Chapter 1001: The Future Path

The watchtower was very quiet, and neither Qin Ye nor Zhao Yun were saying anything. Around 40 minutes later, Zu Chongzhi and Lu Ban also made their way into the watchtower alongside Xu Chengyang and the others.

Qin Ye took a glance at them to find that Xu Chengyang, Pang Hai, and Deng Ruifeng's faces were all flushed with excitement. It had been far too long since they had been at the center of such a monumental occasion, and there were many people referring to them as senior and teacher during the press conference.

In contrast, Lu Ban and Zu Chongzhi weren't in the mood to celebrate. Instead, they were clearly quite concerned.

"Take a seat." Qin Ye gestured at the chairs around him as he spoke, and the door was quietly closed. Once everyone had sat down, he said, "Let's have a meeting. I won't waste any time, what do you all think about the press conference? Professor Xu, Professor Pang, Professor Deng, we'll begin with you three."

𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"Alright." Deng Ruifeng took a moment to compose himself, then replied, "I think the press conference went splendidly. In my opinion, it was a resounding success."

Lu Ban and Zu Chongzhi turned to him with a shocked expression upon hearing this, but didn't say anything and soon looked away again.

Pang Hai continued where Deng Ruifeng left off. "There were so many renowned scientists gathered here at this press conference, but not a single one of them was able to point out any holes in our project, this is already a resounding success! Yanluo Qin, I was fortunate enough to have participated in the Berlin Nuclear Energy Industry Conference, and there were a total of four conference halls, every single one of which housed extremely intense wars of words! The debates were extremely fierce, and there were even many professors who only delivered short addresses before being stumped by the questions raised against them, forcing them to leave the stage in disgrace. In contrast, the academic society of the underworld is far gentler."

"You only think that because you don't know the core reasons behind their attitude!" Lu Ban interjected in a forlorn voice. "If we had continued reading the first part of the report to the very end, we would've been utterly disgraced just like the professors you mentioned."

"There's no need to be so agitated, Mr. Lu," Qin Ye said as he gently set down his teacup. "At the very least, we won the opening battle, didn't we?"

"How could we not be agitated, Lord Qin?!" This was the first time that Zu Chongzhi had ever cut Qin Ye off like this, and he rose to his feet before extending a deep bow as he said, "You're even more aware than we are of the consequences of displaying that unit! Back when we were assembling our trump cards, we didn't even count that unit as one of them! That's not something that can be shown to the world unless there's absolutely no other choice! Lord Qin, we're willing to lay down our reputations and endure shame and criticism for the greater good! By displaying that unit to everyone, we've placed ourselves in a dire situation!"

Qin Ye turned to Zu Chongzhi with a surprised expression, and Zu Chongzhi looked straight into his eyes with pure sincerity and urgency.

They really were willing to set aside their reputations, and they didn't care about how the world saw them. Furthermore, they were willing to make these sacrifices even before experimentation into the new energy resource had begun.

Qin Ye's smile slowly faded, and only then did he turn toward the three professors, who were completely befuddled by the exchange they were witnessing. "The three of you have only just come into contact with the important figures of the underworld, so there are still many things that you have to learn from your seniors."

A serious look appeared on his face as he turned to Zhao Yun and said, "I'll give the explanation, you fill in the gaps. Due to the fact that you haven't come into contact with significant figures in the world for the past few years, your political senses have been dulled. That part of Gui Xu has allowed us to survive this press conference unscathed, but Xu Fu's energy resource is one that requires materials from both the underworld and the mortal realm, so there's still a very long way to go until we can make it an energy resource that can be created solely in the underworld. As such, that part of Gui Xu isn't actually anywhere near as significant as it's believed to be. However, that's not the most important concern."

He cast his gaze out the window toward the bustling press conference venue as he continued, "Displaying a prototype makes up for all of the holes in our presentation, thereby allowing us to endure this Great Revelation Debate, but it's only going to create greater problems for us to face in the future."

The three professors' expressions changed slightly upon hearing this, and they seemed to have thought of the problem as well.

Seeing as they already had a "prototype", they were essentially going to be forced to release the corresponding statistics and data.

