Chapter 352: 351

“Ladies and gentlemen, please start thinking for yourselves. How is a bigger, stronger magnetic field generated? Conventional materials are certainly not capable of producing such a Super Magnetism.”

At the heart of this lies a major technology based on subatomic technology, a new material known as Super Magnet-A!

Super Magnet-A is a material composed of a series of “subatomic particles” arranged in an orderly fashion. Theoretically, subatomic particles are extremely short-lived and quickly decay into more stable, conventional particles that can exist for a long period.

However, in accelerators, due to relativity benefits and high-speed movement, even nearing the speed of light, the lifespan of subatomic particles can be significantly extended. So much so that the production rate of Super Magnet-A can outpace the decay rate, enabling it to exist stably.

A new material composed of subatomic particles thus came into being.

Material that can only exist within accelerators is simply unbelievable and dumbfounding!

The most critical point is that this material can generate a huge magnetic field during its formation. This “huge” is indeed substantial, far exceeding the super magnetic fields that ordinary materials can produce…

The applications of super magnetic fields are just too vast. Not to mention plasma industries, more importantly — they could be used to make interstellar ramjet engines, namely, the Bassard Ramjet Engine, and… electromagnetic shields!

The universe is vast, but interstellar space is still filled with a minority of particles, among which hydrogen nuclei predominate. If these hydrogen atoms can be collected with a magnetic field generator, accumulating over time, these hydrogen atoms will become the perfect working substance and nuclear fuel for engines.

If this technology for interstellar ramjet engines is widely applied, the amount of nuclear fuel the Kunlun Mountain needs to carry can be greatly reduced. More tonnage could then be diverted to develop other industries.

“Please look here!” exclaimed Professor Dennis King excitedly, waving his hand as the staff rolled out a massive object, causing a small stir below.

On display was a small spiral particle accelerator!

Sitting below, Zhang Yuan immediately asked nervously, “Professor, you’re not attempting to create Super Magnet-A here, are you? The super magnetic field will kill all of us!”

This statement instantly led to chaos, with some reporters already contemplating an escape.

The super magnetic field could easily kill, even powerful enough to interfere with the bioelectric currents in the human brain. And this professor wanted to conduct an experiment without any protection?

The professor gave a slight smile, “No, no, no, there’s no need to worry. I’m just going to do a demonstration of a subatomic particle. I’m not foolish enough to get myself killed…”

“Besides, we haven’t yet determined the subatomic arrangement for Super Magnet-A…”

“What’s certain is that the exploration of subatomic particles represents the real threshold of a Third-level Civilization! It will bring about a qualitative change both industrially and militarily!”

“Everyone, keep it up!”

…

After the science conference concluded, Zhang Yuan came out feeling dizzy and overwhelmed.

Science was becoming more and more intricate. Despite studying every day, he could at best only grasp the basics.

But it was these basics that filled him with great excitement.

The exploration of subatomic particles was not without its breakthroughs. Humanity had numerous references to draw from, including the high-dimensional Fragment that remained undeciphered.

Once subatomic materials that transcend convention appear at scale, there’s no doubt… a new era will begin!

“It’s just that a population of eight million is slightly small, even dominated by scientific researchers… The Kunlun Mountain can accommodate a population of twelve million, but the overall population growth shouldn’t be rushed.”

“In fact, twelve million people might still be too few. Building another Kunlun Mountain is quite troublesome. It would be better to build it after industrial upgrading.”

Pondering this, he walked on, feeling quite good despite various concerns.

Zhang Yuan suddenly felt someone tap his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Lin Xuanyuan just coming out from a medical conference, smiling at him.

“Why so abstracted, wandering around all day without looking ahead?”

Zhang Yuan replied, “I’m in a good mood, otherwise, I’d be frowning, sighing all day, troubled, not knowing the way forward, worried about when humanity might suddenly perish. That’s how a captain spends his days.”

Since deciphering the memory of the Badit people, humans had truly reaped a bountiful harvest.

This knowledge encompassed all-round content in various fields, including Physics, Mathematics, Biology, Materials, and more.

Apparently, these guys were hiding so much more!

“So you’re happy like a fairy… Haven’t you been home for days? Sleeping directly in the Captain’s Room, right?” said Lin Xuanyuan with a touch of annoyance.

Zhang Yuan, unruffled, quickly grabbed her hand, attempting to change the subject, “Right, hungry, huh? Let’s go grab something to eat… There’s also a new restaurant we haven’t tried yet, right?”

