The moon and Jupiter collide!

This was Xiao Yu's plan. However, there was a significant flaw: the issue of fuel consumption before reaching Titan.

Given Earth's current technology, rockets are used to launch spacecraft, reaching escape velocity to break free from Earth's gravitational pull. Afterward, spacecraft primarily rely on inertia for flight, with onboard fuel used for minor course corrections and necessary acceleration or deceleration. However, Xiao Yu's spacecraft was different.

Xiao Yu's spacecraft was assembled in geostationary orbit and broke free from Earth's gravity using its own fuel, beginning its journey into deep space. Despite maximizing fuel reserves and optimizing fuel efficiency to the fullest, breaking free from Earth's gravity alone consumed 35% of the total fuel. After several accelerations, Xiao Yu was left with only 60% of the initial fuel.

Maintaining a long-term position behind Mars also required a considerable amount of fuel. Moreover, deceleration was necessary upon reaching Mars' orbit, acceleration upon leaving Mars' gravity, and further deceleration upon reaching Titan—all of which would consume a significant amount of fuel.

Originally, Xiao Yu planned to head directly to Europa. Europa is the most likely place in the solar system, besides Earth, to harbor liquid water. With liquid water, Xiao Yu could collect liquid hydrogen and oxygen as fuel using special local techniques, then devote himself to nuclear fusion research. Once fully mastering fusion engine technology and collecting enough fusion fuel from Jupiter, Xiao Yu would leave the solar system and venture into deep space. But this carefully laid plan was thwarted by the collision of the Moon with Jupiter.

Helplessly, Xiao Yu adjusted the engine's thrust direction, changed course, and headed toward Mars.

Ten days passed. During this time, the Moon had already crossed Mars' orbit, hurtling toward Jupiter like a crazed giant beast. Xiao Yu's cameras closely monitored the Moon's trajectory.

Twenty days flew by, and Mars' reddish surface appeared in Xiao Yu's view as scheduled.

After decelerating, Xiao Yu's spacecraft reduced its speed to 4,000 meters per second. This deceleration alone consumed at least another 5% of the fuel, making Xiao Yu wince in pain.

Yet, this consumption was necessary. Without slowing down, the spacecraft would have missed Mars entirely. Only at around 4,000 meters per second could Mars' gravity capture the spacecraft, allowing it to enter Mars' orbit.

At an altitude of 3,000 kilometers above Mars, Xiao Yu successfully entered a stable orbit around the planet. Slowly circling Mars, he began patiently waiting for the impending cosmic collision.

This altitude was carefully calculated by Xiao Yu as the optimal height. At this distance, the spacecraft could remain completely hidden behind Mars to avoid the energy released by the collision, while also minimizing fuel consumption when escaping Mars' gravity.

Xiao Yu's spacecraft was now moving in a near-circular orbit around Mars. At his current speed, it would take less than two hours to complete one orbit.

Even before the Moon collided with Jupiter, meteorites from Earth had already begun bombarding Mars. Recently, the frequency and intensity of meteorite impacts on Mars had significantly increased. As Xiao Yu watched the occasional flashes of light on Mars, an inexplicable sense of unease began to grow within him.

Some of these Earth-originating meteorites clearly bore traces of life. For instance, a meteorite measuring 300 meters in length and 50 meters in width, with a reflectivity of 0.7, had a smooth, bright surface. Xiao Yu speculated that it might be composed primarily of steel.

Xiao Yu was envious and eager to claim the steel for himself. After all, modifying the spacecraft would require large amounts of materials. But reality dashed his hopes. Xiao Yu lacked the ability to retrieve such a massive meteorite, or even a small pebble. At such high speeds, even a small stone would be like a grenade, and Xiao Yu could not afford any more unexpected blows.

This was the largest meteorite so far. The Tunguska event on Earth was believed to have been caused by a meteorite about 30 meters in diameter disintegrating in the atmosphere, releasing energy equivalent to over a thousand Hiroshima bombs. Now, this steel meteorite was dozens of times larger in both mass and volume.

Fortunately, Xiao Yu's spacecraft was on the opposite side of Mars during the impact. Even so, through his optical telescope, Xiao Yu observed the significant impact the meteorite had on Mars.

The enormous shockwave increased Mars' eccentricity by 0.2%, and a towering peak 10,000 meters high suddenly rose on the opposite side of the impact site. Countless dormant volcanoes on Mars reawakened, spewing thick plumes of smoke that nearly covered the entire planet's surface. The polar ice caps melted, and Mars experienced a once-in-a-millennium rainfall. Meanwhile, violent earthquakes nearly reshaped the entire Martian landscape.

