Chapter Summaries

The Chief and the Steward discussed Chen Mo’s lunar samples and plans to build a space station and lunar base, while Huaxia’s return gift of lunar rock stirred international debate. At NASA, Director Jim Bridenstine met rocket designer Kane Heberlaim, who arrived to help with the return-to-the-Moon plan.

• The Chief and the Steward learned that Chen Mo had given lunar samples to the Lunar Exploration Project Team and planned to develop a space station, lunar base, and the Moon’s resources.
• Ant Army Group’s lunar samples became coveted worldwide, and Huaxia gave the United States five grams of far-side lunar rock as a state gift.
• Jim Bridenstine grew angry over media criticism of NASA and Huaxia’s lunar achievement.
• Kane Heberlaim arrived at NASA, and Jim learned that Kane had designed the Hercules Super Heavy Rocket.
• Kane told Jim to take him to the launch center and provide the launch plan.

After Ant Army Group brought lunar rocks back to Earth, countries around the world accelerated their lunar programs to compete for the Moon’s resources as nuclear fusion approached practical use. The chapter ended with Russia preparing a decisive test launch of its Polar Bear rocket for the Yuri Program.

• Edo Castle watched preparations at Japan’s Muu Launch Site and learned that the Tsukuyomi Program’s rocket would be finished in about a month.
• Jan Woerner oversaw preparations at the European Space Center as Europe restarted its delayed Dawn Program and prepared to launch a lunar probe.
• Mendeleev inspected Russia’s Polar Bear rocket at Baikonur and learned that assembly was complete and the rocket could be fueled.
• Mendeleev called the rocket’s launch its final test, which would determine whether it could support manned lunar missions.
• Countries with lunar ambitions intensified their preparations as Ant Army Group’s lunar samples and nearly completed fusion power stations made the Moon’s resources more valuable.

As countries announced lunar missions, NASA prepared to return American astronauts to the moon and develop its resources. The Titan II Rocket launched from Kennedy Space Center with three astronauts aboard.

• Russia announced a successful test launch of its Polar Bear rocket and plans for a crewed lunar landing, prompting other nations to reveal their own missions.
• NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced a July 26 crewed lunar mission that would deploy research and ecological modules in preparation for a Lunar Base.
• News of lunar Helium-3 development plans roiled global markets, driving oil and coal prices down and gold prices up.
• At Kennedy Space Center, Van Attivius and his two crewmates joked about deciding who would be the first to step onto the moon.
• Jim asked Kane to conduct a final inspection, but Kane declined and returned to the command and control room.
• Three hours later, the Titan II Rocket launched from Kennedy Space Center.

As nations rushed to return to the Moon, Chen Mo developed a lunar-soil brick for the Lunar Base. He also prepared educational materials for Wushuang and, after Xiao Yu allowed him to return to work, ended the chapter embarrassed by her suggestion involving Mo Nv.

• NASA announced that the American lunar mission had landed astronauts on the Moon, completed its research tasks, and returned safely to Earth as other nations announced lunar missions.
• Chen Mo tested a 3D-printed Lunar Soil Brick made from lunar materials and confirmed that it could withstand extreme temperatures and meet Lunar Base construction requirements.
• Chen Mo told Xiao Yu that he wanted to resume work, and she agreed he could return to the company the next day.
• Chen Mo showed Xiao Yu the educational materials he had prepared for Wushuang from elementary through middle school.
• Xiao Yu told Chen Mo that her period had started and suggested that he visit Mo Nv's room if he wanted a reward, leaving him embarrassed.

Chen Mo returned to work and reviewed company plans for faster construction, lunar exploration, and a larger Spaceplane. At Da Wu Bay, the world’s first Nuclear Fusion Power Station was complete, but its activation awaited Chen Mo’s confirmation.

• Chen Mo returned to the laboratory and learned from Zhao Min that intelligent construction machinery would help expand the Flying Ant Aerospace base on schedule.
• Zhao Min proposed acquiring a construction machinery manufacturer, while Chen Mo heard updates on the successful lunar mission, the Space Station, and other company projects.
• Chen Mo inspected Lunar Soil Brick and learned that Wu Gang 3 had spotted a new lunar lava tube for exploration robots to investigate.
• Chen Mo visited the design laboratory, where an even larger Spaceplane was being designed for the future Lunar Base mission.
• At Da Wu Bay, Baili Jing reported that the Nuclear Fusion Power Station’s data had been calibrated, and Wan Yuanxi said he would notify Chen Mo before activating Huan.

Chen Mo and the researchers at Da Wu Bay successfully ignited the Star Ring at the first operational Nuclear Fusion Power Station. The station’s achievement began the energy revolution, and Chen Mo arranged a grid-connection ceremony to announce it to the world.

