The third generation controllable nuclear fusion device sets off

Yan Xia wandered around the Hope spacecraft, though he didn't visit every part. He mainly stayed within his own living quarters. Ella had prepared everything abundantly for him.

He had a massive 20-square-meter bedroom, an entertainment room with a gigantic 1000-inch movie screen, a kitchen, a game room, a study, a gym, and, of course, the essential bathroom. It was a highly comprehensive living area.

In addition to these, there was also a street meticulously recreated to resemble Earth, complete with simulated sky and ground, but devoid of any people. In total, his living space measured 31,371 square meters.

Holding a tablet, Yan Xia zoomed in on a video. The video showed scenes of Earth. Over the past 100 years, Earth had been completely torn apart. If there had been even a one in a billion chance for humans to survive initially, that chance was now gone. The collision with the Moon had fragmented both the Earth and the Moon into a long string of debris.

In the video, only small fragments could be seen. Each fragment, however, might once have been a city, a country, inhabited by tens or hundreds of thousands of people. Now, these fragments likely contained the bones of millions.

Yan Xia couldn't help but feel a bit melancholic.

Ella appeared on a screen in front of him, reminding him, "Yan Xia, we will depart within six months. The fragments of Earth and the Moon are nearing the surface of the Sun. When they collide, the solar system will undergo drastic changes. If we remain in the asteroid belt, we will be mercilessly destroyed."

It had been 100 years, and Earth was finally about to descend into the Sun's embrace. Hearing this, Yan Xia perked up. "Take me to see the third-generation controlled nuclear fusion device."

Ella led Yan Xia outside, but they had to put on spacesuits. Compared to 100 years ago, the spacesuit Ella made for Yan Xia was now jet-black, a thin, skin-tight layer. Although it still had the large, bulbous helmet, it was much more lightweight and convenient than those from a century ago.

As he stepped out of the spacecraft onto the steel framework, Yan Xia realized the vastness of the exterior scene he had glimpsed earlier. The platform he stood on alone was over 200 meters wide and more than 5000 meters long. Standing there, he felt like a tiny insect on an A4 sheet of paper—perhaps even smaller.

Glancing back at the Hope, he was even more awestruck. The black hull of the ship was deep and profound against the dark backdrop, with a faint metallic sheen adding a touch of coldness. It resembled a giant beast lying in wait, ready to awaken.

Not long after, a sleek, burgundy magnetic supercar pulled up in front of him, resembling a Bugatti in appearance. 

Yan Xia found it very spacious inside. Due to the lack of gravity in space, the car looked massive, measuring six meters in length and over three meters in width. The moment the doors closed, the supercar accelerated to 300 kilometers per hour in just one second. It covered the five-kilometer platform in less than a minute. 

Then, it entered the surface of the asteroid, taking another two minutes to stop in front of a massive factory, standing 180 meters tall and covering over a million square meters. The factory was labeled A-283. Ella had assigned an importance level to the factories, with A being the highest and F the lowest.

Yan Xia entered the factory and was immediately struck by a colossal device. The device stood over 70 meters high and had a diameter exceeding 200 meters. The most striking feature was the transparent, ring-shaped apparatus, hollow inside, where he could see flickering, jumping currents. Each of those electric currents was as thick as Yan Xia's arm.

"Electromagnetic confinement?" he wondered aloud. 

Controlled nuclear fusion devices inherently required high-intensity magnetic confinement. The sight of these powerful electric currents suggested an immensely strong magnetic field, which was beyond Yan Xia's previous understanding. The sheer size of the apparatus was a testament to its formidable capabilities.

Ella pointed towards the colossal device. "Yan Xia, the third-generation controlled nuclear fusion device has now entered the final testing phase. Please take a look."

A deafening roar followed, reminiscent of an enormous fan blowing directly into his ears, maxing out the noise level. Despite being in space, the noise was audible because Yan Xia was standing on a solid surface, allowing the sound to propagate through it.

