novelsite Chapter 71 Side Armor Plates
Chapter 71 Side Armor Plates
Eighteen days after his rebirth, at 6:30 a.m., the marshalling yard on the outskirts of Berlin was still shrouded in a gray-blue morning mist. Wang Zhengyang woke up, sat up, and rubbed his temples. The mental exhaustion from yesterday's intense work had largely subsided, and the Caldova engine was slowly repairing his nerves in his sleep, just as he repaired metal.
Through the narrow windows of the truck, one could see the sky gradually brightening. There was already activity on the construction site—Li Ruijun's team had gotten up the earliest and were already inspecting the track sensors installed yesterday under the truck. The faint hum of the diesel generator could be heard.
Wang Zhengyang put on his work clothes, pushed open the door, and got out of the car. The morning air was cold and damp, and breathing it in made him feel refreshed.
He walked towards the front of the vehicle first. As he passed the driver's cab, he saw through the glass that several members of Zhang Hao's team were already inside—Zhou Ming was lying under the control panel connecting wires, Wu Fan was handing him tools, and the two were talking quietly.
Zhang Hao saw Wang Zhengyang outside the window, looked up and greeted him. Wang Zhengyang nodded but didn't go inside.
The door to the implantation pod was ajar, letting in soft purple light. Wang Zhengyang stepped inside, and a wave of warm, humid air washed over him.
Lin Luo'er was already inside. She was wearing a simple work T-shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, and was squatting in front of a row of cultivation racks, taking notes in a notebook. Hearing footsteps, she turned around.
"Good morning," she said, noting that she had some dark circles under her eyes, but looked to be in good spirits.
"Good morning." Wang Zhengyang walked over. "Didn't sleep well last night?"
"She slept for four hours." Lin Luo'er stood up and stretched her neck. "We need to keep an eye on the temperature and humidity. This batch of seedlings is very delicate since they just came out."
Wang Zhengyang looked at the cultivation rack behind her. Compared to yesterday afternoon, the tender green sprouts had grown noticeably taller. The two cotyledons of the lettuce seedlings had become larger, and their color had changed from pale yellow to light green; the spinach seedlings, though slower, were stubbornly pushing their way out; and the radish on the far side already showed the outlines of tiny true leaves.
"It's growing very fast," he said.
"Hmm, the nutrient solution formula is correct, and the light cycle is also suitable." Lin Luo'er walked to the control panel next to her and pulled up the data. "Look, this lettuce leaf has grown an average of two millimeters taller overnight. This speed... to be honest, it's a bit too fast, not normal."
She frowned and pointed to the graph on the screen: "According to conventional hydroponic data, even under optimal conditions, the daily growth at this stage is only about one millimeter. But ours..."
Wang Zhengyang looked at the data, then at the vibrant seedlings on the shelf. In his perception, these plants weren't just growing fast—they were surrounded by an extremely faint but undeniably present "field." It wasn't a supernatural ability, but rather the natural energy fluctuations emitted by life itself during vigorous growth.
"It might be because the seed variety is good," Wang Zhengyang said.
"Maybe." Lin Luo'er didn't delve any further, turning to take a small spray bottle from the shelf beside her. "By the way, you looked so pale yesterday, how are you feeling today?"
"It's back to normal."
"That's good." Lin Luo'er began spraying water on the seedlings, the mist forming tiny rainbows under the light. "Master Chen said you're going to continue carving those armor plates today?"
"Hmm, there are three left."
"Don't push yourself too hard." Her voice was soft. "I can tell that thing... is very mentally taxing."
Wang Zhengyang didn't speak. He watched her intently spray water on each row of seedlings, her movements gentle. Water droplets landed on the leaves, rolled down the veins, and shimmered under the light.
In this world filled with steel, oil, and electrical circuits, this patch of green is all the more precious. It is not only a future food source, but also a symbol—a symbol of life finding a way out and growing tenaciously even in the harshest environments.
Just like these people.
