Chapter 187 Global Headlines

At 6:00 AM, Li Xiao rushed into the Canteen with dark circles under her eyes.

"Senior brother! Senior brother!" she waved her phone, her voice shrill and breaking, "Look at this!"

Lin Mo, who was holding a bowl of porridge, looked up at her: "What's wrong?"

"Look at this!" Li Xiao shoved the phone into his face, "Global headlines! It's all about us!"

Lin Mo took the phone and squinted at the screen—

CNN Homepage Headline: 《China's "Artificial Sun" Successfully Ignited: A New Chapter in Human Energy History》

Below the headline was a massive photo: inside the tokamak-3 device, the blue light of the plasma was as dazzling as the sun.

He scrolled down—

BBC: 《The Rise of the East: China's Nuclear Fusion Breakthrough Shocks the World》

The New York Times: 《From Catching Up to Leading: How China Walked the Path of Thirty Years in Three》

Der Spiegel (Germany): 《Chinese Speed in the Age of Fusion》

Le Monde (France): 《The "Artificial Sun" Rises Over the Gobi Desert

Asahi Shimbun (Japan): Nuclear Fusion Leadership Changes Hands, Japanese Academia Calls for Urgent Catch-up》

After reading, Lin Mo returned the phone to Li Xiao and continued eating his porridge.

"Senior brother!" Li Xiao was anxious, "Is that your only reaction? These are global headlines! The whole world is reporting on us!"

Lin Mo swallowed a mouthful of porridge, his tone calm: "We still have to eat."

"..."

Chen Xueming walked over with his tray and sat down: "I just passed the duty room. Brother Zhao's phone hasn't stopped ringing; he said domestic and foreign media are flooding the lines, all trying to secure an exclusive interview."

"What did you say?"

"I said Director Lin is eating breakfast and we'll talk after he's done." Chen Xueming picked up a steamed bun, "What's wrong, did I say something wrong?"

The corners of Lin Mo's mouth curled up slightly: "You were right."

Li Xiao looked at the two of them, completely speechless.

Meanwhile, in Beijing.

Inside a ministry building, Fang Lin pushed open the door to the conference room, which was packed with people.

The large screen on the wall was scrolling through headlines from global media.

"Director Fang," a middle-aged man who looked like a leader pointed at the screen, "Have you seen all these?"

Fang Lin nodded: "I have."

"Any thoughts?"

Fang Lin was silent for a second: "Three years ago, when we started the project, how many people called it wishful thinking? And now?"

The conference room fell silent.

The leader smiled slowly: "Yes, and now?"

He stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the bustling street outside:

"Director Fang, keep a close eye on Lin Mo's side. The whole world is watching them now; there can't be any mistakes."

"Understood."

"Also," the leader turned around, "tell him not to let these reports go to his head. The road ahead is still long."

Fang Lin nodded, but the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

Go to his head?

That young man is probably eating porridge in the Canteen right now.

Shanghai, a high-end residential complex.

Wang Zhenguo sat on the sofa in the living room, with five or six newspapers spread out on the coffee table in front of him, all of them today's morning papers.

People's Daily Front Page: 《Our Country's Controlled Nuclear Fusion Technology Achieves Major Breakthrough — "Artificial Sun" Successfully Ignited》

Science and Technology Daily: tokamak-3 Makes History, China Leads the Fusion Energy Race》

Guangming Daily: 《The "Sun" in the Gobi Desert: A Chronicle of a Group of Young People Chasing the Stars》

He put on his reading glasses and read through them carefully, one by one. By the third one, his hand was trembling slightly.

"Old man," his wife brought over a cup of tea, "you've read them three times already, take a break."

Wang Zhenguo took off his glasses and wiped the corners of his eyes: "I can't stop, I'll read it one more time."

"Is it really necessary?"

"It is." Wang Zhenguo pointed to the photo in the newspaper—a close-up of Lin Mo at the press conference, "Look at this child. Three years ago, he was still clumsy, but now he stands before the whole world, as steady as a mountain."

His wife leaned over to look: "He does look quite spirited."

"Spirited?" Wang Zhenguo smiled, "It's not just spirit. He caught it."

"Caught what?"

Wang Zhenguo did not answer, only looking at Lin Mo's eyes in the photo.

In those eyes, there was the shadow of his own youth, and the dream he had failed to realize his entire life.

His phone rang.

Wang Zhenguo answered, and upon hearing the voice on the other end, he was stunned.

"Old Leader?" his voice trembled slightly, "You, how did you —"

An old but powerful voice came from the other end of the line: "Zhenguo, I saw the newspapers. The student you taught is excellent."

Wang Zhenguo opened his mouth but couldn't speak.

"Back when our project was shut down, you cried all night. Do you remember?"

"I remember..."

"Now, your student has made it happen. Zhenguo, your life has been worth it."

