Chapter 24: Let Me See Your Thesis

Shen Jiang is having a nosebleed.

She sits there in a brazen, wide-legged posture, one hand draped over the back of her chair while the other pinches a wad of tissue to plug her nostril. Her eyes are fixed unblinkingly on the ceiling. She is the only one in the entire conference room acting with such a complete lack of discipline, and no one else dares to intervene.

On the large screen, a dozen windows display various personnel. This is the highest command authority of the theater, the direct superiors of Red Lotus during missions: the Anti-Arrival Joint Command Center.

The Joint Command Center is evaluating 151’s hypothesis, analyzing video data frame by frame. They frown as they watch that brilliant red line appear to manifest out of thin air from a point in mid-air, then use that origin to sweep across the heavens and the earth in every direction before rapidly retracting and vanishing from sight. The entire process takes a mere dozen seconds, followed immediately by a fierce debate over whether the characteristics exhibited by Lighthouse Angel 092 within the human universe are truly those of a star.

Old Man Ji suspects they will reach no conclusion. After all these years, no one has truly grasped the essence of the Angels. Every year is a muddled fight; the fundamental gap in spatial dimensions is an insurmountable wall of bronze and iron. Just as two-dimensional beings could never perceive the full reality of a human, how can humans in three-dimensional space comprehend the true face of an Angel?

This may be the greatest divide in the universe—beyond the differences in intellect, technology, ways of thinking, or even life forms.

It is a dimensional divide.

Humanity’s means of detecting Angels are limited, and the theoretical tools at their disposal are even more so. Their perception of Angels is inevitably that of a blind man touching an elephant. Currently, however, the most powerful detection methods and the most useful theoretical tools are in Shen Jiang’s hands. This is why Old Man Ji is certain the people at the Joint Command Center will reach no conclusion. The Joint Command Center is full of mediocrities, while Shen Jiang is a genius. One genius is worth a thousand mediocrities.

As a support base, Base 151’s command headquarters lacks operational command and decision-making authority. Neither the commander, the political commissar, nor Old Man Ji has the right to say a word regarding Shen Jiang’s combat planning.

Old Man Ji muses that he should post a "Commander’s Determination" chart on the wall of the conference room. Although one can hardly speak of "enemy-versus-ours" situations on a battlefield against Angels, having something to look at would at least be less dull and tedious.

But the Joint Command Center cannot delay indefinitely, for the Lighthouse Angel is still right at their doorstep.

In the bottom left corner of the large screen, a countdown reads: 19 hours, 54 minutes, 22 seconds. Despite its apparent precision, the margin of error can be as much as half an hour. Although they are macroscopic objects, Angels often exhibit an uncertainty principle similar to microscopic particles; one cannot have both an accurate position and an accurate velocity (though, in almost all cases, humanity can determine neither). In nineteen hours, Lighthouse Angel 092 will reach Nanshan, break through the defense line, and sweep across the entire Chongqing urban area from above with a scorching red line over a dozen kilometers long. The Joint Command Center estimates that within ten seconds, it will raze the Jiangbei, Yuzhong, Yubei, Shapingba, Jiulongpo, and Nan'an districts to the ground.

For human weaponry to achieve an equivalent destructive effect, one would need to simultaneously detonate four 100-kiloton-yield nuclear weapons within the city.

Chongqing has exactly 19 hours left.

"If Comrade Shen Jiang’s hypothesis is correct, we have no effective means of defense against 092." The Joint Command Center finally reaches a conclusion.

This is self-evident. No material can withstand the cutting force of a dense red line undergoing thermonuclear fusion; apart from its bizarre appearance, it is no different from a star.

"It doesn't matter," Shen Jiang says, sniffing. "As long as I run fast enough, I don't need defense."

"But we don't know when it will project into an attack state," the Joint Command Center says, concerned. "To rush out rashly is to walk straight into the line of fire."

"Let's gamble," Shen Jiang says. "The change in its projection state takes time—about three minutes. If I’m lucky, I can reach it before it unfolds into its attack form and take it out."