• Chen Mo arrived at Da Wu Bay as the team completed final checks for the Star Ring’s startup.
• Lu Long and Baili Jing waited with the other researchers as the station announced that ignition would begin in thirty minutes.
• Chen Mo ordered the Star Ring ignited, and the station reported successful ignition with plasma reaching 102 million degrees Celsius.
• Wan Yuanxi and the researchers celebrated the success, while Chen Mo ordered a celebration banquet.
• Chen Mo asked Yang Mingzhe to prepare a grid-connection ceremony, and the news of the station’s successful ignition spread around the world.

After Huan’s successful ignition sent global energy and financial markets into turmoil, Chen Mo and Zhao Min discussed the risks of nuclear fusion and their partnership with the authorities. They then joined officials and researchers at the Dawu Bay Nuclear Fusion Power Station’s ceremony, where they connected the first practical fusion power station to the grid.

• Huan’s successful ignition caused crude oil and coal prices to plunge, gold and high-tech stocks to rise, and economies dependent on fossil fuels to come under pressure.
• Chen Mo and Zhao Min reflected on nuclear fusion’s far-reaching effects, and Chen explained that the authorities’ stake in Huaxia Nuclear Energy Group helped shield them from the fallout.
• Yang Ming Lei escorted Chen Mo, Zhao Min, Mo Nv, Wang Nian, Wan Yuanxi, and Yang Mingzhe to the ceremony venue.
• Chen Mo, Zhao Min, Wang Nian, Wan Yuanxi, Yang Mingzhe, and Yao Yi pressed the button connecting the Dawu Bay Nuclear Fusion Power Station to the grid.

Chen Mo explained the benefits and economic disruption of nuclear fusion at the Dawu Bay power station’s grid-connection ceremony, which marked Huaxia’s entry into practical fusion power. In the following days, officials announced lower electricity prices and plans to build fusion stations nationwide, beginning a transition away from coal and thermal power.

• Chen Mo spoke at the grid-connection ceremony about nuclear fusion’s benefits and the disruption caused by the energy transition.
• After the ceremony, Chen Mo and Zhao Min discussed the trouble the company might face as nuclear fusion reshaped powerful interests.
• Online debate and global market fluctuations followed, with oil and coal prices falling as new-energy stocks rose.
• Bin Hai City reduced electricity prices by 0.3 yuan per unit the day after the station began supplying the grid.
• South China Province and several other regions announced plans to build nuclear fusion power stations and replace thermal plants.
• The National Development and Reform Commission pledged to advance fusion construction and phase out heavily polluting thermal power, while authorities began restricting coal production.

Global pressure mounted on Ant Army Group to share Nuclear Fusion Technology, while Chen Mo refused an international physicist’s request to use the Star Ring. He and Zhao Min discussed protests abroad and the smaller disruptions the authorities were managing at home.

• Environmentalists and online commentators abroad demanded that Ant Army Group share Nuclear Fusion Technology, while domestic reactions were largely celebratory.
• ITER Project expert Victor Caro asked Chen Mo to lend the Star Ring and provide theoretical materials for fusion research.
• Chen Mo refused, telling Caro that access to the Star Ring required joining the Nuclear Energy Group’s research team.
• Caro left Ant Army Group without an agreement, since the nine-country group would not accept its top physicists joining the company.
• Zhao Min told Chen Mo that foreign protests had disrupted some stores and that the authorities were handling domestic economic and social disruptions.

As Nuclear Fusion Technology accelerated the phaseout of coal mines and thermal power, laid-off workers and public anger became a growing problem. Zhao Min told Chen Mo that he would need to appear publicly and announce news to address the company’s domestic troubles.

• Authorities planned to close outdated coal mines and thermal power plants, while miners’ layoffs sparked controversy and reports of severe financial hardship.
• A video of laid-off miners disrupting an Ant Army Company store spread online, and the company’s senior management stayed silent.
• Huaxia Nuclear Energy Group and Ji Province announced that the province’s Nuclear Fusion Power Station had begun operating as coal mines and thermal plants faced further closures.
• Chen Mo ordered Mo Nv to launch the Shennv, which carried lunar landers and exploration robots to seek a site for a lunar base.
• Zhao Min told Chen Mo that people were stirring up conflict over the layoffs and asked him to personally announce some news.

Zhao Min arranged to unveil Soil Oxygen Grass as part of an environmental public welfare plan that could draw attention away from troubles caused by Nuclear Fusion Technology. Chen Mo announced the new plant, and the Ant Army Group published extensive research confirming its safety and environmental benefits.

