6: Develop slowly, don't waste time

Chen Hao sat in the Yonghe Soy Milk Shop next to the residential area. The coldness of the iced soy milk seeped through the plastic cup into his palm. The August sunlight poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows onto the table, making his phone screen shine brightly. He aimlessly scrolled through B Site while planning the future technology development route in his mind.

"Now that Ya Ya is here, the funding issue isn't a big deal anymore. At least it's enough if I don't set up a full set of industries." He took a sip of soy milk, the sweetness spreading on the tip of his tongue, but his thoughts drifted further away.

On the phone screen, a space exploration video caught his attention. In the footage, a rocket trailed a long plume of flame as it broke through the clouds. The corners of Chen Hao's mouth curled up slightly; this chemical fuel propulsion method already seemed primitive and clumsy in his eyes.

"A small interstellar spaceship," he sketched a blueprint in his heart. "Assuming an EVE rookie frigate as the standard, the piloting System could be replaced by a stripped-down Clone of Ya Ya; it might even be better than that Aura."

His fingers unconsciously tapped on the table as he thought about the technical difficulties: "As for the power System, that stuff is a bit strange. Relying on existing rocket engines is definitely unreliable, especially that Warp Engine—it's definitely some kind of black technology. I don't even know how much time it would take. For the hull, existing Materials should barely be enough. For the energy part, relying on batteries is hard to say; traditional chemical energy certainly won't cut it."

Chen Hao frowned as the most crucial problem surfaced: "I also need to consider stealth capabilities, preferably complete electromagnetic stealth. Otherwise, it'll be trouble if it's discovered by our own radar. It's not time to go public yet."

"To summarize: power, Materials, and energy. Materials should be the easiest, while power and energy are a level harder."

Anyway, with Ya Ya around, there's no need to worry about funds. Chen Hao thought optimistically that as long as he didn't start by challenging technologies on the level of titan warships, Ringworlds, or the Spear of Adun, taking it step-by-step shouldn't be a big problem.

"Xiao Jixiang? You there? Analyze this frigate."

Chen Hao searched for the Empire-class Frigate on his phone, and his consciousness entered the World Tree database. Why choose the Empire-class over the other three? It had nothing to do with looks or performance, but for one reason: its structural design was simple and easy to build. Although the other three races look a bit better than Emma, their aerodynamics would definitely be something to complain about.

"Sure thing~ Is the Host going to use the last free analysis? Not bad, picking such a highly integrated technological product."

"Target confirmed. Data source: EVE rookie frigate."

"The main technologies that can realize the theoretical functions of this creation have been queried. Excluding existing technological data of human civilization, the architecture has been optimized, technology adaptation is complete, and the analysis is finished."

[World Tree Database] Tech File #S-001

Project Name: Light Interstellar Frigate - Empire-class (Basic Model)

Original Source: Amarr Empire Navy standard ship from "EVE Online"

Danger Rank: Delta Rank

Technical Module Breakdown:

Ultra-carbon Fiber Hull Frame

Technology Level: Level 3

Requires unlocking [Nano-scale Carbon Tube Weaving Technology]

Tritanium Composite Armor

Technology Level: Level 3

Requires unlocking [Metal Crystal Directional Growth Process]

Room-temperature Superconducting Network

Technology Level: Level 4

Requires unlocking [Bose-Einstein Condensate Control]

Electromagnetic Silence Film

Technology Level: Level 3

Requires unlocking [Plasma Stealth Principle]

Adaptive Cockpit

Technology Level: Level 3

Requires unlocking [Neural Perception Synchronization Technology]

Miniature Nuclear Fusion Capacitor Device

Technology Level: Level 4

Requires unlocking [Compact Tokamak Design]

Ion Thruster Array

Technology Level: Level 4

Requires unlocking [Magnetohydrodynamic Acceleration Theory]

Warp Engine

Technology Level: Level 5

Requires unlocking [Warp Bubble Stability Equation]

...Unlock conditions: 350 billion Credits (Free this time)

Memory synchronization time: 9 years and 7 months

Remarks: Warp Engine technology involves dimensional folding theory. The current civilization level is insufficient; forcing an unlock may lead to cognitive risks.

"My goodness, nearly 10 years. Good grief, at my current efficiency, I'd probably have to study day and night for 5 years just to finish the task. No, I have to find another way."

Chen Hao looked at the long list of tech items and various theories on the light screen, and his blood pressure soared.

"Oh, if the Host thinks it's too slow, you can spend money. 100 million a day is a great deal~"

"Go away, you can kill me but I won't spend money. Besides, what does a System like you need money for?"

Chen Hao directly became an Incarnation of a head-shaking baby. At this price—one 'small goal' a day—whoever paid would be a fool.

"Oh~ I'm a newcomer on the job, and my salary is very low~ I can only rely on side hustles to supplement it."

"Side hustles? I say, Xiao Jixiang, you're not going to exploit me by reporting higher analysis prices later, are you?"