Wang Zhenguo's hand holding the phone trembled violently, and tears finally slid down his face.

On the internet, it had already exploded.

Weibo Trending Topics:

#1 China Lights Up the Artificial Sun

#2 tokamak-3 Successfully Ignited

#3 Lin Mo, National Treasure-Level Scientist

#4 This Is the True Heavy Weapon of a Great Power

#5 The Age of Nuclear Fusion Has Arrived

In the comment section, the netizens' enthusiasm was almost overflowing from the screen:

@StarrySea123: "I cried while watching the live stream! I really did! This is the true heavy weapon of a great power!"

@ScienceGuyOldWang: "As a graduate student in materials science, I know exactly how difficult this breakthrough is. Lin Mo's team is awesome! China is awesome!"

@GossipRabbit: "Yesterday I was arguing with a friend about whether Nuclear Fusion could work, and today I got slapped in the face—but I'm happy to be slapped like this!"

@BeijingMomLovesLife: "My son asked me, 'Mom, what is Nuclear Fusion?' I said, 'It means electricity will be free in the future!' My son was thrilled!"

@OverseasExpatHeart: "Studying abroad in Australia, I saw the BBC headline this morning about China, and all my foreign classmates in the laboratory ran over to ask me, 'Is this real?' I proudly said: 'Of course it's real!'"

@OldZhangViewsTheWorld: "Three years ago, they said Room-Temperature Superconductivity was a scam; two years ago, they said Lithium Extraction from Seawater was a pipe dream; a year ago, they said Nuclear Fusion ignition was just bragging. What about now? Does your face hurt?"

@ProgrammerXiaoLiu: "Lin Mo, 32 years old, PhD in Physics, led the team to conquer Nuclear Fusion. Me, 32 years old, programmer, still fixing bugs today. The gap between people... forget it, back to fixing bugs."

@DreamerAhJie: "This is the star we should chase! Not some traffic celebrity, but a scientist who truly makes the country strong!"

One comment was pushed to the top of the hot comments:

@WindOnTheGobiDesert: "I've been a soldier near the base for three years, watching that device being built day by day. When the ignition succeeded last night, our entire company was cheering on the parade ground. The brothers said, 'This life has been worth it.' I said, 'It's still early, this is just the beginning.'"

Likes: 3.87 million.

At 2:00 PM, Lin Mo's phone rang.

It was Fang Lin.

"Lin Mo, have you seen the news?"

"I have."

"Any thoughts?"

Lin Mo was silent for two seconds: "Director Fang, these reports... they are too much."

"Oh?" There was a hint of surprise in Fang Lin's voice, "How so?"

"We only lit a spark," Lin Mo said, "There is still a long way to go before true commercial use of fusion energy. These reports make it sound like we've solved all the problems, which will mislead the public."

Fang Lin laughed.

"Lin Mo," she said, "do you know why I admire you?"

"Why?"

"Because you are one of the few who won't let victory go to their head. But this time, you are wrong."

Lin Mo was taken aback: "I'm wrong?"

"Yes." Fang Lin's voice became serious, "These reports aren't 'killing with praise'; they are deserved. Do you know how long this country has waited for this day? Do you know how many people started researching Nuclear Fusion in the sixties and died without ever seeing success?"

Lin Mo was silent.

"Lin Mo, what you lit wasn't just a pile of plasma; it was the hope of a generation, the self-confidence of a nation. What's wrong with letting the public be happy? What's wrong with letting them be proud?"

On the other end of the line, Lin Mo did not speak for a long time.

After a long while, he spoke: "Director Fang, I understand."

"As long as you understand. Keep moving forward, don't look back."

"Mm."

Hanging up the phone, Lin Mo stood by the window, looking at the distant Gobi Desert.

The sun was slowly setting, dyeing the entire sky a golden red.

Footsteps came from behind, and Li Xiao poked her head in: "Senior brother, Chen Xueming is asking if you want to hold a meeting this afternoon to discuss the Carbon Nanotubes —"

"Yes." Lin Mo turned around, "Right away."

Meanwhile, in a country in South America.

In an inconspicuous residential house, George sat under dim light, staring at his laptop screen.

On the screen were the headlines from major global media outlets.

He read them one by one, his expression unchanged.

After reading the last one, he closed the computer, picked up the coffee next to him, and took a sip.

"Interesting." He muttered to himself.

Outside the window, the sound of local music drifted in, lively and distant.

George put down the coffee cup, picked up his phone, and dialed a number.

"It's me." He said, "The plan has changed; it needs to be re-evaluated."

The other side said something.

George was silent for a few seconds, then smiled—a smile that was chilling:

"No, not abandonment. It's an upgrade."

He hung up the phone, reopened the computer, and began typing on the keyboard.

On the screen, an encrypted file slowly opened.

The title read: "Project Star".