Chapter Summaries

After selling controlled nuclear fusion technology to the United States, Xia Country rejected Sakura Country’s request because it refused to acknowledge its history. Senator Li Chief then ordered the newly acquired mineral resources smelted and stored until Lü Yongchang gave further instructions.

• Albert called Senator Li Chief and, after negotiations, the United States purchased the complete set of controlled nuclear fusion technology.
• Xia Country’s announcement of the sale to the United States sparked surprise and discussion around the world.
• Sakura Country’s prime minister pleaded to buy the technology, but Senator Li Chief refused and had him escorted out.
• The rejection provoked heated debate on Weibo, while Senator Li Chief and Finance Minister He Zhiye celebrated Xia Country’s stronger position and growing mineral reserves.
• Senator Li Chief ordered the ores smelted and stored until Lü Yongchang provided instructions on how to use them.

Hong Qiming told the Head Councillor that Fang Xu’s small fusion reactor had succeeded and Professor Lü had developed a first-generation Hall Thruster. As the reactor was transported under military escort, Xia Country News revealed its identity while denying online rumors, and Lü Yongchang’s team prepared the thruster for testing.

• Hong Qiming informed the Head Councillor that Fang Xu’s small fusion reactor had succeeded and Professor Lü had developed the first-generation Hall Thruster.
• Hong Qiming said the military was transporting the reactor to the aerospace research institute, where Lü was expected to begin testing within two hours.
• A driver saw a military convoy escorting a black cylinder along a closed expressway and photographed it, then assumed it was a new weapon.
• Xia Country News refuted rumors that the convoy carried military supplies and identified the cylinder as a prototype small fusion reactor.
• Lü Yongchang, Cao Liangcai, and a team of engineers completed an early version of the first-generation Hall Thruster after resolving its power and loss problems.

Lü Yongchang and the researchers successfully tested a fusion-powered Hall propulsion unit, which produced 100 kN of thrust. He told Hong Qiming that the first aerospace plane would use ten units.

• Lü Yongchang ordered the researchers to start the Hall propulsion unit test after confirming the systems were ready.
• Cao Liangcai activated the unit, and its thrust climbed to 100 kN as a blue plasma plume fired.
• Lü Yongchang stopped the test when the plume nearly burned through the concrete barrier, and Cao Liangcai learned he had approved the barrier material himself.
• Hong Qiming arrived after the test and learned that one Hall propulsion unit produced about ten tonnes of thrust.
• Lü Yongchang told Hong Qiming that the first aerospace plane would carry ten Hall propulsion units.

Lü Yongchang expanded the first-generation Aerospace Plane’s design so it could travel to the moon, then explained why its pilots needed both atmospheric flying skills and spaceflight experience. With the craft expected to be ready soon, he demanded that astronaut-pilots complete their air force training within one month.

• Lü Yongchang told Hong Qiming and Cao Liangcai that doubling the Hall Thruster Units would let the Aerospace Plane fly from Earth to the moon and make two round trips.
• Hong Qiming reported the plan to Senator Li, who ordered him to fully support Lü Yongchang’s research.
• Lü Yongchang asked Hong Qiming to find three pilots, but rejected ordinary air force pilots and astronauts as candidates because the craft required both atmospheric and spaceflight experience.
• Hong Qiming proposed training astronauts at an air force base, estimating that it would take six months to a year.
• Lü Yongchang set a one-month training limit, saying Xia Country’s first Aerospace Plane would be ready by then.

Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi learned that Xia Country had canceled its space station project, ending the crew’s hopes of returning to space. They were summoned to meet Professor Lü Yongchang, the new director of Xia Country’s Space Administration, leaving them uncertain about why he had come.

• Bai Yixuan heard a summons for himself, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi, and wondered whether the space station project had advanced.
• Xia Wanyi told Bai Yixuan and Hong Fan that she planned to drop out because Xia Country’s space station project had officially been canceled by order of the Head Councillor.
• Bai Yixuan struck a wall in frustration, while Hong Fan and Xia Wanyi wondered what would happen to them and their years of preparation.
• Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi went to the lobby and found Minister Hong Qiming with Professor Lü Yongchang.
• Hong Qiming introduced Lü Yongchang as the first director of Xia Country’s Space Administration and identified the three as former reserve crew members who had flown three space missions.

