Stones flying from the sky

Xiao Yu had no concerns about the possibility of encountering extraterrestrial technology far beyond his own.

Although theoretical predictions suggest that intelligent alien life should exist in abundance, the Fermi paradox implies that advanced extraterrestrial civilizations are far rarer than expected. The likelihood of encountering a civilization with superior technology is even lower. Xiao Yu did not believe he would be that unfortunate.

There was another reason for Xiao Yu's confidence. The hydrogen bomb, the pinnacle of weaponry built upon the foundations of relativity and quantum theory, was the ultimate achievement. In other words, as long as the alien civilization had not transcended these two theoretical limitations, it was impossible for them to possess a weapon more powerful than the hydrogen bomb. So, why should Xiao Yu be afraid?

Civilizational development shares commonalities. For example, on ancient Earth, several unconnected civilizations independently chose gold as a medium of exchange. This similarity in development gives Xiao Yu confidence that technological progress should follow a path from simplicity to complexity. It is unlikely that a civilization could exist that reverses this process. If there are intelligent extraterrestrial civilizations, they are likely to have undergone stages of cold weapons, hot weapons, and nuclear power. As long as they have not advanced beyond nuclear power, Xiao Yu has nothing to fear.

Moreover, Xiao Yu's power is exceptional. His fleet has no social structure, which means there are no internal conflicts, no power struggles, and no losses caused by internal strife. In other words, Xiao Yu's power is unified, capable of being fully unleashed, and, thanks to his superior computational abilities, even surpassing its theoretical limits. As long as the technological gap between him and his adversaries is not insurmountable, Xiao Yu is confident in his ability to dominate.

This is the enormous advantage of combining human intellect with computational power.

After a successful test flight, the Dawn replaced the Hope, taking on the task of collecting nuclear fusion fuel from Saturn. The size difference ensured the Dawn's higher efficiency. The Hope returned to Titan to handle routine satellite maintenance.

Everything was progressing smoothly.

Six months later, the first asteroid from Earth's orbit arrived at Saturn. The Hope had long been waiting one million kilometers beyond Saturn's orbit, ready to receive it.

In the silent expanse of space, against the vast backdrop of Saturn, a small black dot with a long tail of flame approached the planet from the direction of the Sun.

As the asteroid passed the Hope, Xiao Yu began to accelerate the ship towards Saturn. Gradually, the Hope matched the asteroid's speed, maintaining a relatively stationary position, both hurtling towards Saturn at over thirty kilometers per second.

Xiao Yu slowly approached the asteroid, securing it in place. Then, he deployed robots to install six small nuclear fusion engines at its optimal placement points, along with a massive parachute on the opposite side.

After completing all preparations, Xiao Yu steered the Hope away. Calculating the best trajectory, the fusion engines ignited, propelling the asteroid onto the correct path. At a distance of 100,000 kilometers from Titan's atmosphere, all seven engines fired together, decelerating the asteroid.

Its speed relative to Titan began to drop, from twenty-five kilometers per second down to fifteen, then to five, and it continued to slow. By the time it reached Titan's atmosphere, its speed had reduced to less than a kilometer per second.

Deceleration was crucial; without it, the asteroid would collide with Titan at extreme speeds. The first small asteroid might be manageable, but a direct hit from the largest, a 300,000-ton mass, could severely impact Titan's crust, potentially causing earthquakes that could easily destroy Xiao Yu's base.

At a mere ten kilometers from the atmosphere, the asteroid, under the reverse thrust of the seven nuclear fusion engines, had slowed to three hundred meters per second. Then, it plunged into the atmosphere.

The thick atmosphere of Titan caused intense friction, turning the asteroid's surface red. However, this friction further reduced its speed.

The parachute deployed. This specially designed, high-strength parachute, covering several hundred square meters, worked in tandem with the nuclear fusion engines and atmospheric drag to provide sufficient cushioning to ensure a smooth landing.

Its altitude continued to drop. Ten Fengshen helicopters monitored the designated landing area closely.

Under the combined forces, the asteroid finally touched down at a speed of sixteen meters per second, akin to a snail's pace, creating a twenty-meter-deep, sixty-meter-wide crater. The shockwave was detected by Xiao Yu a thousand kilometers away.

Fortunately, everything was within acceptable limits. The ten Fengshen helicopters descended, lowering thick steel cables, which robots secured to the asteroid. Together, the helicopters lifted it, heading towards the titanium-zirconium processing base.

The entire process, though tense, was successfully completed without incident.

Three days later, the second asteroid arrived, a massive 200,000-ton rock. Xiao Yu maneuvered the Hope to attach fifty small nuclear fusion engines, ensuring a safe landing, though it left a crater several hundred meters in diameter.

And so, every few days, an asteroid would descend from the heavens, bringing Xiao Yu ample supplies of titanium and zirconium.

Now, Xiao Yu was well-stocked with all the raw materials he needed. Black insect corpses, ample wood spirits, sufficient technological reserves, and abundant construction resources. With this wealth of resources, Xiao Yu devised a new plan.

"It's time to start building the fleet," Xiao Yu silently contemplated.

In Xiao Yu's plan, the interstellar fleet to explore Tianyuan-4 would include at least three "county"-class ships, thirty "town"-class ships, and thousands of "village"-class ships. After all, the journey from the solar system to the Tianyuan-4 star system, a distance of about 10.5 light-years, would take over six thousand years at the estimated top speed of five hundred kilometers per second.

Six thousand years—a span nearly equivalent to the entire history of human civilization, if not longer. Over such a vast expanse of time, the wear and tear on the ships and the breakdown of parts must be taken into account. A small fleet simply would not suffice.

Indeed, Xiao Yu's plan required at least half of the thousand-plus ships to be supply vessels. These ships, dedicated solely to storing resources while maintaining their navigational capabilities, would ensure that by the time they reached their destination, even if only half of the fleet remained, it would be enough.

Therefore, choosing the right destination was crucial. With only one chance to choose, a wrong decision could mean arriving at an empty, barren world—a situation that would leave Xiao Yu with no options but to await his demise.

Tianyuan-4 was known to have at least one gas giant, where Xiao Yu could replenish nuclear fusion fuel. Based on projections, there was likely an Earth-like planet where he could gather building materials to construct new ships. Even if the Earth-like planet did not exist, Xiao Yu knew there were extensive asteroid belts in the Tianyuan-4 system where raw materials could be harvested.

The immense distance and the long time required to traverse it are the greatest obstacles to interstellar travel. Even with nuclear fusion power, Xiao Yu faced challenges. Had he been using chemical fuel, the idea of interstellar travel would have been nothing more than a delusion—a mad dream.

The universe is vast beyond imagination. The relationship between Tianyuan-4 and the Sun is akin to that between front and back yard neighbors, yet the journey between them requires an incomprehensibly long span of time.

Thus, past human concepts of interstellar travel have always involved massive ships, with at least several thousand people aboard to ensure a sufficient reproductive capacity. The journey would be a relay across generations, striving to fulfill the dream of interstellar travel.

However, Xiao Yu had no such concerns. As long as there was enough fuel to keep the central computer running, time was just a number to Xiao Yu. A thousand years or ten thousand years—only the digits differed.

By now, Xiao Yu had been away from Earth for nearly ten years. In that decade, countless events had transpired. From the escape from Jupiter to the landing on Titan, to the completion of the first base—each moment, each experience, flowed through Xiao Yu's mind.

"One must always look ahead. The homeland is beautiful, safe, and comfortable, but without venturing out, how could one achieve greatness? The fleet construction plan begins now."

Xiao Yu sighed, then began to put his plan into motion.