Chapter 348.1: Walking The Path So No One Can Walk Down The Same Path

Ye Wei had no idea that while he marveled at how amazing those big shots were, the feelings of those big shots he admired at that moment were not much calmer than him.

"There's always someone better out there..."

"Indeed, it’s truly impressive."

"Sigh... It feels like all these years of experiments have been in vain."

At the Institute of Materials Science and Engineering in the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

In Professor Liu Yiping's office.

The researchers seated at their desks were each engrossed in scrolling through their phones, checking out the public responses on the internet with a contemplative expression.

The events of the past few days felt surreal to them.

Just a week ago, they were still very busy, wishing they could split themselves to handle everything.

But now, all of a sudden, everyone had ample free time, some even had time to browse social media.

They weren’t the only ones.

This was the prevailing situation for most project groups engaged in similar research directions as well.

The emergence of the groundbreaking 404 Artificial SEI Film had an impact on the entire industry that could only be described as a giant leap forward.

A thousand charge-discharge cycles with almost no capacity decay!

Not a single dendritic lithium branch appeared on the negative electrode!

The effect was so staggering that they initially suspected there was an issue with their experimental equipment.

It was only with the accumulation of more and more repeated experimental results that they gradually became convinced: there was nothing wrong with their eyes or equipment, but rather the overly realistic nature of this world...

Perhaps... Geniuses like that truly existed in this world.

Even detached from the entire research system, without exchanging ideas or engaging with peers, they could silently produce astonishing research outcomes.

"... The news these days is utterly useless. I've been scrolling through Weibo for almost 2 hours and haven't found a single useful clue." A bespectacled doctoral student couldn't help but complain.

His name was Lin Shengyu, a student of Professor Liu Yiping, who had been exploring the future of lithium batteries under Liu's guidance since his master's degree.

"Still searching for that collaborating partner?" joked his senior colleague beside him.

"Yeah," Lin Shengyu nodded, asking, "Aren't you curious?"

"Curious, sure. But what good does mere curiosity do? We don't even know who that collaborating partner is. How can we expect anyone else to know?" the senior colleague chuckled.

It was embarrassing.

While the internet was discussing that mysterious collaborating partner, they themselves, engulfed in the whirlwind, didn't have a clue about the identity of their partner.

Another senior colleague interjected, "Give it up. If even Old Liu refuses to spill the beans, do you think those journalists would know anything?"

Lin Shengyu remained silent, his eyes still fixed on the phone screen, his expression clearly skeptical.

The other senior and junior colleagues began chatting about other topics.

"The issue of lithium dendrites is resolved. What should we research next?"

"Cathode materials? Electrolytes? Separators?"

"Hard to say. We'll have to wait for Old Liu to come back before deciding on a direction."

"Speaking of which, where's Old Liu? Haven't seen him these days."

"With such a major event in the industry, he's probably attending a meeting."

The resolution of the lithium dendrite issue didn't mean they had nothing to do.

Rather, there was a pile of tasks awaiting them.

As the bottleneck was overcome, lithium cathode batteries became a possibility to transition from the laboratory to people's lives, presenting an entirely new technological pathway before everyone.

What cathode to use?

What electrolyte to use?

What to research and how to research it... Those were a series of questions that needed further discussion.

The new technology didn’t just change the industry. It also impacted them, as researchers of the subject.

Only those leading the way had the qualification to decide the direction of the future.

Once followers, they now held the initiative to choose the path ahead.

They would determine the future of the new energy industry, and the whole world awaited their answers.

However, despite this, one question lingered in everyone's mind.

That Artificial SEI Film...

Where did it come from?

...

"Old Liu is going to be very busy in the next few days."

"Haha, that's for sure! With such a big event in the lithium battery industry, if he doesn't oversee things, it wouldn't be right to trouble our friends from afar."

"Professor Liu is just too principled, not even willing to reveal the name of the person who provided the breakthrough."

"He has his reasons for doing so. After all, any secret has its time limit. This matter cannot be hidden forever; sooner or later, it will be made public."

Somewhere in the same world, the same discussions were ongoing.