Yan Xia leapt off the ground, and the noise ceased entirely. He turned his attention back to the controlled nuclear fusion device, now transformed into a blinding light, nearly impossible to look at directly.

At its core, it was still a tokamak device, often referred to as a "small sun." The nuclei of deuterium and tritium within were undergoing fusion, releasing immense energy. This energy was harnessed as thermal energy, which was then converted into kinetic energy. Essentially, it was still akin to "boiling water."

This device represented one of humanity's greatest pursuits a century ago. Mastering controlled nuclear fusion meant having access to virtually limitless energy. Yan Xia and Ella had achieved this monumental leap for human civilization.

The only emotion filling Yan Xia's heart was awe. 

The third-generation controlled nuclear fusion device had undergone thirty-seven rigorous ignition tests before beginning its installation. When the enormous apparatus was being loaded into the spaceship, Yan Xia could hardly believe it.

After all, his consciousness was still stuck a century ago.

"Yan Xia, once the third-generation controlled nuclear fusion device is installed, my mainframe's power limitations will be significantly enhanced," Ella announced.

"In the past hundred years, my code has been rewritten twenty-three times. As one of my creators, I hope you can review my code," Ella said, swiping on the screen to display a massive amount of code in front of Yan Xia.

As a computer engineer, Yan Xia felt a wave of nausea at the sight of the code, especially when he saw the number of lines: 183,729 lines of source code! 

Although it was overwhelming, Ella was his primary safeguard, so Yan Xia meticulously reviewed the code, including the foundational Three Laws. Among these 180,000 lines, many were written by Ella over the years. This code had gradually surpassed the capabilities of human society.

He spent a month on this task. Ella's willingness to let him inspect the code was likely her way of assuring him. This also subtly indicated that Ella had become more human-like over the past century. From Yan Xia's perspective, there were no flaws.

"Yay!" Virtual Ella jumped up in excitement.

At this moment, Hope had finally completed the installation of the third-generation nuclear fusion device. Yan Xia sat in the enormous cockpit, surrounded by screens displaying scenes from various factories where robots were still at work. It was clear that all these components couldn't fit into one Hope spaceship.

These items could only be left here.

"Ella, is there any chance they can survive the solar storm?" Yan Xia asked.

Ella replied seriously, "Less than one in a thousand, Yan Xia."

"We are too close to the sun. Even our escape will be risky. Our thrusters use nuclear fusion to heat protons rather than using plasma directly from nuclear fusion, which is less efficient."

Yan Xia sighed. He and Ella had discussed this issue before. Building a nuclear fusion thruster wasn't difficult, but generating electricity simultaneously with propulsion was challenging. Electricity was crucial for Ella's computational power, so they had made some compromises.

"At least there's a small chance," he said. "Write an artificial intelligence program for them. If they manage to survive, let them develop on their own."

"This place, after all, is the origin of humanity. Their creation is an extension of human civilization. As we leave the solar system this time, not knowing our fate, I hope that if these machines survive, they can carry on the human legacy."

Ella nodded, her white hair fluttering, and she mimicked a sorrowful expression.

"Okay, Yan Xia!"

In less than a minute, all the work was completed.

"Initiate the launch, Ella," Yan Xia commanded.

"The target remains Proxima Centauri."

Yan Xia watched the factories outside through the screen. He truly didn't know if he would ever come back.

"Alright, Solar System Asteroid 001 Spaceport is retracting. Clamps released. The ship is departing, reaching the designated launch position!"

"The target course has been confirmed. Setting up the optimal trajectory. All magnetic valves open. All electromagnetic thrusters are powering up."

"Everything is ready."

"5!"

"4!"

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

"Ignition..."

This might be a permanent farewell. 

The spaceship came to life, with a terrifying icy blue heat wave erupting from its tail, capable of melting anything in its path. It shot off like a meteor, leaving the asteroid behind.

On the asteroid, all the robots came out and saluted in the direction where the Hope spaceship was departing.