Chapter 241

Chen Guang added: "And Heaven's Punishment isn't just a weapon. Its energy collection array itself is a deep space monitoring system, with sensitivity three orders of magnitude higher than existing observatories."

"If the Harvesters really come, we'll be able to detect them months in advance."

"Then it's settled," Feng Yan said, making the final decision. "Guangzi, you are fully responsible for the Heaven's Punishment project. Whatever you need, you get; if you encounter resistance, come directly to me."

"Understood."

Before the meeting ended, Chen Guang switched back to the star map.

The red trajectory was still glaring.

"One more thing," he said. "During the decryption process, Torch Dragon-3 discovered that the signal sender... might still be alive."

"What? Didn't they say they had gone silent?" Wang Hao's eyes widened.

"That was the status three months ago. Over the past seventy-two hours, the strength of this signal has increased by 0.0001%. Although it's negligible, it is indeed strengthening," Chen said, marking a weak but continuous signal segment.

He zoomed in on the signal source: "They might be somewhere, using their last energy, still continuously sending information."

"So, if they are still persisting, then we have even less reason to give up," Feng Yan said.

After the meeting, Chen Guang returned to the data center alone.

On the Torch Dragon-3 interface, the end of the red trajectory had been updated with a new timestamp:

"Estimated arrival time: 1826 days."

Five years and one month.

The countdown had begun, no longer a vague "standard cycle," but real, concrete days.

Almost simultaneously, the alarm systems of global observatories were triggered again.

Proxima Centauri's brightness had dropped by another 0.01% in the past hour.

Heads of astronomical institutions in seventeen countries were woken from their sleep, and an emergency video conference was held at 3:00 AM.

But the Dragon Chant Research Institute did not participate.

Not because they didn't value it, but because there was no need to participate anymore.

Deep underground in the institute, the core members of the Heaven's Punishment project team were already in place.

Thirty engineers and one hundred and twenty technicians were staring at the blueprints, beginning to assign tasks.

"Energy collection array, group design, proceed in parallel."

"The structure of the lunar launch platform needs to be recalculated, taking moonquakes into account."

"The control system needs redundant design, at least five backups."

Orders were issued one by one.

And on the other side of the institute, the mech testing ground was also very lively today.

But it wasn't a military test; it was a civilian demonstration.

Reporters from twenty media outlets gathered on the sidelines, cameras aimed at the silver-gray "Guardian-1" police mech in the center of the field.

The mech was four meters tall, and its arms could switch between multiple tools: a capture net launcher, a non-lethal sonic cannon, a riot shield, and even a first-aid kit.

"Everyone, please look," said Officer Lao Zheng, who was hosting the demonstration, standing beside the mech.

"This is the new police mech issued by our municipal bureau. During last month's bank robbery in the East City District, the criminals had guns and even took hostages. The risk of a forced assault was very high."

He pulled up the footage from the law enforcement recorder: "But that time, we deployed the 'Guardian'."

In the footage, the mech rushed into the bank, the criminals fired at it, sparks flew as bullets hit the armor, but the mech was completely fine.

Then the mech's right arm fired a capture net, precisely covering the criminals.

The left arm extended a mechanical claw and directly seized the firearms.

The whole process took eight seconds, with zero casualties among the hostages, and all criminals were taken down.

Reporters snapped photos frantically.

"How much does this mech cost?" a reporter asked.

"The unit cost is eight hundred thousand, but the maintenance cost is very low," Lao Zheng said.

"And it's not just a weapon platform. Last month, when there was a leak at the chemical plant in the southern suburbs, it was the one that rushed in to close the valves. A human wouldn't have lasted five minutes in that environment, but it stayed for half an hour, and after a rinse, it was like new."

"Will police be replaced by mechs in the future?"

"Quite the opposite," Lao Zheng smiled.

"The mech is just a tool; the police are the people who use the tool."

"Now, one of us can exert the combat power of a whole squadron, but we need to learn new skills and master new technology. This is progress, not replacement."

After the demonstration, reporters swarmed around with all sorts of questions.

On the other side of the testing ground, several custom mechs from delivery platforms were demonstrating an obstacle course.

These mechs were only two meters tall, with a lightweight design, carrying insulated boxes, and auxiliary thrusters on their legs.

The demonstrator, Xiao Liu, sat in the cockpit and explained to the camera: "Before, when delivering food, if one order was late during peak hours, money would be deducted, and climbing stairs would exhaust you. Now?"

He controlled the mech, easily jumping over a two-meter-wide simulated trench, and then the leg thrusters ignited, flying directly onto a third-floor platform.

"Food delivered to the door, precise delivery, and guaranteed not to spill the soup," Xiao Liu opened the insulated box and took out the test water cup inside.

The water surface was calm, not a drop spilled.

The live stream comments flooded the screen:

"This delivery driver is too cool!"

"Will we have to pay extra for food delivery from now on?"

"To the person above, we already are, but it's worth it. The hotpot I ordered last time was still boiling when it arrived."

"Technological progress is really sweet."

Civilian mechs are penetrating every corner of society at an astonishing speed.

Construction sites, mines, logistics, firefighting, policing, medical care, and even catering...

Production efficiency is increasing, working environments are improving, and safety accidents are decreasing.

And all of this is invisibly accumulating the material foundation, technological accumulation, and, most importantly, the social consensus for that ultimate weapon named "Heaven's Punishment."

When the entire civilization knows that a crisis is approaching and knows that it must unite to build a weapon that can protect everyone, resistance will decrease, and momentum will increase.

At 11:00 PM, the Dragon Chant emergency conference room lit up again.

This time there weren't many people, only the core six.

Feng Yan stood before the updated star map, his back to the group.

On the star map, the end of the red trajectory had extended to the asteroid belt at the edge of the Solar System.

Next to it was marked the precise time: 1825 days.

"It has been confirmed that the 187-day countdown was the countdown of the signal sender," Feng Yan said, his voice calm.

"We still have time, although not much, but it counts as enough."

He turned, his gaze sweeping over everyone's faces:

"From now on, all projects at Dragon Chant will be re-prioritized. Heaven's Punishment first, defense network second, mechs and conventional weapons third."

"Resource allocation, talent recruitment, and international cooperation will all be based on these three priorities."

"We must, before the Harvesters see the Solar System—"

He paused, his eyes firm:

"Learn to shoot the Sun first."

Outside the window, the Moon in the night sky was bright.

And on the far side of the Moon, the expansion project of the Guanghan Palace Base had already quietly accelerated.

The first batch of base modules for Heaven's Punishment would be launched in three days.

Countdown: 1825 days.

But humanity's countdown, from today, is calculated in hours.

Every hour that passes, another pile is added on the Moon.

Every day that passes, another laser platform is added in orbit.

Every week that passes, mech factories on Earth produce another ten thousand steel warriors.

Now is a race against time, because we cannot fail!