155: Chapter 155 Unprecedented Confidence

As Lin Yuan's words fell,

dozens of people in the entire testing hall froze in place simultaneously.

Go back and rest?

These few words tumbled around in their minds several times, and no matter how they chewed on them, it didn't taste right.

From the moment they received the notice, they had mentally prepared themselves to "get straight to work today."

And the result?

With a wave of his hand, the commander-in-chief told them to go back and sleep!

He Mingde turned his head, his old face, sallow and dark from staying up late, filled with bewilderment.

"Academician Lin, you..."

He opened his mouth, then closed it, his Adam's apple bobbing, looking twisted as if he wanted to speak but didn't know where to start.

Their Institute of Atomic Energy had struggled for decades, wishing upon the stars and the moon, and finally, they had hoped for someone who could lead them to break through the heavens.

But the first thing this person did upon arrival was actually to tell this group of old-timers—who wished they could split one minute into two—to go have a big sleep?

What kind of situation was this!

Just as He Mingde was holding his breath, preparing to argue further, Chen Jingshan, sitting beside Lin Yuan, was the first to let out a laugh.

He raised his hand and gently patted He Mingde's tense shoulder.

"Old He, what's the rush?"

"Didn't you understand Academician Lin's words just now?"

He Mingde was stunned and subconsciously turned to look at Chen Jingshan.

Chen Jingshan shook his head, his calm and collected demeanor forming a sharp contrast with the anxious state of everyone else in the room.

"Setting aside the mental state of your group for a moment—every one of your eye sockets is about to cave into pits—if you get straight to work in this condition, how high could your efficiency possibly be?"

He paused, his sharp gaze sweeping over the bloodshot red eyes below the stage.

"Taking a step back, even if you were all high-spirited and full of energy right now, what would you use to conduct research?"

He Mingde frowned.

"This..."

"Didn't Academician Lin make it clear enough just now?"

Chen Jingshan leaned back against the chair, resting both hands on the edge of the table, slowly explaining it to everyone present.

"The complete set of preparation data for the special materials for Controlled Nuclear Fusion is still being organized in Academician Lin's head; it won't be ready until tomorrow or the day after."

"That's one thing."

"The second thing, as Academician Lin also said, the core of the subsequent plasma control for Controlled Nuclear Fusion relies on Brain-like Artificial Intelligence for real-time calculation, real-time prediction, and real-time regulation."

"Without this system, what will you use to harness that mass of plasma at hundreds of millions of degrees?"

He Mingde was severely choked up by these words, his mouth hanging open for a long time without making a sound.

"And as for the computing power infrastructure for the Artificial Intelligence, do you have it here?"

Chen Jingshan tilted his head and raised an eyebrow at He Mingde.

"Is it set up?"

He Mingde's lips trembled twice, completely unable to respond.

Chen Jingshan spread his hands and summarized earnestly:

"The material data isn't out, and the Artificial Intelligence hasn't been deployed. Even if you tied this group of people to their workstations for three days and nights without letting them leave, what could they do?"

"A workman must first sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well. Old He, you've been in scientific research for most of your life; you can't possibly not understand this truth, right?"

As these few sentences struck home, He Mingde was stunned for a long while.

He slowly lowered his head, and that surge of impulse that had been swelling just now—that desire to charge into battle immediately—instantly deflated by more than half.

He understood the logic perfectly, but the urgency in his heart wasn't something that could be swallowed just because it was explained.

For decades, he had walked this path for decades. Seeing the finish line right before his eyes, asking him to stop and rest was more painful than asking him to run for another ten years.

Lin Yuan looked at He Mingde's twisted expression of both unwillingness and helplessness, smiled, and wasn't in a hurry to interject.

"Speaking of the Artificial Intelligence part..."

He turned his head and looked at Dean Chen.

"Dean Chen, what's the progress on the computing power infrastructure? When will the server racks here be in place?"

Hearing this, Chen Jingshan smiled and nodded.

"I was just about to mention that."