"With all restrictions lifted, how fast can Red Lotus go?" the Joint Command Center asks.

Old Man Ji makes a quick estimate in his mind:

"Ten kilometers, 133 seconds."

"How long can Red Lotus sustain that?" the Joint Command Center asks again.

"No more than seven minutes at most. The stable operating time is likely only five minutes, 300 seconds."

The Joint Command Center falls silent.

This is a monumental risk.

Assuming Lighthouse Angel 092 begins to unfold and shift into attack state the moment Red Lotus departs, then in three minutes—that is, 180 seconds—it will elongate into a scorching red line over ten kilometers long. Red Lotus must destroy it before it fully unfolds. Since 133 of those 180 seconds will be consumed in transit, there are only 47 seconds available for combat.

"47 seconds is a bit tight," Shen Jiang says, picking her ear and blowing on her pinky finger. "But we have no choice but to treat a dead horse as if it were alive. Give me a countdown. I can’t guarantee I’ll finish it in 47 seconds, but I can guarantee I’ll reach it within 133 seconds."

Chengdu Time: 2:24 AM.

Stopwatch: 0:0:0.
Lighthouse Contact Countdown: 133:0:0.
Giant Mech Termination Countdown: 300:0:0.
Defense Line Breach Countdown: 17:24:40.

Red Lotus stands at the starting line. Behind her is the Nanshan defense line; ahead lies the pitch-black mountain wilderness. The earth is densely covered with tiny red light points—the Riemann Probes. She is the only one standing here this time, with no one to accompany her. Red Lotus has only two arms left and no skin; the engineers at 151 have stripped away all unnecessary weight, including the external armor, making Red Lotus look like a half-finished product.

The girl has made all preparations. She is waiting, and everyone else is waiting.

Waiting for the starting gun to fire.

People gaze toward the eastern sky, growing more anxious by the moment. The Joint Command Center wants to issue the order several times but holds back; it is not yet time.

Chengdu Time: 2:47 AM.

Stopwatch: 0:0:0.
Lighthouse Contact Countdown: 133:0:0.
Giant Mech Termination Countdown: 300:0:0.
Defense Line Breach Countdown: 17:01:23.

"Look on the bright side, maybe this Angel is a bit dim-witted," Shen Jiang says over the channel. "What if it runs headfirst into my insecticide?"

"That probability exists, but it is very, very low," the Joint Command Center replies. "You only have two doses of insecticide left, One-One. Use them carefully."

"Zero-One, get ready to issue the order," Shen Jiang says, lifting her head. "The Riemann Probes are sounding the alarm."

Suddenly, the eastern sky lights up with a crimson glow. People watch from afar as the Lighthouse Angel’s slender body rests with one end behind the black shadows of the mountains and the other pointing diagonally toward the sky.

It’s here.

Shen Jiang says silently.

"GAAS-017 Red Lotus, all joint degrees of freedom unlocked. Computing core shutdown locked. Director Ji, I will do my best to keep the total damage rate of the machine under 30% after this run."

The striking red line sweeps over with lightning speed. It looks magnificent, yet it is silent. The Lighthouse Angel passes level with the top of the Nanshan base, then folds at a sharp, acute angle in mid-air and slashes diagonally downward.

As the raging fire ignites, the Joint Command Center’s order arrives:

"Run!"

Red Lotus’s right foot steps out first. Ten thousand tons of reactive force travel through the sole, lower leg, and thigh into the body of the giant mech. This single step destroys 2% of the components within the machine. Red Lotus’s massive frame takes flight in that brief instant. Shang Lu is not on the scene; if he were, he would surely marvel that only the earth could support such a great power.

Chengdu Time: 2:51 AM.

Stopwatch: 1:14:30.
Lighthouse Contact Countdown: 131:46:30.
Giant Mech Termination Countdown: 298:46:30.
Defense Line Breach Countdown: 17:57:33.