mining

Xiao Yu meticulously commenced the preparatory work for the forthcoming grand construction.

First, in anticipation of the abundant raw ores that would soon arrive from Earth's mining expedition, Xiao Yu spent two months constructing a brand-new titanium-zirconium processing and smelting facility beside a methane lake, free of black insects.

Next, Xiao Yu built thousands of small, semi-intelligent nuclear fusion engines, all of which were loaded into the Hope, ready for deployment. Once all preparations were complete, the Hope successfully took off and headed towards Earth's original orbit, marking the beginning of the Dawn's construction.

All bases, along with the collection and smelting equipment, had been fully established. At this stage, there was no need for further expansion; maintaining the current production rate was sufficient. Thus, apart from allocating a fixed portion of computational power to keep all bases operational, Xiao Yu devoted all remaining resources to the construction of the Dawn.

Within the main base, hundreds of aircraft landed and took off daily, continuously delivering supplies. Upon landing, robots promptly categorized the materials and delivered them to various processing workshops. After purification or further refining, the materials were manufactured into individual parts, which were then transported by robots to the assembly workshop, where they were pieced together into larger components, eventually being assembled into the vast structure within a massive factory.

Countless robots, resembling industrious worker ants, tirelessly worked on the colossal Dawn, gradually revealing its form under their relentless labor.

By this time, the Hope had completed its arduous two-month journey and reached Earth's former orbit.

Over the years, a ring of asteroids, stretching over a billion kilometers with a width of about ten thousand kilometers and a thickness of merely ten kilometers, had formed around the Sun where Earth's orbit once was. Xiao Yu knew this was the result of the Sun's gravitational pull. The Earth had become part of the Sun's "ring," much like Saturn's rings or Jupiter's. Henceforth, it could no longer be called Earth; it should now be referred to as the "Solar Ring."

After observing Earth's current trajectory through the Hope, Xiao Yu sighed quietly.

He realized that under the gravitational disturbances from outer planets like Jupiter and Mars, as well as inner planets like Venus, it was impossible for a new planet to form in Earth's orbit. Earth had become a relic of the past.

Xiao Yu was thirteen hundred million kilometers away from the Solar Ring. Communication with Titan had an approximate delay of eighty minutes. Therefore, Xiao Yu handed over most of the Hope's operational control to pre-programmed instructions, monitoring its status as necessary.

Continuous streams of data were transmitted to a high-powered communication satellite stationed at the Sun-Jupiter Lagrange point. This satellite relayed the signal to another at the Sun-Saturn Lagrange point, which then passed it to a satellite orbiting Saturn. Finally, it was sent to the satellite around Titan, allowing Xiao Yu to receive the signal in his mind. If Xiao Yu wanted to issue commands, the process had to be followed in reverse.

Through this data, Xiao Yu could monitor the Hope's movements.

The Hope was surveying beneath the Solar Ring, equipped with highly sensitive titanium-zirconium detectors. Upon identifying a titanium and zirconium-rich meteorite within an acceptable size range, the Hope would take action.

"Hmm? The Hope has detected a suitable meteorite?" Xiao Yu's heart leapt with anticipation as he awaited the next signal transmission.

The meteorite was roughly cubic, with dimensions of about ten meters on each side, a volume of approximately one thousand cubic meters. It consisted of about thirty percent rock and sixty-nine percent ilmenite, with the remainder being impurities, weighing around five thousand tons—heavier than the entire Hope.

It was estimated that this single meteorite could yield nearly a thousand tons of titanium.

"It's worth the effort," Xiao Yu thought to himself. "According to the preset program, the Hope should drag it beneath the Solar Ring for processing in a quieter environment."

By the time Xiao Yu received the signal, it had already been traveling through space for over an hour, meaning these events had occurred more than an hour ago.

Xiao Yu felt a subtle tension rising within him.

Practice is the ultimate test of a program's accuracy. Despite having run hundreds of thousands of tests on the program before launching the Hope, tests were still just simulations. The true test of the program's functionality would be its performance in real-world operations.