Lin Xuanyuan snorted and followed him at a trot.

Casually, Zhang Yuan said, “Has the medical conference ended? I have a question for you… Why are these Badit people so long-lived? Lifespans of five to six thousand years, that’s truly enviable.”

“According to New Civilization History, it’s exactly because of such high longevity that the Badit people could easily adapt to interstellar voyages, similar to the Age of Great Navigation for humans. For them, a journey of five to six hundred years is just a short period of striving. Otherwise, with their ideology, they would have been bound by money and capitalism.”

Capitalism is one major reason why many civilizations fall into mediocrity.

However, the Badit people were different, for their innate longevity was so extensive that they could adapt easily to the interstellar era…

In fact, their social structure, including their social system, was quite unremarkable, even remaining in the monarchical period of the first industrial revolution. Not much was worth emulating by humans.

Humans really don’t understand why there are species with such naturally extended lifespans…

“They’re truly favored by the universe, with Racial Values excessively high,” Zhang Yuan shook his head, and now human Life extension technology had reached a bottleneck and was difficult to advance further.

“Why some species live long and others short — that’s a comprehensive issue, not something that can be explained in a word or two,” Lin Xuanyuan said playfully. “Treat me to a BQ ice cream, and I’ll tell you all about it!”

“BQ ice cream, so expensive!” Zhang Yuan felt a bit reluctant, but then blurted out rashly, “You’re not young anymore and still eating ice cream like a little kid. You should be focusing on your health, if you don’t take care of it now, you’ll suffer when you’re old.”

“You’re the uncle, you’re the… old man!” Lin Xuanyuan said, frustrated and embarrassed.

But there was a bit of sorrow in her heart. Indeed, as time passed, youth was no longer present; she had gradually entered middle age. Reflecting on the bygone years, before she knew it, so many had passed. Wrinkles had started to appear on her face, and her skin wasn’t as lustrous as it used to be… Who doesn’t experience this phase?

“Let’s go, let’s go, little girl, it’s my treat.” Zhang Yuan realized he had said something wrong and quickly apologized with a big smile on his face.

Sure enough, Lin Xuanyuan huffed and then began to laugh again.

They walked into a restaurant and ordered. After that, the robot waiter quickly served them dinner.

“Cheers!”

The glasses clinked lightly. Zhang Yuan sipped a small mouthful of red wine and asked, “You’ve been researching for so many years now, isn’t there any outcome yet… If this continues, only your medical research would yield no results, still relying on Earth’s old reserves…”

Lin Xuanyuan shook her head, “If there’s none, there’s none. Who said there has to be an outcome? Regarding lifespan, Earth people have already dug out everything there is. Unless we improve intelligence, that’s the only way to progress, I guess.”

“The Badit people are indeed very different from humans… Their longevity doesn’t really offer us much to learn from; they can only serve as a source of biomimetic materials.”

“How should I put it… Their body structure is somewhat like the starfish on Earth, and all individuals are hermaphroditic. Asexual reproduction, you know about that.”

Asexual reproduction meant that individuals of this civilization were hermaphroditic, capable of mating with each other or cloning themselves–in short, every individual could procreate.

For the Badit people, the reproductive cells are stored next to the tentacles by their heads, and the best etiquette between them is to exchange genetic material.

The reproduction process is also very simple; the fertilized egg develops in the pouch of the tentacles, and just like the division of starfish, a young individual is born, to be naturally nurtured by the mother until grown.

Because of this mode of reproduction, the Badit people are incapable of feeling love or experiencing pleasure from mating. However, they do possess maternal love, both from a traditional cultural and ethical level as well as an instinctual one, which demands that they nurture their children.

Their fervent pursuit of benefits is due to the high cost of raising children. A Badit person, over the course of their lengthy lifespan, can at most birth 500 children. This requires them to earn all the money they need while young to provide a better education for their children, so they can enjoy family bliss later in life.

Otherwise, even if they reproduced in large numbers, they would all be of low status.

Speaking of Badiet history, it’s quite interesting. This species originated on the distant Badiet Star–a planet with an extremely harsh living environment.

The air on Badiet Star is thin, volcanic eruptions are frequent, there is a great diurnal temperature range, and the environment is similar to Mars–most water resources are concentrated at the South and North Pole. In human terms, it is a hell within a hell.