After learning that Xia Country had canceled its space station project, Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi accepted Lü Yongchang’s invitation to join development of the country’s first Aerospace Plane and train as pilots. In the United States, William Blair received new intelligence from agents in Xia Country and turned pale as he read it.

• Hong Qiming told Lü Yongchang and the three astronauts that the Head Councillor had ordered the space station project halted, and Lü explained that Xia Country needed to focus on more valuable endeavors.
• Xia Wanyi challenged Lü about summoning them if space exploration was no longer a priority, and Lü revealed a new project that could send Xia Country’s first astronauts to the Moon.
• Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi agreed to join the Aerospace Plane project and undergo a month of intensive training at an air force pilot training base.
• A uniformed man brought William Blair the latest intelligence from agents in Xia Country, and Blair hurriedly read the document until his face turned pale.

William Blair told President Albert that Xia Country had miniaturized controlled nuclear fusion and was developing an Electric Propulsion System after canceling the Long March 10 project. Albert summoned NASA director Morton, who dismissed electric propulsion as useless.

• William Blair rushed to the White House with intelligence but had to wait until Albert finished his nap.
• Albert learned that Xia Country had mastered miniaturized controlled nuclear fusion and regretted buying the technology from Senator Li.
• William told Albert that Xia Country was developing an Electric Propulsion System and had canceled its Long March 10 Heavy-Lift Launch Vehicle project.
• Albert summoned NASA director Morton and Anthony to explain the propulsion system.
• Morton told Albert that the Electric Propulsion System was garbage and that Xia Country would achieve nothing with it.

Albert learned that Area 51 secretly housed the United States’ High-End Technology Reserve Program and authorized its activation after hearing about the Saturn VI rockets. The story left the United States preparing to deploy its hidden aerospace technology in response to Xia Country.

• Morton explained that NASA’s Hall thruster research produced little thrust, and Albert decided not to focus on Xia Country’s announcements about it.
• Albert asked about the Pathfinder Program and grew angry when Morton said preparations had only begun.
• Anthony asked Morton to activate a hidden project, then requested Albert’s authorization for the Area 51 Project.
• Morton revealed that Area 51 was the central facility of a secret technology reserve program funded with roughly ten percent of military spending for fifty years.
• Anthony and Morton told Albert that Area 51 held three Saturn VI launch vehicles developed for Mars.
• Albert ordered an executive order prepared to activate the Area 51 Program.

After completing a month of intense flight training, Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi arrived to train on Xia Country’s newly completed aerospace plane, Black Lady One. Lü Yongchang welcomed the three pilots, whose skills would determine whether the aircraft could take flight.

• Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi finished a month of grueling flight training at an Air Force base and boarded a helicopter for the research institute.
• Lü Yongchang admired the completed black aerospace plane, which he named Black Lady One.
• Cao Liangcai doubted that Xia Country would complete the Heavenly Court Project, so he and Lü Yongchang bet on whether it would happen within fifteen years.
• A researcher told Lü Yongchang that the three aerospace plane pilots had arrived, and Lü Yongchang went to welcome them.

Lü Yongchang showed the three astronauts Black Lady One and its cockpit, promising to seek approval for a test flight if they mastered the simulator. After they left to train, Cao Liangcai warned Lü that the Head Councillor would never let someone as important as him fly into space, leaving Lü quietly pondering his words.

• Lü Yongchang met Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi after their month of training and encouraged them not to give up on becoming astronauts.
• Lü Yongchang showed the three pilots Black Lady One, whose spacecraft hull and cockpit impressed them.
• Bai Yixuan asked when they could fly, and Lü Yongchang said he would apply for a test flight if they mastered the simulator overnight.
• After the astronauts went to train, Lü Yongchang admitted to Cao Liangcai that he envied their chance to fly into space.
• Cao Liangcai told Lü Yongchang that the Head Councillor would not let him go into space, and Lü silently considered the warning.

After Black Lady One’s pilots completed their training, Xia Country announced the aerospace plane’s maiden test flight and broadcast it live. The aircraft appeared on camera, and at the White House Albert confronted Morton about its Hall Thrusters.

