Chapter 123: Cycle (Added for everyone's recommended votes)_1

Di Fengyi continued to report, "The Space City project is also progressing smoothly. Although the space elevator has not yet been completed, a large amount of construction materials has already been transported to low Earth orbit, and the initial phase of construction has already begun."

"Our country has contributed the most to this project, as it requires two space stations to serve as platforms for the construction of Space City. The International Space Station was already scrapped three years ago."

"As the International Space Station was a joint project among multiple countries, it's very difficult to build a new one. The space station designs of US-Russia from the last century are already obsolete. Currently, our country is the only one that possesses the capability to independently build a new type of space station."

Jiang Yu nodded. The disadvantages of the International Space Station had become apparent a decade ago.

"The 'Sun Nation Action' hasn't been going too smoothly," Di Fengyi said, "Not because of technical difficulties, but because the whole world views it as a form of escapism."

"There have been multiple protests around the world, all opposing the continued launch of probes into space."

"Some opponents have made vivid claims, saying that after establishing a forward base on Jupiter, there will be an interstellar ship called 'Ark' carrying a large number of human embryos, DNA of various animals and plants, and so on, flying to other star systems."

"The few crew members on the ship are all rigorously selected, and they will start humanity's second civilization in a distant star system."

"By the time the people on Earth realize they have left, it will be too late to catch up."

Jiang Yu said with a smile, "Did they also say that the PDC declared escapism illegal just to secretly carry out the escape plan?"

Di Fengyi was taken aback, "There really were similar views expressed."

Jiang Yu frowned, "It would be nice if the PDC were as savvy as they make it out to be."

Then he waved his hand, "Continue, please."

Di Fengyi went on, "Furthermore, it's said that the staff on the 'Sun Nation Action' project team aren't very enthusiastic about their work."

"Because so far, no one wants to go to Mars or the moons of Jupiter. Even if we do explore them, it wouldn't mean much."

"People believe that these places will become the front lines of future wars, and that without protection, humanity would not be able to survive there."

"Another prevailing view right now is that going to explore these places would likely mean being stationed there as an outpost, and it would be impossible to ever return to Earth."

Jiang Yu sighed, "If those places are outposts, we might as well not resist at all. The Trisolarans 'with a press of the accelerator' would arrive at Earth."

Di Fengyi gave a smile at Jiang Yu's metaphor, but his smile faded quickly.

Indeed, if Jupiter were an outpost, humanity's battle line would be all too short.

Jiang Yu looked out the car window at the swiftly receding scenery, "Humanity won't be extinguished by invaders, but by itself by shutting itself in!"

He tapped his knee with his hand and suddenly had a bold idea!

After pondering over it carefully in his mind, Jiang Yu decided to seek an opportunity to consult with aerospace experts on the feasibility of his secret plan.

However, the plan couldn't be rushed into implementation; it had to be thoroughly prepared before taking action.

Jiang Yu slept soundly that night, which seemed to be one benefit of waking from hibernation. No matter how burdensome the worries, as soon as he lay down and went to sleep, he wouldn't wake up until naturally.

Refreshed, Jiang Yu took a car ride with Qi Guanglu to the desert test field over two hundred kilometers away.

The people protecting Jiang Yu, along with the accompanying scientific researchers, totaled more than two hundred individuals, forming a long convoy. From a great distance, one could see the convoy advancing like a black serpent.

After more than two hours' drive, the convoy arrived at a not-so-large desert.

Still some distance from the test field, they could see a dazzling green spot within the desert.

Qi Guanglu explained, "This experimental field is the latest achievement of the first group. It utilizes a type of mutant fungus that forms a mini ecological cycle with the wheat."

Approaching the experimental field, it was already the end of spring, yet the wheat had just started to sprout stalks.

If these were planted in the plains, their growth would be considered very poor, but here in the golden desert, they shone like jewels.

A research staff member took a shovel and, under Qi Guanglu's instruction, dug a few times next to the wheat field.

At first, it was only yellow sand, but after digging down a dozen centimeters or so, the sand began to turn black.

Qi Guanglu squatted next to the hole and introduced, "Look, everyone, this is the fungus codenamed T1-68."

"Generally speaking, microorganisms prefer to live in moist and dark places. However, there are microorganisms in dry, hot deserts as well, but in very small quantities.

"The black fungus you see is the result of crossbreeding a desert microorganism with a fungus, which then mutated under radiation."

"They love heat, so hiding a dozen centimeters in the desert is very comfortable for them."

"Their activity retains moisture. As you can see, once you reach T1-68, the sand isn't as dry as it is on the surface.

"If you continue digging down, you'll see even more T1-68, and the sand will get progressively wetter."

Jiang Yu nodded in satisfaction. Sure enough, the sand a dozen centimeters down did seem a bit moist.

The workers dug up some sand farther away from the wheat field where there was no fungus, digging down twenty to thirty centimeters, all dry from top to bottom.

Only when they dug further down did they start to see a semblance of moisture.

This showed the significant effect of the fungus.

Qi Guanglu continued to explain, "The variety of wheat you're seeing is also a new breed with a very developed root system."

"Normally, wheat roots visible to the naked eye are only about ten centimeters long."

"But the roots of this wheat can reach thirty centimeters, which allows them to penetrate into the habitat of T1-68."

"The wheat root hairs, invisible to the naked eye and only visible under a microscope, can reach about two meters."

"Therefore, this wheat spends the entire winter and spring developing its root system, and only begins to grow in summer, currently yielding only one harvest per year."

"After the wheat dies, its root system becomes the nutrients for T1-68."

"This mini ecological cycle system uses only half the amount of water and fertilizer compared to conventional desert wheat, and is the best solution for desert agriculture we've found so far!"

Jiang Yu led the applause enthusiastically; this was undoubtedly a huge breakthrough in desert agriculture!

After accepting the applause, Qi Guanglu said somewhat sheepishly, "Don't be too hasty to applaud, I haven't mentioned its drawbacks yet."

Everyone laughed and continued to listen to Qi Guanglu's explanation.

Qi Guanglu added, "The downside to this mini ecological cycle system is that T1-68 requires a certain cultivation cost.

"But, once it's planted for a year, these microorganisms will be present in the sand and won't need to be added continuously.

"Also, the issue of water still needs to be addressed, although there is no longer a need for adhesive and the demand for water has been halved."

Jiang Yu said with a smile, "Regardless, this project has reduced the burden on desert agriculture by half!"