• Zhao Min told Chen Mo that research teams from ten universities and the company's laboratories had studied Soil Oxygen Grass for three years and confirmed it was safe and beneficial to soil.
• Zhao Min explained a plan to combine a Holographic Pet Adventure game and Marching Ant Forest with partnerships to restore polluted land, barren soil, and deserts.
• Chen Mo agreed to announce Soil Oxygen Grass within the next couple of days.
• As unemployment concerns and incidents targeting the Ant Army Group drew attention, the company released Chen Mo's video announcing Soil Oxygen Grass.
• The Ant Army Group published research reports and papers from university teams and Chen Mo, supporting the grass's safety and its potential for environmental restoration.

Chen Mo’s Soil Oxygen Grass redirected global attention from Huaxia’s fusion technology and sparked fierce debate over genetic engineering. Nick Ayers and Tom Cotton discussed how to keep the Ant Army Group entangled in the fusion controversy, but Huaxia’s environmental announcements had already shifted public opinion.

• Chen Mo’s Ant Army Group released research on Soil Oxygen Grass, including safety findings and photos showing polluted desert test sites turning green.
• Nick Ayers recognized that the plant announcement was drawing attention away from Huaxia’s nuclear fusion technology and called Tom Cotton for help obtaining it.
• Tom Cotton said the CIA lacked access to the Ant Army Group and could not acquire its technology in the short term.
• Nick told Tom to find a way to prolong the fusion uproar, even at significant cost.
• Tom reported that Huaxia had approved limited planting of Soil Oxygen Grass and announced environmental policies, leaving public opinion following the Ant Army Group’s plan.

After rumors about radiation incited protests and an attack on an Ant Army Group store, Zhao Min supported the injured workers and pushed ahead with company projects while discussing a space trip with Chen Mo. Chen Mo continued designing a larger spaceship for building a Lunar Base, awaiting lunar reconnaissance data to select a site.

• Authorities allowed Ant Army Group to trial-cultivate Soil Oxygen Grass, and successful growth in barren and polluted areas eased biological opposition.
• Rumors that Nuclear Fusion Power Stations caused cancer spread near planned sites, prompting residents to obstruct construction and youths to vandalize an Ant Army Group store, injuring people and destroying equipment.
• Zhao Min checked on the injured employees, promised the company would cover their medical costs, and learned police were investigating the instigators behind the disturbance.
• Zhao Min told Lan Xi to begin implementing the Holographic Pet Adventure and Marching Ant Forest plans, then discussed her planned space trip with Chen Mo.
• Chen Mo reviewed a spaceship design twice the size of the Shennv, intended for Lunar Base construction, and continued work while waiting for robots and satellites to identify a suitable site.

Tom and Nick abandoned efforts to stir unrest in Huaxia, while Lin Zhiyuan’s team prepared to launch Pet Adventure and Marching Ant Forest. The chapter ended with a spectacular holographic game advertisement drawing crowds at Binhai Square.

• Tom told Nick that Huaxia’s intelligence agencies were investigating and further interference would endanger their network, so Nick ordered him to focus on protecting the coming election from foreign agents.
• Lin Zhiyuan asked his game team about loopholes in Pet Adventure and Marching Ant Forest, and the team leaders reported that their designs and data had passed checks.
• Lin Zhiyuan approved the launch preparations, and the game team uploaded the data as the publicity department began advertising the games.
• At Binhai Square, the Fisher Girl Statue and surrounding lights dimmed before the holographic projectors activated, drawing crowds to watch.
• A flaming phoenix and a Divine Dragon led a thirty-minute holographic battle featuring Pet Adventure’s pets across the square.
• The pets gathered in the sky, where a giant screen showed a promotional video for Marching Ant Forest and Pet Adventure’s forest, revealing the spectacle as an Ant Army Group advertisement.

Pet Adventure became a nationwide hit, giving the Ant Army Group room to expand its services and reducing public attention on nuclear fusion. Zhao Min delegated company affairs and planned a space vacation with Xiao Yu, while Xiao Wushuang showed them her newly learned piano piece.

• Pet Adventure’s popularity surged past one hundred million online users and helped draw attention away from Nuclear Fusion Technology.
• Zhao Min announced plans to launch Ant Payment, Ant Bank, and the Marching Ant Fund, then delegated company decisions to her management team while she took a vacation.
• Zhao Min visited Xiao Yu and Xiao Wushuang, brought Xiao Wushuang new clothes, and watched her begin learning piano.
• Zhao Min and Xiao Yu agreed to spend time together before training for space travel, with Xiao Yu planning for Xiao Wushuang’s grandparents to care for her.
• Xiao Wushuang played the piano for Zhao Min and Xiao Yu, surprising them by performing a complete piece after just one lesson.

