Chapter 82 Technological Blockade and New Dilemmas

The Eagle's reaction was faster and more ruthless than anyone had imagined.

It was the third day since the TR-3B "Black Triangle" had been erased from thin air at an altitude of 30,000 meters.

The fury and fear of The Pentagon finally transformed into a cold, bared-fanged retaliation.

An unprecedented, global "full-spectrum technological blockade," like Mount Tai pressing down, swept towards Daxia.

"Emergency report! The Eagle's Department of Commerce, citing 'national security,' has placed over 300 of our high-tech enterprises and top universities on the entity list! All exports involving high-end chips, lithography machines, precision instruments, and special materials have been completely suspended!"

"Emergency report! Under pressure from The Eagle, the Western Continent Alliance has announced it will follow suit! All technological cooperation projects with our country have been terminated!"

"Emergency report! The Eagle, in conjunction with its allies, has announced it will hold an ultra-large-scale military exercise in the Western Pacific codenamed 'Freedom Shield'! Three carrier strike groups have already assembled and are rapidly approaching our eastern waters!"

Urgent intelligence reports, like snowflakes, flew into the underground Command Center of the scavenger project.

In the conference room, the jubilant celebration of a few days ago had long since vanished.

The atmosphere was suppressed to the extreme.

Chen Weiguo stared fixedly at the screen, at the three carrier strike group icons representing the most powerful naval forces in the world; they were like three sharp daggers, pointing unreservedly at the heart of Daxia.

His face was grim, his knuckles slightly white from excessive force.

"Extreme pressure..."

He squeezed these four words out through his teeth.

"What are they trying to do? Force us to show our hand?"

"No, Chief."

Beside him, the major general in charge of military liaison shook his head, his face full of indignation and profound helplessness.

"They don't want to force us to show our hand. They are certain that we dare not."

His voice echoed in the silent conference room.

"Their intelligence agencies aren't stupid. They know that although we possess some kind of 'point-kill' capability that they cannot understand, our conventional military strength still has a huge gap compared to theirs."

"Total war? It is impossible for us to flip the table with them just for a mere TR-3B."

"So, they are just using this method to disgust us and suppress us."

The major general clenched his fists.

"This isn't a hot war; this is cutting flesh with a slow knife, boiling a frog in warm water! They want to strangle the momentum of our newly ignited technological catch-up!"

He paused, then said word by word:

"Leaving us with the skill to slay dragons, but unable to even forge a decent kitchen knife!"

These words tore open a bloody, cruel reality.

Dimensional reduction strikes are satisfying, sure.

But the rise of a nation, in the end, still relies on a solid, comprehensive industrial system and technological strength.

Just as the Command Center was filled with gloom.

Even worse news arrived.

"Report, Chief! There... there is a problem with Academician Wang!"

A technician stumbled in, his voice tinged with a sob due to anxiety.

"What?!"

Chen Weiguo's heart sank, and he rushed out in one stride, the sound of his military boots hitting the ground echoing rapidly in the corridor.

When he arrived at the massive underground shipyard, which looked like a cathedral of the future, his pupils contracted at the sight before him.

Academician Wang and a group of materials science experts were surrounding the massive, incipient keel of the nantianmen no. 1, arguing fiercely with red faces, their voices buzzing in the empty shipyard.

"No! Absolutely not! This alternative plan's strength simply doesn't meet the standard! A hull built with this material, let alone space jumping, I'm afraid it would disintegrate on the spot before it even flew out of the atmosphere!"

Academician Wang pointed at a holographic blueprint, shaking with anger, his usually wise face flushed red.

"But Academician Wang, we have no choice!"

An old professor in charge of materials research had a bitter expression; he took off his glasses and rubbed his temples wearily.

"The main structural material of the 'the arbitrators'-class destroyer is an ultra-high-strength memory alloy called 'Klingon'. This alloy requires molecular-level reconstruction for at least seventy-two hours in an environment near absolute zero using an ultra-high-frequency energy field to take shape!"