"I'm going out tonight," Wang Zhengyang suddenly said.
Lin Luo'er paused in her actions: "Where to?"
"I'm just going to the dock warehouse to pick up some things," Wang Zhengyang said simply. "I'll probably leave around eight or nine o'clock and be back before midnight."
"...Be careful." Lin Luo'er didn't ask any further questions, but gave him a deep look. "Do you need any help?"
"Need not."
"That's good." She continued spraying water.
The two remained silent for a while, with only the hissing of the watering can and the low hum of the ventilation system.
"Zhengyang." Lin Luo'er suddenly called his name, instead of "Dr. Wang" or "Engineer Wang".
"Um?"
She turned to face him, her eyes shining in the light: "I know you have a lot to say. I know this car, this project, are not simple. But I want you to know—I believe in you."
She paused, then softened her voice: "So, don't overwork yourself. The people on this ship... are all counting on you."
Wang Zhengyang looked at her. Her face didn't show any particular expression, but her eyes were very serious. This genius girl from Tsinghua University, this bioengineer who should have been doing research in the laboratory, was now standing in this modified train implantation cabin, saying to him, "I believe in you."
He reached out, not to touch her, but to take the watering can from her hand.
"Okay," he said, then turned around and started spraying water on another row of seedlings.
The movements were a little clumsy, but very steady.
Lin Luo'er watched his retreating figure, a slight smile playing on her lips, but said nothing more.
At eight o'clock in the morning, Wang Zhengyang entered the sixth maintenance bay. Chen Yishang and his two apprentices had already arrived and were making preparations.
"Good morning, Dr. Wang," Chen Yishang greeted him. "The three plates for today have arrived. They are all side armor, 22 millimeters thick, and the dimensions are standard."
Wang Zhengyang nodded and walked to the three armor plates placed side by side. The dark gray alloy surface reflected a cold light, and the edges had been pre-treated. He reached out and pressed his hands on each plate in turn, closing his eyes.
The senses penetrate into the metal.
The first piece has a uniform grain structure and no obvious defects.
The second piece has a tiny pore near the bottom right corner, about 0.3 millimeters in diameter.
The third piece is generally good, but the internal residual stress distribution is not very uniform.
These imperfections are minor and perfectly acceptable for general use. However, for a Thunder Matrix circuit, any unevenness can affect circuit performance and even become a weakness that could lead to future breakdowns.
"The second piece has an air hole in the lower right corner. Mark it; we'll focus on dealing with it later." Wang Zhengyang opened his eyes. "The third piece, do a stress release test before starting."
"Understood." Chen Yishang immediately instructed his apprentice to make the markings.
Preparation took half an hour. At 9:00 AM sharp, the laser head was activated, and the first etching of the day began.
Having learned from yesterday's experience with the last A-01 armor plate, Wang Zhengyang felt much smoother today. His consciousness split into two lines—one guiding the laser, and the other following up on the repair—this parallel processing gradually became as natural as breathing.
The laser moved across the metal surface, ablating out grooves 0.15 millimeters wide. Wang Zhengyang's consciousness followed behind, like the finest weaver, rearranging the disordered crystal lattice into a neat shape, eliminating thermal stress, and repairing microscopic cracks.
He could feel that as one armor plate after another was "healed" and engraved with the lines of the Thunder Matrix, the power within him—the Caldova Engine—was slowly and steadily "growing." It wasn't a simple accumulation of quantity, but rather an optimization of some kind of internal structure, an improvement in processing efficiency.
At 11:00 AM, the first side armor plate was completed.
"Take a half-hour break," Wang Zhengyang said. He was sweating, but he was in much better shape than at the same time yesterday.
He stepped out of the maintenance bay and onto the open ground. The sun was shining brightly, warming him comfortably. In the distance, Li Ruijun was directing several people to adjust the track tension, while two young men from Zhang Hao's team were installing something on the roof of the vehicle.
Everything is proceeding according to plan.