The storm outside did not slow Lu Chenyuan's footsteps.
The day after Yuanlong Technology's announcement, he left Jingzhou.
His first stop was Harbin in the north.
Harbin Institute of Technology.
The cradle of China's aerospace engineers.
Lu Chenyuan had only briefly informed the university leadership, with no further arrangements for a meeting.
High-level negotiations had already been completed—now, it was time for Lu Chenyuan himself to make the personal appeals.
Winter in Harbin was bitterly cold, the wind cutting like knives.
Lu Chenyuan stood alone in his dark overcoat outside an old laboratory building in the Materials Science department.
Like any ordinary visitor, he waited quietly.
From two in the afternoon until nearly three.
Finally, a figure slowly emerged from the building.
An elderly man with silver hair, slightly hunched, yet walking with remarkable steadiness.
Professor Zhou Mingyuan.
China's foremost expert in ceramic matrix composites.
Also, its loneliest.
His theories were too ahead of their time, his research direction too costly.
For twenty years, his work had never seen large-scale application.
His project funding was pitifully scarce.
Lu Chenyuan stepped forward.
No business card, no polite small talk.
Instead, he handed the professor a document wrapped in a kraft paper envelope.
"Professor Zhou, hello. My name is Lu Chenyuan."
Zhou Mingyuan was momentarily taken aback. The university leadership had already hinted at this visit.
The principal had described it as a powerful investor with vast resources and connections, seeking collaboration.
But over the years, too many had approached him under the guise of "industry-academia cooperation."
None had ever truly supported his research.
Many had ulterior motives.
By now, he hardly dared hope he would live to see his work bear fruit.
Yet after a brief pause, Zhou Mingyuan took the document.
He pulled out the contents—not a proposal, but a technical report.
"Five years ago, you published a paper on the application prospects of ceramic matrix composites in rocket engine nozzles," Lu Chenyuan said.
"My team conducted three supplementary experiments based on your theory.
These are the results, along with some preliminary optimization suggestions."
Zhou Mingyuan froze.
Adjusting his glasses, he looked down.
A single glance, and his hands began to tremble slightly.
Every data point, every formula on the page precisely addressed the pain points of his decades-long research.
Paths he had envisioned but lacked the means to verify were now clearly laid out.
This was no empty flattery from an outsider.
This was the echo of someone who truly understood him—across five years of silence.
"You... your team..." The professor's voice was hoarse.
"Professor Zhou, I want you to lead a new materials laboratory," Lu Chenyuan said earnestly.
"The budget has no ceiling.
There’s only one goal:
To create the world’s most advanced engine nozzle—one that can withstand four thousand degrees."
The winter wind stirred the professor’s white hair, but it also reignited an ambition long dormant.
---
Lu Chenyuan’s next stop was a laboratory at the Aerospace Engineering University.
Inside, a man in his thirties frowned at a model of a rocket wreckage.
Dr. Li Mo—one of the most talented structural engineers of his generation.
Yet after a single design failure doomed a project, he had never recovered.
Without alerting anyone, Lu Chenyuan walked straight to his side.
Crouching, he pointed at the separation mechanism between the rocket stages.
"The hydraulic tubing here is too densely packed. Under high stress, it risks resonance."
Li Mo jerked his head up, staring at the stranger.
"What if we borrowed from deep-sea submersible designs? Distributed redundant tubing might solve it," Lu Chenyuan continued.
Li Mo’s eyes lit up.
That was the exact flaw that had doomed his project.
Months of agonizing, and this stranger had pinpointed it in seconds.
"Who are you?"
Lu Chenyuan didn’t answer.
Instead, he pulled out a tablet and opened a file—a funding flowchart from Yuanzheng Technology.
A number so large it made Li Mo dizzy.
"I need a chief structural engineer who isn’t afraid to rise from failure," Lu Chenyuan said.
---
In a dust-covered old factory, Lu Chenyuan met retired engineer Zhao Jianguo.