More data streamed in, and Xiao Yu observed as the Hope cautiously approached the meteorite, closing the distance to thirty meters before deploying a mechanical claw to secure it firmly. The engines ignited, pulling the meteorite away from the Solar Ring.

Everything unfolded just as Xiao Yu had anticipated.

Seeing his program withstand the trial of real-world application, Xiao Yu exhaled in relief and continued to monitor the Hope's next steps.

The Hope gently brought the meteorite closer, where a three-dimensional scanner analyzed its structure, determining the center of mass, density, and other crucial information, eventually identifying the optimal location for engine installation.

Indeed, this was the intended purpose of the thousands of small nuclear fusion engines Xiao Yu had previously constructed.

Xiao Yu's plan was to identify suitable meteorites, install engines on them, and have them propelled by fusion power towards Titan on their own. Given the Hope's limited tonnage and transport capacity, relying on it alone would be far too slow—Xiao Yu might not gather enough materials even after a century of repeated trips.

The small nuclear fusion engines provided only limited power, and thus only modest acceleration to the meteorites. This meant a meteorite would take nearly a year to reach Titan, with some assistance from the gravitational pulls of planets like Saturn and Jupiter along the way.

However, even this method was far more efficient than having the Hope transport each meteorite individually. Given the Hope's speed, a round trip would take four months, and even with the drag transportation method, it could only haul a maximum of one hundred thousand tons per trip—not nearly enough to meet Xiao Yu's needs.

After pulling the meteorite close enough, the Hope opened its hatch, and several robots installed a small nuclear fusion engine on it. Once secured, the robots returned to the Hope, which then began searching for the next valuable meteorite.

Approximately thirty minutes after the Hope left, the small nuclear fusion engine facing the Sun ignited, spewing a pale blue flame, propelling the meteorite forward.

During the year-long journey, high-powered communication satellites scattered through space would guide its navigation, ensuring it reached Titan safely and accurately.

Relieved by the smooth progress, Xiao Yu felt more confident in his mining plan.

Three days later, the Hope located another suitable meteorite. This one was significantly larger, with a volume of over thirty thousand cubic meters and a mass reaching an astonishing hundreds of thousands of tons. However, it also contained an impressive eighty percent ilmenite.

According to estimates, Xiao Yu could extract over thirty thousand tons of titanium from this meteorite alone.

In Xiao Yu's design, the Hope did not have the authority to decide whether to collect such a large meteorite on its own. After transmitting the information to Xiao Yu, it began tracking the meteorite, awaiting his response.

After careful consideration, Xiao Yu decided to proceed with the collection. After all, thirty thousand tons of titanium was no small amount, though the transport plan required modification.

Xiao Yu quickly devised an improved transport plan and transmitted it to the Hope.

Upon receiving the signal, the Hope followed the program's instructions, first pulling the meteorite away from the ecliptic plane, then installing fifteen nuclear fusion engines on it before continuing its exploration for the next meteorite.

Over the course of six months, the Hope gathered nearly three hundred meteorites of varying sizes and masses, with the largest weighing three hundred thousand tons and the smallest two thousand tons. Xiao Yu estimated that these meteorites could provide approximately three million tons of titanium ore and one million tons of zirconium ore—sufficient to complete the first phase of his interstellar fleet construction.

After installing fusion engines on each of the three hundred meteorites and setting them on their way, Xiao Yu ordered the Hope to return.

The Hope was several times faster than the meteorites, but even so, it would take another two months to return to Titan. Then, after four more months, the first meteorite would arrive in Saturn's orbit. At that point, the Hope would need to rendezvous with it, as a year's journey brought many uncertainties, making it difficult to ensure the meteorites would accurately hit their targets.

Moreover, Xiao Yu did not want to lose mass due to atmospheric friction during reentry. That would be too costly. But Xiao Yu had devised a comprehensive recovery plan to ensure the meteorites would safely reach the processing facility with minimal loss.

Six months passed, and the construction of the Dawn was nearing completion. The final touches were being made, and soon, the Dawn would be ready to leave Titan and soar freely through space.

Everything was progressing according to Xiao Yu's plan.