All of the scientists of the entire world were going to be scrutinizing them, and they were going to be under constant pressure to release more details. Essentially, the research and development team was going to be roasted over a figurative open flame!

The opening victory had been secured, but at what cost? From this point onward, the pressure being exerted upon them would potentially be able to crush them at any moment!

"Do you know what this entails?" Qin Ye withdrew his gaze before turning to all of the researchers in the room. "Our Cathayan Underworld hasn't even begun our research and development yet, but the rest of the world thinks that we've already developed a prototype. Our perceived progress and actual progress are a complete mismatch. If the other nations take this as the truth and begin to ask about the Cathayan Underworld's framework base stations, sites for power plants, equipment, and even whether we need things like wind power and hydropower, how do we respond?"

Deng Ruifeng drew a sharp breath upon hearing this, and the netherfire in his eyes began to flicker slightly.

It wasn't that he couldn't think of all of this himself, it was just that due to his long absence from political affairs, his instincts in this area had been dulled. With Qin Ye spelling everything out for him, he immediately realized just how perilous their situation had become.

Indeed, they had managed to weather this storm, but just as Qin Ye had said, they were perceived to have already developed a working prototype, how were they supposed to respond to inquiries made by other nations based on that assumption?

If they were to just give random answers and the other nations did as they were told, only for the infrastructure that they set up to be a complete mismatch with the new energy resource, who was going to reimburse those nations for the money and resources they poured into the construction projects? At that point, even if the Cathayan Underworld were to successfully develop the new energy resource, it would still become the public enemy of the entire world!

If they didn't respond, then the expectations would be compounded further and further, eventually transforming into immense pressure from all sides. The longer they stalled, the less patience the other underworlds were going to have, and once their patience ran out and the Cathayan Underworld still hadn't developed the new energy resource, its reputation, which had only just recovered slightly, would suffer a devastating blow. If that were to happen, the Cathayan Underworld would truly be dancing on a knife's edge!

"Now that the other underworlds are under the opinion that we've already developed a prototype, they'll be thinking that it'll only take four or five more years at most to complete the new energy resource, but in reality, our research hasn't even begun yet! The duration of my original plan was supposed to be 10 to 15 years! Even though we've made sufficient preparations, we've still underestimated just how much attention the prospect of a new energy resource has received from the rest of the world. If it weren't for how perilous the first part of the presentation was turning out to be, I wouldn't have ended that segment prematurely, and I certainly wouldn't have displayed that fragment of Gui Xu to the world."

Qin Ye heaved a faint sigh as he massaged the beaded bracelet in his hand in a slow and methodical manner. "What do we do from here?"

Indeed, what were they going to do?

Silence.

A short while later, a faint chuckle suddenly rang out.

It had come from Pang Hai.

A faint smile had appeared on his face, and it was growing wider and wider as he suddenly burst into laughter. "What are we so worried about, everyone? We don't need to discuss what to do, the choice has already been made for us! We have no choice but to do our best! We just have to put everything on the line and give it everything we have!"

His words washed over everyone like an enlightening breeze, and several seconds later, both Deng Ruifeng and Xu Chengyang smiled as the latter said, "Indeed, we just have to do our best! It's not like we haven't been in a situation like this before. Several decades ago, when we were working in the atomic bomb, hydrogen bomb, and artificial satellite projects, we had no blueprints or any information to work with. Our backs were against the wall, and the entire world had already written us off, but what happened in the end?"

The three professors were clearly reinvigorated upon hearing this, having been reminded of the fighting days of their youth. It was as if the soul of the scientist within them had been awakened.

Qin Ye was also very encouraged to see this. Regardless of what happened in the future, it was definitely a good start for everyone to reignite their passion and drive for science.

Productivity was going to be completely different between active research and passive research! He was very glad that these scholars were able to rekindle their passion and drive, particularly when facing such a daunting task.

They had to be able to present a finished product during the world trade conference in 10 years!

The entire world was scrutinizing them, and they had to get the job done at all cost!

"You're right, there's nothing to think about here," Qin Ye said with a carefree smile. "I'll be with you every step of the way!"