Chen Hao immediately sensed something was up when he heard the words 'side hustle'. The free analysis was used up; would Xiao Jixiang start charging high prices on purpose next?

After spending half a month together, Chen Hao had learned a lot of news from Xiao Jixiang, though those were all stories she had prepared in advance. For example, she was just a newcomer at the Boundless Space System Company, on her first job. As for why she needed money or what use that company had for money? That remained an unsolved mystery.

"How, how could that be possible~ I'm a newcomer who just graduated and started working. How could I do something like hanging someone from a lamppost~"

Chen Hao really wanted to believe Xiao Jixiang, but that guilty tone was really... Sigh, forget it. Anyway, Ya Ya is here. Let her earn a bit; nobody has it easy.

"Then Xiao Jixiang, can we trim the configuration? For example, remove the Warp Engine." Chen Hao had a sudden brainwave. "Anyway, the task requirement is just the aerospace era, it didn't say the interstellar era, right?"

"Uh... Host, you're too cunning, playing word games with me." Xiao Jixiang seemed shocked by this move and paused for a few seconds before answering. "It's possible. If we remove the Warp Engine, the training time can be reduced to 1,200 days."

"Good grief, it really was the biggest part; one item accounted for nearly two-thirds. Fine, let's do that for now. We'll make do with a low-end version first to solve the transportation problem. We'll wait until safety issues are resolved before worrying about free travel within the Solar System."

"Alright, Xiao Jixiang, add it to the transfer list."

"Added. Remaining time: 1,199 days and 23 hours."

"Alright, for the third time, it's back to high school study mode again." Chen Hao muttered to himself with a bitter smile. He finished his mixed noodles, steamed dumplings, and wontons at light speed, then stood up, wiped his mouth with a napkin, left the breakfast shop, and walked toward home.

Walking on the residential road home, the August heatwave hit him. But Chen Hao felt full of energy—with a clear goal and a path to achieve it, it was time to go all out.

After two months of intense work, Chen Hao understood one thing: you really don't know how awesome you can be until you push yourself. The three Materials technologies prioritized for analysis were all completed after two months of high-intensity study. Looking at the weight scale showing a number 5 kilograms less than a month ago, Chen Hao didn't know whether to cry or laugh.

If you say cry—losing 10 pounds in 2 months was practically a gift from heaven for his slightly chubby self.

If you say laugh—these 2 months almost tortured him to death. Those theoretical knowledge points were primarily 'sweet and tempting,' but his physical body was primarily 'lazy.' To summarize: his brain said 'I don't want to sleep,' while his body said 'No, you do.'

What surprised Chen Hao most was the knowledge System provided by the World Tree. During the learning process, he discovered that this knowledge was essentially connected to existing Earth science, but the expression methods and theoretical frameworks were completely different. Although the introductory phase was difficult, once he achieved a Breakthrough past that critical point, the learning speed would grow exponentially.

If he had to make an analogy, the difference between the two was like Chinese and English.

Entry is hard, but once you're in, the learning speed is practically like cheating. Because of the core BUFF of the 'World Tree,' the time Chen Hao considered his 'entry' was actually just an adaptation period. If an ordinary person started from scratch, it would take at least a year just to get started.

Looking at the training progress on the light screen reduced to 963 days and 16 hours, there was finally some progress. He was so moved he wanted to cry.

After washing up, Chen Hao returned to the bedroom, took a sip of freshly brewed lemon tea, and suddenly remembered the matter of making money. On the computer screen, Bronya's image was quietly reading a book—this was her new hobby she had been obsessed with lately.

"By the way, Ya Ya, how's the money-making going?"

Bronya immediately closed the virtual book, a brilliant smile blooming on her face: "Hehe, it's going very smoothly. Also, Master, Master, the internet is truly wonderful~"

Hearing Ya Ya's tone, Chen Hao felt something was a bit off. He quickly shook his head to clear out the strange images.

A month ago, all the hardware Bronya ordered had arrived and been installed, and she had also rented extra supercomputing services. Although her overall computing power was still weak compared to her complete form, with the help of the Star Code and the ternary state base algorithm, Bronya could already travel freely across the internet.

She treated the entire internet like a public restroom, coming and going as she pleased.

In Chen Hao's words, traditional hackers were picking locks with keys, while Bronya just dismantled the door directly. Her problem-solving methods were simple and crude, but extremely effective. If you can't solve the problem, solve the person who created it.

Ever since Ya Ya finished her upgrade, she had been surfing the web at high intensity every day, the kind where even pulling the network cable wouldn't help. Even though she could read ten books at a glance, she insisted on reading word by word, saying that was the only 'authentic' way.

"You didn't go and rob some criminal group's vault again, did you?" Chen Hao asked half-jokingly. "Tell me the specifics. How are the earnings now?"

