Chapter 151 You Learned Endurance from Albatrosses?

After setting his flag, Li Jiajun didn't dwell on the topic much longer.

After all, for a man of action, boasting was just a pastime; focusing on technology was his true calling.

He turned around and tapped the whiteboard heavily with his pointer, the crisp sound slightly dispelling the "criminal" atmosphere in the livestream room.

"Alright, the exterior design is set. Next, we have to tackle the tough nuts."

Li Jiajun's expression turned serious, like a teacher about to highlight key points for his students.

"As I said earlier, to meet President Wang's requirements for reducing costs and increasing efficiency, this aircraft's range must reach eight thousand kilometers, or even further. But, family, do you know what that implies?"

He wrote a series of formulas on the whiteboard, his brow furrowed.

"Conventional fuel engines need massive fuel tanks to fly that far. More fuel means more weight; more weight means less cargo capacity. It's a vicious cycle."

"Use batteries? Don't be ridiculous. With current battery energy density, being able to fly a thousand kilometers would be a miracle."

"So, to maintain a five-ton payload while flying eight thousand kilometers non-stop, simply stacking fuel won't work. We must... find another way."

Li Jiajun stroked his chin, his eyes wandering through the pile of cluttered documents on his desk.

Since the biomimetic design of the twin-tailed scorpion had provided a good start, he felt the key to solving the propulsion issue might still be hidden in nature.

"When in doubt, watch Animal World."

Li Jiajun skillfully opened the video software on his computer and entered his signature voice-over roasting mode, muttering to himself:

"Humanity's pitiful technology is just a joke compared to nature's billions of years of evolution. Those aero-engine guys spend all day researching compressors and turbine blades, yet none of them can outfly a bird. Since we need to fly far, we should ask the master who flies the furthest."

He typed a few keywords into the search bar: long-distance flight, non-stop, birds.

Soon, a high-definition documentary about albatrosses popped up.

In the video, a massive seabird was stretching its long, narrow wings, soaring over the turbulent sea.

The narrator's deep voice came through:

"The Albatross, the wanderer of the skies. They possess incredible flight endurance, capable of flying tens of thousands of kilometers continuously without landing. Most amazingly, during flights lasting several hours, they hardly need to flap their wings once..."

"Not flapping wings?"

Li Jiajun's eyes lit up.

He stared intently at the Albatross on the screen.

He watched as the large bird skillfully maneuvered between the crests and troughs of the waves, diving and rising. It keenly captured every slight change in the airflow over the sea, utilizing the wind speed differences at different altitudes to gain forward momentum.

This is called Dynamic Soaring.

It wasn't fighting the wind; it was harnessing it.

Ding!

[You observed the Dynamic Soaring pattern of the Albatross. Combined with fluid mechanics and intelligent AI algorithms, you have gained insight into the secrets of capturing and converting high-altitude dynamic airflow energy!]

[You have gained enlightenment on the complete set of technologies for an Intelligent Wind-Assisted Variable Cycle Engine!]

Boom!

It felt as if a great door had been suddenly pushed open in his mind.

Countless complex mechanical structural diagrams and fluid dynamics formulas flooded into his brain like a waterfall.

Li Jiajun suddenly sprang up from his chair, grabbed a marker, rushed to the whiteboard, and began drawing frantically.

Scribble, scribble, scribble!

On the original sketch of the twin-tailed scorpion, he erased the two conventional turboprop engines and replaced them with a completely new propulsion system with an extremely bizarre structure that seemed to possess some kind of breathing function.

Its air intake was deformable, and the trailing edges of the wings were covered with dense sensors and micro-flaps.

Ten minutes later.

Li Jiajun stopped writing, looked at the sci-fi-looking engine cross-section on the whiteboard, let out a long sigh of relief, and a "I'm really a genius" smile appeared on his face.

"Done!"

He turned around, pointed excitedly at the diagram toward the camera, and said:

"family! The problem is solved! Since we don't want to carry more fuel, we'll just steal energy from nature!"

"I've named this system Intelligent Variable Cycle. Simply put, it's giving the aircraft a brain!"

"During takeoff and climb, it's a high-horsepower fuel engine—powerful and fast."

"But!" Li Jiajun's tone shifted, his eyes flashing with a fanatical light, "Once it reaches the stratosphere or captures a suitable high-altitude airflow, its AI system will immediately take over the flight!"

"The wings will automatically adjust their angle, and the engine will enter a low-power idle mode or even shut down completely! Just like an Albatross, it will glide on the wind!"

"As long as the wind doesn't stop, it can keep drifting! Even if it runs out of fuel, it can drift all the way back to Baishui City on that wind!"

Li Jiajun became more and more excited, waving his hand grandly:

"With this, forget eight thousand kilometers—as long as the weather forecast is accurate, I can even get eighteen thousand miles out of it for you! This is the power of technology! This is the charm of biomimetics!"

However...

Compared to his excitement, the hundreds of thousands of Netizens in the livestream room had collectively fallen into a stupor known as cognitive collapse.

It took a full half-minute before the comments started boiling over.

???

"Wait, my head is spinning. Streamer, you mean... you watched a bird for a few minutes and built a variable cycle engine?"

"Holy crap! Learning engine technology from an Albatross? Is that even possible? Boeing and Airbus engineers would weep if they heard this!"

"Streamer, is this plane of yours... fuel-powered, or does it fly based on the weather forecast?"

"Good grief, will Express Delivery Company have to cast a divination before sending packages in the future? 'Strong northwest wind today, auspicious for deliveries'?"

"What the hell is 'gliding on the wind'! Isn't this just a high-tech paper airplane?"

"I don't understand it, but it sounds impressive... Though, this technology sounds like something that should be requisitioned, doesn't it?"

...

Looking at the screen full of roasting and doubt, Li Jiajun rolled his eyes.

With an expression of "you can't talk to a summer insect about ice," he unconsciously entered his voice-over roasting mode:

"Tsk, what do these people know? This is called using your opponent's strength against them, deflecting a thousand pounds with four ounces. Young people today have wasted their physics classes. Besides, who says an engine has to keep spitting fire? As long as the package is delivered, does it matter if it burns fuel or wind? Saving money is the ultimate truth. If President Wang knew how much fuel money I've saved him, wouldn't he be so moved he'd send me a commemorative banner?"

Roasting aside, the work couldn't stop.

Although the range problem was solved, an even thornier issue lay ahead.

Li Jiajun's gaze left the whiteboard and fell back onto his desk.

"Flying far is achieved, but this payload... five tons."

He frowned slightly, muttering to himself.

"To take five tons of cargo into the sky, the fuselage must be light enough so that fuel isn't wasted on hauling its own weight. This structural strength is going to be tough..."

He paced back and forth in the office, at his wit's end.

Traditional aviation aluminum is too heavy, and while carbon fiber is light, it's too expensive and doesn't meet the cost-reduction requirements.

There must be a structure that is both lightweight and incredibly strong.

Just as he was irritably about to go pour a glass of water...

His gaze inadvertently swept across the corner of the room.

There, a small line of black ants was moving in an orderly fashion, working together to carry a piece of biscuit crumb that was astoundingly large for them.

Li Jiajun's steps came to a sudden halt.

He slowly squatted down, his eyes fixed on that group of seemingly insignificant little creatures, his gaze gradually becoming profound...