Punch Through This Universe

4, Punch Through This Universe

A soothing melody woke Tang Xiao from his sleep. He opened his eyes, looked at the unchanged surroundings, and scratched his head. It seemed he could not go back.

"Administrator, I apologize for disturbing you, but there is a very important matter that requires your decision." Qi Jian's voice came from the communicator beside him.

Tang Xiao ignored him. He simply got out of bed, went to the bathroom, had the Mainframe set the water to an icy temperature again, and vigorously washed his face.

Bracing both hands against the sink, he raised his head and looked at his slightly pale face from the cold, his teeth clenched tight. After a long while, he suddenly straightened up, got dressed, and said, "Mainframe! Lead the way to the bridge!"

"Administrator, I apologize for disturbing you." When Tang Xiao arrived at the bridge command center, Qi Jian respectfully saluted him.

"Go on."

"The engineering teams have established two extraction stations near the gas giant. While you were resting, they already sent back two shiploads of helium-3 and refined it. We can now launch more spacecraft, especially transport ships that need to travel between Dawn Planet and the mothership," Qi Jian said.

"Continue."

"Then... the reconnaissance teams have sent back their reports. They have preliminarily selected seventeen landing sites, and we can choose one of them for the landing." Qi Jian's voice trembled slightly as he spoke, and he brought up an interface for Tang Xiao.

"Landing sites? Was there really a need to come to me specifically for this?" Tang Xiao found it strange.

Qi Jian replied solemnly, "Administrator, this first colony will very likely become our capital in the future. I... I do not dare make the decision on my own..."

Tang Xiao nodded. He raised a finger, about to tap the screen, but then he saw the complicated look in Qi Jian's eyes.

There was anticipation, pride, and a trace of unease in that gaze. Qi Jian clenched his fists, which trembled slightly, doing his utmost to restrain his excitement. It was not just him; everyone else on the bridge was the same.

Tang Xiao's heart tightened slightly. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Six hundred thousand people... perhaps another five billion... With the lightest point of his finger, he would decide their starting point.

He looked back at the screen. This time, he carefully compared the landing sites, and the knowledge that had been force-fed into his mind poured forth like floodwaters released from a dam.

Combining that knowledge with what he had learned, he chose an area backed by mountains, beside water, and bordered by vast grasslands. Pointing at it, he said to Qi Jian, "Here. The latitude is moderate, and there are water sources nearby. There is also a hilly area about a hundred meters above sea level that can serve as a defensive high point. Send twenty Marines to land first. Once they establish a defensive perimeter, immediately begin building the residential area."

"Yes! Administrator! This will be our first colony! Our first step into this universe!!" Qi Jian was somewhat excited as he immediately issued the work assignments.

Once the landing site was confirmed, work in every area began at once. The people in the cryosleep pods were all experts in their respective fields, and the clerks also began carrying out their duties. Tang Xiao did not need to personally direct every detail.

Soon, a transport ship carrying twenty Marines and fifty construction workers took off from the mothership and landed on Dawn Star Planet. The Marines spread out into the surrounding area, drove away wild animals, and deployed positioning beacons, while the construction workers began preparing their mechanized engineering exoskeletons.

"The beacon signal is normal, Administrator. We can have the mothership enter synchronous orbit now," Qi Jian said after confirming the signal transmitted by the beacon.

Tang Xiao nodded and said to the operators at the bridge consoles, "Enter synchronous orbit around Dawn Star Planet. Keep the mothership directly above the beacon at all times. Mainframe, assist them."

Understood.

The Kushan Mothership, over 41,300 meters tall, started its engines once more. Its incomparably powerful thrust propelled the colossal vessel of more than 370 billion tons forward, continuously descending into Dawn Star Planet's outer gravitational field before matching the planet's rotational speed.

As it approached Dawn Star Planet's orbit, the mothership's enormous mass even triggered several magnitude 3 to 5 earthquakes and groundwater eruptions across the planet's surface.

After entering its designated orbit, the mothership needed only minimal power to maintain flight under the effects of the planet's rotational centrifugal force and inertia. Maintaining synchronized movement with the ground beacon, a hatch in the center of the mothership opened, and an orbital drop pod launched outward.

As the disposable orbital drop pod passed through the atmosphere, friction ignited the air around it. From the ground, it looked like a meteor falling toward the surface. Just before landing, the pod's reverse engines activated, blasting roaring flames toward the ground and helping it land steadily.

The construction workers, who had long been standing ready nearby, immediately went over and opened the drop pod. They assembled the modular housing made from ultralight materials inside it, while the pod's shell itself became the building's exterior walls. In less than twenty minutes, a small two-story building had been erected.

The mothership continued airdropping structures at a rate of one every ten minutes: housing, solar and wind power facilities, water purification systems, and more.

Tang Xiao also began selecting farmers and maintenance workers from among the six hundred thousand residents in cryogenic hibernation, waking them and sending them aboard transport ships to land on Dawn Star Planet. He chose a man named Graham from among them and appointed him village chief. For now, this little colony of fewer than a hundred people truly was just a small village.

Once things got started, everything proceeded at a steady and orderly pace. Tang Xiao stretched and rose to his feet. Watching everyone at work, he still felt somewhat heavyhearted.

Looking through the porthole on the other side at the vast universe, Tang Xiao unconsciously walked over. Seeing the stars, countless light-years away, he thought again of that inexplicable dream that had likely brought him here. He touched the cold porthole as though he were touching those distant stars, and a flame gradually began to burn within his heart.

Returning to his seat, Tang Xiao instructed, "Mainframe, pull up the information I need. I have many things to do."

Understood, Administrator.

He had begun to resign himself to his fate, and he vaguely sensed that he truly might never be able to return. If that was the case, then if he kept drifting along in confusion, perhaps one day, when the Star Destroyers descended, his Homeworld would still have nothing.

Moreover, after seeing the fervent, expectant looks in Qi Jian and the others' eyes, Tang Xiao understood that he could not let them down. And... if this mothership truly was the reward bestowed by that so-called fate... then...

Tang Xiao sat back in the bridge's command chair and opened the colonial plan entries to review them. He needed to understand what difficulties he would face, how he should solve them, and most importantly, how to establish a colony.

When the environment was unknown, rapid development and the establishment of a stable power base were always the best choice.

Suppressing the confusion and unease in his heart, Tang Xiao opened an entry titled "Interstellar Colony Construction Guide" and began reading through the files within.

His gaze gradually grew more fervent!

This is mine... all of it is mine! Countless technologies! Countless talents! With such a foundation, I should...

That's right...

I should punch through this universe!!

Bonus Chapter Illustration 1: "Homeworld" Mothership