Chapter 320 - 246: The Experts Are Speechless
Han Feng offered a harmless smile as he handed over an electronic tablet and a stylus.
The corner of Li Tiecheng’s mouth twitched as he stared at the tablet shoved in his face.
’This kid probably had this ready all along, just waiting for me to fall into his trap, huh?’
He scanned it briefly. Good heavens, the request list was filled with all sorts of bizarre items.
Fragments of High Tier Demon Beast bones, decommissioned Gravity Generator cores, scrap from Spiritual Energy Conduits...
It was all "e-waste"—things that were broken beyond repair, yet too valuable to toss, but also a pain to store.
"Are you sure you only want these?"
Li Tiecheng eyed Han Feng suspiciously.
"I know I said you could have your pick, but don’t try to save me money by hauling back a pile of junk.
If you can’t build the jet by then, the military tribunal won’t show any mercy."
"Don’t worry, General. Turning scrap into treasure is my specialty."
Han Feng spouted nonsense with a perfectly straight face.
"These materials may be damaged, but their internal structures have effectively undergone extreme stress tests. That makes them perfect for researching the material fatigue threshold for the X-02 mass-production model."
The reasoning actually sounded plausible.
Li Tiecheng didn’t hesitate any longer. With a flourish of the stylus, he signed his name.
Watching this unfold, the nearby Councilor Wang’s expression was fouler than if he’d swallowed a fly.
He couldn’t resist making a sarcastic remark:
"General Li, surely this is against regulations?
The disposal of war assets, even scrap, requires dual approval from the Logistics Department and the Council’s Audit Committee. This kind of under-the-table dealing..."
SLAM!
Li Tiecheng slammed the signed tablet on the table, cutting Councilor Wang off.
"Do you have any idea what kind of situation we’re in?
We’re on a war footing!
The Sky Mark is going to erupt in less than ten years, and you want to talk to me about audits?"
Li Tiecheng turned, his fierce eyes locking onto Councilor Wang. The menacing aura rolling off him made the pampered politician instinctively take half a step back.
"According to the East Sea Fortress City Special Wartime Act, Chapter Three, Article Seven: in the event of a major technological breakthrough or for the needs of war preparations, the supreme frontline commander has the right to allocate any and all non-strategic, idle resources."
Li Tiecheng sneered, baring a set of stark white teeth.
"Councilor Wang, if you have a problem with my actions, feel free to report me to the Military Police. Or you can try to impeach me before the Council.
But until that happens, these supplies are his. My decision is final."
Councilor Wang opened his mouth, but in the end, all he could do was let out a hateful snort and turn his head away in silence.
Trying to reason with a Tier Four Peak brute was like a scholar arguing with a soldier—pointless.
Chen Beixuan stepped in at the right moment to mediate.
"Alright, let’s focus on what’s important.
Since the prototype has already flown, let’s go down and see it for ourselves."
The group left the observation room and took an elevator down to the floor of Hangar 7.
It hadn’t seemed so imposing when viewed from upstairs through the glass, but standing here now before the X-01 "Ghost" fighter, the sheer presence was overwhelming.
The jet-black fuselage gleamed with a cold, metallic luster. Incredibly, the heart-pounding supersonic flight from moments ago had left no trace of ablation on its surface.
Several senior experts from the Science Academy were like lecherous old men laying eyes on a peerless beauty. Their eyes lit up as they circled the fighter, looking like they wanted to get on the ground and give it a lick.
"This skin coating... why does it feel warm?"
A white-bearded expert reached out to touch the edge of the wing, his face a mask of confusion. "At those speeds, the surface temperature should have exceeded three hundred degrees Celsius at the very least."
"That’s the Spiritual Power Circulatory Cooling System."
Han Feng stepped forward and explained casually.
"We’ve abandoned traditional air and liquid cooling. Instead, we use the Rune Array on the aircraft’s skin to directly convert thermal energy into stored Spiritual Power.
You could say that it ’breathes’ as it flies."
"Breathes..."
The old expert murmured, feeling his entire worldview shifting. "Reverse-converting thermal energy? That violates the second law of thermodynamics!"
"The traditional laws of physics don’t really apply when you’re dealing with Spiritual Energy Technology."
Han Feng shrugged. "Times have changed, sir."
Elsewhere, Lin Xue and Zhao Yu were leading the technical team through a post-flight inspection of the jet.
Staring at the rows of green "NORMAL" indicators on the data terminal, Lin Xue was so excited her hands were trembling.
"Advisor, this is a miracle."
Lin Xue looked up, her eyes filled with fervent adoration for Han Feng.
"Besides a minor stress concentration on the left aileron, the entire airframe’s structural integrity remains above 99.9%!
And that’s after pulling 34 Gs!"
Zhao Yu was even more direct. He was tapping here and there with an inspection hammer, listening intently and muttering to himself:
"Perfect... absolutely perfect... This is mechanical artistry..."
Han Feng laughed to himself.
’Mechanical artistry? This is clearly just the result of a Tier Four Demon Emperor’s bones being tough enough, reinforced by my Sword Essence.’
’If it had fallen apart even with all that, it would be a total embarrassment for Cultivators everywhere.’
"Advisor Han."
Councilor Wang, who had been silent until now, suddenly approached. Despite being shut down earlier, he clearly hadn’t given up.
He pointed to the jet’s smooth underbelly and asked:
"I admit the jet’s maneuverability is impressive, but I’ve been looking all this time... where are the hardpoints?
The weapons bay?
No matter how fast this thing flies, it’s just a glorified model airplane. Without any firepower, is it supposed to go into battle just to be a target?"