Chapter 314 - 244: The Questioning Controversy
"Is this... Tier Three Upper Grade Black Obsidian Gold?"
Wei Chen was the first to recognize it, crying out in shock.
This was a top-tier supplementary material used to forge Tier Four Spiritual Soldiers, renowned for its insane energy conductivity and stability. More often than not, it was completely unavailable for purchase, no matter the price.
"Zhao Yu, will this be enough?"
Han Feng tossed the three pieces of Black Obsidian Gold to Zhao Yu.
Zhao Yu caught them on instinct, the shocking weight nearly making him stagger.
He caressed the cold surface of the Black Obsidian Gold, feeling the pure Gold Attribute Energy within it. For the first time, a fanatical expression appeared on his usually impassive face.
"It’s enough! More than enough!
If we use this for the main lines, forget one hundred percent power—it could handle a fifty percent overload!"
The entire hangar instantly erupted in thunderous cheers.
Watching the exuberant crowd, Han Feng raised a hand to quiet them down.
"I know you’ve all been working incredibly hard, and I’m not a stingy boss."
"For everyone involved in the ’Shadow’ project, starting today, all bonuses will be tripled!
Once the project is complete, I’ll petition the council to secure substantial rewards for every single one of you.
He paused, his voice carrying throughout the hangar.
"I don’t care who you were before, or what your rank was.
Here, all that matters is your ability and your contribution!
As long as we get this beast in the air, I guarantee your rewards will be far beyond anything you can imagine!"
The moment he finished speaking, the hangar erupted once more.
Even the few senior researchers who had previously been terrified by Han Feng’s ruthless methods were now flushed with excitement.
Nothing wins hearts and minds like tangible rewards.
Seeing the team’s morale completely fired up, Han Feng nodded in satisfaction.
He walked over to a corner and found Li Tiezhu, who was diligently polishing the landing gear.
Ever since his injuries healed, the kid had been working more desperately than anyone, practically living in the hangar.
"Tiezhu, how’s the recovery coming along?"
Han Feng handed him a bottle of water.
Li Tiezhu took it, looking both surprised and honored, and quickly straightened up.
"Advisor Han! I’m all healed up! I feel even stronger than before!"
"That’s good.
Keep up the good work. I see a lot of potential in you."
Han Feng clapped him on the shoulder.
Those few simple words made Li Tiezhu so emotional he nearly swore an oath of fealty on the spot.
With all the problems sorted out, Han Feng gave the team their final directive.
"Twenty days!"
He held up two fingers.
"I’m giving you twenty days to complete the final assembly and calibration.
In twenty days, I want to see this monster lift off the ground!"
"Yes!"
Everyone roared in unison, the sound loud enough to shake the rafters.
For the next twenty days, Hangar 7 became a war machine running at full throttle.
Spurred on by Han Feng’s willingness to spare no expense and the promise of massive bonuses, everyone was pushed to their absolute limits.
Lin Xue and the structural team used Spiritual Energy Resonance Welding Technology—a technique not yet even deployed by the military—to increase the bonding strength between the airframe’s components to an unbelievable degree.
Wei Chen, working like a man possessed, led the rune team in precisely etching tens of thousands of microscopic runes into the fuselage, constructing a complex yet highly efficient Energy Network.
Zhao Yu, for his part, locked himself in the cockpit and engine room, working day and night to lay the final circuits and calibrate the integrated systems.
「East Sea Fortress City, Celestial Craft Group Hangar 7.」
The place had long since become an independent kingdom, completely isolated from the outside world.
For twenty days, the heavy blast-proof doors had opened just a crack each morning, only long enough to deliver massive quantities of High Tier Materials and the nutrient paste required to sustain the several hundred people inside.
Other than that, no one went in or out.
Inside the hangar, however, the atmosphere was the complete opposite of what outsiders might have guessed. There was no sign of stagnation or lethargy; instead, the air crackled with a fanatical energy.
"Chief Engineer Lin, the simulation data from Wind Tunnel 2 is out!
At Mach 4, the lift coefficient of the wings only decayed by 2.1 percent!"
"Engineer Wei, the energy fluctuations from the core Spirit Gathering Array have stabilized below the safety threshold! We can proceed with the power source link-up!"
Lin Xue, sporting deep, dark circles under her eyes, held a cup of a steaming stimulant Potion while pointing out details on the complex model displayed on a holographic projector.
The whiteboard beside her was covered in a dense scrawl of formulas and rough sketches.
Elsewhere, the rune expert Wei Chen knelt like a devout worshipper before a newly etched panel from the fuselage’s underbelly.
He used a specialized probe to meticulously inspect every single Energy Circuit, muttering to himself the entire time.
"Perfect... Absolutely perfect!
This nested runic structure... it’s a work of art..."
As for Zhao Yu, he had simply moved a cot into the engine testing room, sleeping a grand total of less than thirty hours over the twenty days.
The entire team was thoroughly galvanized by the blueprint Han Feng had laid out and the lavish rewards he had promised.
They were witnessing firsthand how a collection of top-tier Spiritual Energy Materials, under Han Feng’s seemingly divine guidance, was slowly being assembled into an unprecedented behemoth of steel.
The sense of accomplishment that came from creating a miracle with their own hands was more addictive than any reward could ever be.
...
「Meanwhile, in a private room at a top-tier club in East Sea City’s Inner City.」
The air, thick with the smell of expensive cigars and fine wine, was a stark contrast to the tense atmosphere of Hangar 7.
Professor Wu Zhen held a wine glass, but his expression was grim.
Ever since Han Feng had kicked him off the project team under the pretext of "medical retirement," he had become the laughingstock of his social circle.
Everywhere he went, he could feel people giving him strange looks.
"Professor, please don’t be upset.
That kid is just a madman who relies on brute force. He’s turned the project into a chaotic mess. It’s only a matter of time before something goes wrong."