772: Chapter 767 Reconsider?

He shouted like a madman, clutching the ledger, crying and laughing.

Shen Yan watched him, very satisfied with the reaction.

This was the person he was looking for.

A pure technical fanatic.

Only this kind of person

Was worthy of the top-tier intelligence provided by the System.

"Get in the car." Shen Yan settled into the back seat. "Starting today, you are the Chief Architect of the 'Nuwa' Project."

"Name your salary, pick any equipment you want."

"I only have one requirement."

Shen Yan's voice sounded exceptionally clear in the rainy night.

"Within one month."

"I want to see the prototype of the first Artificial Intelligence possessing 'emotions'."

Chu Li scrambled into the car, clutching the ledger tightly, as if holding onto his life.

"Less than a month."

Chu Li took off his glasses and roughly wiped the rain and tears from his face.

In that moment, the timid and useless person was gone.

Replaced by a confidence bordering on fanaticism.

It was the pride belonging to a top scholar.

"As long as I have this thing,"

He patted the ledger in his arms.

"Two weeks."

"Boss,"

"Just two weeks."

"I can make this world hear the cry of God."

The car door closed, isolating the noise outside.

The maybach slowly started.

Driving toward the deep night of Vienna.

Shen Yan closed his eyes.

On the System panel in his mind,

A new mission progress bar was slowly lighting up.

["Artificial Intelligence Sector: Activated."]

["Core Component: In place."]

["Chief Architect: In place."]

["Next phase intelligence is being generated..."]

The maybach stopped at the entrance of the famous Sacher Hotel in Vienna.

The golden revolving door reflected the wet street.

The doorman was already waiting nearby, holding a black umbrella.

Chu Li was unceremoniously dragged out of the car by Shen Yan, like carrying a small chicken.

The man was still rambling while clutching the ledger even after entering the Presidential Suite.

His mouth was full of nonsense like 'neuronal mapping' and 'frequency threshold'.

Shen Yan didn't let him continue his frenzy.

He immediately designated the study in the suite as a restricted zone.

He also ordered the hotel manager to send three top-of-the-line workstation servers.

And concentrated coffee enough to drown an elephant.

"Unless it's for delivering food, don't let anyone disturb him," Shen Yan instructed the accompanying bodyguard.

For people like Chu Li,

Seclusion was the best form of freedom.

Lock him in a cage and give him enough meat, and he could bite a Tyrannosaurus Rex to death.

After settling this future 'Godfather of AI',

Shen Yan returned to his own room.

He didn't rush to rest; he stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window.

Outside the window, the dome of the Vienna State Opera glowed with a cold, grayish-green light in the night rain.

Software is the soul.

Hardware is the skeleton.

Now that they had Chu Li's impending explosive brain, they needed a shell capable of carrying it.

Or rather, Shen Yan's ambition wasn't just to build a virtual empire online.

He wanted to erect a true physical monument.

"System."

Shen Yan looked at his reflection in the window glass; the man in the reflection looked somewhat tired, but his back was very straight.

A crisp notification sound echoed from the depths of his mind.

["Host Will Detection Complete."]

["Today's Intelligence Refresh."]

["Current Host Location Detected: Vienna, Austria."]

["Associated Keywords: Architecture, Structure, Lost Blueprints."]

The blue light curtain in front of his retina unfolded again.

Like a design drawing slowly unrolling.

["Intelligence Level: Advanced (Rare Treasure)."]

["Intelligence Name: The Spine of 'The Tower of Babel' — Anti-Gravity Cantilever Structure Manuscript."]

["Intelligence Source: Belongings of the late master structural engineer Hans Steiner."]

["Current Holder: Elsa Steiner (Hans's granddaughter)."]

["Current Coordinates: Vienna 7th District, Neubaugasse 32, 'Steiner Architectural Firm'."]

["Intelligence Details: This was Hans Steiner's craziest concept in his later years, a design plan utilizing a tensile-membrane structure to counteract high-altitude wind shear and gravity. Back then, the industry mocked it as an 'air castle,' but it was actually a structural mechanics miracle fifty years ahead of its time. Mastering this technology could reduce the construction cost of skyscrapers by 4% and increase the seismic resistance level to 9."]

["Estimated Benefit: Once this patent is registered, licensing fees alone could reach billions of US dollars annually."]

["System Prompt: This firm is currently facing bankruptcy liquidation. The blueprints are mixed in a pile of scrap paper and will be recycled as waste at 14:00 today."]

Shen Yan's pupils contracted slightly.

Billions of US dollars, and that was just the licensing fee.

What if he used this technology to build his own headquarters?

Even in the future construction of smart cities, this would be a monopoly-level entry ticket.

This wasn't just about money.

It was about discourse power, the discourse power in the real estate and infrastructure sectors.

He raised his wrist to check the Vacheron Constantin watch.

It was indeed time to rest.

But making money never distinguished between early or late.

The next morning.

The rain in Vienna finally stopped. Water puddles from last night remained on the cobblestone streets, and the air was mixed with the scent of coffee and the cool dampness.

The 7th District was Vienna's art quarter.

It wasn't as overwhelmingly luxurious as the 1st District.

There were galleries of unknown painters, vintage shops, and design studios that looked like they could close down at any moment.

Neubaugasse 32.

It was an old Baroque-style building with some peeling wall plaster, revealing the red bricks underneath.

The brass plaque at the entrance, bearing the three characters 'Steiner,' was already oxidized black.

It looked precarious.

Shen Yan hadn't brought many people today, only two bodyguards in plain clothes, following far behind.

He himself wore a dark gray cashmere coat.

A scarf draped casually over his shoulders.

He looked like a leisurely tourist looking for treasures.

Pushing open the creaking glass door.

The wind chime on the door made a dull clanging sound.

The light inside was dim, filled everywhere with blueprint tubes, foam models, and dust-covered books.

An old, musty smell entered his nostrils.

It was the smell of rotting dreams.

"Sorry, we are closed today."

A somewhat hoarse female voice came from behind a pile of models, followed by a violent fit of coughing.

Shen Yan walked around a giant suspension bridge model.

And saw the woman.

Elsa Steiner.

She looked to be around thirty.

Wearing a work apron smeared with pencil dust.

Her hair was loosely pinned up at the back of her head, somewhat messy.

She was currently squatting on the ground,

Struggling to stuff bundles of blueprints into cardboard boxes.

Her eyes were very red; she had clearly just been crying.

And opposite her stood a man wearing a dark blue suit.

His hair was slicked back until it shone, and he held a document in his hand, wearing that professional, nauseating fake smile.

"Miss Steiner, I suggest you reconsider."