Chen Mo prepared to build a larger spacecraft while planning a quieter period before a future moon landing. On the Moon’s far side, one of his scout robots discovered a suspected lava tunnel and received permission to investigate.

• Chen Mo finished reviewing the spacecraft design and ordered Mo Nv to print its Ion Engines first.
• Chen Mo decided to keep a lower profile during the coming leadership transitions and take Zhao Min and Xiao Yu into space before preparing for a moon landing.
• Wushuang made dumplings with her family, talked with Zhao Min about learning to earn money, and excitedly looked forward to a family trip to the amusement park.
• An Intelligent Robot scout on the Moon’s far side found a pit suspected to be a lava tunnel and requested permission to investigate.
• Jianmu-1 relayed Mo Nv’s approval, and the scout entered the pit.

Xiao Man livestreamed Flying Ant Aerospace’s first space tourism trip from the Sky Ant while Chen Mo prepared to join Xiao Yu and Zhao Min on a future trip. Meanwhile, Murakami Shisui’s team completed a new Artificial Intelligence called Amaterasu, which learned a vast store of knowledge and quickly designed a sedan.

• Xiao Man revealed on her livestream that she was in space with Prince Hamuka, Lin Yunsheng, Francois Audoran, and safety officer Zhang Dong aboard Flying Ant Aerospace’s Sky Ant.
• Xiao Man showed viewers the Sky Ant’s cabins, robots, supplies, and observation room as she admired the view of the stars.
• Chen Mo arranged physical examinations and upcoming space-tourist training for Xiao Yu and Zhao Min, and planned to train with them.
• Murakami Shisui and his team activated Amaterasu at a secret research base and loaded it with 200 TB of reference materials without connecting it to the internet.
• Amaterasu learned the materials in two minutes and designed a complete sedan blueprint in under five seconds, prompting Murakami Shisui to order further learning.

Russian and American intelligence agencies learned that the Island Nation's Artificial Intelligence research had made a major breakthrough and ordered efforts to obtain its program or recruit its researchers. Meanwhile, Chen Mo confirmed that a lunar crater contained a suitable lava tunnel for a base and prepared further exploration.

• Lieov told the Russian president that an undercover agent had confirmed the Island Nation's Artificial Intelligence breakthrough, and the president ordered him to obtain the program or recruit the team.
• Tom received similar intelligence and instructed his assistant to retrieve the Island Nation's Artificial Intelligence source code without being discovered if possible.
• A small Ant Army Group robot emerged from a lunar crater and transmitted data confirming a vast lava tunnel suitable for a Lunar Base.
• Chen Mo reviewed Mo Nv's tunnel data and ordered her to design and save an underground base plan.
• Chen Mo ordered twenty small robots sent to the Moon to survey the tunnel system and learned that Xiao Yu and Zhao Min would begin neutral-buoyancy training that afternoon.

Xiao Yu and Zhao Min began neutral-buoyancy training under Chen Mo while foreign agents plotted to steal the Island Nation’s newly developed Artificial Intelligence. The espionage plans stalled when Russian agents suspected another group was targeting the research base.

• Chen Mo joined Xiao Yu and Zhao Min at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory and prepared to train them in weightlessness simulation.
• William Haggerty received Washington’s order to obtain the Island Nation’s Artificial Intelligence program and tasked Samurai with finding a way past its five-key security system.
• Bass met with Longze Xue, a Russian agent who had copied Yamamoto Saki’s key and reported progress in luring Cang Jie and Ono Zhi.
• Longze Xue told Bass that a beautiful female researcher had recently grown close to Yamamoto Saki, raising suspicions that another group was targeting the base.
• Bass ordered Longze Xue to investigate the researcher and pause their plan until they knew who else was involved.

Chen Mo obtained engineering robot and Helium-3 extraction designs for the Lunar Base project, then reviewed survey data showing that the lunar tunnels met construction requirements. Mo Nv expressed her wish to become human, and Chen Mo told her he would work toward giving her human emotions and feelings.

• Wushuang asked Xiao Yu when she and Zhao Min would return, and Xiao Yu comforted her and promised Chen Mo would take her to space when she grew up.
• Chen Mo accessed the Sci-Tech Library and obtained blueprints for engineering robots and equipment to extract Helium-3.
• Mo Nv asked Chen Mo whether she looked good and whether he wanted her to become human; she said she did, and he promised to work toward giving her complete human emotions and feelings.
• Mo Nv displayed survey data showing that the lunar tunnel system stretched 139 kilometers, with a 53-kilometer main tunnel reaching 274 meters deep.
• Chen Mo decided to begin construction in the tunnels near the entrance and told Mo Nv to monitor Island Nation's Artificial Intelligence and copy its code if it connected to the internet.