Warp Drive Engine

Inside Medium Orbital Starport No. 27.

Lin Fan looked at the tens of thousands of officers and soldiers before him, their expressions somewhat unfriendly, smiled, and continued speaking.

"Are you wondering how someone like me became a colonel at just nineteen, and even the commander of a special task force fleet?"

"Are you wondering whether I'm some young master from a powerful family here to pad my résumé?"

"Are you also wondering what gives someone like me the right to command you?"

Still smiling, Lin Fan fired off those three questions and swept his gaze across all the officers and soldiers.

"Then let me announce the sole rule of the 101st Task Force Fleet from this day forward: whoever defeats me in a fleet simulation battle will become the new Fleet Commander."

The tens of thousands of officers and soldiers instantly erupted at Lin Fan's words. What fleet commander would ever do something like that?

Had they really misunderstood him? Was this absurdly young colonel actually genuinely capable?

Wait, Lin Fan... why did that name sound so familiar?

Quite a few among the officers and soldiers came to their senses at that moment. The more they thought about it, the more familiar the name Lin Fan seemed, as though they had heard it somewhere before.

Ah, they remembered. Could he be that Lin Fan?

A major standing in the front row suddenly recalled something, and a flash of excitement appeared in his eyes.

"Report!"

"Speak!"

"May I ask whether the commander conducted a simulation battle with Wood Scott at Federal Fleet Headquarters last year?"

"Yes, I did conduct a simulation battle with Wood Scott last year!"

It really was him. After receiving Lin Fan's answer, the questioning major became even more excited.

The others also realized why the name Lin Fan had sounded so familiar.

Wasn't he the Lin Fan who had annihilated Wood Scott last year while only suffering minor damage to a single warship? The prodigy hailed as the Interstellar Military Academy's once-in-a-millennium genius.

No wonder he had already become a colonel at nineteen, and was even commanding a special task force fleet.

Everything made sense now. How could Commander Liang's forces possibly have something as ridiculous as some young master coming here to gild his résumé? Quite a few people began smugly congratulating themselves in their hearts.

"Does anyone else have any questions?"

"Report!"

"Speak!"

"I heard that the Artificial Gravity Generator we are currently using was also designed by the commander. Is that true?"

"That's right. I did design it!"

Whoosh. This time, everyone was even more shocked than before. After all, most officers and soldiers did not care about technical matters, much less who had designed what. Only some with an interest in technology would look into such things.

Therefore, the overwhelming majority had not known that Lin Fan had designed the Artificial Gravity Generator. Learning it so suddenly now left them deeply stunned.

What was this? He was not only a prodigy at fleet command, but also a prodigy in scientific research?

In an instant, the hostility vanished from everyone's faces, replaced by fervor and admiration.

With such a prodigious commander, it felt as though their futures were much more secure.

"If no one else has any questions, that will be all for today! Everyone, return to your posts. Deputy Liang will convey the specific orders afterward."

"Yes!"

"Deputy Liang, take me to meet the research team Commander Liang arranged."

"Understood!"

Her expression remained completely unchanged. After responding, she turned and left without any hesitation.

Lin Fan shook his head. He had a long way to go, and immediately followed her.

Not long afterward, the two arrived inside a massive building at the center of the starport. Several white-haired elders were directing more than a hundred people as they unsealed and calibrated various pieces of equipment.

Liang Xue led Lin Fan before an elderly man in a white lab coat who appeared to be around seventy years old.

"Elder Bai, this is the base commander, Colonel Lin Fan."

"Oh? You're the Lin Fan that brat Liang Xingchen told me about? The designer of the Artificial Gravity Generator? I am Bai Zixuan."

"Hello, Elder Bai. I'll be relying on you all from now on."

"Don't say that. I made an agreement with that brat Liang Xingchen: if you can't bring me any surprises, I'll turn around and leave!"

"Uh..."

Lin Fan found it strange. Why did all the people Liang Xingchen sent him have such rotten tempers? Fine, he would just assume that capable people all had eccentric personalities.

"Of course. Elder Bai, I have a new design here. I have already prepared all the relevant technology, but as you know, I'm a fleet commander and don't have time for the subsequent manufacturing, testing, and other work. So I'll have to trouble you with it!"

"Hm? Let me see it first. We'll talk after I know what technology it is!"

"Here. I believe this will give you more than enough of a surprise!"

Lin Fan reached into his pocket with his right hand, took out a storage card, and handed it to Bai Zixuan.

He had prepared it long ago, and all the technical materials were stored within it.

After taking the storage card, Bai Zixuan raised his right arm and inserted it into the optical computer worn on his right wrist, immediately reading the information inside.

Looking at the various neatly categorized document folders, especially their names, Bai Zixuan froze.

Warp Drive Engine design blueprints, detailed explanation of Space Folding Technology, related material formulas and recipes.

Bai Zixuan admitted that those names had shocked him. He immediately opened the Warp Drive Engine design blueprints for inspection and enlarged them through holographic projection.

A few minutes later, Bai Zixuan suddenly took a large step forward, arrived in front of Lin Fan, and grabbed Lin Fan's clothes with both hands.

"Uh, Elder Bai, please calm down."

"Calm down my ass! Brat Lin Fan, do you know what you've developed?"

"Of course I do!"

"You make it sound so casual. This alone is enough to make you the Federation's greatest scientist!"

Bai Zixuan was not exaggerating at all. What was a Warp Drive Engine? It was something that would allow the Federation's fleets to travel rapidly through the universe without relying on the Star Path. Distances between Star Systems would no longer be a problem.

With this, setting everything else aside, the Federal Fleet would at least gain a decisive advantage in its wars against the Oakes Empire.

For the first time, Liang Xue's expression changed. Who was Bai Zixuan? He was a formidable figure who did not even give her father, Liang Xingchen, any face.

Yet now, right before her, he was saying so excitedly that Lin Fan would become the Federation's greatest scientist?

What kind of information had this guy shown Bai Zixuan?

As Liang Xue looked at Lin Fan, a faint spark of curiosity suddenly arose in her heart.

"Hey, Liang Xingchen?"

Bai Zixuan had already contacted Liang Xingchen from the side.

"Elder Bai, what is it?"

"You've got some nerve asking! Immediately assign more personnel to me. I need at least ten times the manpower I currently have."

"Did something happen?"

"You've got some nerve asking what happened? That brat Lin Fan has caused far too much trouble. I can't handle it with only this hundred or so people!"

"Lin Fan caused huge trouble?"