Such a hostile living environment led to exceptionally fierce competition among Badiet Star’s species. All the species evolved in two directions: The first is the Short-lived Species, generally simpler lifeforms with very strong reproductive capabilities, able to rapidly succeed generations and adapt to the harsh and volatile environment through numerical superiority.

The second is the scarce Longevity Species. These species rely on their strong physical constitution, gradually striving for perfection and forcibly adapting to all hostile environments through the advantage of quality.

Without a doubt, the Badit people were among the best, the darlings of the planet, able to adapt to all kinds of harsh environments, with excellent reproductive ability and intellect!

The so-called self-fertilization function evolved precisely because the environment was so harsh and breeding partners were difficult to find.

Naturally, the Badit people stood out on this planet…

But even after they developed technology, the experiences of their primitive era continued to influence the Badit people’s ideology. They longed for prosperity and a better life, a desire far stronger than that of humans. It made them easily fall into the trap of capitalism.

Even when they entered the interstellar era, their innate propensity for profit could not be changed, and so they developed a very peculiar commercial civilization… From a certain perspective, especially from the standpoint of social systems, this civilization isn’t much superior to that of humanity. They’ve developed to where they are now thanks solely to their far more powerful “Racial Value,” an envy that cannot be envied.

Zhang Yuan asked, “I have another question, how did these Longevity Species evolve? Since they are Longevity Species, it means their rate of rejuvenation and iteration is very slow, and evolution naturally also becomes slow. Under these circumstances, how could they possibly evolve so perfectly? Or is it just a matter of good luck?”

“This has always been a difficult point in biological science,” Lin Xuanyuan answered seriously. “With the information we have, it’s really hard to explain why this phenomenon occurs. It’s as if it happened out of nowhere. Moreover, the Badit people are still evolving slowly, and their lifespans are getting longer with each generation. It’s truly bizarre…”

“Longer with each generation? That doesn’t seem like a problem,” Zhang Yuan said doubtfully. “Because technology is advancing! Just like humans, in the primitive era, they didn’t live long, dying in their twenties or thirties, but now they can live to three hundred years old. Even if their lifespans are longer, they still yearn to live longer, this is not hard to understand.”

“The problem I’m talking about is not what you understand it to be.”

Lin Xuanyuan quickly said, “Badit Civilization has its own archaeological history. From fossils discovered on their planetary origin 150,000 years ago, the genetic material of ancestors differs significantly from modern times, and their lifespan was a mere hundred years. Yes, the gap between a hundred years and several thousand years is far too great, almost like a sudden qualitative change!”

“In other words, 150,000 years ago, a smart and long-lived individual suddenly emerged from the population!

“Because of the superior survivability of this individual, all subsequent individuals are his descendants.”

“Is that even possible? It’s too strange, isn’t it? Is it real?” Zhang Yuan pricked up his ears, “What’s the reason?”

“Some Badit people believe,” Lin Xuanyuan explained, “that this ancestor had a series of benign genetic mutations under the influence of cosmic radiation, very fortuitously.”

“Others think it was the result of genetic modification by an Alien Civilization because such a change is too significant; it’s not impossible for it to occur naturally, but the chances are extremely slim. Yet, the Badit people have never found evidence of genetic modification. If there truly were such an Alien Civilization, their technological power must be far superior to that of the Badit Civilization.”

“However, we humans will never know the result because among the Badit people we have captured, there are no archaeologists, and their understanding of this history is limited to some basic common sense.”

At this point, Lin Xuanyuan sighed deeply. Who wouldn’t want to know if they could?

Unfortunately, this has become yet another unsolved mystery.

After discussing these topics, dinner was nearly over, and Zhang Yuan, still not entirely satisfied, ordered another dessert. Their conversations were usually like this; they were already an old married couple, so were they really expected to talk of love as the young did?

Zhang Yuan sighed, “Unique history creates unique culture, truly fascinating. Leaving aside the various gains one could have during the entire journey, even if I spent my whole life wandering the cosmos, racing towards the next second only to witness the next miracle… I would still find it quite interesting and have no regrets.”

Lin Xuanyuan held her cheeks in her hands, “The great philosopher Mr. Zhang Yuan is starting to express his feelings again…

“I don’t know why, but this always seems to be the most charming time for you, probably because I’ve been brainwashed by you. How about we spend the next life together too?”

“The next life?” Zhang Yuan suddenly ruffled her hair and seeing her slightly annoyed expression, laughed heartily.

…