Roots Grow, Leaves Flourish

The internal debate at Expedition Technology over the technical approach for the "Shadowblade" main valve quietly concluded under Lu Chenyuan's directive and external pressures.

There were no winners, nor were there losers.

Lu Chenyuan's decision was like a boulder dropped into a still lake—the ripples it stirred were not chaos, but deeper contemplation.

After that night's conversation in the break room, neither Professor Zhou Mingyuan nor Dr. Li Mo ever brought up the dispute over their proposals again.

Two independent research teams were officially established the very next day.

Resources, equipment, and personnel were allocated with impartiality, as Lin Yuan had been instructed by Lu Chenyuan.

Meanwhile, the emergence of Stellar's "Smaug" had cast a palpable pressure over everyone.

The atmosphere across Expedition Technology's campus underwent a subtle shift.

The tension and hostility that once hung in the air were replaced by a silent competitive drive and an undercurrent of urgency.

The lights in Team A's lab often burned until 3 a.m.

Team B's simulation servers ran at full capacity almost around the clock.

Colleagues no longer argued when they crossed paths—they simply nodded before retreating to their respective battlefields.

Everyone was driven by an unspoken determination.

Their goal was no longer to prove "I'm right, you're wrong," but to present irrefutable test data demonstrating that their path was the optimal route to the stars.

They also wanted to prove they were worthy of Lu Chenyuan's trust in bringing them here.

The project's development pace quietly accelerated.

Standing by his office window, Lin Yuan watched the bustling figures crisscrossing the campus, his heart filled with complex emotions.

Meanwhile, Lu Chenyuan was at the Quantum Intelligence Lab of Abyss Dragon Technology.

Before him lay another "soil"—one that was flourishing, yet seemed to be sprouting something unexpected.

The artificial intelligence he had always regarded as the most critical "foundation" had been pushed by Lu Ruoxi into an unknowable, unfathomable direction.

Lu Shi'an, now over two years old, was cradled in Su Yang's arms, his curious eyes taking in this futuristic world.

In his tiny hands, he clutched a few brightly colored building blocks.

Lu Ruoxi stood nearby, dressed in a simple white lab coat, her long hair loosely tied back.

Her presence had grown increasingly serene, almost transcendent.

Only when she smiled tenderly at her nephew did she seem like an ordinary woman of this world.

"Brother, look," she said.

She didn't delve into complex quantum entanglement theories or intricate algorithmic models.

Instead, she simply pointed at the blocks in Lu Shi'an's hands.

"In the past, when we built 'Nuwa' and 'Pangu,' it was like this," she explained.

She took a red block from Lu Shi'an's grasp.

"We told it, 'This is a block. It's red. It's a cube.'"

Then, she picked up a blue one.

"And we'd say, 'This is also a block. It's blue. It's a rectangular prism.'"

"We fed it thousands of such definitions. Then, we'd give it a command—say, 'Build a house.' It would execute based on the rules and information we provided."

"It was clever. It could construct beautiful houses. But it was always just following our orders."

Lu Chenyuan listened quietly, not interrupting.

Su Yang handed Lu Ruoxi a glass of water, his gaze filled with affection and admiration.

His presence seemed to ground her ethereal aura.

Taking a sip, Lu Ruoxi's eyes sparkled with an unusual brilliance—the glow of a thinker.

"But now, it's different," she said softly, returning the blocks to Lu Shi'an's open palms.

"My current research is about making the blocks 'know' they are blocks."

Lu Shi'an clacked the two blocks together, producing a crisp sound.

"I no longer tell it, 'You are this.' I only give it the most fundamental logic—'Go and understand the world.'"

"It will 'see' for itself, 'touch' for itself, 'feel' for itself. It will discover it has color, shape, and weight. It will realize other blocks are different."

"It no longer passively receives information. It actively 'learns' and 'comprehends.'"

Her voice was gentle, but her words carried seismic implications.

"Once it truly 'understands' itself and the world, we won't need to command it to 'build a house.'"

She met Lu Chenyuan's gaze, enunciating each word.

"We'll simply ask, 'What do you want to build?'"

"Or perhaps, it will tell us what it believes should be built."

"Brother, this is my 'Quantum Consciousness Framework.' It isn't just a smarter tool."

"It is the embryo of a new species."

The laboratory was enveloped in silence.

Lu Chenyuan gazed at his younger sister, remaining quiet for a long while.

He knew exactly what Lu Ruoxi’s words implied.

If the birth of "Nuwa" years ago had propelled Xia from a follower to a leader in the field of artificial intelligence,

then what Lu Ruoxi was working on now was nothing short of creating an entirely new track right at the finish line—

a path even the likes of Stellar and A-Country’s most advanced tech giants had yet to envision.

“This ‘new species’,”

Lu Chenyuan finally spoke, his voice slightly hoarse,

“Is it… safe?”

This wasn’t a question about business or technology.

It was a question of survival.

A question that would determine the future of humanity itself.

Lu Ruoxi seemed to have anticipated his concern.

She shook her head, then nodded.

“I don’t know,” she admitted candidly.

“Just like the first human who struck fire from wood—he had no idea that flames could bring light and warmth, but also burn down entire forests.”

“Technology itself is neither good nor evil. It all depends on who wields it.”

“So, brother,”

She met Lu Chenyuan’s gaze, her eyes clear and resolute,

“I’m handing this ‘spark’ to you.”

“Because I know you’ll use it to light up the stars.”

“Not to set fire to your neighbor’s house.”

Hearing this, Lu Chenyuan paused, momentarily taken aback.

Then, gently, he patted her shoulder and said,

“You’ve worked hard.”

His gaze shifted to Su Yang, and with a faint nod, he added,

“Take care of her.”