In an office meeting room, most individuals had dark circles under their eyes, yet excitement and joy were apparent on each face.

In fact, regarding the extraterrestrial civilization issue, despite cautious observations made by the higher-ups, there had been ongoing disputes regarding some specific details.

For instance, the Enlightenment Faction believed that extraterrestrial civilizations aimed to enlighten human civilization through games, a cultural form understandable to them, ultimately leading humanity into the stars.

Meanwhile, the Interference Faction believed that extraterrestrial civilizations attempted to intervene in human internal affairs and manipulate the historical course of human civilization according to their will, for some undisclosed purposes.

Both viewpoints were somewhat similar, differing only in their levels of neutrality.

Aside from mainstream opinions, there were also some non-mainstream viewpoints, such as the Jungle Faction and the Contained Faction, among others.

However, as this discussion had not yet evolved into a societal debate, the current controversy primarily revolved around Enlightenment and Interference.

Most members of the special task force leaned towards the Enlightenment Faction, not only because some among them had participated in that game but also because they had been closely monitoring the progress of the game's updates.

The groundbreaking advancement in lithium battery technology not only concerned the country's energy strategy and energy security but also granted the Enlightenment Faction greater influence in extraterrestrial civilization affairs.

"I've been pondering a question for some time," the man in police uniform suddenly spoke.

"What?" the man with a stern face asked while smiling.

The man in the police uniform slowly spoke, "As a criminal investigator, I may be more concerned about the motives of the suspects... I just can't fathom why they would help us?"

"Maybe to ensure that the Enlightenment Faction's opinions become mainstream within our community?" quipped the bespectacled man.

The man with a stern face pondered for a moment before responding, "I’m not ruling out this possibility, but I feel like this is not the main purpose."

"You think the main purpose is?" The old man threw a curious glance at him.

As the only person in the office granted access to the Wasteland Online closed test, he probably held the most authority to speak about Wasteland Online among them all.

"We've discussed this issue a long time ago. Extraterrestrial civilizations might want to provide us with some form of enlightenment through cultural forms we can understand," the man in the green shirt's expression turned serious.

"You mean... It’s regarding matters related to the Third World War?" Upon hearing that term, the atmosphere in the office grew tense.

In fact, before the rise of the Enlightenment Faction, supporters of the Prophetic Faction were not few in number. Their viewpoint was that extraterrestrial civilizations were revealing the future of humanity 300 years later.

However, predicting the future carried a strong flavor of mysticism and lacked scientific basis, so it never gained traction.

The man with a stern face shook his head. "It's probably not that extreme. I think, rather than predicting a war, they might want to express that in the fourth major conflict, we'd be fighting with sticks... Isn't that what our players do in the game?"

Making a light-hearted joke to ease the tension, he paused briefly before he continued, "With over seven billion people on Earth, more than two hundred countries and regions, even if we disregard the different voices within each country, our civilization still echoes hundreds of voices. If I were an extraterrestrial diplomat, I'd probably lose my mind."

"Before embarking towards the Milky Way, we should form a united and cohesive community with a shared destiny. While we may have different opinions internally, when facing extraterrestrial civilizations, we must ensure that our voice is unified."

"My understanding of enlightenment is that technological support is just one means of enlightening, not the ultimate goal. Perhaps 'they' hope to help us achieve unity on a civilizational level through this method."

The people in the office involuntarily exchanged glances.

The old man furrowed his brow slightly.

"That interpretation is quite intriguing... If it's as you say, then the significance of this matter is enormous."

"This is just a hypothesis. Our official communication with 'them' hasn't started yet, and all our speculations are one-sided interpretations. Everything we're assuming now is only for precautionary measures."

After a brief pause, the man with a stern face continued solemnly, "Regarding this matter, I've discussed it with the higher-ups. We'll soon establish a separate Scientific Development Foundation, responsible for matters related to technology introduction."

"This includes establishing reserves of silver coins and a normalized acquisition mechanism, formulating relevant rules for technology introduction, guiding social forces to take advantage of their initiative, and actively participate in this endeavor that benefits the country and its people."

"Regardless of the choice we make, there's only one thing we need to do, and that is to maintain our advantage!"