Chapter 542: Really a UFO

The conference room was deathly silent; everyone was shocked by the depth and breadth of the near-terrifying professional knowledge Li Mingyuan had displayed. As top experts in their respective fields, they knew full well the revolutionary and forward-looking nature of these concepts, and they also vaguely sensed an indescribable feeling of dissonance—these ideas seemed to transcend the thinking framework of the current era.

"This... this is simply unbelievable," a communications expert muttered to himself, "Chief Engineer Li, how did you conceive of these? These concepts... are too advanced."

Li Mingyuan smiled slightly: "The inspiration comes from the design experience of the 'Pangu' system, plus some reasonable deductions. Scientific development often follows certain inherent logic; if you understand this logic, you can foresee the next direction of development."

This vague explanation did not truly answer the question, but everyone present was already accustomed to the mysterious style of this Chief Engineer, and no one continued to press for details.

"Now," Li Mingyuan looked around at the group, "I need everyone to divide into groups and start working. The first group is responsible for hardware design, focusing on modems and network interface cards; the second group is responsible for protocol implementation, translating the framework I just described into concrete code; the third group is responsible for infrastructure planning, evaluating modification schemes for the existing telephone network; the fourth group is responsible for security systems, ensuring the confidentiality and reliability of the network..."

He assigned the tasks and schedules for each team in detail, and the entire project was broken down into hundreds of executable small tasks, forming a tight and orderly work network.

"Finally," Li Mingyuan's voice became serious, "the security clearance for this project is the highest level. Except for the people in this room, no one knows what we are doing. Externally, we are just improving the communication module of the 'Pangu' system, nothing more. Understand?"

Everyone nodded solemnly, and a tense atmosphere of mission-critical determination permeated the conference room.

Li Mingyuan looked at the resolute expressions on the faces of these Long Country elites, his heart filled with deep emotion.

Now, relying solely on the "Kunpeng" operation, Long Country had already dropped a bombshell on the global stage.

"Meeting adjourned, each group start working immediately according to the division of labor," Li Mingyuan announced, "Remember, we are racing against time."

The experts left the conference room one after another, each heading to their respective workstations with their tasks and a sense of shock. Li Mingyuan remained in the conference room alone, walked to the window, and gazed at the lights of Penglai Base in the distance.

"The Internet..." he whispered to himself, "This will be the most precious gift I give to this era. However, I must let 'Kunpeng' show off one more time to consolidate the results."

Three days later, Li Mingyuan was urgently summoned to Minister Zhang's office.

"Lao Li, you have to see this!" Minister Zhang was as excited as a child, pointing to a pile of foreign newspapers spread out on the desk.

Li Mingyuan picked up the *Morning Star Daily* on top; the front-page headline was written in huge bold font: "Shocking the World! Ocean Ghost UFO Appears Again! Hundreds of Citizens Claim to Have Witnessed a Mysterious Flying Object!" Below it was an extremely blurry photo, barely able to make out an oval-shaped object.

"Hahaha!" Li Mingyuan couldn't help but laugh, "This photo is so blurry that even I can't recognize that it's 'Kunpeng'."

"Do you know what the funniest part is?" Minister Zhang handed over another newspaper, "It says here that someone saw the Ocean Ghost in the Nevada Desert, claiming it could transform and even shoot green beams of light!"

Li Mingyuan laughed so hard he couldn't straighten up, "How much do they want to see aliens!"

Minister Zhang laughed along, but soon restrained his smile, "Laughing aside, this matter has already caused an uproar in the Star-Spangled Country. According to our intelligence, the Pentagon has even started to form a secret group specifically to study the UFO; their scientists are completely baffled by the performance of 'Kunpeng'."

"That's for sure, a speed of over 300 knots, ultra-low altitude flight, plus perfect stealth—with their current technology, it's simply unexplainable," Li Mingyuan said proudly.

"It's not just the Star-Spangled Country," Minister Zhang flipped out another secret report, "Beijixiong Guo can't sit still either. The Kremlin has ordered all intelligence stations to search with all their might for the source of this 'unidentified flying object'; they even suspect this is some kind of 'extraterrestrial technology'."

Li Mingyuan grinned, "Looks like our little trick is working well."

"More than just well," excitement flashed in Minister Zhang's eyes, "This is already a strategic success! The Star-Spangled Country and Beijixiong Guo are now suspicious of everything, doubting whether the other side has mastered revolutionary new technology. The intelligence systems of both camps are frantically looking for clues, yet they have found nothing."

He lowered his voice and said mysteriously: "The most interesting thing is that Long Country is not on their list of suspects at all! Who would have thought that the backward country they see as having only recently been 'liberated' would have developed a secret weapon that makes them tremble with fear?"

Li Mingyuan nodded, feeling secretly pleased. This was exactly his plan—to let Long Country quietly accumulate strength without being suspected, and by the time they discovered the truth, it would already be too late.

"We intercepted an interesting piece of news," Minister Zhang handed Li Mingyuan a telegram, "The President of the Star-Spangled Country is preparing to deliver a national television address tomorrow, and the topic seems to be related to this 'Ocean Ghost'."

"Oh? Looks like things have blown up," Li Mingyuan raised an eyebrow, "Can you arrange for us to watch it?"

"Of course, everything is ready. But Lao Li, where do we go from here? We can't just let 'Kunpeng' lie in the base forever, right?"

Li Mingyuan pondered for a moment, then his eyes suddenly lit up, "Minister Zhang, it is time for 'Kunpeng' to go out to sea again."

"Back to the middle of the ocean?"

"No," Li Mingyuan shook his head, a glimmer of cunning flashing in his eyes, "This time I want to go to a more... special place."

The next evening, in a special conference room at Penglai Base, Minister Zhang, the old general, and a group of high-level officials sat around a specially made television. This television was the latest model independently developed by Long Country, capable of receiving foreign signals, and customized specifically for intelligence work.

On the screen, the President of the Star-Spangled Country stood in the Tuoyuanying Bangongshi with a serious expression.

"My dear fellow citizens of the Star-Spangled Country," the President's voice came through a translator, "In recent days, reports regarding so-called 'unidentified flying objects' have attracted widespread attention across the nation. I assure the people of this country today that the government is taking this phenomenon seriously..."

"Ha, listen to that, 'phenomenon'; he doesn't even dare to confirm that it's a physical entity," the old general sneered.

The President continued: "Our military and scientists are investigating the nature of these abnormal phenomena. At present, there is no conclusive evidence to suggest that these phenomena pose a threat to national security. I call on all citizens to remain calm and not be misled by unverified rumors..."

"This guy really knows how to beat around the bush, damn it," Deputy Minister Liu said disdainfully, "He said a whole lot of nothing."

"That's right," Li Mingyuan picked up his teacup, feeling at ease, "What else could he say? Admit there are aliens? Or admit that their proud aircraft carrier battle group was played for a fool by an unidentified object?"

On the screen, the President was responding to questions from reporters.

"Mr. President, does the government have the exact identity of this 'Ocean Ghost'? Is it, as rumors suggest, from outside the Earth?"