• Lü Yongchang reviewed the three astronauts’ training reports and learned they had completed the month-long program in fifteen days.
• Cao Liangcai told the Head Councillor that Black Lady One and its pilots were ready, and the Head Councillor scheduled a livestreamed test flight for three days later.
• Xia Country announced the test flight, prompting excitement at home and ridicule abroad.
• Zhao Zijie watched the Douyu livestream as Black Lady One appeared on the runway and host Yiyi began introducing it.
• Albert watched the livestream and demanded that Morton explain how Black Lady One could use Hall Thrusters in the atmosphere.

As Black Lady One prepared for its first flight, the team noticed that Professor Lü was absent from command, while officials concluded Xia Country’s fusion-powered Hall Thruster had put them behind in the space race. The chapter ended with a researcher reporting that Professor Lü had gone missing.

• Morton called Professor Austin, who confirmed that current generators could not power a fifty-ton Hall Thruster, and Albert resolved to rely on the Pathfinder Program to reach Mars first.
• Bai Yixuan, Hong Fan, and Xia Wanyi prepared to fly Black Lady One and began warming up its small fusion reactor.
• Bai Yixuan and Hong Fan wondered why Professor Lü was not commanding the flight.
• Cao Liangcai ordered the ground crew to recheck the aircraft and sent a researcher to find Professor Lü.
• The researcher returned and told Cao Liangcai that Professor Lü was missing.

Black Lady One took off on its test flight, with Professor Lü Yongchang secretly aboard and the livestream audience watching its spectacular ascent. As the aircraft climbed toward geostationary orbit, an alarm reported that its speed had dropped and its flight path had deviated.

• Cao Liangcai learned that Professor Lü Yongchang was missing, then took command of Black Lady One's test flight.
• Lü Yongchang secretly boarded Black Lady One and strapped himself into a passenger seat behind the pilots.
• Bai Yixuan launched Black Lady One using its Hall Thrusters as viewers watched the livestream.
• The livestream host announced that Black Lady One was headed for geostationary orbit, thirty-six thousand kilometers above Earth.
• Black Lady One climbed steeply through the sky and produced a sonic boom cloud.
• An alarm told Cao Liangcai that Black Lady One's speed had dropped sharply and its flight path had deviated.

Lü Yongchang secretly boarded Black Lady One’s maiden test flight and nearly fainted when its acceleration surged. After Cao Liangcai learned he was aboard, Lü insisted on continuing into space for his research, and Cao reluctantly let the flight proceed while ordering the pilots to keep him safe.

• Lü Yongchang’s warning over the radio startled the three pilots, and Bai Yixuan slowed and steadied Black Lady One.
• Hong Fan and Xia Wanyi reprimanded Lü for secretly boarding the aircraft, and he explained that he wanted to see space for his research.
• Bai Yixuan told Cao Liangcai that Professor Lü was aboard Black Lady One, and Cao angrily demanded to speak with him.
• Lü refused to return to the ground, explaining that he wanted to lead Xia Country into the cosmos and experience space himself.
• Cao Liangcai reluctantly allowed the flight to continue and ordered Bai Yixuan to bring Lü back safely.

Lü Yongchang rode aboard the Black Lady One as Bai Yixuan and the crew accelerated toward Geostationary Orbit, despite concerns about the professor’s safety. After five hours, they reached orbit, where Lü gazed at the stars and the crew reported their arrival to ground control.

• Bai Yixuan ordered the crew to secure Lü Yongchang and said they would protect him, but Lü revealed he had secretly brought his own escape gear.
• Bai Yixuan ran the Black Lady One’s systems checks and tilted the craft upward to accelerate, while Xia Wanyi worried about Lü’s ability to endure the force.
• The Black Lady One took five hours to climb to Geostationary Orbit, and Lü experienced weightlessness as the stars came into view.
• Bai Yixuan announced that the Black Lady One had reached Geostationary Orbit and asked ground control for instructions.

Senator Li and Hong Qiming learned that Lü Yongchang had secretly boarded Black Lady One for its test flight and rushed to the aerospace research institute. After confirming the flight was safe, Lü proposed accelerating Xia Country’s space program by launching the Moon Palace Project, and Senator Li agreed to discuss it after he landed.

