tribe has countless ways to absolve themselves of all responsibility!
A sense of powerlessness and immense fear overwhelmed him instantly. If things continued this way, not only would the military operation become an even bigger international laughingstock, but his personal prestige and the entire tribe's dream of rise would be utterly shattered amidst overwhelming ridicule!
He can't afford to lose!
"well……"
The rage in the Indian king's voice vanished instantly, leaving only a tremor that he tried desperately to suppress but could not completely hide.
"Your Majesty, I...I understand! What happened before...we didn't do well enough...we disappointed you."
So...how...how can we...restore...the peace we deserve to our satisfied friend?
His voice was low, carrying a hint of humble pleading.
The brief silence on the other end of the phone seemed to be brewing a new storm.
The Great Chieftain's cold voice rang out again.
"Oh? Tranquility? That's very valuable."
He paused for a moment, his tone carrying undisguised contempt.
"Where is my money? I spent 20 billion, and it all just vanished into thin air in your hands?"
"Your Excellency, Great Chief... please let me explain..."
The Indian king was getting anxious.
"The project has been progressing... but we've encountered some technical issues..."
"enough!"
The chieftain abruptly interrupted, his voice rising sharply.
"King Inspector! Do you think I run a charity? Or do you think the money of the White Eagle Tribe is worthless paper that can be easily swindled?!"
A surge of intense anger seemed about to burst from the microphone.
The Indian king was so frightened by this blunt accusation that his legs went weak, but he forced himself to speak.
"The money...we really...have invested it all in the project's research and development...we just...we really can't come up with any more right now..."
He was so anxious that the veins on his forehead bulged out.
"You can't come up with the money?"
A cryptic chuckle came from the other end of the phone.
The laughter was cold, yet it brought a sudden sense of relief to the Indian king.
As long as it's free, anything is negotiable!
Sure enough, a few seconds later, the chieftain's tone unexpectedly shifted, becoming as precise and chilling as a viper's hiss.
"Well then, to prove that your investment is indeed worthwhile, and to demonstrate our fairness as a leader in advanced technology."
His voice was slow and leisurely, with a hint of cat-and-mouse playfulness.
"The two hundred billion yuan of precious R&D funds that you inadvertently obtained from our previous collaborative project, actively absorbed, and invested in..."
He deliberately emphasized the words "accidentally" and "digest".
"All the original core design drawings of that large electromagnetic railgun system, the smelting formulas for key materials, and your subsequent improvement ideas and data..."
"...Pack them all up and send them over."
"I'd love to see just how much real knowledge you've actually gained from paying 20 billion in tuition fees. Perhaps... that's the only way to make up for our losses and... quell my anger."
His last words floated off lightly.
"Your Majesty, do you think this small request... is enough to bring you and your tribe the peace that you so desperately need?"
Upon hearing this request, the Indian king was taken aback at first, but then the immense weight in his heart instantly lifted! The panic and humiliation he had felt earlier vanished!
He doesn't want money! He just wants the electromagnetic railgun documents and data that he already found difficult, thankless, and slow-progressing.
This is like a windfall!
"Okay! Okay! No problem! Absolutely no problem!"
He practically shouted it out, as if afraid the other party would change their mind; his tone was filled with immense joy and humility at surviving such a close call.
"His Majesty the Great Chief is so understanding and considerate of his allies!"
This is a huge trust you place in us! Rest assured! I will immediately issue the order! All relevant core documents and materials, whether basic or up-to-date… be immediately compiled, packaged, and encrypted with the highest level! Send them to your designated location immediately! All relevant data!
Not a single one will be missed!
After hanging up the phone, Ah San Wang immediately roared at the outside.
"Someone! Quickly! Immediately have that...that person in charge of the electromagnetic project base! Pack up all the files in the archives! Blueprints! Formulas! Experiment records! Pack them all up! Encrypt them immediately! And send them to White Eagle!"
"Send it quickly! Send it all out!"
The Indian king waved his hand as if shooing away a swarm of bedbugs, and roared at the trembling servants at the door.
"Tell them not to keep a single one! What priceless technology? To hell with it! Let's keep that old fox from eyeing us again!"
Watching his servant rush out as if granted a pardon, he sank his large body into the velvet sofa, exhaled a long breath, and his face was full of relief and liberation.
On the other side of the ocean, deep within the White Eagle Palace.
A massive electronic file package, marked as top secret, was quietly delivered to the chief's private computer after undergoing multiple layers of encryption and verification.
The green light indicates "Received Complete" has been turned on.
The senior assistant in charge of receiving the data quickly reviewed the summary, his face instantly displaying an overwhelming mix of astonishment and elation. (End of Chapter)