21: Chapter 21 The Shortcomings of the Warhammer World

The technology tree of the Warhammer World is a bit skewed, especially regarding their air force.

Valkyrie assault carriers, Thunderbolt fighters, Marauder bombers... they are all designed like bricks.

Engines are exposed, cockpits have sharp, angular edges, and they don't even bother with bubble canopies, let alone radar stealth.

Fu Haoran highly suspected that even the most primitive radar screens from the 2K World could clearly capture the aircraft of the Warhammer World.

"In the entire Warhammer World, only the Orks' fighter jets barely conform to aerodynamics and can be considered something that actually flies properly."

Complaining aside, even the cheapest jet fighter in the 2K World costs tens of millions of dollars.

And it's impossible to train qualified pilots in a short period.

Therefore, from the very beginning, Fu Haoran gave up the idea of buying fighter jets.

"Jobs, I want to buy a batch of military drones. Do you have any channels?" Fu Haoran asked over the phone.

Jobs answered readily: "No problem. MQ-9 'Reaper'? RQ-4 'Global Hawk'? I also have channels for the X-47B 'Pegasus', and I'll give you a 'friends and family' discount."

Jobs agreed readily, but after Fu Haoran saw the so-called 'friends and family' discount, he suddenly felt like a poor person.

Nothing else, it was just too expensive!

The "Reaper" drone sells for 30 million dollars, while the base price of a "Global Hawk" drone is 50 million dollars; with all the equipment, the price exceeds 70 million dollars, which is about the same price as an F-35A fighter jet.

"Discount, my foot. Isn't this 'friends and family' price just robbery!" Fu Haoran cursed inwardly.

"I'd be heartbroken if even one was lost, and besides, the air defense systems in the Warhammer World aren't that pathetic."

"Those modified laser cannons installed on the guard towers of the Promethium Factory, once unified by the Cogitator fire control, have quite impressive capabilities for locking onto high-speed targets. The interception rate is definitely not low, and most importantly, they have a long range!"

"If I only have a few drones, I won't be able to complete the penetration mission at all."

"Conservatively calculated, I need at least a dozen drones to completely paralyze the defensive forces in the factory, which means that after one battle, hundreds of millions would be gone!"

"Even a nouveau riche's money is still money."

"What I want is cost-effectiveness, drones whose loss won't make my heart ache."

After politely declining Jobs's offer, Fu Haoran began to research drones from various countries in the 2K World.

After flipping through the drone catalog, one model suddenly caught his eye—the Shahed-136 from Persia, nicknamed the 'Moped Drone.'

In terms of performance, this thing is absolutely bottom-tier.

It flies slowly, isn't very big, carries only a few dozen kilograms of explosives, and its accuracy is even more pathetic—it can miss a fixed target by several meters, exuding an air of 'good enough' perfunctoriness.

But it has one unique, overwhelming advantage: it's cheap.

The cost of one unit is only about twenty thousand dollars.

Fu Haoran smiled. "This thing is practically tailor-made for me."

The moped drone exudes a philosophy of 'barely functional' laziness throughout its entire design.

The engine is a direct modification of a civilian motorcycle engine.

The fuselage makes extensive use of fiberglass, plastic, and wood.

No missiles? No, the fuselage is the missile; you just crash it directly.

Missiles are nowhere near as cheap as the fuselage.

If accuracy isn't enough, make up for it with quantity.

Once it's cheap to a certain degree, the usage changes completely.

"To put it bluntly, this is the drone version of human wave tactics!"

Fu Haoran stared at the screen, his brain calculating rapidly.

The cost of one anti-aircraft shell for the Warhammer World's Manticore missile platform is at least over a hundred thousand throne coins; if calculated by purchasing power, that's at least over a million dollars.

And they'd use it to hit his 20,000-dollar 'little moped'?

Every shot is a loss for them.

More importantly, the Cogitator system has limited firing channels.

A standard Hive City anti-aircraft Cogitator can lock onto a maximum of 16 targets simultaneously and process 8 firing channels.

If it isn't facing a few expensive brick-like fighter jets, but rather hundreds or thousands of buzzing 'little mopeds' swarming in from different directions and altitudes...

"The system will definitely overload."

"Either it won't be able to calculate in time, or it will run out of ammunition."

"This is the one."

Fu Haoran made his decision immediately.

He glanced at the system countdown: 29 days.

There is enough time.

"The problem is, this type of drone is considered military hardware, and military hardware from a sensitive region at that."

"It's unrealistic for a Chinese person like me to go and buy it."

"If I can't buy it, then I'll build it myself."

The first thing that popped into his mind was his alma mater, the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Technology.

Back when he was a student, their laboratory had conducted R&D on small drones. They had a solid foundation, and more importantly, his alma mater didn't engage in flashy nonsense; they were practical, which perfectly suited the demand for cheap mass production.

