Chapter 366 - 358 Promotion_1

Two ill-intentioned fellows hadn’t figured out whether their captor was human or ghost when an iron-like body clamped down on them so painfully they wished they were dead; the middle-aged man felt excruciating pain throughout his body.

The return of Robot No.13 with two people and two bags of spoils was spotted from afar by the already alarmed soldiers, who instantly recognized their "comrade-in-arms", and then were shocked to see No.13 mercilessly toss the two humans to the ground, report the discovery of unknown armed personnel, and request that a senior administrator take control.

The nominal superior of No.13, a lieutenant platoon leader, immediately reported to his superiors and, together with the urgently arrived robotics project team, reviewed the real-time footage, and understood right away that they were dealing with two spies.

Especially with the large amount of equipment found in the backpacks, it was almost certain this was the case.

The furious lieutenant proceeded with an emergency interrogation; he was guarding a nuclear base, and such a malicious incident definitely had to be investigated thoroughly.

Even though the two men, particularly the middle-aged man, had multiple fractures due to No.13’s rough treatment, the interrogation didn’t stop for a moment.

Niu Aihua, on the other hand, quickly confessed because of a mental breakdown, believing she had encountered zombies or evil spirits; upon seeing soldiers, she became extremely agitated, and her confession was a jumble of words.

Conversely, the middle-aged man clenched his teeth and said nothing, keeping a stiff upper lip until a group of military personnel with large rimmed hats took him and Niu Aihua away just before dawn.

Before he was pushed into the vehicle, he saw Lin Ju not far away, his hair a mess from being forced to wake up early.

...

"Haha, No.13 did an excellent job, I’m going to enter it into the Qingshan Base personnel system as the Deputy Chief of Security... In light of this event, a merit reward: an extra five hundred in subsidy."

"..."

Watching Lin Ju seriously rewarding the robot for its achievements, Academician She and several leaders all let out a sigh of relief.

After the capture of the pair, the higher-ups were extremely shocked, and apart from demanding a thorough investigation, they arranged to reassure Lin Ju and the base’s senior management and to further fortify the security of both bases.

Academician She, who happened to be at Qingshan for work, rushed over, but it seemed that Lin Ju was not at all perturbed.

"Mr. Lin, this incident is a result of our security negligence, but luckily it didn’t cause major damage to the base. Going forward, we will add an additional company of guards to completely put an end to such deplorable acts," said the older man in civilian clothes sternly, but Lin Ju just waved his hand.

"I’m actually hoping that they come a few more times; it’s perfect for setting up the robotic patrol system... Honestly, I’ve been considering the possibility of such events for a while, never really expecting one to happen."

Lin Ju’s mentality was rather peculiar, even somewhat excited. Intelligence and espionage represented classic plotlines, though most attempts had been through business means, all quashed by a mere employment contract.

This traditional form of espionage was a first encounter for him, and it just so happened to allow the robot to prove its worth, making Lin Ju feel that every penny invested in the robot project was well worth it.

Ye Changsi, who had just returned from a mission at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, however, had a very serious expression:

"We’ve checked the spies’ mobile phones; their approach from the back mountain was premeditated, showing that they must have known about that vulnerable spot through someone, indicating a leak of information. We hope to investigate all persons the spies have had recent contact with."

"That is indeed appropriate."

The speaker was from security, who had been composed since he arrived.

The higher authorities took the security issue of the two vital bases very seriously, demanding the formation of a dedicated team for concentrated investigation after such a spy incident and most importantly, ensuring that Lin Ju felt reassured and confident in the security forces.

Fortunately, the latter had no sense of worry at all, remaining relaxed the whole time, which is why security had to remind him:

"Mr. Lin, I suggest you strengthen the handling of paper documents, as well as the encryption defenses for electronic communications at the base. There are certain products from telecom providers that must be thoroughly checked; if necessary, we can provide security experts..."

Lin Ju raised his own phone: "All staff at our company exclusively use custom electronic devices issued by the base, all operating on independent systems and communication protocols, which only after processing via satellite network can interface externally; moreover, our firewall and AI are managing it.

Furthermore, we’ve transitioned all smart devices to the Ternary System; traditional forms of attack are ineffective against the base."

"..."

No wonder there were no reports of cyberattacks on Xinyuan Company in the past; they had long established such tight defenses.

Security was temporarily relieved, but Lin Ju still heightened his vigilance internally. After all, no methodology was omnipotent; even with loyal employees, absolute security wasn’t guaranteed, and more reinforcements were necessary.

Indeed, it was time to consider mass-producing the No.1 series robots, as the machine guardians who did not fear death and required no rest seemed more reassuring than humans.

The base had already made efforts regarding the energy problem; the No.1 robots initially used domestic batteries, which could only support 30 to 40 minutes of endurance. Later, the base equipped them with an improved in-house developed lithium-ion battery that tripled the energy density, boosting endurance to two hours.

But it seemed the ceiling was reached there; the energy density of 600 wh/kg was nearly the limit for mass-produced chemical batteries. The process technology for 1000 wh/kg chemical battery was estimated to need over 800 million yuan in funding, and Lin Ju was hesitant about whether to make the considerable investment.

Mass-produced 1000 wh/kg chemical batteries would nearly quadruple or quintuple the performance of current power batteries, but the estimated cost of mass production was 20 times higher. For the No.1 robots that only needed 60 kilograms, battery manufacturing costs would exceed a million yuan each. If 100 robots were mass-produced, that meant spending over 90 million yuan on batteries per robot, which was simply too expensive.

Developing chemical batteries with an energy density greater than 1000 wh/kg would result in costs exponentially increasing, making it economically unfeasible.

So it was clear from the system that humanity was nearly touching the capacity ceiling for chemical batteries; any higher-energy batteries would likely step into a new theoretical domain, a direction that remained elusive for now.

Lin Ju made a mental note to elevate the status of the robot project and spent the entire day dealing with the impact of the spy incident.

This matter was naturally not made public. With the methods of security and the direct attention from above, the two small fry would undoubtedly spill something of value. Identifying who was behind them was essentially clear.

The immediate task was to confirm the source of the terrain leak around the base; the female spy confessed they got the information from a child of an astronaut at the base. But how could a child know such a secret? A thorough investigation was necessary.

Ye Changsi took charge of this matter as he had some experience in this area and because Qingshan Base was under his jurisdiction; he definitely wanted to take a personal hand.

It wasn’t until the evening that Ye Changsi found the time to report his findings on the feasibility study of a heavy rocket launch at Jiuquan.