Xiao Yu profoundly grasped the saying: "The entire solar system is a finely-tuned system, where a slight disturbance can have far-reaching consequences."

The Earth's explosion was not just an Earthly affair. The explosion was bound to have a tremendous impact on the entire solar system—an impact that could not be underestimated.

Watching all this, Xiao Yu felt an inexplicable sorrow, a sense of shared fate: "If there were any life forms on Mars, they must be extinct now."

Apart from deftly avoiding a few fragments ejected from Mars by the impact, the collision had little effect on Xiao Yu. If anything, it heightened his expectations for the impending collision between the Moon and Jupiter.

As he pondered, Xiao Yu began to look forward to the collision: "Such a cosmic event, rare even within the third galactic arm, let alone the entire Milky Way—witnessing such an event in my lifetime is truly extraordinary."

Twenty days had passed, and there were only ten days left until the estimated collision.

Xiao Yu had already begun gradually slowing down. Correspondingly, to avoid being pulled into Mars' gravity, he had to increase the engine's thrust toward Mars. Finally, on the day before the collision, Xiao Yu positioned his spacecraft firmly behind Mars.

Now, Xiao Yu, Mars' center of gravity, and Jupiter's center of gravity were almost perfectly aligned. This alignment maximized his protection from Jupiter's influence.

Driven by curiosity, Xiao Yu was unwilling to miss the opportunity to witness the collision. He released a small satellite from his spacecraft into Mars' orbit, ensuring that even while hiding behind Mars, he could still capture and witness the collision through live transmission.

At its current orbit, Mars was a full 500 million kilometers away from Jupiter. This meant that the effects of the collision would take about half an hour to reach this distance.

Based on the latest observational data, Xiao Yu began silently counting down.

In fact, the collision should have already occurred by now. It was only the delay in the visual signal traveling 500 million kilometers that kept the moment out of sight. Imagining the awe-inspiring scene, Xiao Yu was filled with anticipation.

"Ten, nine, eight... two, one!"

Everything unfolded as anticipated.

In the ecliptic plane, sunlight was almost entirely obscured by the debris from Earth's explosion. The solar system was plunged into darkness.

Yet, in this vast darkness, a colossal light source suddenly emerged on the distant horizon, its intensity exceeding the Sun's by more than tenfold! This immense light source illuminated the entire solar system in an instant.

The scene appeared for only a fleeting moment before the signal was abruptly cut off. Xiao Yu knew the satellite had been vaporized by Jupiter's overwhelming radiation.

Before Xiao Yu could recover from his shock, he felt the profound effects of the collision between the Moon and Jupiter.

A powerful burst of light, heat, and high-energy radiation swept across Mars, churning the planet's surface into chaos.

Previously, the steel meteorite from Earth had cloaked Mars in a dense layer of dust, plunging the planet into darkness. Now, the powerful energy from Jupiter struck. High-energy radiation rapidly heated Mars' already turbulent atmosphere, creating a pressure imbalance that triggered superstorms, powerful enough to hurl rocks into synchronous orbit around Mars.

Simultaneously, the side of Mars facing Jupiter began to melt. Rocks and sand were heated into dark red torrents, flooding the Martian landscape.

Facing this immense cosmic power, Xiao Yu dared not move, silently observing from behind Mars.

Xiao Yu began to feel grateful for his wise decision. Without Mars acting as a shield, he might have been reduced to molten metal.

The relentless high-energy radiation didn't stop, sweeping past Mars' orbit at the speed of light, heading straight for Earth's orbit.

Currently, Earth's orbit was populated by a vast collection of comets, each trailing a long tail under the Sun's pressure, heat, and particle streams. But the powerful energy from Jupiter arrived, instantly dispersing these comet tails. For a brief moment, the Sun seemed to shed its veil, becoming brilliant again. Yet, in the next instant, Jupiter's energy temporarily outshone the Sun, blowing the comet tails back toward the Sun.

By analyzing the intensity of Jupiter's reflected light from the comets, Xiao Yu estimated Jupiter's current brightness.

At that moment, Jupiter's absolute magnitude exceeded the Sun's by more than tenfold! In other words, if placed at the same distance, Jupiter would appear at least ten times brighter than the Sun!

What a magnificent force this was!