Without hesitation, Fu Haoran booked the fastest flight back to his home country.

"The industrial chain that the Warhammer World can't assemble, any random prefecture-level city back home can handle. The massive industrial Cthulhu of the home country—this is my trump card."

Back home, in the experimental building of the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Technology.

Three hours later, at the experimental building of the School of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Technology.

"Professor Wang, it really can't be fixed." A student wearing glasses crouched beside the machine tool, saying with a bitter face.

"The motherboard is completely fried. Replacing it would cost as much as buying a new one; there's not much difference in price."

Professor Wang's hair was a mess, and he had stubble on his chin: "Sigh, think of something. We need it for the undergraduate graduation projects next month. We can't have the students making models out of cardboard, can we?"

It wasn't that Professor Wang didn't want to fix it; it was just that funding simply wouldn't be approved.

At the end of the day, this thing currently doesn't make money.

The military thinks it's too low-end, there's no market for civilian use, and they've published a pile of papers, but they just can't find anyone willing to pay.

Another student held up his phone and said with a bitter face, "Professor Li's side is barely holding on too. Their laboratory's 3D printer is broken, and companies are coming to poach people, offering a monthly salary of eight thousand. Many classmates are choosing to go work in factories."

The laboratory was dead silent.

Several graduate students were crouching in the corner, packing things into cardboard boxes. The words 'Food Delivery Rider Application Materials' on the boxes were particularly glaring.

On the experimental workbench, a small drone prototype was sitting there. The fuselage was made of carbon fiber, but the edges of the wings were cracked and held together with transparent tape.

Professor Wang looked at the prototype, his eyes dim.

They had finished this machine three years ago; the flight control and aerodynamics were all tuned, and they were just short of funds for small-batch trial production.

But even though they published several papers, they couldn't attract investment. Companies thought it was low-end, and the school said there was no prospect for industrialization.

Actually, it wasn't that they lacked ability; they just lacked funding and projects.

Nowadays, the lab's machine tools were rusty, and students used cardboard for their graduation project models.

Electronics factories from the coast were coming to poach people with monthly salaries over ten thousand, and several second-year graduate students were already hesitating about whether to give up on research and go to the factory to tighten screws.

Professor Wang knew they had the technology and the ideas, but without money, everything was just empty talk.

Just then, the laboratory door was pushed open.

Fu Haoran walked in and scanned the laboratory: "Professor Wang, I have a project. Would you be willing to participate?"

"What kind of project is it? The school's requirements might be a bit high." Professor Wang was somewhat discouraged.

Professor Wang had some impression of Fu Haoran; his family only had a small factory and didn't have much money.

Professor Wang was worried that if he agreed, it would be a thankless job.

If he asked for too much, they'd think it was too expensive.

If he asked for too little, it would delay everyone.

Fu Haoran took out a contract and said: "To make a... firefighting drone."

"I can invest 20 million in you for the initial phase. You must produce results within a week and ensure mass production within half a month."

"If everything goes smoothly, I will add more funds."

For Fu Haoran, who now had a net worth of ten billion and ample cash flow, 20 million was truly a drop in the bucket.

But to everyone else, it was a completely different story!

"How, how much?!" Professor Wang's voice cracked. He thought he had misheard and hurriedly took the contract.

It wasn't that he hadn't seen money before; it was that he hadn't seen a student casually slap down funding that his research group couldn't apply for in several years.

"Is it really 2... 20 million?!"

"If you sign now, I will immediately pay an advance of five million," Fu Haoran said.

Professor Wang opened his mouth but couldn't speak.

In the corner, that student holding the cardboard box of food delivery rider application materials visibly stiffened.

The next second, the cardboard box was slammed into the corner with a loud thud, and he almost lunged in front of Fu Haoran, his eyes red like a hungry wolf:

"Senior! No, Boss! We'll definitely take this job! The laboratory is my home! If you don't despise me, I am willing to acknowledge you as my foster father!"

"Professor, this is our financial sugar daddy! Quickly, say yes."

The few students who followed also exploded:

"Senior! My programming is super slick! I can handle the automation control!"

"Senior, I study materials! I can analyze circuit boards!"

Professor Wang hurriedly pulled up the student who was shouting about a foster father: "Don't mess around, call him Mr. Fu!"

He turned his head to Fu Haoran and said kindly: "Mr. Fu, rest assured, we will definitely not live up to your funding!"

Then he turned around and roared: "Everyone! Throw away the delivery boxes! We're pulling an all-nighter tonight to get to work!"

The students cheered and rushed back into the laboratory, forgetting even to pick up their instant noodle cups.

Watching the laboratory instantly ignited with energy, Fu Haoran breathed a sigh of relief.

"We must finish the rush job before the Promethium runs dry."

"I really look forward to the wonderful scene when the air defense sirens ring throughout the factory."