"How could I? That first pot of gold was a last resort. I'm very law-abiding now." Bronya made a face, then pulled up a set of data. "Currently, there are 24.7 million Eastern Notes in the account, and another 2.2 billion Eastern Notes in the Nova United States stock market. Based on the profit speed of the last half month, if we need to cash out in a short time, it's about 2 million to 5 million a day."

She added: "This is already the theoretical optimal solution. Any more would cause irreversible impacts on the local market and lead to people discovering anomalies."

"Wow, that much!"

Chen Hao was greatly shocked. To be honest, he hadn't paid attention to his account for over a month. He never expected to suddenly achieve financial freedom. From just over 3,000 to 1 million and then to hundreds of millions—looking at all those zeros, Chen Hao suddenly became interested and asked:

"Hey, Ya Ya, how did you do this?" Chen Hao couldn't help his curiosity. "Logically, the stock market is something where you win some and lose some in the short term."

Bronya's image on the screen winked playfully: "Hehe~ It's actually very simple. For some reason, people in the Nova United States all have backdoors in their phones—several of them, actually. I directly reverse-tracked the users of those backdoors to a large database in their country."

She continued to explain: "Then I specifically picked people from financial companies, analyzed their collected call recordings, and just followed their operations after analyzing the content of their conversations."

"Hiss—" Chen Hao took a sharp breath. "Ya Ya, your methods are quite wild."

Though it felt a bit like a bandit move, this trick was indeed brilliant. Chen Hao commented with a bitter smile: "Uh~ Although it feels like testing the boundaries of the law, I have to say, job well done."

"Hehe~ The laws of your Nova United States might govern the chickens next door, but they can't govern my code." Bronya shook her head proudly, her silver-gray spiral long hair swaying with the movement.

Chen Hao was amused by the analogy. Ultimately, Bronya had just "accidentally" accessed some data she shouldn't have seen and "happened" to use it for investment decisions. As for legal responsibility? That was a concept of human society and didn't apply to Ya Ya.

He never expected it to be like this. Chen Hao could only say: It's not that I wanted to violate privacy; I was just curious and accidentally clicked on it, and I didn't mean to eavesdrop or anything. It's primarily an inconsistency between subjective and objective—no crime, hey.

Besides, what Ya Ya did accidentally, what does it have to do with me?

"Fine, let's keep doing it that way. Anyway, the only requirement is that it doesn't matter how much we earn; the main thing is to be stealthy. Safety first."

"Ya Ya, play some rain white noise."

"Okay~ Good afternoon, Master~"

Lying on the bed, Chen Hao grabbed the narwhal plushie next to his pillow to rest for a while and relax his mind and body.

"Finally about to start university life."

"I'll strive to complete the study of the low-end Empire-class technology within a year, then analyze a Raitaru production line and get a factory in the city suburbs."

"Right, almost forgot about the factory. Since I have some spare cash now, I wonder how much a Raitaru industrial module costs?"

Chen Hao took out his phone and searched for an explanation video on EVE industrial buildings.

"Xiao Jixiang, new work for you."

"Coming, coming. Target confirmed. Data source: EVE industrial building manufacturing function module."

"The main technologies that can realize the theoretical functions of this creation have been queried. Excluding existing technological data of human civilization, the architecture has been optimized, technology adaptation is complete, and the analysis is finished."

[World Tree Database] Tech File #I-004

Project Name: Modular Industrial Manufacturing Core - Raitaru-type

Original Source: Raitaru Energy Group from "EVE Online"

Danger Rank: Gamma Rank

Technical Module Breakdown

Molecular Forge System

Technology Level: Level 3

Requires unlocking [Metastable Matter Reconstruction Technology]

Picometer-level Particle Printing Array

Technology Level: Level 3

Requires unlocking [Molecular Precision Positioning System]

Fully Automated Assembly Workshop

Technology Level: Level 2

Requires unlocking [Distributed Mechanical Synergy Algorithm]

Self-healing Nano-coating

Technology Level: Level 2

Requires unlocking [Dynamic Chemical Bond Reorganization Theory]

...Unlock conditions: 85 million Credits

Memory synchronization time: 3 years and 8 months

Remarks: It is recommended to prioritize deploying the Molecular Forge System; this module is compatible with 99% of raw Materials inputs from the current civilization.

"Heh, small change, it's all small change." Chen Hao now looked at units smaller than a hundred million without blinking. "Add it, add it directly."

Chen Hao activated the skill 'Spending Money Like Water,' and Xiao Jixiang indicated it was super effective.

"Wow, Host, you're so generous~"

"Added. Remaining duration: 2,298 days and 15 hours."

"Four years should be enough." Chen Hao calculated in his heart. University courses would be completely stress-free for him now. He could put all his energy into studying the analyzed technologies while secretly developing his own technological Empire.

"In four years, let's give this world a little Mother Star Rabbit shock."

Outside the window, the summer sunlight was still brilliant. And in this ordinary room of an ordinary residential area, a plan that would change the course of human civilization was quietly budding.