• Senator Li received Cao Liangcai’s call and learned that Lü Yongchang had gone up aboard Black Lady One.
• Senator Li summoned Hong Qiming, and they hurried to the aerospace research institute to check on Lü and the test flight.
• Bai Yixuan reported that Black Lady One was operating normally and that Lü was in good condition.
• Senator Li reprimanded Lü over the radio for risking his life, and Lü explained that seeing space had inspired his next research project.
• Lü proposed beginning the Moon Palace Project and building an automated lunar mining facility, and Senator Li said they would discuss it after Lü landed.
• Cao Liangcai cleared Bai Yixuan to return and told him to stay safe.

In the White House, Albert and his advisers tracked Black Lady One as its speed and altitude surpassed anything the United States could counter. Albert concluded that the United States had lost air superiority to Xia Country and ordered the Pathfinder Program accelerated in hopes of claiming Mars first.

• Morton ordered NASA surveillance satellites to track Black Lady One and obtained its flight data for Albert.
• Anthony discovered that Black Lady One had reached Mach 5, beyond the speed of U.S. fighters and most air-to-air missiles.
• Black Lady One accelerated into low Earth orbit and reached 36,000 kilometers in altitude and Mach 30.
• Anthony told Albert that no country on Earth could withstand an attack from Black Lady One and that the United States had lost air superiority to Xia Country.
• Albert ordered the Pathfinder Program pushed forward at any cost, suspended unnecessary domestic spending, and directed funding toward scientific research.

After learning that the United States had increased NASA’s funding tenfold, Lü Yongchang argued that Xia Country should accelerate its plans and restart the Biosphere 2 Project. Three days later, Sandao Kou University prepared to host a major conference as student Su Yutong wondered when she might see Lü Yongchang again.

• Senator Li showed Lü Yongchang the news that the United States had raised NASA’s annual funding to five hundred billion dollars.
• Lü Yongchang told Senator Li that the United States had been distracted by Xia Country’s ambitious space projects and urged Xia Country to restart the Biosphere 2 Project.
• Three days later, a banner at Sandao Kou University announced a conference for academicians and professors, drawing curious students.
• Su Yutong and Chen Yun discussed Lü Yongchang’s achievements and wondered where he had gone since the nuclear fusion breakthrough.
• Su Yutong resolved to keep working hard so that she might see Lü Yongchang again someday.

Su Yutong spotted Lü Yongchang at Sandao Kou University and hurried to Professor Guan Hualiang’s office, where she found him with Academician Cao Liangcai. After Guan praised her research potential, Cao invited her to visit the lab, leaving her response unknown.

• Su Yutong and Chen Yun saw Academician Cao Liangcai enter the cafeteria, then Su Yutong recognized Lü Yongchang walking with him and rushed after them.
• Su Yutong failed to catch up with Lü Yongchang and went to Professor Guan Hualiang’s office instead.
• Su Yutong arrived to find Lü Yongchang and Cao Liangcai sitting with Guan, and Lü confirmed that he already knew her.
• Guan introduced Su Yutong as his third-year student and praised her independent study and research work.
• Cao Liangcai noticed Su Yutong’s attention to Lü Yongchang and invited her to come to the lab to broaden her horizons.

Cao Liangcai persuaded Guan Hualiang to move Su Yutong into Lü Yongchang’s laboratory, claiming it would keep her close to him and protect Lü from foreign schemes. Lü left with his university certificates and learned Su would become part of his lab, though he pushed aside his thoughts about their connection to prepare for a meeting.

• Cao Liangcai tried to recruit Su Yutong, but she declined, and he pulled Guan Hualiang out of the office to speak privately.
• Lü Yongchang reassured Su Yutong that Guan and Cao were friends, and she awkwardly thanked Lü for helping her months earlier.
• Cao told Guan that Su had feelings for Lü and argued that placing her in Lü’s lab would keep foreign countries from using a honey trap against him.
• Guan returned and appointed Su as an intern at the Xia Country First Laboratory, which Lü led.
• Lü received his undergraduate diploma and a lifetime honorary professorship from Sandao Kou University, then prepared to attend a meeting with Cao.