"The relevant server components, cooling modules, and high-speed network switches are all in place. I'm currently arranging for them to be transported over."

"The technical team can be arranged to enter and assemble the racks this afternoon. The joint debugging and testing can be completed tonight at the earliest."

After listening, Lin Yuan nodded slightly and gave a satisfied "Mhm."

Joint debugging finished tonight, data in place tomorrow—this rhythm was just right.

He Mingde, listening to the conversation between the two from the side, finally turned the last corner in his mind.

Immediately after, He Mingde took a deep breath, turned around, and faced the dozens of people below the stage.

"Alright, everyone heard it just now."

"Since that's the case, I won't waste any more words with you. If anyone has any thoughts or doubts they need to ask Academician Lin for guidance on, you can bring them up now."

As his voice fell, the testing hall fell silent for a few breaths.

The dozens of people below looked at each other.

Those bloodshot eyeballs darted left and right, looking from one person to another.

But in the end, not a single person stood up to speak.

It wasn't that they didn't want to ask, but they truly didn't know where to start.

Lin Yuan's full-chain deduction just now, from materials to communication to Artificial Intelligence, had already extinguished the core doubts accumulated in their minds one by one.

The remaining specific technical details would have to wait until they received the material data and the Artificial Intelligence was deployed; they could only discuss them once they saw the actual objects.

At this particular juncture, what was there to ask?

Silence reigned below the stage for about ten seconds, and still, no one spoke.

He Mingde scanned the room, nodded understandingly, and did not force the issue.

Lin Yuan, watching this scene, saw the smile at the corner of his mouth widen slightly.

"Alright, since no one has anything to ask, then how about we call it a day for now?"

"Everyone go back, take a good shower, and get a solid night's sleep."

He leaned forward slightly, his gaze slowly sweeping from left to right across those white-haired faces.

"Get plenty of rest."

"At eight o'clock tomorrow morning, everyone gather in this hall."

"We will officially start work."

His voice wasn't loud, even carrying a hint of casualness, but in the ears of those dozens of people, every word stepped on the beat of their heartbeats.

Officially start work.

These three words echoed around the hall.

Below the stage, those old faces that had been somewhat dejected because they were "ordered to go back and sleep" lit up one by one.

Zhou Changming rubbed his hands, his lips twitching a few times, and in the end, he couldn't hold back.

"Academician Lin!"

"Rest assured, when I go back today, I guarantee I'll sleep as soon as I close my eyes. I'll be here on time at eight o'clock tomorrow morning!"

As soon as these words came out, several old experts nearby also followed with vigorous nods.

"Yes, yes, yes! Academician Lin, don't worry! We absolutely won't work overtime or sneak off to work when we go back; we'll come back after getting plenty of sleep!"

"We wouldn't dare stay up any longer. If our brains don't work tomorrow and we can't keep up with Academician Lin's rhythm, that would be truly embarrassing."

A burst of extremely restrained low laughter spread through the hall.

Dozens of seniors who had spent most of their lives struggling in the field of nuclear physics were as excited as if they were celebrating the New Year.

Lin Yuan smiled and nodded slightly, his gaze lingering for a breath on those eager faces.

"Mhm, after we officially start work tomorrow, we'll go into a full sprint."

"We'll strive to build our own Xia Country Fusion Reactor in the shortest possible time."

Speaking to this point, he deliberately paused for half a beat, his voice turning slightly deep.

"To achieve Ignition as soon as possible."

Hearing this, the old experts below the stage added another layer of light to their already bright eyes.

A few impatient old fellows had already begun to involuntarily rub their hands and slap their thighs, their lips pressed tightly together, looking as if they wished tomorrow would arrive immediately.

It had been over forty years.

How many people had seen their hair turn white and their backs grow hunched on this path, only for the results they received to always be "wait a bit longer, try again, optimize a bit more."

The word 'Ignition' was a word they didn't even dare to say out loud easily in their dreams.

And now, Lin Yuan had said it so nonchalantly, and an unprecedented level of confidence spread tangibly throughout the hall.