Academician Xiao and Academician Zeng named this type of robot a Superintelligent Robot. Thousands of Superintelligent Robot have already been deployed on production lines, and factories are continuously replicating and invading the mechanical bodies' consciousness. All of this is top secret. Superintelligent Robot are currently being used as ordinary robots and have not been released for independent development.
If these robots are deployed to planets, they can be quickly developed into production lines and fleets. Even with just one Superintelligent Robot on a planet, a fleet can still be built; it's just a matter of time. However, the secret of the Superintelligent Robot must never be revealed to a second civilization. Otherwise, humanity will face punishment from the Great Star Region Civilization at best, and extermination at worst.
Last time, a defense system that didn't even exist attracted the siege of humanity by the Small Star Sector Civilization. Now, Superintelligent Robot are almost reaching the terrifying level of Mechanical Civilization, and the consequences will be extremely serious.
To other civilizations, humanity has been frantically building robots for the past two thousand years. Humanity's robots have spread across tens of thousands of stars, yet the momentum shows no signs of stopping. Newly created robots are immediately put into the work of building more robots. However, this is not surprising. After the insect plague, all civilizations are focused on development, and robots are an indispensable part of development. Therefore, humanity's robot production is not so conspicuous; it's just that we have more than other civilizations.
Of the robots manufactured, only a portion are Superintelligent Robot. Now that the fleet's operations are so extensive, many areas require human intervention. With these Superintelligent Robot, less important tasks can be handled by them, and the saved manpower can be used to open up more production lines.
Hu Yu decided to quadruple the production capacity of warships within 5,000 years, reaching an annual output of 30 million. The fleet population is already 800 billion, and will soon break the trillion mark. There is already the capacity to expand the production line and manufacture more fleets. The people also need more fleets to protect their safety.
If the fleet reaches the stage of Great Star Region Civilization and has the ability to protect itself, then we can gradually release the Superintelligent Robot. At that time, we will have a certain degree of confidence in fighting against Insect Race and the Mechanical Civilization. However, quantity alone is not enough; the corresponding technology must also keep up.
In the year 53010 AD, on this day, Hu Yu received a strange signal from the Matter River. After multiple translations, the signal contained only two words: Wen Dao (文刀).
Hu Yu immediately realized that this was a signal sent by Academician Liu, who was lost in the Matter River. Judging from the transmission of this signal, Academician Liu was extremely cautious, even splitting his own surname. Moreover, the signal was so brief and strange that no other civilization, except humankind, could decipher it even if it were intercepted.
Academician Liu's actions were certainly not simply out of fear that the insect swarm would disrupt the four-dimensional channel; there might have been a more serious situation that required such secrecy. Hu Yu, recognizing the seriousness of the situation, did not respond with any signals or make any indication, but instead pretended to know nothing, that it was just a interference signal. It wasn't until two years later that Hu Yu finally found Academician Zeng.
"Academician, it's a matter of Basic Energy—?"
"You know? The sky will fall, there's no other way."
"Okay, we have a signal now. What should we do?"
"It's time to take care of Li Shun's matter."
But our strength is still insufficient.
"It will be enough soon. Didn't you ask Academician Zhou to suspend four-dimensional positioning and switch to researching dimensional attacks? Now Academician Zhou's dimensional weapon should be completed in no time. Then we can force our way in."
"Yes, as long as we succeed, the loss of the fleet is worthwhile."
The two ended their brief conversation, and Hu Yu turned and left. Academician Liu had been in the Matter River for a very long time, Hu Yu hoped that he could hold on for a while longer and wait for the fleet to come to his rescue.
Although Hu Yu still didn't know why Academician Zeng and Academician Liu were so cautious, Academician Zeng didn't even dare to mention it now, and in the thousands of years since Academician Zeng returned, he had never told Hu Yu that Academician Liu hadn't gotten lost. Hu Yu knew that the situation with Academician Liu must be related to the safety of all mankind.
The four-dimensional rendezvous would be too drastic. Academician Liu is so cautious about even information that he definitely doesn't want the fleet to bring him back using four-dimensional rendezvous. The only way to bring Academician Liu back is for the fleet to force its way into the Insect Zone and secretly bring Academician Liu back under the pretext of attacking Li Shun. Besides, Li Shun Hu Yu have long wanted to teach them a lesson.
In the Matter River.
" Academician Liu, should we send another message? It's been over two years, and the general hasn't made a move at all," Chen Peng said.
"No need. The fact that the general hasn't made a move means he's trying to find a solution. Fourth-dimensional guidance is impossible now. The only way to save us is to force our way through the Insect Zone. The general must be working on a plan, so don't worry."
"Academician, you're not in a hurry at all now. You leisurely invite me to drink tea and play chess every day. I'm getting bored to death."
"Is there anything wrong with this place? It's quiet, comfortable, and peaceful. Once we return to the three-dimensional universe, we'll never have such good days again."
I'd rather be busy.
"It's really tough on you guys. I've gotten used to loneliness and silence. You're soldiers, it's a bit inhumane to let you have so much free time, haha. You're a perfectly good fleet admiral, and now you're just growing vegetables and cooking. When we get back to the fleet, I'll definitely sing your praises about your culinary skills."
"No, no, no! How can I save face in front of Old Gao and Yang Fan Zhuge Xiong then? Especially Zhuge Xiong, he'll definitely laugh at me for hundreds of millions of years. Academician, you have to design an epic battle for me, showing how I lead my meager fleet of tens of thousands of warships to defeat a powerful enemy tens of thousands of times larger than ours in the Matter River. That way, I'll have more face."
"Haha, I couldn't make this up either. It's better to tell the truth. There's nothing shameful about being a good cook; it's all thanks to your wife's excellent training."
"Sigh, don't even mention Madam. I haven't seen her for tens of thousands of years. I'll be bracing for her wrath when I get back."
"Don't worry, your sister-in-law is kind and understanding; she'll definitely understand."
Hu Yu has pushed the fleet's production rate to its limit, with people working in shifts and machines operating 24 hours a day to manufacture warships and weapons. The number of Reaper has reached 150 billion. If Academician Liu doesn't send a message, Hu Yu plans to accumulate a few more warships before deploying them to the front lines.
Now that Academician Liu has sent a message, Hu Yu has abandoned his plan to fight on the front line without hesitation and is focusing all his efforts on building ships to bring Academician Liu back from the Insect Zone. In addition to warships, various weapons are also being built continuously.