The elderly man was running a hand over a rusted fuel tank.
"This was built for the ‘Sky Survey-1’ mission," Zhao murmured, lost in memory.
Lu Chenyuan pulled on gloves, examining the tank’s welds.
"Engineer Zhao, nobody uses this spiral welding technique anymore.
But its stress distribution is smarter than half the tech today.
I need an advisor to extract the wisdom in these old relics."
A gleam returned to the old man’s clouded eyes.
---
Over the next month, Lu Chenyuan’s journey spanned all of China.
From aircraft factories in Shenyang to remote sensing institutes in Jiangcheng.
From Nanjing’s observatories to launch bases in the western deserts.
Like a devoted sower, he walked a path unseen by outsiders.
He sought out geniuses—forgotten, marginalized, or underestimated.
What he brought wasn’t just money.
It was respect. Understanding. A stage where they could unleash their brilliance.
Piece by piece, he quietly assembled a blueprint for China’s future among the stars.
The "Yuanzheng" team was finally taking shape.
Even as he recruited top talent, Lu Chenyuan’s other plan unfolded in parallel.
Jingzhou.
Yuanlong Technical College.
In the principal’s office, Ren Qian placed a newly approved document on Principal Cai’s desk.
"Aerospace Engineering," "Spatial Information Applications," "Aviation Composite Materials"...
Soon, these new disciplines appeared in the admissions brochure.
---
"Old Lu, the accreditation came through," Ren Qian said over the phone.
"Faculty?" Lu Chenyuan’s voice was calm.
"Per your instructions, we’ve contacted retired professors from aerospace institutes. Professors Zhou Mingyuan and Zhao Jianguo have agreed to guest lecture."
"Good," Lu Chenyuan said.
"Genius must be discovered.
But more must be cultivated.
Yuanzheng can’t just poach talent—it must learn to create its own."
"I understand," Ren Qian replied.
"We’re not just building a tower. We’re preparing soil where giants can grow."
After a month of relentless travel, Lu Chenyuan returned to Jingzhou.
He didn’t go home but headed straight to the temporary headquarters of Expedition Technology.
Lin Yuan was already waiting there.
His office remained as modest as ever.
Yet the walls were now covered with intricate project timelines.
"Old Lu, the people you requested are mostly here," Lin Yuan handed him a list.
"Professor Zhou’s lab equipment has started arriving."
"Dr. Li Mo brought three of his top students and is setting up the simulation platform."
"Xia Hang has also sent their first batch of young engineers for exchange."
"Our core team is coming together."
Lin Yuan’s face showed exhaustion, but even more so, excitement.
Lu Chenyuan looked at the names on the list one by one.
Behind these names lay decades of dedication and accumulated expertise in Xia’s aerospace field.
"You’ve worked hard," Lu Chenyuan said.
"From now on, give them the best resources and the highest level of autonomy."
"Don’t measure them with KPIs. Don’t interfere with their technical approaches."
"Give them room to fail. Give them the right to make mistakes."
He met Lin Yuan’s gaze and left him with one final instruction.
"Trust them."
With that, he turned and walked away.
His role was simply to gather these sparks from across the land.
What would ignite them was their shared dream—of the stars and the vast cosmos.
By the time he returned to Cloud Peak Residence, the night was deep.
Mo Qingli was still awake, waiting for him.
She didn’t ask about his month-long absence, only poured him a glass of warm water.
"You’re back."
"Yes, I’m back."
Lu Chenyuan walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the starry night sky outside.
"Qingli."
"Hmm?"
"Sometimes I think people like us are fortunate."
"Our country spent decades laying the foundation, nurturing the brightest minds."
"All I have to do is find them again."
"And then, build them a tower—one that reaches the stars."
His voice was soft, yet unwavering.
Mo Qingli wrapped her arms around him from behind.
"Yes."
She pressed her cheek against his back.
"Welcome home, my… sower of dreams."
ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