He sighed, his voice full of frustration.

"With our current industrial technology, let alone molecular-level reconstruction, we can't even simulate that so-called 'energy field'! The only thing we can do is use our own best special steel to infinitely approach its performance parameters. But... the gap is still too big."

"What about the 'structural stabilizer'?!" Academician Wang asked urgently, clutching at the last straw. "Didn't Lin Yuan find the formula for the 'structural stabilizer' in the database? Doesn't that thing significantly increase the strength and toughness of materials?"

"The formula was found."

The old professor's voice was filled with a bottomless sense of powerlessness.

"But manufacturing it requires a... a true 'industrial mother machine'."

He looked up, meeting the eyes of Academician Wang, and also Chen Weiguo, who had arrived upon hearing the news.

"It requires a device capable of atomic-level stacking and molecular-level reconstruction with ultra-high efficiency. And this is the weakest link in our entire industrial system! The Eagle's blockade this time has us by the throat! We can't even buy a single high-precision imported lithography machine right now, so how can we talk about an 'industrial mother machine'?"

The old professor's words were like a basin of ice water, extinguishing the last glimmer of light in Academician Wang's eyes.

He also fell silent.

He turned slowly, looking at the massive interstellar warship keel before him that carried the hopes of the entire nation.

It lay there quietly like a magnificent skeleton, cold and dead silent.

Having the skill to slay dragons, but lacking the strength to even truss a chicken.

Having peerless blueprints, but no tools to build them.

This feeling was even more desperate than facing a powerful enemy directly.

The construction of the nantianmen no. 1 had completely stalled because of this small but fatal "structural stabilizer."

The entire South Heaven Gate Project was at risk of being shelved.

This news, like a ten-thousand-ton boulder, weighed heavily on everyone's hearts.

...

That night.

Chen Weiguo and Academician Wang went together to find Lin Yuan, who was undergoing recovery training.

They told him exactly what dilemma they were currently facing.

"Industrial mother machine..."

Lin Yuan frowned after hearing this.

This was not the first time he had heard this term.

He knew what this meant for the industrial level of a civilization.

It was the pinnacle of the pyramid.

It was the brightest pearl on the industrial crown.

"Academician Wang, do you mean we need a machine capable of 'printing' at the molecular level, like the nano-forging matrix?" Lin Yuan asked.

"Yes, but not entirely."

Academician Wang shook his head, his voice somewhat hoarse, his eyes bloodshot.

"The nano-forging matrix is too high-end. That is the ultimate creation of a god-level mechanical civilization like Titan Heavy Industry. We can't handle it yet."

He looked up, staring intently at Lin Yuan.

"What we need is a machine that is one level lower than that, but more 'practical.' A 'universal factory' that can be truly understood, absorbed, and replicated by our current industrial system."

"With it, we can not only create the 'structural stabilizer', we can also create higher-precision chips, more powerful engines, stronger armor... the industrial strength of our entire nation will experience a true, explosive leap!"

The flame of hope ignited once again in Academician Wang's eyes.

It was a light mixed with desire, expectation, and a desperate gamble.

He looked at Lin Yuan, the young man who had changed everything.

"Lin Yuan, I know this request might be too much. You still need to recover. But..."

His voice choked up.

"We really don't have any more time."

"I need you to go to that place again for us."

"Go and help us bring back that... miracle that can allow us to completely break free from our shackles."

Lin Yuan fell silent.

He looked at Academician Wang's earnest gaze, then at Chen Weiguo beside him, the man who was always iron-willed, now showing undisguised exhaustion and determination on his face.

He knew this burden had once again fallen upon his shoulders.

But he did not hesitate at all.

He stood up and nodded heavily to the two old men before him who had worked their whole lives for the country.

"Academician Wang, Chief."

"When do we leave?"