You focus on the research, I'll use my Yama-King level Yin energy to break down Yin runes for you. No matter how many Yin runes you need, I'll make sure to keep them coming!

This was the first monumental event in the history of the new administration, comparable with the unification of the nation, and it was indeed time to give it everything they had!

There was no point in thinking about whether this was an achievable task. There was no path for retreat, so the only way to proceed was to advance!

After all, fortune always favored the brave, did it not?

"Once we return to the Cathayan Underworld, the research and development team will immediately be founded! I want to see the team progressing in the right direction within a month, can you do that?"

"Yes!"

Back then, they had developed the atomic bomb, the hydrogen bomb, and the artificial satellite from scratch! These circumstances were far more favorable as they had Xu Fu's notes at their disposal, so there was no reason why this was beyond their reach!

Only the Cathayan Underworld was capable of ushering in this new era!

………………………………………………..

The waves of the sea lapped at the side of the ship while Röntgen stared at the man in front of him with a surprised expression.

He was very much taken aback by their sudden arrival.

"You seem surprised," Archimedes said with a smile. "Rest assured, I bear no ill will."

"Of course, I didn't suspect that you bore any ill will toward me, I was simply taken aback. Ah, please take a seat!" Röntgen had a large cabin to himself, and it was quite a spacious room. Scientists of his caliber were given exceptional treatment all over the world, and there were even premium cigars and wine in his cabin.

"Would you like something to drink, Sir? I have 50-year-old red wine from the Polly Vineyard. It's delightfully warm on the tongue but is also very rich and full-bodied..."

"That's alright, I'll pass," Archimedes replied with a smile. "There's no need for formalities. I'm sure you can tell that I have something to discuss with you."

Röntgen smiled as he sat down beside Archimedes in a respectful manner, then asked, "What can I help you with, Senior?"

"You won't just be helping me," Archimedes replied with a benevolent smile. "We'll be helping each other here. Let me keep this brief. Mr. Röntgen, don't you feel like the Cathayan Underworld's press conference was a little strange?"

After a few seconds of silence, Röntgen's brows furrowed slightly as he said, "I do get that feeling. There was no need for them to have presented the second part of the report, that could've been presented separately during the new energy resource outlook press conference. Also, the second part of the report rendered the assumptions and explanations in the first part a little redundant. However, they did manage to bring out a prototype in the end. As one of the top scientists in the history of the world, I'm sure you're aware that concrete evidence like this cannot be refuted. In my eyes, that changes everything, and I'm willing to overlook the strange way in which the press conference was held."

Archimedes immediately asked, "Then why was the first part of their presentation so shaky? Forgive me for being blunt, but the first part of the presentation made it seem as if they had only recently begun working on this project and were trying to secure investment from the rest of the world before any progress has even been made! However, a nation like the Cathayan Underworld shouldn't have to count on investments from other nations. The Cathayan Underworld is renowned as the most powerful underworld, and its power is undeniable to anyone. They've also experienced countless important occasions throughout history, so why is that this press conference was held in such an illogical fashion?"

RöntgenRontgen's brows furrowed even deeper upon hearing this. He didn't like to think about anything outside of his research, and he was getting a little impatient as he picked up a cigar, then lit it before taking a puff. "What are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying that they're hiding something!" Archimedes replied as he looked straight into Röntgen's eyes. "Right now, I'm not standing before you as a death god of the Argosian Underworld. Instead, I'm having a discussion with you purely as a fellow scientist. Have you considered this possibility? What if, during the press conference, they discovered that they didn't have the theoretical framework to back up the prototype they presented, which is why they made a last-second decision to switch to the second part of the presentation? In that case, the strange sequence of the presentations can be explained."

Röntgen shuddered slightly upon hearing this, and the cigar in his hand fell onto the ground as he stared at Archimedes with an incredulous expression.

If that were true, then the question that arose from this would be why was the Cathayan Underworld's theoretical framework unable to support the prototype it had presented?

There was only one possible answer: the entire project was nothing more than a pipe dream! In that case, that press conference would've also been a complete hoax!